pcoming Events
Booking
If you would like to book a ticket for any of these events, please send a cheque made payable to Friends of Benjamin Franklin House along with details of the event, date and type of ticket to Benjamin Franklin House, 36 Craven Street, London WC2N 5NF or call 0207 839 2006
Those entitled to a concessionary rate are Friends of the House, the over 65s and students
To listen to Podcasts from previous events please click here.
Benjamin Franklin House Events 2009
Join us for fascinating Franklinesque events: From monthly Monday talks, to the Craven Street lecture series featuring in-house Franklin scholar Lady Joan Reid; inventive comedy evenings and our annual 4th July party!
The Inventive Series
Benjamin Franklin House is not your average museum. Inspired by Benjamin Franklin's innovation and love of laughter and music, we are pleased to introduce our new Inventive Series:
Comedy Night July 22, 6.30 for 7pm start.
Robin ince and Nik Coppin test their Franklinesque wit in the unusual settings of Franklin's Parlour.
Tickets £8/£5
Handel Concert
16 July 2009, 7pm
Performed by Cenk Karaferya, Founder, Broschi Ensemble.
www.cenkkaraferya.com
Tickets £15, £13 Friends and concessions
Book on 020 7839 2006 or info@benjaminfranklinhouse.org.
Sebastian Dale: Art Installation August 6-12
Private View August 6, come along and see an innovative new installtion within the historical spaces of Benjamin Franklin House. Running every evening from 6-9 pm. FREE.
An Audience With Polly Hewson
Every Tuesday in August at 11am and 2pm
What was life like in Georgian England? Meet Mrs Polly Hewson, the daughter of Franklin’s landlady, who will reveal everyday life and the grander events in Franklin’s London household. Follow also in Franklin’s footsteps, re-creating one of his most famous experiments.
Tickets: £5 per child, free for accompanying adults
Benjamin Franklin House Annual Symposium in Association with the Eccles Centre for American Studies at the British Library
Wednesday, 9 September 2009, 6.30pm
This year we collaborate with Kew Gardens, celebrating their 250th Anniversary. Franklin and Joseph Banks, Kew’s Founder, were close friends; Paul Smith, Director of Kew’s Millennium Seed Bank will show what’s become of their mutual botanical passion.
Tickets £8/£5
Find out more about Kew's 250th anniversary events here.
Herbs, Horticulture and Health: Franklin’s Botanical Pursuits
Monday 14 September, 6:30pm
House Franklin Scholar Lady Joan Reid makes the case that, although Franklin wasn’t a keen gardener, he advanced botany on both sides of the Atlantic, introducing, for example, rhubarb to the colonies and certain apples to Britain.
£5/£3.50 Friends and Concessions. To book: call 020 7839 2006 or email info@BenjaminFranklinHouse.org
The Brother Gardeners: Botany, Empire and the Birth of an Obsession
Tuesday 22 September 7.00pm
In this beautifully illustrated talk, Andrea Wulf will tell the tale of a small group of 18th century naturalists that made England a nation of gardeners. It’s the story of a garden revolution that began when Benjamin Franklin’s good friend, the American farmer John Bartram sent hundreds of boxes filled with seeds that would transform the English landscape forever. She will explore the botanical passions, obsessions, friendships and squabbles that knitted together the lives of six men that changed the world of gardening and botany.
The Brother Gardeners was longlisted for the Samuel Johnson Prize 2008. More information can be found at www.andreawulf.com.
£5/£3.50 To book: call 020 7839 2006 or email info@BenjaminFranklinHouse.org
Franklin the Spy
Thursday 3 December, 6:30pm
House Franklin Scholar Lady Joan Reid gets to the bottom of whether Franklin was a spy during his London sojourn and beyond.
£5/£3.50 Friends and Concessions. To book: call 020 7839 2006 or email info@BenjaminFranklinHouse.org
