Selection of events happening in Swanage and the surrounding area.
Artists in Purbeck: Spirit of Place
Discover the beautiful artistic heritage of Purbeck during a transformative time. Delve into the works of well-known artists who were inspired to capture the stunning landscape and coastline of this picturesque region. This exhibition will highlight the profound impact the Purbeck landscape had on artists, from the first half of the 20th Century through to the present day. It will also demonstrate the evolution of the region through time, from its natural beauty to its industrial heritage.
This groundbreaking exhibition is co-curated by Dr. Gill Clarke MBE (co-author of Shorelines: Artists on the South Coast) and the Russell-Cotes. It will showcase a rich collection of artworks from the museum’s permanent holdings, alongside significant loans from private and regional collections.
The Swanage Railway and Other Local Railways – a Broad Sweep from 1806 to 2023
This presentation by Mike Walshaw will cover a broad sweep of the Swanage Railway from its inception in the 1880s though the LSWR, SR and BR(SR) eras, closure and its re-construction as a Heritage Railway connected once more to the National Railway Network. Steam and Diesel Galas are illustrated along with a review of our collections of historic locomotives and carriages.
Catholic Church Hall
7:30pm Friday, 28th February 2025, Light Refresments
Price: £4 (£3 Swanage Museum members)
📸 LSWR ‘T3’ Class No.563. Credit Andrew PM Wright
Civil War and Author
This presentation by Neil McLocklin
“The English Civil War – local people and places
Building upon Neil McLocklin’s previous talk, with the publication of his second book A Nation Beheaded, the talk will continue the story of the Bankes and other local families and places at this traumatic and transforming time in English history”.
Catholic Church Hall
7:30pm Friday, 30th May 2025, Light Refresments
Price: £4 (£3 Swanage Museum members)
New Maps Of Hell
This presentation by Dr Phil Judkins
Catholic Church Hall
7:30pm Friday, 26th September 2025, Light Refresments
Price: £4 (£3 Swanage Museum members)
NEW MAPS OF HELL: the first anti-ship drones and missiles.
The Russian Black Sea fleet almost abandoned its Black Sea bases after the successes of Ukrainian drone motorboats; British warships were sunk in the Falklands by the Exocet missile. But the earliest use of both drones and guided missiles at sea dates back far, far, earlier – to the First World War and before. Using the latest research, Dr Phil Judkins traces in everyday language the century-old history of what we think of as very modern weapons, in a fascinating account of successes and failures, sometimes farcical, sometimes tragic, in this ‘wizard war’ of dark arts and brave mariners, bringing the story right up to the present day – and the all-too-near future of autonomous AI weapons with minds of their own