If you’re irritated by the cost of renewing your passport, be grateful you were not trying to obtain one in 1858, when it would have cost you £2 7s 6d (equivalent to £266) and involved personal acquaintance with the Foreign Secretary!
A large audience attended the Speaker Meeting on 7th October at Aughton Village Hall, to hear author, broadcaster and former Immigration Officer Martin Lloyd describe three events which have influenced the development of the passport we know today. In a vivid and detailed talk we travelled back to France in 1858 and the attempted assassination of Napoleon III, then to events Germany in 1914 which led to the inclusion of photographs, and again in Germany in 1945 when William Joyce, alias Lord Haw Haw, was executed for treason.
On Thursday 4th November, at the Scout & Guide Headquarters in Long Lane, author, speaker and raconteur Philip Caine will be joining us. The title of his talk is From Barrow to Baghdad, and we will begin at 11.15 am, after Horizons.
Born in 1950 in Barrow-in- Furness, Philip’s working life began in the hotel business. His career developed in the oil industry and 30 years were spent in places such as the North Sea, Algeria, Nigeria, Kazakhstan and Russia. From 2003, he spent 7 years in post war Baghdad working with the American coalition and a further 3 years running oil services companies in Dubai. He retired in 2015 and began writing and public speaking, since then he has spoken at over 400 venues all over the UK and written 9 adventure thrillers. All Philip’s books are available in Paperback, eBook and Audio format. For more information see www.philipcaine.com
Please note that this is the last of this year’s talks. Speaker Meetings will restart in February 2022, and here is a taster of what’s in store:
3rd February Neil Stevenson – From Pit Graves to Pyramids
3rd March Julia Clayton – The Grand Tour and its Lancashire Legacy
7th April Bill Soens – Vivian Meier, photographer
5th May Sid Calderbank – The Lancashire Cotton Famine
6th June. David Hearne – Sir William Brown
Please keep an eye on newsletters, enews and website for the latest information.
Pam Ball
See Pam’s Past Speaker Meetings for info on previous events.
Please email any ideas for Future Speaker Meetings to Pam Ball, our Speaker Meeting Organiser, at:
speakerteam@aughton-ormskirk-u3a.co.uk or phone 07974 749362.