In November 2025, I gave two more talks on Royal Engineers Bomb Disposal. The first on 10th November to a Care Home in Tunbridge Wells and the second on 18th November to the Bexhill Historical Society.

Both talks raised funds for the Felix Fund, a charity supporting Bomb Disposal personnel, serving and retired, plus their families, whether Army, Navy, Air Force or the Metropolitan Police. Felix is the cartoon cat with nine lives that was adopted as the badge, and radio callsign, of the Bomb Disposal teams in Northern Ireland.

On 18th October 2025 I gave a talk on The Battle of Waterloo to the Royal British Legion Branch in Tunbridge Wells.

I have given them several talks before and this one went down equally well.

I haven’t kept this website up to date with my talks recently, so am now correcting that.

On 16th October our planned speaker at the Tunbridge Wells Probus Club pulled out at short notice due to an urgent hospital appointment. I had previously given the Club a talk on The ’45, but had to cut it short just before describing the battle of Culloden, when one of our members became ill. This time, I therefore stepped in and finished off this talk, fleshing it out with bits about the organisation of Clan Regiments, which were very similar whether on the Jacobite or Government side.

The talk went down well.

On 16th September 2025. I gave my first talk on “The Roman Invasions of Britain”. This was to the Bexhill Historical Society (formerly known as the Bexhill Hanoverian Study Group).

The talk was very well received and raised some funds for Combat Stress.

On 9th June 2025, I gave my talk “The Story of a Medal” to the Cranbrook Probus Club.

I belong to the Tunbridge Wells Probus Club and we have a deal with the Cranbrook Probus Club, so that each club provides one speaker per year to the other club, thus keeping the cost down for both clubs. One of the members of the Cranbrook Probus Club gave a talk to our members earlier this year.

My talk went down very well and another of our Tunbridge Wells Probus Club members will give the Cranbrook Probus Club a talk next year, in return for a talk from them..

On 19th March, I gave another talk to the Bexhill Hanoverian Study Group. Normally my talks to them are about the Napoleonic Wars, particularly aspects involving the King’s German Legion, which is their main interest, since the KGL Depot was based in Bexhill from 1803 to 1816. They do however sometimes have talks on other subjects, so this time I gave them my talk “The Story of a Medal”, covering my Dad’s service as a Merchant Navy Officer in World War II on Gibraltar Convoys, Atlantic Convoys, Russian Convoys and D-Day Landings.

The talk was very well received and I was given a donation to pass on to The Mission for Seafarers, which both my parents fundraised for.

On 20th February, I gave my talk on “The ‘45” again.

This time it was to the Probus Club of Royal Tunbridge Wells, which I belong to.

The talk went down well, but one of our members became ill and I had to stop a few minutes early. Fortunately my friend has now recovered.

I recently moved to a Retirement Village and, shortly after moving in, gave them my talk “The Story of a Medal”.

The talk went down well and the Retirement Village Management Company have agreed to give me a donation to be passed on to the Mission to Seafarers.

On 9th January 2025 I gave a talk to the Crowborough Probus Club. I am a member of that Club and have given them two talks previously. This time my talk was “The Story of a Medal”. which describes my Dad’s service as a Merchant Navy Officer in World War II on Gibraltar Convoys, Atlantic Convoys, Russian Convoys and D-Day Landings, concluding with how I researched that in order to claim his posthumous Arctic Star Medal, issued 68 Years after the last Russian Convoy took place. The talk went down very well.