Explore Culture, History & Humanities Courses
Explore our extraordinary range of History, Culture and Writing courses and lectures. We offer both introductory and specialist in-depth courses to suit all levels of interest and experience, from ‘How to read a film’ and World literature, to Creative non-fiction writing courses and American history and Politics courses.
Our tutors are experts in their fields and experienced educators; many have published, teach in universities or share their expertise in the media. Tutors share their knowledge and passion through presentations, readings, interactive discussion and exercises, analysis, and other activities.
Many students return to take more courses, telling us they enjoy being part of our City Lit Learning community.
Our popular courses often sell out quickly, so we invite you to browse and book your place now.
- Refugee Week at City Lit: Climate change, food insecurity and refugeesCourse start date: Tue 17 Jun 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Olivia DurandExplore how colonialism, industrial agriculture, and capitalist extraction have shaped global food systems—driving hunger, displacement, and refugee movements. Through case studies, we will examine resistance efforts reclaiming food sovereignty and sustainable alternatives.Full fee £10.00 Senior fee £10.00 Concession £7.00 - The Socratic philosophers: AristotleCourse start date: Thu 19 Jun 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: John GoffThis is a basic introduction to the philosophy of Aristotle, of which his ‘Ethics’ & ‘Politics’ will form the core.Full fee £119.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £77.00 - Friday lates: Text as image from the Renaissance to nowCourse start date: Fri 20 Jun 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Sarah JaffrayWhat happens when word becomes image? From Chinese calligraphy to the prints of Francisco Goya, the graffitied phrases of Jean-Michel Basquiat and truisms of Jenny Holzer, this short course explores how to read text as image. We'll explore how we might read differently in the context of an artwork and how to approach artworks that rely on text as part of their visual composition.Full fee £19.00 Senior fee £19.00 Concession £12.00 - Micro-memoir: a taster
Course start date: Fri 20 Jun 2025 (and 1 other date)Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Julie GartonA life is measured in moments as well as momentous occasions. This fun day workshop coaches students in the art of micro-memoir. Can you write about an instant that changed you in 200 words or less?Full fee £29.00 Senior fee £29.00 Concession £29.00 - Refugee Week at City Lit: political refugees and exiles in Latin America during the Cold WarCourse start date: Fri 20 Jun 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Maria Vasquez-AguilarJoin this session to understand how political refugees and exiles are central to understanding Latin America during the Cold War, and their arrival to the UK. This course is part of City Lit’s Refugee Week events.
Full fee £10.00 Senior fee £10.00 Concession £7.00 - The Vietnam WarCourse start date: Mon 23 Jun 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Dafydd TownleyThis interactive lecture outline course explores how the United States became involved in the conflict in Vietnam and its impact on US politics, society and culture.Full fee £129.00 Senior fee £103.00 Concession £84.00 - Queer UK: rebels and revolutionariesCourse start date: Tue 24 Jun 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Siobhan McGuirkUnder-sung heroes, heroines and trancestors have long battled to make life bearable, better and even brilliant for LGBTIQ+ people in the UK. Join us to celebrate key figures in local history – and groups still battling for change
Full fee £10.00 Senior fee £8.00 Concession £7.00 - Art and critical theory: rethinking 'nature' Course start date: Wed 25 Jun 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Irina ChkhaidzeExplore the role of critical theory within the field of art history, and learn new ways of thinking about art by focusing on how recent authors have been rethinking our understanding of nature.Full fee £119.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £77.00 - Literary Landscapes: Black London in Caleb Nelson’s Open Water and Sam Selvon’s The Lonely LondonersCourse start date: Thu 26 Jun 2025
Location on this date: Online
Black London is shifting and ever-evolving. This course explores how Costa award winning Caleb Nelson’s novel ‘Open Water’ and the great 1950’s classic of immigrant fiction, Sam Selvon’s ‘The Lonely Londoners’ reimagined our multicultural metropolis.Full fee £79.00 Senior fee £79.00 Concession £79.00 - Global History Friday Lates: ChocolateCourse start date: Fri 27 Jun 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Linsey HunterJoin our Global History Friday Late session to explore the history of chocolate from its origins in the Americas to its widespread consumption as a global commodity in the modern period.Full fee £19.00 Senior fee £19.00 Concession £12.00 - An Introduction to 21st century British drama and societyCourse start date: Mon 30 Jun 2025
Location on this date: Online
This online course offers an introduction to the concept of the 21st century British dramatist as a social observer, enabling a deeper understanding of how playwrights can illuminate and comment on social issues. Join us to find out how playwrights Polly Stenham, Jez Butterworth and Phillip Ralph have interrogated a variety of societal ills including a miscarriage of justice, dependency issues, class and the façade of contentment amongst the upwardly mobile.Full fee £19.00 Senior fee £19.00 Concession £12.00 - Art history taster Course start date: Tue 23 Sep 2025 (and 7 other dates)
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Sarah JaffrayCurious about art history? Join us for this taster session where we explore different ways into visual art and its histories from the ancient to the contemporary.Full fee £19.00 Senior fee £15.00 Concession £12.00 - Greek myths: ancient truths, modern mysteryCourse start date: Tue 8 Jul 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Maria ContosMyth permeated all aspects of ancient society and much the same can be said today. Investigate the relevance and perseverance of the Greek myth and why these tales continue to fascinate. - The Odyssey reading group (in translation) Course start date: Thu 10 Jul 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Justin MurrayHomer’s epic tale of Odysseus’ journey home after the Trojan War may now be over 2,500 years old but it still has much to tell us about the Ancient Greek world that is still relevant today. Explore this great work in translation. - Global History Friday Lates: CoffeeCourse start date: Fri 11 Jul 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Vanessa KingSince the seventeenth century, coffee has had a mixed reputation. Discover how coffee has transformed from being seen as subversive and emasculating to, allegedly, replacing tea as the nation’s most popular beverage.Full fee £19.00 Senior fee £19.00 Concession £12.00
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