As part of the Totally Thames Festival the Great River Race will be run upstream from London Docklands to Ham. The gruelling 21 mile course attracts both the true racer and the leisure rower. Around 330 crews from all over the globe take part – all traditional style with a minimum of 4 oars or paddles and carrying a cox and passenger.
Come down to Chiswick Pier to watch the Great River Race on Saturday 14th September. The race begins at Docklands at 11.20 on a “slowest first, fastest last” handicap basis. The first boats should be passing Chiswick Pier by 13.15 with the winner arriving at Ham by around 14.30.
Chiswick Pier is a wonderful vantage point for spectators. The Pier House will be open from 12.00 where hot and cold refreshments, savoury and sweet crepes and wine and beer will be on sale. Please do come and join us.
No Longer an Island: The Port of London and the Thames in the First World War
A talk by Chris Everett from the Docklands History Group
Tuesday September 24, 2019, 7.30 pm at Chiswick Pier Trust
Historian Chris Everett from the Docklands History Group reflects on the role of the Thames during WW1, and the impact war had on the river in terms of trade and munitions; and the impact the river had on the war in terms of keeping the army supplied at the Front in September’s Talks by the Thames at Chiswick Pier Trust.
Until 1914 Britain’s defence was dependent on the Royal Navy but with the invention of ‘lighter than air’ technologies Britain was no longer an island. The consequences for the Port of London at the very epicentre of the British Empire was significant. London, a world port, was essential for a myriad of goods and supplies for over 8 million mouths in the south and east of England. High unemployment among the casual workers in the docks soon saw severe labour shortages and backlogs of cargoes as the war machine evolved and men of fighting age enlisted or were conscripted. London’s defenders now had to consider the threat of invasion, the war from above and from beneath the waves, it was total war. With the public’s attention naturally drawn to the attrition on the battlefields of the Western Front and Gallipoli the story of the Port of London throughout the First World War has been largely untold, but the harsh lessons learned in 1914-1918 would lead directly to a readiness for the Second World War.
A 6th generation Londoner and a guide of some 20 years’ experience, Chris is a lecturer, tutor, researcher and historian specialising in London related topics. With an MA from Birkbeck, University of London, Chris has a particular interest in the docks, the River Thames and the impact of both World Wars on London. Chris has been an active member of the Docklands History Group for over 10 years and a Committee member for the last seven.
Doors open at 7 pm. £3 for non-members, FREE for members. Parking is free in nearby Pumping Station Road after 5 pm. Buses E3 or 190.
James Abbot McNeil Whistler and the Thames: An American in London
A talk by Matthew Morgan from the Royal Collection
Tuesday October 29, 2019 at 7.30 pm at Chiswick Pier Trust
James Abbot McNeil Whistler was born in America, raised in Russia, trained in Paris and lived much of his adult life in Chelsea, where the Thames became a leitmotif throughout his career as an artist. For forty years, he produced images of the Thames where he explored the industrial nature of the river and dockside life, while revelling in the natural beauties of Thames, especially the effect of fog on the river as seen in the Nocturnes (Nocturne Blue and Gold – Old Battersea Bridge pictured).
Matthew Morgan is an art historian and lecturer and has delivered talks extensively around the country. He is Adult Learning Curator at the Royal Collection and was previously at the National Gallery. He also teaches at Birkbeck, University of London, where he gained his PhD. Prior to working in the museum sector he was in the commercial art world, notably a decade spent as Director of the Valuations Department at Christie’s.
Doors open at 7 pm. £3 for non-members, FREE for members. Parking is free in nearby Pumping Station Road after 5 pm. Buses E3 or 190.
Film showing followed by panel discussion with film maker, scientist and Thames archaeologist
Tuesday 26 November 2019, 7.30 pm at Chiswick Pier Trust
Introduced by David Attenborough, and presented by environmentalist Chris Baines, the award- winning film, The Living Thames is an odyssey along the river as it meanders through London and flows out to sea, exploring its ever-changing ecology.
The Thames is Britain’s most famous river. Nevertheless, many people don’t know very much about it. For millions who see it every day, it’s a mystery.
Sixty years ago the Thames was severely polluted. Many people still see it as dead and dirty.
The reality, however, is completely different. Thanks to the dedicated work of many, the Thames has recovered dramatically to become one of the cleanest inner-city rivers in Europe and it teems with life.
Followed by Q&A session with Dorothy Leiper (producer/director/editor), estuarine scientist Amy Pryor of the Thames Estuary Partnership (co-producer) and Thames archaeologist Fiona Haughey.
Doors open at 7 pm. £3 for non-members, FREE for members. Parking is free in nearby Pumping Station Road after 5 pm. Buses E3 or 190.
Having held two very popular and successful workshops this year Julia Cassels will be holding another on 4th December at Chiswick Pier. She will be working with watercolours on the topic of penguins. This workshop is suitable for beginners right through to the more experienced artist.
The fee for the day is £35 (£32 for Chiswick Pier Trust members). Please bring your own materials and a packed lunch. Refreshments will be available to purchase.
A talk by archaeologist Josh Frost from the Thames Discovery Programme
Tuesday, 28th January 2020 at 7.30 pm at Chiswick Pier Trust
Explore the history and archaeology of the River Thames without having to get your feet wet. From the prehistoric to the present day, the Thames has been at the heart of London’s story. Twice a day from Erith in the east to Isleworth in the west, low tides reveals the archaeology of the foreshore, but with increasing erosion this archaeology is at risk.
The Thames Discovery Programme is a community archaeology project dedicated to monitoring and recording the incredible archaeology of the foreshore along the tidal Thames. Now in its tenth year, the TDP has trained over 700 volunteers to record the archaeology of the fast eroding foreshore. Senior Community Archaeologist Josh Frost will tell the story of the river’s archaeological tale through the sites on which the TDP works and how the remains on the foreshore play a vital role in telling London’s story.
Doors open at 7 pm. £5 for non-members, FREE for members. Parking is free in nearby Pumping Station Road after 5 pm. Buses E3 or 190.
As part of the Totally Thames Festival the Great River Race will be run upstream from London Docklands to Ham. The gruelling 21 mile course attracts both the true racer and the leisure rower. Around 330 crews from all over the globe take part – all traditional style with a minimum of 4 oars or paddles and carrying a cox and passenger.
Come down to Chiswick Pier to watch the Great River Race on Saturday 8th September. The race begins at Docklands at 09.50 on a “slowest first, fastest last” handicap basis. The first boats should be passing Chiswick Pier by 11.45 with the winner arriving at Ham by around 13.00.
Chiswick Pier is a wonderful vantage point for spectators. The Pier House will be open from 11.00 and hot and cold refreshments including wine and beer will be on sale. Please do come and join us
In 2009, Steffan took a 15ft dinghy on a rowing and sailing trip around London, using the Thames and the city’s canals. The book he wrote of his experiences, Circle Line, won numerous accolades in the national press. Steffan’s day job is as associate editor of Classic Boat magazine.
Steffan will talk about the logistics, joys and the pitfalls of undertaking a trip like this.
Chiswick Pier Trust, The Pier House, Corney Reach Way, W4 2UG. £3 for non-members, FREE for members.
Tuesday 30 October at 7.30 pm at Chiswick Pier Trust
Di Murrell is a food historian and award-winning writer who knows the waterways of Britain back to front. For years she and her husband worked a pair of canal boats, loading up with barrels of lime pulp which they transported from the London docks to the wharf in Hemel Hempstead belonging to Rose’s Lime Cordial. They made many trips with heavy loads like sand, grain, coal or lime, and Di learnt the value of slow cooking.
Throughout her career, Di became involved in the politics of inland waterways, campaigning against the loss of river transport. She was instrumental in the re-introduction of upriver grain traffic. When working on the river, Di got to know bargemen, dockers and lightermen, and saw their life and skills slowly disappear as more modern ways of transporting grain took over.
She will be talking about her life on the Thames, and her book, Barges and Bread, is a history of grain, the river Thames, London and historic events like the Plague, and bread making, from parched grains to flatbreads, and Ezekial bread, to how the need to feed the many who live in cities has led to bread which has little relationship to what we once enjoyed without thinking, the kind of bread we now call ‘artisan’ bread.
Winner of the Sophie Coe prize for food history, Di Murrell writes for French travel magazines, and Petits Propos Culinaires. She and her husband spent many years afloat on barges, often moored at Brentford, bringing up their sons. Now she splits her time between France and London.
Chiswick Pier Trust, The Pier House, Corney Reach Way, W4 2UG. £3 for non-members, FREE for members.
