CAMDEN’S MOST HORRID: a performance of formidable endings

“Theatre of Blood” Event

CAMDEN’S MOST HORRID: a performance of formidable endings



“You are cordially invited to a historical meeting by Dr Evan Cranks who will enthral us with the details from his latest discovery found hidden in the depths of the Camden Catacombs”.
Curious to learn more about one of London’s labyrinth of tunnels, you turn up with note book and pen, however the meeting takes a turn for the worse when the speaker recites the unusual inscription and unleashes...... well let’s just say “Don’t judge a book by its cover”
This Month discover the darker side to Camden’s past and its plethora of unsavoury characters as we continue our theatre/living history performances in a variety of ‘non theatre’ locations

This unique performance has been produced by Phantasmagoria events to highlight the libraries essential role in society as one of one of the few remaining centres of community, many of which could be under threat of closure due to the recent economic crisis.

YOUR PERFORMERS

The Band of Players are an eclectic group of actors who perform a variety of theatrical and living history performances, in order to highlight many of our ancient locations, myths and stories. Everyone is giving their time for free for this project
Many thanks to Holy Cross Community Centre Trust
© All words and content Phantasmagoria Events & London Paranormal 2010-2011

THE VENUE
Local Studies Library
Holborn Library
Theobalds Road, WC1
London, United Kingdom
Date: Friday 6th May and Saturday 7th May
Time: Friday: 7.30 – 8.30pm ( doors open 7pm)
Saturday: Matinee – 2.30pm – 3.00pm ( doors open 1.30pm)
Price: Free Admission.

http://www.londonparanormal.com/theatreofbloodmay2011.html

The Carnival of Death:Perceptions of Death in Europe and the Americas

Conference and Exhibition dates: 24-26 Feb 2011
Venue: Institute of Germanic & Romance Studies, School of Advanced Study, University of London
Keynote speakers: Briony Campbell, Paul Preston, Laurie Lipton

Link here for Programme & Registration form

Please note that completed registration forms and fees MUST be received by Friday, 11th February 2011

The exhibition is free and open to all
Opening times: Thursday & Friday, 9am – 6pm, Saturday, 10am – 5pm
Venue: Jessel Room, Senate House South Block
Artists include Colette Copeland, David Glyn, Erik and Rune Eriksson, Spiros Jacovides, Laurie Lipton, Matt Rowe, Sarah Sparkes

In the most general terms death is defined as the final and irreversible cessation of the vital functions in an organism, the ending of life. However, the precise definition of death and the exact time of the transition from life to death differ according to culture, religion and legal system.

The essential insecurities and doubts over the nature and state of death have affected cultural production since the beginning of civilization. Likewise our attitude towards death is characterised by anxieties and ambiguities. ‘On the one hand the horror of death drives us off, for we prefer life; on the other an element at once solemn and terrifying fascinates us and disturbs us profoundly,’ writes George Bataille. Death can be ‘a consummation devoutly to be wished’ to say it with Hamlet, or ‘a wonderful gain’ to quote Schopenhauer. But while philosophers and poets explore the dark attraction of death, in everyday life we push all thought of it aside. Death, and above all our own death, must not impinge upon the living.


From the beginning of Modernism death and the dying have been pushed from the centre of family and community to the edges of society. The hygienic, clean and sterile spaces of hospitals, hospices and morgues have replaced the intimacy of the home, while cemeteries have been moved from the centre of town to the outskirts. The progress in medical science has lead to an increase in life expectancy in the Western world resulting in an ever ageing population – it seems as though we have almost found a cure for death. Medical apparatus now allow us to keep a body alive and prolong physical existence even after the brain has died – but what then does it mean to be human and how can we die in a humane way? Recent cases of assisted suicide of terminally ill people have sparked off discussions in the UK around the right to die and the dignity of death.

Meanwhile changes in religious believes and practices are turning ancient traditions into commercial enterprises and festivities such as Halloween parties or Mexico’s Día de los muertos or Rio de Janeiro’s carnival , which are marketed as major tourist attractions. Western societies no longer have the time or the space to mourn as they used to. Rather the public mourning and posthumous apotheosis of celebrities such as Princess Di or more recently Michael Jackson appear to have taken the place of the private. Here mourning has become public spectacle, international and accessible to all via TV, Youtube, Facebook and Twitter.

This conference sets out to look at death in the contemporary world and how changes in society since the turn of the 19th century have affected our perceptions of death. It consists of three broad themes which interconnect with each other: Death and Desire; Death and Power; and Rituals and Customs. We invite papers from a wide variety of disciplines and approaches such as: anthropology, art history, cultural studies, film studies, fine art, history, law, literary studies, philosophy, psychology, theology, etc

2011 at Treadwells

Coming talks, launches, workshops and events at Treadwells Bookshop
Click here for further details
Most will take place in their new location 33 Store Street, Bloomsbury. see details

26 January 11 (Wednesday)
Gnostic Legacies: The Wilder Shores of Gnosis
Dr Jonathan Hill
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

03 February 11 (Thursday)
A Phallic Night: A Historical Look at 'Phallic Worship'
Phil Hine
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

04 February 11 (Friday)
Through A Glass Darkly: Performance Inspired by Victorian Seances of the Fraudulent Mediums
The London Magician
Price: £10.00 in advance
Time: 7.15 for 7.30 start

09 February 11 (Wednesday)
'O Great Inanna': A Night of the Sumerian Goddess's Tales
June Peters, Storyteller
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

16 February 11 (Wednesday)
Demons, Daimons or Angels?: Astral Intelligence in Ficino's Natural Magic
Dr Angela Voss (University of Exeter)
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start celestial 6

17 February 11 (Thursday)
The Monstrous Lesbian II: A Flower of Evil
Lindsay River
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

02 March 11 (Wednesday)
Thomas the Rhymer: The Shamanic Journey in the Ballad
Dr Michael Berman
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

03 March 11 (Thursday)
Power of the Word: Neoplatonism's Gift to Western Magic
Earl Fontainelle (University of Exeter)
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

04 March 11 (Friday)
Through A Glass Darkly: Performance Inspired by Victorian Seances of the Fraudulent Mediums
The London Magician
Price: £10.00 in advance
Time: 7.15 for 7.30 start

20 March 11 (Sunday)
Spring Equinox Ritual: Ceremony at Treadwell's
Marysia Kay and Friends
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

31 March 11 (Thursday)
The Training and work of Sangoma: South African 'Witch Doctor'
Bernie Rowen
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

01 April 11 (Friday)
Launch Party: 'Elementals' Hypno-Sis and Treadwell's
Price: Free but advance RSVP required
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

06 April 11 (Wednesday)
Interview with a Witch: Tam Campbell in conversation with Christina Oakley-Harrington
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

14 April 11 (Thursday)
Towards a Philosophy of Demonology: Far Reaches of Continental Philosophy and the Occult
Dr Patricia MacCormack
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

20 April 11 (Wednesday)
The Virago: Mk II
Elisa Gray
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start virago

21 April 11 (Thursday)
Vodou Flags: Sequined Spirits of Haiti
Gabriel Toso
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

28 April 11 (Thursday)
Crossing over Annan Water: A Scottish Ballad for Magical Journeys
Dr Michael Berman
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

29 April 11 (Friday)
Book Launch Party: Mandrake Press
Price: Free but advance RSVP required
Time: 7.00pm to 9.30 pm

12 May 11 (Thursday)
Demons of the Flesh: Philosophy of Occult Body Modification
Alex Unku
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

24 May 11 (Tuesday)
Polyamory and Paganism:
Raven Kaldera
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

25 May 11 (Wednesday)
BDSM and Pagan Spirituality:
Raven Kaldera
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

26 May 11 (Thursday)
Ethical Psychic Vampirism:
Raven Kaldera
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

27 May 11 (Friday)
Magic and Mysteries in the Northern Tradition:
Raven Kaldera
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

28 May 11 (Saturday)
BDSM as a Shamanic Path: Weekend Intensive
Raven Kaldera
Price: see website
Time: Saturday & Sunday all day

31 May 11 (Tuesday)
Queer and Pagan:
Raven Kaldera
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

01 June 11 (Wednesday)
Spirit Possession:
Raven Kaldera
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

09 June 11 (Thursday)
Is nothing sacred?: Radical and Transgressive Frontiers in Chaos Magic
Dr Patricia MacCormack (Anglia Ruskin University)
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start

The Moot With No Name (Nov/Dec)

3 November - PSYCHIC CAFE - Murray Langham - Chocolate and Relationships
This experiential mini workshop uses chocolate flavours and shapes to help you to understand your true personality, how you communicate in relationships with partners and friends. Each shape and flavour has a different language - what is yours?
Murray Langham, is co-director of Schoc Chocolates in New Zealand, a therapist, counsellor, facilitator and author of Chocolate Therapy and Hot Chocolate.
Please note, Psychic Cafe events are £5 and start at 7.30

10 November - ANDREW MERCER - Ghosts!
Andy Mercer has filmed and recorded them for years and has many a true tale to tell...

17 November PAOLO CORTUCCI - Multidimensional Astrology
A lightweight look at astrology and some of its layers and levels through the charts of people (famous or otherwise) and events. The presentation will focus on the most intriguing and significant factors highlighted by these charts. We will also see how they can provide meaning and guidance. The charts will be used to expand participants
knowledge of astrology. Participants are welcome to provide their charts for discussion. A basic knowledge of astrology would be helpful.
Paolo Cortucci is a Diploma holder of the Faculty of Astrological Studies. He is the Facultys Head Tutor and serves on its Council. Paolo runs an astrological practice and is currently studying horary astrology.

24 November JOYCE FROOME & KERRIANN GODWIN The Pendle Witches
The Pendle Witchcraft case is a compelling human story which provides a dramatic insight into the importance of magic in the lives of our ancestors. Joyces recently published work on the Pendle Witches will also be available this evening.

1 December CROWLEYMASS!

The Atlantis Bookshop presents The Moot With No Name
Every Wednesday. £5/£3. 7:30 for 8pm start.
Opposite the Royal Courts of Justice on the Strand (near Aldwych) is a Tudor-style pub, the George. The Devereux is down the alley next to this. Contact The Atlantis Bookshop for further information
www.theatlantisbookshop.com

Walk: Paul Raymond and the Birth of British Burlesque

The London Adventure presents it's first walk of the year. Contact Nick for more details if you require.

PANTIES’ INFERNO: PAUL RAYMOND AND THE BIRTH OF BRITISH BURLESQUE

Presented by Paul Willetts

Saturday 25th September 2010, 3pm [moved from Sunday 12th]

Meet outside the front of St Martin-in-the-Fields Church, Trafalgar Square.

Conference: Gerald Brosseau Gardner – ‘Father of Modern Witchcraft’

Esoteric Source presents a full day with Lois Bourne, Zach Cox, Philip Heselton, Professor Ronald Hutton, Fred Lamond, Philip Carr-Gomm Celebrating the life and work Of Gerald Brosseau Gardner – ‘Father of Modern Witchcraft’

Panel: Julia Phillips, Vivianne Crowley, Morgana, Rufus Harrington, Prudence Jones
Introduction by John Belham-Payne
Brian Botham – MC, Entertainment by Paul Mitchell – ‘A Far Better Pagan’

Tickets £20 in advance £25 on the day.


Sunday 12th September 2010

Conway Hall, 25 Red Lion Sq, London WC1R 4RL Doors Open at 10 am Programme Starts at 11 am.

Information: 07733581504

All Funds are to help the Doreen Valiente Legacy Trust

Charles Fort Birthday Pub Crawl

Charles Fort Birthday Pub Crawl:

A Procession of The Damned
6 August 2010 6.30pm start

The naïve and the pedantic and the bizarre and the grotesque and the sincere and the insincere, the profound and the puerile.
The Book of the Damned

Beginning at 6.30pm outside 39A Marchmont Street, Fort’s home in London, with a reading and toast (ale and cheese optional). Map to Marchmont Street.
Followed by a pub crawl in his honour:
Friend at Hand, 4 Herbrand Street, WC1N 1HX
Old Red Lion, 72 High Holborn, WC1V 6LS
Rugby Tavern, 19 Great James Street, WC1N 3ES
Truckles of Pied Bull Yard, 2 Bury Place, WC1A 2JR

All forteans and friends welcome.

Contact Scott  for more details.

Charles Fort books online.

Short Fort biography (hopefully explaining the cheese):

I Am a collector of notes upon subjects that have diversity—such as deviations from concentricity in the lunar crater Copernicus, and a sudden appearance of purple Englishmen—stationary meteor-radiants, and a reported growth of hair on the bald head of a mummy—and "Did the girl swallow the octopus?"
Wild Talents

Film: Huxley on Huxley

The Ecology, Cosmos and Consciousness lecture series, in association with the Scientific and Medical Network presents:


Huxley on Huxley: Documentary film and Q&A with Producer/Director Mary Ann Braubach

Laura Huxley’s candid recollections offer a compelling glimpse into her life with one of the greatest writers and visionaries of the 20th century. She was a teenage violin virtuoso who met Aldous soon after leaving the concert stage for Hollywood. His 1932 novel Brave New World established him as an undisputed literary giant. They married in 1956. Sharing an interest in the evolution of human consciousness, the Huxleys pioneered the use of LSD. Their lives and work impacted generations and gave shape to an important chapter of American cultural history.

The film is narrated by Peter Coyote and includes interviews with Laura Huxley, drummer John Densmore (whose band, the Doors, was named after Huxley’s book The Doors of Perception), spiritual leader Ram Dass, Esalen co- founder Michael Murphy, artist Don Bachardy, philosopher Huston Smith and actor Nick Nolte, star of the adaptation of Huxley’s novel The Genius and The Goddess.

Huxley on Huxley is an intimate portrait of a compelling personal and professional union.

Wednesday, 28th July , 2010

Birkbeck Cinema, 43 Gordon Square, Birkbeck University of London, WC1H 0PD.

Entry £10 /£8 Concessions, FREE WINE. Arrive 6pm for a 6:30pm Start – Wine available