This conference corresponds with the twentieth anniversary of the unveiling of the stained-glass window to commemorate Frances Burney in Westminster Abbey. A President’s Prize of £200 will be awarded by Prof Peter Sabor for a postgraduate/early career paper. You are welcome to join us for one, two or three days, as set out below, or solely for the member events, including Sunday lunch at Alton House Hotel on Sunday 12 June.
Venues: 11 June at Foundling Museum London – 12 June at Alton House Hotel, Alton – 13 June at St Bride Foundation London
Registration including lunch: £130 for all 3 days; £100 for 2 days; £70 for 1 day with a 50% reduction for Students/Precariously employed
Please note: Given these uncertain times registration fees will be refundable until 1 May 2022, upon request, less any administration fees.
The Call for Papers is now open. Application is by the ‘Paper Proposal’ form attached below and downloadable from our website. Closing date 1 April 2022, Feedback by 14 April 2022. We accept proposals from Burney Society members and non-members but all speakers and delegates should be members. UK membership subscriptions taken out from now will be valid until 12 June 2023 to facilitate joining in good time for the conference.
Provisional Schedule
Saturday 11th June at The Foundling Museum, 40 Brunswick Square, London, WC1N 1 AZ
10:00 for 10:15 start: 2022 AGM – which is free to all, including light refreshments. Please pre-book for the AGM on the attached registration form.
Break with light refreshments and opportunity to visit the museum at no additional charge.
12:00 – 13:00 (approximate timings) ‘Windows on the Burneys’ Conference opens with Keynote by Burney Society UK President, Prof Peter Sabor.
13:00 – 14:00 Light lunch and further opportunity to explore the museum and Brunswick Square Gardens.
14:00 – 17:00 Conference panels, including refreshment break.
Sunday 12th June, Jane Austen Suite, Alton House Hotel, 57 Normandy St., Alton, Hampshire GU34 1DW
Location: This hotel is within 1 minute walk of Alton mainline station, with a direct train service from London, Waterloo. It also has a large car park which is free to delegates and guests. Dedicated entrance to Jane Austen Suite is to the rear but you will need to log your car Reg number in at reception. Times are approximate as they will be adjusted to fit train times.
10:00 – 10:15 Light refreshments
10:15 – 13:15 Conference panels.
13:15 – 14:15 Conference lunch – included for delegates. Members who are not attending the conference are very welcome to join us for lunch at a cost of £25, pre-paid via registration.
14:15 – 15:00 Optional walk along the Alton section of Jane Austen Trail towards Chawton House. We plan to organise lifts to Chawton House, either from the hotel, or from the Chawton side of the A31 pedestrian underpass for those unwilling/unable to walk.
15:00 Unveiling of Frances Burney bench and reception at Chawton House, to which all members are welcome.
15:30 Pre-booked group ‘self-guided’ house tour. The curator has agreed that in addition to their current exhibition, she will also mount a small display of Burney related materials for us.
The bench unveiling and reception are free to members but if you wish to tour the house, Chawton House will charge £10 for a day pass or £15 for an annual pass. There are concessionary prices for students, those under 26, Art Pass members and the disabled and their carers.
Places for both the unveiling and house tour need to be booked via the registration form even if these are the only events you plan to attend, as Chawton House requires numbers in advance.
Monday 13 June 2022 at St Bride Foundation, Bride Lane, Fleet Street, London EC4Y 8EQ
St Bride Foundation houses the important catalogue listing with Simon Macdonald used to confirm Elizabeth Meeke as a Burney.
10:00 – 13:00 Conference Panels and presentation of President’s Award.
13:00 – 14:00 Lunch and depart St Bride Foundation
14:00 – 17:00 Optional visits eg. to St Bride Church
17:00 Evensong in Westminster Abbey followed by laying of wreath at window dedicated to Frances Burney in Poet’s corner. Doors open at 16:30 and we hope to be able to view the plaque dedicated to Dr Charles Burney and the bust of Charles Burney Jr., although this may not be possible.
Places to attend the wreath laying are free to members but may be very limited, depending on the current Covid-19 measures, so please book your place as soon as possible via the registration form. Places will be allocated in order of registration. We will advise you whether or not you have a place for the wreath laying ceremony when we are notified by Westminster Abbey of the numbers we will be allowed.
Please note: Westminster Abbey is closed to tours from 15.30 on Monday 13th June, to prepare for Evensong, but you may wish to book your own tour on another day.
Post -conference visits
Wednesday 15th June or Saturday 18th June (tbc) : 14:00 Tour of Hammerwood Park, West Sussex, a Georgian House and Gardens with connections to the Burney family to include their historic music collection, Coade plaques and restored eighteenth-century gardens.
16:00 Sonata written by Dr Charles Burney and played by renowned country house music academic Dr Penelope Cave LRAM GRSM ARAM PhD, FISM PhD on a historical instrument in Hammerwood Park music room.
Hammerwood Park in West Sussex, is an eighteenth-century stately home, designed by the architect Benjamin Latrobe, a member of the Burney circle, who later emigrated to North America and designed parts of the White House. Hammerwood Park is the home of a historic instrument collection and the tour of the house and gardens will be followed by a concert,
Thursday 16 June (tbc) : Weymouth and Dorchester. In 1789 Frances Burney accompanied Queen Charlotte to Weymouth. This visit is celebrated in a stunning extra-illustrated book by Alexander Meyrick Broadley, currently stored in Dorchester, which we hope to include in our visit. Details will be made available closer to the date.
We have not included any provision for accommodation in these plans but would be happy to make suggestions upon request.
Any questions? Please email ukburneysociety@gmail.com
We appreciate that it is difficult to fully commit in these uncertain times so we have decided that registration fees paid will be refundable on request, less any administrative fees, until the 1st May.