Events
We run all sorts of events throughout the year. If you'd like to hear about them first, why not join the Friends of Highgate Cemetery, or sign up for our e-newsletter? Subscribe
BAT WALK
Saturday 31 August 2019 This event is sold out
Walk led by Huma Pearce
Our very popular annual Bat Walk returns.
The tour sets off at dusk after an introductory talk and will return in total darkness.
Please bear in mind that if there is any rain during the day the bats will not fly. In this event, we will email you and refund your ticket.
Event starts at 7.00pm - arrive in good time!
STRIKING A LIGHT: the match girls’ strike and Eleanor Marx
Thursday 26 September 2019 £10Book now
A talk by Louise Raw
Bryant and May were the producers of matches in the 19th century. They employed girls who were paid meagre wages and were forced to work for 12 hours a day under the most horrendous conditions. To make matters worse, it was a strong likelihood that they would eventually become victims of the disfiguring effects of phosphorous which caused a form of bone cancer. This became known as ‘phossy jaw’. The Match Girls, rebelled and came out on strike in 1888. This groundbreaking strike played an important role in the burgeoning modern labour movement of the 19th century.
Dr Louise Raw is a writer, broadcaster, public speaker and historian. Her book, Striking a Light, tells the story of the match girls. Louise will talk about the strike and how Eleanor Marx was involved with helping Annie Besant, who became the leader of the Matchgirls’ Union.
Talk starts at 7.30pm. Doors open at 7.00pm. Ticket includes a glass of wine.
All Saints Candlelighting Evening
Friday 1 November 2019 £4Book now
The East Cemetery at Highgate on All Saints is awash with the glow and flicker of dozens of candles, as graveowners and visitors place candles (available at the cemetery) on loved-one’s - or stranger’s - graves.
Pandemic 1918
Thursday 21 November 2019 £10Book now
A talk by Catharine Arnold
‘In the dying months of WW1, Spanish flu overwhelmed the globe, killing up to 100 million people. In her compelling account of the pandemic, author Catharine Arnold describes the inexorable advance of the most devastating disease known to humankind since the Black Death.
In Pandemic 1918, Catharine Arnold recounts the bitter history of Spanish flu through its victims and survivors, from writers and world leaders to those who have no memorial. For this talk, Catharine will be focusing on the impact of Spanish flu on London as witnessed by Virginia Woolf, Duff Cooper, Vera Brittain and many other Londoners.
Catharine’s previous books include Necropolis London and its Dead which was inspired by her research at Highgate Cemetery.
Catharine Arnold read history at Cambridge and has a further degree in psychology. Catharine’s other books include Bedlam, City of Sin, and Underworld London Crime and Punishment.
Starts at 7.30pm. Doors open 7.00pm. Ticket includes a glass of wine.
A CHRISTMAS CAROL by Charles Dickens
Tuesday 17 December 2019 This event is sold out
Performed by Gerald Dickens
In the festive glow of the beautiful Highgate Cemetery chapel, we are delighted that Gerald Dickens will perform his internationally acclaimed one man show of a Christmas Carol. Described as a ‘theatrical tour de force’, Gerald will play over 25 characters in this extra special Christmas event where he brings his great great grandfather’s popular works to vivid and exciting life.
Starts at 7.30pm. Doors open 7.00pm. Ticket includes a glass of mulled wine and a mince pie.
© 2019 Friends of Highgate Cemetery Trust. Registered Charity No. 1058392. Company Limited by Guarantee. Registered in England No. 3157806. Registered office Swain’s Lane, London N6 6PJ