Anne Lister Codebreakers Sessions talks

Various times – see below for details of the three workshops:  Free, but tickets must be booked ahead online to secure a place. 

The Anne Lister Diary Transcription Project Codebreakers have been working hard since 2019 to transcribe all of Anne’s diaries so everybody can read about Anne’s remarkable life on the WYAS online catalogue. Over the years they have gotten to know Anne and her life incredibly well, they would make an unbeatable Anne Lister pub quiz team!

For the first time the Codebreakers are going to give a series of talks on all manner of aspects of Anne’s life alongside the actual archive documents they are discussing. Part talk and part exhibition, the Codebreaker Sessions are not to be missed!

You must book ahead for this event.

10-11am: “What is there like gaining knowledge?” – Anne Lister and the Scientists in Paris 

Anne Lister had a lifelong passion for learning, a thirst for knowledge and an incredibly broad range of interests. Join Codebreaker Susanne Piotrowski for a session on Anne’s studies in Paris and the scientists she learnt from including famous French naturalist Georges Cuvier. Featuring a display of Anne’s lecture notebooks from 1829-1831, this is the perfect session to quench your own thirst for knowledge!

11.30am-12.30pm: “Music in Anne’s Time” 

Join Codebreakers Janneke van der Weijden and Alison Kirchgasser for a session on music in Anne Lister’s time. Learn all about Anne’s flute playing, Mariana playing the organ on a tour of the Netherlands and William Priestley founding the Halifax Choral Society. This session will feature a display of original archive material including diaries of Anne Lister and items from the Halifax Choral Society belonging to William Priestley. A must see for music lovers, and who doesn’t love music!

1pm-2pm: “Une superbe femme”: Anne Lister in the Pyrenees 

In this session, Codebreaker Marlene Oliveira will explore how archival material tells us more about Anne’s adventures and misadventures in the Pyrenees, including her climbs, the short tours in Spain, and her troubles with the law. Grab your walking stick, we’re going on an adventure! This session will feature a display of original archive material belonging to Anne Lister including diaries and correspondence