Events

This talk has been postponed from 28th June and will now commence our Autumn Programme.  From religion to capitalism, systems demand conformity. This talk questions ableism and whether neurodivergent struggle reflects individual failure or systemic design.   Veiled Rose is a British Bengali ex-Muslim activist and writer working at the intersection of neurodiversity, secularism, and human rights. Her work focuses on how social and religious systems impact mental health, autonomy, and equality, particularly for women and neurodivergent people. She is Communications Manager at Faithless Hijabi , and a lay member of both the Leicester Secular Society and the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain .    All welcome - admission free. Tea & biscuits. Donations ...

Local writer and LSS member Hamish Whiteley reads some old favourites and some new writing about a recent life shock. There will be a collection in aid of PROSTaid , a local prostate cancer charity at the event. .   PROSTaid is a voluntary team comprised principally of prostate cancer sufferers, their families, friends and members of the University of Leicester Hospitals Urological team. They fund three local prostate cancer nurses in the East Midlands, two based in Leicester.    All welcome - admission free. Tea & biscuits. Donations welcome - £5 suggested to cover  costs.

Come and see this unique building rooted in Leicester's radical past. The whole of the Secular Hall will be available to view, including the rare arts and craft tiles in the Ballroom. There will be guided tours throughout the day . The recently restored stained glass window can be viewed.   This year is the 175th anniversary of the founding of the Society. The Lord Mayor will be opening our new exhibition about the Society's history at 1pm.    There is no need to book Light refreshments available throughout the day.

The talk will provide an overview of forthcoming NSS research examining how evangelical groups, including the Church of England, are exploiting non-religious schools as their recruitment grounds, and how religious privilege within our education system leaves schools dangerously at risk of such exploitation. Jack Rivington is Campaigns Officer at the National Secular Society. All welcome - admission free. Tea & biscuits. Donations welcome - £5 suggested to cover  costs.

The helmet was found in 2000 buried in thousands of tiny fragments at a ritual site in Hallaton, Leicestershire. It was meticulously reconstructed by conservators at the British Museum. It is a stunning silver-gilt Roman cavalry helmet dating back to the time of the Roman conquest of Britain (circa 43 AD). It features intricate cheekpieces depicting a Roman emperor trampling a barbarian enemy. Helen Sharp is the Curator of Archaeology for Leicestershire County Council Museums. She is widely known for leading public talks, research projects, and recent reconstructions regarding the Hallaton Helmet.

The lecture explores British-Sikh connections from the eighteenth century through the Anglo-Sikh Wars, culminating in Sikh recruitment into the Indian Army. "Gurinder Singh Mann is a Leicester-based historian, author, heritage specialist and cultural project manager dedicated to preserving and promoting Sikh history and heritage. He is the Director of the Sikh Museum Initiative, through which he researches, documents and shares Sikh history through exhibitions, publications, educational programmes and digital projects. He is the author of several books on Sikh history and heritage, making historical research accessible to wider audiences. Gurinder is also the creator of the world’s first 3D Sikh Museu...

An examination of conspiracy theories that explain an event or situation by asserting the existence of a conspiracy (generally by powerful sinister groups, often political in motivation), when other explanations are more probable. They are often reinforced by circular reasoning: both evidence against the conspiracy and absence of evidence for it are misinterpreted as evidence of its truth. Paul Fitzgerald is a secular, freethinking humanist with a deep belief in rationalism, scientific skepticism and in confronting the tough ethical issues our culture often tries to ignore. I detest dogma, superstition, fanaticism and rigid ideologies of all kinds.

This illustrated lecture takes audiences on a whistle-stop tour of world cinema, showing how international films break conventional boundaries and connect us across cultures. From the early days of silent cinema and the first black US filmmakers in cinematic history to the gripping realism and Nouvelle Vague of European cinema in Italy and France, music and dance loaded spectacle of Indian classics to the quiet emotional depth of East Asian dramas, we will explore why expanding your watchlist can change how you see the world. Dr. Barbara Knorpp is a London-based visual anthropologist and film historian who specializes in the intersection of anthropology, cinema, fine art, and media studies. She is prominently associated with Open City Docs at University C...

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease where the immune system attacks myelin, the insulating cover of nerve cells in the human body, causing damage to the central nervous system. It is a type of demyelinating disease, where the nervous system's ability to transmit signals is damaged. Symptoms can be physical, mental, or both, including double vision, vision loss, eye pain, muscle weakness, loss of sensation and coordination. John Thompson of the MS Society will talk about the wide range of support given locally to MS sufferers. All welcome - admission free. Tea & biscuits. Donations welcome - £5 suggested to cover  costs.

Leicester's market is roughly 800 years old but was moved to its current location roughly 700 years ago. Recent excavations have uncovered 2,000 years of human activity directly beneath the market marketplace. Archaeologists found Roman buildings, medieval market surfaces, and the remains of a late medieval dungeon believed to belong to the historical Gainsborough Chamber—a civic hub used for shops, judicial affairs, and a prison. Jim Butler is a local historian, heritage learning specialist, and content creator based in Leicester, UK, best known as the creator and producer of the popular online series Hidden Histories of Leicester . All welcome - admission free. Tea & biscuits. Donations welcome - £5 s...

The Society's annual general meeting is only open to members.

Adrift in Soho exists as both a 1961 semi-autobiographical novel by Colin Wilson and a 2018/2019 independent film adaptation directed by Pablo Behrens. Set in the late 1950s, both mediums explore London’s burgeoning Beat Generation and bohemian subculture, chronicling the transition from postwar austerity into the radical cultural shift of the 1960s. Colin Stanley is the official bibliographer, longtime friend, and leading archivist for the prolific English author and philosopher Colin Wilson. After discovering Wilson’s first novel, Ritual in the Dark, at age 18, Stanley became deeply inspired by Wilson's ideas on existentialism and consciousness. In 1981, while working as a librarian at Nottingham University, Stanley reached out to Wilson to su...

 We have a break in our programme at Yuletide, Easter and in the summer holiday period. The new programmes commence in January, April and September.

Opening at noon on both days. The Society has again booked a stall at the Mela which we will be sharing with the Asian Rationalist Society of Britain - South Asian Rationalists UK . If you can spare some time to help with setting up, meeting and greeting or packing away, please email stall@Lsec.org.uk .

Leicester Karate Club is the oldest, established martial arts club in the United Kingdom. They are proud of their legacy and continue to provide professional tuition to all ages of students who come to Secular Hall to learn from the highest qualified teachers in Leicester.   Dave Wilkins (an 8th Dan Karate Instructor) will talk about the history of  the Leicester Karate Club, founded in January 1964, that has been running in the Secular Hall , ever since.    All welcome - admission free . Donations welcome - £5 suggested to cover  costs. 

A review of the final report of the Independent Commission of Inquiry into the 2022 Leicester violence Better Together: Understanding the 2022 Violence in Leicester which set out key findings and recommendations to help rebuild trust and strengthen community relations in Leicester and beyond.   Sharmen Rahman has represented the Green Party as a Parliamentary Candidate for Leicester South and as a councillor, policy worker, and caseworker. She is committed to the cause of anti-racism and human rights. She helped pass the motion to adopt the APPG definition of Islamophobia at Leicester City Council, led a coalition of women in the fightback against the Leicester Riots and sits on her local branch of Stand up to Racism .   All welcome - admission free. Tea & biscuits. Donations welcome - £5 suggested to cover  costs.

  Freethinking humanist heroes who shook the world!    Paul is based in Manchester and had been producing ‘Polyp’ cartoons since 1980 (for Leeds Student Newspaper) and took it up full time in the 90’s, having been a care worker before then.  He has drawn many cartoons including for New Internationalist, Ethical Consumer Magazine, The Freethinker, Christian Aid, The Big Issue, Friends of the Earth, Liberty and  Campaign Against the Arms Trade.   His graphic novels  focus on deliberately suppressed history, or events from the past that challenge how we see the present.  He is chair and founder of the Peterloo Memorial Campaign in Manchester, which successfully lobbied for a permanent physical tribute to those who died.  He describes himself as a secular, freethinking humanist with a deep belief in rationalism, scientific skepticism and in confronting the tough ethical issues our culture often tries to ignore. Pa...

One of the most iconic books of the late twentieth century, ‘The Outsider’, by Leicester- born Colin Wilson, caused a sensation when first published on May 28, 1956. Colin Stanley tells the story of his overnight success.   Colin Stanley is  Colin Wilson’s bibliographer, convenor of 4 International Conferences on his work and associate curator of his archive at the University of Nottingham. Author of several studies of his work including ‘An Evolutionary Leap: Colin Wilson on Psychology’ (Routledge, 2016) All welcome - admission free . Donations welcome - £5 suggested to cover  costs. 

The Living Together oral history project has documented the memories of 103 people who have made their home in Leicester. This talk will discuss key themes from the interviews, and explore points of cohesion, tension and unity in the city.   Tom Wilson is the director of the St Philip’s Centre, an organisation that fosters understanding, respect and cooperation between diverse faith and belief communities through education, dialogue and community engagement.    All welcome - admission free . Donations welcome - £5 suggested to cover  costs. 

An ex-Muslim woman exposes sexual shame, forced marriage and Islamist gender apartheid, combining lived experience with UK context and global evidence.   Veiled Rose is a British Bangladeshi ex-Muslim activist and Communications Manager at Faithless Hijabi .