Mid-Bucks (Aylesbury) u3a Monthly Meeting talks

15th October 2026 – Nigel Crompton – History of the British Fire Service

Nigel Crompton has been speaking for over 30 years on a range of subjects to many different and varied audiences. These include Rotary Clubs, Probus, Schools and different associations and special interest groups throughout the UK. At the age of 55 he was invited to go to University for the first time and gained a Masters Degree in British History, specializing in First World War Studies. During his career in the fire service he undertook many presentations on the development of the Fire Service and other emergency services. Nigel is based in Buckinghamshire, but has travelled widely not only researching but assisting with exhibitions and displays as well as giving talks.

The talk will follow the development of fire fighting from the earliest known forms through social changes, the industrial revolution, two world wars and up to the modern day situation. Nigel will also highlight the role of women in fire fighting especially during the Great War.

19th November 2026 – Sara Shelby – 10 Years Inside

Sara Shelby is an ex Metropolitan Police Officer. She joined the Police Force in 1976. She was born in Islington and was posted locally to Bethnal Green in the East End. Since leaving the Police Force Sara has been a teacher, been in the prison service and has run her own business and much more. We shall look forward, once again, to her particular insights, this time about her time as a prison officer, not as a prisoner!

17th December 2026 – Sun Jester – A Christmas Entertainment

Sun Jester is a family business that offers a range of informal talks and entertainments for groups of all interests. They have been working in the field of Heritage Education for over 25 years.

We will be provided with a feast of anecdotes and music on a seasonal theme. Live performances of classic Christmas songs from the Golden Age of Hollywood musicals combine with humorous stories about the artistes.  Sun Jester will also look at the origins of some of our Christmas traditions, and how one of them was (and still could be) illegal.

21st January 2027 – Dr Helen Fry – The Man who saved MI6

Dr Helen Fry has authored and edited over 25 books covering the social history of WW2, including British Intelligence and the Secret War. She is renowned for her focus on the 10,000 German and Austrian Jewish refugees who served with British forces during World War II. She is an authority on the ‘Secret Listeners’ and possesses deep knowledge of 20th-century espionage.

Beyond her authorship, Helen extends her expertise as a consultant to television and documentary production companies. She is also an ambassador for the National Centre for Military Intelligence and serves as a trustee of both the Friends of the Intelligence Corps Museum and the Medmenham Collection.

Helen’s talk will consider Thomas Joseph Kendrick, who was one of the British Secret Service’s most senior spymasters. From tracking Communist agents in the 1920s to Nazi spies in the 1930s he became MI6 head of station in Vienna where he entered the world of double agents. He was denounced by a double agent and arrested by the Gestapo, but under interrogation, refused to give up the Secret Intelligence Service network and went on to orchestrate the longest spying operation against Nazi Germany. We will look forward to what Helen has to say.