Title : 1880s – 1940s Hong Kong photos: 70 years of stories to tell
In this new talk for 2026, David brings us a selection of his favourite photos of old Hong Kong to enjoy. The excellent detail in these old photos, combined with high-resolution scanning and a modern projector, allow David to zoom in live and show us their minutest details. These details become the clues he’ll use to tell us the photos’ hidden stories.
We’ll explore views of Hong Kong’s people, the ever-changing city, and the effects of storms and the Second World War, using photos taken from the 1880s through to the 1940s. Eggs and gelatin also make an appearance, as key ingredients in that period's photographic revolution!
Date : Saturday 5th September 2026
Speaker : David Bellis BEM of Gwulo.com
Venue : The Main Hall, Clements Hall, Nunthorpe Road, York, YO23 1BW [map]
Time : 2:30 pm [2pm doors open, 2:30pm talk begins, 3:30pm Q&A, then tea & coffee and time to chat with David and guests.]
Booking is required : Email to Grace at grace@gwulo.com
Lecture cost : £12 (or £6 for full-time students), to include refreshments after the talk
The speaker : Originally from Wales, David lived in Hong Kong from 1992 to 2024. Since 2009 he has run the Gwulo.com website, providing an online meeting place where people from around the world meet to ask questions and share their knowledge about Hong Kong’s history. The site has grown to over 60,000 pages, including over 40,000 photos of old Hong Kong.
In 2014 David received the SCMP’s Spirit of Hong Kong award for Heritage Preservation for his work on Gwulo. Then in the 2025 New Year’s Honours List he was awarded the British Empire Medal, For services to Heritage Preservation in Hong Kong.
David is a regular speaker, both in person and on YouTube, using photos from his collection to introduce Hong Kong’s history in a way that is easy for audiences to enjoy. He has also published a series of five illustrated books, Volumes 1 – 5 of Old Hong Kong Photos and The Tales They Tell. Volume 1 has been translated into Chinese.