1956

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I did a talk for a luncheon club recently which was founded way back in 1956 – the year of the Suez crisis, the Hungarian Revolution, Heartbreak Hotel and Norma Jean Mortenson changing her name to Marilyn Monroe. 67 years on, although the original members have probably all hung up their knives, forks and napkins, the club is still going strong. I talk to a lot of similar organisations but while most are in relatively robust health, a few are clearly struggling, the main problem usually being that the members are ageing and new ones are not being recruited to replace them. That’s certainly true of many “old school” Women’s Institutes whose recipe of “jam and Jerusalem” does not necessarily sound that enticing to younger women, but I’ve spoken to many other WIs which have successfully reinvigorated themselves and are thriving thanks to an influx of younger members, happy to join a local social group where a glass of wine and canapés are as likely to be offered as tea and scones, and discussions are far more contemporary and wide-ranging than ways to get stains out of antimacassars…

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