London Walks
Guided Walks Led By Expert Tutors
From its Bronze Age beginnings to capital status, London has witnessed growth and destruction throughout its long history. Join us for lively classroom and online discussions as well as our popular guided historical walks around London and discover who and what has left their mark on the city.
Watch City Lit tutor Eleanor Jackson explore some of London's secret spaces:
Filters
- Transports of delight: London's railway stations
Course start date: Tue 14 Jan 2025 (and 1 other date)Location on this date: Blended (learn both online and in-person)
Tutors: Eleanor JacksonLondon's stations see over 1 billion journeys annually, but the buildings themselves are often ignored. Explore a different station and environs each week, discovering the architecture, history, stories and future of these lifelines of London. The course starts with an initial zoom lecture, followed by a series of walking tours.
This course will be delivered online and in person. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £229.00 Senior fee £183.00 Concession £149.00 - From markets to malls: the history of shopping in London Course start date: Tue 4 Feb 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Diane BursteinFrom the City markets and shops of Cheapside (Medieval London’s Oxford Street) we move via the historic specialist shops of St James’s to the grand department stores and London markets. Discover how Londoners changed their shopping habits through the years and learn about the history of some of our most famous stores. A shop founded by a royal footman, a 17th century hatter, the department store owner who went to jail for expanding his business and the store which was the scene of its owner’s murder all feature.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £19.00 Senior fee £19.00 Concession £12.00 - Discovering Victorian London: empire, enterprise and education Course start date: Tue 29 Apr 2025
Location on this date: Blended (learn both online and in-person)
Tutors: Eleanor JacksonVictorian London shaped today's city. Discover the lasting legacy of the Victorian age, uncover its secrets, and meet some of the characters who created one of the world's greatest cities.
Initial lecture via zoom followed by 7 guided walks.
This course will be delivered online and in person. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information. - From the 1880s to the 1930s: how the new East End was born Course start date: Tue 29 Apr 2025
Location on this date: Blended (learn both online and in-person)
Tutors: David RosenbergIn an area branded 'the hell of poverty', libraries, theatres, art galleries and social housing were established. Workers went on strike and activists campaigned for better lives. Discover this history by taking actual, guided walks through six tumultuous decades of change. The first session is in the classroom at Keeley Street but all other sessions are guided walks. Full details of the meeting places for each walk will be given at the 1st session. 6 guided walks with 2 Zoom sessions.
This course will be delivered online and in person. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information. - Unreal city: the history of London through literature from1800 to today Course start date: Tue 6 May 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Sarah WiseFiction writers are often the first to identify and analyse a social phenomenon. We will examine two centuries of London history through the eyes of novelists and poets, from William Blake to Zadie Smith.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £169.00 Senior fee £169.00 Concession £110.00 - London 1979-2020Course start date: Tue 6 May 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Mike BerlinExplore the transformation of London from the onset of Thatcherism in 1979 to its status as a global metropolis in the 21st century.Full fee £249.00 Senior fee £199.00 Concession £162.00 - Jews in London from the 1650s to the 1950s: a closer look Course start date: Tue 7 Jan 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: David RosenbergThis course will provide an exploration of 300 years of Jewish life, culture and history in London from the small scale resettlement in the 1650s through to the 1950s when the borough of Hackney was home to London’s largest and most diverse Jewish community.Full fee £249.00 Senior fee £199.00 Concession £162.00 - London 1945-1979 Course start date: Tue 21 Jan 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Mike BerlinExplore London's evolution during these pivotal decades from post-war reconstruction, the Swinging Sixties and the decline of the docks.Full fee £249.00 Senior fee £199.00 Concession £162.00
Can't see a course you want?
Add this category to your waiting list to set up alerts and we will update you when new courses are released online.
Add me to waiting list