Alex Kidson is contributing a fascinating talk about the friendship between Romney and Hayley, in which he explores a number of the works which arose from their relationship. If you’d like to know more, please email conference organiser, Dr Lisa Gee: lg579@cam.ac.uk.

Running online on Thursday 12th and Friday 13th November 2020, and convened to mark the bicentenary of his death, Hayley2020 is the first ever conference dedicated to writer, scholar and amateur doctor William Hayley (1745-1820). 
​
Hugely influential in his time, Hayley is now mostly remembered for persuading William Blake to move to the Sussex coast, commissioning illustrations and prints from him and driving him to distraction. But there is much more to the man who wrote (in verse) a runaway bestseller advising young women on how to attract and keep a husband, refused the poet laureateship for political reasons, and was the first person to publish an English translation of a long extract from Dante’s Inferno.
All are welcome. 
 
Book now at https://tickets.museums.cam.ac.uk/hayley2020.
​There’s no charge, but donations to the Fitzwilliam Museum are welcome.
More information at https://hayley.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/conference
Pre-recorded material will be available on a password-protected site to view from Thursday 5 November.

Rachel Sinfield
​Head of Communications and Engagement The Fitzwilliam Museum
Email rcs26@cam.ac.uk    Mobile 07778593836
www.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk

​Postponement of lecture 3rd April 2020
Please note that due to the ongoing problems surrounding the coronavirus outbreak, the AGM and lecture planned for 3rd April at Crooklands Hotel, Kendal have been postponed.
It is hoped to announce new dates in due course. Members who have paid in advance for the final lecture will receive a one lecture credit against the 20/21 programme or, on request, a cash refund.
Peter Fisher
Hon. Secretary  13th March 2020

We are pleased to be able to release the first dates for the 202 Lecture Season:

Jan 10th 2020 - Martin Myrone the Senior Curator at the Tate will give a talk there on William Blake as seen in the current exhibition entitled "Art before 1800."
Feb 7th 2020 - Catherine Parry Wingfield will talk about the recent project of  "Saving Turner's House" at Sandycombe Lodge Twickenham.
March 6th 2020 - Dr Richard Stephens will speak on the watercolours of Francis Towne drawing especially on the watercolours of Lake District scenes.
April 3rd 2020 - AGM starting at 11.00AM followed by a talk at 11.30AM given by Adam Busiakiewicz on the artistic interests of the 2nd Earl of Warwick especially in connection with John Westbrooke Chandler.

​For the full Romney Society diary, please click here.

The following changes have been made to the upcoming 2019/2020 Programme.
October 4th - David Cross will now give a talk on  William Hogarth rather than the originally published talk by Rupert Nichol
November 15th - Hugh Belsey will give a talk on Thomas Gainsborough. Please note the change of date for this lecture.
December 6th - Lucinda Lax will give a talk on two portraits of James Adam.
The remaining lectures planned for early 2020 onwards will be submitted in October.

The Romney Society Annual General Meeting will be held on:
​Friday 5th April 2019 starting at 11:00 at the Crooklands Hotel, Milnthorpe, LA7 7NW

​Following the AGM, Dr. Pieter van der Merwe, retired curator of the Royal Maritime Museums, Greenwich, will speak on ‘18th Century Naval Battles and Great Admirals’.

We are obliged to make the following changes to the final two lectures on the published programme.

On Friday 8 March 2019 The speaker will be Peter Osbourne BA, historian, Artist and Head of School at Blackburn College of Art, is a leading expert on the great wood engraver Thomas Bewick. Peter will speak on ‘Bewick's Beliefs and Vignettes’.

On Friday 5 April 2019 the speaker will be Dr. Pieter van der Merwe, retired curator of the Royal Maritime Museums, Greenwich, lectured to us on marine painting in 2015 and in 2017 showed us around the recently refurbished Queen's House in Greenwich. He will speak on ‘18th century Naval Battles and Great Admirals’.

We hope to see you at the Crooklands Hotel.

The Romney Society visit to Exhibition 19-21st February 2019 The Lost Treasures of Strawberry Hill
Members are invited to participate in a trip to Twickenham 19-21st Feb 2019
Suggested itinerary:  
19th Feb - travel independently to Twickenham – Train to Euston, transfer via Waterloo to Strawberry Hills station and onto local hotel. The Alexander Pope Hotel is conveniently situated and was used by members on our 2013 trip.

After a partial rehang was completed in the Romney Room at Abbot Hall, the Society was invited to discuss closer cooperation with Abbot Hall. A first, very fruitful meeting was held where the Society spoke of our need to attract more people to our lecture series. It was agreed that we should design a template for a poster for each lecture, preferably with an illustration on it. Abbot Hall will try to find wall space in the cafe for each poster, one at a time. In addition they would try to make their 200 volunteer invigilators aware of our programme. They are considering putting our programme on their website.

​Dates and further details of the Romney Society Lectures for October 2018 to April 2019

​Dates and further details of the Romney Society Lectures for March 2018 to May 2018

​​Dates and further details of the Romney Society Lectures for October 207 to April 2018

The Romney Society's next trip will be to Greenwich. Highlights of the two-day visit include the National Maritime Museum's exhibition of the life and career of Emma Hamilton, Seduction and Celebrity.
For a full programme of the Greenwich trip please select 'Read More'

Dates and further details of the Romney Society Lectures for October 2014 to April 2015