Barry Albin

Bermondsey and Rotherhithe funeral director BARRY ALBIN runs his own business, FA Albin & Sons, on the border of Rotherhithe and Bermondsey. Barry has recently published a second book following his own TV series. After finding fame with his first autobiographical tale Don’t Drop the Coffin, TV bosses made a series based around his business. The follow-up book Final Departures reveals little known details about famous deaths. Last November Barry received an Honorary Doctorate from the Funeral Directors in Houston.

Valery Alliez

VALERY ALLIEZ  is a  City of London guide and a Shakespeare's Globe guide. She has been involved with the Globe project since 1987 and guiding since 1994. Particular interests is 15th centuary City of London.
 

Jeremy Batch

JEREMY BATCH is a Lock Keeper at Limehouse Lock where the Regent’s Canal and the Lee Navigation meet the Thames.  He is also a boater, going narrowboating and motor boating on the inland waterways, and a sailor, mainly in the Thames Estuary in his own little 24ft sailing cruiser. A member of the Cruising Association (CA, based at Limehouse) and also of Greenwich Yacht Club (GYC), Jeremy’s interest in the history of London’s docks and waterways began when he started to write a series of articles for Trident, the club magazine of GYC.

John Beaseley

JOHN BEASELEY was a Social Worker in the East End for nearly 24 years and has been researching and writing about the history of Southwark since 1972.  He has written eighteen publications on our borough and 300 articles for the South London Press.  Southwark Remembered and Southwark Revisited  contain over 200 of those articles.  John Beasley is editor of Peckham Society News, Volunteer Co-ordinator for Hope UK’s drug education work in Southwark, and a member of the Society of Authors.

Brian Bloice

Founder Member of the Southwark and Lambeth Archaeological Society, in recent years BRIAN BLOICE has organised the Streatham Society Local History Group. For all his working life Brian was an analytical chemist employed by Southwark Council Public Health Service. Since early retirement he has run courses on discovering London’s local history at Lambeth, Wandsworth and Morley Colleges. Brian has specialised in the study of the Thames and its industries, particularly along the South Bank, but can also present a broad spectrum of Greater London’s history, archaeology and architecture.

NEIL BRIGHT has had a lifelong fascination with the First World War, and in recent years with the Blitz. Neil has his own research company, Beaucourt Research Ltd; Beaucourt being the village on the Somme where his Great Uncle Harry was killed in November 1916. Neil has visited Harry’s grave and indeed the Western Front many times. Since forming his own company, Neil has undertaken research for people who want their ancestors’ First World War service traced.

In 2006 Neil was asked to participate in the ‘Kennington Park Trench Shelter’ project and has given talks to schools and local groups on the subject. Neil is a member of several societies including the Western Front Association and the Metropolitan Police Military History Society.

Clare Bunkham

CLARE BUNKHAM is the Archivist of the Sainsbury Archive at the Museum in Docklands.  She was Deputy Group Archivist at Prudential plc between 1999-2004 and has been responsible for the Sainsbury Archive since Nov 2004, managing its relocation to the Museum of Docklands and the opening of the public research facility in Oct 2005. A former editor of the Business Archive Council’s newsletter and currently Training Officer for the Society of Archivists Business Records Group.

TAFFY CLOUGH-TURNER worked at Peak Freans in Bermondsey for nearly thirty years. He joined in May 1960 and rose to the position of Chief Fire Officer in 1980, finally leaving when the Clements Road factory closed its doors for the last time in October 1989. Hockey and marathon running feature amongst Taffy's sporting interests.

NATHALIE COHEN is Team Leader of the Thames Discovery Programme. She studied Medieval Archaeology at the Institute of Archaeology, UCL, and after graduating worked for Bournemouth University’s MARS Project (Monuments at Risk Survey) in the East Midlands, and at the Museum of London on a number of different projects, including the Thames Archaeological Survey. From the Museum of London, Nathalie moved to the Museum of London Archaeology Service (now MoL Archaeology), working as an Archivist and a Built Heritage Specialist.  She has recently completed an MA in Maritime Archaeology at UCL and is also the Cathedral Archaeologist for Southwark Cathedral.

Alistair Douglas

ALISTAIR DOUGLAS is a senior site supervisor at Pre-Construct Archaeology, with projects such as the Roman bathhouse at Shadwell in East London - uncovered in 2002 and 2003 - under his belt. Alistair led the excavations at Bermondsey Square.

Gill Friar

GILL FRIAR is a keen gardener who studied horticulture to degree level many years ago.  Four years ago she followed a short course in garden history.  Part of this was to make a brief presentation on a garden of her choice, and Gill chose John Evelyn’s garden at Sayes Court in Deptford.  She recently read that Evelyn 'tends to captivate the minds of those who study him' and includes herself as being one of those 'captivated'.  Since researching Sayes Court, and other gardens on which he gave advice, she has received invitations to talk to a number of groups on this fascinating subject.

Alan Gartrell

ALAN GARTRELL has degrees in Mediaeval English Literature and Literature in Crisis; he has a MBA from City University and is a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.  He has worked for the Valuation Office and the local authorities of Hackney and Westminster, but for most of his career with the Corporation of London.  For the last ten years he has managed the Bridge House Estates which won the award for the best performing specialist fund for three consecutive years.

Rosemary Gill

ROSEMARY GILL is an experienced teacher with a background in theatre. She has been part of the Bethnal Green Museum education staff for many years and has lectured at the Victoria and Albert Museum and for the National Trust. Working with the Victorian magic lantern and her extensive collection of original slides, Rosemary has also visited many schools and local history groups.

Peter Gurnett

PETER  GURNETT was engineer with the Deptford firm of J. Stone & Co., whose history he wrote about for Lewisham Local History Society, and a former Redriffe Chronicle editor.  He both instituted and chaired the “Marlowe 400” Festival at Deptford in 1993, and among other writings has produced guides to both Deptford’s historic churches.  Lately he has specialised in the history of the Deptford Creek area.

Leo Hollis

Bob Jefferies

BOB JEFFERIES a serving police officer of some 31 years, 16 of them on the River Thames, is our guide to Wapping River Police Station. The current station is on the site of the original Thames Police Office founded in 1798, the birthplace of modern policing in this country. A small museum traces the 200+ years history of the world’s oldest police force. It consists of the hardware and archives that make up the history of policing London’s river and of the Thames River Police - motto ‘Primus Omnium’, First of All.

Hugh Jenkins

Following training as a teacher at St. John’s College, York in 1956, HUGH JENKINS taught in Primary and Secondary Schools in Liverpool and Ellesmere Port, then in Nassau, Bahamas where he was Head Teacher at St. Matthew’s Parish School and at Clerkenwell Parochial School, North London. After early retirement in 1990, Hugh started to work for Cultural Heritage Resources at the Old Operating Theatre Museum, the Brunel Engine House, the Museum of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, the Museum of Garden History and the Theatre Museum, Covent Garden, and has also lectured on London in Brazil.

Doug Killock

DOUG KILLOCK, of Pre-Construct Archaeology, conducted the year-long excavations at  Tabard Square which revealed buildings including a religious temple precinct – the first to be found in Roman London.  In October 2002 a rare Roman marble inscription was found making reference to “Londoniensi”  the Latin name for the people of London.  As there are very few Roman items including the whole of the word ‘London’, this is an extremely important find.

Richard Lindsay

RICHARD LINDSAY, curator of Millwall Football Club museum will come along with two former FC members to regale us with personal anecdotes of events in the Club’s history. Although not illustrated with slides, Richard will bring photo albums and other memorabilia associated with the Club’s highs and lows from its formation in 1885 in East Ferry Road, Isle of Dogs, when it was one of three clubs in the area, until it moved over to New Cross in 1910 where it remained until 1993 then moving to its current ground by South Bermondsey station.

Tony Lucas

TONY LUCAS was Rector of St George the Martyr, Southwark, from 1991 - 2006 and recently retired after 40 years as an Anglican clergyman. He read History at Manchester University and later completed an MA in Medieval History at Kings College, London. Between Prison and Palace, his book on the pre-Reformation history of that parish, was published in 2004.   He now lives in Bermondsey.

Margaret Makepeace

MARGARET MAKEPEACE studied history at the University of York, joined the India Office Records in 1979 and trained as an archivist. In 1990, Margaret left to bring up a family, but continued to work on editions of IOR documents as well as undertaking an archival research project for St Bartholomew's Hospital. She rejoined the British Library in 2000 as Editor for the Access to Archives project, moving on in 2001 to other archive projects in the India Office Records. Currently researching the East India Company London warehouse labourers 1800-1860, Margaret has numerous publications to her credit, and has contributed five articles for the New Dictionary of National Biography, due for publication in 2004.

Caroline Marais

CAROLINE MARAIS is Head of Centre of the Pumphouse Educational Museum which incorporates The Rotherhithe Heritage Museum and the Lavender Pond & Nature Park.  In the last eight years she has expanded the education for schools programme, providing education in ecology and conservation, and setting up a reminiscence and communication service for older people.

www.thepumphouse.org.uk

Wendy Matthews

WENDY MATTHEWS  trained as a physiotherapist at St. Thomas’ Hospital, continued in part-time practice until 2000 and obtained a BA degree with the Open University in 1989. Wendy has been involved with the Florence Nightingale Museum (FNM) since its inception in 1983, and opening by Princess Alexandra  in 1989.  She helped form The Friends of the FNM and continues as a committee member.  As a volunteer she helps ‘front of house’ and has been a Museum Guide since this facility started in 2000. She gave her first illustrated invited talk in 2001.

Natasha McEnroe

NATASHA McENROE is Curator of Dr. Johnson’s House.  She has previously worked for the National Trust and V&A Museum, and studied at University College, London and the University of Greenwich.  She is co-editor of a book of essays produced by the British Art Journal, The Tyranny of Treatment:  Samuel Johnson, His Friends and Georgian Medicine (BAJ, 2003).

Mary Mills

An executive member of the Greater London Industrial Archaeological Society, MARY MILLS has worked on local history in Greenwich for many years, specialising in the local gas industry while a student at Thames Poly in the 1970s. Mary was one of the founders of the Greenwich Industrial History Society and is also a Greenwich Councillor for Peninsula ward.

Gerry Moss

GERRY MOSS is professionally a chemist.  He is currently Chairman of the Surrey Industrial Heritage Group (SIHG) and a member of the Gunpowder and Explosives History Group.

Richard Norman

RICHARD NORMAN is an active member of the Cinema Theatre Association, a society which supports the research and preservation of the old style cinema/theatre buildings.  He is also co-author of a book which fully documents the history of Southwark’s buildings of entertainment.

Roger Owen

ROGER OWEN started work as an apprentice in the Marine Department of B. R. at Holyhead, and later undertook a sandwich course at college in Liverpool and at Crewe Locomotive Works. He subsequently entered the nuclear industry, working on the design of the A.G.R. power station, Dungeness B, and later as a scientific officer on the nuclear submarine development programme, when he also undertook a course at the Royal Naval College, Greenwich. Roger moved to the City University, London, as a research fellow, before joining Shelf International Marine to work on machinery and cargo systems projects. Before retiring, he ran a group carrying out audits of shipboard operations in the Shell fleets. 

Brian Parsons

BRIAN PARSONS has worked in funeral directing since 1982 and is currently editor of Funeral Service Journal. He is the author of The London Way of Death (2001), Committed to the Cleansing Flame: the Development of Cremation in Nineteenth Century England (2005), and (with Hugh Meller) London Cemeteries: An Illustrated Guide and Gazetter (2008).

Stuart Rankin

Past Chair of the R&BLHG and former Redriffe Chronicle Editor, STUART RANKIN, a career railwayman for over 30 years, is a freelance writer, lecturer and photographer.  He has written several works on aspects of railway history and about the docks and shipbuilding yards in Rotherhithe.  In 2000, he organised the symposium Thames Shipbuilding and Thames Built Ships, held at Nelson Dock, and edited the publication of the proceedings.  Stuart is a member of the judging panel for the annual National Railway Heritage Awards, and is a contributor to the New Dictionary of National Biography.  He has written two illustrated leaflets describing walks around the Surrey Docks area.

Len Reilly

LEN REILLY is an archivist, librarian and local historian of south east London. He has worked in the local studies libraries of Greenwich, Bexley, Southwark, and currently Lambeth.  Len is author of a number of books on the history of parts of south east London, his most recent title being The Story of The Borough.

Diana Rimel

DIANA RIMEL, lecturer, local historian and writer, has taught for the former ILEA, Greenwich and Lewisham Adult Education Authorities, the WEA, the Centre for Extra Mural Studies (Birkbeck College) and the London Docklands Development Corporation.  She began the regular monthly talks in the Old Mortuary for Time and Talents, now the Rotherhithe & Bermondsey Local History Group, and is an honorary life member of the Group.   She retired from Goldsmiths College in 2003 after 25 years of organising, and for the last five developing, its adult education programme of local history courses.  She has written a number of small books and trails, including a short history of the Old Mortuary and a trail of the Rotherhithe Conservation Area.

Ken Smith

KEN SMITH is one of the key members of the Brewery History Society, the UK’s foremost organisation dedicated to recording and publishing the history of brewing in the country.  For over ten years he was the editor of their quarterly journal “Brewery History” and now edits the county based books on breweries and brewers.  Ken is a regular contributor and compiler of their newsletter, an open forum allowing anyone to ask and answer questions on the brewing industry, past and present.

Robert Stephenson

Although trained as a sculptor, for the past 20 years ROBERT STEPHENSON has taught in adult education – his main subjects are London, death studies and folklore.  He is a qualified City of London guide and a guide at Kensal Green and Brompton Cemeteries.  He is also vice-chair of the City of London Archaeological Society.

Alan Thornton

After qualifying as a Chartered Accountant, ALAN THORNTON spent most of the last 30 years in various project management roles, largely within the offshore oil and gas industry. Since 1993, he worked as an independent consultant within the Railway Industry.

Alan has undertaken various assignments within both Railtrack plc and London Underground Limited. He has an ongoing involvement with a rolling stock supply company, and since August 2000 has been retained as LUL's Project Manager for the Northern Extension to the East London Line.

GILLIAN TINDALL is a British writer. Among her better-known works are City of Gold: Biography of Bombay and Celestine: Voices from a French Village. Her novel Fly Away Home won the Somerset Maugham Award in 1972.
 
In 2006, Gillian released a book written about 49 Bankside in London, The House by the Thames. Since first built in 1710, the house had served as a home for coal merchants, an office, a boarding-house, a hangout for derelicts and finally once again a private residence in the 1900s. The house is listed in tour guides as a famous residence and has been variously claimed as possibly being home to Christopher Wren during the construction of St. Paul's Cathedral, and previously claimed residents included Catherine of Aragon and William Shakespeare.

Malcolm Tucker

Chartered Civil Engineer MALCOLM TUCKER spent much of his spare time over the past 30 years recording details of London's vanishing industrial buildings. His interest in the archaeology of structures has now developed into a full-time occupation. He has contributed to many publications, including Dockland, produced by the then North East London Polytechnic and the GLC.

More recently he was part of the team which produced the special London Docklands volume of the Penguin Pevsner's Buildings of England series, and has contributed to other London volumes in the series. As a long standing member of the Group, Malcolm will be well known, both as a speaker and as a contributor to the Redriffe Chronicle.

Jack Vaughan

JACK VAUGHAN was born 1917 at Woolwich, the son of a turner at the Royal Arsenal who sadly died 1918. Jack's education began at Woolwich Central School; he sat an open examination for an Arsenal Engineering Apprenticeship and managed to come 12th out of 200 or 300 candidates which he says "just scraped me in". This apprenticeship was an important one nationally, because the Arsenal contributed heavily to the British Army and Navy.

After war service with REME, including time spent with the "Desert Rats" he returned to the Arsenal in 1946, and completed his education to achieve Associate Membership of Institution of Mechanical Engineers. [He is still a full member M.I.Mech E]. After spells with RAE Famboro, [Aircraft, fighters & bombers etc], RARDE Fort Halstead [Guided Missiles] and D.I. Arm. (Development of Inspection Methods for Armaments] at the Arsenal, Jack retired at 60 from MoD. He finally taught Engineering at Woolwich Polytechnic Boys School [which has now moved to Thamesmead].Jack's main interests now are repairing antique clocks, and local industrial history.

Christine Wagg

CHRISTINE WAGG works as legal assistant to the Peabody Trust which, owning or managing over 19,000 dwellings, is London's largest charitable housing association. She regularly deals with enquiries about the Trust's history and early records and in 1994 was responsible for arranging the transfer of the Trust's archive collection to London Metropolitan Archives in Clerkenwell.

JULIE WAKEFIELD currently works at both the Museum of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society and the Old Operating Theatre & Herb Garret, where she gained her knowledge of the historic use of natural ingredients in medicine. She studied History, and History of Art at Newnham College, Cambridge and has worked in a number of other museums including the National Maritime Museum and a museum of architectural features (the Brooking Collection at the University of Greenwich).

Gaynor Wingham

GAYNOR WINGHAM has a professional background in social work and education, now runs a consultancy/training business, and is a freelance journalist. She has been interested in researching her own family history, which stretches from South Wales to South London, since 1984. The 2000 Millennium Year marked the centenary of the building of Greenholme Road, Eltham Park where Gaynor has lived since 1985.

As part of the street's centenary millennium celebrations she researched the history of the Greenholme Road. She found a rich history of suburban life and ordinary - and not so ordinary - residents.