Lectures talks and group visits

We offer a range of talks (see list below) and may also be able to provide or adapt talks to suit a particular audience. However, as even ready-made talks can take up a lot of time in preparation and delivery we do have to make a charge. Staff need to fit talks in among their other duties so we may not be able to accept all invitations. We recommend that if you are looking to us for a speaker you have at least a second choice of subject and date in mind before you contact us. Some talks can be given at short notice, others need a little time for fresh preparation or adaptation.

Groups visits to the office can be arranged during the day on Thursdays, (when the service is closed to the public), or from 5-7pm Tuesday, Wednesday or Friday or from 7 – 9 pm on Mondays. We normally show people "behind the scenes" explaining how the Service works and put on a display of documents specially selected for the group. Parties should have between ten and twenty people.

Charges

Ready-made talks can be given to groups and societies within the county at a standard fee of £65. Travel is charged extra on talks outside a 25 mile radius of Bedford.

Special or tailored talks, may require an extra charge to cover the cost of preparation, this will be discussed during initial booking negotiations.

Group visits to the office are charged at £65.

How To Book A Talk

All requests should be addressed initially to the Operations Manager responsible for outreach (Nigel Lutt) who will discuss the possibilities with the organiser and liaise with staff. Please do not contact members of staff individually until you have spoken to Nigel, although once someone has agreed to talk to your society or group then all further dealings can be direct. We suggest that you get in touch by telephone (01234-228834 or 228833) in the first instance, or email us.
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List of Speakers & Topics

Pamela Birch, Conservator

• Caring for books and documents (simple measures to ensure that your precious family records come to no harm. Can include a show & tell session)
• Delectable Documents – a stroll through 800 years of Bedfordshire History
• Parish Records beyond parish registers
• Conservation of the Wrest Park architectural drawings

Martin Deacon, Operations Manager

• Records Management (how the work of BLARS with contemporary and recent archives will help to save today's records for the future)
• Bedfordshire Home Front in World War Two (a talk based on the Bedfordshire County Council records on such subjects as ARP, bombing raids, women at war, agriculture, home guard etc.)
• House History (a talk on how to set about discovering the history of your house)
• Life on the Western Front (a talk based on Martin's work on 7th Battalion, Bedfordshire Regiment, mainly from the Battalion War Diary)

Kathryn Faukner, Archivist

• Crime in 19th Century Bedfordshire (based on the Paths to Crime project to catalogue Victorian Quarter Sessions records)
• Knights and Ladies, Peasants and Priests (a look at people and events in Bedfordshire between 1066 and 1300)
• Patience, Jigsaws and Other Games Archivists Play (a talk about the work of an archivist)
• The Poor Law and the Workhouse – Was it All Grim? (based on records of the Bedfordshire Poor Law Unions)

Nigel Lutt, Operations Manager

• Bedfordshire Railways (a study of the railway age in Bedfordshire, based on Nigel's knowledge of railway archives and history)
• Bedfordshire Scandals (based on material assembled for a travelling exhibition in 1992)
• Coins, Bank Notes and Archives (a history of money, using local examples)
• The Bedfordshire & Hertfordshire Regiment (based on an intimate knowledge of the regimental collections held locally - including the records of the Archives Service)
• Military Records for the Family Historian (an account of the muster lists and other military sources, mostly published by BHRS under Nigel's authorship in 1992). This talk can be adapted to the Services available for a particular place)
• Researching and collecting war medals
• Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Sailor....(sources for the history of occupations based on local sources: new in Spring 1999)
• Watch the Birdie (photographs and the family historian)
• George Arnald, artist (1766-1841) (a study of this notable Bedfordshire born artist - using material from an album of watercolours and sketches acquired for the Archives Service in 1991)
• The Camera Versus the Easel (alternative views of Bedford in art and photographs)
• The Bedfordshire Illustrations Collection (an introduction to the extensive collection of local images in the Archives Service collection)
• Bedford In Camera c.1860 - 1960 (a study of the work of local photographers, based on the Archive Service collection).

Bedfordshire Local History Association (BLHA)

The BLHA|| exists as an umbrella organisation for the many local history societies and groups in Bedfordshire. It exists to raise the profile and promote local history in and around the historic county and also to support and enhance the work of its individual societies and groups. If we cannot help with your speaker request then BLHA may be able to.