Welcome to the Anglo-Thai Society (ATS) and thank you for visiting our website.

The ATS was founded in 1962 to help promote good relations between the UK and Thailand. It currently has around 300 members with an interest in Thailand's people, culture and its business relations.  Throughout the year the society organises various events and activities of interest to our members. The two principal Anglo-Thai Society events each year are the Summer Reception at the House of Lords in June and The Presentation of Educational Awards at the Oriental Club in November.

Nipa Restaurant, December 14, 2011

The tradition of having a Christmas gathering for the Anglo-Thai Society (ATS) has grown over the last two years from very small beginnings to the extremely popular event that took place on 14 December 2011.

The event was held at the Nipa Restaurant in the Lancaster Hotel, which overlooks Hyde Park.   Marvelling at the mildness of the autumn which had left leaves still on trees in the park, ATS members tucked into a sumptuous Thai banquet organised by the good graces of Tui Thapthimthong.  This year, ATS extended an invitation to the wives and partners of Thai Embassy officials who belong to the Krachubmitre (‘Friendship’) Society.  The result was that Chairman David Fall was able to welcome a party of thirty-six people on three long tables.  It was a most convivial lunch and the staff of the Nipa restaurant excelled themselves.  It was a perfect start to the Christmas festivities and is likely to become a favourite occasion in the Anglo-Thai event calendar.

Belinda Stewart- Cox with her OBE, and Jittin Ritthirat, the ECN’s co-founder

ATS member and Director of the Elephant Conservation Network in Thailand, Belinda Stewart-Cox, was named on the Queen's Birthday Honours List in June and recently attended the ceremony at Buckingham Palace to receive her OBE.  Belinda has spent the last 25 years working for wildlife conservation in Thailand, most recently with the Elephant Conservation Network (ECN).   In a recent article in the Bangkok Post, she recounted her experience of the ceremony:  "We approached [the Queen] only after our names were announced to the room, along with my designation and the award citation. The Queen pinned the award onto my coat lapel while saying how very pleased she was that my work had been recognised after all these years. She seemed genuinely interested and asked a string of questions: Where did I work in Thailand? Did I see wild elephants often? How many survived in the wild? What was the main problem for them? I told her about our work with villagers and rangers to help turn conflict into coexistence"...."I'm thrilled that all those years of effort have been recognised in this way, but I'm also aware that I could not have achieved anything worthwhile without the kind and committed help of the many good people I have been, and still am, privileged to work with in Thailand."