RECENT NEWS
AGM 2021
In November 2021 we held our Annual General Meeting. Unfortunately there was not a quorum. Therefore a Special General Meeting had to be called. Full information on both meetings held and information of the resolutions passed can be seen here.
40th Anniversary
The national u3a is starting a programme in 2022 of events to celebrate its 40th birthday. One aspect is to plant trees and help the climate. iU3A has played its part by procuring a copse in this new wood in the Brecon Beacons (see our Certificate here). You can see more information regarding 'our' copse here.
Our Picnic in the Park event went very well with over 80 members attending on a cool June day. We needn't have worried about not having enough food, members brought great quantities and variety to share. To mark the national u3a '40th Anniversary' we had a cake to cut and the new borough mayor was there to cut it. We also then featured in the Islington Tribune.


Islington U3A will be supporting the London Region initiative of 'Walking Around London' — over 230 miles of Capital Ring and the LOOP.
Other events will be added here as the celebrations continue.
National u3a Day
In 2021 iU3A participated in this nationwide
event to celebrate the u3a movement and
attract new members. We kicked off our activities with an
attractive stall in Chapel Market flying the banners of u3a.
It was supported by many members giving out literature to
the passing public. 15 signed up on the spot and many others
took away our literature. On the actual day of 02 June we
had a public demo from our Petanque group in Caledonian Park
and a day-long online programme of events. The programme,
again open to the public, showcased some of our Groups
(Current Affairs, Classic Films, Bird Watching) and our
Courses (past and future). We rounded off the day with an
external entertainer (telling us the tale of a gory murder
in Victorian London) and then another of Mary White's
popular quizzes.
Last Monthly Meeting
For information on our last monthly meeting and all our previous monthly meetings see here.
Shared Learning Projects — London Met
In collaboration with London Metropolitan University we are undertaking some Shared Learning Projects (SLPs). The first of these was regarding 'Hybrid Meetings' and the future shape of our Groups using online and physical blended learning techniques. The feedback from this first SLP can be seen here.
New Members' Teas
We've been running
these for a number of years now with a variety of formats.
The intention is to offer a direct welcome to new members to
iU3A and they have always proved to be a great success. The
new members appreciate the individual invite and the
opportunity to meet some new members in the same posi
tion as themselves, learn a bit more about
iU3A from the attending Executive Committee member(s),
discuss their interests and what groups they may sign up
for. Due to Covid restrictions these have had to be held
outdoors and with few people attending.
Pub Quizzes
These are becoming regular events. We held a further three in 2020 all on Zoom.
Our last physical pub quizzes was in February 2020, again in the Canonbury Tavern (just before lockdown). As always it was well supported, with 58 members buying a ticket for the event. A number of members met beforehand to eat at the Tavern and then we took up our team places upstairs.
Again we were using Jez Worsnip as our professional quizmaster for the evening. Jez designs the questions especially for iU3A and of course the judges' word is final! As always it's a great opportunity to test the grey matter and get to know other members.
Ten teams
battled it out with mixed
fortunes. The first half's
musical round had caused
some pains to most teams and
there was a clear leader. In
the second half the
favourites lost ground. The
winning team was the Steely
J’s. They got 37 points. It
was a close contest with
only seven points between
the first and last
teams:
another successful event
enjoyed by all. Thanks to
Mary W and Margaret O for
organising the event. We are
all looking forward to the
next one in the Autumn.
We've now held a few of these 'Pub' quizzes in
2020.
The first was
held online on
Zoom in May
2020. Covid-19
has caused
some of our
activities to
be cancelled,
so this was a
replacement
activity,
working much
like our
previous
'physical' pub
quizzes. It
was run by our
usual
quizmaster
Jez, in
'virtual'
teams which
communicated
with each
other through
WhatsApp,
Skype, phone
or other
means. Each
team had one
electronic
scorecard,
which was then
sent to Jez
electronically
for marking.
50 took part,
over 10 teams.
It was
different! But
it was enjoyed
by all.
Team K, which consisted of Helen Wright (quizzing from loc
kdown
in Italy),
Norman and
Jean Wilson,
Jayne Forbes
and returning
member Rob
Townsend, won
with a score
of 32 points
out of a
possible 42.
Well done to
them! And
thanks to Mary
White for
organising!
Open Days

We were due to
hold one of these again in 2020 but due to the Covid
pandemic we had to postpone this to 2021. So it was
with great joy that we were relatively back to
normal in October 2021. We had a great turnout from
current members and from members of the public
interested in finding out about Islington U3A. Our
Interest Groups were on display some showing their
'wears' or activities.
We didn't hold
one of these in 2019 but in October 2018 our Open
Day was also our fifth birthday celebration. Again
this proved very popular and enabled non-members to
meet us and find out about all the things iU3A does.
As in previous years there was an excellent turnout
with over 200 attending (151 members and 50
non-members). Out of the 50, 23 joined iU3A on the
day and many others took away forms, so we hope to
hear from them again soon. The existing members who
turned up used the chance to see what other groups
were on offer and sign up to them. Everybody also
enjoyed our delicious birthday cake and had a good
natter. This year the 'star' who cut our birthday
cake was our acting Vice Chair, Ruth Gee.

With over 60
interest groups on display there were many
great displays. Eight potential new groups
were also being advertised to gauge interest
and support. Visible and audible displays
charmed the audience as they strolled around.
All the existing Group Coordinators and their
helpers did an excellent job of explaining
what their group did and hence encouraged many
to sign up. Hopefully this exercise also
encouraged more members to be brave enough to
volunteer to be Coordinators.
A special thanks must go to the sub-committee which organised another successful day, particularly to Sue Welsford, Diane Austin, Margaret Wearing and Isabel Dickson for coordinating the whole event. The Open Day is our major showcase for members and to the public who might be interested in joining.
Summer Parties
These are a regular annual
event. We had a very enjoyable gathering in
September (2021), with nearly 100 members
present. This was the first time after the
pandemic and lockdowns that many of our
members had met physically, so it was much
appreciated. The good food and drink might
have helped as well. Thanks to Margaret O and
all helpers who made this event a great
success.
To see more of the photos taken at this event look here.

In June we held our
annual Summer Party for
all members. The venue was the
Olden Gardens and it was looking its best —
particularly the rambling rose. This tranquil haven is a
glorious backdrop for our jolly party. This year we sold
108 tickets allowing us to just about cover the costs.
The weather forecast had threatened rain — again. However, it held off, but it wasn't that warm.
The booze lasted well this year so all were happy,
in fact the
challenge was getting people
to vacate the gardens at the
end when our time was up.
There was much socialising, chatting to friends and making new friendships. Thanks to Lesley Delacourt for again bringing the bubbly back from France at a very low cost allowing us all to benefit from the low ticket price.
Thanks also to Diane Austin and other volunteers for organising this event.



Group Coordinators Lunch
These are becoming more frequent. In 2020 with lockdown and other restrictions these were all held online through Zoom. In April 2019 we held the annual Group Coordinators' meeting: a good turnout, over 60% of coordinators attending. As usual there was a full agenda and plenty of healthy debate. The Chair kicked things off with a welcome and then some feedback from recent surveys and initiatives. The full presentation can be viewed here.

In January (2019)
we held a 'thankyou' lunch for all our Group
Coordinators. 45 attended, a good majority of the
total we have. They were all thanked for the efforts
they provided in running their groups. Our activity
groups make up the majority of what we offer in iU3A,
so we are highly dependent on these volunteers. Unlike
the annual Group Coordinators' Meeting this was not
about training but merely a thankyou. However it still
provided an opportunity for the Group Coordinators to
exchange ideas amongst themselves and learn about
other group activities. While the service was a bit
slow the conversation flowed.
It was also an
opportunity to put a face to a name on an email. All
seemed to enjoy the event.
A big thank you to Sue and Judith for organising the event.
Results from the recent (June 2018) Group Coordinators' survey can be read here.
iU3A Outings
Outings are organised from time to time by members to places of interest in London and the Home Counties. Destinations are varied and can always be reached by public transport, usually within the Freedom Pass Zone, but occasionally a bit further afield. If you want to arrange a visit, please contact Judith at outingscoord.iu3a@gmail.com. Forthcoming visits are advertised in the Members' Bulletin.
These have been resumed after the pandemic.
May 2022 — St Albans: 17 m
embers
travelled
from St
Pancras Station to St Albans. Most of the
group walked through the town, and through the
rain, to the cathedral, taking in the sights
of the City Centre, including the City Museum,
the weekly market and the Old Courthouse en
route. A few decided to take a taxi to
conserve their energy. We all met up in the
cathedral cafe for a coffee before joining our
pre-booked guided Cathedral tour at 12 noon.
Our guide was excellent: he told us the
history of the building, including many
interesting anecdotes, and pointed out its
main architectural features.
The cathedral stands on the site of the tomb of St Alban, who was martyred in about 300 AD. A series of churches were built to house the shrine and the building of the cathedral itself was started in 1077 by the Normans. St Albans became an important abbey and centre of pilgrimage until it was dissolved soon after 1534. By the 19th century the building was in a poor state and extensive changes were made to the fabric of the abbey, including the installation of stained-glass windows. There are some interesting modern touches as well, such as statues of recent saints of various Christian denominations. St Albans is the only ecumenical cathedral in the United Kingdom. We viewed architectural details of all these many
phases,
including the shrine to St. Alban and the
shrine to Amphibolus, a priest he sheltered
and then saved from execution as a Christian
by the Romans by exchanging cloaks with him.
During recent restoration work an ad
ditional
carving was added to Amphibolus’s shrine to
commemorate the pandemic.
After a lunch break group members had a choice of activity; a few decided to explore St Albans on their own but the majority opted to walk through Verulamium Park, below the Cathedral, where only a few remains are visible above ground but there are intriguing humps indicating the site of the Roman city. Verulamium was one of the largest cities in Roman Britain, built in a valley which was the site of a tribal centre and occupied by Romano-British citizens from c.50 AD to 450-500 AD.
Our
destination was the Verulamium Museum of
everyday life in Roman Britain, which has many
artefacts as well as very fine mosaics
excavated from the site by Mortimer
Wheeler.
Afterwards, one or two visited the nearby Anglo-Saxon Church of St Michael built on the site of a Roman basilica, but the heavy rain deterred us from venturing to the Roman Theatre of Verulamium, built in about 140 AD. It is the only example of Britain of a theatre with a stage rather than an amphitheatre.
We returned to the station for the train back to St Pancras in our own time. Many managed the slog back up to the top of the town through the rain, although a few decided to call a taxi.
2021 Audley Village: a new block of retirement flats overlooking Clapham Common was the destination for 13 members on 16 November. The Audley "village" has 94 one to three bedroom apartments as well as a pool, cinema, restaurant, health club and in-house care team. There was a warm welcome with tea and cake and no hard sell. One member was impressed with the transparency and willingness to answer questions and came away “longing to move in tomorrow”. The Audley model operates in some 20 locations outside London, and the price of flats varies accordingly.
December
2019 — Bath Christmas
Market:
on a sunny Monday morning in early December, nineteen
members of iU3A set off from Paddington for a day out at the
Bath Christmas market. It turned out that much was on offer
in addition to opportunities for Christmas present buying,
and food and mulled wine tasting at the 100+ pop up chalets
in the centre of town. Some of the more hardy set off for a
walking tour taking in the Holbourne museum (Raphael and
Matisse exhibitions currently),
the Royal
Crescent, a quick look at the outdoor ice rink, frequent
reminders of Jane Austen and Persuasion, all of course in
the setting of the stunning honey-coloured sandstone of the
Georgian architecture. Others looked round the Abbey and
then the Roman Baths for what turned out to be a highly
recommended, fun guided tour. In the late afternoon as the
Christmas lights were at their best we all met up for a
delicious supper before a dash to the station for the
journey home. (Lisa Crispin and David McPhail)
To see more of our previous events and outings follow the links below:
For 2019-20 look here.
For 2016-18 look here.
Theatre Visits
Archive
To see more of our previous events and outings follow the links below:
For 2019-20 look here.
For 2016-18 look here.
Or you might want to read about 'Our iU3A Story' which maps our development over the years: Our Story.
In November 2021 we held our Annual General Meeting. Unfortunately there was not a quorum. Therefore a Special General Meeting had to be called. Full information on both meetings held and information of the resolutions passed can be seen here.
40th Anniversary
The national u3a is starting a programme in 2022 of events to celebrate its 40th birthday. One aspect is to plant trees and help the climate. iU3A has played its part by procuring a copse in this new wood in the Brecon Beacons (see our Certificate here). You can see more information regarding 'our' copse here.
Our Picnic in the Park event went very well with over 80 members attending on a cool June day. We needn't have worried about not having enough food, members brought great quantities and variety to share. To mark the national u3a '40th Anniversary' we had a cake to cut and the new borough mayor was there to cut it. We also then featured in the Islington Tribune.


Islington U3A will be supporting the London Region initiative of 'Walking Around London' — over 230 miles of Capital Ring and the LOOP.
Other events will be added here as the celebrations continue.
National u3a Day
In 2021 iU3A participated in this nationwide

Last Monthly Meeting
For information on our last monthly meeting and all our previous monthly meetings see here.
Shared Learning Projects — London Met
In collaboration with London Metropolitan University we are undertaking some Shared Learning Projects (SLPs). The first of these was regarding 'Hybrid Meetings' and the future shape of our Groups using online and physical blended learning techniques. The feedback from this first SLP can be seen here.
New Members' Teas


Pub Quizzes
These are becoming regular events. We held a further three in 2020 all on Zoom.
Our last physical pub quizzes was in February 2020, again in the Canonbury Tavern (just before lockdown). As always it was well supported, with 58 members buying a ticket for the event. A number of members met beforehand to eat at the Tavern and then we took up our team places upstairs.
Again we were using Jez Worsnip as our professional quizmaster for the evening. Jez designs the questions especially for iU3A and of course the judges' word is final! As always it's a great opportunity to test the grey matter and get to know other members.

We've now held a few of these 'Pub' quizzes in

Team K, which consisted of Helen Wright (quizzing from loc

Open Days





A special thanks must go to the sub-committee which organised another successful day, particularly to Sue Welsford, Diane Austin, Margaret Wearing and Isabel Dickson for coordinating the whole event. The Open Day is our major showcase for members and to the public who might be interested in joining.
Summer Parties

To see more of the photos taken at this event look here.


The weather forecast had threatened rain — again. However, it held off, but it wasn't that warm.
The booze lasted well this year so all were happy,

There was much socialising, chatting to friends and making new friendships. Thanks to Lesley Delacourt for again bringing the bubbly back from France at a very low cost allowing us all to benefit from the low ticket price.
Thanks also to Diane Austin and other volunteers for organising this event.



Group Coordinators Lunch
These are becoming more frequent. In 2020 with lockdown and other restrictions these were all held online through Zoom. In April 2019 we held the annual Group Coordinators' meeting: a good turnout, over 60% of coordinators attending. As usual there was a full agenda and plenty of healthy debate. The Chair kicked things off with a welcome and then some feedback from recent surveys and initiatives. The full presentation can be viewed here.



A big thank you to Sue and Judith for organising the event.
Results from the recent (June 2018) Group Coordinators' survey can be read here.
iU3A Outings
Outings are organised from time to time by members to places of interest in London and the Home Counties. Destinations are varied and can always be reached by public transport, usually within the Freedom Pass Zone, but occasionally a bit further afield. If you want to arrange a visit, please contact Judith at outingscoord.iu3a@gmail.com. Forthcoming visits are advertised in the Members' Bulletin.
These have been resumed after the pandemic.
May 2022 — St Albans: 17 m


The cathedral stands on the site of the tomb of St Alban, who was martyred in about 300 AD. A series of churches were built to house the shrine and the building of the cathedral itself was started in 1077 by the Normans. St Albans became an important abbey and centre of pilgrimage until it was dissolved soon after 1534. By the 19th century the building was in a poor state and extensive changes were made to the fabric of the abbey, including the installation of stained-glass windows. There are some interesting modern touches as well, such as statues of recent saints of various Christian denominations. St Albans is the only ecumenical cathedral in the United Kingdom. We viewed architectural details of all these many

During recent restoration work an ad

After a lunch break group members had a choice of activity; a few decided to explore St Albans on their own but the majority opted to walk through Verulamium Park, below the Cathedral, where only a few remains are visible above ground but there are intriguing humps indicating the site of the Roman city. Verulamium was one of the largest cities in Roman Britain, built in a valley which was the site of a tribal centre and occupied by Romano-British citizens from c.50 AD to 450-500 AD.

Afterwards, one or two visited the nearby Anglo-Saxon Church of St Michael built on the site of a Roman basilica, but the heavy rain deterred us from venturing to the Roman Theatre of Verulamium, built in about 140 AD. It is the only example of Britain of a theatre with a stage rather than an amphitheatre.
We returned to the station for the train back to St Pancras in our own time. Many managed the slog back up to the top of the town through the rain, although a few decided to call a taxi.
2021 Audley Village: a new block of retirement flats overlooking Clapham Common was the destination for 13 members on 16 November. The Audley "village" has 94 one to three bedroom apartments as well as a pool, cinema, restaurant, health club and in-house care team. There was a warm welcome with tea and cake and no hard sell. One member was impressed with the transparency and willingness to answer questions and came away “longing to move in tomorrow”. The Audley model operates in some 20 locations outside London, and the price of flats varies accordingly.



To see more of our previous events and outings follow the links below:
For 2019-20 look here.
For 2016-18 look here.
Theatre Visits
We hold these at least once a year. These
are in addition to our two Theatre Groups that we have
(for more information see the Groups
page. Thanks are due to Sue Welsford for organising these
events.
Clues Trails
We are pleased to be
able to announce the restarting of these after lockdown.
This one in October 2020 was in the King's Cross
area (one of the benefits of London still being quiet is
that we can hold these midweek). Three teams battled it
out around a mixed area —
starting in the redeveloped Granary Square but then
through the refurbished gasometers, across to the old St
Pancras Gardens where so many famous dissenters are
buried. Then we completed the circle through King's Cross
and St Pancras stations before returning to Coal Drop
Yard. The scores were very
close:
68-67-67.
Thanks again
to Elizabeth
Mansbridge for
organising
another of
these
successful
events. The
trail can be
read here. Try it out yourself!

In 2019 we held two of
these popular events. The first was held in
June and was in the Hoxton/Shoreditch area
with a street art theme. We gathered at the
beginning point for food and drinks, then six teams
of four or five set off from Great Eastern
Street in a radial direction on the circular
three-mile route. Teams used their observation
skills to follow directions, use the clues
provided to spot features (often street art)
and also to spot the location of provided
images. All teams avoided the late-back time
penalty and final scores were close. However
there was a clear winning team. While the pub
made it awkward for us, all had a great time.
You can do this trail by yourself at your own
time. The trail can be read here.
The second was held in August and was around the Tower of London area. While quite a tourist hot spot, even on a Sunday morning, there were amazing quiet hidden pockets that were a delight for the four teams that puzzled their way around the course. We were lucky with the weather and had just enough sun to make it a pleasant stroll round this just under three mile course. However, there wasn't too much time to dawdle as there was a time penalty if you were late back. As always, it was the round of photo images that provided the difference between the first and last teams. Thanks go to Elizabeth Mansbridge for organising another great event (and to Isabel for doing the tickets and team selections).
In 2018 we held
two of these popular events. The first of these was
held in June and the second in September. For the
June one a warm Sunday meant a very pleasant event
with three teams this time (numbers a bit down from
the last one). This one was based again around the
city and followed byways and alleys that most people
didn't even know existed. Great views over the river
at one point. Most teams got the majority of the
clues and got back to the starting & finishing
point pub in good time. However the photo images
were the differentiating aspect. No team spotted all
the images during their route but the 'Poached
Eggheads' saw the most and hence were the winning
team.
The September one (arranged by Elizabeth Mansbridge) saw us in a new area for this Clues Trail — Canary Wharf. While the image might be of tall skyscrapers and not much else, we discovered an amazing collection of street art, historic corners, and interesting architectural features. Numbers attending were a bit disappointing considering the effort put in to organise these events. But maybe a Friday just coincides with too many other iU3A activities.
In 2017 — in August on the day 22 members turned up to form five teams, then followed the trail to seek out the clues. Additional points were awarded for spotting the location of some photographic images during the trail and a special round at the end back at the pub tested teams' knowledge of the London Guilds. Again everyone thoroughly enjoyed the event. Thanks to Elizabeth Mansbridge for organising this one — and we all look forward to the next one.
Clues Trails



The second was held in August and was around the Tower of London area. While quite a tourist hot spot, even on a Sunday morning, there were amazing quiet hidden pockets that were a delight for the four teams that puzzled their way around the course. We were lucky with the weather and had just enough sun to make it a pleasant stroll round this just under three mile course. However, there wasn't too much time to dawdle as there was a time penalty if you were late back. As always, it was the round of photo images that provided the difference between the first and last teams. Thanks go to Elizabeth Mansbridge for organising another great event (and to Isabel for doing the tickets and team selections).

The September one (arranged by Elizabeth Mansbridge) saw us in a new area for this Clues Trail — Canary Wharf. While the image might be of tall skyscrapers and not much else, we discovered an amazing collection of street art, historic corners, and interesting architectural features. Numbers attending were a bit disappointing considering the effort put in to organise these events. But maybe a Friday just coincides with too many other iU3A activities.
In 2017 — in August on the day 22 members turned up to form five teams, then followed the trail to seek out the clues. Additional points were awarded for spotting the location of some photographic images during the trail and a special round at the end back at the pub tested teams' knowledge of the London Guilds. Again everyone thoroughly enjoyed the event. Thanks to Elizabeth Mansbridge for organising this one — and we all look forward to the next one.
Archive
To see more of our previous events and outings follow the links below:
For 2019-20 look here.
For 2016-18 look here.
Or you might want to read about 'Our iU3A Story' which maps our development over the years: Our Story.
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