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21 July 2026Murano Glass: The Jewel of Venice
16 June 2026Garden Hunting in China
19 May 2026Fashion, Fury & Feathers: Women's Fight for Change NB - CHANGE TO ORIGINAL LECTURE
21 April 2026Paint to Print: Tracy Chevalier, 'The Girl with the Pearl Earring'
17 March 2026The 'Shakespeare of Sculpture': The Dynamic Baroque Works of Gian Lorenzo Bernini
17 February 2026The Ships, Men and Women of Nelson's Navy
20 January 2026Tinker, Tailor, Canvas, Chair: How Modernism Became a Cold War Secret Agent
16 December 2025From Tchaikovsky to Tin Pan Alley - Uplifting Music for Christmas
18 November 2025Turner's Modern World
21 October 2025World-Famous Photographs: Images That Shaped Our Culture
16 September 2025Mulberry Trees, Macchiato, Mosques and Mother Teresa: an Illustrated Tour of Kosovo's Capital, Prishtina
15 July 2025*****NEW LECTURE****** Lights, Camera, Action: Blenheim Palace, the Star of Film and TV
15 July 2025----------CANCELLED----------- A Load of Old Balls - On the History, Design and Evolution of Balls Used in Sport and Recreation---------------------- SEE NEW LECTURE ABOVE
17 June 2025A Blast From The Past (Part Two): The Horn and Strings of the Middle Ages
20 May 2025Untouchable Art: The Rise of the NFT and Speculation in the Art Market
15 April 2025Art Deco:The Centenary of the 1925 Paris Expo
18 March 2025The Founders and Treasures of the Wallace Collection
18 February 2025150 Years of Liberty: Masterpieces of Design
21 January 2025Sicily: Cultural Crossroads
17 December 2024A Right Royal Christmas
19 November 2024The Jurassic World of Mary Anning
15 October 2024Making Sense of Portraits in Country Houses
17 September 2024Before the Raj: British Life in India 1775-1845
16 July 2024AN EASY DAY FOR A LADY - THE DRESS OF EARLY WOMEN MOUNTAINEERS 1850 - 1914
18 June 2024THE FIRST PRIZE: ANGLO-SAXON ENGLAND
21 May 2024A MARVEL OF NATURE: THE LIFE AND ART OF SOFONISBA ANGUISSOLA
16 April 2024PERCUSSION: USE AND ABUSE
19 March 2024NATIONAL TREASURES. SAVING LONDON'S MUSEUMS & GALLERIES IN WWII
20 February 2024BACH AND HANDEL - SEPARATED AT BIRTH
16 January 2024IN THE FROSTY SEASON: HOW THE ROMANTICS INVENTED WINTER
19 December 2023GLORY TO THE NEWBORN KING: DEPICTIONS OF THE NATIVITY IN EUROPEAN ART
21 November 2023"BESTRIDING THE WORLD LIKE A COLOSSUS" - THE LIFE AND WORK OF SIR JOSEPH PAXTON (1803-1865)
14 November 2023ZOOM LECTURE - THE FINAL JOURNEY OF THE UNKNOWN WARRIOR
17 October 2023PAINTBRUSHES AT DAWN: THE WORLD'S GREATEST ARTISTIC FEUDS, ROWS & QUARRELS
19 September 2023SIR GODFREY KNELLER: COURT PAINTER OR HASTY SLOBBERER?
18 July 2023DIAGHILEV & THE BALLETS RUSSES
20 June 2023SELFIES, SELF EXPRESSION, CELEBRITY & THE VICTORIAN CARTE DE VISITE
16 May 2023THE DOWAGER EMPRESS CIXI 1835-1908: RULING FROM BEHIND THE YELLOW SILK SCREEN
18 April 2023MANET - A MOST SOPHISTICATED REBEL
21 March 2023THE CLASSICAL RE-INVENTED - THE BRILLIANT LEGACY OF SIR CHRISTOPHER WREN
21 February 2023A BLAST FROM THE PAST 1: MEDIEVAL WOODWIND
17 January 2023GRACE DARLING & THE FINE ART OF SAVING LIVES AT SEA
19 December 2022ROBED IN DREADFUL MAJESTY: MUSIC, POETRY & TRADITIONS OF THE ADVENT SEASON
15 November 2022THE IMPRESSIONISTS: URBAN ENTERTAINMENT & A TRIP TO THE SUBURBS
18 October 2022THE ART OF ATONEMENT: HOW GERMANY COMMEMORATES THE SECOND WORLD WAR
20 September 2022TRANNIES, TASTE AND TEDDY BEARS: UNCOVERING THE WORLD OF GRAYSON PERRY
19 July 2022DURER; THE ITALIAN & NORTHERN RENAISSANCE - THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ITALIAN ART, DURER AND THE NORTHERN ARTISTS
21 June 2022'THE MOST DISSOLUTE MAN IN LONDON': THE 1ST DUKE OF DEVONSHIRE AND THE BUILDING OF CHATSWORTH
17 May 2022JOHN RUSKIN: HIS IMPACT, ACHIEVEMENT AND LEGACY
19 April 2022THE WINCHESTER BIBLE
15 March 2022THE PAINTER'S CRAFT
15 February 2022WANDERING LONELY? THE TRUE STORY OF WORDSWORTH'S DAFFODILS
18 January 2022"THE VERY MODEL OF AN ENGLISH ENTERTAINMENT" - ON ZOOM
14 December 2021THE WHITE MANTLE OF WINTER - IMPRESSIONIST PAINTINGS OF SNOW - ON ZOOM
16 November 20211951 THE FESTIVAL OF BRITAIN - ON ZOOM
19 October 2021MICHAEL HARRIS: MDINA GLASS AND ISLE OF WIGHT STUDIO GLASS - ON ZOOM
21 September 2021JOAQUIN SOROLLA: PAINTER OF LIGHT - ON ZOOM
20 July 2021LAND OF THE MONKEY GOD - THE ART AND ARCHITECTURE OF SRI LANKA - ON ZOOM
15 June 2021THE CAR IN ART AND THE CAR AS ART - ON ZOOM
25 May 2021THE ART OF COLOUR IN THE GARDEN - ON ZOOM
20 April 2021THE TREASURES OF TANIS - ON ZOOM
16 March 2021HIDDEN CANVASSES; STREET ART AND THE CITY - ON ZOOM
16 February 2021THE STATE OF BRITISH CRAFTS - ON ZOOM
19 January 2021THE MAGIC OF PANTOMIME - ON ZOOM
15 December 2020BOTANICAL ART AND ILLUSTRATION ( on Zoom)
17 November 2020THE EMPTY CHAIR - (ON ZOOM)
20 October 2020STONE ON STONE ( on Zoom)
15 September 2020THE FIELD OF CLOTH OF GOLD (on Zoom)
16 June 2020JOHN RUSKIN: HIS IMPACT, ACHIEVEMENT AND LEGACY
26 May 2020WONDERFUL THINGS! - THE TREASURES OF TANIS
21 April 2020THE PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE OF BOTANICAL ART AND ILLUSTRATION
25 March 2020Royal Society
17 March 2020THE STATE OF BRITISH CRAFTS
18 February 2020PRAGUE - 'THE CITY OF THE WINTER QUEEN'
21 January 2020THE QUEEN OF INSTRUMENTS: THE LUTE WITHIN OLD MASTER PAINTINGS
03 December 2019CHRISTMAS WITH GILES, GRANDMA AND THE FAMILY
19 November 2019NOT SO GENTLE? WAR AND CONFLICT IN THE ART OF HENRY MOORE
15 October 2019A PASSION FOR FASHION
17 September 2019THE SILVER THREAD: SILVER FILIGREE AND TRADITIONAL ARTS IN KOSOVO
16 July 2019SECRET ART IN THE PASSPORT
18 June 2019THE ART AND CULTURE OF FIN DE SIECLE VIENNA
21 May 2019THE BAUHAUS
16 April 2019THE ROLE OF THE ARTS IN BREAKING THE CYCLE OF CRIME, PRISON AND RE-OFFENDING
19 March 2019BASINGSTOKE AND ITS CONTRIBUTION TO WORLD CULTURE
19 February 2019THE SPLENDOURS OF THE CITY CHURCHES
15 January 2019THE BAYEUX TAPESTRY: THE WORLD'S OLDEST COMIC STRIP
04 December 2018GRANDFATHER FROST AND THE OLD NEW YEAR: CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS IN RUSSIA
20 November 2018MAGNIFICENT MOSAICS: WINDOWS INTO THE COLOURFUL ROMAN WORLD
16 October 2018RESTORATION AND AFTER: BOOBS, BOMBAST AND GIN
18 September 2018INSPIRED BY STONEHENGE
17 July 2018LEONARDO DA VINCI: ANATOMICAL FORM WITH FUNCTION
19 June 2018LEGACIES OF COLONIALISM
15 May 2018FABER & FABER - DESIGNS AND HISTORY
17 April 2018UNDRESSING ANTIQUES
20 March 2018CAMILLE PISSARRO & HIS WORLD
20 February 2018LUCIAN FREUD & DAVID HOCKNEY
16 January 2018SALISBURY CATHEDRAL
04 December 2017The Christmas Story Through Paintings at the National Gallery.
21 November 2017Thomas Heatherwick: "The Leonardo da Vinci of Our Times" (Sir Terence Conran)
17 October 2017BERNARD LEACH
19 September 2017Corridors of Time: Early Travellers Through Provence and Burgundy From the Romans to the Literary Figures of the 20th Century.
18 July 2017The History of the Harp - From Mediterranean Antiquity to 20th Century Europe
20 June 2017 A Little Paradise: Laos, From Historic Buddhist Temples to Modern Silk Weaving.
16 May 2017 The Frome Hoard - The Largest Pot of Roman Coins Ever Found in Britain.
18 April 2017Who Says? Can We Trust the Experts on Good and Bad in Art?
21 March 2017 War And Peace 1780-2013: Patriotism and Protest
21 February 2017Inn Signia - Pub Signs, the Artwork and Stories Behind Their Names.
17 January 2017Medieval Wall Paintings in English Cathedrals & Churches.
05 December 2016 We Three Kings: Music, Art, Legends & Poetry Inspired by the Magi
15 November 2016Hadrian's Wall & The Roman Empire Frontier in Britain
15 November 2016Bernard Leach and His Influence on 20th & 21st Century Studio Ceramics.
18 October 2016 An Ideal Partnership: Lutyens and Jekyll
20 September 2016 The Glasgow Boys: Paintings in Scotland 1875-1914
19 July 2016 Villas for the Agricultural and Cultural Elite: Palladio's designs for farmhouses and rural retreats in the Veneto
21 June 2016 Degenerate Art and the Nazi Aesthetic Ideal
17 May 2016The Ship Burial at Sutton Hoo
19 April 2016Facing up to Goya: Portraits by Goya
15 March 2016The Fascinating World of Playing Cards
16 February 2016The Art of Seduction
19 January 2016Sicilian Splendours: From Greece to the Normans
07 December 2015Now you See it, Now you Don't: the Art of Visual Deception
17 November 2015Europe's Best Kept Secret: The Painted Monasteries of Bulgaria
20 October 2015Wedgewood, Catherine the Great and the Frog Service
15 September 2015Temples, Tombs and Treasures: In search of the Queen of Sheba

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Murano Glass: The Jewel of Venice Laurie Wickwire Tuesday 21 July 2026

Venice is known for Pizza, Pasta, Palaces and Popes, and also for VETRO VENEZIANO...Venetian Glass. We explore how Murano became the epicentre of excellence for glassmaking across the world. We begin by exploring the origin of Venice and the building of 189 canals built to create the floating city of Venice, before taking a short gondola ride to the tiny island of Murano. Here we learn of the many enduring styles of Murano glass and delve into the lives of these ancient artisans.

Laurie Wickwire - Biography

With over 35 years in the diamond industry, diamond expert Laurie Wickwire represents the industry across all sectors: mining, sorting, grading and  brokering some of the world’s key rough stones.  

A leader in the industry, Laurie is the On-Air Diamond Expert for the international television shopping channel QVC where her opinion is regularly sought by over a million viewers each week.  

Whether presenting diamond shows on national channels the BBC, ITV and QVC, hosting diamond master classes, filming jubilee specials, or creating the historical jewellery range for both Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle gift shops, Laurie’s love of the diamond industry is apparent.  

A graduate of GIA London, IGI Antwerp, and DeBeers Institute of Diamonds, Laurie is both a certified diamond grader and certified pearl grader. Additionally, she holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in International Business & Finance, and a Bachelor of Arts in French.   

Laurie’s industry knowledge has seen her interviewing celebrities at the Cannes Film Festival, publishing articles on Ocean Mining or the British Coronation, guest on numerous internationally streamed podcasts, enrichment lecturer on luxury cruise lines and creating bespoke commissions for the Royal Family. 

Awards, Qualifications & Memberships:

GIA Certified Diamond Grader, IGI Certified Pearl Grader, On Air Luxury Gems Specialist for International Television Shopping Channel QVC, Luxury Cruise Industry Enrichment Speaker, Created the Historical Jewellery Range for Buckingham Palace & Windsor Castle, Crafted Jewellery Item for Duchess of Cambridge (Worn on cover of Hello Magazine) Commissioned in 2006 by Prince Charles to create the 30th Anniversary Item for the Prince's Trust