IGO July 26 News Extra
Hello everyone, and welcome to the July edition of the Interest Groups Online News Extra!
I hope you're all enjoying the summer and finding time to join in with your favourite groups – or perhaps even try something new. I'm especially pleased to say that we've recently added new groups in both Music and Languages, so do take a look if either of those takes your fancy.
As always, this News Extra is all about you and the wonderful things happening across our Interest Groups. If your group has had an interesting discussion, a great speaker, a special event or even just a memorable meeting, I'd love to hear about it. Please send your stories, photos and articles to
Happy reading, and thank you to everyone who has contributed to this month's issue!
New Group – The soul train
Soul, Motown, R&B and Funk — if you like any of the above genres, then it will most definitely be worth checking us out.
Each month, we will share our love of all things Soul, Motown, R&B and Funk, including great music and good conversation. We will start by selecting an album to listen to and discuss, then as the months tick by, we will open it up to members' choices, which will really be fun to hear all your favourites and for the whole group to enjoy.
The first few months will get us going as follows. We will start with the gorgeous album from Toni Braxton, Secrets. This album was 30 years old on the 18th of June just gone, and it’s the one which really sealed Toni’s place in R&B history. Well worth a visit.
Month Two will be a look at the albums of Sade, 6 in total, so far. So far, being the appropriate name of her full 6 album record collection box set. It really is a work of Art and with ongoing talk of her returning and releasing more. This really could be a winner.
In Month 3, we will look at the series Motown Chartbusters, released in the 70’s. It was Volume 3, which sealed the deal for me with Motown and is a great album featuring the Temptations. Marvin Gaye. Stevie Wonder, Marther Reeves and the Supremes, to name just a few.
We will meet on the 4th Wednesday of each month at 10:00 am until 11:30. 1 ½ hours of first-class music.
As James Brown once said, “We're gonna have a funky good time”.
Roger, Group Leader
Join via Beacon
New group - French reading
Toute conversation en Francais
Presupposes an ability to read in French and discuss fluently.
Rather than undertaking to read a full length work, we will read and discuss ONE short story each month.
As Maupassant is an internationally acknowledged master in this field, we will use the following text: Tous les Contes et Nouvelles de Maupassant (available for download at a modest cost) on Amazon Kindle
Ce cours suppose une bonne maîtrise du français, tant à la lecture qu'à la discussion. lieu de lire une œuvre complète, nous lirons et discuterons d'une seule nouvelle par mois.
Maupassant étant un maître reconnu internationalement dans ce domaine, nous utiliserons le recueil suivant : « Tous les Contes et Nouvelles de Maupassant » (disponible en téléchargement à un prix modique) sur Amazon Kindle.
FIRST THURSDAY 11 am
Join via Beacon
New group - The soundtracks of our lives
Once a month we meet on Zoom to hear a short talk by one of our members about their own life, and listen to five pieces of music which are important to them. Talks will be prepared in advance. Group leader Diana will host each session, playing music via Spotify. An opportunity to share your personal history and the music that has inspired you, and for those listening to be enlightened and entertained.
Every 4th Wednesday from 7:30 pm
Thanks very much - Diana, Group Leader
Join via Beacon
New group – Fish school
Commencing July 23rd, 2026
Welcome to the u3a Tropical Fish Group! Whether you are an experienced aquarist or completely new to the hobby, our friendly community is the perfect place to share your passion for freshwater fish.
Fishkeeping is a deeply rewarding hobby that has many benefits, offering a proven way to reduce stress, lower blood pressure, and bring a beautiful slice of nature into your home.
You will be surprised how fast you can learn to recognise some words. The course is for complete beginners. Tuesdays at 11am
Join via Beacon
Potential group – Learn Geoguessr
GeoGuessr is a browser-based geography game in which players try to deduce locations from Google Street View imagery. Essentially its a game where you are given a photo of anywhere in the world and you have to work out where it is. The skilled can do it in less than a minute!!!
Join via Beacon
Potential group – Ancient Greek for beginners
Potential groups provide an opportunity for members to help set up a group which is not currently included in our active groups or where existing groups are full. When there are enough members in the Potential group, we organise a meeting so you can decide between you how the group will work and how it will be run.
The group will be for people with no prior knowledge of Ancient Greek.
Join via Beacon
Quiz time
- In what year was American independence declared on July 4th?
- In what 20th-century decade did Kylie Minogue release her first album, entitled Kylie?
- In July 1976, at the Olympic Games in Montreal, Nadia Comaneci was the first person to score a perfect 10 in a gymnastics event - how old was she at the time?
- In July 2007, the last in the Harry Potter series – Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – was released. How many millions of copies were sold worldwide during the first 24 hours, making it the fastest-selling book in history?
- In what 20th-century decade did the Prime Minister Harold McMillan sack 7 members of his Cabinet?
- In July of what year did Boris Johnson become the prime minister?
- In July 1981, Charles and Di were married. What was the estimated world wide Tv audience?
- In July 1966, who won the World Cup with a 4-2 victory?
