Liphook u3a’s history group is celebrating its tenth anniversary next month.

Member Gwenda Pate said: “We began as a small group of disparate people who had some sort of interest in history, either because it had been a lifelong passion or that boring teaching had left the subject cold for us.

“Only when we had the time to explore some of our rich history when visiting National Trust properties or English Heritage sites did we realise how little we really knew.

“We limited ourselves to English history although inevitably this has spilled over into many other parts of the world.

“As seems to be traditional, we began with the Romans and are now coming to the end of the Victorians, although there are rich seams in between that we still need to mine.

“Our meetings take the form of three presentations on the topic in hand, each presented by a member of the group.

“In the early days we handed round appropriate pictures, but now we are much more up to date. We had a couple of lessons from one of the group on how to give Powerpoint presentations and have gone from strength to strength.

“The papers generally take half an hour or so and at an appropriate point we stop for coffee and biscuits and the usual chat, at which u3a members are very good.

“We have a small committee which runs the group informally and efficiently.

“We have a celebratory session in December which usually includes a visit to a place of historical interest followed by lunch out, and usually another visit, often further afield, in the summer.

“Our numbers have grown since our early days when we comfortably fitted into one of the village rooms in the Millennium Centre to the present day when we almost fill the Canada Room.

“However, our enthusiasm hasn’t dimmed one bit as we proceed through the wide ranging history of our amazing country.”

More information on joining this, or any of the other groups in Liphook u3a, can be gained by emailing [email protected]