Past Events from the Friends of Great Missenden Parish Church

Illustrated Talks

18th April 2026 – “The Rothschilds – the Story of a Migrant Family” by Paula Kitching


© Waddesdon Image Library


Paula Kitching, one of our Trustee/Committee members, gave an excellent talk which was was greatly appreciated by an audience of over 170 people.

The Rothschild’s became a prominent European banking family in the 1700s. In addition to banking and finance, Rothschild businesses have included mining, property and wine. Their charitable work has been considerable, especially in the arts and education.

The family’s influence in Buckinghamshire is evident in their country houses such as Waddesdon, Mentmore Towers, Halton and Tring, all important architectural masterpieces with great art collections and history.

A full Afternoon Tea, raffle and home-made preserves followed the illustrated talk.

The result was an astonishing £3,005 to help with more urgent roof, stonework and plaster repair grants to our historic Church.

11th October 2025 - 'Flying the Royals' by Graham Laurie​                                                    

Graham Laurie joined the Royal Air Force as a pilot in 1964. He flew for 36 years amassing a total of 13,500 hours and during the last 20 years of that career he flew members of the Royal Family and Senior government Ministers. In 1981 he was selected for The Queen’s Flight and in 1995, after that unit’s disbandment, he moved to No 32 (The Royal) Squadron at RAF Northolt, completing in all, over 2,200 Royal Flights. He retired in Dec 2000.
 
The  talk covered the setting up of a Royal Tour and how the Royal Flight was involved. Sometimes this involved a recce flight beforehand often accompanied by the Royal Household.

Graham spoke of instances where all this planning does not always quite work out, with some personal reminiscences.

14th June 2025 -  “Seriously seeking Sybil”, by Sam Hearn, Trustee and Treasurer of The John Hampden Society

Sybil Penn, the wife of a Buckinghamshire farmer and the mother of five children, experienced a dramatic change in her life when she was appointed the dry nurse (or nanny) of Henry VIII’s only legitimate son, Edward. Sybil served four Tudor monarchs and remained in royal service for 24 years.     

Sybil’s maiden name was Hampden and the famous John Hampden The Patriot was the son of her brother Richard. In 1553, Edward VI rewarded "Sibella Penne" with two manors, Aufries (Affricks) and Beamond, and other property in Little Missenden confirming a grant of 1541, for her work as a nurse and educator.  

Sam Hearn worked for Historic Royal Palaces for 14 years and was based in the apartment that Sybil Penn is said to have occupied.

29th March 2025 - 'War Graves - Local and Worldwide' by Chris Leach and Jill Pateman

The Commonwealth War Graves Commission’s horticulture, history and four Great Missenden War Graves   

The “War Graves – Local & Worldwide” Talk & Tea fundraising event was greatly enjoyed by a large audience. Chris Leach gave an excellent and informative talk about the extensive work of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission: history, gardening, architecture and the problems with wars and global warming.

Jill Pateman, our trustee/Committee member, then gave a fascinating and very moving account of the life of William Statham who lived in Church Street, Great Missenden. When he died on 20th May 1919, aged only 33 years, his wife and all eight children had also died, three sons in WW1. His WW1 War Grave is in the Baptist Cemetery in Trafford Road, with a WW2 (ATS) War Grave and there are two WW2 War Graves in our own St Peter & St Paul Cemetery.
 
The talk was followed by usual delicious Afternoon Tea, gifted by the committee and friends, a Raffle and sales of home-made preserves. It was a very happy community gathering and £1,527 was raised for urgent church repairs to the church tower and roof.

                                                            

21st September 2024 -  'Ukraine, Russia and European tensions – can history help us to understand what is happening today? by Paula Kitching

The war in the Ukraine has exposed historic tensions, old rivalries and centuries of nationalist narratives and fears, but how relevant are those histories to current day events?  Can a better understanding of West versus East history and the formation of the modern states of Europe help to explain why some countries have greater concerns for Ukrainian survival than others? Can history help to explain why Russia has a Putin type leader and the EU does not? Does the history of Europe provide an insight into how the war might be resolved?

In this talk, historian Paula Kitching explored the questions raised by examining some of the ways that European nations have interacted over the centuries, how their politics have overlapped, and diverged and how different countries might have different views on what happened in the past and what that means for their identity today. This was done through the prism of the continued conflict between Ukraine and Russia which has become a pivot point in the 21st century for modernity versus the national rivalries of centuries past.

15th June 2024 - "Life in Her Hands" by Professor Dame Averil Mansfield, DBE FRCS FRCP 

The first woman Professor of Surgery in the UK, it was a unique opportunity to hear Professor Dame Averil Mansfield reflect on her amazing and trailblazing career in medicine.

Nearly 190 people gathered at St Peter and St Paul Parish Church to hear Dame Averil share her remarkable life story and pioneering work in surgery.

Dame Averil made history as the UK’s first female vascular surgeon and later became the country’s first female Professor of Surgery. She founded Women in Surgery, a Royal College of Surgeons initiative encouraging more women to enter the profession, and served as President of the British Medical Association from 2009–2010.

Awarded a CBE in 1999 and a DBE in 2023 for Services to Surgery and Equality in Medicine, Dame Averil has inspired generations of young women considering careers in surgery and medicine.

The audience greatly enjoyed the talk, with many staying afterwards for a lively question-and-answer session.

The event also included a full afternoon tea and raffle, raising nearly £1,700 towards urgent building repairs.

20th April 2024 - "John Hampden the Patriot" by Dr Beth Rogers, Chair of Trustees of the John Hampden Society

John Hampden was one of the leading architects of the resistance to Charles I’s arbitrary rule during the years leading up to the outbreak of the English Civil War.  He later became known as ‘Patriae Pater – The Father of the People’.

Dr Beth Rogers gave an excellent and informative talk which was greatly enjoyed by a large audience. It was a memorable afternoon and over £1,500 was raised for repairs to the Parish Church tower.

The Village Church School's Bi-Centenary 2023

Paula Kitching gave an excellent and fascinating talk about Great Missenden Church School’s history in the Oldham Hall, the original village school, built in 1822 by James Oldham Oldham, owner of Missenden Abbey.





Pictures of the original School Registers were shown of Belgian evacuees in WW1, of many children leaving the school during the late1920’s Depression and of Polish children admitted in 1947 from the Misbourne estate. This is one of few schools in England still retaining registers required by the 1870 Education Act.

A delicious Afternoon Tea and raffle followed and funds of £800 were raised. In September 2023, Friends of Great Missenden Parish Church gave grants of nearly £6,000 for the church boiler repair and of nearly £5,000 for final repairs to the church tower and buttresses. 

Events

9th September 2023 - Bucks Historic Church Trust Ride + Stride

Warm thanks to everyone who kindly made donations: a total of £560 was raised, half of which will be returned to our Parish Church.

The Trust kindly gave our PCC grants of £5,000 in October 2022 and £6,000 in August 2023 towards the final tranche of stonework repairs to church tower and buttresses. Friends of Great Missenden Parish Church charity met the remaining cost of this year’s work with a grant of £4,270 to the PCC.  

The Silver Jubilee Celebration Tea Party 2023 for our members and supporters on Saturday 17th June was a memorable and very happy occasion! Delicious food was provided by the committee and three friends, there was gentle mandolin and accordion music and animated conversations and happy faces! The committee wish to thank everyone, past and present, who has supported the charity since its foundation in 1997, enabling grants of over £176,000 to the PCC for repairs to the church fabric.

Grants given have enabled restoration and repair projects at  the Church, including £30,000 for repairs to the clerestory windows and also over £46,000, to  convert our historic J.J. Binns organ to electro-pneumatic action.

The latest grant of £7,190 for the second tranche of tower stonework repairs was made in September 2022.