The first meeting in The Chromatographic Society’s diamond anniversary year brought together world‑renowned speakers alongside past presidents of the Society, delegates from academia and industry, and scientific instrument and technology companies at the Institute of Engineering and Technology in central London on 22 March 2016. The presentations included discussions on liquid chromatography (LC), supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC), and gas chromatography (GC) from both an academic and industrial perspective - providing excellent insight into the state-of-the-art in these techniques for the delegates.