Ventnor Heritage Centre

"To Collect, Record and preserve the rich heritage and history of Ventnor and surrounding villages, and share it with local and wider communities"

History Society Monthly Meetings |

History Society Monthly Meetings

We always look forward to seeing members (and visitors) at our regular monthly meetings, and the schedule for the first half of the coming year is given below.

Our speakers cover a wide range of topics focused on the history of Ventnor, the surrounding area, and the Isle of Wight. Meetings are very well attended, with often 50 people attending, and are held at the Yarborough Masonic Hall in Grove Road, Ventnor (just round the corner from the Heritage Centre).  All meetings start at 7.30 pm, and entry is free to members of the Society, while visitors are very welcome (visitor entrance fee £4.00). There no meetings in August or December.

Meetings 2025 

Date                 Speaker(s) and title of the talk

31 Jan 2025:    Francis Quinn St Catherine’s Lighthouse – From Medieval to Modern
28 Feb 2025:   
Jo Thornton and Steve Berden The Lost Houses of the Undercliff
28 Mar 2025:   
Society AGM
25 April 2025:  Andy Butler and Alan Clark – Do you remember? Part 3: An Isle of Wight Scrapbook, 1970 to the Present

(Later dates to follow)


Exhibitions, stories, images . . .

Olivia: Portrait of a Life

Olivia Parkes (1881-1962) was born in Walsall in the Midlands, but for many years lived a solitary life in a wooden hut in Myrtle Bay in Ventnor, where local people referred to her as ‘Britannia’, and her life has been a constant source of fascination to local people and visitors. This new exhibition for 2024, inspired in part by the ‘Olivia’ art installation by Teresa Grimaldi and Sarah Vardy shown at Ventnor Fringe Festival in 2023, features a model of Olivia’s home (Britannia’s Hut) and is accompanied by an extensive board display. A new book, 'Britannia, The Extraordinary Life of Olivia Parkes' is available to buy in the Ventnor Heritage Centre, or by post from our Online Shop.  

Sidebar