Senior Fellows' Society Summer 2023 Meeting – Colchester

This year, the Senior Fellows’ Society summer meeting will be held in Colchester between 12 – 14 June 2023.

The three-day event will consist of a series of lectures in the mornings, guided tours of incredible Colchester attractions in the afternoons, and dinners. Booking for this event is now available and all senior fellows are welcome to attend with partners, friends, and guests.

The morning talks will be held at the Colchester Town Hall, and we have arranged a selection of hotel options at a discounted rate within a few minutes walk from the Town Hall. The dinners for this event will also be held at the Town Hall. 

Following lunch at the Town Hall, we will depart for visits to two interesting attractions in the Colchester area: Flatford and The Munnings Art Museum. 

The day activities will then be followed by dinners, held at some of the historic Old Siege House on Tuesday and in the Old Library at Colchester Town Hall on Wednesday.

Please see below for further information about your day and also for the link to book your tickets.

Accommodation

We have 3 options for accommodation, all within walking distance of the conference and dinner venue. 

Guests are encouraged to book their accommodation either at The George Colchester, the St Nicholas Hotel, or Brook Red Lion Hotel. We have reserved rooms in all of these hotels and you will get discounted prices if you contact them and say you are booking for the Senior Fellows’ Society conference. 
For details on how to book these rooms at a discount offered to our senior fellows, please contact the RCS England Events Team.

Mornings

Both mornings will comprise a programme of lectures at the Colchester Town Hall, followed by lunch.  

The full programme of talks is as follows:

Tuesday 13 June 2023

• 9am Registration
• 9.40am Introduction and welcome – Senior Fellows' Society Chair, Mr W E G (Bill) Thomas 
• 9.50am The Roman invasion of Britain – Patrick Denney
• 10.30am Artists of the Stour Valley – Sue Pownall
• 11.10am Refreshment break
• 11.40am The Army in Colchester – Andrew May
• 12.20pm Stow Maries WW1 Airfield – Ian Flint
• 1pm Lunch

Afternoons

Following lunch, coaches will arrive at the George Hotel at 2pm to take fellows and guests to the afternoon activities.

The activities are limited by the number of delegates so we will have two options for each day. Senior fellows have a chance to book one visit for Tuesday and select a different visit for Wednesday afternoon. Please ensure you select a different activity for each afternoon, so you get to see both.

Please note that due to limitations in capacity, each tour can only take 30 delegates, so book your places as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

Flatford

Flatford lies in the heart of the beautiful Dedham Vale. This charming hamlet was the inspiration for some of John Constable's most famous pictures, for example, the Hay Wain or Boatbuilding near Flatford Mill among many others. Wandering beside the River Stour or looking at Flatford Mill and Willy Lott's House you can feel as if you are actually walking through one of his paintings. 

The Munnings Art Museum

The Munnings Art Museum is at Castle House, the former home and working Studio of Sir Alfred Munnings PPRA (1878-1959) and his wife, Violet. The museum owns the largest collection of art made by this globally renowned, prolific East Anglian artist and former President of the Royal Academy of Arts (1944-1949). The furniture and objects around the house remain as they were when the artist and his wife were in residence.  

Castle House is set in forty acres of beautiful countryside in Dedham Vale, on the borders of Essex and Suffolk. This elegant Tudor and Georgian building was described by Munnings as “the house of my dreams” and he lived and worked here for over forty years until his death in 1959.

Evening:

Dinner on Tuesday will be held at the historic Old Siege House, which is a 10 – 15 minutes' walk from the hotels. This will be comprised of a 3 three course dinner with a paid bar for drinks.

On Wednesday night we will have dinner, following a drinks reception, at the Old Library at Colchester Town Hall, which is 5 minutes'  walking distance from the hotels. Dinner will be preceded by a piano recital by our very own senior fellow Mr David Mowle. 

Please make sure to specify any dietary requirements when you book your dinner tickets or contact the RCS England Events team. Senior fellows who arrive on Monday will need to make their own dinner arrangements.

We hope to see you in the summer in Colchester! Should you have any questions or would like to talk to a member of the team, please contact us by email or phone numbers 020 7869 6412 and 020 7869 6447.