London Month of the Dead - All That Remains

ALL THAT REMAINS Forensic Archeology and the Bonds of Memory With Dr Renshaw on Sunday the 25th October 2026 at 1:30 pm Forensic investigations do more than recover human remains, they also help families rebuild connections with those they have lost. Yet while forensic science seeks facts, evidence and identification, the relatives of the dead are often searching for something quite different: a sense of presence, memory and continuing connection. How do we hold on to those we have lost when all that remains are bones, belongings and fragments of a life? Drawing on research with families affected by forensic investigations, this thought-provoking talk explores the deeply human relationship between science, memory and mourning. From treasured heirlooms and recovered personal possessions to family archives and striking physical resemblances, discover the many ways people seek to reconnect with the dead. It is a fascinating exploration of how forensic evidence, emotional remembrance and spiritual belief can exist side by side, revealing that the work of the dead is not only to tell us how they died, but to help us understand how they continue to shape the lives of the living. Tickets £12.50 including a delightful gin cocktail and a 20% donation to the Kings Chaplaincy Trust. Please click here to purchase. Dr Layla Renshaw Dr Layla Renshaw is Associate Professor of Forensic Science at Kingston University, where she teaches forensic archaeology and anthropology and researches the relationship between human remains, memory and traumatic history. Combining forensic science with archaeology and ethnography, her work explores how families and communities engage with the recovery and identification of the dead, from the mass graves of the Spanish Civil War to the exhumation of First World War soldiers. She has also worked with the UN International Criminal Tribunal investigating war crimes in Kosovo and is widely recognised for her interdisciplinary research into the connections between forensic evidence, remembrance and identity.

ALL THAT REMAINS
Forensic Archeology and the Bonds of Memory
With Dr Renshaw on Sunday the 25th October 2026 at 1:30 pm

Forensic investigations do more than recover human remains, they also help families rebuild connections with those they have lost. Yet while forensic science seeks facts, evidence and identification, the relatives of the dead are often searching for something quite different: a sense of presence, memory and continuing connection. How do we hold on to those we have lost when all that remains are bones, belongings and fragments of a life?

Drawing on research with families affected by forensic investigations, this thought-provoking talk explores the deeply human relationship between science, memory and mourning. From treasured heirlooms and recovered personal possessions to family archives and striking physical resemblances, discover the many ways people seek to reconnect with the dead. It is a fascinating exploration of how forensic evidence, emotional remembrance and spiritual belief can exist side by side, revealing that the work of the dead is not only to tell us how they died, but to help us understand how they continue to shape the lives of the living.

Tickets £12.50 including a delightful gin cocktail and a 20% donation to the Kings Chaplaincy Trust. Please click here to purchase.

Dr Layla Renshaw
Dr Layla Renshaw is Associate Professor of Forensic Science at Kingston University, where she teaches forensic archaeology and anthropology and researches the relationship between human remains, memory and traumatic history. Combining forensic science with archaeology and ethnography, her work explores how families and communities engage with the recovery and identification of the dead, from the mass graves of the Spanish Civil War to the exhumation of First World War soldiers. She has also worked with the UN International Criminal Tribunal investigating war crimes in Kosovo and is widely recognised for her interdisciplinary research into the connections between forensic evidence, remembrance and identity.