‘What do you do in Arts Club? Do you do painting every week?’

Well, considering that the Club has been going for 75 years now, its members must have produced an awful lot of pictures!

‘Art’ in the drawing/painting sense is a very small part of what goes on. During the 2021-22 season members listened to talks about the geography of The Falkland Islands, historical shipwrecks of Pembrokeshire, the Loveston Colliery disaster, the geology of Pembrokeshire and the trade route knows as The Silk Road.

The Club had a storyteller, Desert Island Discs, an early music group, a choir and a folkgroup. And - oh yes - a painting demonstration.

So Arts Club is about everything, and even the topics that don’t sound interesting turn out to be fascinating when brought to us by someone who knows his or her subject inside out.

This year, to celebrate the Club’s 75 years, there is to be a lunch at The Giltar Hotel, Tenby, on Friday, December 9, with members past and present warmly invited.

Invitations with details of the menu will go out via email or post. If you are no longer a member but would like to join members for the lunch please get in touch with any member or telephone the secretary, Judy, on 01834 843316.

Meanwhile, the first meeting of the winter session will be on Friday, October 7, when the subject will be ‘photography’.

The evening starts at 6 pm in St John’s Church Hall in Warren Street and ends at about 7.30 pm after a cuppa and some excellent biscuits. Why not come and join?

In October 1947, a public meeting of 80 people was held at The Old Town Hall, Tenby to explore local interest in forming an Arts Club. Sir Huw Weldon (then Major Huw Weldon) in his capacity as Director of ‘The Arts Club of Wales led the meeting.

Following on from this the inaugural meeting was held in the then ‘Peerless Restaurant’; 100 people were in attendance and Wilfred Harrison was elected as the first Chairman on December 5, 1947.

Sub-committees were formed for music, drama, fine and graphic art., a gramophone club, string orchestra and photography section were subsequently developed.

Many prestigious events have been held overtime; possibly one of the most memorable being a visit by Dylan Thomas, reading ‘Under Milk Wood’ in 1953.

The harpist Osian Elis, The London Mozart Players, Amadeus Quartet and Helen Watts to name but a few came to perform.

The club continues to meet in St. Johns Church Hall, Tenby with a membership of approximately 60.

Each year ‘The Arts Council of Wales’ supports the Club to put on an event of music, drama or poetry, but otherwise the Club is self financed.

Tenby and District Arts Club is the only remaining one now functioning in Wales featuring events of ‘The Arts.’

It is therefore most fitting that a celebration is to be held to mark this important occasion.