Speaker: Peter Atkinson
Title: Intersecting Lives: Captain James Cook (1728-1779) and HMS Endeavour (1764-1778)
Peter Atkinson was born and raised on Teesside in northeastern England. He studied geography at the University of Birmingham and spent his working life as a market research consultant in London and Toronto, where he now lives. His interests include history, art, photography, cricket and his seven grandchildren.
The core of the presentation is the round-the-world voyage of discovery (1768-1771) made by James Cook on HMS Endeavour. We shall also look at the careers of Cook and Endeavour before and after their voyage together. Endeavour began life as a collier; later she was a supply ship for the Falklands Islands, a troop carrier and a prison ship. Before being assigned to Endeavour, Cook had a significant role in the Seven Years’ War. Afterwards, he made two more voyages of discovery across the Pacific, dying on the second during a conflict with Indigenous people on Hawaii.
Please note the speaker will deliver this lecture on Zoom, but members’ attendance in the Pink room is still welcome
Attend in person:
Places are still available in the Pink Room. Email office@u3ac.org.uk to book.
Join Zoom Meeting
Click HERE
Meeting ID: 857 6399 6790
Passcode: 660982
Polite request:
If you have booked to attend in person but can no longer come, please let the Office know – even at the last minute – so the place can be offered to someone else.
Tuesday 10 November – 1.00 pm – Film Group screening Oh! What a Lovely War at Arts Picturehouse
Wednesday 11 November – 2.15 pm – Wednesday Lecture – The vulnerable West Antarctic ice sheet and global sea-level rise, Dr Michael Haigh
Booking is now open to attend in person in the Pink room – please email the Office
Remembrance Day 11 November – We will join the nation in observing a Two-Minute Silence at 11 am to mark Armistice Day and remember all military personnel, civilians, and animals who have served and sacrificed in conflict.
We are looking for new volunteers to take over coordination of U3AC’s much valued Wednesday Lecture Programme, as the current team will be standing down at the end of the academic year.
This is a steady, manageable role – usually a few hours a month – and new coordinators will be fully supported, with the opportunity to shadow the current team during the Autumn and Spring terms.
What the role involves:
The Wednesday Lectures attract 100–200 members each week and are a central part of U3AC’s intellectual life. Coordinators play a key role in keeping the programme varied, engaging and welcoming.
If this is something you could take on, please contact the Office to arrange an initial discussion with the Chair and the current Coordinators.
This year’s Christmas Lunch will be held in The Park Seasons restaurant at Cambridge Regional College on Wednesday 16 December. Cost is £25.50 per person. Application forms are available on email request, to download from the website or from the Office.
From the 9 November there will be an exhibition of multimedia artwork by Simon Draper. Titled The White Stones, the exhibition takes themes from archaeology, prehistory, the Norfolk landscape and coastline, and the white cliffs of Kent. Chalk carvings were made from rock collected at Botany Bay in Broadstairs. The carvings were then photographed and the images edited and combined on an iPad. Links were formed between themes by reference to the White Stones collected poems of the Cambridge poet JH Prynne. A series of drawings of stone circles in Cornwall and Avebury, forms a central part of the exhibition. Textual elements from Jeremy Prynne’s poetry have been incorporated into some of the drawings. Short musical compositions, making references to mythology encapsulated in the poetry of Ted Hughes, have been written to fit alongside and illustrate the possible significance of the stone circles in the Neolithic period. Images and music are included in the website below. The digital drawings are complemented by three Japanese woodblock prints cut on larch and lifted on Ho Sho paper.
https://sites.google.com/view/simondraperart/home
Please come and find out about all current volunteering opportunities on Thursday 5 November – 11.30 – 1.30 pm in the Pink Room at Bridge Street.
We are entering the winter flu and cold season, and cases will start to rise. U3AC members are a high-risk demographic group we politely request you to consider your fellow U3AC members and if you feel unwell, particularly if you have a temperature and display symptoms of a respiratory infection, please do not attend your courses or enter the Bridge Street premises or any of our external venues used for courses and activities.
The next Wine Tasting evening on Wednesday 18 November at 5.30 pm is now FULL.
Date: Tuesday 10 November 2026, 10.00 am – 1.00 pm
Venue: David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street
Maximum Number: 35
Further information HERE
Date: Tuesday 17 November 15:35 – 16:35
Venue: Red Room
Places: 20
Further information HERE
Places still remain on several courses. Please click HERE for the latest vacancy list.
A visit to Holkham Hall in Norfolk has been arranged on Friday 11 December. Cost £52. Perhaps one of Norfolk’s most popular Christmas events, Christmas at Holkham Hall is an unforgettable festive experience.
This visit is now full, please contact the Office to be added to the waiting list.
We are always looking for enthusiastic members who would like to become a tutor or course leader and help deliver our courses and activities.
Whether you have a professional background, a hobby you’re passionate about, or a skill that others would enjoy learning, we’d love to hear from you. Tutoring is a rewarding way to share your knowledge, meet new people, and contribute to our learning community.
If you have an idea for a course or would like to find out more about becoming a tutor, please get in touch. We would be delighted to discuss your interests and the support available to help you get started.
U3AC member pin badges will be available to purchase from the reception desk at a cost of £1 (cash only please).
Philip works mainly in charcoals, dry pastels, and watercolour, using handmade Indian cotton rag papers. Here he exhibits a series of pictures in which he aims to bring to life old monochrome photographs or portraits/works in other media, such as oils and prints, of artists, writers, and musicians, with a focus on women. He also shows how important it is to learn from past masters. Most of the works are for sale, and these are listed with a price (as framed) in a Leaflet available in the Social Area.
There is a members’ only noticeboard on the website: https://www.u3ac.org.uk/news/members-noticeboard/
Are you organising your own event, have something to sell or simply have a query you want to put to other members? This section is for members only and includes personal information. To view posts, you will need to log in to the website.
Local activities supported by U3AC are listed on our website.
Check out the latest photos from U3AC courses and events on our U3AC Facebook page – please like, follow, and share! Have photos from a U3AC activity? Email them to the Office for consideration (with the consent of those pictured – please note we may not be able to feature everything).
Note: Official course news and cancellations will always remain in the Weekly Bulletin.