Literature Courses in London
Explore our exciting range of Literature courses, from Literary History, to specialist courses in Fiction, Poetry and Drama. We offer introductory and in-depth courses to suit all levels of interest and experience, where you can revisit classic texts and discover new writers.
Study in-person or online from the comfort of home, with classes that allow you to participate in discussions with fellow adult students and share your passion for literature as part of a learning community. We offer daytime, evening and weekend courses, both short and long.
Our tutors are experts in their fields and experienced educators; many also teach in universities or share their expertise in the media. Tutors share their knowledge and passion for fiction, poetry and drama through presentations, readings, interactive discussion, analysis, and other activities.
Many students return to take more courses, telling us they enjoy being part of our City Lit literary community; others are inspired to progress onto university study.
Our popular courses often sell out quickly, so we invite you to browse and book your place now.
- Get together and readCourse start date: Thu 2 May 2024
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Claire AllenEnjoy talking with other people about the things you have read? Want to share great stories, poems and drama? Come along and join the conversation. The group is led by a shared reading practitioner trained by The Reader Organisation. - Struggle to be heard: Rimbaud, Cavafy, Tsvetaeva, Binta BreezeCourse start date: Thu 2 May 2024
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Laurie SmithWe look at four poets who struggled to be heard or accepted because their work was so different from what their society expected. What were the barriers they had to overcome and how did they win through to become admired and highly regarded? What made one of the poets stop writing at the age of 21 and the other three continue for the rest of their lives? What makes the poetry of all of them so original, and what can we learn from their resilience?Full fee £69.00 Senior fee £69.00 Concession £45.00 - Reading BrexLit: three novelsCourse start date: Tue 14 May 2024
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Kate WilkinsonThe 2016 referendum result was one of the most significant events in recent British history. How can novels, written in that moment, shed light on the run-up to the vote and its immediate aftermath?
On this course we’ll study three fascinating and powerful novels, by Ali Smith, Anthony Cartwright and Adam Thorpe, exploring their stories and the backdrop they present of Britain’s divisions and connections.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £99.00 Senior fee £99.00 Concession £64.00 - Ways into advanced literature: disruptors, transgressors and storytellersCourse start date: Wed 22 May 2024
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Patricia SweeneyExplore the rewards of close reading analysis, focusing on fiction, drama and the literary essay. Read, analyse and debate works from the mid-twentieth century that challenged the status quo and entered into the debates of the time. Includes 'A Single Man' by Christopher Isherwood, 'A Delicate Balance' by Edward Albee and 'Slouching Towards Bethlehem' by Joan Didion.Full fee £99.00 Senior fee £99.00 Concession £64.00 - Medieval Drama: the Mystery CyclesCourse start date: Mon 3 Jun 2024
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Rachel BuglassThis course explores the Medieval Mystery plays, also known as the York Corpus Christi plays, focusing on the oldest of the four great cycles of biblical drama that have survived from late Medieval England. We will consider theatrical conventions, costumes and props, the performances and open-air staging of the plays and the medieval guilds and writers that were responsible for them.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £99.00 Senior fee £99.00 Concession £64.00 - Beckett and The Divine Comedy: a lifelong influenceCourse start date: Thu 13 Jun 2024
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Stephen WinfieldExplore the intimate relationship between Beckett’s universe of unbelief, presided over by a Godot who never comes, and Dante’s poem, the most exalted, vastly influential literary expression of medieval Christianity, whose presence can be felt everywhere in the Irishman’s long oeuvre, in every genre – in his plays, novels, stories, poems, essays - and at every stage of his career. What brought them together, and what were the results?Full fee £99.00 Senior fee £79.00 Concession £64.00 - Queer Storytelling: writing as a radical actCourse start date: Sun 16 Jun 2024
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Megan BeechThis one day short course will explore the writing of two contemporary queer writers, both of whom use innovative form to tell unique stories of lesbian and trans experience. We'll look at the exhilarating, T.S Eliot Prize winning, C+nto and Othered Poems (2021) by Joelle Taylor and Variations (2022).Full fee £59.00 Senior fee £47.00 Concession £38.00 - A journey through Boccaccio's DecameronCourse start date: Sat 6 Jul 2024
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Francesco BucciolThe Decameron is one of the early literary works in the Italian language and it had a significant influence on many other writers. Come and discover the genesis of the novel and some of the stories that still resonate with readers today.Full fee £59.00 Senior fee £47.00 Concession £38.00
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