Join us for our exciting series of daytime talks this year, each one takes place on our beautiful auditorium stage once a month on a Thursday morning. Enjoy fascinating local subjects presented by entertaining local speakers. A cup of tea/coffee is included in your ticket, available before or after the talk. All talks start at 10.30am, with doors open at 10am.

11th January – Place Names: A Torbay Tour by Dr Kevin Dixon

Brixham, Paignton, Torquay, Teignmouth, Newton Abbot. Where did all those towns’ names come from and what do they mean? Join us on a light-hearted tour through South Devon to look at old and new local place names and their origins.

8th February – Shipwrecks of Torbay by Nick Pannell

Author and journalist, Nick dives into the past to tell the story of Torbay’s maritime disasters from the wreck of HMS Savage in 1762 on Roundham Head, Paignton to the near calamity of the Santa Anna on
Thatcher Rock in 1998.

14 March – Bringing the English Riviera to Life Through Film by John Tomkins

Film Producer John Tomkins takes you on a journey celebrating film locations on the English Riviera. With excerpts from many films that John has directed and collaborated on across
the bay. From large scale creative films to documentaries celebrating the history and memories of the English Riviera.

25 April – Devon History Matters by Dr Todd Gray 

Part of the English Riviera Literature Festival (Play on Words) programme.

Only by examining the past can we hope to grasp the nature of modern society and anticipate the future. In this far-reaching lecture Dr Gray calls upon more than forty years of unparalleled archival work which
has resulted in some fifty versatile and highly-original books on Devon. He will demonstrate how the discovery of previously unknown documents has
significantly altered how we view Devon’s past and will reveal others that challenge our assumptions about ourselves and the past.

16 May – From Couch Potato to Pilgrim by Maureen McAllister

Maureen, Operations Director at the Palace Theatre presents ‘I always used to say ‘why walk, you’ve got a car’ … but lockdown brought about all sorts of changes for everyone and for me it was a case of buying a pair of walking shoes and stepping out. I’ve actually walked the last 100 kilometres of the Camino de Santiago and the Via Francigena Final Stage from Montefiascone to Rome, raising over £2,500 for the theatre and charity so far. I’ve lost count of the number of pairs of trainers I’ve worn out and the total number of miles – but I’d love to tell you all about my adventures!‘

13 June – Torre Abbey’s Potent Plants Garden by Ali Marshall

Inspired by the life of crime writer and novelist, Dame Agatha Christie, Ali Marshall, head gardener at Torre Abbey created the Potent Plants Garden with a variety of plants, some poisonous, that featured in her stories. Ali will provide an insight into the work that went into creating this intriguing and fascinating local attraction and homage to Torquay’s most famous resident and ‘Queen of Crime’.

11 July – An Introduction to the Alexander Technique by Jenny Davy

Posture training for performance gains. An entertaining and informative talk by Jenny Davy, about how lessons in the Alexander Technique can free up breathing, circulation and digestion, help with stress-related conditions and train a person to improve their skills, posture and general wellbeing.

More talks are scheduled from September 2024 onwards, with details coming soon. Pictured: Maureen McAllister on a sponsored walk.