All posts by London Meeting

Online Meeting Saturday, December 5, 2020

This meeting will be held online in zoom in line with UK Covid-19 regulations.

Speaking this month we have:

1st. Janet Parsons – Palestine: Beyond the Wall

Palestine is a land of striking contrasts, from its ancient limestone hills crowned with scattered villages and more recently dense clusters of Israeli settlements, to the vast stretches of the Judean desert, rich in remarkable sites and buildings. Very few tours visit places like Mar Saba, Hisham’s Palace and the palm shaded oases of this beautiful landscape.

Jan travelled through Palestine in 2017 with the Palestine Exploration Fund, meeting some of the hospitable Palestinian people across the West Bank including Bedouins and the Samaritan community with their ancient customs. We will visit the holy sites in Hebron, a volatile city where tensions run high, Qumran, home to the Dead Sea Scrolls and Temple Mount in Jerusalem – a significant site to the three major world religions. Jan’s talk will also address the impact of the Separation Wall in the context of the more recent history of Palestine.

Jan Parsons was Chairman of Guildford Travel Club from 2013 – 2019. A keen photographer, her particular interest is visiting ancient and remote sites away from the tourist trail where travel, history, culture and archaeology meet.

2nd Luke Ripley – Nil by Air: London to Sydney without flying

Globetrotters member Luke Ripley will attempt to dispel the myth that intercontinental travel necessitates flying by describing the journey he made last year from London to Sydney, entirely by surface transport. Setting off from London’s St Pancras station, he travelled by rail to China, via the Trans-Siberian Railway, before joining a container ship for the two-week voyage to Brisbane, crossing the Philippine, Solomon and Coral Seas. Once ashore in Australia, he continued by rail to Sydney, with a few stops and side-trips en route. Not an aircraft in sight!

While aviation remains massively dominant in the travel industry, among those seeking to limit the environmental impact of their travels, and for whom the journey is at least as important as the destination, there is perhaps a growing awareness of the land transport alternatives. However, with the almost total demise of “proper” deep-sea passenger shipping, a voyage by freighter is now often the only practical means of crossing oceans for those determined to avoid air-travel, yet remains relatively little-known.

Luke is a railwayman first and foremost, but has considerable experience of cargo-ship travel, having made numerous voyages (inc. trans-Atlantic, trans-Pacific, Europe – S. Africa, Europe – E. Africa via Suez, and in the Med). As well as focusing on his own recent journey, his talk will touch on some of the joys, practicalities and obstacles involved in this form of travel more generally.

Luke Ripley - Nil by Air
Luke Ripley - Nil by Air
  • Luke Ripley - Nil by Air
    Luke Ripley – Nil by Air
  • Luke Ripley - Nil by Air
    Luke Ripley – Nil by Air

For forthcoming meetings we have

  • a suggested donation £2-3 for members to help with our costs. Members will be emailed a ticket code link allowing access to this option or you can access it from the members area.
  • We also have a limited number free tickets for members who have been financially affected by Covid-19
  • a donation of £5-6 for non-members, non-members may join the club for £12 per year and get this and future meetings at members rate for £12, members can also watch the 3 previous online talks, members also receive Globe our members magazine and our annual members calendar, why not join and enter your pictures.  
  • a catch up to watch later will be available to members and non-member ticket holders. (Members can also watch the previous online talks)

Brian Andersons’s talk has had to be postponed due to the covid-19 pandemic.

Brad Parsk’s talk has had to be postponed as the expedition was postponed due to the covid-19 pandemic.

This meeting may be postponed to a future date or take place online due to the Corona virus and the national guidance on self-isolation and social distancing.

London Meeting Saturday, January 9, 2021

This meeting will be held online in zoom in line with UK Covid-19 regulations.

Speaking this month starting at 1pm (UK time) we have:

1st.  Som Tamang – Take on Nepal)

Take on Nepal are one of the only trekking companies training and hiring a team of women in Nepal, In the mountain villages of Nepal, opportunities for women are few. Many young girls have little or no education, and marriage at an early age is still common. Take on Nepal and FHC have been working to change this for many years. As Take on Nepal has grown, we’ve begun hiring young women and girls from Batase — first to work as porters and then as guides, roles that up to now have been seen as exclusively male. For young village girls, early exposure to paid work as porters and the experience of interacting with Western women is an eye-opener. It provides them with a glimpse of other possible futures, futures far different from the lives their mothers lived and to the lives they may have thought they were going to live.

2nd. Dan Evans – Simplicity, Serenity and Sincerity across the world

The English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams once referred to the three great ‘S’s’ as Simplicity, Serenity and Sincerity.

However, these principles stretch far beyond the concert hall. In this talk, join me on a journey around the world as I go in search of these three facets of life. I shall showcase the simplicity of life in a Moroccan desert and an Italian harbour.

With words, I shall convey the serenity of the Alaskan wilderness and a twilit UK city. And I shall whisk you to a lakeside property in Brazil where sincerity is most certainly moored. I’ll conclude with some musings on how Simplicity, Serenity, and Sincerity have come to the fore over the past year.

By tradition we follow this meeting with a New Year Party post-meeting – everyone is invited to bring food and wine or soft drinks (we are not allowed beer or spirits) and participate!

For forthcoming meetings we have

  • a suggested donation £2-3 for members to help with our costs. Members will be emailed a ticket code link allowing access to this option or you can access it from the members area.
  • We also have a limited number free tickets for members who have been financially affected by Covid-19
  • a donation of £5-6 for non-members, non-members may join the club for £12 per year and get this and future meetings at members rate for £12, members can also watch the 3 previous online talks, members also receive Globe our members magazine and our annual members calendar, why not join and enter your pictures.  
  • a catch up to watch later will be available to members and non-member ticket holders. (Members can also watch the previous online talks)

Online Meeting Saturday, November 7, 2020

This meeting will be held online in zoom in line with UK Covid-19 regulations.

This month we have:

AGM: The clubs AGM starts at 12:30 pm (card carrying members only), then at 2.00 pm the meeting begins

Speaking this month at 2pm we have:  (Get Tickets)

1st. Paul Gillingham – Across Spain the Roman Way, At a Snail’s Pace.

“What have the Romans ever done for us?” scoffs John Cleese in Monty Python’s ‘Life of Brian’.

Plenty, discover Paul and his son, who cross Spain along the ancient Roman routes, Via Augusta and Via de la Plata

Their 800 mile bike ride starting from the Roman city of Gades (Cadiz) takes them through Andalusia, Extremadura and Castilla y Leon, provinces where the Romans left their mark with bridges and roads, aqueducts, theatres, circuses and baths.

They then head for the hills of Galicia along the Camino Sanabres, completing their journey at the post-Roman shrine of St James in Santiago de Compostela.

Paul taught history in UK, Canada, Tanzania and Hong Kong before becoming a journalist and broadcaster. He began as a TV newsreader in Hong Kong in the 70’s (see Paul Gillingham, HK TV via Google), returning to UK as a TV presenter, and went on to produce travel features from around the world for BBC Radio 4, BBC World Service and Classic FM. He has written many articles on travel and a book, ‘At the Peak: A History of Hong Kong Between the Wars’ (Macmillan, 1983).

The highlights of his career include: a spell in the Swedish Merchant Navy, a month in a Rwandan refugee camp during the genocide, meeting Ginger Rogers on Broadway and interviewing, among others, the Dalai Lama, Desmond Tutu, Quentin Crisp, Little Richard and the sons of Martin Luther King and Mussolini.

2nd: Alan Palmer – In Search of ‘Attaland

Travels in The South of Morocco

Morocco first began to capture Alan’s imagination while he was on a fleeting visit to the country in 1979. He returned to complete his first ascent of Jebel Toubkal, the highest mountain in north Africa, in 1986, and has remained a frequent visitor, trekking regularly, ever since. During this time, he has developed a particular fascination for the Berber Aït ‘Atta warrior tribe which valiantly resisted the French occupation of their country, culminating in their honourable surrender at the Battle of Bou Gafer in 1933.  In this talk, Alan describes how and why he has been slowly but inexorably drawn towards the Ait ‘Atta and his exploration of ‘Attaland, their homeland, which stretches from the snowy peaks of Jebel Azourki in the Central High Atlas Mountains, across the barren slopes of Jebel Sahro, to the green oasis of Nekob in Morocco’s deep south.

Alan is Founder and Director of Yak Travel, his company which organises bespoke treks and tours through rarely explored regions of Morocco and North-East India.

He is author of Moroccan Atlas the Trekking Guide (Trailblazer Publications) and has also contributed to three other guide books, Pakistan and The Silk Road (both published by Insight Guides), and the Rough Guide to Morocco. Additionally, he regularly writes articles for travel magazines and travel books and frequently delivers talks and presentations on Morocco, North-East India and Burma (Myanmar) at travel clubs and shows, both in England and in India.

He is:

  • a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society (FRGS)
  • a member of the Royal Society for Asian Affairs (RSAA)
  • a life member of the British Moroccan Society (BMS)
  • a member of the Pakistan Society
  • Secretary of The 153 Club (Sahara)
  • a member of The Globetrotters Club
  • TripAdvisor Destination Expert (DE) for Morocco

Find out more at:

The talk by Derek Mansfield – Riding the Scythian Empire has had to be postponed.

You only need one ticket per screen, not one for each person watching or attending.


Date And Time

Sat, 7 Nov 2020, AGM 12:30, talks 14:00 GMT (London time)

For forthcoming meetings we have

  • a suggested donation £2-3 for members to help with our costs. Members will be emailed a ticket code link allowing access to this option or you can access it from the members area.
  • a donation of £5-6 for non-members, non-members may join the club for £12 per year and get this and future meetings at members rate for £12, members can also watch the 3 previous online talks, members also receive Globe our members magazine and our annual members calendar, why not join and enter your pictures.
  • a catch up to watch later will be available to members and non-member ticket holders. (Members can also watch the previous online talks)
Get Tickets at Eventbrite

London Meeting, Saturday, December 7th 2019

Speaking this month we have:

1st: Mary Fogarty – Colombia: from the Caribbean to the Magdalena and back again.

A trip full of colour and magic and unexpected challenges.

Mary started in Cartagena, with a rainbow of colours in every street, and then left the Caribbean behind to take the Toto Express – a small dodgy van, which left at 4am – to Mompox, on the magical Magdalena river. The Toto Express trundled along behind endless lines of trucks for hours of dark, but finally the sun came up and a green wonderworld emerged, culminating in Mompox, a fairytale place by the vast Magdalena, where the trees are full of iguanas and dugout boats turn up selling pineapples and papaya.

After hours of dreamy wonder spent by and on this magnificent river, there was another hairy journey back to the Caribbean … this time to Santa Marta, where the beach meets the port, and film crews are recruiting by the water’s edge.

Mary left this edgy city for Tayrona National Park, used by the infamous narcotraffickers for smuggling out their stuff in the 70s and 80s, and now one of the most beautiful natural paradises in the world. Warned to take mosquito cream and lots of water, no-one, however, suggested climbing shoes – and the route she was to take up the mountain to find an old indigenous site involved some HUGE rocks, where the only way up was to use the ropes – in Clarks sandals this proved to be quite the challenge, but she got there!

2nd: Andy Skillen – Walking with bears: on foot adventures with polars and grizzlies

Andy has spent much of his career flat on his face in the mud, snow, water and, well anything else that happens to be there, to bring the world unique images of grizzly and polar bears…on foot. As one of just 4 photographers worldwide to take people to se​e arctic giants on their terms, as well as frequenting a whole host of ‘off the beaten track’ brown bear locations, Andy has a unique take on what it is to work with and photograph these icons of the wilderness. Join us in the auditorium and hear of some of the more hair-raising encounters that Andy has gone through in his pursuit of recording ursine behaviour…

Biography:

Andy Skillen is a multi-award-winning wildlife photographer who has documented the natural world for 25 years. Published on a global basis, much of his workload is on specific projects for the world’s leading organisations. In addition, Andy supplies a limited edition, fine art collection with his work is exhibited in galleries in the UK and overseas and also undertakes private commissions for collectors worldwide. As well as the artistic side, Andy also leads groups on specialist photographic adventures in Africa, South America and the Arctic, and is one of only four photographers worldwide to lead polar bear safaris on foot.  Andy is also on the judging panel for a number of photo competitions and a regular speaker and panelist for National Geographic Traveller in the UK, as well as being a fixture on the speaking and after-dinner circuit.

For Andy, the power of photography has also been about the communication of the conservation message, and his collections are inspired by that rationale. 

Find out more at:

Admission costs, we charge a small cash fee of £3 for Globetrotters members and £6 for non-members on the door to cover our expenses, tea/coffee and biscuits are included free in the interval between the talks.

You do not need to be a member to attend, and we do not sell advanced tickets, please just come on the day, the doors open at 2:15pm and the program starts around 2:30pm with each talk lasting between 45 – 60 minutes.

London branch meetings are held at The Church of Scotland, Crown Court, behind the Fortune Theatre in Covent Garden the first Saturday of each month, unless there is a UK public holiday that weekend.

There is no London meeting in August, but we start afresh each September. If you would like to keep up to date with what’s happening at the Globetrotters London meetings and to be sent email reminders prior to the meeting, please sign up here

London Meeting, Saturday, November 2nd 2019

This month we have:

AGM : The clubs AGM starts at 1:00 pm (card carrying members only), then at 2.30 the meeting begins

Speaking this month we have:

1st Richard Harpham – Exploring and Mapping the North Seal River, Manitoba

Richard Harpham FRGS is no stranger to adventure having completed over 10,000 miles of human powered expeditions by canoe, kayak, bike and on ski. His adventures have including London to Marrakech by bike and kayak, sea kayaking 1000 miles from Vancouver to Alaska on the Inside Passage and canoeing the Yukon River on numerous occasions.

This proved to be a good warm up for the North Seal River project in Northern Manitoba. Rich, his wife Ashley and Canadian explorers Hap and Andrea Wilson spent two weeks exploring and mapping the river system of Lakes and Class II/III rapids. This remote wilderness nestled in between the eskers and lakes of the Boreal Forest is almost 300 miles from the nearest road and certainly far from help. The team battled large rapids, heavy snow fall and freezing temperatures on their journey mapping the river.

They witnessed nature up close and raw with wolves, bears and moose for company. This area is the traditional hunting grounds of the Dene people who  used the giant eskers from the glacial retreat as their highways through the region.

Rich writes for many different magazines and also speaks about his adventures and social entrepreneurship as an inspirational speaker.  In the UK Rich works as a professional instructor and coach in their family run business Canoe Trail which offers canoeing, kayaking, stand up paddle boarding just one hour of London and has been voted Top 52 things to do in the world by Lonely Planet and No. 3 best place in the UK to stand up paddle board by Red Bull Magazine.  They run Duke of Edinburgh Programmes, corporate events and adventure school youth programmes as well as canoeing expeditions to Scotland and Canada.  

Rich is a born storyteller with plenty of amusing tales and inspiring accounts of authentic adventure.  He is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.  Come and hear first hand about their incredible adventure in this remote wilderness, the highs and lows and getting stranded when the float plane hit a rock. 

Find out more at:

  • Race start on fairy lake
  • land of the midnight sun
  • Yukon River Quest 444 mile race
  • Big-air-on-the-Washing-Machine-for-Rich-and-Alan-River-Spey
  • canoeing the Yukon
  • Esters voyager in sunlight

2nd: Victor Murineanu – A journey across the Atlantic Ocean

“Every November since Christopher Columbus first discovered the Trade Winds, yachts of various sizes set sail from the Canary Islands on a 2,700 nautical miles westward journey across the Atlantic to the Caribbean. This is the story of my experience crossing the pond, a 3 week long adventure.

Victor’s Instagram handles:

  • @odyseasailing – sailing related                                                     
  • @victorius000 – personal profile.

Admission costs, we charge a small cash fee of £3 for Globetrotters members and £6 for non-members on the door to cover our expenses, tea/coffee and biscuits are included free in the interval between the talks.

You do not need to be a member to attend, and we do not sell advanced tickets, please just come on the day, the doors open at 2:15pm and the program starts around 2:30pm with each talk lasting between 45 – 60 minutes.

London branch meetings are held at The Church of Scotland, Crown Court, behind the Fortune Theatre in Covent Garden the first Saturday of each month, unless there is a UK public holiday that weekend.

There is no London meeting in August, but we start afresh each September. If you would like to keep up to date with what’s happening at the Globetrotters London meetings and to be sent email reminders prior to the meeting, please sign up here

London Meeting, Saturday, October 5th 2019

Speaking this month we have:

1st: Russell Maddicks – Island Hopping in Honduras

Russell Maddicks goes in search of Garifuna drums, Henry Morgan’s hideaway, and the undersea wonders of the MesoAmerican Barrier Reef in Central America’s Caribbean gem

In this talk, travel writer and guide book author Russell Maddicks goes beyond the media stereotypes to show the other side of Honduras: the laid back Bay Islands with their rich Garifuna culture, the tiny coral atolls of the Cayos Cochinos. the vibrant mainland port of La Ceiba, and the thickly-forested Nombre de Dios mountain chain that offers hiking in the Pico Bonito National Park, and whitewater rafting in the Rio Cangrejal.

About the Speaker

Russell Maddicks is a BBC-trained journalist and travel writer who has spent the last 20 years exploring the countries of Latin America and publishing his experiences in print, online and in social media. A graduate in Economic and Social History from the University of Hull, England, he is fluent in Spanish and loves nothing better than mastering the country-specific slang of the Latin American countries he visits.

He has worked as a reporter and editor at the Daily Journal newspaper in Caracas, the editor of a webzine aimed at the Latin American youth market called Loquesea! (Whatever!), and for 10 years worked as a regional specialist at the BBC covering political developments and general news across Latin America.

He is the author of travel guides to Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, Mexico, Nicaragua and Venezuela, and has written for numerous international publications, including BBC Travel, National Geographic Traveller, Wanderlust Magazine, the Mexico News Daily, Latino Life Magazine, ArtNews, and Songlines.

In 2015, his book Culture Smart! Ecuador was awarded the Gold Prize at the Pearl of the Pacific International Travel Journalism Awards at the Ecuadorian International Tourism Fair (FITE) in Guayaquil.

An accomplished public speaker, he has given illustrated talks on Latin American travel destinations at the World Travel Market in London, the Globetrotter’s Club, the Telegraph Outdoor and Adventure Travel Show, Destinations: The Holiday and Travel Show, Nat Geo Traveller’s Travel Geeks, and at UK colleges and universities.

You can follow his Latin American travels on Twitter and Instagram

2nd Katrina Megget – A long, hard walk down New Zealand

Katrina Megget takes on the challenge of tackling her self-doubt to see whether she can walk 1,864 miles along the Te Araroa Trail down the length of New Zealand. Little did she know quite how physically and mentally demanding it would be.

Katrina will also detail some of the highlights during her adventure as well as some of the life-changing lessons she learnt along the way. 

In this talk, freelance healthcare and adventure travel journalist and awesomeness coach Katrina Megget details some of the challenges she faced during her four months walking the North Island of New Zealand before being forced to quit the trail after a knee injury – from the mind-numbing monotony of beach walking to the muddy rigours of Raetea Forest, from battling 110 km wind gusts on exposed mountain tops to almost drowning during a river crossing, and then having to deal with the concept of failure when injury struck.

About the speaker: Katrina Megget is a freelance healthcare and adventure travel journalist with work published in The Telegraph, Scientific American, Trek and Mountain Magazine, Outdoor Enthusiast and New Zealand Wilderness Magazine. Born and bred in New Zealand, Katrina has spent the past 13 years in the UK.

Despite always having a love of nature and the outdoors, it has only been in the past five or so years that Katrina has embraced her adventurous streak to explore the mountainous and wild places of the UK and New Zealand, and also taking on the challenge to climb 40 volcanoes by the age of 40.

Having suffered from chronic self doubt and low self esteem, Katrina is challenging her self-limiting beliefs to push herself outside her comfort zone to achieve goals and dreams she thought she wasn’t good enough to achieve, last year walking 1,242 miles down the length of New Zealand. Now through her blog she raises awareness of self-doubt and its debilitating effects and to show that it doesn’t have to hold us back from achieving something incredible because everyone is more capable and awesome than they think they are. 

Katrina can be found

Admission costs, we charge a small cash fee of £3 for Globetrotters members and £6 for non-members on the door to cover our expenses, tea/coffee and biscuits are included free in the interval between the talks.

You do not need to be a member to attend, and we do not sell advanced tickets, please just come on the day, the doors open at 2:15pm and the program starts around 2:30pm with each talk lasting between 45 – 60 minutes.

London branch meetings are held at The Church of Scotland, Crown Court, behind the Fortune Theatre in Covent Garden the first Saturday of each month, unless there is a UK public holiday that weekend.

There is no London meeting in August, but we start afresh each September. If you would like to keep up to date with what’s happening at the Globetrotters London meetings and to be sent email reminders prior to the meeting, please sign up here

London Meeting, Saturday, September 7th 2019

Speaking this month we have:

1st: Julie and Keith Tame – Camping in Africa – a Grown up Gap Year.

Julie and Keith have had many holidays in Africa but in 2015 we set off on an overland trip for 15 months in their Landcover, camping in remote places, watching wildlife and having adventures.

From South Africa to Uganda and everywhere in-between. Along challenging roads, through deep sand and through water crossings Julie and Keith had some amazing experiences and  we would love to share some of this with you.

Julie and Keith hope that their talk will inspire you to take a grown up gap year of your own.

Follow their next adventure on:

2nd: Peter Jartoft – Beowulf VS Hygelac and Geatland.

Beowulf,  a fictional king in the epic poem!

But king Hygelac mentioned in the poem was real, what kind of locations with names and archaeology can we find that may explain the origin of the poem?

We will also add other real kings mentioned in old texts such as Emund Coal-burner as we speak and include Geatlands medieval history.

About the speaker:

Peter Jartoft, born 1969 AD, has a Master of Science Engineering Physics, one of his interests is in history and archaeology.

Reading the Beowulf poem he asked himself the question “Where did Hygelac live?”.

Based on this question, the Land of Beowulf guided tours originate.

Find out more at: www.LandofBeowulf.com

Admission costs, we charge a small cash fee of £3 for Globetrotters members and £6 for non-members on the door to cover our expenses, tea/coffee and biscuits are included free in the interval between the talks.

You do not need to be a member to attend, and we do not sell advanced tickets, please just come on the day, the doors open at 2:15pm and the program starts around 2:30pm with each talk lasting between 45 – 60 minutes.

London branch meetings are held at The Church of Scotland, Crown Court, behind the Fortune Theatre in Covent Garden the first Saturday of each month, unless there is a UK public holiday that weekend.

There is no London meeting in August, but we start afresh each September. If you would like to keep up to date with what’s happening at the Globetrotters London meetings and to be sent email reminders prior to the meeting, please sign up here

London Meeting, Saturday, July 6th 2019

Members Slides : Around the world in eighty minutes.

10 presentations of 10 slides

Speaking this month in a fast paced journey around the Globe with 10-12 talks of 10 slides.

  • Francesca Jaggs – Dubai
  • Simon Finnamore – South Africa
  • Kim Rix – Solo Travel
  • Suzanne Mcgauley – Grenada To Antigua
  • David Shamash – Israel
  • Mary Fogarty – Cows change beach in Corsica
  • Nicola Sanderson – South Korea
  • Richard O’Shea – Croatia To Venice
  • Justyna – Iran
  • Paula Williams – Cycling In Yorkshire
  • Pete Hall – The Trip from Hell pt2

Admission costs, we charge a small cash fee of £3 for Globetrotters members and £6 for non-members on the door to cover our expenses, tea/coffee and biscuits are included free in the interval between the talks.

You do not need to be a member to attend, and we do not sell advanced tickets, please just come on the day, the doors open at 2:15pm and the program starts around 2:30pm with each talk lasting between 45 – 60 minutes.

London branch meetings are held at The Church of Scotland, Crown Court, behind the Fortune Theatre in Covent Garden the first Saturday of each month, unless there is a UK public holiday that weekend.

There is no London meeting in August, but we start afresh each September. If you would like to keep up to date with what’s happening at the Globetrotters London meetings and to be sent email reminders prior to the meeting, please sign up here

London Meeting, Saturday, June 1st 2019

Speaking this month we have:

1st: Tim Hanigan – On Foot through the High Atlas: Exploring Morocco’s mountains

The mountain spine of northwest Africa, the High Atlas walls off the fertile coastal regions of Morocco from the vast expanse of the Sahara. Rising to 4,000 metres in places and snowbound in winter, the range is the stronghold of Morocco’s indigenous Berbers.

Today traditional transhumance cultures sit uneasily alongside an expanding network of government roads, which are rapidly transforming former mule-trails into tarmac. But for now there’s still plenty of wilderness, and some very fine trekking.

Tim Hannigan shares insights from his many journeys in the High Atlas, with a particular focus on the beautiful Ait Bougmez and Mgoun region at the very heart of the range, as well as tales of his repeated failure to make it to the summit of Morocco’s second highest mountain!

Tim is a writer and journalist. He’s the author of Murder in the Hindu Kush, A Brief History of Indonesia, Raffles and the British Invasion of Java, various guidebooks, and numerous travel articles – covering the Atlas Mountains of Morocco, amongst other places.

Find out more at:

2nd: Janey McGill – Oman: Her Faces of Change

Janey returned in January from walking Oman’s Empty Quarter with an Anglo-Omani team exploring the human condition and encouraging respect, understanding and acceptance regardless of gender, culture or identity differences.

The winter of 2018/19 saw Janey undertake her most challenging expedition.  Born of a decade worth of experiences, overcoming injury and adversity, challenging relationships and an adoration for extreme natural environments.

With her two team mates, Baida Al Zadjali and Atheer Al Sabri, walked nearly approximately 800 kms through Oman’s Empty Quarter desert.

Why? To deliver a message that we are better together regardless of gender, culture or identity. To foster understanding between nations and cultures.

The three women were supported by a small team and sponsored by Land Rover.

Janey will be releasing a feature length documentary on the journey in January 2020

Find out more at:

The talk by Francesca Jaggs on Eswatini (Swaziland) has been postponed as Janey kindly offered to speak this month.

Unfortunately Michelle Ellison’s talk has had to be postponed.

Admission costs, we charge a small cash fee of £3 for Globetrotters members and £6 for non-members on the door to cover our expenses, tea/coffee and biscuits are included free in the interval between the talks.

You do not need to be a member to attend, and we do not sell advanced tickets, please just come on the day, the doors open at 2:15pm and the program starts around 2:30pm with each talk lasting between 45 – 60 minutes.

London branch meetings are held at The Church of Scotland, Crown Court, behind the Fortune Theatre in Covent Garden the first Saturday of each month, unless there is a UK public holiday that weekend.

There is no London meeting in August, but we start afresh each September. If you would like to keep up to date with what’s happening at the Globetrotters London meetings and to be sent email reminders prior to the meeting, please sign up here