THE PROBUS CLUB OF STORRINGTON AND DISTRICT
WEST SUSSEX

"Taking time off from doing nothing"

14 October 2026   Apparently in more than 60 years of space activity some 6k+ launches have resulted in 56k objects in orbit of which about 28k are regularly tracked. It is getting crowded and fear of crashes is increasing. Of the many organisations involved in space activity is the little known European Space Agency (nothing to do with the EU) and we at PROBUS were lucky to listen to a talk by Geoffrey Saunders, one of their past operatives. Sadly the ESA has failed to promote its immense contribution to space exploration, often leaving the glory to the Americans. It is funded by European countries who are members and has over time developed a wealth of hardware that when sent out into space, often on NASA rockets and the like, has pioneered scientific and space knowledge. It has funded the astronauts Helen Sharman and Tim Peake, with others waiting in the wings.  We were treated to the concepts of immense distances, atmospheric vagaries, travel times and technological robustness way beyond our comprehension. But all in a day's work for the ESA and their pursuit for all valuable knowledge. Fantastic stuff! [ML]

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9 September 2026 After lunch, our guest speaker - resplendent in her military uniform - Gill Walby talked about her life in the Women's Royal Naval Service (the Wrens) and the Royal Navy "From Jenny Wren to RN". Her father was a successful pilot so Gill grew up steeped in the traditions of the RAF. But, with her dislike of flying, she chose to join the Wrens to "see the world". After an inauspicious start of a two year delay at the mercy of officialdom to join, she found herself posted to Basingstoke where there was not a lot of water. However after subjecting herself to the rigours of training, several postings and a great deal of fun, Gill found herself at Chatham. From then on life upped a gear. As she climbed the greasy pole Gill experienced the idiosyncrasies of admirals and consuls amongst other top brass. She also "suffered" life in Hong Kong, Bermuda and Gibraltar. The life of a Wren was both varied and specialised - their skills were far-reaching and highly valued. Whilst levels of misogyny did exist, the Wrens’ skills epitomised their importance to the Royal Navy. Important enough for them to be fully integrated into the senior service in 1993 after which Gill reached the heights of Chief Petty Officer. She retired after some 30 years of service. With pictures and enjoyable reminiscences, Gill gave us great insights into her highly successful service career. [ML]

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12 August 2026 At our Annual General Meeting, outgoing president, Paul Weaver, recapped the success of the last year and thanked everyone for their unstinting enthusiasm and support. He then handed the regalia to, and welcomed as our new president for 2026-27, Peter Edwards. 

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8 July 2026  As we sat down to listen to Michael Carroll’s talk on the history of the Pharmaceutical Industry, two things dawned upon us. Firstly, condensing 2000+ years  into fifty minutes was a heck of a task. Secondly, that many (all?) of us were leading our lives because of "Big Pharma". Despite, and probably because of this, Michael delivered a fascinating talk. From the early days of The Macedonians to the industry of today. Complex progress relied on the brains, flair, observations and sheer tenacity of countless people. Some household names, others not.  As solutions appeared so the ethos of risk vs reward became more prevalent and the concept of the Therapeutic Index was born. This Index helps keep us safe and gives a truth to the time taken and the costs involved in curing disease. Often Big Pharma enjoys only about 13 years of cost benefit from bringing a drug to market and it being open to all. Put that against the research costs and high failure rate! [ML]​​​

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2 June 2026 After lunch our guest speaker Frank Hurst gave us a most interesting illustrated talk on the subject of "Drug Smuggling"

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13 May 2026  Ian Currie, our incredibly knowledgeable and enthusiastic speaker, talked about his pet subject,  “The Wonderful World of Clouds” (those in the sky, to avoid any misunderstanding). To most of us they do little more than provide a fabulous backdrop but not to Ian. He told us that clouds are harbingers of the weather. Historically and along with personal experiences, they influenced the phrases, sayings and observations used by those working outside to help indicate weather patterns. Bearing in mind these people knew little of the physics of the atmosphere, let alone what was happening at 33,000ft plus and many miles away. We learnt that it was not until the early 19th century when the amateur meteorologist Luke Howard produced a scientific classification of clouds and their behaviour patterns leading to ten definitions and countless segregations which are still used to this day. So look to the sky, learn your stuff and banish all clothing indecisions. (ML)

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8 April 2026 Are these people heroes or not? Forty-five minutes of astonishment as we Members listened to a lecture from Dr John Wyatt MBE, PhD. An explosives consultant who had grown to the top of his profession not only by making bombs safe but also by giving expert advice on the consequences and avoidance of explosive detonations. His career had started as a bomb disposal officer in the Army. It had taken him from the “Hermann” and “Satan” bombs of World War 2 to the frightening IEDs of today’s terrorist.  Rarely was he scared but often lonely when he only had a bomb for company. He spent time in the employ of the Security Services. He advised on Lockerbie, First Gulf War, Falklands and the Troubles in Northern Ireland to name but a very few of his theatres. His views were sought on protecting the Crown Jewels, the Shard and the British Museum from explosive devices. He knew a bit about assassinations as well! Forget about cutting blue wires, we heard how it is really done. (ML)

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And if that wasn't exciting enough, there followed our Grand National sweepstake draw when our Social Secretary explained the not-so-simple rules. But, apparently, someone will win something! Maybe!! (ML)

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11 March 2026  “We do not appreciate how good things are today”. With these words Andrew Relf launched into his educational and entertaining lecture on how all drugs and treatments have come a long way from the Victorian Operating Theatre to today’s High Tech Theatres. He emphasised that the research backing this extraordinary process unfortunately takes time. Rarely is there a quick fix. Oft possible solutions appear from the most unlikely places and thoughts. Then and only then are they subjected to much testing before they reach the “Gold Standard”.  Andrew named many pioneers of medical history and paid homage to their discoveries: antibiotics, vaccines and anaesthetics to name but a few. All have helped in significant medical and hygiene advances. Making our life more comfortable and helping increase life expectancy by about 30 years. Nor is the common cold forgotten! The 31 members present applauded a great lecture. (ML)

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11 February 2026 President Paul was pleased to induct Mark Foss as a new member.

This was followed by a talk by Mike Scott Rumble entitled"Lucky Breeze – The Rise And Fall of the British Airship Service". He noted at the outset that it took a mere ​fourteen years from inception to conclusion. To an intrigued audience, Mike recounted how those behemoths of the sky developed from technology learnt from the downing of a Zeppelin in 1916. He included the R34 which made the first and only two way Trans-Atlantic flight in July 1919.  But also the Airship R120 where hubris and inefficiencies allowed this 770 foot long monster to take to the clouds in 1930 on a flight to India. It crashed across the channel in the town of Beauvais just 300 miles away. This fatal trip brought the ambitious project to an end. (ML)

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14 January 2026 After lunch, our guest speaker, Jo Larcombe, gave us an amusing life-story about how she changed career from being a disillusioned college teacher to children's book writer. Her talk, "Losing the plot – from teacher to writer in countless steps" evidenced her determination and drive to overcome some of life's obstacles - and to succeed.​​​

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10 December 2025 Christmas lunch with all the festive cheer.

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12 November 2025 Guest speaker Graham Feest on “Transport Traffic, Safety Roads”​​.​​​​​​

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