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My Lectures
Brian Parsons is available to give the following presentations:
- London Cemeteries: A Look at the Twentieth Century
- A Look at the Cemeteries of South London
- The Development of Cremation in Great Britain
- The History of Frederick W Paine Funeral Directors
- The History of J H Kenyon Funeral Directors
- The Development of Embalming in Modern Britain
- Burying Enza: The 1918 Spanish Flu Pandemic and Burial of the Dead in London
- Funeral Directing in London: A Look at the Twentieth century
- Funerals and Funeral Directing in West London
- The Changing Face of Funerals in South London
- The Victorian Funeral
Other lectures are in preparation and enquiries for lectures on related subjects are welcome.
All lectures last 45/50 minutes and are accompanied by a Powerpoint presentation of many rarely seen images.
For further details please contact Brian Parsons
Email: info@brianparsons.org.uk
List of Lectures
From Front Parlour to Funeral Parlour (with Dr Helen Frisby)
24 February 2022
British Association for Local History
Looking North: Looking Forward
19 March 2022
NAFD Yorkshire Education Day
The Cemeteries of South London
6 June 2022
Bromley Borough local History Society
A Look at London's Victorian Cemeteries
21 June 2022
The Victorian Society
Using Funeral Director's Records for Research
27 August 2022
The Society of Genealogists
The Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II
16 September 2022
University of Bath Centre for Death & Society online discussion
The Victorian Funeral
1 October 2022
Last Rights Conference, London
The Changing Face of Funeral Ceremonies: 1850-
15 October 2022
Association of Independent Celebrants
The Story of the Unknown Warrior
26 October 2022
Maldens and Coombe Heritage Society
‘The History of Ayton Castle’, Ayton Local History Society, 20 January 2018.
‘Frederick W Paine: Serving the Community in War and Peace’, Hook Women’s Guild, 14 May 2018.
‘London and the Spanish Flu’, FW Paine Kingston, 17 July 2018.
‘The Cemeteries of South London’, North West Kent Family History Society, 18 August 2018.
‘Ayton Castle: Past, Present and Future’, Berwickshire Naturalists, 23 August 2018.
‘Go direct to the crematorium; do not pass through the chapel, pay £1,000 and collect the ashes’. Exploring the phenomenon of direct cremation. Death & Culture II, University of York, 6-
‘Burying Enza -
‘Frederick W Paine and the Changing Face of Funerals’, Borough of Twickenham Local History Society, 1 October 2018.
‘Frederick W Paine: Serving the Community in War and Peace’, Molesey & District Antiques Society, 2 October 2018.
‘The History of Ayton Castle’, Ayton Local History Society, 30 January 2019.
‘London and the Spanish Flu’, Society of Genealogists, 14 February 2019
‘Funeral Directors’ Records’ (and history of F W Paine), Society of Genealogists, 14 March 2019
‘The Changing Face of Funerals in South London’, Barnes & Mortlake History Society, 21 March 2019
‘London and the Spanish Flu’, Society of Genealogists, 14 February 2019
‘Funeral Directors’ Records (and history of F W Paine)’, Society of Genealogists, 14 March 2019
‘The Changing Face of Funerals in South London’ Barnes & Mortlake History Society, 21 March 2019
‘The Cemeteries of South London, F W Paine, Kingston, 14 May 2019
‘A Very English Building: The Cemetery Chapel’, Great Gardens of Death: Victorian Society Conference on Cemeteries, 18 May 2019
‘From Undertaker to Funeral Director: Organisational Change in the British Funeral Industry‘ Presentation given to the Competition and Markets Authority, 16 July 2019
‘The Changing Face of Funerals in London’, Westminster Archive Centre, 31 October 2019
‘Rest in Peace and Rise in Glory: Anglo-
‘The Cemeteries of South London’, North West Kent Family History Society, 1 February 2020
Postponed Lectures (due to COVID-
‘The Cemeteries of London’, Monuments and Mausolea Trust, 31 March 2020
‘Using funeral and burial records for research and genealogy’, Society of Genealogists, 4 June 2020
‘Writers on Embalming’, British Institute of Embalmers (Midlands Division),
27 June 2020
‘Words on Embalming’, British Institute of Embalmers (Midlands Division), 14 July 2021
‘Words on Embalming’, British Institute of Embalmers (North East Division),
23 September 2021
‘The Changing Face of Funerals in London’, JH Kenyon, 7 October 2021
‘The Cemeteries of South London’, The Pavilion Group, Sidcup, 12 November 2021
‘Reading 'The Order for the Burial of the Dead'. Investigating the role of the cemetery chaplain’, 21st Annual Cemeteries Colloquium, 19 November 2021
‘Reading 'The Order for the Burial of the Dead'. Investigating the role of the cemetery chaplain’, Ecclesiastical History Society Conference, 15 January 2022
Sunday 21 July 2024
A Look at London’s Cemeteries
F W Paine Funeral Directors, Kingston
Saturday 3 August 2024
Using Funeral Directors’ and Burial Records for Research
North West Kent Family History Society
Wednesday 25 September 2024
A Look at the Cemeteries of South London
Maldens & Coombe History Society
Wednesday 9 October 2024
The Victorian Funeral in London
The Friends of Putney Library
Thursday 28 November 2024
The Victorian Funeral
Society of Genealogists
Online Presentation
2025
Friday 16 May 2025
A Look at London’s Cemeteries
Dartford Historical Society
London's Cemeteries
Society of Genealogists
Online presentation
11 November 2023
11.30am
London Cemeteries: An Illustrated Guide and Gazetteer
The Friends of West Norwood Cemetery
21 October 2023
2.30pm
A Look at the Cemeteries of London
Funerals, Burial Grounds and Cemeteries
7 October 2023
Southwark Cathedral
The Cemeteries of South London
5 September 2023
Lambormey and Sidcup Local History Society
The Victorian Funeral
13 June 2023
FW Paine Kingston