We’re a group of free-thinking people in Bedford who like to get together in a casual atmosphere and talk about interesting things.
We find a speaker – typically a scientist or prominent skeptic who will speak for around 40 minutes. The subjects of the talks vary, but they will typically be about a common belief that either cannot be justified by the available evidence, or that can actually be demonstrated to be false by the available evidence – or else something that is just plain interesting or contentious.
Examples of subjects we have already covered are: Electric cars, Hypnotism, Fracking, The Alpha Course, Prostitution, Policing, Spin in Lobbying, Futurology, Academy Schools, Income Inequality and a whole lot more to come.
The talk is followed by a chance to question the speaker yourself, or just relax and listen to what people have to say.
Meetings are usually on the third Thursday of the month. Arrive at 7:00pm for a 7:30 start. Why not come along and join in?
Please note that after our April 2024 meeting, we are moving to a bi-monthly timetable. For full details, scroll down to the ‘Events’ section.
Non-skeptics are not only welcome, they’re actively encouraged!
Location: The North End Social Club, 60 Roff Avenue, Bedford, MK41 7TW
Ring the bell and wait to be admitted – our private room is immediately on the left.
Note: Disabled access is from the rear, car park side, under the fire escape.
Bedford Skeptics meetings are organised by Bedfordshire Humanists
Events
Please note, Bedford Skeptics events are now Bi-Monthly.
(Jan. / Mar. / May / Jul. / Sept. / Nov.)
Thursday 20th August 2026
Summer Break – No event this month
Thursday 17th September 2026 – 7:30pm
The Common Cold: 30,000 Years of the Sniffles
Dr. David Miles
Everybody knows what a cold feels like: miserable. The first cold virus was detected in a milk tooth shed over 30,000 years ago and ever since, the common cold has been a bane.
Yet while sore throats and blocked noses are annoyingly familiar, the processes that lead to them are not widely known and often misunderstood. Processes like the misdirected immune response that makes us ill with a cold instead of protecting us from illness. Like the way heating a building enhances cold virus transmission. Like the way that most cold viruses can only exist at all thanks to the society we’ve built over the last few millennia.
And, most importantly, what we can do about them.
David Miles is an infectious disease immunologist who spent ten years researching immunity to infections and the vaccinations that protect against them in various parts of Africa. He now lives in London and teaches on the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine’s online postgraduate course. His first popular science book, How Vaccines Work, was published in March 2023 and his second, Sneeze: The History and Science of the Common Cold, will be published in March 2026.
Thursday 19th November 2026 – 7:30pm
The Buildings Archaeologist
Dr. James Wright
A welcome return for our friend, James!
Visit any settlement in the land and there will be ancient buildings hidden in plain sight. Behind a Victorian façade is a Tudor house. Underneath a Georgian frontage is a mediaeval cottage. What is now a modern farm may once have been a castle. We know relatively little about the ancient buildings that surround us, yet buildings archaeology can offer us so many clues for discovering the secrets of hidden historic houses.
This talk (and accompanying book) looks at the ways in which ancient buildings have been studied and conserved, the puzzling ways that some buildings became listed whereas others were overlooked, and how we can really understand the age and development of a structure.
With over a quarter of a century of field experience, James Wright uses case studies drawn from his career to explain the fascinating, enigmatic, and surprising world of The Buildings Archaeologist.
Thursday 21st January 2027 – 7:30pm
A New Approach to Managing Dementia
Martin Young
Martin is a trained engineer and has been using these skills to develop a new approach to managing dementia.
It is a hard fact for men to accept when they have to enter full time residential care. For many having to accept taken away from their garages and workshops is a great loss not to be able to follow their hobbies and interests whenever they please. These leads to frustration and distress. To address this issue Martin has built a series of ‘Activity Boards.’ These are made to specific traditionally male careers in Engineering or hobbies.
Martin is a volunteer at the UK Men’s Shed movement (UKMSA) and the local branch of the Rehabilitation Engineering Movement Advisory Panel (Remap).
Thursday 18th March 2027 – 7:30pm
Topical Political Discussion – Subject TBC
Professor Colin Talbot
Political Scientist Professor Colin Talbot returns to Bedford Skeptics for another talk / discussion on an as yet to be determined political issue. Whatever the subject, it’s bound to be another stimulating and entertaining evening.
Colin Talbot is a political scientist. He was until August 2017 a professor at the University of Manchester and held the Chair of Government in the School of Social Sciences. He is now Professor Emeritus at Manchester and a research associate at the University of Cambridge. He has also been an adviser to UK Parliamentary Committees on HM Treasury and on Public Administration.