Branch News

This year our Annual Christmas Dinner was held on 3 December in the traditional surroundings of the Anglo-German Club as usual. 28 Guests and friends gathered to enjoy a pleasant evening of ffood and disacussions.

Built in 1860 as a private house by the renowned architect Martin Haller for the Bielenberg family, it was bought in 1901 by the successful merchant Consul Gustav Müller. In those days the property had 14,000 m² of land, running right down to the Alster Lake and comprised an old thatched farmhouse with a cowshed and hennery, a duck pond and pastures as well as the villa.

At the end of World War II in 1945, the estate was seized by the British occupation forces and used as a British officers’ residence. It was probably then that the story of the Anglo-German Club began, as the British officers clearly felt very much at home in the lovely villa.

Following the occupation, the house was returned to the co-heirs of the Müller family, who sold it to the City of Hamburg, which in turn let it to the Anglo-German Club.

The club has owned the leasehold on the building since 1989. It is an architectural gem in a prime location, surrounded by a splendid garden and with an inviting terrace offering a superb view of the Alster.

This year we welcomed 28 members and guests to enjoy an evening of good food and conversation. We were very honoured to welcome our after-dinner speaker who this year was Michael Garvens, Managing Drector of TUI fly. He gave us a thought-provoking talk on "The Current State of the Airline Industry in Germany after Covid" and asked the question "Does this Industry still have a future in our country?"

He gave a very sober overview of airline economics in the EU and in particular in Germany. His talk generated many questions which he was happy to answer.

We would like to thank Michael for his very informative talk.