Memories of the Life of Vuk Eisen 

20th December 1921 – 10th October 2016

Tim Eisen

Dad had a long life and really felt the history, culture and science of much of the 20th century.

He was born just after the First World War in Osijek, a town in the newly created Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. My grandfather was a political journalist who had endured a terrible time in the Austro-Hungarian army fighting in the Dolomites. My grandmother was a woman not to be trifled with and was the first of several strong women in Dad’s life. My grandparents had a troubled marriage, which ended when Dad and his brother Tomislav were still young. My grandmother remarried an architect, Bela Auer, and they had a wonderful daughter Eva, who was the first to appreciate Dad’s sense of humour and talent as a mimic.

Dad was a clever boy with a very active mind and I think he could have pursued many careers in the arts or sciences. In the event, he entered medical school just as the Second World War was engulfing Europe. Although he was the most unmilitary of men, Dad worked with the partisans and had to serve in 3 armies: the royalist Yugoslav army, the army of the wartime NDH and the communist Yugoslav army. As a liberal-minded (and humorous) intellectual, he was very unpopular with left and right and developed a loathing of extremism of all sorts. One defence was to poke fun at his oppressors; his impersonation of a Montenegrine political commissar was a perennial favourite, always able to provoke gales of laughter with our family in Zagreb decades later. Unfortunately, it is too risqué to relate now! In fact Dad’s sense of humour was rarely risqué: he once overheard two medical colleagues discussing a new recruit: The first described the new colleague as having a very dry sense of humour. The second asked “What, as dry as Vuk Eisen’s?” “Oh heavens, no, not as dry as that!”

Life after the war was hard for Dad, both politically and personally, so my grandmother instructed him to study in England, and he obeyed. Dad arrived in England in 1952 and stayed with his aunt Trudi and uncle Erhardt and their family in Bournemouth. Life in England suited Dad excellently and first his professional and then his family life went from strength to strength.

He enrolled at the CIBA foundation studying for a PhD with Cyril Keele and Brewen Lewis discovering how the kidney controlled blood pressure at the Middlesex Hospital in London and spent the rest of his career there. Dad played his part in international collaborations all over the world, particularly with Gunther Blumel in Munich. This eventually resulted in new and very effective drugs to control blood pressure and inflammation. As a dashing and amusing young man with an exotic accent, Dad was a popular teacher with the students. He particularly enjoyed mentoring clever young doctors and was delighted to follow the successful career of his protégés. His work was well recognised and he became an editor of the British Journal of Pharmacology. He was offered professorships in Bonn and

Manchester, although he took my mother’s hints that the family was best served by staying in London. For him, the family was usually the priority, the main exception being our summer holidays which were interrupted by Dad invariably taking a PhD thesis or two to mark– not an example I follow!

Dad always felt that most of the best things in his life came from Mum. They first met at a party and he decided that this was the woman for him because Mum was wearing a silk dress which she had ruined by pressing it on the wrong side with a hot iron. Dad felt that this must mean that Mum’s mind was on higher things. They had a comfortable early married life in Chelsea. Many happy times with friends and Mum’s lively extended family gave Dad a new perspective on life.

In many ways my parents had opposing characters. Although occasionally explosive, they often complemented each other’s foibles. Mum was optimistic and decisive, whilst Dad tended to be and cautious and glass half empty. I vividly remember driving with Dad complaining about “Old age storming in.” It was the morning after Harold Wilson had been returned to power in February 1974 and Dad was driving me to school – 42 years ago! My parents spent considerable effort making fun of each other and their children. At a lunch not long before she died, the conversation turned to what sports Mum had played as a young woman. “Competitive whisky drinking” came Dad’s sotto voce reply.

Dad’s own views on work, sports and simple pleasures had a definite teutonic rigour: all games had to have an educational or healthy purpose; Sunday lunches would be concerned with topics such as “What is the function of make-up?” Dad spent endless hours explaining science, painting, literature and architecture to my brother and me. This helped our school performance and enriched our holiday car journeys across Europe to visit family in Croatia and visiting our great friends the Sumptions in the South of France.

Retirement in the 1980s ushered in the most relaxed period of my parents’ life. Travel to family in Europe and South Africa and many happy months spent at their little finca in Mallorca delighted them both. When Mum died in 2001, I never expected him to survive for 15 years as a widower. Although these must have been lonely and difficult times, Dad appreciated that he was hugely lucky in having Julia as his daughter-in-law and took great delight both in Julia’s company and in his grandchildren. Dad remained well until the last month of his life and was able to come to dinner just 10 days before he died.

I will finish with what I have come to understand and respect as a defining aspect of my father’s character. It is something that I only saw clearly once war had again come to the land of his birth in the 1990s. Dad was clear who he thought was in the wrong; he was active in his support of the British-Croatian society and efforts to restore the cultural heritage of Croatia. He remained consistently clear-headed and resisted the easy prejudices of nationalism. My father was an intelligent, stubborn, indecisive, infuriating, humorous, kindly and humane man. He endured nationalism, fascism and communism and he remained liberal-minded and civilised throughout.

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Hrvatska matica iseljenika

Hrvatska matica iseljenika i ove godine organizira svoje tradicionalne ljetne programe koji podrazumijevaju ucenje hrvatskoga jezika i kulture: Sveucilisnu skolu hrvatskoga jezika i kulture i Malu skolu hrvatskoga jezika i kulture. Također, u proljetnome semestru (6. ozujka 2017.) nastavljamo s provođenjem Hrvatskog internetskog tecaja HiT-1.

U privitku Vam saljemo kratke obavijesti.

Molimo Vas da ovu informaciju proslijedite svima za koje smatrate da bi bili zainteresirani. Detaljne informacije o ovim programima, kao i o ostalim programima i aktivnostima Hrvatske matice iseljenika, nalaze se na nasoj mreznoj stranici www.matis.hr.

Zahvaljujuci na suradnji, srdacno pozdravljam.

Lada Kanajet Šimić, prof.

HRVATSKA MATICA ISELJENIKA
Odjel za školstvo, znanost i šport
Dept. of Education, Science and Sport
Trg S. Radića 3, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia

tel: 385 1 61 15 116, fax: 385 1 61 11 522
e-mail: lada@matis.hr

The fourth Croatian World Games are to be held in the Croatian capital Zagreb from 18-22 July 2017 with a global participation of more than 800 Croats from over 35 nations. Croatian World Games are amateur competitions where participants are Croats and their descendants throughout the world representing the country that they live in now.

Croatian World Games previously held in Zadar in 2006 and 2010 and in Zagreb in 2014, are organised by the Croatian World Congress and the State Office For Croats Abroad, in association with other Croatian institutions and associations in Croatia and among the Croatian diasporas.

All Croats wherever they may be are invited to participate in the Croatian World Games which include multiple sports disciplines; athletics, bowls, judo, karate, basketball, football, indoor soccer, volleyball, beach volleyball, swimming, rugby, handball, tennis, table tennis, taekwondo and water polo.

Our wish is for a great number of participants, as well as representatives of the Croatian organisations worldwide, to take the opportunity to compete in sports, and to share companionship and participate in numerous cultural and entertainment events that will contribute towards strengthening of their ties with the Republic of Croatia and enhancing of their sense of belonging to the Croatian people.

If you wish to take part in the upcoming Croatian World Games please visit the following link to register by 1 April 2017.

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Nostalgic Journey with Frano Lasić and klapa Smrika

A humanitarian concert for the homeless children of Dubrovnik and Belgrade will take place at the Cadogan Hall in London on April 2 – details in the attachment or from Cadogan Hall.

————————————————————————————————— Take part in online survey about knowledge of the Croatian language in the population of Croatian Diaspora in the EU

University of Zagreb is conducting an online survey which purpose is to question a knowledge of the Croatian language in the population of Croatian Diaspora in the EU.

  Main goal of this research is to find out the needs of the Croatian Diaspora in the EU in the matter of the quality and knowledge of the Croatian language.   It is important to mention that the research is completely anonymous.   The deadline is 20 February 2017.   Amongst the Croatian Diaspora in UK the eligible people are  students and employed people with the  university education.   —————————————————————————————————

Annual General Meeting

Please hold in your diaries:

Tuesday 21 February 2017 1830 – 2030
for the Annual General Meeting of the British Croatian Society.

The Agenda for the meeting will follow.
Robert Dolata
Secretary

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NIMBUS CD recording of NICHOLAS JACKSON’S OPERA THE ROSE AND THE RING 

British-Croatian Society Patron Sir Nicholas Jackson has sent information about the recording of his opera:

NIMBUS ALLIANCE have just pre-released their CD recording of my Opera ‘The Rose & the Ring’ at the reduced price of £10 (full price £15) for members of the Drapers’ Company and our friends.

I am therefore circulating this ‘Link’ to friends who might be interested in acquiring a copy with the understanding that there is absolutely no obligation to do so.

With all best wishes for 2017 from Nicholas & Nadia

Here is a link for ‘The Rose & the Ring’ new release.

The £10 offer for friends of Nicholas Jackson and The Drapers’ Company is established and Nimbus are able to fulfil orders immediately.

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‘Bijelo Dugme’ concert

There will be a ‘Bijelo Dugme’ concert at Hammersmith Apollo Theatre in Feb 23rd 

http://www.eventimd

Bijelo Dugme LONDON 23/02/17 Tickets – Eventim http://www.eventim.co.uk/goran -bregovic-and-bijelo-dugme-lon don-Tickets.html?affiliate=EUK &doc=artistPages%2Ftickets&fun =artist&action=tickets&key=177 4241%249057378&jumpIn=yTix&kui d=528389&from=erdetaila Bijelo Dugme Eventim Apollo LONDON tickets on sale now. Buy official Bijelo Dugme tickets for the Eventim Apollo show on Eventim.

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School of Croatian Language and Culture ‘Šibenik’

Information about the School of Croatian Language and Culture ‘Šibenik’, intended for the Croatian diaspora and Croatian students, is in the attachment, or can be viewed on the website www.sv-lovre.com.

————————————————————————————————— Talk about ‘Cultural heritage in the area between Split and Trogir’

The Croatian-British Society from Split

cordially invites you to an evening of cultural heritage and tourism

calendarCroatia 2019 options Collection in person £8.00 GBPPost and package for the UK £10.00 GBPPost and package for anywhere else £12.00 GBP

calendarCroatia 2017 options Collection in person £8.00 GBPPost and package for the UK £8.00 GBPPost and package for anywhere else £12.00 GBP

24th of November

RSVP to  floratv.hvar@gmail.com—————————————————————————————————Hedgehog’s Home Musical Performance

(For children aged 3 – 7)

A musical rendition of this charming story of how Hedgemond defends his humble house, while teaching us a lesson about caring for what we love.Presented by Istros books and the children of the Croatian Saturday School, London.

William Goodenough House35-42 Mecklenburgh Square, London WC1N 2AN, Tickets: £3Telephone: 020 3108 1000 Mon – Fri, 12noon – 6pm

October 23, 12 noon & 2pm
BOOK YOUR TICKETS HERE

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The Art Newspaper

Croatian heritage has a friend in Britain

Over the past 25 years, the International Trust for Croatian Monuments has raised more than £500,000 to repair the ravages of war.

Read more .

here

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Lunchtime Lecture: Ivan Meštrović, Croatian Sculptor and his portraits

looks at the art and life of Ivan Mestrovic (1883 – 1962), Croatian sculptor, painter, draughtsman, architect, writer and poet through a discussion of his portraits. In partnership with the Society of Portrait Sculptors.

Flora Turner-Vucetic

Ondaatje Wing Theatre, National Portrait GalleryTickets: £3 (£2 concessions and Gallery Supporters) Book online, or visit the Gallery in person.Doors open at 12.45. Lectures begin at 13.15 and last approximately one hour.

17 November2016, 13:15

(1883 – 1962) from an early age gained a significant international artistic reputation exhibiting at major exhibitions in Vienna, Paris, Prague, Rome, London, Zagreb and New York in the first decades of the twentieth century. His one man show in 1915 at the Victoria and Albert Museum was a sensational event received by public and critics with great acclaim. He also inspired a discussion between the modernists and traditionalists and even raising doubts in some quarters about the effect of his nudes on public morals. He became a celebrity with much demand for his portrait sculpture. One of the early acquisitions by what eventually became known as the Tate Gallery was a very important “Deposition from the Cross”. Michael Sadler, Rector of theLeeds School of Art, wrote in 1915: “In you, we salute the greatest sculptor of religious sculpture since the Renaissance”. Meštrović donated his self-portrait in plaster for the collection. Flora Turner-Vučetić revives the memory of the art and life of this exceptional artist through a discussion of his portraits which were in many cases an expression of his respect and admiration for his subjects.Ivan Meštrović

is an art historian, museum curator, diplomat, journalist and writer. She has worked as a Senior Curator in the Museum of Arts and Crafts in Zagreb, a broadcast journalist and editor at the Croatian Section of the BBC World Service, London, and as Counsellor for cultural, scientific and educational affairs at the Embassy of the Republic of Croatia in London. She was one of the founders and a past Chairman of the British-Croatian Society and remains a Trustee. She is presently a writer, freelance journalist and researcher. She has organised numerous exhibitions in the UK and regularly publishes mainly on visual arts and British Croatian artistic and cultural relations, as for example Mapping Croatia in United Kingdom Collections, Archaeopress, Oxford, 2013. She contributed to the symposium about Ivan Meštrović at the Victoria and Albert Museum in 2015 and to the special isssue of the Sculpture Journal dedicated to Meštrović in 2016.Flora Turner-Vučetić

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A defining moment in European and transatlantic resilience: Croatian perspectives

Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović, the President of the Republic of Croatia, will speak at LSEE on Tuesday, 11 October. The talk is entitled: “”. The event is free and open to all but registration is required. A defining moment in European and transatlantic resilience: Croatian perspectivesRegister for the event here.

London School of EconomicsHoughton Street,

Our mailing address is:

London, LondonWC2A 2AE

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LSEE Visiting Speaker Programme, Wednesday 12 October

Croatia’s Lost Generation? Youth unemployment, education and training in Croatia since the crisis

Spaker: , Institute of Economics, ZagrebDr Iva Tomić
Chaired by , LSEE Research on SEE, LSE European InstituteDr Vassilis Monastiriotis

Dr Iva Tomićholds a tenure-track affiliation as a Research Associate at the Institute of Economics, Zagreb in Croatia. She was awarded a PhD degree in Economics from the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia in 2013. Her main research interests are labour economics, applied microeconomics and public finances. During her visit at LSEE she will be working on youth unemployment issues in European countries, with a special emphasis on the Croatian case and its cross comparison with other Southern European countries.

Read more about the event .

here

: Wednesday, 12 October 2016: 18:00 – 19:30: Canada Blanch room, 1st floor, Cowdray House (COW), London School of Economics, London WC2A 2AE )

Date
Time
Venue(LSE Campus Map
The event operates on a first come, first served basis.

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All the Best – Croatian romantic comedy

Attached you will find a press release about the UK premiere of a Croatian romantic comedy “All the Best” directed by Snjezana Tribuson to be screened at the forthcoming Raindance Film Festival in London.

and .

Photospress release—————————————————————————————————

London Film Festival
Croatian films at the London Film Festival and Raindance

S one straneOn the Other Side –
A middle-aged nurse in Zagreb receives an unwelcome phone call in this profound analysis unspoken fears and disguised trauma. Vesna is a middle aged nurse living in Zagreb with two grown up children – her son Vladimir, a married businessman with one son, and her daughter Jadranka, a law graduate who is about to be married. One day, Vesna receives a phone call from her husband Žarko in Belgrade. Neither Vlado nor Jadranka, who have had to hide their surnames, want to see him. After all, he appears to have been convicted of war crimes. But repeated phone calls between Vesna and Žarko edges them towards resurrecting their relationship. Dealing with the psychological aftermath of war, Zrinko Ogresta’s film is comprised of stately camera movements and carefully composed images, focusing on Vesna’s face and the spaces around her. He creates an introspective mood that perfectly captures the feelings of his characters. The result is a profound analysis of absence and of disguised trauma, of unspoken fears and their effects on a new generation.

Monday 10 October 2016 20:45
Vue West End Cinema, Screen 7

BFI Southbank, NFTTuesday 11 October 2016 13:15

For tickets information, please click

here

This month Raindance will be screening 8 brilliant new Croatian films during the festival.Here are the links to the Croatian films on the Raindance .

Raindance

website

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Classical guitar recital by Croatian guitarist Zoran Dukic

If you wish to keep in touch with what is happening and would like to join our email list, please email

britishcroatiansociety@gmail.com

The Bromley Guitar Society presents a classical guitar recital by the internationally renowned Croatian guitarist on This recital will mark his UK debut. He will be playing at Zoran DukicSaturday 15th October 2016 at 7.30pm.St Mark’s Church,Westmoreland Rd,Bromley, BR2 0TB. A few minutes walk from Bromley South Station.

Advance adult tickets £12.50. £14 on the door (cash only).

For more information about Zoran and how to obtain tickets, please visit: . Online tickets are available from the 26th August.

bromleyguitarsociety.blogspot.co.uk

Contact us:

bromleyguitar@gmail.com

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Meet-Up

The next British Croatian Society Meet-Up takes place on .Thursday 22 September 2016
We will be meeting at a new venue, the. Zander Bar in St. James’ Court Hotel, Westminster

The intention is for people with any form of interest in Croatia to meet up, socialise and have a chat in an informal atmosphere. Whether you are a Croatian resident in London or someone who has recently visited Croatia for the first time and want to know more, this event is for you.

The event is of course open to both members and non-members. It provides an excellent opportunity for anyone to come and meet British-Croatian Society members and even to join if they so wish!

We have a reserved area on the left hand side of the bar. BCS members Brian Gallagher and John Pindar will be there from the start and you can find us by looking out for Croatian symbols.

Please note the Zander Bar is more formally known as the Bank Westminster and Zander Bar.
You should use the entrance to the right of the hotel, marked Bank Westminster.

We’ll be there between 7.30 PM and 10 PM.

Come along for a chat about all things Croatian!

Address: 45 Buckingham Gate, London SW1E 6BS (Our venue is identifiable by four large flags)

Nearest Tube stations: St James Park (District/Circle line). Follow exit signs for Palmer Street, ignore those for Broadway.

For full location details click .here—————————————————————————————————Annual Dinner 2016

We will shortly be sending you details of the 2016 annual dinner, but in the meantime you may like to make a note of the date – .

November 4

Queens Club

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at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

I, WHO HAVE HANDS MORE INNOCENT

The performance is based on the works of Vesna Parun, exploring her autobiographical works to give a chilling insight into the aspects of women’s lives challenged by the patriarchal men of the Balkans. Performed by Vesna Tominac Matacic and directed by Ivan Leo Lemo, the piece is performed fully in Croatian with English subtitles and it has been gaining interest as a celebration of Vesna Parun’s magnificent poetry and works.

http://www.hrt.hr/enz/vijesti- iz-kulture/

I, WHO HAVE HANDS MORE INNOCENT is performed daily until the 28th August at 19:25-20:35, this performance is at Zoo Venues 140 Pleasance Road Edinburgh EH8 9RR.

Tickets

information

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Croatian majorette team

A Croatian majorette team from Orebić is competing at the 2016 European Majorette Championships in Crawley on 8-9 October.

They are a team composed of 26 girls and boys at the ages between 6-8 years.

They are asking for financial support in order to be able to participate at this event (covering travel, accommodation expenses).

If you think you might be able to help, please contact:Sanda Menkadžiev at

djecji-vrtic-orebic@du.t-co m.hr

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Utopian Collective

The inaugural London Design Biennale opens in September at Somerset House with over 30 countries presenting newly commissioned works exploring the theme Utopia by Design.

A new collective of 8 Croatian designers ‘Utopian Collective’ are collaborating to create an interdisciplinary platform that looks at the role of design in society and as a catalyst for change. They also explore the experimentation inherent to collaborative work which encourages evolution.

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The play that is Oscar Wild

Jagoda Kamov is a Croatian actress who will perform in an Oscar Wild Play ‘The play that is Oscar Wild’ as a part of Camden Fringe festival. Click for more details.

here

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Croatia and Brexit

The Government of the Republic of Croatia regrets the outcome of the British referendum in which a majority of voters supported the option of the UK leaving the European Union. Croatia will work to create a stronger and democratic European Union together with other member states, and will continue to further develop bilateral relations with the United Kingdom.

The legal status of Croatian citizens living and working in the UK will not change for a considerable time. There are no changes in travel regulations. The Croatian Embassy in London will provide information about any new important changes. You can contact the Embassy by writing to: conlon@mvep.hr

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Carmen (Bizet), 8 and 10 June, Wyllyots Theatre, Potters Bar^thth

Southgate Opera present Bizet’s tragic tale of passion set in the sultry atmosphere of southern Spain. Sung in English with full orchestral accompaniment. takes the role of in the performances on TenorStephen CviicDon JoseWednesday 8 and Friday 10June.^thth

When: Wednesday 8th and Friday 10th June, 7.30pm
Where: Wyllyots Theatre, Darkes Lane, Potters Bar, Herts EN6 2HN

How to get there: Train from King’s Cross (theatre is near Potters Bar station)

Tickets: Theatre Box Office: 01707 645005 or theatre website

Die Zauberflote () (Mozart), 1 and 2 July, St Paul’s Church, Clapham, London SW4The Magic Flute^stnd

St Paul’s Opera present a fully-staged version of Mozart’s haunting comedy about the quest for love and enlightenment. Sung in German with English surtitles and dialogue, and accompanied by small instrumental ensemble. Picnicking space and bar available in the grounds before the show and during the interval. takes the role of Tenor Stephen Cviic Tamino.

When: Friday 1st and Saturday 2nd July, 7.00pm
Where: St Paul’s Church, Rectory Grove, London SW4 0DX

Gates open for picnicking at 5.30pm.

Clapham Common tube station or Wandsworth Road Overground. Parking also available

How to get there:

: £25. Buy 10 get 1 free.

Tickets

www.wegottickets.com/StPaulsOpera

or from Nicola White on 020 7622 2128

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Multilingual Imaginations: Celebrating Asymptote’s 5th Anniversary in London

Here is a of the Asymptote anniversary event with Tena Štivičić

write-up

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The Concrete Utopia. Ivan Picelj and New Tendencies 1961-1973

Cortesy Gallery 41 & 43 Maddox Street, London W1S 2PDMonday – Friday: 10am – 6pm, Saturday: 12pm – 6pmAdmission free

Thu 26th May 2016 to Fri 22nd Jul 2016

Cortesi Gallery is delighted to present The Concrete Utopia: Ivan Picelj and New Tendencies 1961–1973, an exhibition that explores the neo avant-garde of the sixties and seventies via the work of Croatian artist Ivan Picelj (1924–2011). As one of the founders of the New Tendencies movement, Picelj’s work presents a fascinating opportunity to re-examine this exciting period.

Curated by Ilaria Bignotti, the retrospective features more than 40 works by Picelj, retracing the significant developments of one of the movement’s leading figures. Picelj is renowned for his persistent pursuit of the perfect relationship between perception and knowledge. Through his rigorous ideation and infinite patience for repetition, his forms become a concrete utopia, created as a better way to see, feel and experience the everyday in life.

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Meet-Up

The next Meet-Up takes place on .

Wednesday 18 May

We will be meeting at the National Theatre (downstairs) on the South Bank. There has been a recent refurbishment of the bar area which of course also serves tea and coffee.

The intention is for people with any form of interest in Croatia to meet up, socialise and have a chat in an informal atmosphere. Whether you are a Croatian resident in London or someone who has recently visited Croatia for the first time and want to know more, this event is for you.

The event is of course open to both members and non-members. It provides an excellent opportunity for anyone to come and meet British-Croatian Society members and even to join if they so wish!

We hope to bag a table early on in the bar area on the ground floor. BCS members Brian Gallagher and John Pindar will be there from the start and you can find us by looking out for Croatian symbols.

We’ll be there between 7.30 PM and 10 PM.

Come along for a chat about all things Croatian!

National Theatre: Upper Ground, South BankNearest Tube stations: Embankment, WaterlooFull location details:

http://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk

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The THIRTEEN

The THIRTEEN will exhibit at the Croatian Embassy, 21 Conway Street, London W1T 6BN from May 20 to June 30.

THIRTEEN is an outstanding group of professional and accomplished amateur photographers.

Private view May 20, 18-30 – 20-30.

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World Premiere of William Thackeray opera

Sir Nicholas Jackson composes new opera based on William Thackeray’s The Rose and the Ring,

First public performancewill take place at Thackeray’s old school at The Charterhouse in the centre of London in May

Composer Sir Nicholas Jackson will be conducting his latest work, on Wednesday 4 May at Drapers livery Hall, followed by the first public performance at The Charterhouse, London on Thursday 5 May. The opera, based on the novel by William Thackeray will include an array of young and exciting singers, including Kathleen Ferrier finalist Robyn Parton. They will be joined by the ‘Concertante of London’, led byMadeleine Easton, who has recently performed with the ‘English Baroque’ soloists and the ‘King’s Consort’.TheRose and the Ring

is based on one of Thackeray’s lesser known works, located in the fictional kingdom of Pafflagonia. Magic, royalty and romance dominate the themes of Thackeray’s novel. For Nicholas, it was an obvious choice for an opera, “My Grandfather had known Thackeray’s daughter and one day when rummaging through some books that I had inherited I came across a worn copy of her father’s . Although written as a ‘children’s pantomime’ it is an equally good read for grown-ups with ingenious twists, I just couldn’t believe that this had not occurred to anybody else”. The Rose and the RingThe Rose & the Ring

The score is set to adaptations and orchestrations of Keyboard Sonatas by Scarlatti, a composer whose sonatas Sir Nicholas has had a long affiliation with. “As a harpsichordist I had performed and recorded about 40 of his sonatas and played through a great many more. I had also recently recorded for Nimbus my arrangement of one of his sonatas for Wind Quartet and Harpsichord. It has been said that all the sounds that Scarlatti would have heard, if he had opened a window of his house in 18^th century Madrid, are contained in the microcosm of his 550 sonatas including flamenco dancing, castanets, the strumming of guitars and the wail of gypsy laments. But the gaiety of his music is sometimes overwhelmed by a surge of operatic passion.”

The public premiere of this work will be staged at The Charterhouse (5 May) in the very same building Thackeray would have visited daily during his time at the school in the 19^thcentury. On 7 May the cast will be recording the work in its entirety to be released later in the year. It will undoubtedly highlight Jackson’s knowledgeable interpretation of Scarlatti as well as his dedication to raising the profile of exciting young artists.

http://jacksonmusic.co.uk/

For ticket reservations (10am-3pm Monday – Friday) please contact Dawn Woodford at The Charterhouse on 0207 253 9503, Ext. 2

For press enquiries, please contact:
Valerie Barber PR
Suite 2
9a St John’s Wood High Street
London NW8 7NG

Tel: +44 (0)20 7586 8560

emily@vbpr.co.uk
www.vbpr.co.uk

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Meet-Up

Our next Meet-Up takes place on .

Wednesday 23 March

We will be meeting the National Theatre (downstairs) on the South Bank. There has been a recent refurbishment of the bar area which of course also serves tea and coffee.

The intention is for people with any form of interest in Croatia to meet up, socialise and have a chat in an informal atmosphere. Whether you are a Croatian resident in London or someone who has recently visited Croatia for the first time and want to know more, this event is for you.

The event is of course open to both members and non-members. It provides an excellent opportunity for anyone to come and meet British-Croatian Society members and even to join if they so wish!

We hope to bag a table early on in the bar area on the ground floor. BCS members Brian Gallagher and John Pindar will be there from the start and you can find us by looking out for Croatian symbols.

We’ll be there between 7.30 PM and 10 PM.

Come along for a chat about all things Croatian!

National Theatre: Upper Ground, South BankNearest Tube stations: Embankment, WaterlooFull location details:

www.nationaltheatre.org.uk

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Music for Holy Week

Monday 21 March, 7.30pm, St Paul’s Church, Covent Garden, Bedford Street, London, WC2E 9ED

The Elysian Singers, including tenor Stephen Cviic, conducted by Sam Laughton, present five centuries of penitential psalm settings from all around Europe: from France to Estonia, from Italy to Denmark. Mini-masterpieces by Mendelssohn (‘Hear my Prayer’) and Arvo Pärt (‘An den Wassern zu Babel’) rub shoulders with English choral favourites by Purcell and Howells.

Tickets: £15 (concessions for the unwaged £10), available from www.wegottickets.com

Nearest stations: Covent Garden and Leicester Square

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A Pair of Sparkling Eyes

Friday 18 March, 7.30pm, St Paul’s Church, Rectory Grove, Clapham, London SW4

Tenor Stephen Cviic, soprano Antonia Cviic and other members of St Paul’s Opera present an evening of operatic highlights with a romantic theme, including excerpts from Bizet’s Mozart’s , and music by Handel and Puccini, among others. Tickets include a glass of wine.Carmen, The Magic Flute

Tickets: £15 (concessions £12) on the door or in advance from www.wegottickets.com/StPaulsOpera

Nearest stations: Clapham Common tube and Wandworth Road Overground.

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You are reminded that you are invited to the Annual General Meeting and a committee meeting of the British-Croatian Society to be held on at 18.30 at the Croatian Embassy, 21 Conway Street, London W1T 6BN.

Tuesday 8 March

The meeting will include a report of the year and plans for the future, an update on the Society’s membership and finances, as well as the appointment of trustees and committee members.

We are always looking for new ideas and would very much welcome your presence.

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On , the Croatian Supplementary School in London is organising a workshop called .

Saturday 5th of MarchRaising a Bilingual Child: Learning Together

The workshop aims to support parents in bringing up children to be bilingual by sharing solutions to the challenges they encounter and exploring practical strategies for enhancing learning.

The workshop will take place at Croatian Embassy.

The workshop starts at 10am and it will finish around 11.30am.

The event is free, but . Please email to book your place.

you must register to attendivanacapps@yahoo.com

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will be one of the panellists at

Tena Stivicic , an event organised to celebrate the fifth anniversary of Asymptote, the international journal of translation. This will take place at (tickets £5). Further information can be found at .Multilingual ImaginationsWaterstones in Piccadilly on Wednesday March 27 at 19-00www.asymptotejournal.com/events

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For information please go to .

will perform at the. Tickets are already on sale. 2 Cellos Greenwich Music Time Festival on July 5www.greenwichmusictime.co.uk

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There There – a 50% Romanian 50% Serbian theatre company – at Rich Mix on .

will be performed by Eastern Europeans for Dummies18 March

In anticipation of the EU referendum, Eastern Europeans for Dummies dissects immigrant stereotypes perpetuated by the politicians and the media. The project is supported by Arts Council England, Rich Mix, the Romanian Cultural Centre and Counterpoints Arts. Further information at www.richmix.org.uk

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Croatian Heritage Foundation Language Courses

University School of Croatian Language and Culture in Zagreb, June 25 – July 22. School of Croatian Language and Culture, Novi Vindolski, July 18 – 29. For further information please see the attached notices or contact Professor Lada Kanajet Simic ().

Lada@matis.hr

The University of Zagreb & Croatian Heritage Foundation
Croatian Heritage Foundation

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Croatian jazz on BBC Radio 3

, jazz guitarist and accordionist from Opatija, appeared on last Saturday’s BBC Radio 3 Jazz Line-Up with his international group JazzExTempore Orchestra in the composition ‘Lanziamentos del Verde’. To hear it go to

Elvis Stanicwww.bbc.co.uk/programmes

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Leap Summit5 -7 May 2016, Zagreb

Message from the Croatian Embassy in London

President of Republic of Croatia and is highly supported by University of Zagreb. The Leap Summit international

will gather more than 1,000 young people who are entrepreneurs, NGO leaders, students, leaders and opinion leaders in their respective communities. Main themes of the Leap Summit will be connected to innovations, entrepreneurship, modern technologies, career development and success stories. The Summit is under patronage of Leap Summitconference hopes to gather a lot of Croatian participants who live outside of Croatia, to exchange ideas and positive experiences.

You can download pdf .

here

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orchestra formed from a younger generation of London based jazz soloists and run by Croatian composer and conductor Mak Murtić and singer Maja Rivić. They will play a gig in one of the best jazz clubs in London, Vortex in Dalston.

MIMIKA is excellent jazz

For further information, please go to:

www.vortexjazz.co.uk
www.facebook.com/events/456148251245920/

—————————————————————————————————Vukovar Water Tower

The Croatian Embassy has passed to us information aboutFor further information, please contact the City of Vukovar:

the project received from representatives of the City of Vukovar. Vukovar Water Tower – Symbol of Croatian Unity

Dr. Franje Tudjmana 1
32000 Vukovar
CROATIA
Tel. +385 32 456 524
Fax. +385 32 456 570

You can download pdf .

here

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Dejan Lazic

Here is the to hear the recording of the fantastic concert of Croatian pianist Dejan Lazić in the Wigmore Hall on 18th of January in the BBC Radio 3 series ‘Wigmore Hall Mondays’.

link

At the end of concert he played his own composition ‘3 Istrian Dances Op 15a ‘.

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Croatian countertenor Max Emanuel Cencic

The famous Croatian countertenor Max Emanuel Cencic gave a concert at the Wigmore Hall on 27th of December. Click to see a review of the concert.

here

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Adrian Chiles BBC programme

You may like to know about this BBC programme that is now available on iPlayer.

My Mediterranean with Adrian Chiles, Episode 1www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b06vngp4

This is what the BBC says:Adrian Chiles converted to Catholicism ten years ago, but wonders whether his choice of church was an accident of birth and geography. If he had been born in Istanbul or Jerusalem, would he have been equally happy being a Muslim or a Jew? In this first episode, he visits the stunning Dalmatian coast, where he meets up with his Croatian mum and reveals how he got the nickname Holy Joe.

Next stop is Istanbul, where he has fun in the Grand Bazaar before heading out on the Bosphorus with a Muslim fisherman. During Eid al-Adha, a major Islamic festival, Adrian struggles to watch the celebratory sacrifice. He travels to Jerusalem for the Jewish festival of Sukkot, and then moves on to Tel-Aviv to get drunk with a gay, atheist, Jewish celebrity chef. His final stop is an Evangelical concert by the Dead Sea, attended by Christians from all over the world.

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has a lunch time piano concert at the Wigmore Hall on . For details, please visit

Dejan LazicJanuary 18wigmore-hall.org.uk

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You may be interested in this radio with on the British-Croatian Society’s photographic exhibition .

interviewGordana JohnsonphotographingCroatia

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Peter Frankopan’s ‘The Silk Roads’ is number 1 in the Daily Telegraph’s UK non fiction list. We hope to have a talk by Peter in our 2016 programme. For more information about the book and Peter, please go to

www.bloomsbury.com

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We have a full programme planned for 2016. If you are not a member and would like to support us by joining, please go to our website .

www.britishcroatiansociety.com

2015 – a bumper year at the British-Croatian Society

A challenge: how many Croatian writers’ books are available to read in English? (we will give you the answer in a moment) London has seen Croatian authors, from established figures such as Daša Drndić to some of the many exciting new writers, at the Croatian stand at the London Book Fair each year. This generates a lot of interest. We spotted an opportunity to help British readers with an interest in Croatia, but no knowledge of Croatian, by publishing Writing Croatia. This lists Croatian fiction translated into English, as well as fiction set in Croatia by non-Croats, and a section of non-fiction books.

The answer to our question is that we have so far found 108 books by Croatian fiction writers that are available in English listed in Writing Croatia (there are probably more – so if you know of some we have missed, please tell us).

Writing Croatia is a follow-up to Mapping Croatia, a guide to Croatian works of art in UK museums and galleries, which we published as part of the Welcome Croatia festival in 2013. There are many more Croatian works in the UK than you might think, most of them in public museums to be seen free of charge. If you would like copies, both are available free of charge by emailing us at our address below.

How can Croatia make an impact in the UK? It is not easy. One way we tried for the first 6 months of 2015 was to build on the Croatian involvement with the London Book Fair, adding to it other events and branding them as

bringing contemporary Croatia to London in 2015

creativeCroatia

Various organizations were involved – the embassy fielded many of them – and we used the logo on our activities. The highlight was the embassy’s inclusion of the bronze sculpture of the young athlete recovered from the Adriatic in 1999 in the British Museum ‘Defining Beauty’ exhibition.

With the embassy we organized creativeCroatia events such as the concert with Diana Brekalo and friends that raised nearly £1,000 for the English section of the library of the school in Gunja destroyed by floods, and the presentation by Vanja Žanko at the ArtEco Gallery that brought us bang up to date with the contemporary art scene in Croatia.

It is always good to hear Dr Ivan Grdesić, the Croatian Ambassador, talk. We put him together with Peter Sanfey, a senior economist at EBRD (the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development) at an ‘in conversation’ event. EBRD has invested 3.1 billion euros in Croatia so bringing them together provoked a good relaxed discussion of current political and economic issues (if you want to know more about EBRD, you can do so at ).

www.ebrd.com/croatia.html

EBRD has been a good partner of the British-Croatian Society over the years in hosting the Chris Cviić memorial lecture. Chris was an influential figure on Croatian and Balkan issues and at one time worked at EBRD. This year Boris Vujčić, the Governor of the Croatian National Bank, gave a detailed presentation on the economy.

Tena Stivičić, one of Croatia’s foremost literary figures, later in the year appeared at another ‘in conversation’. With Roy Cross (a former British Council Director in Croatia) they talked about her play ‘3 Winters’ that ran to excellent reviews at the National Theatre, as well as ranging more widely over her work as a playwright.

It is always exciting to find someone who has been profoundly influenced by Croatia. Melanie Hodge is such a person. Melanie has taken the Croatian naïve tradition of reverse oil paintings on glass and made it her own. Her British-Croatian Society exhibition ‘Though A Looking Glass’ at Conway Hall was, according to Martha May of Conway Hall, “one of the most popular exhibitions we’ve held”. For more on Melanie and her work, please go to , or follow her on instagram: Melanie hodge; Twitter: @mjhodge: or Facebook: MJHodge Art and Illustration.

www.mjhodge.co.uk

Flora Turner’s knowledge and appreciation of the arts is always impressive and she was on good form when she delivered a talk entitled ‘The Painted Coast’. With superb illustrations, she introduced the audience to the works of British painters in 18th, 19t and 20th century who visited Istria and Dalmatia. Earlier in the year she was the key component in the British-Croatian Society supported Victoria & Albert Museum symposium on Mesštrović, marking the 100th anniversary of his V & A exhibition in 1915.

The Society’s annual dinner was held this year at the prestigious East India Club, an extraordinary ‘home from home for gentlemen’ in the heart of London’s clubland. There can hardly be a more old-fashioned English location for a British-Croatian Society event!

Sensationally good photographs in our final event of the year: photographingCroatia brought together at the embassy the best of the photographs taken in Croatia submitted to us by amateurs and professionals. A fun event to bring to a close a good year for the British-Croatian Society.

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Adriatica.net looking for help at their stand on the World Travel Market

Adriatica.net will have their stand on the World Travel Market and have asked if we know anyone that speaks Croatian and that lives in London that would be available to work on their stand for the duration of the fair – 2-5 November from 9am to 6pm at London Excel. The person will have to distribute brochures and help with enquiries.

Please, do let me know if you know someone and we will then put them in contact with Adriatica.net.

sara@croatia-london.co.ukinfo@croatia-london.co.uk

www.croatia.hr

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Ivana Gavric

Fresh from being awarded ‘Record of the Year’ for her Grieg Piano Works disc by the Grieg Society and the Norwegian Ambassador in the UK last week, pianist Ivana Gavric will be performing Grieg’s ever-popular Piano Concerto this .

Thursday, 8th October, at St James’ Piccadilly at 7-30pm

More information can be found at

www.orchestraofthecity.com

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Memorial unveiled to one of Plymouth’s greatest sons – former Labour leader Michael Foot

On Friday a memorial was unveiled in Plymouth to Michael Foot, a previous Patron of the British-Croatian Society and a keen supporter of Croatia. The Society made a modest contribution to funding for the memorial.

here

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THIRTEEN
in the Gallery of the Embassy of Croatia28 May – 1 July 2015

Private view
28 May, 6.30-8.30pm
21 Conway Street, London W1T 6BN

In THIRTEEN, a diverse group of amateur and professional photographers work without the constraint of a single theme, each showing one side of their creativity. The images in the exhibition span a selection of photographic genres and techniques – colour or monochrome, traditional darkroom processing or digital manipulation.

For each of these photographers, in addition to the artistic and technical choice of subject and method, taking photographs is a means of individual expression – each image has a unique personal stamp.

Viewers are invited to consider each image on its own as well as in relation to the group, for their visual pleasure.

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St Martin-in-the-Fields

May 19, 2015, 1pm

Free Lunchtime Concert: St Martin’s Embassy Series
Diana Brekalo

Join Croatian pianist, Diana Brekalo, as she performs a virtuosic programme of Beethoven, Kelemen and Lizst.

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Croatian Literary Events

Croatia will again have a stand at the London Book Fair in April and Croatian literary events will take place at the Fair and elsewhere. The Tristram Bates Theatre, just off Leicester Square, is an ideal intimate small theatre for the following event based on the English version of Olja

A one-off event as part of the London Book Fairadapted from the novel by at the , 1A Tower St, London WC2H 9NP

Thursday 16April, 1.00-2:30pm
Rehearsed Reading of the play ‘Farewell, Cowboy’

Olja Savičević
TRISTAN BATES THEATRE

A Rehearsed reading of Farewell, Cowboy: the story of a suicide, a quest for truth, a reason for revenge and a wild love affair. One of the most popular Croatian novels of recent years is being launched by during the week of the London Book Fair.

Istros Books

This one-off performance brings together the director of the original theatre adaptation, Ivica Buljan, and two of Croatia’s most exemplary contemporary actors, Nataša Janjić and Marko Cindrić, for a reading in English for the very first time. The performance will be followed by book signing with the author, Olja Savičević, and a glass of wine to toast the launch!

BOOK YOUR PLACE BY CALLING THE BOX OFFICE ON 020 7240 6283 OR BOOKING ONLINE HERE

is a theatre and TV actor. He is also Artistic Director-Producer of

Marko Cindrić.Nu:Write Theatre Festival Zagreb

is an award-winning Croatian theatre director with international experience. He is the theatre and art director of

Ivica Buljan.zagrebtheatrefestival.hr

is an award-winning stage actressSince 2006, she has worked at the Zagreb City Drama Theatre, .

Nataša Janjić. Gavella

creativeCroatia
bringing contemporary Croatia to London in 2015

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V&A Ivan Mestrovic Symposium

To mark the centenary of the hugely important exhibition of Ivan Mestrovic in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London in 1915, the . It is organised in cooperation with the Mestrovic Museums in Croatia and three of their curators will give a paper. The speakers will include curators from the V&A, and specialists for sculpture and architecture from the UK and abroad.Victoria and Albert Museum is holding a symposium devoted to Ivan Mestrovic on Wednesday 24 June

It will be a fairly intimate event, with a roundtable format, and we hope interesting ideas will be exchanged. It is free of charge, but places are very limited, and an early registration is essential. To register please contact at .creativeCroatiam.trusted@vam.ac.uk

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International Trust for Croatian Monuments

Sloane SquareLondon SW1

Tuesday 9 June, 7.30pm
Holy Trinity Church

Read the full details .

here

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New York Times review of Tena Štivičić’s ‘Three Winters’

Read the full review .

here

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A Night at the Opera

AMAC-UK 2015 concert ‘A Night at the Opera’ to be held on .This will raise funds to support awards for Croatian young scientists.

February 28

You can view more information .

here

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Croatian Embassy Fund Raising Concert

given by and colleagues at 18-00 on at , Hampstead.

Croatian Embassy charity concertDiana BrekaloJanuary 22Rosslyn Hill Chapel

The concert will raise money for the library of the school in Gunya that was badly affected by floods. Money raised will help re-stock the library with books to help students of English.

We very much hope you will be able to attend, but if you are unable to do so, please consider donating to the appeal through the British-Croatian Society.

here

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Vlado Kristl at Tate Modern in November

An influential figure in Croatian avant-garde, Vlado Kristl’s work from his ground breaking animations produced at the Zagreb Film animation studio to his first live action film General I resni Clovek / The General, that was banned in 1962, will be shown alongside works by his contemporaries from the active Cine-Club movement in Croatia including Ante Verzotti, Milan Šamec, Mihovil Pansini, Tomislav Gotovac, Vladimir Petek and Ivan Martinac.

Kristl began filmmaking after his involvement in the abstract art movement EXAT 51, starting at the famous Zagreb Film studio he produced early films such as Krada dragulja / Great Jewel Robbery 1959 and his iconoclastic Cervantes adaptation Don Kihot 1961, a remarkable animation that radically reduced the source material recasting the Don Quixote and Sancho Panza against an abstract barren landscapes and fighting a rampant military.

His first live-action film General I resni Clovek / The General, an absurd drama set in a prison camp see Kristl as the lead inspiring an insurrection. The general of the title, whose appearance is heralded with laugher, bares an uncanny resemblance to President Tito that lead to the instant banning and destruction of the film – but not before a copy was smuggled out of Yugoslavia quickly followed by Kristl’s own departure.

Illustrated talks will explore the legacy of Vlado Kristl, EXAT 51 and the Croatia Cine-Clubs with film historian and persident of the Croatian Film Club Association Hrvoje Turkovic followed by a discussion with curator and researcher Branka Benčić.

www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-modern/film/vlado-kristl-2-croatian-avant-garde—————————————————————————————————

3 Winters

play 3 Winters is at the from

Tena Štivičić’sNational TheatreNovember 26

From the remnants of monarchy to Communism, democracy, war and the EU: Croatia 1945-2011. The Kos family argue, adapt, fall in and out of love.

World after world is erected and torn down around them. The one constant is the ivy-clad house in Zagreb, built by aristocrats, partitioned, owned by all, owned by a few; witness to four increasingly educated and independent generations of women.

But when the family assemble for Lucia’s wedding, Alisa learns that her nouveau-riche brother-in-law has bought the once nationalised house. For the bride this is progress, for her sister it’s a shady act of greed. For their principled parents, finally, it’s one battle too many.

Against a country in turmoil, Tena Štivičić’s 3 Winters creates the portrait of an eclectic family, held together by the courage to survive.

www.nationaltheatre.org.uk

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Stone’s Throw Theatre presentBroken Promise Land

The Irish TimesSunday TimesEtcetera TheatreFri 22 – Sun 24th August 2014 at 3:30pm 3 shows only!

020 7482 4857

www.camdenfringe.com/detailact.php?acts_id=655

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školaHrvatska dopunska

Film Festival at Goldsmiths to celebrates and discusses pupils’ work. The school students have created digital stories in a range of languages (Arabic, Chinese, Croatian, English, English as a second language, French, German and Greek). The Croatian Supplementary School has been taking part in a research project with Goldsmiths, University of London, entitled ‘Critical Connections: Multilingual Digital Storytelling Project’, involving 5 supplementary schools, 5 mainstream schools and 3 overseas schools. This two year project (2012-2014), funded by the Paul Hamlyn Foundation, involves pupils in creating and evaluating digital stories, developing skills in language and literacy as well as more critical and sophisticated use of multimedia tools. It is innovative and exciting work which supports schools in engaging learners and in developing a curriculum which is attuned to the needs of culturally diverse societies and a more interconnected and interdependent world.The

Goldsmiths College Film Festival

‘Critical Connections: A multilingual Digital Storytelling Project’ (9.45-16.00)
17 June 2014

Venue:

Goldsmiths College, New Academic Building, University of London, SE14 6NW

(New Cross or New Cross Gate train station)

http://www.gold.ac.uk/media/campus-map.pdf

Registration

http://goldsmithsmdst.wordpress.com/festival14/

Six pupils from the School’s oldest group (11-15) have created two short bilingual films (3-5 min):

A Journey to Croatia: Did You Know?

Happy Easter

This project, funded by the Paul Hamlyn Foundation, has involved pupils from five supplementary schools, five mainstream)rabic, Chinese, Croatian, English, English as a second language, French, German and Greek

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Floods in Serbia, Bosnia Herzegovina and Croatia: appeals for help

Croatian Church

The Croatian Chaplaincy is organizing a collection of financial assistance for those affected by the devastating floods. During this week you can send donations to the Chaplaincy’s account:The Croatian Church, Sort Code 50-21-01, Account Number 57228701.Please advise them of your donation by e-mail so that they can forward them next week to the Caritas of Bosnia and Herzegovina.Should you wish to send your donations directly you can do that to the following accounts: , account IBAN HR05 2340 0091 1000 8034 0, reference number 175 account IBAN BA39 338 690 481 206 3318, SWIFT CODE: UNCRBA 22.They will also be collecting donations during the Sunday Mass on the 25th May 2014 at 4 pm in the Sacred Heart Church, 110 Horseferry Road, London SW1P 2EF for the flood affected communities in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia.

hkmlondon@gmail.com
Caritas in Croatia
Caritas in Bosnia and Herzegovina

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Red Cross

Thousands of people are left homeless, without food, water, and warm and dry clothes due to severe flooding in Croatia, Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. They need your help! Donate to the Red Cross organisations which are leading the humanitarian efforts in the region:IBAN: HR 6923400091511555516SWIFT: PBZGHR2XFULL BENEFICIARY NAME : HRVATSKI CRVENI KRIŽ,FULL BENEFICIARY ADDRESS: ULICA CRVENOG KRIŽA 14, P.P. 93, 10001 ZAGREBYou can also make an online payment via credit card for “Pomoć za poplavljena područja u Hrvatskoj/Srbiji/Bosni i Hercegovini“ . Instructions for payments in EUR, GBP, USD are (select English in upper right corner).IBAN CODE: BA391610000000850119SWIFT CODE : RZBABA2SFULL BENEFICIARY NAME : CRVENI KRIZ FEDERACIJE BIH SARAJEVOFULL BENEFICIARY ADDRESS: NEDIMA FILIPOVICA 9, SARAJEVOMore information and news are (google translator is available in right sidebar under ‘Izaberite jezik’).

Croatian Red Cross:

hereRed Cross Serbia:
here
Red Cross Bosnia and Herzegovina:

here

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The Seagull

The ZKM theatre company from Zagreb will be performing Chekhov’s The Seagull in Croatian with English surtitles on Saturday, May 24 at the Nottingham Playhouse. For details and how you can buy tickets (£13 or £11 concessions), please go to

Notingham Playhouse

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Invitation

Vera Stevens, the winner of the Welcome Croatia Festival photographic competition “Croatia through the lens”, will now have her own exhibition at the Croatian Embassy and you are invited. If you wish to attend the opening at 18:00 on April 17, please email by April 14.

publon@mvep.hr

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OURFC V Croatia

Croatia Poster

Lea And Daria | UK Jewish Film Festival

If you missed the film “Lea and Daria” at the Croatian Film Festival, you will be able to see it at the Jewish Film Festival, from 3rd to 9th February at “JW3”, 341-351 Finchley Road, London NW3 6ET.

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Croatian Language School for Children

The Croatian language school for children aged 5 to 14 will re-open in January 2014. The school is situated at the Croatian Embassy in London, 21 Conway Street, W1T 6BN. The lesson are held there on Saturdays and groups and timings will be confirmed at a later date, and will depend on the number of children enrolled. For more information please visit, or contact Ivana Capps on 07949 772314 or email

www.cro-school.org.ukivanacapps@yahoo.com

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Dubrovnik Foreign Circle Appeal

Over £3,000 has been raised by the British-Croatian Society in response to our appeal for donations to support the Dubrovnik Foreign Circle’s proposal to provide the Dubrovnik Hospital children’s unit with a spirometer.

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A Visit to Fort George, Vis September 2013

This September my husband and I went first to Vis where we had been invited for the ceremony of the reopening of Fort George. William Wenkel, the young London-based businessman and Swedish naval reserve officer, who has invested heavily in the restoration of the fort and has a 25 year concession to run it as a cultural and recreational centre, asked Malcolm to advise on the contents and layout of a museum. Housed in the fort itself the museum is to cover the three main periods of the military history of Vis; the occupation and fortification by the British at the beginning of the nineteenth century; its use as an Austrian naval base; and by the allies and partisans in the Second World War. Besides the museum the fort will have a gallery for various local or international artists in residence to exhibit their work. There will also be concerts, facilities for meetings, conferences and receptions, with a restaurant, wine cellar and terrace bar and discotheque.

Almost five years had passed since our last visit to the fort, then in a sad state of neglect and disrepair and overgrown. So, when soon after our arrival on Vis, William and his team took us to the fort to show what progress had been made, we were more than pleasantly surprised. Under the guidance of the Split conservationist Sanja Buble, and in spite of the many bureaucratic hurdles to be surmounted, the inevitable delays and complications with the excavations and reconstruction, and escalating costs, much has been achieved. But the work is far from finished and more costly work remains to be undertaken. What has been done so far is a very considerable achievement, realising the fort’s potential as one of the most splendid venues for entertainment and cultural activity in this part of the Adriatic. The mayor of Vis, Ivo Radica, has been supportive from the start when he interested William in the fort as a place to host parties for the yacht weeks, the primary business of William and his partners, the profits of which are being invested in the restoration. The Vis municipality has made an essential contribution by asphalting the road to the fort and laying a pipeline to supply water.

On the evening of September 6, 200 years since the British built the original fort in 1812-13, with fanfares and the beating of drums by a Croatian naval band, Admiral John McAnally, president of the Royal Navy Association, formally ordered the gate of the fort to be opened. Instead of a salute by cannon, there followed the explosion of fireworks on the roof of the fort.

The carefully choreographed and symbolic opening ceremony was witnessed by an international gathering of guests, including the mayor and local dignitaries, Croatian Navy officers representing the President of the Republic, Ivo Josipovic. and the British Ambassador to Croatia and British military attaches. Mingling with these official quests were retired Swedish naval officers and numerous other Swedish friends and family members of William Wenkel and his business partners, British with homes on Vis, and a number of representatives of Austria in nineteenth century uniforms, including one magnificent individual in an admiral’s uniform with sideburns to match (reminding one of Gilbert and Sullivan). When the guests were assembled on the roof terrace, Admiral McAnally delivered a speech, after which the Union flag was lowered and replaced by the flag of Croatia by Croatian Navy officers. The Admiral then presented the key of the fort to the Commodore Robert Hranj, commanding the Croatian Navy, who then gave a speech and handed it on to the Mayor of Vis, Ivo Radica, who in turn entrusted it to William Wenkel.

After that the sit down dinner was hosted on the top terrace with all night partying for younger members until early hours of the morning.

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Sir Arthur Evans in Dalmatia

The Welcome Croatia Sir Arthur Evans seminar at the Ashmolean in Oxford last week was a great success. For those who were unable to attend, you might like to see the text of the introductory session from the Director of the museum, Dr Christopher Brown. It is attached to this email.

Sir Arthur Evans is today mostly remembered for his archaeological work on the island of Crete, and especially his excavations at the so-called ‘Palace of Minos’ at Knossos. But before Knossos, there were many other regions and time periods that attracted his interest.

Influenced by his father’s diverse antiquarian interests – the famous prehistorian Sir John Evans – young Arthur travelled extensively across Europe, while still an Oxford History undergraduate. His first visit to Croatia was in the late summer 1871 with his brother Lewis as part of a larger trip that included Austria.

Evans returned to Croatia in 1875, again joined by his brother Lewis. That was the beginning of a journey through Bosnia and Herzegovina which he later published as a book to gain an enthusiastic response by the press and critics of the time. The book was widely read and even quoted in Parliament – Evans became an authority in the region ‘after a month’s travel and a single book’.

While in Croatia, Evans visited Zagreb, Sisak, and Ragusa (modern Dubrovnik). He was interested in everyday life as his writings and drawings suggest. For the archaeology of the region, especially in Dalmatia, and Evans’s efforts to bring it to light and make it accessible to the wider world, you will hear more later this afternoon by our distinguished speakers, Professor John Wilkes, Dr Susan Sherratt, Dr Susan Walker and Dr Helena Tomas.

The most celebrated period of Evans in Croatia was by far the years between 1878 and 1882, when he worked as correspondent for the Manchester Guardian. In 1878 he married Margaret Freeman and together they made Ragusa their home, where Arthur had taken a 20-year lease on a beautiful house overlooking the sea, called Casa San Lazzaro.

Evans came to dislike Austrian rule as much as the Ottoman. He would write: ‘The people were treated not as a liberated, but as a conquered and inferior race; their sense of right – which they do possess in a remarkable degree – is simply trodden underfoot.’ His anti-Austrian reports and activities led to his imprisonment and eventual expulsion from the area.

In 1932, at the age of 81 and after an absence of fifty years, Evans revisited Croatia with his sister-in-law Helen Freeman. He flew to Zagreb from where he wrote: ‘the traveller arriving by air, looks down on what is now a city of over a quarter of a million inhabitants, spaciously ‘town-planned’, with a bright garden band stretching to its centre, and interspersed with fine public buildings…’. Evans’s journey ended with a visit to Ragusa where he was welcomed as a hero. There he saw his old house, garden, and the prison where he was incarcerated in 1882. Such was Evans’s love for Ragusa that his half-sister and biographer, Dame Joan Evans would write that ‘for many years he had felt that he would best find rest in the flowery graveyard, barred by the shadows of Cypresses, that lies outside the walls of the city’. Although his attention progressively shifted to Crete, Evans never abandoned his interest in Dalmatia and the region as a whole.

The influence of Sir Arthur Evans extends far and beyond the realm of Minos and the island of Crete and even that of archaeology. His liberal views on the political situation in southeastern Europe and his knowledge on the people, the land and the different cultures made him an expert of the complex history of that part of the world.

The Ashmolean’s half-day symposium on ‘Sir Arthur Evans in Dalmatia’ presents us with a great opportunity to explore his travels in the region and to look at contemporary Croatian archaeology in celebration of Croatia’s accession to the European Union on the 1st of July.

It gives me particular pleasure to welcome the Croatian Ambassador Dr Ivan Grdešić (and Mrs Grdešić) to the Ashmolean on this special occasion. Finally, I should like to thank Dr Yannis Galanakis and ‘Welcome Croatia’ for organising today’s symposium, and Archaeopress for their financial support of the event.

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Shearsman Books to publish Tin Ujević’s poems translated by Richard Berengarten

Shearsman Books are about to publish bilingual edition of small selection of Tin Ujević’s poems translated by Richard Berengarten and Daša Marić. Tin’s poems have hardly been translated into English, and this is the first real attempt to do so seriously, even though on a small scale. Richard’s translations have been published on several Croatian websites, most significantly in the cultural and academic web-journal “[sic]”, a venture of the University of Zadar. There is also an extended critical and interpretative essay on Tin on the same website, which is quite possibly the first serious attempts by a British literary scholar to approach his work.

These translations have been widely circulated informally and on the web. For example, an enterprising English teacher in Croatia has been using some of these poems to help her pupils learn English. As the charming performances by these children suggest, Richard’s translations retain the melos of Tin’s poems.

YouTube clip 1

YouTube clip 2

YouTube clip 3

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Evening Standard review of West End hit musical ‘Once’, Wednesday 10 April 2013

Read about Croatian actress Zrinka Cvitesic at the heart of the new West End hit musical ‘Once’

Evening Standard

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Croatian Stand at the London Book Fair 2013

Read about Croatian Stand at the London Book Fair

Croatian Stand

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Mapping Croatia

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An initiative to be supported

I would like to inform the members of the British Croatian society about an important project worthy of our interest and support. It regards the future development and the preservation of the beautiful and unique island of Vis It is particularly interesting for the British Croatian Society because the island’s place in two crucial periods in the British history. It served for a short time as a British base in the Napoleonic wars, from which time there are still the remains of several British fortifications, in need of restoration. Furthermore the island served as a secure base for the Allied air forces during the last years of WW2. Until a year ago, while they were still capable of undertaking it, British veterans from that war (some of whose lives were saved once they reached Vis) made an annual visit to the island to commemorate this episode and honour their comrades. However, Vis has a much older history, in relation to which a local volunteer cultural association ‘Lavurat za poja’ (‘To labour for the fields’) successfully organised an international symposium called “ Anatomy of an Island”, supported by the municipalities Vis and Komiza, at the end of September 2012.

The purpose of the symposium was to revaluate the local historic and environmental legacy and develop ideas and proposals for the intelligent preservation and use of existing historical attractions, to create and give a valuable cultural content to the island’s tourist industry, and to prevent undesirable and uncontrolled overdevelopment. For the introductory symposium the organisers gathered an impressive group of specialist lecturers in the fields of archaeology, architecture, economics and history who analysed different aspects of the island from their particular points of view. The symposium, apart from local inhabitants, was attended by 200 participants amongst them 32 students of architecture from Japan, Croatia and Slovenia. The lecturers worked for the second part of symposium with the students divided into 6 groups to develop ideas arising from the lectures during the first week.

Among the specialists was one of the most famous Japanese architects, Prof. Kengo Kuma, who has two architectural studios in France and a chair at Tokyo University. He talked about his work in small and delicate environments. He was followed by Prof. Radovic, also teaching architecture in Japan, who talked about world trends in sustaining small environments. Apart from them one of the best known architects and selector for Venice Biennale 2010 Arch. Kazuyo Selima joined the symposium during its seminar week where she worked with the students.

Archeologists Boris Chargo, Lorenzzo Guzzardi from Siracusa in Sicily, Mirosalv Katic, Dinko Radic and other well-known archaeologists saw possibilities in enhancing the idea of the antique Greek colony of Issa, the oldest urban development in Dalmatia dating from 2400 BC. Ancient Issa, the outlines of which are still visible, was created when Greeks from Syracuse in Sicily decided to establish colonies along the Adriatic sea routes to facilitate trade with the Northern Adriatic . The Greek colonisation began with the development of the town and port of ancient Issa, which subsequently served as a starting point for further settlements such as Trogir and Stobrec. Issa was founded approximately at the same time as the Aegean Greeks founded Pharos. The archaeologists talked about antique Issa’s significance, explaining its layout and purpose, and how to read what is left of it. In the open debate that followed, all the participants in the symposium were invited to discuss how the site could be better preserved and made more interesting as a tourist attraction. Today the site of ancient Issa, near the central part of the town and port of Vis, is still not completely excavated, and what has been is rather neglected , certainly not well enough presented to attract much attention, except from dedicated archaeologists.

However the Greek site and its preservation was only one of the themes of the symposium. Other lecturers offered various insights on the island’s history, economy and architecture. The British historian, Malcolm Scott Hardy, author of the book “The British and Vis”, talked about some recent research placing the island in the context of political and military developments involving the British, Austrians and Russians exactly two hundred years before in 1812..

Considering that many of the islands along the Adriatic Croatian coast have been neglected (for example there are no boat connections between Komiza and the mainland), the Vis project should be of importance for the Croatian economy, because it stresses the need for control of future developments and their integration within the ecological, environmental and cultural preservation of the Dalmatian islands.

Realising the importance of the project, the ministries of culture and tourism have given support, making it possible to extend it for the next four years and for it to serve as a model to be followed by other islands.

A resident of Vis, the architect Bosko Budisavljevic, who was in charge of this exceptionally well-organised symposium and seminar, deserves much praise for this project, together with his many voluntary collaborators. The active participation of the present mayor of Vis, who hosted several excellent evenings and attended the various presentation, was particularly welcome.

More about this symposium with details of all the participants can be found on the web page:

Anatomija Otoka

Vesna Domany Hardy

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statement-of-intent

Dear Sir/Madam,

I am a Croatian laywer living in the UK. As I have recently witnessed many questions from Croatians living in th UK regarding their/our legal immigration status, once Croatia joins the EU (especially during the recent speech Mrs Pusic gave at the EBRD), I hereby wish to share with all my fellow Croatians a new document published last week at the UK Border Agency website.

The UK government has introduced to the Parliament the European Union (Croatian Accession) Bill on 18 October 2012. Accordingly, the Home Office has published a Statement of Intent setting out the transitional restrictions which it expects to apply to Croatian nationals working in the UK after 1 July 2013.

Please find attached the Statement of Intent. This document is not definitive, but it gives a useful indication of what to expect in terms of rights and obligations.

Many thanks.

Kind regards,

Lana Rukavina

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Chris Cviic Memorial Lecture

Vesna Pusić, Croatia’s Foreign and European Affairs Minister, gave the annual Chris Cviić memorial lecture on 17 October organised by the British-Croatian Society with the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development. Her subject was Croatia in the EU.

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Letter from the President

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BLOOM Igra

Projekt je odlicno prihvacen od javnosti! Ljudi ga jako vole, pogotovo djeca i vec je jako popularan. I bez ikakvih uputa javnost intuitivno pristupa projektu i iako je BLOOM komponenta jednostavna i samo jednog tipa, svi s lakocom uspjevaju sloziti vrlo unikatne strukture. Ljudi vrlo brzo postaju ovisni o BLOOM igri – slicno originalnim LEGO blokovima koji su jako univerzalni i generalni – ali bas zato pruzaju mogucnost neiscrpnog broja kombinacija i “igraliste” su za vasu mastu! Imaginacije je jedino ogranicenje… S obzirom na velicinu komponenti (40 cm) Bloom strukture brzo rastu!

Dva velika paviljona koja smo mi u pocetku konstruirali (oba u labirint konfiguracijama kroz koje ljudi a pogotovo djeca mogu prolaziti) su vrlo brzo dozivjeli potpune transformacije od strane posjetitelja. Na neki nacin su nase pocetne strukture ohrabrile posjetitelje da se sami vrlo revno angaziraju. BLOOM je dizajniran na nacin suprotan minimalnim optimalnim strukturama koje se moraju sastavljati po strogim pravilima. jako puno poveznih tocki u strukturi (redundancija) omogucava visoku toleranciju strukture i puno mogucnosti za improvizaciju koja je sastavni dio BLOOM igre. Strukture genrativno rastu kroz interaktivnu igru…

Ja ovakav tip konstrukcija obicno koristim u svojoj metodologiji sa studentima na universitetu kad tek pocnu raditi na logickim strukturama (algorithmima) koje su moja specijalnost. Na taj nacin studenti dobiju vrlo intuitivan osjecaj za kod i matematicke strukture koje se naknadno razviju u generativne kompjuterske metode za dizajn. Trafalgar Square ce biti najznacajnija lokacija i ona ce se otvoriti 28.8.

DAZ blog

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Croatian Cyclists in London for Olympics

A 17 member team of Croatian cyclists arrived in London for the Olympics after a 32 day cycle from Zagreb. They were welcomed by Lord Bates and taken to see the Houses of Parliament before cycling off to Stratford to complete their journey.

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Welcome CroatiaWelcome Croatia – 3.7.12 HRT 1 radio programme

Preparations are under way for a major Croatian festival, Welcome Croatia, to take place in the UK from January to June, 2013. The programme is expected to include:The launch of a photography competition Croatia through the eyes of a visitorin February 2012. This will run over 12 months leading to an exhibition of theshort-listed prize winners in February 2013.

• Croatia, Sporting Powerhouse will be shown just before the Olympics with a top sports personality to open it and then tour around the UK during the festival
• a map listing all the Croatian cultural objects in the UK and how to find them
• working with major museums there will be a programme to display significant Croatian pieces in museum collections during the festival with accompanying talks
• a Croatian film festival
• an academic seminar on the early history of Croatia
• publishing a Croatian cookery book with associated food and wine events
• a project with school children in the two countries working together to explore their differences and similarities
• music events from classical to contemporary
• a Croatian literary programme

The festival committee, chaired by Sir John Ramsden, consists of the British-Croatian Society, the Croatian Students and Young Professionals Network, the Embassy of the Republic of Croatia, the Oxford Association of Croatian Graduates, the International Trust for Croatian Monuments, the Croatian National Tourist Office and the British Croatian Chamber of Commerce.

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Our Chair, Flora Turner, represented the British-Croatian Society at an event on February 1 to honour Dr Kathy Wilkes. Vivian Grisogono has sent this report. You can also watch the event by going to the link given at the bottom of this page.

Dr Kathy Wilkes honoured in Dubrovnik

Dr Kathleen Vaughan Wilkes (1946-2003) was an Oxford philosopher, lecturer at St. Hilda’s, who achieved a special kind of eminence. Her formidable intellect was matched with indomitable courage whenever she was faced with physical danger and adversity. Details of her adventurous life and academic career were celebrated in the St. Hilda’s Chronicle following her death.

Having become a Fellow of St. Hilda’s in 1972 at the age of 26, she volunteered six years later to visit Prague, then behind the Iron Curtain, to give philosophy seminars, which were considered a dissident activity. She returned to then-Czechoslovakia several times, even after she had been refused a visa, and was tireless in helping Czech academics and students right up to the fall of the Iron Curtain in the ‘Velvet Revolution’ of 1989.

Kathy also spent time teaching in the then-Soviet Union, Poland, Bulgaria, Brazil and China, but it was in former Yugoslavia that her courage and resources were put to the greatest test. She had become Chairman of the Executive Committee of Dubrovnik’s Inter-University Centre in 1986, and spent time teaching there every year, as well as co-editing with William Newton-Smith an academic journal first entitled ‘Dubrovnik Papers’ and later `International Studies in the Philosophy of Science’. Kathy was in Dubrovnik in 1991 when the Serb-led Yugoslav National Army suddenly attacked the city with ruthless, sickening aggression.

For the 1996 -1997 edition of the St. Hilda’s chronicle, Kathy wrote a moving article about what life in Dubrovnik was like under siege from September 1991 to January 1992. Her personal account evoked the full horror of the relentless attacks from air, sea and land against one of the most beautiful historical holiday resorts in the world. No journalist’s report ever matched her descriptions in bringing home the full extent of the tragedy. On October 3rd 1991, Kathy spoke with calm determination to the BBC World Service for their Topical Reports: ‘There’s no water. There’s no electricity. This is the only phone in Dubrovnik. There’s fire all around. I think nobody including the Croatian President knows the extent of the damage here. The houses are on fire. About a quarter of Dubrovnik and the suburbs have been destroyed.’ That was two months before the specially brutal aggression on December 6th 1991, the feast of St. Nicholas which marks the start of Catholic Christmas celebrations.

Kathy stayed in the city, helping the local people in every way possible, and sharing the misery and deprivations of the experience. She left only to collect aid to bring back to the city, travelling under very difficult circumstances. Besides being brilliant academically, she was very practical: she brought back medical supplies and even an ambulance while the siege was still on, and later on mine detectors when the area around Dubrovnik could be cleared. She seemed specially attuned to practical needs: in her article for the St. Hilda’s Chronicle, written after the end of the aggression, she highlighted the disaster of Vukovar, a city which was suffering much worse than Dubrovnik, but without the international sympathy focused on the latter. She also pointed out that refugees were still crammed into Dubrovnik’s surviving hotels, and the outlying villages were totally devastated.

Kathy received several honours for her courage, tenacity, vision and help, including one of Croatia’s highest awards (Red Danice hrvatske), but the one she prized most was the honorary citizenship of Dubrovnik, which was granted in 1993. After her death, Kathy’s ashes were scattered in the sea under the Lovrijenac fortress. In 2011 the city officials decided to mark their continuing appreciation of her unique contribution with a commemorative plaque on an historic square near the fortress, renaming the square after her. The formal unveiling ceremony was held on February 1st 2012 during the celebrations for the feast of Saint Blaise, Dubrovnik’s patron saint. It was attended by a select group of people, including children too young to have known the war, alongside some of Kathy’s old friends such as Mr Pero Poljanic, Dubrovnik’s Mayor at the time of the siege; Mrs Berta Dragicevic, long-serving secretary of the Inter-University Centre; and Mrs Tea Batinic, owner of the Artur art gallery, in whose house Kathy stayed during the war. Four prominent people spoke movingly of her achievements from different standpoints: the present Mayor of Dubrovnik Mr Andro Vlahusic, the Town Council President Mrs Olga Muratti, Inter-University Centre Director Prof.dr.Krunoslav Pisk, and Mrs Flora Turner, Kathy’s successor as Chairman of the British-Croatian Society.

Vivian Grisogono

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNMH_NOcroM&feature=related

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One of our members has sent the following information about the recent Klapa Motovun concert in London:

The Klapa Motovun concert at St Martin in-the-Fields, Trafalgar Square, January 17, 2012 was a resounding success, ending with a standing ovation. For those of you who couldn’t attend, here are three clips. For those of you who did, a reminder of the wonderful music. Enjoy and feel free to pass on the links.

ZVONA MOGA GRADA
DOBRO JUTRO TUGO – London, 17/1/2012SVE JOS MIRISE NA NJU – London, 17/1/2012

2011 British-Croatian Society annual dinner

The 2011 annual dinner of the British-Croatian Society featuring the City of Dubrovnik was held in the prestigious surroundings of the Oxford and Cambridge Club on Pall Mall, London on Saturday December 3. The dinner, attended by over 100 people including the Deputy Mayor of Dubrovnik Mr Niko Salja and his wife, was supported by the City of Dubrovnik. Dr Robin Harris, author of Dubrovnik: A History, gave a talk entitled The Historic Achievement of Dubrovnik (now printed in the second of the new series of booklets issued by the Society). A raffle at the dinner raised 640 GBP for this year’s British-Croatian Society charity Napredak from Dubrovnik (www.hkdnapredak.com). The following is a translation from an article that appeared in the Dubrovacki Vjesnik newspaper on December 12, 2011:

The twentieth anniversary of the ruthless destruction of Dubrovnik is still remembered in London. The British-Croatian Society, supported by the City of Dubrovnik Tourist Board and many members and donors, held their traditional annual dinner this year dedicated to the memory of the victims of the war.The evening was organised in the classical ambience of the Oxford and Cambridge Club, preceded by an exhibition of documents from the history of Dubrovnik in the exhibition hall of our embassy. This was a logical prelude to dinner, where the main speaker was historian Robin Harris, the well-known author of books about Dubrovnik’s past and present. At the main table were Deputy Mayor of Dubrovnik Niko Salja, who came with his wife, and hosts Branko Sorkocevic Sorge and the President of the British-Croatian Society, Mrs Flora Turner. Miso Mihocevic was a special guest of honour.The hall, which was filled to capacity, included Ivica Tomic, Ambassador of the Republic of Croatia in the UK, with his guests, Mr Andrew Kojakovic and his daughters, Lady Jadranka Beresford-Peirse and her family, the Frankopan family and many prominent Croats and their British friends.Also at the dinner was the Maestro Oliver Gilmour, recently a resident of Dubrovnik. This provided the opportunity for the Deputy Mayor to announce a new addition to the overall cultural offer of the City – a project entitled the Dubrovnik Summer Opera which will begin in June with the staging of Mozart’s opera Cosi fan tutte on Lokrum.A pleasant dinner at the elegant club finished with a raffle to raise funds for a charity supported by the British-Croatian Society.

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