Written by Lauren
Rating: 5
VERIFIED
As a London Month of the Dead regular, I was chuffed to have an event around Christmas. The performance was fantastic and the atmosphere was perfect!
Description
-
Talk/Panel Discussion
-
Tickets from £12.50
-
Over 16
-
Wed, 8th Oct 2025 @ 19:00 - 21:00
-
19:00 - 21:00
Some of the most haunting tombs in British history were created during the mid-17th century, when a macabre fashion took hold. From the 1620s onwards, a taste emerged for bone-encrusted monuments, echoing the jumbled remains of European ossuaries. Crafted in delicate alabaster by some of London’s finest masons, these tombs went beyond commemoration. They were meditations on mortality. This period, deeply influenced by the metaphysical poets and early scientific discovery, saw an intense focus on the body and its inevitable decay. These tombs became physical reflections of a Christian’s preparation for death, at a time when the mysteries of anatomy were just beginning to be explored.
In this talk, historian Roger Bowdler places these tombs within their wider cultural and religious context, exploring how they served as spiritual tools and artistic statements. Expect to hear about striking examples such as the stark monument to Lady Elizabeth Digges in Kent, the chilling cadaver tomb of Francis Newport in Shropshire, and other morbid masterpieces from churches across England. Bowdler brings these funerary artworks vividly to life, shedding light on a uniquely English response to death, one that embraced its horrors with both poetic melancholy and sculptural flourish.
Tickets
include a delightful gin cocktail and a 20% donation toward a host
of restoration works at Highgate Cemetery.
ROGER BOWDLER
Roger Bowdler is a historian
and heritage expert with a PhD on 17th century church monuments,
formerly Director of Listing at Historic England and now a partner
at planning consultancy Montagu Evans. A Fellow of the Society of
Antiquaries and active in numerous heritage bodies, he has
published widely on churchyards, war memorials, and British
cemeteries, and is currently writing a book on burial sites since
1820.
Offers
Promotions
Tickets/Times
| Ticket | Event time | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Charnel Tombs | 19:00 - 21:30 | £12.50 |
Location
Address
The Chapel: HIghgate Cemetery West, Swains Lane, London, N6 6PJ
Nearest Station
Archway (Tube)
Organiser
A Curious Invitation and Antique Beat
An annual festival of walks, talks, workshops and performances to entertain and inform on the subjects of mortality and the city with the best historians, experts, guides, performers and storytellers.
More from London Month of the Dead
T&Cs
1. The ticket holder voluntarily assumes all risks and danger incidental to the event for which the ticket is issued, whether occurring prior, during or after the event. The ticket holder voluntarily agrees that the management, venue, event participants, DesignMyNight (WFL Media Ltd) and all of their respective agents, officers, directors, owners and employers are expressly released by the ticket holder from any claims arising from such causes.
2. Tickets are issued subject to the rules and regulations of the venue.
3. Please check your tickets, as mistakes cannot always be rectified.
4. Occasionally, events are cancelled or postponed by the promoter, team, performer or venue for a variety of reasons. If the event is cancelled, please contact us for information on receiving a refund from the responsible party. If the event was moved or rescheduled, the venue or promoter may set refund limitations. It is your responsibility to ascertain the date and time of any rearranged event.
5. The venue reserves the right to refuse admission and may on occasion have to conduct security searches to ensure the safety of the patrons.
6. Every effort to admit latecomers will be made at a suitable break in the event, but admission cannot always be guaranteed.
7. We regret that tickets cannot be exchanged or refunded after purchase.
8. Tickets are sold subject to the venue or promoter's right to alter or vary the programme due to events or circumstances beyond its control without being obliged to refund monies or exchange tickets.
9. If this ticket is re-sold or transferred for profit or commercial gain by anyone other than the promoter, venue management, DesignMyNight or one of their authorised sub-agents, it will become voidable and the holder may be
refused entry to or ejected from the venue.
10. The venue may operate a No Smoking Policy.
11. The promoter, venue management and DesignMyNight accept no responsibility for any personal property.
Customer Reviews (0)
Previous London Month of the Dead reviews
X
×