The Athenaeum Liverpool

Dexterity Bingo
2023-05-18 19:00 - 22:00 (Europe/London) | The Athenaeum Liverpool, Church Alley, Liverpool, L1 3DD, United Kingdom
You are invited to the second iteration of our Athenaeum Bingo Games night. Last time, we enjoyed a round of Quiz Bingo, which combined the nail-biting tension of a game of bingo with the fast paced action of a quick fire quiz. This time, the games are dexterity based, meaning you’ll need to be just as quick with your hands as you will with your mind. Tickets include entry into the game, plus access to a light buffet.
Tickets: £15.

Lunch with the Liverpool Rotary Exchange
2023-05-25 12:30 - 17:00
The Castle Fine Art Gallery – Lucy Edwards – Lunch with the Liverpool Exchange Rotary Club
Thursday 25th April 2023, 12:30pm
The Castle Fine Art Gallery, with its colourful, lively, eye-catching and ever-changing exhibits and window displays, occupies most of the ground floor of the Athenaeum building. Seemingly a local Liverpool institution, but did you know it is part of a nationwide group? What is the task of a commercial contemporary gallery today? How has the Gallery responded to the recent Eurovision challenge? And, how does it find, support and encourage the variety of artists whose work is displayed? All these and other questions will be discussed by Lucy Edwards, the Gallery’s newly-arrived manager, who has a wide range of experience as a curator, artist agent and project manager for galleries and art fairs.
Club members and their guests and members of the Athenaeum and their guests are welcome to attend on this occasion. We shall be assembling as usual from 12.30 in the Wine Servery, with lunch at 1pm and the talk commencing at 2pm. The cost for lunch is £18-50 per person, payable at the event by cash, or a cheque payable to ‘The Athenaeum (or, for Athenaeum members on their account). To book for this event please contact Mrs Pat Torpey: patricia.torpey1@gmail.com or phone (0151 924 6098) by Monday 22nd April.

The Presidential Outing: Dining With Distinction on the East Lancashire Railway
2023-05-31 10:00 - 18:30
Join us for a two-course lunch on this heritage railway steam hauled through the Irwell Valley from Bury Bolton Street Station to Rawtenstall. We will be seated and fed in the polished paneling, luxurious furnishings, and crisp linen of a Pullman Car. “…some of the best fine dining in Manchester, with food to rival the best restaurants in Lancashire”.
Guests should gather in the Newsroom for light refreshments for 10:00am before we will be collected at 10.30 am from close to the Club and driven to Bury to board our train at 12.45 returning to Bury at around 4.00pm . We will allow some time for people to visit the transport museum, have a drink in the renowned Trackside Bar on the station or visit Bury Market for its famous black puddings .We will leave for home around 5.30pm arriving back at the Club around 6.30pm For more information on the ELR see https://www.eastlancsrailway.org.uk/
There are limited spaces available for this outing, with bookings handled on a 1st come 1st served basis. Deadline for bookings is Monday 20th March, at which point your monthly account will be charged for payment. It is not possible to offer refunds for cancellations after this date. The dress code is casual.
£70.00 per person inclusive of meal and travel

Literature & Archives Group - Ulysses
2023-06-06 17:30 - 19:00
Tuesday 6 June at 5.30 pm.
The Adventures of Ulysses: Liverpool, Sex and the World of James Joyce
In celebration of the centenary of our edition of James Joyce’s ground-breaking classic novel, we are delighted to welcome Joyce expert Professor Frank Shovlin of the University of Liverpool to talk about the novel itself, its connections to Liverpool and our limited edition Egotist Press copy of the novel, published in 1923.
Whether you have read the novel or not, however much or little you know about the author, this is an unmissable opportunity to hear more about this great writer and his work from an internationally renowned speaker.
You are invited to join us after the talk for a special buffet, with nods to the novel, in the Newsroom. Tickets are £16.50 and can be booked via the members’ website or at reception. The talk itself, in the Library Reading Room, is free.

New Members Welcome Evening & Buffet
2023-06-23 18:00 - 22:00
On the last Friday of the month we welcome new Proprietors as they sign the historic Share Register. A drinks reception will take place in the Reading Room ahead of the signing at 7:00pm. A buffet will follow in the Newsroom from 7:30pm. Open to all members, a great opportunity to meet more of your fellow members.
£15.00 per person.

The Liverpool Salon: Taking Control
2023-06-24 12:30 - 14:00
The Liverpool Salon: Taking Control
Saturday 24 June 12.30- 13.45 pm
Peter Ramsay, Professor of Law, London School of Economics discusses his book Taking Control: Sovereignty and Democracy after Brexit.
Stay on after the event to continue the conversation over drinks or lunch in the Athenaeum’s elegant newsroom.
Taking Control
Three years after Brexit many are asking what benefits has it delivered.
The promises of national sovereignty and democracy still divide, with Brexiteers claiming gains, Rejoiners trumpeting losses, but very little seems to have changed politically. Few could deny that politics at Westminster currently look even more decrepit and incompetent than before the Brexit earthquake.
Peter Ramsay argues that both sides got Brexit wrong. The European Union is neither a supranational nanny state nor an internationalist project for peace and prosperity, but rather the way in which European elites have tried to evade accountability to voters as the political life of their own nations has decayed.
The nation-states of Europe were transformed into EU member-states as governments were forced to rule the void where representative politics used to be. Leaving the EU has fully exposed this chasm between rulers and ruled but done nothing to close it.
Nevertheless, the abiding legacy of Brexit has been to place what were previously abstract questions of the people, the state, sovereignty and representation back at the centre of political life. The need to address these questions and build wider democratic engagement has never seemed so urgent.
This book argues for a radical, forward-looking reconstitution of the British nation-state through strengthening representative democracy. But is the idea of taking control hopelessly utopian in today’s globalised world? And with the return of war in Europe, might the re-constitution of nation-states be dangerously dystopian?
Join the discussion at the Liverpool Salon, with Peter Ramsay, Professor of Law, London School of Economics and co-author of Taking Control: Sovereignty and Democracy after Brexit (Polity 2023).
“This is the most important book to come out of the struggles over Britain’s membership of the EU, and it makes all other works on the subject look trivial. The authors provide a profound analysis of the issues involved, and show how only thorough-going changes in Britain’s political and constitutional arrangements will be able to respond to the challenges of this near-revolutionary moment.” Richard Tuck, Professor of Government Theory, University of Harvard
“This book forcefully argues that Brexit was no more than the first step in a long process of rebuilding a democratic nation-state, indeed a democratic nation, out of the ruins of a politics without national sovereignty. Sovereign democracy requires effective institutions of civic representation that disempower a political elite content with ruling the void. This book is a breakthrough for democratic theory and a milestone for political debates on the future of democracy.” Wolfgang Streeck, Emeritus Director, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies, Cologne, Germany
“The condition of post-Brexit Britain is grim. This excellent book shows that this has little to do with having lost the putative benefits of EU membership. Far more important is the British state’s steady incapacitation and the decay of neoliberal political parties. The promise of “taking control” remains, but only if Britain undergoes a democratic and social transformation. ”Costas Lapavitsas, Professor of Economics, SOAS London
Copies of the book will be available at a discount on the day.
Tickets: £7.50

Sketching Club - July '23
2023-07-04 18:30 - 20:30
The Athenaeum Portrait Sketching Club is a supportive and friendly gathering who meet monthly to sketch portraits. Past models have included those in Tudor, English Civil War, Cypriot and Edwardian Costume.
The Club adopts the approach of the well-established Liver Sketching Club, where individuals learn informally through practice and the support of one another, rather than instruction.
All abilities and enthusiasts welcome!
Please contact Sally-Anne Tapia-Bowes directly, or the Concierge to register your interest.
Please bring your own sketching materials.
Attendance of this interest group is free of charge.

The Exchange: What is the Future of Money?
2023-07-18 19:00 - 22:00
The Exchange: What is the future of money?
Join us for a discussion with Susie Voilet Ward, Head of Mining and Sustainability at Bitcoin Policy UK, on how digital money will affect all of our lives.
The use of cryptocurrenices such as Bitcoin is on the rise. Governments around the world are planning or piloting Central Bank Digitial Currencies (CBDCs). Yet most of us remain unaware of exactly what digital money is and the huge impact it will have on us.
During the evening we will explore how digital money works, the potential benefits and pitfalls, and the profound effect it is set to have on how we earn and spend money.
Financial Analyst Susie Voilet Ward argues the case for Bitcoin to foster a healthy economy, attract talent and investment, and create a country that is economically strong, financially inclusive and supports the ambitions of its citizens.
Meanwhile, could the implementation of CBDCs eventually mean ultimate government control of our spending and decision making? Is there a real risk of CBDCs leading to a social credit system and a loss of individual sovereignty?
With plenty of opportunity for audience input and interaction, this timely debate aims to deepen your understanding about the future of your money.
About Susie Violet Ward
Susie Violet Ward, Director, Head of Mining and Sustainability at Bitcoin Policy UK, is a Financial Analyst with a background in Accounting with a strong interest in Bitcoin and the environment. She has authored several research articles on the benefits of Bitcoin Mining and its advantages for the future of renewable energy.
Tickets for the talk are £10.
Tickets for the talk and then dinner afterwards are £35.

Wine Tasting Evening
2023-07-21 19:00 - 23:00
Join us for another Athenaeum Wine Tasting evening, complete with a three-course dinner and access to the Newsroom bar afterwards.
Tickets: £45

A Portrait of William Roscoe (Play)
2023-09-08 18:00 - 23:00
Celebrating a renowned writer and one of England’s first abolitionists, ‘A Portrait of William Roscoe’ will see the man come magically alive and recount his life & times.
Written & performed by John Maguire.

Exchange: The New British Politics
2023-09-13 19:00 - 20:30
VALUES, VOICE AND VIRTUE: THE NEW BRITISH POLITICS WITH MATTHEW GOODWIN
Wednesday 13th September 2023, 7pm to 8.30pm
The Athenaeum, Church Alley, Liverpool L1 3DD
Join us for a discussion with Professor Matthew Goodwin about his bestselling book on the new British politics changing our country.
What has caused the recent seismic changes in British politics, including Brexit and a series of populist revolts against the elite? Why did so many people want to overturn the status quo? Where have the Left gone wrong? And what deeper trends are driving these changes?
British politics is coming apart. A country once known for its stability has recently experienced a series of shocking upheavals. Matthew Goodwin, acclaimed political scientist and co-author of National Populism, explains that the reason is not economic hardship, personalities or dark money. It is a far wider political realignment that will be with us for years to come. An increasingly liberalised, globalised ruling class has lost touch with millions, who found their values ignored, their voices unheard and their virtue denied. Now, this new alliance of voters is set to determine Britain’s fate.
Audience members are welcome to book dinner in the Athenaeum dining room after the event, or to have a drink in the News Room. Further details are given with your ticket purchase.
Matthew Goodwin
Matthew J. Goodwin is Professor of Politics at the University of Kent. The author of four books, including the Sunday Times bestseller National Populism, he appears regularly in print and broadcast media including the Sunday Times and the BBC. He has advised more than 200 organisations on political issues. Values, Voice and Virtue is a Sunday Times bestseller and a Financial Times 2023 ‘book to watch’. Copies of the book will be available for sale and signing by Matthew Goodwin during the event.

Theatre Group - I, Daniel Blake
2023-09-23 14:00 - 18:00
Join the theatre group for an enthralling rendition of the Ken Loach film: I, Daniel Blake.
Tickets from £26, to be collected from the Concierge in advance
Why not visit the club before or after the showing for a bite to eat?

History Group - Liverpool Botanic Gardens: Past, Present & Future
2023-09-26 17:30 - 19:30
Proprietor Stephen Lyus will give a talk on the History of the Liverpool Botanic Gardens, 1802 to 2023. This is a very important topic given that the remains of the once world famous gardens are now under threat.
Steve spoke briefly about this some months ago and this talk will expand the area with much more detail.
Attendance of the talk is free for Members are guests.
Supper is available to pre-book following the event for just £16.50. Book your place now via the Members’ Area or with the Concierge.
Talk: 5:30pm in the Library Reading Room
Supper: 6:30pm on the third floor

Cheap & Cheerful Lunch
2023-09-27 12:30 - 16:00
It’s all in the name – a light hearted sociable lunch at the Club.
Join us from 12:30pm in the Newsroom for drinks and special wine offers ahead of a two course lunch in the Dining Room at 1:00pm.
Menu
Smoked haddock and leek fishcake
Petite pois, butter sauce
Mixed leaf and parmesan salad
~~~
Lemon meringue trifle

September Social: New Members Evening
2023-09-29 18:00 - 22:00
Join our new President, Dr Paul Burns, and General Manager, Roy Boardman, at our new Social Evening on September 29th from 6:00pm in the Newsroom.
A great way to meet more of your fellow members, guests will be gathering from 6:00pm in the Newsroom with a glass of fizz and nibbles on us!
Light entertainment will be provided during the evening – tbc, and there will also be an opportunity for our new Proprietors to sign their share in the historic 1809 share register.
A buffet will also be available during the evening – prebooking is required to assist with catering.

Drinks Reception : 6:00pm
Signing Ceremony: 6:30pm
Buffet Served: 7:30pm

It is free to attend the reception, the buffet is available for £15.00. Book your place now via the Members’ Area or with the Concierge.

The Literature Group
2023-10-03 14:00 - 15:00
The Literature group meet on the 1st Tuesday of the month at 2:00pm in the Library Reading Room – any alterations will be notified in good time.
At the October meeting we will be talking about our holiday reading – led by the President and facilitator of the Literature group Dr Paul Burns.
There is no need to book for this interest group meeting, simply turn up and enjoy.

The Sketching Club
2023-10-03 18:30 - 20:30
The Sketching group meet on the 1st Tuesday of the month at 6:30pm to sketch portraits. Past models have included those in Tudor, English Civil War and Edwardian costume. It adopts the approach of the well-established Liver Sketching Club where individuals learn through practice rather than instruction. This is an informal club for sketchers of all abilities and experience levels.
At the October meeting Proprietor James Kay will be our life model.
Classes are free of charge, and it is hoped members will model on a rota basis, but this is not essential. Members should bring their own pad, charcoal, pastels, pens and pencils. Beside the Athenaeum is Cass Art, should you need to purchase any of these items.
There is no need to book for this interest group meeting, simply turn up and enjoy.

Library Book Sale
2023-10-10 08:00 - 2023-10-14 17:00
The Library will be holding a book sale during the week beginning Monday 9th October.
All proceeds are to help fund a Library project – the restoration of a Gillows desk that has been generously gifted to the Library. When refurbished the desk will make a handsome addition to the Library Reading Room – and available for use by all members!
Payments may be made through members accounts or via payment at Reception – price list below.
50p for small pamphlets
£1.00 for small books
£2.00 for medium books
£3.00 for large books

Athenaeum Film Nights Presents: Laughter in Paradise
2023-10-11 18:30 - 22:30
The first in this year’s series of classic films takes place on Wednesday 11th October, and will feature the 1951 comedy Laughter in Paradise, starring George Cole, Guy Middleton & Fay Compton – with a minor appearance from one Audrey Hepburn.
When famous practical joker Henry Russell dies, he leaves his £200,000 to his four remaining relatives. While ostensibly a very loving act, Henry stipulates that each of the benefactors must complete a series of tasks to receive the money, which begins a series of tricky trials, each more hilarious than the last – nobody said getting rich would be easy, after all.
Guests gather in the Newsroom from 6:30pm ahead of supper at 7:00pm. The cinema will then open in the Wine Servery at 8:00pm. Sweets and treats will of course be served in the interval!
Book your place now via the Members’ Area or through the Concierge.
Wednesday evening’s at 6:30pm
11th October – Laughter in Paradise (1951)
15th November – Major Barbara (1941)
13th December – It Happened on 5th Avenue (1947)
17th January – Murder She Said (1961)
21st February – Hobson’s Choice (1954)
20th March – Irish Film Night! (Audience choice of three)
17th April – The Gay Divorcee ( 1934)

Friday Evening Dining
2023-10-13 18:00 - 20:00
At least once a month the Club hosts Friday Evening Dining, where the Dining Room is open to members on a Friday Evening.
Typically this will take place on the first Friday of the month, though where this is not possible it will be moved to another Friday.

The Dining Room will be open from 6:00pm for table bookings with slots every 15 minutes until 8:00pm. If you would like to join our Club table, which dines at 7:30pm, please stipulate this when booking.
You can book for Friday Evening Dining now via the Members’ Area or through the Concierge.

Theatre Group Visit: TONY!
2023-10-14 14:00 - 16:30
The Theatre Group’s next outing is a visit to the Playhouse on October 14th to watch the Tony Blair Rock Opera – TONY!
Tickets are available from £26, to be collected from the Concierge in advance
Why not visit the club before or after the showing for a bite to eat?
Book you place now by 23rd September through the Members’ Area or via the Concierge.

‘Look anyone will tell you, I’m a pretty straight sort of guy.’
Tony Blair
A reckless reappraisal of the life of former Ugly Rumours front man and Britain’s first pop Prime Minister Tony Blair.
The story of how one man went from peace-loving, long-haired hippy and would-be pop star to warmongering multimillionaire in just a couple of decades. Throw in a stellar cast of larger-than-life characters – Cherie Blair, Princess Diana, John Prescott, Peter Mandelson, Alastair Campbell, Osama bin Laden, George W Bush, Saddam Hussein and Gordon Brown – it’s Yes, Minister meets The Rocky Horror Show! and a musical like no other.
A hilarious musical tragedy of political intrigue, religion, power, and romance; this rip-roaring new musical by Harry Hill and Steve Brown received critical acclaim following a sold-out run at the Park Theatre in London.
www.tonyblairrockopera.co.uk

Liverpool Book Club: Bodies In The Library - An Evening With Margaret Murphy
2023-10-18 18:30 - 20:30
The Exchange: Bodies In The Library – An Evening with Margaret Murphy – Oct 18th 2023
Join us for the first of two events this month celebrating Liverpool authors who have found national and international success. Margaret Murphy will entertain you with her stories of a life of crime – as an award-winning writer of crime and thriller fiction.
Margaret’s novels have garnered critical acclaim on both sides of the Atlantic. She is a past Chair of the Crime Writers’ Association and Chair of the CWA Debut Dagger. She has been a contributor to both BBC Radio Merseyside’s Drive Time and Radio 4’s The Message.
Tickets to the talk are available for £7.00, a dinner is also available post talk for an additional £25.00 for three courses.

Hosted by The Liverpool Book Club.
Arrivals from 6:30pm
Event Commences: 7:00pm
Audience Q&A : 7:30pm
Book Sales & Signing: 8:00pm
Dinner: 8:30pm

Menu

Starter
French Onion Soup
Cheese Croute
-oo0oo-
Main Course
Ox Cheek Bourguignon
Garlic and parsley mash, brioche crumb
French Beans
Mushroom Bourguignon (V)

-ooOoo-
Dessert
Peach Pavlova

This month marks the first of a new detective thriller series by award-winning writer Margaret Murphy, published under the pen name M.K. Murphy. The novel, described as ‘a compulsive thriller’ by bestseller Ann Cleeves, has been optioned for television.
Over almost three decades, the Liverpool born author has written 12 internationally-acclaimed psychological suspense novels under her own name, and 5 forensic thrillers as Ashley Dyer and AD Garrett.
Margaret will be in conversation with Professor Catherine Cole, Professor in Creative Writing in The Screen School, Liverpool John Moores University. They will talk about how Margaret’s passion for research has sustained her career through turbulent times in publishing. This includes spending time in the US Midwest with cops, CSIs, cold case detectives and a forensic anthropologist researching one of her forensic thrillers. But research has its perils. She’s been threatened with arrest by Manchester police, briefly gained the unwanted attention of a drugs gang, and was infamously kicked out of a psychotherapy open day as a spy!
Professor Cole and Margaret will also discuss the influences that have inspired Margaret’s range of writing styles, the importance of resilience as a writer and the power of reinvention.
Continue the conversation in the Athenaeum’s dining room over a three course meal. This can be booked separately from the talk and details will be sent with your confirmation email.
About Margaret Murphy
Margaret’s work has been published in the UK and across North America, as well as in translation in nine countries. She is a past Chair of the Crime Writers Association (CWA), a former RLF Fellow and Reading Round Lector, and founder of Murder Squad. A Short Story Dagger, HRF Keating, and CWA Red Herring award winner, has also been shortlisted for the ‘First Blood’ critics award and the CWA Dagger in the Library.
About Professor Catherine Cole
Catherine Cole is Professor in Creative Writing in The Screen School. She has published 4 novels, and her non-fiction includes Private Dicks and Feisty Chicks: An Interrogation of Crime Fiction (Curtin University Press, 1996). She is a peer reviewer for the Literature Board of the Australian Council for the Arts, a regular book reviewer, participant in Australian and international writers’ festivals and a judge of major national book awards. Catherine’s research interests include Creative Writing and Crime Fiction and True Crime.

Philip Whitfield: The Art of Conversation
2023-10-20 12:00 - 14:30
The Athenæum is an enlightened place for conversation. But, as Oscar Wilde said, conversation about the weather is the last refuge of the unimaginative. We’ll explore how to have worthy conversations among members, friends and family?
Proprietor Philip Whitfield will be hosting a talk, discussion and Lunch on Friday 20th October entitled ‘The Art of Conversation’.
Full Details to follow.

Talk: 12:00pm in the Library Reading Room
Lunch: 1:00pm in the Newsroom

Tickets available for £13.00, including soup & sandwich lunch post event.

Theatre Group Visit: Frantic Assembly
2023-10-21 14:00 - 16:30
The Theatre Group’s next outing is a visit to the Playhouse on Saturday 21st October to watch the Frantic Assembly: Metamorphosis
Tickets are available from £26, to be collected from the Concierge in advance
Why not visit the club before or after the showing for a bite to eat?
Book you place now by 30th September through the Members’ Area or via the Concierge.
Kafka’s
Metamorphosis
Adapted by Lemn Sissay OBE. Directed by Scott Graham.
One morning Gregor Samsa awakes to find himself changed. To those around him he is dangerous, untouchable vermin. Worse than that, he is a burden.
A word said, an action out of place, the opening of old wounds, none of which can be undone. Until now Gregor has woken every morning, quietly left to take the same train, and worked to pay off the family debt. But that world explodes on this morning of brutal metamorphosis.
In their first commission since 2019, Frantic Assembly and Lemn Sissay OBE collaborate on this thrilling new adaptation of Metamorphosis. Combining the fluidity and lyricism of Lemn Sissay’s adaptation and Frantic’s uncompromising physicality, this promises to be an unmissable retelling of Franz Kafka’s shocking tale of cruelty and kindness; a visceral and vital depiction of humans struggling within a system that crushes them under its heel.

Liverpool Book Club: An Evening with Ramsey Campbell
2023-10-25 18:30 - 20:30
The Exchange in association with Liverpool Book Club & Liverpool John Moores University present an evening with author Ramsey Campbell.
Tickets to the talk are available for £7.00, a dinner is also available post talk for an additional £25.00 for three courses.
Book your places now via the Members’ Area or through the Concierge.
Hosted by The Liverpool Book Club.

Arrivals from 6:30pm
Event Commences: 7:00pm
Audience Q&A : 7:30pm
Book Sales & Signing: 8:00pm
Dinner: 8:30pm

Born in Liverpool, Ramsey has lived all of his life on Merseyside and as a writer, editor and critic, he has been a creative force for over 50 years. He is described as ‘Britain’s most respected living horror writer’ in The Oxford Companion to English Literature and best-selling author Stephen King has said he is: “literate in a field that has attracted many comic book intellects, cool in a field that tends toward panting melodrama…fluid in a field where many of the best practitioners fall prey to cant.”
A precocious intellect, Ramsey was reading at two and dabbling in writing by the age of seven. It was an apparently innocuous children’s tale which first peaked his interest in horror fiction. In a Guardian interview, Ramsey explained how a Rupert Bear story called Rupert’s Christmas Tree had an unexpected effect on him. He said: “Rupert acquires a magical tree that decamps after the festivities and returns to its home in the woods…the details – the small high voice from the tree, the creaking that Rupert hears in the night, the trail of earth he follows from the tub in his house, above all the prancing silhouette that inclines towards him, the star it has in place of a head – are surely the stuff of adult supernatural fiction. I think I got my start in the field right there.”
Two key people are credited with nurturing Ramsey’s early fascination with writing – his mother and his English tutor at St Edward’s College, West Derby. His teacher, Brother Kelly, regularly asked him to read his stories to the class and Ramsey’s mother Nora, who herself had short stories published in writer’s magazines, encouraged him early on to send his work to publishers.
Aged only 11 Ramsey submitted his first collection Ghostly Tales to a range of publishers and although it was rejected, a letter which stated: “We don’t publish ghost stories, but this is a promising start,” encouraged him to keep writing, and Ramsey continued to avidly consume the work of Lovecraft, Bierce, Kafka and the cinema of film noir.
On leaving school at 16, Ramsey worked in the Inland Revenue but continued to write in his free time, selling several of his early stories to editor August Derleth, who went on to become a friend and mentor. At the suggestion of Derleth, Ramsey rewrote many of his earliest stories, moving their settings from Massachusetts to the fictional Brichester, imagined to be near the River Severn in Gloucestershire. This change of locales led to Campbell’s first professional published work, the story, The Church in High Street in 1962 and the book, The Inhabitant of the Lake and Less Welcome Tenants in 1964.
Ramsey left the tax office to work in Liverpool public libraries, becoming a full time writer in 1973 after the publication of Demons by Daylight. His second hardcover collection of horror stories, The Height of the Scream, was published in 1976 as well as his first novel, The Doll Who Ate His Mother, which he now recalls had mixed reviews but has rarely been out of print since. Just three years later this was followed by The Face that Must Die, which is still considered by many critics to be one of Campbell’s finest works.
From that point onwards Ramsey published numerous novels and short story collections, with hardly a year between publications. The majority of his work has been nominated for and has won major awards, leading to him becoming one of the world’s most decorated horror writers. He has won four World Fantasy Awards, ten British Fantasy Awards, three Bram Stoker Awards, and the Horror Writers’ Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
His passion for writing shows no sign of abating, with Ramsey continuing to write in a contemporary style with modern day references. He frequently sets his tales on Merseyside and has drawn on local history and traditions – a book of short stories and ten novels to date.
Ramsey comments that, contrary to what might be expected, the older he gets the more appealing he finds terror, saying: “Being made to feel by art is surely no bad thing – to be scared any more than to be made to weep or indeed to be amused out of one’s wits. It’s a way of engaging the imagination, and a good deal is right with that.”

The Exchange: Free Your Mind - With Laura Dodsworth & Patrick Fagan
2023-10-26 18:30 - 20:30
An eye-opening look at the world of manipulation, and what we can do to recognise and resist the daily attempts to control and influence our minds. “Manipulation is not new. But today’s combination of technology, social media and AI, combined with marketing and behavioural science, is new in its sophistication and scale. Everyone wants to know their own mind. To do that, you have to be able to understand and resist attempts to influence your mind.” – Laura Dodsworth and Patrick Fagan
You’re manipulated all day every day. We all are. Our social media feeds, our governments, our friends and family, even the humble waiter who asks, “Still or sparkling?” – they’re all conspiring to influence what we think, feel and do. It’s turbocharged in the era of big data and AI, and if you think you’re not being influenced, you’re probably the most influenceable of all.
Fortunately, bestselling author of A State of Fear Laura Dodsworth and former Cambridge Analytica behavioural scientist Patrick Fagan have joined forces to show you what’s up the magician’s sleeve.
Free Your Mind is your field guide to navigating this information battlefield. Join Dodsworth and Fagan in a live discussion on powerful psychological principles like ‘nudging’, cutting-edge science and anonymous insider access. They draw on interviews with mind-control experts ranging from monks to magicians, to uncover their most deceptive techniques and expose the hidden tactics used to influence you, from social media to subliminal messages. They also did the fieldwork so you don’t have to, joining forums, courses, cults and digital detoxes.
Laura Dodsworth
Laura is an author, journalist, photographer and commentator. She is the author of the Sunday Times bestseller A State of Fear, as well as a trilogy of books about the body.
Patrick Fagan
Patrick is a behavioural scientist with 12 years’ experience of mind manipulation. Previously lead psychologist at Cambridge Analytica, he is now a part-time lecturer at Goldsmiths College, University of London and University of the Arts, and a guest lecturer at University College London, as well as running several data consultancies. He is the author of Hooked: Why cute sells and other marketing magic we can’t resist.

Tickets to the talk are available for £10.00, a dinner is also available post talk for an additional £25.00 for three courses.

Arrivals from 6:30pm
Event Commences: 6:45pm
Dinner: 8:40pm

October Social - New Members Evening
2023-10-27 18:00 - 22:00
Join us for our October Social Evening 27th October from 6:00pm in the Newsroom.
A great way to meet more of your fellow members, guests will be gathering from 6:00pm in the Newsroom with a glass of fizz and nibbles on us!
Light entertainment will be provided during the evening – tbc, and there will also be an opportunity for our new Proprietors to sign their share in the history 1809 share register.
A buffet will also be available during the evening – prebooking is required to assist with catering.

Drinks Reception : 6:00pm
Signing Ceremony: 6:30pm
Buffet Served: 7:30pm

It is free to attend the reception, the buffet is available for £15.00. Book your place now via the Members’ Area or with the Concierge.

Theatre Group Visit: Dracula: Mina's Reckoning
2023-10-28 14:00 - 16:30
The Theatre Group’s next outing is a visit to the Playhouse on October 28th to watch Dracula: Mina’s Reckoning
Tickets are available from £26, to be collected from the Concierge in advance
Why not visit the club before or after the showing for a bite to eat?
Book you place now by 7th October through the Members’ Area or via the Concierge.
★★★★★
” … a magnificent new version of Stoker’s timeless story”
The Scotsman
Under the buzzing lights of a psychiatric hospital in Aberdeenshire in 1897, Mina Murray recounts her encounters with the most terrifying of beasts: Dracula. A throng of patients listen with bated breath as they are transported to a world where immortality and ultimate power is possible, even for women – but with terrible consequences…
Protect your loved ains fae the claws o a beast
Not for the faint-hearted, Morna Pearson’s adaptation of Bram Stoker’s classic tale is filled with her trademark humour and taste for the strange and grotesque. This breathtaking gothic production transposes the action to Scotland amid the wild beauty of the landscapes of the northeast which originally inspired the novel. With an all-women and non-binary ensemble cast we witness the addiction, intoxication, and empowerment of Mina.
Miss this contemporary re-telling at your peril…

History Group - Cockfighting in Liverpool: Rise, Fall & Lingering Death
2023-10-31 17:30 - 22:00
This talk will examine the history of cockfighting, once one of England’s most popular pastimes, from the medieval period through to its abolition in 1849. It was first recorded in Liverpool in the 16th century, and the talk will focus on the locations of the town’s cockpits, and on the close connection of the ‘sport’ with schools, the local aristocracy and horse racing at Maghull and Aintree. It became the focus of early campaigns for the prevention of cruelty to animals, led in Liverpool by Egerton Smith, the editor of the “Liverpool Mercury’, who wrote one of the first novels on the subject. Despite abolition, it continued clandestinely for many years, and the talk will conclude with a discussion of how and why that became the case.
If you woud like to stay for supper following the talk, please book with Reception.
Looking forward to seeing you all again.

Attendance of the talk is free for Members are guests.
Supper is available to pre-book following the event for just £16.50. Book your place now via the Members’ Area or with the Concierge.
Talk: 5:30pm in the Library Reading Room
Supper: 6:30pm on the third floor

Library & Archive Group - All Quiet on the Western Front
2023-11-01 15:00 - 18:30
Wednesday 1st November – 3pm in the Wine Servery
Im Westen Nichts Neues, otherwise known as All Quiet on the Western Front, was published in 1929, but was famously banned and burned in Germany over the years after release.
Some of you may know that The Athenaeum has a copy of the book, and a German copy at that, from the year of it’s publication. How did we collect this timeless piece of 20th century literature? Come along, and help us answer that very question.
This discussion will be followed by the 1930 film of the same name.
Attendance of the talk is free of charge.
To dine afterwards, tickets are £25.

3pm – discuss the book
3:30pm – watch the film
4:30pm – interval
5pm – watch the film
6:30pm – supper in the Dining Room
