Date for your diary: 22 NOVEMBER 2025
Louisa Aldrich-Blake: The First Woman Master of Surgery : A celebration
Venue: the London Archives, EC1R 0HB
2025 sees the centenary of the death of the first woman Master of Surgery, Dame Louisa Aldrich-Blake. We will celebrate her life, career, and legacy with a talk by Professor Claire Brock (University of Leicester), archival document displays, and a specially written performance by the Pascal Theatre Company.
Further details will be confirmed in the autumn. Check New – Pascal Theatre Company
WOMEN FOR WOMEN: 19th century women in Bloomsbury
We are drawing to the end of our extraordinary two-year Lottery Heritage Funding project Women for Women. This has been an amazing vision of what women were busy changing in our world from their base in 19th century London.
As we evaluate the project we realise the breadth of its ambition. We have uncovered stories and we will be continuing our excavations of those whose lives deserve more attention. Scientists, doctors, archaeologists, politicians, social reformers, artists, educators, musicians, performers, novelists, philosophers, business women, polymaths,…. the list goes on and we feel that we have touched the tip of an iceberg with so any layers to yet discover. This project is aimed at exciting curiosity about a century of women’s drive for equality.
We have sited a bench commemorating 19th century women in Bloomsbury in St George’s Gardens Bloomsbury, WC1N 1PD.
Sit on the bench and imagine those who walked through the gardens: video link
We are very grateful to all who participated in the project: contributors, speakers, workshop leaders, participants, actors, audiences and those who accessed resources. We thank also our volunteers and all who were involved in different strands of the project.
Everyone has played an important part and this is most appreciated.
Navigate the website resources here: Introduction and Women – Pascal Theatre Company
A list of those who wrote tributes to different women or on themes can be found here: Women and Contributors – Pascal Theatre Company.
Enjoy learning about pioneering women.
Familiarise yourself with key institutions and roads in Bloomsbury where our women lived, worked and networked: Find the Invisible Women – Pascal Theatre Company.
It is important to us that these valuable resources are accessed and women’s stories kept alive.
Here are some photos from our last performance at the Bloomsbury Festival.
ULYSSA Senate House, our celebration of the lives of the classicist Jane Harrison and the Egyptologist Helen Tirard.
At our performance in Senate House we were delighted to welcome the Mayor of Camden, Councillor Samata Khatoon. Here she is with the ensemble of Ulyssa.And for a record of this thrilling performance see here. https://www.pascal-theatre.com/project/ulyssa-bloomsbury-festival-26-october/
