COFFEE is going to be the topic of discussion in Wem Civic Society's next meeting.

The meeting will take place on Tuesday, February 21 in Wem Town Hall at 7.30pm and it is going to feature a talk called 'Spilling the Beans' which will be given by Tudor historian, Sandy Leong via Zoom.

The talk will explain about how coffee became a much loved drink in Western Europe.

Wem Civic Society secretary, Shelagh Richardson, said: "In the 17th century, it was believed coffee had medicinal properties and Pope Clement in 1600 gave his permission for Catholics to drink it.

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"The first coffee house opened in England in the mid 1600s and were the places where insurance companies and financial institutions started.

"In 1674, there was a women’s petition against coffee because women thought it made men impotent though the motive for the petition could have been because women were forbidden entry to coffee houses.

"There may have been something in this because many houses turned into exclusive men’s clubs.

"Our love affair with the coffee bean goes back several centuries and is linked with the slave trade, before becoming a popular drink on the high street.

"The speaker, Sandy Leong, is an historian, passionate about bringing history to life and is a lively and entertaining speaker.

"She specialises in the Tudors, an exciting time in the country as it was changing fast.

"She also loves to bring to life the sort of history that doesn’t get into the mainstream history books in a light hearted way."

The meeting is open to the public and there will be a £2.50 entrance fee.

People will be able to ask questions after the talk.