Programme of Lectures

We run a mixture of online and in-person lectures. The in-person lectures are held at the Sonning Common Village Hall (location map) at 7.30 pm (unless stated otherwise) and are open to all, although donations at the door are appreciated.

For the online meetings SOAG members will be sent an invitation to register for the meeting in an email and/or in SOAG Messenger, our newsletter. Non members who wish to attend should email events@soagarch.org.uk to receive registration details.

2026/2027 Lecture Series

• Thursday October 1st 2026
  Lecture by: Professor Gary Locke, Emeritus Professor of Archaeology, Kellogg College
  Topic: ‘Becoming Roman in Oxfordshire – Excavations at Marcham and Frilford’
• Thursday November 5th 2026
  Lecture by: Dr Lucy-Ann Taylor
  Topic: ‘Medieval musical instruments from bone’ – with demonstrations
• Thursday December 3rd 2026 
  Review of SOAG Archaeology (by SOAG members) and Christmas Social

• Thursday February 4th 2027 – by ZOOM
  Lecture by: Miles Clifford, University of Reading
  Topic: ‘River depositions in the Middle Thames’
• Thursday March 4th 2027
  Lecture by: Paul Chadwick, Research Associate, University of Oxford
  Topic: ‘Roman settlement, landscapes and agriculture in central and southern England’

• Thursday April 4th 2027
  SOAG AGM followed by
  Lecture by: Annie Byard, Post-excavation Project Officer, Oxford Archaeology
  Topic: ‘Coin Hoards and other career finds’

Summer visits

Visits are organized to places of archaeological and historical interest and are open to SOAG members and their guests.  They are usually organised as private tours with the site experts as our guides. The tours are also social occasions for SOAG members often incorporating a pub lunch. We also organise archaeology walks in South Oxfordshire for SOAG members.  

The visit in 2026 was to Butser Ancient Farm in Hampshire on Tuesday May 12th. This included a private tour which introduced the five main time periods – Neolithic, Bronze Age, Iron Age, Roman, and Anglo-Saxon – and lasted 2 hours. It explained the archaeology behind their experimental buildings and the evidence that informs each reconstruction. There was plenty of time for questions. Members were then able to stay all day and revisit the buildings at their own speed.

Other Events

See the SOAG calendar for a diary listing of all SOAG events including fieldwork.