THE MEN'S Probus Club of Penarth held its first meeting of this year on July 20.

Its last meeting before the pandemic stopped the opportunity to hold meetings was in January 2020. In fulfilling Covid restrictions for social distancing, the number of members attending the meeting had to be restricted to twenty-nine plus the guest speaker.

The opportunity was taken to first hold the club’s annual general meeting. The current committee members were introduced by the present president, Dr. Gareth Price. The immediate past president, Alun Daniel, submitted a new constitution for approval by the members.

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The second part of the session was a presentation and slide show by Mike Tarver on: ‘A Trip to Antarctic – In the wake of the Terra Nova, 1910’. Mike was formerly a policeman with Cardiff City Police. Born and bred in Penarth, he now lives in Devon where he is able to pursue his passion for sailing. He has also always had an enthusiasm for learning about the Polar Regions of the Earth.

About 20 years ago, Mike had the opportunity to visit Antarctic on a Russian Icebreaker which had two helicopters on board. It meant that members of the party could go long distances in observing the Antarctic continent. It enabled him to visit locations used by the British explorers, Captain Robert Scott and Sir Ernest Shackleton during their expeditions at the turn of the 20th Century.

This included the well-known expedition where Captain Scott and 4 companions arrived at the geographic South Pole on the 17th January 1910, only to find that a Norwegian group led by Roald Amundsen had beaten them by 34 days. Scott’s party of five all died on the return journey from the Pole.

Mike also had the opportunity to observe how the continental drift over millions of years has impacted on the geography of the terrain and wildlife in the area.

David Wiltshire, membership secretary and longtime friend of Mike, made the vote of thanks on behalf of the group.

The next meeting of the Club will be held on August 17 with a presentation by Helyn Latimer. Her topic will be: ‘Puppet Theatre’.

New members are always welcome to join Probus. It is open to both retired and semi-retired men of any age. The meetings are normally held every third Tuesday of the month at the Sports and Social Club, South Road, Sully.

The club meets at 10am for a 10.30am start with guest speakers on varied topics of interest.

Light refreshments are provided and meetings finish before 12pm. There are also occasional visits to places of interest and special lunches at various times of the year.

Anyone interested in joining Probus - please contact David Wiltshire on 02920 701 092.