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
Metal Detecting and Time Traveller
This presentation by Karen Brown
Catholic Church Hall
7:30pm Friday, 28th March 2025, Light Refresments
Price: £4 (£3 Swanage Museum members)
WE ARE THE TIME TRAVELLERS / Treasures from the Dark Dorset Earth
Most antiquities, over 500 years old, are found with a metal detector. This talk will be a light, informative, and sometimes amusing introduction to the recovery of artefacts in Dorset, and the stories they can tell.
Hear about the artefacts we find, the journey they have taken, and their place in history. This will be illustrated with a colourful power point presentation, as well giving you a chance to handle many original artefacts.
Karen studied archaeology at Yeovil College, and now takes an active part in local archaeological and metal detecting societies. She is passionate about promoting responsible metal detecting, and recovering, conserving and recording metal finds.
She has recently worked with archaeologists on excavations such as the Druce Roman Villa near Dorchester.
Her talks have been well received by archaeological and numismatic societies, museums and other groups. She is always happy to talk to the audience, or individuals, about her finds and metal detecting, and encourages the audience to ask questions and bring in any metal artefacts that they want identified
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
SALVAGE MASTER, A Career in Commercial Diving and Marine Salvage
A Power Point presentation by author and presenter Kevin Patience. Resident in East Africa and the Middle East for many years, he qualified as a diver while serving in the Royal Air Force and discovered and researched aircraft and shipwrecks while serving in Malta and Cornwall. Returning to Kenya he worked on two major ship salvage operations and in 1977 began a career as a commercial diver in the oilfields of Saudi Arabia and latterly as a ship salvage specialist based in Bahrain operating in the Middle East. In 1982 he returned to Kenya to manage Divecon Ltd., with contracts around East Africa. He returned to Bahrain in 1984 and established TechDive, responsible for a number of successful salvage operations in the Arabian Gulf and East Africa. An accomplished author he has published a number of books on East African military and transport history, numerous articles for notable journals and two books on shipwrecks, the most recent on a German sailing ship tragedy on the Cornish coast.
This is a well illustrated talk that details an unusual hobby that subsequently became a full time job in an extremely hazardous environment
Catholic Church Hall
7:30pm Friday, 31st October 2025, Light Refresments
Price: £4 (£3 Swanage Museum members)
History of Purbeck Architecture
This presentation by Brian Margetson
Catholic Church Hall, Light Refresments
7:30pm Friday, 28th November 2025
Price: £4 (£3 Swanage Museum members)