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SHEFFIELD UNIVERSITY

WOMEN’S CLUB

The Lunar crater Copernicus is visible with binoculars from

Sheffield. It’s the bright area that forms The Man’s right cheek.

NEWSLETTER No. 38

SEPTEMBER 2011

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Dear Members and Friends, First of all, if you are reading this having just picked up your Newsletter at the Coffee Morning, there is still time to book a ticket for the November theatre visit. It is described on page 13. See Belinda Barber here and now to arrange it if you like. She must have all the money in by September 30th Secondly, it is SUBSCRIPTION TIME again! Wendy Jenrick needs to have your form and £10 as soon as possible, so if you have the money or your cheque book with you at the Coffee Morning it can be all done and dusted right now. New membership cards will be ready for the AGM on October 18th, and that is the deadline for renewal.

Along with your renewal form, included with this newsletter, there is a spare membership form to give to a friend who might like to join the Club.

The Committee have assembled another excellent collection of talks and outings for us. I am particularly looking forward to the tour and tea at the Cutlers Hall and the chance to learn about and try out forms of Circle Dance in January. That could prove to be an acceptable way to work off some of the Christmas excess (hope springs eternal!). It’s sure to be a laugh, anyway.

Please remember to book your place at events using the forms supplied with this Newsletter. Send a separate cheque for each event where required, otherwise refunds in case of emergency are much more difficult to make. The £2 for guests who are coming to talks should be paid at the door. Booking Forms for events should be returned to Carol Walsh.

Additional information can be found on the Club’s revamped website: www.sheffield.ac.uk/suwc

Dariel Merrills, Editor September 2011

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RECENT EVENTS 18 January: Visit to Planet Pot in Nether Green

After several weeks, skidding about on snow last January, it was a select and artistic group of eight who gathered round the table at Planet Pot ready to create our masterpieces. Some chose a plate, others a tile, mug or porridge bowl. Planet Pot provided paint and brushes plus tips about how to paint our ceramic offerings. We were advised that the colours might look a little pale when first painted but would become much brighter in the kiln, and we were then left to our own devices.

We tackled some challenging designs, for example a landscape with sheep, a summer garden with insects, a whiskery cat, a Christmas tree and a boy climbing a wall. We quickly learned that the achievements of the Rockingham or Coalport factories were way out of our reach. Our tools were less refined and our skills were elementary. It’s difficult to get fine detail or a line that isn’t a dotted one at one end and a smudge at the other. Every slip of the hand creates a blob of colour that stands as a permanent reproach—or requires a revision of the artistic vision.

At first the group was talkative but everyone was drawn into their painting and the atmosphere became one of soothing chat and quiet concentration. We were all too absorbed to stop for tea and cake until we had finished painting. Most of us had not done anything like this before.

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Having left our efforts there for firing, when we picked them up a week later the colours were brighter, the finish sparkling and we felt a buzz of achievement. Planet Pot is a small place and eight was plenty for a painting session, though up to twenty could have been accommodated. We were impressed by how absorbed everybody became and think this, or some other type of craft, would be an enjoyable thing try again as a group.

Sheila Duncan and Hilary Page

21st February: Talk by Bill Leatherbarrow, “The Amateur Astronomer”

The Fulwood Room was filled one February evening with members, partners, and guests to accompany Bill Leatherbarrow on a

mental journey from a Ranmoor back garden out to the beginnings of space and time—and back in time for cocoa. It was exhilarating, to say the least.

Here’s something to wrap your brain around. We can all look up and see the faint light blob of the Andromeda Galaxy (perhaps not from smoggy well-lit Sheffield but from the hills of Dumfriesshire on a clear night), which is the farthest thing in the universe visible to the naked eye. It is two and a half million light

years away. Therefore, what we see when we look at it (at the light it emitted) was actually happening two and a half million years ago. You can try this on holiday, taking binoculars to make it easier: look for the galaxy in the constellation of Andromeda which is between the ‘W’ of Cassiopeia and the square of Pegasus. Now, think about

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these ideas: first, that the Hubble Telescope can see things 12 billion light years away, and, second, that the big bang happened about 13.7 billion years ago. So through Hubble we humans can “see” what was happening almost at the very beginning of the universe. As Bill said, time and simultaneity evaporate in astronomy.

And amateurs can do it. With some basic, affordable kit (see picture) Bill scans the night sky, and particularly the moon. He observed the moon while Apollo astronauts landed there. And he takes high resolution photos of the lunar surface with the aim of understanding geological processes. Bill has photographed Mars from his garden, showing clouds, dust storms, and ice caps, with even a circle of cloud around a volcano. All early moon mapping was done by amateurs, and an amateur astronomer, doing routine monitoring of variable stars has found 134 supernovae—more than any professional.

So, is life getting humdrum? Need a new project? Just put on your longjohns, take up the binoculars, and get out there with the amateur astronomers. New worlds will open up! Dariel Merrills 26th March: Spring Supper at Millhouses Park Café

Breaking with recent tradition, this year's Spring Supper was held at Millhouses Park Cafe. Did the "pudding ladies", as they are affectionately called, realize what they were letting themselves in for when they agreed to cater for the Sheffield University Women's Club I wonder?

It was a convivial evening when we all enjoyed the conversations and catch ups that are the true aim and objective of us all getting together. The evening began with a glass of Prosecco, provided by the committee, and a few nibbly morsels to prepare us for the pre-booked menu. Previously, the food has been prepared by our members, the venue prepared by our members and the cleaning up ditto so the idea was to make the experience a more relaxing one for everyone. Given that we are used to eating some of our favourite

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dishes, "lovingly" prepared at home, the pudding ladies’ challenge to improve on this was a difficult one.

Having listened to the comments of many before putting pen to paper, or in this case fingers to keyboard, the consensus seems to be that our own food is what we prefer to eat. This isn't surprising really when one considers that we members jointly have centuries of experience of cooking for family, friends and visiting academics

and we know what we like. Most of us are rather good cooks. In terms of time and effort however, this year was less stressful, easier, and needed no forward planning; we could all just turn up in our finery and enjoy the evening. Therefore, in this sense it was a very enjoyable evening because of the excellent friendships we have established and built up over the years.

Next year, I hope we have another Spring Supper. Its exact format is something we will probably discuss in the months to come. Thanks go to the staff of the Cafe for their hard work and catering.

Marisse Evans 26th April: Visit to Kelham Island Industrial Museum.

This was the Tuesday after Easter so it was a small group of us who met to explore the museum which has been refurbished after the disastrous flood in 2007. We saw the mark on the wall which the water reached and were able to watch video clips of this and material

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relating to the Dale Dyke disaster in 1864. Kelham Island has galleries which cover the history of

Sheffield and its steel industry from early beginnings to mass industrialisation and up to the present day. Unfortunately none of the little mesters were working but we saw many examples of their craft. The Hawley Gallery displays some of the extensive collection of tools collected by Ken Hawley and how they were used. We also visited the Transport Gallery which few of us had seen before. It houses various vehicles made in Sheffield including a 1920 Sheffield Simplex car owned by the company’s chairman Earl Fitzwilliam.

Of course the highlight of the visit was the River Don Engine which got up steam at 12 noon. The sight, sounds, and smell are amazing, and we were able to chat to the man who operated it. It arrived in the museum in 1978 having been used by British Steel for many years in the heavy plate mill and is the most powerful working steam engine remaining in Europe.

It was a visit to make us think about Sheffield, its industry and history and to admire the men and women who were involved in it. Christine Roe 17th March: Theatre visit—Lorca’s Yerma at the West Yorkshire Playhouse

As I bought a programme with text, I remarked that the words would be useful, as hearing loss often prevented me getting the asides and especially the jokes. “Don’t worry about this play”, reassured the kindly Yorkshire programme seller, “there aren’t any.” Well, there were lighter moments but these owed more to action than to words.

The story is straightforward. Two years after her wedding, Yerma is still childless and her distress is affecting her marriage and her life in the community. Her hardworking farmer husband Juan is uncomprehending. She turns to rituals, superstition, nocturnal

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wanderings and “wise women”, and becomes increasingly alienated from her peasant community. As the years pass to five, then eight, any tenderness and fun in their marriage evaporates into desolation and derangement in Yerma and, in Juan, increasingly controlling behaviour and distrust. When a “wise woman” suggests that the problem may lie with Juan rather than her, Yerma’s reason deserts her and leads to the dramatic finale.

The set is minimal, the main prop being a large overhanging moon. Imaginative lighting is used to create atmosphere and to delineate key features. The location is indeterminate. It is certainly not the author’s native Spain. After all, the same moon shines over rural, peasant lands, the world over. Dress and voices chime best with early twentieth century Ireland.

Kate Stanley-Brennan as Yerma was on stage most of the play and demonstrated a great repertoire of moods. To a modern audience, superstition has mainly given way to faith in reproductive technology, but even today we remain painfully aware of the massive burden when this fails. Sheila Duncan 9 May: Suzanne Bingham's talk on "The Sheffield Blitz" For some this talk awoke memories from their childhood, for others it gave a deeper understanding of the city they have come to love and for everyone it gave a picture (literally, with dozens of them) of the background and experience of the Sheffield Blitz. Though it was concentrated on only two nights in December 1940, the effects were devastating: the loss of life was "only" some 660 civilians, but 40,000 were made homeless. Suzanne started with the wider background: on Sheffield's crucial place in re-armament (tank armour, bayonets, Spitfire crankshafts) and on plans for the invasion of Britain from mainland Europe in 1940. Thwarted by radar in the Battle of Britain, Germany changed her tactics to demoralising the civilian population, with the bombing of London in particular. Later the Germans went on to bomb the productive capacity of other industrial towns. In Sheffield

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this seems to have been remarkably ineffective, with few factories hit, and only one out of action for more than a few days, creating only "a minor blip" in production. There was a lively discussion about how this might have come about: technical skill in diverting the directional beams guiding the aircraft? Poor navigation, perhaps mistaking the Sheaf River for the Don River? Not, by the sound of it, the "Starfish Sites" designed to create a diversionary target - mock ups of the city on the moors - because these were not completed until later. (NB advert for the Walking Group which will take in one of these sites on Houndkirk Moor later in the year.) Suzanne gave a harrowing description of how Sheffielders were caught unawares, at least on the first raid, as they enjoyed their half day off, with the consequent injury and loss of life. She gave an inspiring account of how people pulled together to cope with the aftermath, giving what they had to those who no longer had anything. And 30 bus routes were back in operation by the end of the day! To conclude, Suzanne pointed out the extraordinary consequences of the bombing for the future shape of Sheffield, both good and bad. We lost our historic centre, including buildings dating from the 16 and 17th centuries. But we also lost thousands of our 19th century slums, creating the opportunity for a new kind of housing and planning. Rosalind Dean

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17th June: Garden Party at the house of Eugenia Bruce

Given the weather forecast of heavy rain and gale force winds, that never materialised, our annual garden party went off really well. We had a cool breeze and some sunshine when we went to "The Dower House" at Cutthorpe. The turnout was excellent as could be seen in the improvised car park, courteously provided by a friendly farming neighbour of Eugenia's. Members milled around the extensive grounds sampling the delicious cakes, scones and strawberries provided for the occasion. The strawberries deserve a paragraph of their own!

Eugenia was the perfect hostess and was helped, not only by other committee members but also by her two sons Nick and Danny. Both young men had their hands full sorting out the parking and preparing the seating arrangements for the afternoon.

The garden is a haven for wild life, especially around the large pond which was obscured by the planting and lies beyond the

formal garden area. No one ventured onto the tennis court or swimming pool but who knows a balmier day might have tempted some of us! "Dower House" is very secluded and private and many guests remarked on

this. The garden was laid out about twelve years ago with many specimen trees and shrubs.

Hilary Page (Ros was unavoidably absent on that day) expressed our thanks to Eugenia and her family for making us feel so welcome. Visitors also made donations to a favourite charity of Eugenia's to help children in Colombia. It was a wonderful afternoon. Marisse Evans

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12th July: Visit to Brodsworth Hall and Gardens

The visit to Brodsworth Hall was fun, if mildly chaotic for the organisers due to last minute changes. But the staff were friendly, helpful and flexible which meant that it all worked out.

The tour of the house was well done. I personally am not a great fan of stately homes, but my latent Marxism was soothed by the tour leader's clear recognition that the luxurious way of life of rich Victorians depended utterly on their servants—who were probably my ancestors. There were mercifully few family portraits, but lots of intriguing items, such as a travelling cot (erected by the servants), a huge pestle and mortar for crushing rock salt, pulses, etc., (by the servants, of course) and a warming cupboard that was placed with its back to the range before the servants (who else) carried 18 courses in turn to the dining room.

There was a timely reminder of how the way that life and health has changed even for the rich, as the six children in the 1860s produced only one child between them, and the family shrank and finally died out in the 1990s. As a consequence, many rooms were abandoned, except for an eclectic array of “junk”. Between these rooms there were some interesting inserts from the 20th century, like the odd bathroom and a useable “aga kitchen”.

Lunch was tasty and substantial, starting with a delicious home made tomato soup, personally and proudly served by Cook.

Most people moved on to the gardens in the afternoon, which are an extensive and unusual restoration. Apparently the Victorians were gaudier than we often give them credit for (it's just that the brighter colours faded faster indoors) and this was borne out by the dramatic and vivid display of bedding plants in the Fountain and Flower Garden. There was also a range of summer houses and 'eyecatchers' set in grottos, woodland, walks, borders and rose dells.

A good outing – sorry to those who missed it. Rosalind Dean

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FORTHCOMING EVENTS Tuesday 18 October: 2 pm for 2.30: AGM followed by talk “Women’s Health—Then and Now” by Sheila Duncan: Fulwood Room, University House Optional Lunch at 1 pm in The Forum—Level 5

As usual, we shall try to conduct the AGM quickly, whilst observing the proper formalities, to allow plenty of time for the talk by Sheila Duncan.

The Minutes of the 72nd AGM were summarised in Newsletter No 37 January 2011 but full minutes will be available on request, before or at the meeting. The Annual Accounts will be presented by the Treasurer for adoption by the meeting, and the Chair will make a brief report on the highlights of the year.

We shall be sadly saying goodbye to retiring Committee members: Hilary Page, former Chair, who has also acted as Events Secretary for the last year; Marisse Evans, Minutes Secretary who will continue to coordinate the Walking Group; Judy Kinderler and Hazel Brocklehurst who were coopted to the Committee to take care of the old Website (Hazel will continue to run the Art Group). Eve Fawcett, Jill Lauriston and Mary Ward are willing to stand for the new Committee and we hope you will give them your support.

The Committee will be proposing amendments to the Constitution that will be available on the day. The main one is to clarify our membership criteria. We want to re-affirm our core connection with Sheffield University, whilst allowing others who share our ethos to be sponsored by existing members. Apart from verbal tidying up, the other change is to specify what should be done at the AGM.

Finally the Committee will formally take over responsibility for two Archives lovingly and loyally kept by Jo Steiner over the years: the Club photograph album and walking group records.

After the business part of the meeting, we will hear a talk by Sheila Duncan on developments in women’s health. Sheila qualified in medicine in 1955, and after postgraduate training in Glasgow,

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London and Oxford, came to Sheffield University as a Senior Lecturer on Obstetrics and Gynaecology, where she remained. Her clinical work was sometimes at the Northern General Hospital and sometimes at the Jessop Hospital before the amalgamation of the specialist service on its present site in 2001. Sheila is a longstanding member of SUWC and has just retired from the Committee.

Sheila’s talk on women’s health promises to be fascinating. Our grandmothers would scarcely recognise the lives of women today. Among the many changes are seismic shifts in health care. Childbearing itself may be timeless, but the experience is utterly different from, say 50 years ago. Then, there was little antenatal care, virtually no prenatal diagnosis, limited fetal surveillance before or during labour, and much poorer outcomes for mother and baby. Fertility control was chancy and assistance with impaired fertility was basic. Genital tract infections carried a heavy aftermath and many gynaecological disorders were barely acknowledged, far less diagnosed and treated.

Diseases still exist, but are diagnosed earlier, treated more effectively and in some instances can be prevented. Above all, as transparency increases in the NHS women are more active partners in decisions concerning their care. This participation brings anxieties, responsibility and choices, which must be coped with. Sheila will review components of these changes and highlight how and when some of them were introduced Wednesday, 2nd November, 2.30 pm: Theatre Outing. GOOD by C.P. Taylor at the ROYAL EXCHANGE theatre, Manchester. 2.30 pm matinee performance.

“Hitler has perverted the whole nature of our relationship. Buggered up one of the few friendships I valued…..that’s not good, Johnnie”. It is 1930s Germany, and Professor Halder is struggling with an elderly mother, a needy wife and the increasing tendency to hear beautiful music in unexpected places. A good man, he finds himself increasingly caught up in the Nazi propaganda machine. GOOD is a shifting, moving exploration of how personal morality

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can be twisted and drawn to a sinister and diabolical cause. C.P. Taylor’s modern classic, originally commissioned by the RSC, challenges you to ask “What would I do?” Award-winning young director Polly Findlay makes her directing debut at the Royal Exchange.

Tickets cost £15 per person. All those interested please contact Belinda Barber. Cheques should be made payable to SUWC and reach Belinda NO LATER than 30th September 2011. (Belinda will open a “box office” at the Coffee Morning on the 30th for your convenience.)

As this play may not be to everyone’s taste and since only a limited number of seats are still available at stage level (no problems for those with mobility or other issues) we have only been able to book 24 tickets so PLEASE book yours early!

MEET in the theatre cafe at 1: 30 where Belinda will distribute the tickets, and we can have a bite of lunch.

TRAIN TIMES to and from Manchester are as follows: Depart Sheffield at 11.11 or 11.42 and arrive Manchester Piccadilly at 12.02 or 12.36 respectively. Depart Manchester Piccadilly at 17.20, 17.43, 18.20 and arrive Sheffield at 18.15, 18.41, 19.09 respectively There is a free No.1 bus service from Piccadilly station to the Royal Exchange every five minutes or so. Train fares: £16.60 off peak day return with reductions for those with railcards. Tuesday 8th November: “Writing an Advance Decision” Talk by Hilary Page: 7 for 7.30pm, Fulwood Room, University House.

Do you want to let relatives and doctors know what to do about your care if you can’t tell them? Most people would wish to die at home and Health Service policy is to support this if possible, by Advance Planning, which may include making an Advance Decision.

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My family know what I want at the end of my life, because after my father died I wrote an Advance Decision and discussed it with my husband and grown up children.

I wrote a book to help other people to do the same: About Death: Living Wills and Advance Decisions in the UK, published October 2011, ISBN 9780 9564949 17. The book will be available to purchase at the talk, (proceeds to AGE UK).

My own Advance Decision is in the book as an example. The talk covers the legal status of an Advance Decision and the medical response to it. I will also talk about the Lasting Power of Attorney and other aspects of a ‘living will’ such as the statement of values. Thursday 1st December: Tour and Afternoon Tea at The Cutlers’ Hall, Sheffield, 2pm.

After the problems last year due to the snow, we thought it would be a good idea to have a local venue for our pre Christmas meeting. The Beadle or Deputy Beadle will lead our tour of the magnificent Cutlers Hall, a Grade 2 Listed building built in 1832. They will tell us of some of the history of The Cutlers Company, which has archives dating back to 1624. There are over 100 paintings adorning the walls of the halls and there is furniture dating back to its early days. The Company of Cutlers is especially proud of its collection of over 900 pieces of silver, which includes at least one Sheffield hallmarked piece for every year since the establishment of the Sheffield Assay Office in 1773.

Following the tour, at about 3.15pm, we will take afternoon tea, including sandwiches and cakes, in one of the public rooms and then you would be free to do a little Christmas shopping!.

As it is in the city centre (across Church Street from the Cathedral) we intend to meet at The Cutlers’ Hall ready for the tour to start at 2pm. It is easy to reach by public transport. The total cost for the tour and afternoon tea will be £11.00.

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Wednesday 18th January 2012: “Circle Dance” Talk and Taster Session from Katherine Cable; 2 for 2.30pm, Fulwood Room, University House

Circle Dance is ... well, dancing in a circle! Its current version, as practised in the UK, draws on many traditions, mainly from Greece and Eastern Europe, but also from further afield. There are also dances and music created by contemporary choreographers. It can be wild and energetic, but also calm and contemplative. There can be dances for special occasions, such as weddings or harvest, or particular to certain groups such as warriors or women. But it is essentially dance in which ordinary people take part for their own pleasure, rather than performance—though there may be some showing off!

Katherine is an experienced practitioner and teacher of all sorts of dance styles. She will be giving us an introductory talk on the background to Circle Dance. We will then get to the all important business of trying some dances for ourselves, to delightful music. Come with comfortable dancing shoes (flats are good) and comfortable clothes (wear a swirly skirt if you have one!). Katherine will start us off at the "staider" end of the spectrum, but who knows what will happen later ... IN THE PIPELINE FOR SPRING 2012 February: “How to Make a Hat out of a Rabbit!”, a talk and demonstration by Jill Lauriston on hatmaking on Monday, the 20th, in the Fulwood Room. April: Spring Supper at the Fulwood Tennis club on the 21st, 7 for 7:30. June: Garden Party at Rosemary Boucher’s house. July Tissington Hall visit. An all-day outing to include a tour of the house and lunch, on the 10th.

We can also look forward to a talk and demonstration on Violin Making in March or May.

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Garden Group--A new group for 2012

So many of us love gardens and garden visiting, especially with friends to share the day, that I'd like to propose that we start a Garden Group. There are some wonderful gardens in the area which are open all through the Spring and Summer months and a wide variety of private gardens open through the National Gardens Scheme. An afternoon spent discovering new plants, perhaps buying one, finding ideas for that problem area in our own gardens, and exchanging views over a cup of tea and a bun—what bliss!

If we use the Walking Group as our model to organise a programme of visits, sort out car sharing and offer ideas of which gardens to visit, we could dip our toes in the water in Spring 2012. If you are interested please contact Eve Fawcett. I look forward to hearing from as many members as possible. Eve Fawcett SOME MORE INTERESTING THINGS TO DO: Walking Group: The Walking Group meets on the first Tuesday of the month at 9.30 am at the junction of Riverdale Road and Endcliffe Grove Avenue. If you are interested in joining the group, contact Marisse Evans, the organiser There is also a medium walk available most months which consists of a smaller group, currently of about nine members who have opted for a shorter and slower, but similar, walk of 2-3 miles. Members meet 10 am at the same place as for the longer walk, meeting the main group in the pub for lunch. Contact Hazel Brocklehurst for further details of the shorter walk and to be added to the mailing list. Theatre Outings: Belinda Barber is the key organiser for the theatre group. If you would like to be contacted about Film and Theatre visits please be sure that Belinda has your up-to-date e-mail address; or if you do not have e-mail, your telephone number. Usually the tickets are available for collection at the theatre on the day of the performance. Guests are (of course) welcome.

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Hazel Brocklehurst’s Art Group: For further information please contact Hazel . Hazel is also on the committee of SUFAS, the Sheffield University Fine Art Society, and invites interested members of the Women’s Group to join them. For details about membership, exhibitions, and meeetings, contact Hazel. SUMMARY LIST OF FORTHCOMING EVENTS For your records. You might want to note the date you sent in your Booking Form and tick that you’ve also sent a cheque. Date Event Booked Cheque sent

Oct 18 AGM and Talk: ______ not needed Women’s Health— Then and Now

Nov 2 Theatre visit: “Good” ______ £15 per person

Nov 8 Talk: the Advance ______ not needed Decision—It’s Legal!

Dec 1 The Cutler’s Hall ______ £11 per person

Jan 18 Circle Dance ______ not needed

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The Committee

Rosalind Dean (Chair) Sue Battersby (Treasurer) Hilary Page (Events Secretary) Marisse Evans (Minutes Secretary) Dariel Merrills (Newsletter) Wendy Jenrick (Membership Secretary) Belinda Barber Eugenia Bruce Carol Walsh Chris Roe

NEWSLETTER No 39 will be published in January 2012. Copy deadline for review items is 28 days from the date of the event; final copy deadline: 5 December. 200 to 400 words is a good target

length for all reports, and photos are particularly welcome.