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Welcome
I am an Academic Tutor for University of Cambridge ICE for whom I act as Course Director for their international, virtual and residential courses. Academic but not dry, I love to present the courses and then actively engage in discussions through various forums.
A residential weekend at Madingley Hall 17-19 November 2023
Plant hunters - the quest for the world’s edible and exotic
Tales of taste, trade and taxonomy dating back thousands of years with ancient essential and decorative plants. In the 18th century, Sweden’s Carl Linnaeus sent his botanists across the world, 19th century botanical gardens rivalled nurseries in financing plant hunters. Not forgetting spices, rubber, tea and coffee.
International Summer Programme Live 2023
Fit for a King – royal geographical and architectural statem
We explore key royal castle, palace and landscape settings across the now United Kingdom. Charles III was the longest serving Prince of Wales, he has as deep an interest in historical as in contemporary architecture and gardening. We examine ancient royal domains such as Windsor, Westminster and Whitehall, the contemp
A residential weekend at Madingley Hall 20-22 January 2023
Gardens and plants in Ancient Egypt and Ancient Greece
Enjoy some ancient digging and delving
- Identifying trees, plants and herbs and where possible their origins.
- Examining design styles both on the ground and in architectural detail.
- Rediscovering people, their lives and status
- 'Listening' to contemporary voices
Why did Hera make Zeus lie under this tree on Samos?
Nature as art or art as nature?
Capability Brown and Thomas Gainsborough
Profitable, artistic and moral landscapes in 18th-century England. The legacy of Brown ‘earthmover’ who made estates into profitable landscapes - and Gainsborough an originator English landscape painting. Country boys who enjoyed elite patronage. Science, the arts and political allegiances provided strong networks.
International Summer Programme Live 2022
Castles, Palaces and Houses of Queen Elizabeth II
Official or private domain, Princess or Queen, her royal dwellings have provided a backdrop for fashions, tastes and social mores, expressed in their architecture and gardens. Explore designs and settings of royal residences such as the castles of Windsor and Balmoral, Buckingham Palace, and Sandringham House.
Designing Georgian Britain – 18th century consuming passions
Cultivating British tastes from 1714 to 1830 during the reigns of four King Georges. Patrons such as Richard Boyle, 3rd Earl of Burlington, architects William Kent and Robert Adam. Landscapers Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown and Humphry Repton. Not forgetting the artist Gainsborough and furniture maker Chippendale.