Tuesday, 17 July 2012

SARAH TOBIAS Lecturer in social and cultural history, local history, public speaker, tour guide, dramatic narrator

EXCITING EVENTS IN SUSSEX - ENTERTAINING AS WELL AS EDUCATIONAL, FUN AS WELL AS FACTUAL.
*Keep visiting this site for regular updates of all events*
Autumn courses start late September/early October - book early to ensure your place

Details given as accurately as possible, but may change, be postponed or cancelled.
PLEASE CHECK ALL VENUES, FEES, DAYS BEFORE BOOKING. Details of venues at end. 
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SEPTEMBER EVENTS
Whiteway Centre, Rottingdean
(Whiteway Lane, behind Grange Museum & Rottingdean Library)
Friday 14 September 7.30pm
Opening of the Duke of York's Picture Theatre, Preston Circus, Brighton 1910
"FLEA-PITS & PICTURE-PALACES" - 
The history of cinema-going, particularly Brighton & Hove 1896-1960
Illustrated talk includes rare footage of silents filmed in Hove, actually.
Admission: £7 includes glass of wine and nibbles. No booking required 

*

THE WELLSBOURNE SOCIETY  at THE LATEST MUSIC BAR

Manchester Street, Brighton
 THURSDAY 20 SEPTEMBER  from 8pm
An evening dedicated to the 'spirit of Brighton' with lectures, stories, music and film on a Brighton theme. Several speakers include Sarah Tobias giving a short talk on the history of film and cinema in Brighton and Hove, actually, at 8pm.
An informal and fun evening in this Grade II listed building that started life as a billiard hall in the Regency period.
£5 on door
Organised by Dr Bramwell (author of The Cheeky Guide to Brighton) & Professor Clayton
 http://www.drbramwell.com/

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PRESTON MANOR 2012
(End of Preston Park, Brighton} 
Free parking, buses stop nearby, Preston Park railway station nearby
Main (north) façade of Preston Manor, looking south
Preston Manor, Preston Park, Brighton
'Voice of Hassocks' released copyright into public domain
Book: 03000 290902

“HIDDEN HOUSE”
Behind the Scenes at the Manor 
Unique guided tour. Discover hidden rooms and secret places not normally open to the public.

If you’ve ever visited a historic property and longed to go through that door marked ‘private’, now you can at Preston Manor! Sarah Tobias has devised a unique and fascinating tour where you will hear lots of secrets and surprises about this beautiful Edwardian Manor House - information not available in guide-books or standard tours. You will be taken upstairs, downstairs, back-stairs, into vaulted cellars and up concealed servants’ staircases,to attics where female servants slept and into corridors not on the public route.
Behind the door marked 'Private' at Preston Manor c. Sarah Tobias 2011
Autumn 2012
           Saturday 13 October  11am-12.30pm & 2-3.30pm  both full
Friday 9 November 11am-12.30pm & 2-3.30pm
Friday 7 December 11am-12.30pm & 2-3.30pm
These popular tours fill very quickly. Places are limited to 14 persons per tour - so early booking advised, especially if you wish for a particular date. 
Tours can be booked privately.*
Fee: £10.50 Members £8.50. Includes house admission, tea & biscuits.
*Group bookings available - minimum number of eight persons.
Tour guides Sarah Tobias & Paula Wrightson (Preston Manor Programme Manager)
N.B. Comfortable (pref. flat) shoes advised.There are lots of stairs and some low door frames - mind your head.
 It is VERY COLD in some parts of the house, so warm clothing also advised! No photography in house.

                'Thanks again for the entertaining Preston Manor tour. It was a great treat to have 2 such knowledgeable and   
                     enthusiastic guides as yourself [Paula Wrightson] and Sarah [Tobias] to show us round.'  R  by e-mail 17 April 2012


            "It was wonderful. The best tour I have ever done. I love the way the two of you interact and make it all so interesting."  A N  20 July 2012
                   
You can buy copies at reception of The Haunting of Tabitha Grey by Vanessa Curtis, set in 'Weston Manor', a fictionalised version of Preston Manor.` 
*  Autumn and winter events  *
Scroll down to each month for further details of these Preston Manor events:
Sunday 29 September: Tales of the Supernatural - Haunting Ghost Story Tours set in the manor
Thursday 1 November half-term: How Did Lady Ellen Eat a Banana? 
Sunday 4 November: Veteran Car Run Day - Special Edwardian Event
Saturday 24 November & 8 December: A Victorian Christmas Merriment

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City College, Peham Street, Brighton 
Mid-Victorian Britain 1851-1875 

10 weeks Monday afternoons 2-4pm start September 24

Mid-Victorian Britain saw huge social changes in all aspects of life, including: merchandising and consumerism, effects of the railway, life within the home, at work, in the factories and mills, the later consequences of the Industrial Revolution and in the rise of the middle-class, the affluent and wealthy, and the living conditions of the poorest in Britain. Education became compulsory for all in 1871 but how did this affect the working class? We look at architecture, housing, social and sanitary reforms and the outcomes of the Board of Health, including the work of Edwin Chadwick, Henry Mayhew, Friedrich Engels and others,. During this period the London Underground was opened, enabling people to travel quickly across the city. Elaborate forms of etiquette ruled everyday life, especially for the aspiring middle-class and were a minefield of manners caught up in the complex new social structure. 
Illustrated with PowerPoint, DVD, books, images an texts.
Ref COM 045 Fee £99 (for concessions and payment by instalments see website or telephone)
Tel: 01273 667767 
Download booking form from website http://www.ccb.ac.uk/public/courses/adult-education
(due to administration error* this course does not appear in brochure)
Booking in person at Pelham Street advised

*Please also note that all three Saturday workshops for 2013 as currently advertised in brochure are incorrect but are correct online. They will appear in the spring 2013 brochure available later in year. Correct details and reference numbers below:

Ref COM120858 1940s Women, Wartime and the Homefront Saturday 16 February 2013 1-4pm Fee £25 
Ref COM088 Looking at Victorian Art - paintings as social history 16 March 2013 1-4pm Fee £25   
Ref COM089 Art Deco, Modernism and the Jazz Age 20 April 2013 1-4pm Fee £25  
For further details scroll down to 2013 

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Whiteway Centre, Rottingdean
Mid-Victorian Britain 1851-1875  
10  weeks Wednesday mornings 10.30am-12.30pm 
 start September 26 

All details as same course above at City College
Illustrated with PowerPoint, DVD, books, images an texts.
Fee £70 
Booking forms available at Whiteway Centre, which can be posted with payment into Centre letterbox 
downloadable booking form: http://www.rwc.org.uk

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Description: Description: cid:image002.png@01CD4D6D.FB0C6540BRIGHTON HISTORY WALK 
Led by Sarah Tobias
28th September start 10.30am

Meet Whitehawk Inn and discover the history of Black Rock, 
Dukes Mound and the Marina, then take the Volks Railway for the 
Pier-to-Pier Walk: the history of Brighton's piers and seafront 
from the Chain Pier to the West Pier


Book: 01273 682222
Approximately 3 hours with refreshment break(s)


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PRESTON MANOR  Preston Park, Brighton
Tales of the Supernatural : Haunting Ghost Story Tours set in the manor
Visit Preston Manor on the last day of the summer season and take a tour with a difference. 
Hear two specially written chilling tales read drama-style in the rooms that inspired them.
Sunday 30 September
World première Chop-Chop 2.15-3.00pm 
Narrated by Sam Healey
World première The Gloved Hand 3.45-4.30pm
Narrated by Sarah Tobias
Warning: this one takes you into an enclosed and darkened space.
Free with house entry

Book: 03000 290902  

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OCTOBER EVENTS

PACA Portslade Aldridge (Adult Education) Community Academy
Foredown Tower, Portslade
Local History
A Short History of Brighton, Hove & Portslade
Portslade c. 1840
6 weeks Tuesday mornings 10.30am-12.30pm start October 2
Development and expansion of Brighton, Hove and Portslade, looking at particular aspects that have seen growth and change including Portslade's old village and manor, now a ruin.
Illustrated with slides, DVD, historic maps and books.
Course will run in historic Foredown Tower, home of the famous camera obscura - free viewing for all those booked on this course.
Final session will be field trip of old Portslade and manor ruins led by historian Trevor Povey
Ref no. GS26 Fee: £36 concessions £22 (over-60s/benefits/BN41 postcode)
Book: 01273  422632

FRIDAYS at FOREDOWN
Art Deco and the 'Moderne'

Geoff Cravitz
Friday 19 October 10am-4pm 1day only
After WWI a new, distinctive style emerged 1920s/30s.  Art Deco was vibrant with colour and its modern designs were full of sharp patterns influenced by many different styles and countries. Its iconic elegance was used to furnish homes in a new and exciting fashion, utilizing modern technology and materials, and electrical devices.Lavishly illustrated.
Fee: £30 concessions £25 (over-60s/benefits/BN41 postcode)
Due to administration error this course does not appear in the brochure and is not currently advertised online - although it is running.
Book: 01273  422632


* SPECIAL SATURDAYS * 
at Foredown Tower
Victorian Arts, Crafts & Paintings
Saturday 27 October 10am-3pm 1 day only
The Arts & Crafts Movement consisted of a group of craftsmen/women, artists, designers and architects who aimed to raise the status of applied arts (aesthetically pleasing) as a reaction to mass production, inspired and led by William Morris. The idea was to return to the use of natural materials and to make individual items  beautiful as well as useful.Style and paintings were full of colour, symbolism and emotion.
Fee: £30 concessions £25 (over-60s/benefits/BN41 postcode)
Not currently advertised in brochure
Book: 01273  422632

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Sussex Learning Solutions Saturday Workshops 
Southwick Community Centre
A Short History of Cinema and Film 


6 October 10am-4pm
The history of cinema from its Victorian beginnings and early days in Hove and Shoreham. Film reached its height of popularity in the 1930s and 40s and the 1950s. We look at rare archive footage, some from the Hove pioneers, and film clips.
Ref no: AW521 Fee: £40  http://www.sussexlearningsolutions.org.uk/   Tel: 0845 873 7663 
Book before September 16 to receive 10% discount -reducing fee to £36 Discount code X567

Art Deco, Modernism and the Jazz Age 
*
20 October 10am-4pm
The iconic style utilised innovations such as plastic and chrome. Design influences included Egyptian, ancient Greece, Jazz Age, Cubism, Aztec and Futurism. Smooth lines and geometric patterns were found on everything from architecture to fashion.
Ref no: AW522 Fee: £40  http://www.sussexlearningsolutions.org.uk/   Tel: 0845 873 7663 

Book before September 16 to receive 10% discount -reducing fee to £36 Discount code X567

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NOVEMBER EVENTS

Preston Manor, Preston Park, Brighton
Thursday 1 November Half-term Family Day (new):
How Did Lady Ellen Eat a Banana? - and other silly rules of etiquette
Dining Room at Preston Manor C Sarah ~Tobias 2012
A workshop-style introduction to the lost arts of Edwardian etiquette. Fun activities for all the family to enjoy. Bring your own banana.
10.30-11.30am, 1.30-2.30pm
£4 book in advance
(Limited spaces - early booking advised)

Veteran Car Run Day Sunday 4 November 2-5pm 
Special Edwardian Event (new)
Edwardian Motoring
A special event to mark the RAC Veteran Car Run through Brighton
Includes illustrated talk at 2.30pm by Sarah Tobias on the joys of early motoring
Children's veteran car trail:
Follow the clues in each room to find the veteran car.
Admission free with house entry
Book: 03000 290902  
Costumed characters- have your veteran car - or just yourself - photographed outside the manor with an "Edwardian friend" or servant

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PACA Portslade Aldridge (Adult Education) Community Academy
Foredown Tower, Portslade
The FestiveSeason
Customs of the Festive Season - history of Christmas and winter traditions
5 weeks Tuesday mornings 10.30am-12.30pm start 13 November 
The origins, philosophy, gods, myths and legends of winter traditions and Christmas customs from early times to modern, starting with pagan roots and Winter Solstice through to seasonal festivities over hundreds of years and into modern times; considering truth behind belief and celebrating magical characters of folklore and literature, including legends and heart-warming tales of Sussex winters and festive customs.
Ref LL28 Fee £50, £40 (over-60s/benefits/BN41 postcode)
Book: 01273 422632

FRIDAYS at FOREDOWN
The Novel as Social History
The Novel Reader by Van Gogh
Friday 16 November 10am-4pm 1day only
We consider the social and cultural history of the novel by exploring the background information we are absorbing unwittingly, which is not the main theme, but which leads us into a deeper and clearer understanding of period, place, subject, time and general minutiae of everyday life. As novel extracts are read out, we discuss what exciting 'other' information we are discovering.
Ref LL29 Fee: £30 concessions £25 (over-60s/benefits/BN41 postcode)
Book: 01273  422632

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NT Batemans, Burwash
Home of Rudyard Kipling
Lunchtime Lecture Series
Sunday 18 November 11am
The World of Jane Austen
Life in Regency Bath, Brighton and more.
Followed by lunch in the Mulberry Restaurant
£22.50 for lecture, lunch and coffee on arrival (plus 5% booking fee)
Book: 0844 249 1895
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/batemans

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The Old Operating Theatre
9 Saint Thomas Street, Southwark, London
Friday 23 November 6.30pm

DEATH & MOURNING IN VICTORIAN ENGLAND
Illustrated talk on fascinating rituals and customs 
Fee: £6   Tel: 020 7188 2679

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Preston Manor, Preston Park, Brighton
Saturday 24 November & 8 December 11am-1.30pm

*  A Victorian Christmas Merriment  *
Come and join us for a  jolly, festive, drawing-room style entertainment ,
including songs, performance, readings and a glass of sherry (or soft drink) and mince pie served by staff in period  costume
Pianist Vanessa Curtis
Fee £13.50 Foundation members £11.50  book in advance
Book: 03000 290902  
http://www.brighton-hove-rpml.org.uk/WhatsOn/Pages/PMAVictorianChristmasMerriment24Novand8Dec12.aspx

(early booking advised – similar event last year booked up beginning of October)

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Unitarian Church
New Road, Brighton
 Friday 30 November 12.30pm
"SKETCHES OF VIENNA"
devised by Ambrose Page 
Music written by composers associated with that city, interspersed with readings from Sketches of Vienna by Johann Pezzl, 18c writer
Piano Ambrose Page  *  Narration Sarah Tobias
Admission £3 pay on door. No booking necessary

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DECEMBER EVENTS

Sussex Learning Solutions Saturday Workshops 
Southwick Community Centre
Christmas Customs and Winter Traditions  
1 December 10am-4pm 
Origins, philosophy, gods, myths and legends of winter traditions and Christmas customs from pagan roots to 
seasonal festivities over hundreds of years, including 
heart-warming tales of Sussex winters and festive customs.  
Ref no: AW523 Fee: £40  http://www.sussexlearningsolutions.org.uk/   Tel: 0845 873 7663

Book before September 16 to receive 10% discount -reducing fee to £36 Discount code X567

Discount (code X567) also applies to Ref no: AW621 The Novel as Social History 9 February 2013
Details below under 2013 events

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Preston Manor, Preston Park, Brighton
Saturday 8 December 11am-1.30pm
*  A Victorian Christmas Merriment  *
Come and join us for a  jolly, festive, drawing-room style entertainment ,
including songs, performance, readings and a glass of sherry (or soft drink) and mince pie served by staff in period costume
Pianist Vanessa Curtis
£13.50 Foundation members £11.50  book in advance
(early booking advised – similar event last year booked up beginning of October)

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2 0 1 3

The Victorian World 1851-1875
We look at all forms of housing and the people who inhabited them; from large country estates and town houses to humble cottages ad pitiful town rookeries of the residuum. We see how dwellings were built and furnished and view the internal workings of the home and the ornaments, paintings and furniture which adorned them for all classes. There was a strict hierarchy which existed "below stairs" that was far more snobbish than that between master and servant. The domestic life of the servant, their duties, wages and relationship with the houses in which they worked is a fascinating one. Mrs Beeton was the Delia Smith of her day and introduced technology into household management. In comparison, we study life of the poor, their lack of amenities, deficient nutrition, education and medical attention and the effect of their appalling living and working conditions. Illustrated with PowerPoint, DVD, books, images and texts.
City College, Pelham Street, Brighton 
Mondays 2-4pm 10 weeks start 7 January 
Fee £99 Tel: 01273 667767 
Download booking form from website http://www.ccb.ac.uk/public/courses/adult-education
This course does not yet appear in brochure or online 

The Victorian World 1851-1875
Whiteway Centre, Rottingdean 
Details as above
Wednesdays 10.30am-12.30pm 10 weeks start 9 January 
Fee £70 downloadable booking formhttp://www.rwc.org.uk
Booking forms available at Whiteway Centre, which can be posted with payment into Centre letterbox 

Sussex Learning Solutions Saturday Workshops 
Southwick Community Centre
The Novel as Social History - 9 February 10am-4pm
We consider the social and cultural history of the novel by exploring background information we are absorbing unwittingly: leading us into a deeper and clearer understanding of period, place, subject, time and general minutiae of everyday life.
Ref no: AW621 Fee: £40  http://www.sussexlearningsolutions.org.uk/   Tel: 0845 873 7663 
Book before September 16 to receive 10% discount -reducing fee to £36 Discount code X567

City College, Pelham Street, Brighton 
Women, Wartime and the Homefront
Life for women during Wartime and how they coped during the later 1940’s after war ended when life had changed completely. We look at women at war – their occupations in the armed services, as pilots, nurses, typists, working in the Land Army, in factories, in the WRVS and other voluntary organisations, as well as being housewives and mothers. Some women worked as spies or at Bletchley Park tapping out codes on the Enigma machine. At home during war and after, women had to cope with rationing and learning to ‘make do and mend’ while attempting to remain glamorous keeping up with fashion and cosmetics.  When war ended women found it difficult to give up their new independence, life in the family changed and so did relationships.  Illustrated.                                                                                Saturday 16 February 1-4pm                                                                                               Ref: COM 120858 Fee £25 Tel: 01273 667767                                                                                                                                         Download booking form from website http://www.ccb.ac.uk/public/courses/adult-education                                                                                          

Looking at Victorian Art - paintings as social history
Victorian narrative paintings tell us much more than the main topic. They are full of symbolism and expose other features we hardly notice. These 'extras' tell us more about the period and its social history, Painters wanted to show domestic scenes and 'real life' and were not afraid of controversial subjects which might shock the public. Massive social and cultural changes took place within the period which painters wanted to tell us about but, as they did so, they were also exposing much more - a little girl bringing her father's lunch to his workplace, the inner turmoil of an emigrating couple, the pain of parting, or he long engagement, as well as tiny figures and scenes around the main subject we almost miss. Narrative paintings of various topics open up our view of art and enable us to see and enjoy it in a totally different way. Illustrated with many slides.
Saturday 16 March 1-4pm
Ref: COM088 Fee £25 Tel: 01273 667767                                                                                                                                         Download booking form from website http://www.ccb.ac.uk/public/courses/adult-education

Art Deco, Modernism and the Jazz Age
After WWI a new, very distinctive style emerged, directly following Art Nouveau. Architectural buildings of every type from churches to cinemas, houses, bus stations, garages and lidos were developed in this style which had many influences. It was associated with the Jazz Age and also described as "jazzy" and it utilised modern innovations, such as plastic, chrome, aluminium and electricity. The smooth lines and geometric patterns were found in and on everything from art to fashion, furniture, light fittings, ornaments, glass ceramics and jewellery. Cinema and film included sets and flowing dresses and the style reached its height of fashion in the Hollywood musical with the wonderful Busby Berkeley Hollywood film dance routines. 
We look at influences, architecture, style, fashion, interiors, paintings and clips of favourite films and stars of the period.
A fabulous feast of colour, illustrated with a huge amount of images.
Saturday 20 April 1-4pm
Ref: COM089 Fee £25 Tel: 01273 667767                                                                                                                                         Download booking form from website http://www.ccb.ac.uk/public/courses/adult-education  
Victorian Life and Leisure 1851-1875 
We study general life, as well as the family, work, leisure, travel, art and culture. This period saw the burgeoning "leisure industry", holidays - particularly the seaside - travel to the countryside, and the new green spaces of the town as public parks were opened for al to enjoy and benefit. Working life was a different matter and there was little time off from the hard and continuous grind for the poor. But society was changing and we look at the urban environment, railway, public health and civic amenities, as well as improvements in working hours and conditions, plus poverty and unemployment, philanthropy and poor relief. Illustrated with PowerPoint, DVD, books, images and texts.
City College, Pelham Street, Brighton 
Mondays 2-4pm 5 weeks start 15 April 
Fee £48 (check) Tel: 01273 667767 
Download booking form from website http://www.ccb.ac.uk/public/courses/adult-education
This course does not yet appear in brochure or online 

Victorian Life and Leisure 1851-1875 
Whiteway Centre, Rottingdean 
Details as above
Wednesdays 10.30am-12.30pm 5 weeks start 17 April 
Fee £35 downloadable booking formhttp://www.rwc.org.uk
Booking forms available at Whiteway Centre, which can be posted with payment into Centre letterbox 


4 Summer Field Trips
Wednesdays in June 2013
 Meet Brighton Station 10am

Whiteway Centre, Rottingdean downloadable booking formhttp://www.rwc.org.uk
Not advertised on Whiteway Centre website till 2013

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Venue Addresses, transport and refreshments

City College
Pelham Street, Brighton BN1 4FA
Location:
Behind York Place & London Road, turn up Cheapside – Aldi supermarket on corner. Or, turn left in Trafalgar St walking down from Station.
Transport & Parking:
Lots of buses.
Adjacent car park.
Refreshments:
Tea and coffee on balcony of Main Building – self-service
Coffee shops and small cafés in nearby London Road

Foredown Tower
Foredown Road, Brighton (Portslade) BN41 4EW
Transport & Parking:
No. 6 bus stops nearby-200 yds walk
Free car parking outside,
Refreshments:
Refreshments available

Preston Manor
Preston Drove, Brighton BN1 6SD
Location:
Situated at end of Preston Park.
Transport & Parking:
Buses and rail nearby
Free parking outside and in adjacent street.
Refreshments:
No cafe. Refreshments provided by staff at courses, and some events where stated.

Rottingdean Whiteway Centre
Whiteway LaneRottingdean, BN2 7HB
Location:
By Library/Grange Museum
Transport & Parking:
Buses in High Street and on seafront
Small car park, but always full. Possible space if you get there early
Fairly near street parking
Refreshments:
Kitchen with tea and coffee making facilities (provided)

Southwick Community Centre
24 Southwick Street, Southwick, BN42 4TE
Transport & Parking:
Buses stop nearby
Small car park outside community centre but fills quickly. Car park opposite near Library. Both free.
Refreshments:
Cafe and garden area

LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOU
Sarah Tobias
Entertaining social/cultural/local historian.
Ask for details of talks/guided walks/visits for groups, clubs, societies.
Current list of 30+ topics


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