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Lectures and launches
Treadwell’s lecture series has become legendary, bringing together scholars and practitioners of Western esotericism. Many talks sell out, so booking ahead is advised. Reserve seats by phone, 020 7240 8906. Payment is required at the time of booking and we take most cards. We have an archive of past lectures, and you can also subscribe to our mailing list to get regular email updates. We also have courses | | 
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23 September 10 (Thursday)
Traditional Witchcraft:
With Special attention to the 1734 Tradition
Stuart Inman
"Traditional Witchcraft" is an intriguing, but poorly understood, strand of contemporary pagan witchcraft, which is currently experiencing an upsurge of interest, if websites and publishing trends are to be trusted. Much of the written material on the subject is obscure, and sometimes even misleading. This talk aims to clarify some of these mystifications, and to give an insider's perspective. It will look at: various strands feeding into origins of Traditional Craft; the ways it differs from Wicca (as well as some points of resemblance); and its central symbols, tools and methods. Although the focus will be on the 1734 tradition, stemming from Joe Wilson and Robert Cochrane, it will cover other strands in Traditional Craft, including the Toad-bone ritual. Stuart Inman studied the 1734 system with Joe Wilson for nearly seven years between 1998 and 2004. He is one of the three Virtue-holders of the Tradition and is also a Doyen of Toteg Tribe. He has spoken at Treadwell's before , and returns by special invitation.
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start
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24 September 10 (Friday)
Haunted Sound System:
Voodoo Music, Voodoo Life
Stephen Grasso
Sorry, this night is Sold Out. Stephen Grasso digs through the crates and presents an overview of the influence of African Diaspora magico-religious traditions on music, tracing a trajectory from references to hoodoo conjure in pre-war blues lyrics, to Congo Square Voodoo and the birth of jazz, African Spiritual Churches, Mardi Gras Indians and New Orleans Funk. The talk will also look at Cuban and Brazilian Orisha music and its influence on Latin jazz, bossanova, tropicalia and New York proto-disco; the influence of Jamaican Obeah, Kumina and Pocomania on reggae, and the clandestine Voodoo undercurrents of grime and dubstep in London. The talk will include excerpts from the records, played from vinyl, and will be followed by a DJ set based on the talk. Stephen Grasso is a practitioner, and well-known author in British occultism. More here
Price: £10.00 includes talk and music set
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start
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30 September 10 (Thursday)
Interview with a Witch:
Chris Crowley in Conversation
with Christina Oakley Harrington
Chris Crowley identified with the Pagan view of the natural world in his teens. His magical journey has taken him into Wicca and the Western Magical Tradition. He has taught Wicca and initiated in Germany, Scandinavia, Italy and North America. He is Vice-President of the Pagan Federation and lives partly in London and partly in rural Brittany. His is the author with Vivianne Crowley of Ancient Wisdom and Your Dark Side. Tonight he talks about his calling to the Craft, working in the Western mysteries, his adventures along his spiritual journey, and his observations on the pagan community -- of which he has been a member for over 30 years.
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start
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06 October 10 (Wednesday)
Jung and the Occult:
Was Jung a Mystic?
Gary Lachman
Psychologist Carl Jung insisted that he was first and foremost a scientist, yet from the start his interest in the human psyche had a decidedly paranormal, even occult, slant. From his early days attending séances, to his last pronouncements on an 'Age of Aquarius' - including his recently published Red Book - Jung moved in territories most scientists ignored or ridiculed. Jung himself, though, had a very ambivalent relation to mysticism and the occult; in his personal life he embraced a variety of occult ideas, but as a 'scientist' he downplayed his involvement Only late in his career did he make public his belief in esoteric notions like synchronicity and a New Age, and admit performing of magical practices like the Chinese I Ching. Jung's mystical and occult investigations have been responsible for the huge interest in many of the 'alternative' ideas widely popular today. Gary’s talk will chart hisoccult history, look into the reasons behind his early reticence and later advocacy... and finally asks, was Jung really a scientist at all? Gary Lachman writes on the meeting ground between consciousness, culture, and the western esoteric tradition. His most recent book is Jung the Mystic: The Esoteric Dimensions of Carl Jung's Life and Work.
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start
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13 October 10 (Wednesday)
Alchemical Countdown:
Number and Number Symbolism in Alchemy
Paul Cowlan
'Behind all there is a definite scheme of numbering. There is a twelve and a ten and a seven and a three and a One.' So says the Corpus Hermeticum - The Secret Sermon on the Mountain. This talk looks at alchemy through an expanding and contracting net of numbers. Taking in the fundamental influences of Hermeticism and Platonic cosmography, counting up or down, it reveals a world of arcane belief. Paul Cowlan has been working with alchemical symbolism for over 20 years. He is a musician and poet, lives in Germany, and has been lecturing at Treadwell's for six years. His illustrated talks are clear, lively and suitable for those new to alchemical symbolism.
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start
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14 October 10 (Thursday)
Crowley's Amalantrah Working:
Thelema, The Tao, and the New York Years
Gary Dickinson
In New York in 1918, Aleister Crowley undertook a visionary session with his friend Roddie Minor, with her having visions and reporting them to Crowley as they occurred. One part of the record relates her saying, "We went down by the stream and across it into the woods where the wizard and the child were. They both looked a little lonely. I asked his name and he told me Amalantrah. I asked who I was and he said 'Part of the Tao.'" Tonight Gary Dickinson looks in greater depth at this episode, Crowley's relationship with the Tao Te Ching, and other related themes in the Working. The text is here . Gary Dickinson is a sinologist and Crowley researcher: a Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society, he worked in the field of Chinese art for over twenty years, lecturing throughout the world on Chinese ritual and symbolism. He is co-author of Imperial Wardrobe, widely regarded as a source-work on the court dress of the Qing period (1644-1911). He was also an historical consultant for the Oscar-winning costumes in Bertolucci's The Last Emperor. More here.
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start
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26 October 10 (Tuesday)
Ghosts, Ghouls and Greasepaint:
Guided Walk of Haunted Theatrical London
Deliane Forget, London Ghost Festival
An exciting, lively walk around the haunted West End, let by a certified Blue Badge guide who is herself and actress and also a white witch. Delianne Forget shows you round ghost-ridden theatreland with tales of apparations, poltergeists and backstage hauntings. FIVE dates: 26th, 27th, 28th, 29th, 30th of October. Please make your bookings through Treadwell's - note that these walks sell out far in advance. Hosted as part of the London Ghost Festival, whose full schedule is here.
Price: £7.00
Time: Arrive 6.50 for a 7.00 start of walk
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28 October 10 (Thursday)
The Book in Western Art:
Symbol, Device, Allegory
Laura Miller
Books are beautiful -- so it is no surprise they appear in Western art. Their appearance always has symbolic meaning – a coded idea, particular to time and context: religious upheavals, revolutions, publishing history, changes in patronage, the role of the artist, and so on. Art and book specialist Laura Miller gives an illustrated slide lecture taking us from the late medieval, through the reformation, and right through the romantic and modern periods. Taking a broad, magpie-like approach, she will take the audience through a lively, intelligent talk (yes, it is porn for book fetishists) - decoding their symbolism for us. Laura Miller is a librarian at the University of London and this talk is based on research originally completed for her Msc in Librarianship at City University for which she was awarded a distinction. She completed her undergraduate studies in the History of Art at Cambridge University. A gifted speaker, she returns to Treadwell’s by special invitation.
Price: £7.00
Time: 7.15 for a 7.30 start
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26 November 10 (Friday)
Through A Glass Darkly:
Inside the Victorian Seances of the Fraudulent Mediums
The London Magician
At this exclusive evening of lecture and performance, the London Magician will talk about the the mind-reading and magical effects that first flourished in the Victorian seances hosted by fraudulent mediums - people who were emulating genuine psychics in parlours across England. Meeting the dead, past-life regressions, amazing mind-reading, apports -- the fraudulent mediums were the forefathers of the cold reading prodigies of today. But more than being told, you will be shown: magic will be performed, minds read, tales and fortunes told. Illusion, mentalism and magic meet, through a glass darkly. Performances sell out quickly, please book early.
Price: £10.00 in advance
Time: 7.15 for 7.30 start
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