We all know that Sunday Assembly London is there to help everyone celebrate life, but this gathering isn’t just a celebration, it’s a party! Bring your party hats and put on your party clothes. Get ready for an all star line up, including Rufus Hound as our speaker, who thought he might be a vicar some years ago, but then became a comedian, actor and all round TV & radio superstar!’
Tying in with our theme of Light in the Darkness, Rufus spoke about the role of hope in our lives, how faith can provide it and how those without faith can still can embrace it.
Rufus told us that his first idea was ‘to cover myself in sparklers and run down The Tube but the so called “Health and Safety” brigade said it was “stupid” to the “point of borderline psychotic”.’
We sang some of our favourite power ballads from over the last five years, looked back on how far we (each and every one of us) have come in the last five years and looked into the future (like Mystic Meg but without the crystal ball) and to all the wonder we can bring to the world.
Sunday Assembly is 4 years old and we’re going to party in style! Bring your party hats, put on your Sunday best and let’s get ready to celebrate us celebrating life as a community for all this time!
As well as having a party, we’re going to hear from one of our favourite speakers of all time, Shamash Alidina. He wowed us at the Conference Called Wonder and we’re so excited to have him at Sunday Assembly London. Shamash is speaking on kindfulness: a meditation and way of living that’s relaxing, calming and fun!
Mindfulness is so last year! Start 2017 with a relaxed, fun and transformative attitude to life, with a powerful combination of mindfulness, kindness and compassion. Mindfulness comes mostly from ancient eastern traditions, and science finds it to be effective for better health, wellbeing and performance. But…these ancient traditions also included lots of self-kindness and friendliness towards yourself and others, which can easily be lost through just trying to practice mindfulness alone.
Discover how to go from being a control freak to a kindness freak.
Experience a kindfulness exercise to cultivate joy, clarity and resilience.
Discover how kindfulness can help reduce suffering.
Understand why science is implementing kindness and compassion practices to overcome stress, anxiety, depression, and build a more resilience brain.
What a treat we’re in for! And if that’s not enough, we’ll be singing our hearts out, hearing stories from members of the community, drinking a vat of tea/coffee and eating a heck of a lot of biscuits afterwards too.
BSL interpretation will be provided.
We can’t wait to see you there and have fun celebrating life with you all!
The Sunday Assembly was started by Sanderson Jones and Pippa Evans, two comedians who were on the way to a gig in Bath when they discovered they both wanted to do something that was like church but totally secular and inclusive of all—no matter what they believed.
The first ever Sunday Assembly meeting took place on January 6th 2013 at The Nave in Islington. Almost 200 people turned up at the first meeting, 300 at the second and soon people all over the world asked to start one.
Three years later there are 68 Sunday Assembly chapters in 8 different countries where people sing songs, hear inspiring talks, and create community together.
Come and celebrate with us and hear stories of how Sunday Assembly has created something beautiful, complete with epic songs and cake!
Join us for another awesome Sunday Assembly at Conway Hall! This week, we’ll be joined by Wired’s Olivia Solon, who will explain Why Humans Are Better Than Robots – and really, who hasn’t asked themselves that question? You can also look forward to some poetry by Jon Sayers.
And of course, we have picked some excellent songs for the talented SA band to play and for you to sing along to!
Then there’ll be TEA AND CAKE! There’s no need to book and everyone is welcome. It’s free to attend, but please give a small donation if you can, so we can cover our costs.
Assemble!
11:00 am, February 1 2015
Poet: Anna Kahn
This one is going to be special, as we are joined by Assemblies from all over the UK to talk about what Sunday Assembly is actually doing around the world.
Anna Kahn will read us some of her poetry and of course, we have picked some excellent songs for the talented SA band to play and for you to sing along to!
Then there’ll be TEA AND CAKE! There’s no need to book and everyone is welcome. It’s free to attend, but please give a small donation if you can, so we can cover our costs.
Just the Two of Us?
11:00 am, February 15 2015
Speaker: Rosie Wilby
Rosie Wilby is coming to talk about Monogamy. Ooh er! And of course singing, listening, reflecting with awesome peoples.
Family Fairytale Fun
11:00 am, March 1 2015
Speaker: Fliss Russell
Fliss Russell is not only a wonderful member of our SA London gang, but also a leading children’s entertainer! Come sing Disney songs and reflect on why imaginative play is so important for both children and adults!
All welcome – especially those with kiddies!
Morning Gloryville Mash Up
11:00 am, March 15 2015
Speaker: Samantha Moyo
On Sunday March 15th at 11 am the most joyous or uplifting place in the whole of London will be Conway Hall when Samantha Moyo of MORNING GLORYVILLE speaks at Sunday Assembly London on ‘THE POWER OF DANCE’.
More than just a talk as Samantha will bring a selection of Morning Gloryville dancers, and a DJ will be thrown into the mix alongside the Sunday Assembly House Band for a (morning) glorious singalong and (optional) booty shake.
Basically, the service will follow the traditional Sunday Assembly format with talks, poetry, reflection and tea and cake at the end, but with a bit more time to jiggle your tail feather.
Expect songs, (optional) dancing and non-chemical based fun times!
This Planet
11:00 am, April 5 2015
Speaker: Ed Gillespie
Ed Gillespie talks about travelling the world – without those planes. Say what?
How Not to Join a Cult
11:00 am, April 19 2015
Speaker: Rebecca Wait
Rebecca Wait talks about why our need to be accepted by others can be dangerous, and discusses her own experiences of manipulative groups.
See you there for singing, poetry and of course, tea and cake!
Free to attend – a collection will be made to cover the cost of running our fabulous events.
Play
11:00 am, May 3 2015
Speaker: Charlotte Roach
Come hear great talks, sing great songs and celebrate this one life we know we have!
We have the fantastic Charlotte Roach coming to speak for us, as well as poetry from Clair Whitefield. We’ll also be hearing from our beautiful band.
Come have a sing and a listen!
Grace, John and Cake
11:00 am, May 17 2015
Speaker: Grace Gelder
Poet: John McCullough
Come hear great talks, sing great songs and celebrate this one life we know we have!
This week our speaker is Grace Gelder, who married herself! Our poet is John McCullough and the whole thing will be held together with the glue that is Pippa Evans and Sanderson Jones.
We’ll also be having our first bake sale in aid of English For Action, a charity which offers free English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) courses to adults in our community.
Always wanted to play in the Sunday Assembly London band but didn’t know how? Sent in emails and been routinely ignored by our slightly disorganised administration system?
Well come to Premises Studios on June 15th and meet band members, jam along with songs we’re learning for the festivals and become part of the network that is SA London’s band of dreams!
Marina Cantacuzino founded The Forgiveness Project which uses the real stories of victims and perpetrators to explore concepts of forgiveness, and to encourage people to consider alternatives to resentment, retaliation and revenge.
Sounds pretty heavy! They will be songs and poems and joy and laughter as we explore the idea of forgiving people who we feel have wronged us.
Afterwards we’ll be having a picnic in the square. Bring some nibbles!
What does E=mc2 actually mean?
11:00 am, July 20 2014
Speaker: Russell N. Arnott
The fabulous Mr Russell N. Arnott MSc will be explaining to us some of those science facts that we think we know, but do we REALLY know?
There will be FACTS! There will be FUN and of course, SONGS!
It’s free to attend. We ask for donations to keep the event non-ticketed (the money pays for the hall, refreshments and expenses). Please give generously if you can so we can keep it free for those who can’t.
Everyone’s an artist!
11:00 am, August 3 2014
Speaker: Jo Hunter
Jo Hunter will be talking about her project ’53 Million Artists’, a campaign to unlock the creative potential of every human being in England. It invites people to commit to doing something different regularly, reflect on that and share it with other people at 53millionartists.com [Update 2026: it’s now known as 64 Million Artists]
As usual, there’ll also be some great songs, our lovely choir, fantastic band, poems, tea & cake.
Everyone’s welcome, no need to book. It’s free – but please donate if you can, so we can cover our costs.
It’s Play Time!
11:00 am, August 17 2014
Speaker: Steve Chapman
Join us for some Creative Adventures with Steve Chapman who believes we all have a unique ability to create, imagine and innovate no matter who we are, what we do or how creative we believe we are.
Steve will tell stories of losing and then re-discovering his own creativity, share some simple creative practices that can help us find our own and indulge the audience in some simple, exciting and energising experiments. If you want to discover your inner creative genius, this one is definitely for you!
As always, there’ll also be awesome songs to sing, poetry to listen to, tea to drink, cake to eat and other lovely people to meet. What a way to start your Sunday!
If you can, please bring along some cash for donations, so we can cover our costs. No need to book – just turn up!
Awareness is Freedom
11:00 am, September 7 2014
Speaker: Dr Itai Ivtzan
Poet: Julie Mullen
Our headline speaker for this assembly is Dr Itai Ivtzan. Mindfulness meditation is becoming enormously popular, but what is it really about? And how could it contribute to our happiness? He says it makes his heart sing. He is convinced that if we befriend both psychology and spirituality, and succeed in introducing them into our lives, we will all gain super-strengths of awareness, courage, resilience, and compassion.
He is a positive psychologist, a senior lecturer, and the program leader of MAPP (Masters in Applied Positive Psychology) at the University of East London (UEL). He is also an honorary senior research associate at University College London (UCL).
Dr. Ivtzan has previously given a Russell Square TEDx talk in 2013.
As always, there’ll also be awesome songs to sing, poetry to listen to, tea to drink, cake to eat and other lovely people to meet. What a way to start your Sunday!
If you can, please bring along some cash for donations, so we can cover our costs. No need to book – just turn up!
Wonder More!
11:00 am, September 21 2014
Speaker: Jenna Im
Come along to sing SONGS, hear TALKS, share TEA and CAKE and enjoy COMMUNITY.
The fantastic, funny and all round generally great Jenna Im is going to give a talk on what it’s like to grow up British, become Bahraini, move back to Britain and learn a lot about yourself, and the culture your from.
Come to the SUNDAY ASSEMBLY and celebrate being alive. It’s for everyone who wants to LIVE BETTER, HELP OFTEN and WONDER MORE.
See you soon down there.
Love,
Sunday Assembly Team
Assemble Everywhere!
11:00 am, September 28 2014
Speaker: Ruth Kaiser
Ruth Kaiser is bring positivity from California, we’re bringing songs and joy – we’d love you to be there.
We’ll be livestreaming and linking to all the Assemblies across the globe as we celebrate this movement going from strength to strength.
Awesome songs, a fantastic speaker and, of course, tonnes of cake!
Free entry: donations welcome!
What I Learnt as a Choir Leader
11:00 am, October 5 2014
Speaker: Dom Stitchbury
Following last week’s extra London Sunday Assembly to coincide with the launch of more than 30 Assemblies world wide, we’re back to normal now, meeting on the 1st and 3rd Sunday of the month.
For this week’s Assembly, we’ll be joined by Dom Stichbury, leader of the Chaps Choir – a choir of chaps. To get hundreds of people to sing as one voice takes some talent, and couldn’t we all do with being better leaders? He’ll share tips and tricks that help him turn the many into one.
Everyone is welcome and there’s no need to book.
It’s Not Boring!
11:00 am, October 19 2014
Speaker: James Ward
Poet: Katie Bonna
Our headline speaker for this assembly is James Ward, founder of the Boring Conference and someone who knows a lot about stationery.
Edinburgh Fringe First Award winner, Katie Bonna, will treat us to some of her poetry.
Our lovely choir and band will provide the music for you all to sing along to. Dancing in the aisles is optional.
There’ll also be tea and cake and a chance to socialise. No need to book and everyone is welcome. The event is free, but as ever, we appreciate donations to cover our costs.
Remembrance
11:00 am, November 2 2014
Last year we hosted the first ever non-religious Remembrance service. This will be our second. Come and remember those who gave their lives in battle.
I’m Alright Me!
11:00 am, November 16 2014
Speaker: Samantha Cleasby
Poet: Mike Galsworthy
We are back with an excellent speaker: Samantha Cleasby, writer, blogger and public speaker. Spreading awareness of IBD, Ulcerative Colitis, ileostomies and j pouches and being so bad ass…
Then there’ll be TEA AND CAKE! There’s no need to book and everyone is welcome. it’s free to attend, but please give a small donation if you can, so we can cover our costs.
Nice Cup of Tea
11:00 am, December 7 2014
Speaker: Ed Flint
Poet: Sophia Walker
That’s right! We’re celebrating tea at Sunday Assembly London.
Come and hear Ed Flint talk about tea, listen to Sophia Walker’s poetry and sing some Christmas pop classics as we warm up for Yule Rock.
You can also find out about all the fantastic ways you can get more involved with Sunday Assembly London.
Festive Funtimes!
11:00 am, December 21 2014
We’ll be having a fun look at the joys of giving, singing classic yuletide pop and wearing Christmas jumpers the likes of which have never been seen!
Yule Rock is the rockingest Christmas singalong in the land. Unleash all your favourite holiday classics for an evening of Wham!, Slade, Bing Crosby, Shane MacGowan and Kirsty MacColl and many more.
Yule (!) be belting these out with sounds from the incredible Sunday Assembly house band and choir, with the help of some SPECIAL GUESTS. Good cheer mandatory. Christmas jumpers advisable.
The Sunday Assembly is a godless congregation that celebrates life, but for one night only this Halloween, we’re celebrating death (well, the walking undead) with our Halloween zombie party!
Whether you’re already a Sunday Assembly regular or keen to find out more, bring your friends and come dressed in your best zombie / funeral attire to mingle with the rest of the Sunday Assembly walking undead.
Step inside our dystopian World’s End-stye pub for: – Free face painting, – Devilish drinks, – Sombie movies – Frighteningly fun festival DJ Bomber Harris.
We’ll also have a costume contest for those of you with devilish dress-up skills and plenty of opportunities to make new friends (yay!)
Tickets are FREE but we’ll be collecting donations on the door for one of our fave local London charities, Oasis Play, (or if you prefer you can make a donation now).
Our first assembly of 2014! Our guest speaker was Alom Shaha: science teacher, writer and film-maker.
Brains
11:00 am, January 19 2014
Speaker: Sam Nightingale
Sunday Assembly London meets on the 1st and 3rd Sunday of the month to celebrate LIFE! Woooo! And this month Sam Nightingale, a brain science man, will be talking about our brains and how amazing they are.
We’ll be singing and leaping and learning. What more could you want at 11am on a Sunday?
Happiness
11:00 am, February 2 2014
Speaker: Dr Anita Marsden
We return to the Conway Hall with the wonderful Dr Anita Marsden telling us about the psychology behind happiness! We’ll have readings and super songs and it might just blow your mind. There is no better way to start your Sunday!
Bring cake!
Tunnel to Greatness!
11:00 am, February 16 2014
Speaker: Robert Hulse
We meet once again to celebrate being alive!
This time we have Robert Hulse from the Brunel Museum, talking about the 1st tunnel under the Thames. How is that relevant to us now? Come find out!
There will be the usual songs, poems and laughter and your hosts Sanderson and Pippa.
Bring cake! Bring your kids! Bring your friend with cake and kids! All welcome!
Big love
It’s a Wander-ful Life!
11:00 am, March 2 2014
The Penderel’s Oak, Holborn
Speaker: Street Wisdom
On 2 March Sunday Assembly is taking to the streets for an immersive experience of insight and learning with our friends from Street Wisdom.
If you thought the street was just a place to hurry through on your way to and from work, think again. A non-profit venture led by human development honchos David Pearl and Chris Barez-Brown, Street Wisdom sees the city street as an amazing place to learn – an invisible university – for those that know how to look.
It’s urban magic on your doorstep.
All you’ll need is your curiosity and a secret question – about your personal and/or work life – that you’d like a fresh perspective on.
We’ll start at 1100 at The Penderel’s Oak, Holborn, spend an hour on individual street quests and return to the pub at 1200 to share what the street taught us. If it’s raining, bring a brolly. And if it’s glorious sunshine – a parasol! [optional]. And remember, it’s a wander-ful life!
Play
11:00 am, March 16 2014
Speaker: Dr David Bramwell
Another wonderful speaker – this time from Brighton (we in fact saw him talking at Sunday Assembly Brighton and loved him so much we asked him to come talk to us too!) Dr David Bramwell to tell us about his attempt to play with the way we do things!
We’ll have poems and songs – choir is back this week! And of course, the awesome band.
All hosted by Pippa and Sanderson and the fantastic SA London volunteers.
See you there!
Crumble with Loyd Grossman
11:00 am, April 6 2014
Speaker: Loyd Grossman
That’s right! He had to drop out in December but Loyd’s back to talk to us about the wonder of buildings as part of his role as a Trustee for the Churches Conservation Trust.
Why should we keep these buildings alive? What do they represent? Are they still relevant in our increasingly secular society?
We’ll have songs and the band (maybe we can convince Loyd to join in) and of course, tea and cake!
See you there!
Let’s Get Optimisterical!
11:00 am, April 20 2014
Speaker: Mark Stevenson
This week’s talk is by Mark Stevenson who wrote The Optimist’s Tour of the Future! He’ll be giving us an optimistic view of life and getting us to ask ourselves questions about what the future holds.
There will be awesome songs, a rockin’ band and of course, tea and cake.
We All Gonna Die Some Day
11:00 am, May 4 2014
Speaker: Lucy Porter
Death is inevitable. So why don’t we like talking about it? Well luckily, Lucy Porter does. Yes – Lucy Porter all round funny lady off the telly will be talking about dying.
We’ll have the usual poems and songs and a lot of visitors from around the world as this Sunday Assembly falls in the middle of our SA International Conference.
See you there, you wonderful people!
Express Yourself!
11:00 am, May 18 2014
Speaker: Dr Lee Bofkin
We like a bit of culture at Sunday Assembly London! And so our speaker on May 18th is talking about Street Art.
Lee Bofkin runs Global Street Art. Philosopher-scientist-street dancer turned curator of the world’s largest street art archive! Come and hear what is going on in the world of street art and what has been happening over the last 45 years!
And, of course, all the usual sing-songs, poems and community fun!
Free! Donations welcome!
What We Still Haven’t Learnt From The Greeks
11:00 am, June 1 2014
Speaker: Jules Evans
Those Greeks! They had lots of good ideas. But have we actually listened to anything they said? Let’s find out with the fantastic Jules Evans!
There’ll be the usual fantastic songs, poems and tea and cake! And it’s all free if you need it to be!
Donations welcome.
Be Kind!
11:00 am, June 15 2014
Speaker: Bernadette Russell
Poet: Richard Marsh
Bernadette Russell is a fabulous human who spoke at our first ever Conference. She was so brill, we’ve invited her back for more! Come join us talk about the art of being kind. We’ll have poems, songs and the usual delightfulness!
It’s Free – we do ask for donations to cover our costs (the hall, the Meet Up account, the tea/coffee etc) but that is voluntary!
As the roasting summer days, give way to balmy summer nights (here’s hoping) what better time to stargaze? We have a top-notch astronomer coming to talk to us, Andrew Pontzen. You can read more about him at www.cosmocrunch.co.uk
Go Team!
11:00 am, September 1 2013
York Hall, Bethnal Green
After a lovely summer break, Sunday Assembly London starts again with the topic “Go Team!”. We’ll be talking about working together, trying your best and hopefully being your team.
There’s going to be a fantastic sportsman talking, and lots of jolly songs and fun and tea! See you there, you beautiful squares.
Oh, for those that don’t know, the Sunday Assembly is a celebration of life. It’s for folk who want to live better, help often and wonder more. And our aim is to help everyone live this one life as fully as poss.
The location is the wonderful York Hall in Bethnal Green, but please keep an eye on the location because we’ll be moving round in the next few months (long story).
Harvest Festival
11:00 am, September 15 2013
Conway Hall, Holborn
Speaker: Simon Howland
After a long summer ripening on the vine, it’s time to collect the harvest, or something like that. Either way, we’re having a Harvest Festival at Conway Hall and we’d love you to come.
Our speaker is Simon Howland, Australia wine drinker, trader, journalist and all round good guy. He knows wine and he knows harvesting.
We’ll also be harvesting from you guys (not organs) and donating to food banks. Bring tins and non-perishable foods.
Thanks in advance for your generosity. It will help make some people happy.
Also expect the normal mega-songs and good times.
Global Mega Party!
11:00 am, October 20 2013
Conway Hall, Holborn
Speakers: Harry Cliff, Carrie Armstrong
On October 20th we are having a party, at our usual time in London, for the launch of the 40 Dates and the 40 Nights Roadshow, and our crowdfunding campaign, and everyone in the world is invited.
This will be livestreamed across the world, so Assemblers can have viewing parties of their own wherever they are. Going to people’s houses, bringing some grub, eating, sharing and laughing, because it is a great way to build friendship and community, and just a good thing all round.
As it’s a party we are going to have some extra super great elements – including a variety of speakers! we have invited back our friend Harry Cliff – the CERN guy (you may remember his many pictures of Brian Cox) and Carrie Armstrong, author of the website lifeafterthechair.com.
With a band, the choir and, of course, Pippa and Sanderson, this is going to be a party that you will never forget!
This Month’s Sunday Assembly London will be Remembrance – looking back to all the soldiers who have given their lives and why it is important to remember them.
Our guest speaker is Dan Snow, historian and Humanist, which we are very excited about as he has been on the television and everything.
Expect songs, readings and cake and a slightly different tone to the Global Mega Party!
We’ll also have the kids corner for little ones and a kids club (7yrs-12yrs) run by Camp Quest. Look forward to seeing you there.
We shall be having a super high-energy Sunday Assembly on Dec 1st. Dr Linda Woodhead will be talking about Ritual. Mike Garry will be poetifying (new word) and we’ll be bringing some Joy and Wonder your way.
Bring your pals and your children (there will be Curious Kids Club (age 7 – 12) and Kids Corner (for restless little ones during the service) for a bit of pep in your step.
We will be getting together on Dec 15th for our last Sunday Assembly of 2013 to sing some sparkle-filled Christmas songs (you know the ones… Fairytale in New York, Merry Christmas Everyone etc) and for a fun-filled talk by….
Jinni Lyons! AKA @comedyfoodgirl, Jinni knows all about the joys of eating and will be talking about feasting at Christmas.
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