Cambridge Union Society

We came along as part of the Literary Festival.
This is a really great venue and you can’t help sensing the history of all the wise words that have come before.
It was a privilege to be here.

Visited in the Summer of 2011. I sat in on a talk that Sir Richard Dearlove gave on the conflict (s) in Iraq and the role that ‘secret intelligence’ had in it. Indoors, it is very spacious and can accommodate up to several hundred people. There are several floors and we were offered vino after Sir Dearlove’s talk. Off topic: this one doucher from UC Davis embraced the whole «Promoting free speech and the art of debating since 1815» slogan by openly challenging Sir Dearlove and his knowledge on the war in Iraq. Back to the venue: from the outside, CUS’s buildings are aged but scenic — reminiscent of the days of ye olde English times when Jack the Ripper was trolling the city streets and people walked around in knight’s armor.

My main experience of the union is when is has been hired out for an event of some description where I found that the bar is amazingly cheap and the bar staff quick and well organised as well as fun. I hear (and have now attended a couple) that there are lively debates and discussions held here regularly with speakers of very high standing from Prime Ministers to cultural ledgends.

The Union really is the hub of student political life in Cambridge– where else could you hear politicians and world leaders speak on a weekly basis? But it’s not all about the debates– from wine tastings to club nights, to just relaxing in the rather swanky newly refurbished bar, it can add a vital injection to your social life. The building is beautiful, and with the photographs lining its walls you get a real sense of the history of the place.