Events and Activities

Our programme of local history talks runs from September to May each year, at St Luke’s Hall. Where possible we make recordings of the meetings available to members on Youtube for a limited period.

Our Local History Afternoon is held in alternate years, and in the Summer months we arrange visits to places of interest in Gloucestershire and further afield, and local history walks led by knowledgeable guides.

NEW – details of our walks and visits for Summer 2026 are now available – please click below for full details.

Date/Time Event Location
Wednesday, 15 April 2026, 7:30 PM Gloucestershire & the Atlantic Slave Trade, with Tony Condor St Luke’s Hall
Wednesday, 20 May 2026, 7:00 PM AGM followed by Arle Court: A House Through Time, with Sue Rowbotham St Luke’s Hall
Wednesday, 16 September 2026, 7:30 PM Talk: Reviving the Cotswold Canals, with Lousie Nicholson St Luke’s Hall
Wednesday, 21 October 2026, 7:30 PM Talk: The Architectural Follies of Gloucestershire, with Jonathan Holt St Luke’s Hall
Wednesday, 18 November 2026, 7:30 PM Talk: Finding the Original Cheltenham Racecourse…on Cleeve Hill, with David Jones St Luke’s Hall
Wednesday, 20 January 2027, 7:30 PM Talk: Wassail Wassail, with Steve Rowley St Luke’s Hall
Wednesday, 17 February 2027, 7:30 PM Talk: Flax: Ancient and Modern in the Maritime Environment, with Simon & Anne Cooper Flaxland St Luke’s Hall
Wednesday, 24 March 2027, 7:30 PM Talk: A History of Leckhampton Court, with Becky Dine St Luke’s Hall
Wednesday, 21 April 2027, 7:30 PM Talk: The Glosters at Waterloo, with Andrew Meller St Luke’s Hall
Wednesday, 19 May 2027, 7:00 PM AGM followed by talk on “Pittville Zoo” – Cheltenham’s Zoo Wars of the 1830s. St Luke’s Hall

Evening meetings are held at St Luke’s Hall, St Luke’s Place, Cheltenham GL53 7HP. Directions to the Hall can be found here.

There are 20-25 parking spaces available on a first come first served basis, but if you have health or mobility problems then you are very welcome to a reserved place. Please email or phone Alison on 01242 519413 to reserve a place.

Doors open at 7pm for browsing our donated books shop and library and for socialising.

Talks start at 7:30pm and last for about 1 hour followed by Q&A.
Non-members are welcome, and we charge £2 for both members and non-members.

Date/Time Event Location
Tuesday, 7 April 2026, 9:30 AM Members’ Research & Display event St Luke’s Hall
Tuesday, 6 October 2026, 10:30 AM Talk: A County Goes to War – Gloucestershire’s Role to D-Day, with Paul Barnett St Luke’s Hall
Tuesday, 1 December 2026, 10:30 AM Talk: Down Winterbotham Road: the enduring legacy of a Cheltenham family, with Adrian Barlow St Luke’s Hall
Tuesday, 2 February 2027, 10:30 AM Talk: Pillow Talk: The archaeology of rabbits, with Melanie Barge St Luke’s Hall
Tuesday, 6 April 2027, 10:30 AM Talk: Founders Flags & Fields – Americans in Glos & Glocestarians in America, 1650-1950, with Neela Mann St Luke’s Hall

Morning meetings are held at St Luke’s Hall, St Luke’s Place, Cheltenham GL53 7HP. Directions to the Hall can be found here.

There are few parking spaces available for our morning meetings, but those with health or mobility problems are very welcome to a space. Please email or phone Alison on 01242 519413 to reserve a place.

Doors open at 10am for refreshments, and for browsing our donated books shop and library and for socialising.

Talks start at 10:30am and last for about 1 hour followed by Q&A.

Non-members are welcome, and we charge £3 for both members and non-members.

Date/Time Event Location
Tuesday, 9 June 2026, 6:30 PM Walk: Historic Swindon Village
Thursday, 18 June 2026, 6:30 PM Walk: Historic Swindon Village
Saturday, 20 June 2026, 2:30 PM Visit to Moat House, Uckington
Saturday, 27 June 2026, 2:30 PM Visit to Moat House, Uckington
Tuesday, 18 August 2026, 9:00 AM Visit to Bradford-on-Avon Bradford-on-Avon