Members' events
Upcoming events for Members
These events are exclusively for members and their guests.
Find out more about becoming a member.
Please note that tickets will not be issued for these events and all bookings are non-refundable. Once you have booked a place via telephone or e-mail you will be placed on the guest list. If you have any questions regarding any of these events please do not hesitate to contact us.
To book any of these events please call the Bookings department on 020 8312 6608.
‘The Prof.’ at Bletchley Park 1939–1943: Alan Turing’s revealing light
Tuesday 15 May 2012
18.30–19.00: Drinks reception | 19.00–20.30: Talk
Members and guests £5
Please use the Sammy Ofer Wing entrance to enter the Museum
Born 100 years ago, Alan Turing was the head of naval code-breaking at Bletchley Park and greatly facilitated the gathering of naval intelligence during the Battle of the Atlantic. He also influenced other areas of code-breaking in WWII. Bob Horner, a former officer in the Royal Naval Reserve and current volunteer at Bletchley Park, will tell you the story of this brilliant mathematician, from his childhood and education, to his work at the Park.
Royal River talk by Robert Blyth, our Curator of 19th Century Imperial and Maritime Studies
Wednesday 20 June 2012
18.30–19.00: Drinks reception | 19.00–20.30: Talk
Members and guests £5
Please use the Sammy Ofer Wing entrance to enter the Museum.
The River Thames was London’s ‘grandest street’. It acted as a stage for royal, national and civic ceremony and celebration for hundreds of years. This great thoroughfare connected royal palaces and was a site for pleasure and entertainment. The river provided a uniquely accessible setting for the public theatre of coronations, royal weddings, state funerals and the Lord Mayor’s annual procession. But the Thames was also a bustling, working river, constantly changed and improved with the addition of new bridges, tunnels and embankments.
This illustrated lecture will tell the story of the ‘Royal River’: from Anne Boleyn’s coronation to Lord Nelson’s funeral, from the gilded magnificence of the Lord Mayor’s pageant to the noxious horror of the ‘Great Stink’, from the great riverside seats of regal power to the floating palaces of the royal yachts. It explores the many and varied uses of the Thames across 500 years of British history.
Museum events
Liquid History Pub Quiz
Friday 18 May
19.00–21.00 | Museum Café
Adults £5, Conc/Members £4
Win prizes and test your knowledge of the Thames against quizmaster and editor of The Londonist, Matt Brown. Keep your team fuelled with pints, courtesy of Meantime Brewery, and learn about beers brewed using Thames water from beer writer and convivial raconteur, Peter Haydon. The Royal River exhibition will also be open this evening (tickets to be booked separately).
Sadia’s Jubilee Tea Party
Sundays 20 and 27 May, 3 June 2012
14.30–16.00 | Orangery, The Queen’s House
Adults £5, Conc/Members £4
The Jubilee Time Capsule is a way to share memories and mark the Diamond Jubilee of HM The Queen and her 60 years as head of the Commonwealth. This year also marks the 75th anniversary of the National Maritime Museum – the opening ceremony of the Museum was attended by a young Princess Elizabeth. Join artist Sadia Ur-Rehman, Museum staff and volunteers for this series of themed tea parties and parlour games to share your memories, which could end up in the time capsule which will be presented to The Queen.
Royal River: Royal Ritual and the Thames with David Starkey
Friday 25 May
An exclusive guided tour of the Thames with David Starkey, guest-curator of Royal River.
Climb aboard a Thames Clipper and see the river through a historian’s eyes. Disembark an hour later at Greenwich for a sundowner and private view of the Royal River exhibition. Booking opens in April. More information to follow.
Art Club
All Members of the National Maritime Museum are welcome to join the Art Club for an additional annual fee of £25. Please contact the Membership Office for more details.
The Art Club are very busy this year with a full programme of activities. There are regular visits to the Museum art store, an introduction to our collection of photographs and plans at the Brass Foundry, a painting session on the coast, art demonstrations, a talk on digital photography from our Photographic Studio and even a trip upriver through Tower Bridge on a Zvitzer tug. Keep an eye on the future programme.