EVENTS
This is a timeline of our events as we encourage advance booking
To browse the most current events please scroll down
Monday 7 June 2027
Andy Taylor, Thames Valley Archaeological Services will speak about excavations at the Elvian School, Bath Road
11 am
The Pantry opens at 10 am for refreshments but all our talks start at 11
May 2027
AGM - details to be confirmed
Monday 5 April 2027
Martin Andrews will give a talk with a FoRM book group link titled 'Fox Talbot and the Reading Establishment'
11 am
The Pantry opens at 10 am for refreshments but all our talks start at 11
Monday 1 March 2027
Ken Brown and Chris Widdows both Old Redingensians will speak about Reading School
11 am
The Pantry opens at 10 am for refreshments but all our talks start at 11
Monday 1 February 2027
Richard Bennett, chair of Reading Civic Society
'Reading Civic Society Then and Now 4'
A look back to the 1960s in a traditional slide show. Remember those slide shows of the 1960s and 1970s? Join us for Reading Civic Society’s Then and Now 4 to see some images of the towns buildings and some people as it was.
Richard and Alison Bennettt have lived in Reading since 1986. Richard has been Chair of Reading Civic Society for many years, is a trustee at GII* Watlington House and led the establishment of the Trooper Potts VC & Berkshire Yeomanry Memorials.
11 am
The Pantry opens at 10 am for refreshments but all our talks start at 11
There is no coffee morning in January
Monday 4 January 2027
Monday 7 December 2026
Friends’ Christmas Quiz in The Pantry
11 am
The Pantry opens at 10 am for refreshments
Saturday 7th November 2026
Book Group: ‘Fox Talbot & the Reading Establishment’
The Pantry
Town Hall
‘Fox Talbot & the Reading Establishment’, by Martin Andrews. p/b, and ‘The Pencil of Nature’, by William Henry Fox Talbot. Illustrated, p/b.
Discussion at this meeting over afternoon tea to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Museum Book Group.
2 - 4pm
Monday 2 November 2026
David Cliffe will speak about the silk industry in Reading
The Pantry
Town Hall
David Cliffe is chair of the History of Reading Society and the Berkshire Local History Association. Since his retirement as Local Studies Manager for Reading Libraries he has written a number of local history books about Reading and his home town of Macclesfield.
The Pantry opens at 10 am for refreshments but all our talks start at 11 am
A building that was once a silk factory on King's Road
Monday 5th October 2026
Terry Dixon
The Pantry
Town Hall
The challenges involved in writing the book: ‘The making of Reading’s Influential Women’, written by Terry Dixon and Linda Saul.
The Pantry opens at 10am and the talk starts at 11am
Monday 7th September 2026
Matthew Williams, Reading Museum Manager
The Pantry
Town Hall
Roman Britain Project update – ‘Discovering Calleva’.
The Pantry opens at 10am and the talk starts at 11am
Saturday 5th September 2026
Book Group: ‘Matilda, Empress, Queen, Warrior’
The Pantry
Town Hall
By Catherine Hadley
2 - 4pm
Monday 6th July 2026
Richard Havelock
The Pantry
Town Hall
Talk on the architect and furniture and textile designer Charles Francis Annesley Voysey (1857 – 1941)
The Pantry opens at 10am and the talk starts at 11am
Saturday 4th July 2026
Book Group: ‘Alyce Chaucer 1’
The Pantry
Town Hall
‘Alyce Chaucer 1: The Serpent of Division’, by Christina Hardyment. p/b.
2 - 4pm
Monday 1st June 2026
Sheila Fisher: ‘Volunteering in Museums in Reading’
The Pantry
Town Hall
Sheila Fisher has been leading on volunteering at Reading Museum and the MERL for 8 years. Join us at the start of Volunteers Week
The Pantry opens at 10am and the talk starts at 11am
Monday 11th May 2026
FoRM AGM
The Pantry
Town Hall
FoRM AGM
The Pantry opens at 10am and the AGM starts at 11am
Saturday 2nd May 2026
Book Group: ‘Thames Sacred River’
The Pantry
Town Hall
Thames Sacred River’, by Peter Ackroyd. Illustrated, p/b & h/b.
2 - 4pm
Monday 13th April 2026
Private view of ‘Reading then and now’ exhibition
The Pantry
Town Hall
Talk by Elaine Blake
10.30am
Saturday 7th March 2026
Book Group: ‘Forgotten Women of the War of the Roses: The Untold History Behind the Battle for the Crown’,
The Pantry
Town Hall
‘Forgotten Women of the War of the Roses: The Untold History Behind the Battle for the Crown’, by Jo Romero (2024) Pen & Sword Books. A Caversham - based author and artist, interested in exploring ‘hidden histories’ and the ‘forgotten women’ of history. The book is a consideration of women’s wider roles in the conflict, highlighting many aspects of their actions, and includes reference to a local woman, Elizabeth Clerk, living in Reading at the time of the visit made by Edward IV and his new bride, Elizabeth Woodville, to Reading Abbey.
2-4pm
Tel/text 07887 533290 for further information
Monday 2nd March 2026
Pilgrimage in Reading
The Pantry
Town Hall
John Painter, Secretary of the Friends of Reading Abbey, on ‘Pilgrimage in Reading’. The talk looks at both pilgrimage to the Abbey, stimulated by the Hand of St James, and also pilgrimage in Caversham, linked to the Shrine of Our Lady of Caversham, now generally accepted to have been at Dean's Farm. John Painter, a retired local government ofÏcer, is Secretary of the Friends of Reading Abbey, a body set up in the 1980s to promote awareness of the Abbey, its architecture and history, and the conservations of the Abbey Ruins.
10.30am
Monday 2nd February 2026
Artist’s talk: Johannes von Stumm
The Pantry
Town Hall
Johannes von Stumm, Trustee of Reading Foundation for Art, will talk about his work as a sculptor.
10.30am
Saturday 3rd January 2026
Book Group: ‘The Natural History of Selbourne’
The Pantry
Town Hall
‘The Natural History of Selbourne’, by Gilbert White (precursor to modern ecology, the book first published in 1789), editor Anne Secord (2013) Oxford University Press. One of many available versions, this includes illustrations contemporary to the period of first publication, and an introduction setting the work in its 18th century context. Of connected interest: Gilbert White: A Biography of the author of The Natural History of Selbourne, by Richard Mabey (1986) Century Hutchinson; and The Wakes: house, garden, museum, and field studies centre - Gilbert White’s home in Selbourne, Hampshire from 1730 - 1793. gilbertwhitehouse.org.uk.
2-4pm
Tel/text 07887 533290 for further information
Monday 1st December 2025
Friends’ Christmas Quiz in The Pantry
The Pantry
Town Hall
Friends’ Christmas Quiz in The Pantry.
10.30am
Monday 3rd November 2025
The Old Town Hall Threats and Opportunities
The Pantry
Town Hall
Tony Page, Honorary Alderman of the Borough of Reading
10.30am
Book Group: Widdershins Walk
Saturday 1st November 2025
The Pantry
Town Hall
Widdershins Walk: Round the Edge of Reading
(2025) Peter Driver & Geoff Sawers, Peculiarity Press.
2-4pm
Tel/text 07887 533290 for further information.
Private view of ‘Reading’s DIGITAL Revolution’ with Brendan Carr, Reading Museum Community Engagement Curator
Monday 6th October 2025
The Museum
Town Hall
Join us for an exclusive preview of Reading’s Digital Revolution, a vibrant mixed-media exhibition celebrating 60 years since the arrival of Digital Equipment Corporation in our town — a pivotal moment that helped shape Reading’s thriving tech industry past continues to influence the present and inspire the future. Don’t miss this opportunity to discover the stories, innovations, and people behind Reading’s digital legacy.
Pantry at 10.00, curator’s tour at 11.00
Heritage Open Day: Organ Event
Saturday 13th September 2025
Town Hall
A joint event featuring music and talks to celebrate the Royal College of Organists’ Play the Organ Year 2025.
Check whatsonreading.com for updates.
Book Group: The Siege of Loyalty House
Saturday 6th September 2025
The Pantry
Town Hall
The Siege of Loyalty House: A New History of the English Civil War
(2023) Jessie Childs, Vintage Publishing.
2-4pm
Tel/text 07887 533290 for further information.
Talk: Jane Austen 250
Monday 1st September 2025
The Pantry
Town Hall
Joy Pibworth
Celebrating Jane Austen’s birthday.
The Pantry opens at 10, the programme starts at 11:00
Talk: The Ogham Stone
Monday 7th July 2025
The Pantry
Town Hall
Angela Houghton, Collections Management Curator
The Pantry opens at 10, the programme starts at 11:00
Book group: At Home with Jane Austen
Saturday 5th July 2025
The Pantry
Town Hall
At Home with Jane Austen
(2018) Lucy Worsley, Hodder & Stoughton.
2-4pm
Tel/text 07887 533290 for further information.
Waterfest
Saturday 28th June 2025
The Abbey Ruins
FoRM stall at Reading Abbey ruins.
Talk: Widdershins Walk
Monday 2nd June 2025
The Pantry
Town Hall
ïPeter Driver & Geoff Sawers, two local artists, will speak about their book, Widdershins Walk, which covers an anti-clockwise walk around the circumference of Reading, divided into four quarters and four seasons.
The Pantry opens at 10, the programme starts at 11:00
Annual General Meeting
Monday 12th May 2025
The Pantry
Town Hall
The Pantry opens at 10, the meeting starts at 11:00
Talk: Silchester Excavations, part 3
Saturday 10th May 2025
Reading Museum
Second of three talks by Professor Mike Fulford on the excavations at Silchester.
Book Group: The Greatest Knight
Saturday 3rd May 2025
The Pantry
Town Hall
The Greatest Knight: The Remarkable Life of William Marshall, The Power behind Five English Thrones
(2015) Thomas Ashbridge, Simon & Schuster
2 - 4pm
Tel/text 07887 533290 for further information.
Talk: Silchester Excavations, part 2
Saturday 12th April
2025
Reading Museum
Second of three talks by Professor Mike Fulford on the excavations at Silchester.
Private View: Reading’s Digital Revolution
Monday 7th April 2025
Sir John Madejski Gallery
Brendan Carr, Community Engagement Curator, Reading Museum, will introduce the Exhibition to be held from Tuesday 18 March 2025 – Wednesday 24 December 2025 in the Sir John Madejski Art Gallery.
The Pantry opens at 10, the private views starts at 11:00
Talk: Silchester Excavations, part 1
Saturday 15th March 2025
Reading Museum
First of three talks that will be given by Professor Mike Fulford on the excavations at Silchester.
Book Group: The Greatest Knight
Saturday 3rd May 2025
The Pantry
Town Hall
’The Greatest Knight: The Remarkable Life of William Marshal, The Power Behind Five English Thrones’ (2015) by Thomas Ashbridge.
One of history’s most illustrious knights, the telling of his story is informed, in part, by a 13th century biography. William Marshal died at his Caversham Manor House in 1219; an informative commemorative panel about his life can be viewed on the Caversham Bridge viewing platform.
Meet in The Pantry at the Town Hall from 2 - 4 p.m. New members are always welcome.
Talk: Tom Fort
Monday 3rd March 2025
The Pantry
Town Hall
Tom Fort, author: Rivets, Trivets and Galvanized Buckets. The tale of a humble hardware shop in a local nondescript village and how it was saved.
The Pantry opens at 10:00 and the programme starts at 11:00
Book Group: Mud Larking
Saturday 1st March 2025
The Pantry
Town Hall
‘Mud Larking: Lost and Found on the River Thames’ (2019) by Lara Maiklem. Of linked interest: Thames Museum (pop-up with temporary exhibitions in various venues) and plans to establish a permanent collection telling the history of the Thames through mud larking finds. Website: www.thamesmuseum.org
Meet in The Pantry at the Town Hall from 2 - 4 p.m. New members are always welcome.
Talk: Beekeeping
Monday 3rd Feb 2025
The Pantry
Town Hall
Jenny Morgan, master beekeeper: Honeybees and how they are adapted to carry out their work with examples of how bees and flowers communicate .
The Pantry opens at 10:00 and the programme starts at 11:00
Book Group: The Remains of the Day
Saturday 4th Jan 2025
The Pantry
Town Hall
’The Remains of the Day’ (1994) by Kazuo Ishiguro. Discussion of the Merchant Ivory film (DVD) of the book (2001) and the MERL Reading University Special Collections linked item, ‘Cliveden Set Correspondence, 1938 - 1939’.
Meet in The Pantry at the Town Hall from 2 - 4 p.m. New members are always welcome.
Silent Auction and Christmas Quiz
Monday 2nd Dec 2024
The Soane Space and Pantry
Town Hall
Silent auction of the paintings left to the Friends by Sidney Gold in the Soane Space, with Friends’ Christmas Quiz in the Pantry.
The Pantry opens at 10:00 and the programme starts at 11:00