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Monday, 30 October 2023 at 2 p.m. for 2.30 p.m. at Queen’s House, Romney Road, Greenwich, London SE10 9NF.

To celebrate Black History Month this year, a visit is organised to Queen’s House, Greenwich, with a focus on the sculpture of Olaudah Equiano, the writer, freedman, and abolitionist.

Sculptor Christy Symington MRSS will be talking to us about the sculpture, why and how she made it and the storytelling elements that can be found on it, like the back of the shoulders reflecting the African continent, the direct replication of the Brooks slave ship diagram and a detail of a female figure from the diagram. There will be an opportunity to ask questions.

We will also be told about the life of Olaudah Equiano and there will be a guided tour of Queen’s House. 

There is also a Nordic connection in that Queen’s House Greenwich was commissioned by Queen Anne, born Princess Anna of Denmark, the wife of King James VI and I.

Olaudah Equiano was known during most of his life as Gustavus Vassa, named after Gustav Vasa, who was elected King of Sweden (and Finland) 500 years ago, this year, hence the Nordic connection, inspiring us to discover more about Olaudah Equiano, as the last but not least of our 500th anniversary events this year.

This event is organised by the Anglo-Finnish Society jointly with the Anglo-Swedish Society. 

Space is limited and allocated on a first come first served basis – members and guests are welcome!

Cost: £14.00 per person.

Please email the Hon. Secretary at secretary@anglofinnishsociety.org.uk if you wish to attend.

Photo credits: 

By Daniel Orme, after W. Denton – National Portrait Gallery, London, NPG D8546, Public Domain

OLAUDAH EQUIANO – African, slave, author, abolitionist’ (2006) Bronze by Christy Symington MRSS / DACS 2022 – Photo: Sylvain Deleu

Tuesday, 12 December 2023, at 12.30 p.m. at the Finnish Church, 33 Albion Street, London SE16 7HZ.

The Anglo-Finnish Society’s Christmas lunch this year will be at the Finnish Church in London, with an opportunity to enjoy traditional Finnish Christmas dishes that are not widely available in London otherwise.

The price of the buffet will be £35 per head, and it will consist of everything you would find in a Finnish Christmas table, starting with rosolli-salad, rye bread, salmon, mushroom salad etc as hors d’oeuvres or voileipäpöytä or smörgåsbord, the main course of Christmas ham with varied casseroles, and as a pudding, probably a Christmas tartelette and coffee and tea. Alcoholic drinks are not included, but as it is a private event, we can bring our own.

This event is fully booked.

Tuesday, 3 October 2023 from 6.30 p.m. to 10.00 p.m. at Ognisko Polskie, 55 Exhibition Road, London, SW7 2PG.

Together with the Anglo-Swedish Society, the Anglo-Finnish Society is jointly organising a King Sigismund Dinner at the Salonik of the Restaurant of the Polish Club.

This year 2023 is the 500th anniversary of the accession of King Gustav Vasa to the Throne. His grandson, King Sigismund was King of Sweden and Poland and Grand Duke of Finland and Lithuania.

Professor Neil Kent and Professor David Goldsmith will give some historical background.

Our two Societies wish to also invite members of the Polish and Lithuanian Societies to this dinner.

There will be a three-course dinner with wine at a cost of £70 per person.
 
Dress code: Lounge suit
 
Places are limited (up to 35). Please email secretary@anglofinnishsociety.org.uk if you wish to attend (mentioning any dietary restrictions).

Tuesday, 14 November 2023 at 2.30 p.m. in the Allen Room, St Anne’s Church, 55 Dean Street, Soho, London W1D 6AF.

Jean Sibelius is a national hero of Finland and a composer of global significance. Sir Edward Elgar was one of the greatest British composers whose musical influences are commonly considered to be typically English. The differences between two great composers are seemingly unbridgeable. However, our speaker, Edward Clark will act the contrarian and promote his thesis on the generally little recognised similarities between the artistic goals shared by both composers in the last decade of the 19th century. It will be an opportunity to hear several examples of their music, as Edward seeks to prove his thesis.

Edward Clark is the President of the UK Sibelius Society and well-known to our members as an eloquent speaker on Sibelius.

This event is open to members and guests with a capacity of 40 in the Allen Room. It is free of charge. 

Please email the Hon. Secretary at secretary@anglofinnishsociety.org.uk if you wish to attend. 

Thursday, 28 September 2023 at 3.30 p.m. in the Community Hall, St Anne’s Church, 55 Dean Street, Soho, London W1D 6AF. 

This event is organised and hosted jointly with the Anglo-Danish Society.

“Nordic Noir” is a crime fiction genre that applies to a type of literature and film or TV drama characterised by plain language, unassuming lead personalities and bleak settings. However, this superficially uninspiring mix has, arguably, led to one of the Nordic region’s greatest cultural exports, appealing to audiences around the world and inspiring copyists in many other countries.

Our speaker, Producer Pauliina Ståhlberg, will describe the genre, provide a brief history, share her views on its impact and influence and her thoughts on how it might develop in the future. Her words will be complemented by clips from a selection of Danish, Finnish and other Nordic Noir dramas. She will also share first-hand experiences from the making of the series Deadwind (Karppi) for Netflix. 

About our Speaker

Pauliina Ståhlberg is a highly respected broadcast media professional now working in cultural export. She has experience of all aspects of media production from feature films to documentaries, from live television to Nordic Noir series.  During her career, she has been scriptwriter, producer and director for both national and independent companies including Finland´s National Broadcasting Company (Yle), the BBC, Discovery Channel and Arte. 

Between 2018 and 2020, Pauliina worked as a Producer at Dionysos Films, producing the second and third (and final) seasons of the Nordic Noir series Karppi (Deadwind in English) which can be seen on Netflix worldwide.  

Following that success, Pauliina is now developing a Nordic Noir-inspired thriller feature film set in London with the English production company Pinball London. It is based on the book “A Gift to my Mother” by Jouko Heikura (Gummerus 2020) that has not yet been translated into English. 

She has been based in Spain since 2021 where she is the Director of the Finnish Cultural Institute in Madrid, having previously been the Director of the Finnish Institute in London (2015-2018) where her mission was to develop cultural exchange between the UK and Finland.

This event is open to members and guests. The cost is £7.50 per person. 

Please email secretary@anglofinnishsociety.org.uk if you wish to attend. 

An opportunity to meet the photographer Santeri Tuori at a private view of his exhibition at the Purdy Hicks Gallery, 25 Thurloe Street, London SW7 2LQ, at 3.30pm. The capacity for this event is limited and priority will be given to subscribing members of the Society.

Santeri Tuori is one of the most significant artists in Finnish contemporary photography with an international reputation. He has exhibited in London with the Purdy Hicks Gallery on several occasions:

‘Santeri Tuori (born 1970, Espoo, Finland) studied at the Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture, Helsinki. A multifaceted artist, Santeri Tuori’s work is primarily focussed on the properties of nature and its power to change. Photographing in his native Finland his recent subjects include skies, forests and water lilies.’

Some of his recent works can be seen on the Gallery’s website HERE

Professor David Goldsmith will give us a talk on the Swedish-Russian War of 1808-9 – short, maybe, but not so sweet, and with immense consequences for both Sweden and Finland.

The meeting will be at 14.30 in the Allen Room at St Anne’s Church, Soho. The street address is 55 Dean Street, London W1D 6AF. 

If you would be interested in attending, please contact the Honorary Secretary by using the contact form on this website.

The Anglo-Swedish Society has invited members of our Society to join them for this event when the renowned Finland-Swedish author, Ulla-Lena Lundberg, will talk about her work and give a brief introduction to the Swedish literature of Finland – bigger than you think and livelier than most.

For further information see  the events page of the Anglo-Swedish Society’s website https://www.angloswedishsociety.org.uk/events/?event_id=134&lang=en   and use the payment page on their website to pay the £10 charge which covers the cost of drinks and light refreshments which will be served after the talk.