Bedford Astrology Club
Learning, sharing and expanding knowledge about Astrology since 1986
WELCOME
Hello, welcome to our site. We are a group of Astrologers, both professional and amateur, who hold monthly meetings, with a guest speaker presenting to us a topic of interest.
Who / What / Where
We meet on Zoom, on the second Friday of the month, from Jan-Mar, May-Jul and Sep-Nov. Meetings are open to anyone with more than a passing interest in our subject. To get the most out of a meeting, you should be at least at the level of being able to do basic interpretation when looking at a birth chart.
Our membership is made up of those who have been part of the club for many years, as well as more recent joiners. Some of us work professionally as Astrologers, whilst others are enthusiastic amateurs and those with a fascination for the subject matter.
We welcome new faces, wherever in the world you may be.
We are always delighted to benefit from insight from anyone, regardless of their approach, experience and methodology.
What happens in a meeting?
Each month, a guest speaker is invited to present to us on an agreed topic. Over the years, we have had talks from many of the recognisible names in our field, and will always aim to book speakers who not only know their topic inside out, but are also great presenters and fascinating to listen to.
The format of the meeting is a welcome, followed by a presentation of about 60 minutes, with then questions, answers and a wider discussion.
Meetings aim to start around 8pm (UK) and finish around 10pm. Anyone who has anything to ask or contribute, may do so in the second half, but equally, anyone is welcome to be a silent observer, if they prefer.
We do like cameras to be on, so we can see you, but there is no obligation to speak.
What do we talk about?
In forty years, we have covered a vast range of topics within Astrology.
Here is a selection from recent years:
Caroline of Brunswick
Ceres
Culinary Astrology
Falls from Grace (famous people whose careers ended overnight)
Families - How your chart sees your parents and spouse
Hidden Aspects
Juno
Jupiter's 12-year cycle
Lunar Nodes - Churning of the Soul
Make-Make and Varuna
Pluto in Aquarius
Politics - What is going on?
Predicting with Dasas (Vedic Astrology)
Profections (Mediaeval Astrology)
Saturn in Medical Astrology
Sedna
Via Combusta
War and Astrology
The History
Bedford Astrology Club was founded in Bedford in Southern England, by a then young, local Astrologer, Brian Kelly, who went on to develop a career in television and broadcasting. Interest in Astrology, Complementary Therapies and what became known as 'New Age' subjects was widespread in the 1980s and 1990s. Among his many related activities, Brian was much in demand as an Astrology teacher. Once his students completed their courses, there was clearly a need for them to be able to meet up and carry on their exploration of the subject, hence the foundation of the club at the end of 1986. For the group to still be meeting after 40 years is a huge achievement and one of which we are very proud.
We have always met on the second Friday of a month. For many years, our January talk has been given by Brian, who uses it to make predictions for the world for the forthcoming year. In January 2020, the big Capricorn conjunction was suggesting that there were some huge problems ahead and these problems turned out to be the Covid pandemic.
The effect of the pandemic was that we were forced to start online meetings via Zoom, and we quickly realised that this format for meetings was the way forward. On becoming a group who meets via Zoom, we have opened ourselves up to membership and speakers from across the world. This has proved to be an exciting change, so although we retain the name 'Bedford' after our town of origin, many of us are widely geographically spread.
Beliefs
Astrology rejoices in the epithet pseudoscience, which means that it employs scientific techniques without its being recognised as a legitimate science. We are not here to argue the case for it. Isaac Newton reputedly responded to criticism of his interest in the subject by saying that he “had studied it”. In our view, studying the subject with an open mind will result in the conclusion that it 'works'. How it can possibly work, in that how can lumps of rock millions of miles away from the Earth have an effect on what happens on the Earth, will have to remain a mystery for now. Perhaps Shakespeare, via Hamlet, had the right idea.
"There are more things in Heaven and Earth than are dreamt of in your philosophy”.
In case you are thinking it, it's important to say that we are not a group of chanting oddballs, who hug trees and won't step out of the house without checking the I Ching or the Tarot. Some of us may have interests in subjects which librarians put on the same shelves as Astrology, but our meetings are only about Astrology, because there is so much to talk about, and we start from the premise that it 'works'.
How to join
If you would like to come to one of our meetings,
please contact us on bedfordastrologyclub@gmail.com.
You will be able to come to a meeting as a visitor, to see what you think of us.
Our fees are as follows:
Annual membership £45, payable each January.
This entitles the member to attend all 9 meetings.
First timers:
Try us out as a visitor. If you enjoy the meeting, please donate what you can.
Paying per meeting:
£15 for those who prefer to pay for each session as they go.
Joining in other months:
Membership fees are charged proportionately.
Feb £40 , Mar £35, May £30, Jun £25, July £20, Sep £15, Oct £10
Joining discount:
If you join us between Jan and Jun, after having paid £15 for the previous month, that £15 is deducted from your membership fee.
Notes:
1 For those on low incomes, a 33.33% discount is applied to all fees.
2 For those paying in other currencies, please be aware that a £6 bank charge is applied to all fees.
Upcoming Speakers
Committee
Any voluntary group is only successful because of its members, especially those who take on responsibilities which ensure that everything runs smoothly.
Here is our committee.....
Biography - Brian Kelly
When Brian picked up his first Astrology book at the age of 14, he was immediately hooked and he began studying Astrology seriously whilst still at school. After graduation, he trained under Sheila Geddes, before becoming the youngest professional Astrologer in the UK.
An article about Brian in the local press led to an invitation to appear on the radio, where it was discovered he was a natural. Relatively quickly, he was on a producer/presenter's course at the BBC, and soon became the host of a variety of radio shows. His job at BBC Three Counties led to a regular slot on Radio 1's Steve Wright Show, and that, in turn, led to numerous guest appearances on television through the 1990s. Bedford Astrology Club was created by Brian so that his former students had somewhere to meet, socialise and further their interests.
Brian set up a company, Brian Kelly Fairs, which produced highly successful Psychic / New Age events across the Home Counties from 1986 to 1996. They were pioneering, in bringing what until then, had been ‘alternative’ subjects, such as Complementary Therapies, Vegetarianism, Healing and Tarot, to the general public.
In the 1990s, Brian wrote the annual star-sign forecast books for Pan MacMillan, which were sold internationally.
Brian has worked with many celebrities, both privately and at large-scale events. His entertaining, humorous talks on star-signs have made him a very popular public speaker. He also regularly gives talks to Astrology groups.
After having had such an unconventional and fascinating early career, Brian has been lucky enough to explore other interests over the past 25 years and has built a second career in the theatre. Performing comes naturally to him. He enjoys all the Arts and loves to be around people. He says that everyone has a story which is worth telling.
If you would like to contact Brian, please email him on briankellyastrology@gmail.com.
Biography - Teresa Bellmaine
Teresa began studying Astrology with Brian in the 1990s. She has chaired Bedford Astrology Club and hosted most of our meetings for nearly 20 years.
Away from the Club, she was a volunteer librarian for the Urania Trust in London for four years, and regularly attends the Astrological Association's annual conferences.
As well as being a Life Coach and holding a Diploma in Counselling, Teresa is a Tarot and Cowrie Shell reader. She is also an EFT practitioner and Astro-Crystal therapist.
Teresa offers various chart readings (Birth, Horary, synastry etc.) and coaching,
Her website is www.Astroshola.co.uk
Biography - Carol Brown
Carol has been interested in Astrology as far back as she can remember. She could relate to a lot of her Gemini-Sun interpretations she read in the Sun Sign books, but didn’t feel it was the full picture. In her twenties, attending her first Astrology course, a whole new world and community opened up to her. Some 40 years later, she is aware she is still learning!
Carol joined Bedford Astrology Club about 30 years ago and she been our treasurer for the last 20 years. Carol enjoys not just the huge diversity of speakers and topics we have at the Club, but also the many fascinating conversations which develop from our monthly topics.
Away from the Club, Carol enjoys looking at charts mostly for her own interest, although she will occasionally look at friends' charts when they ask, and the odd Horary chart if she has an important question to answer.
Outside Astrology, Carol is very active. Her other interests include her Labrador, Archie, helping out with Labrador Rescue South East and Central , volunteering in Mental Health support, and going to the theatre. She even has time for gardening, and shares an allotment with her neighbour.