Past Events

We are delighted to welcome Mr Hiromi Yamaji, Group CEO of Japan Exchange Group, to share with members of The Japan Society his assessment of the state of the Japanese economy and the challenges it faces.

Join us for a lecture on the role that visual art played in relation to countercultural movements in Japan from the turbulent 1960s to the present day.

In Sisters in Yellow, Hana, now in her forties, reflects on her youth in Tokyo’s “Yellow House” during the 1990s.

For our Film Club in June, we invite you to explore Seijun Suzuki’s stylish and subversive yakuza film, Tokyo Drifter (1966), a vibrant tale of loyalty, identity, and life on the run during post-war Japan.

The Japanese Conversation Group provides a friendly and informal atmosphere for Japanese speakers of all nationalities to come together and speak Japanese. Meetings are held on the first Tuesday of every month.

The Japan Society is delighted to invite members and friends to an exclusive private tour of the Japanese collection at the Bodleian Libraries, followed by a guided visit to the historic Old Bodleian.

In this lecture, Laura Abbott will compare the lived realities of pregnancy, birth and maternal-newborn separation in UK and Japanese prisons.

The guest of honour at The Japan Society and the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry in the UK’s next joint lunch will be Bronwen Maddox, Director and Chief Executive of Chatham House.

As the days grow longer and the warmer months approach, join our hands‑on workshop to create your own Japanese fan (uchiwa – 扇) adorned with calligraphy, led by London‑based calligrapher Yoko Takenami.

Point Zero centres on a woman searching for her husband after his sudden disappearance. As she uncovers hidden pasts and shifting identities, the novel exposes deception, social pressure, and the precarious position of women in postwar Japan.