U3A member Barbara Prynn spends some time with Dance professional Ingrid Mackinnon to explore the themes of Heritage. Ingrid Mackinnon’s movement direction credits include #WeAreArrested (Royal Shakespeare Company), Fantastic Mr Fox (associate movement – Nuffield/Lyric), Kingdom Come (Royal Shakespeare Company) and #DR@CULA! (Royal Central School of Speech and Drama). She is also assistant choreographer and rehearsal director for Uchenna Dance. […]

My name is Elizabeth Hay and I’m a member of Hackney U3A. I’d never been to The Marx Library which has the material about the Spanish Civil War exhibition so I volunteered to find about it. I have always loved the poet Lorca’s work and was delighted to find the exhibition had included a celebration of him. I also have […]

A selection of posters and leaflets from events that took place in Hampstead Town Hall.               With thanks to Janet Potter and U3A London for writing this article.

Notwithstanding the postponement of the Coronation, the King’s dinner to half a million of the poor of London will take place as arranged. The dinner will cost £30,000, and each diner will be presented with a memento of the occasion. The announcement of this splendid act of royal benevolence was made in April by the Lord Mayor of London, Sir […]

U3A member and Wac Arts heritage volunteer Barbara Prynn interviewed Judith Ufland on her memories of war in Hampstead and at the Town Hall. The synopsis of the interview and the full interview are available to read below. Thanks to Judith and Barbara for sharing their (hi)stories. Judith’s Interview Article: “Air-Raids in Hampstead” Judith moved into Hampstead on Lyttelton Road […]

If Lorca came to symbolise the poets and writers of Spain who opposed Franco and his intention to censor and destroy, Picasso’s cubist painting of Guernica came to symbolise the artists who opposed Franco. Guernica is a town in the Basque region of Spain. On 26 April 1937 General Franco asked the German Airforce to bomb the town. Before the […]

As well as the Spanish Civil War Exhibition, a celebration of the life of Lorca was held at Hampstead Old Town Hall. Federico Garcia Lorca was born in 1894 near Granada in Spain and murdered by a firing squad of Franco’s soldiers on 19 August 1936. He was a great poet, playwright and theatre director. His full name was Federico […]

The Spanish Civil war took place between 1936 and 1939. In 1936 Spain was ruled by a moderate, liberal government of Republicans, supported by communist and socialist parties. Although they had been elected they were opposed by The Nationalists who were led by General Franco the controller of the army who was supported by a number of conservative groups. The […]

Council records reveal 90 years of Town Hall history Reading through the records of meetings of the Hampstead Vestry, later renamed Hampstead Council, gives a revealing snapshot of the local area and the country as a whole over almost a 90-year period. The minutes, covering council meetings held from July 1878 to March 1965, are preserved in large leather-bound volumes […]