Events
This page will act as a notice board for advertising and providing details of the many events taking place at St George's Gardens. Please keep returning to this page to keep up to date with developments.
Future Events
There are no events planned as present.
Please check back soon to see what we have coming up...
Past Events
- St George's Gardens Day 2008 -
Saturday 26 April
St George's Gardens Day 2008 took place in glorious sunshine on Saturday. Following the tried and tested formula from previous years, the gardens played host to music from Pete Watson, entertainment from Uncle Vic's Punch and Judy, Jebb the Juggler, the tea and cakes stall and other children’s activities. The hotly anticipated raffle prize, an original Eastenders Albert Square street sign autographed by the entire cast, was won by local resident Jean.
- Friends Annual General Meeting,
Wednesday 6 February 2008 -
Each winter the Committee reports on the year’s activities, at a meeting open to all members and the public. Guest speaker at the meeting was Joyce Bellamy, Secretary of the Metropolitan Public Gardens Association. The MPGA recently awarded the Friends £700 to assist with the Sensory Garden project (see Projects for more details) however their first award to the gardens was way back in 1883!
- Bloomsbury Festival, 19 - 21 October -
Following the success of the Bloomsbury Festival 2006, the 2007 Festival again offered a range of public concerts and events, as well as open houses, debates and children’s activities throughout the local area. Activities at the gardens are listed below. For full details of what took place please visit the festival website at: www.bloomsburyfestival.org.
The Incomparable St George's Gardens Walk
The Friends are very grateful to Dr Roger Bowdler who agreed to guide another Tour of the Tombs as part of the Bloomsbury Festival. The walk was, as always, extremely popular.
Magic Lantern: Michael Reeves Directs - by Mark Ferreli in association with The Horse Hospital. The Chapel of Rest played host to a talk on the horror films of director Michael Reeves with magic lantern projections onto the darkened walls of the chapel.
Cello, Violin and Film in the Chapel by The McCarricks in association with The Horse Hospital. The Chapel of Rest provided the venue for music and film. To view the film please click here. The film will open in a seperate window, please be patient if you have a slow connection.
That Night They Said Was Last But Unfading, by Tai Shani in association with The Horse Hospital. A mixed work of song, film and projection.
- Open Garden Squares Weekend -
On the 9th and 10th of June the Open Garden Squares Weekend saw more than 150 of London's secret gardens and squares open their doors to the public. St George's Gardens took part in the event with Friends on hand to provide information on the gardens. Details of the weekend can be found on the Open Garden Squares website.
The Friends' second hand book stall managed to raise almost £400 for the Sensory Garden while the raffle raised approximately £750. The winner of the raffle was Frank Hughes who received 2 first class Eurostar tickets. The prize was presented by Jane Monahan, who was responsible for setting up the Friends in 1994 and became the first Chair of the group.
The book stall |
Frank Hughes, Gillian Darley (current Chair) |
- St George's Gardens Day 2007 -
St George's Gardens Day was a great success as always. Jeb the juggler returned with flaming clubs and his unicycle; Punch and Judy entertained children and parents alike, and the cake stall sold out early yet again. Photos from the day will be posted to the Gallery as soon as they are available.
- Annual General Meeting, 2007 -
Each winter the Committee reports on the year’s activities, at a meeting open to all members. This year’s AGM took place on February 1st at the King’s Cross-Brunswick Neighbourhood Association in Marchmont Street. Guest speaker was Mr Bernard France, of the Lambs Conduit Street undertakers, A France & Son. This family run undertakers has been operating for over two hundred years and was responsible for the burial of Lord Nelson in 1806, hence the phrase "France got Nelson in the end". Mr France and his wife provided an intriguing history of the the trade and many tales of the local community. The story of the daily Elephant parade down Lams Conduit street was hilarious we hope to hear more such tales in the future.
In addition to Mr France we were also fortunate to hear the readings of four poems written about St Georges Gardens, three of which can be read on the Poems page of this site. We are very grateful to Stephanie Gerra and Wendy Shutler for giving a reading of their works at the AGM and for allowing us to reproduce them.
- Graves walk October 2006 -
As part of the first Bloomsbury Festival in October 2006 the Gardens hosted mulled wine and tea and a guided tour of the Gardens led by Dr Roger Bowdler. The tour attracted over 60 visitors – we are planning to hire a microphone for the next Gardens lecture!
- Open Garden Squares Day, June 2006 -
St George's Gardens took part in the London Open Garden Squares Weekend 2006, using the increased number of visitors to draw attention to nearby planning applications and to collect signatures on a petition to Camden Council. The petition was presented to a meeting of the full Council later in the year. This annual event, in which many of London's private garden squares and other gardens open their gates to the public, again proved to be a very enjoyable afternoon. We are looking forward to next year already.
Please see the Open Gardens Square Day website for further details.
- St George's Gardens Day Party, April 2006 -
The St George's Gardens Day Party on Saturday 22 April was, as usual, a resounding success. There were activities and entertainment for all ages, again provided without charge thanks to the donations of Friends’ corporate supporters. For more photos please visit the Gallery.
- Annual General Meeting, 2nd February, 2006 -
The 2006 AGM took place in February at the KCBNA Community Centre in Marchmont Street, with guest speaker Lucy Hall, Tenant Liaison Officer for the Brunswick development.
- Tour of the Tombs returns! - 19th December, 2005 -
Due to popular demand Dr Roger Bowdler's lecture walk amongst the graves returned to the gardens on the 19th December. Full of information on the gardens and its illustrious residents the historical tales provided by Roger have now grown to include accounts of Sid Vicious, an ex-student of the nearby Kingsway College. The tour was enjoyed by a group of over 50 people and plans are already underway for the next installment.
- Being together – July 14 2005 -
Bombs on July 7 stopped the Committee meeting on its usual day, the first Thursday of the month. The meeting took place a week later with members as well as Committee – just being in a peaceful place together.
- Open Garden Squares Day, 11-12th June, 2005 -
St George's Garden again took part in the London Open Garden Squares Weekend. Over the two days the garden was host to many new visitors who were welcomed by members of the Friends group.
- St George's Gardens Day 23rd April, 2005-
Our annual, and still free of charge, St George's Gardens Day event in late April has become a highlight on the local calendar. This years event was no exception. Please check back for a full report and further photos of the event.
- Friends of St George's Gardens AGM 2005 -
The 2005 AGM took place on the 3rd February at the KCBNA Community Centre in Marchmont Street. The invited speaker was Alan Dein from the Kings Cross Voices Oral History Project. Alan gave a very interesting talk and the evening was enjoyed by all who attended. Further information on the Kings Cross Oral History Project can be viewed at www.kingscrossvoices.org.uk.
- Lecture walk with Dr Roger Bowdler, 20th November -
November would not be November without Dr Roger Bowdler's lecture walk amongst the graves. This year's walk took place on Saturday 20 November as was well attended and enjoyed by all. Interesting stories and little known facts brought the gardens alive once again. The Friends would like to thank our corporate supporters for enabling us to keep this event free of charge.
- Open Garden Squares Day, 12th June, 2004 -
St George's Garden was part of the London Open Garden Squares Day on June 12th. More than 80 of London's beautiful garden squares unlocked their gates for the seventh Open Garden Squares Weekend on Saturday 12 and Sunday 13. Throughout the afternoon of the 12th, members of of the Friends of St George's Gardens were present in the Chapel of Rest and provided information on the gardens and their history. Many new visitors came to the gardens for the first time and an enjoyable day was had by all those involved.
Please see Open Gardens Square Day for further details of the event.
- St George's Gardens Day 24th April, 2004-
The 2004 event was a great success and with the sun shinning was another great day out. Penny Farthings, Punch and Judy, musicians and a didgeridoo player provided the entertainment along with tea and cakes on the grass. Photos from the last year's event can be seen below. Pictures from this year's event will be posted in the Gallery as soon as they are available.
- Tour of the Tombs 2003 -
The Tour of the Tombs has become a great attraction at St George's Gardens. Run by Roger Bowdler, an expert in the field who has a relative buried in the Garden, the tour was run in early November, instead of forming part of St George's Gardens Day at is has done in the past. Using his extensive knowledge, Mr Bowdler enthralled the audience with his accounts of the history of the gardens and their occupants. Some photos from the event can be seen below. Pictures can be found in the Gallery.
The Friends would like to sincerely thank Mr Bowdler for taking time out from his work at English Heritage to support the gardens over many years. Dates for the next Tour of the Tombs will appear here as soon as it is arranged.
- St George's Public Art Project 2001 -
In 2001 the Gardens were host to a performance of 10 Brass 20 Decades. The performance consisted of a piece of music composed by Tim Parkinson played on ten brass instruments while the musicians and audience walked amongst the graves. Accompanying the music was a mural of the score, painted in chalk dust on the walls of the Chapel of Rest by artist Tom Wolseley.
The project was intended to be an acoustic monument to the lives that are recorded on the Garden's 18th and 19th century tombstones. Many people attended the three free performances. Comments from those in the audience agreed that it was a wonderful evening. Some photos from the event can be seen below. Pictures can be found in the Gallery.