Explore History, Culture & Writing
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.
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- Explore the areas around London's newest transport linksCourse start date: Mon 11 Sep 2023
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Diane BursteinExplore areas adjacent to our newest London stations. Head south for Battersea and Nine Elms, east to Barking Riverside and along the Elizabeth Line to Farringdon, Bond Street, Whitechapel, Abbey Wood, Custom House, Ealing and Southall.
First meeting place: Monday 11 September at 11am: Meet outside Battersea Power Station tube.Full fee £229.00 Senior fee £183.00 Concession £149.00 - Writing fiction
Course start date: Mon 17 Apr 2023 (and 10 other dates)Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Jonathan BarnesDevelop your creative writing skills on this practical intermediate course. You'll explore the fundamentals of fiction-writing craft, such as character and structure, and unlock your imagination to produce compelling prose. Suitable for those with some creative writing experience.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £209.00 - Ways into screenwriting Course start date: Mon 17 Apr 2023 (and 5 other dates)
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Clive FordLearn to write for the screen on this practical, introductory course. Writing exercises, presentations and screenings will teach you key skills, and you’ll begin to produce work and an outline for a full-length project.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £209.00 - The rise and fall of the Italian Renaissance Course start date: Mon 18 Sep 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Leslie PrimoWhen, where and what was the Italian Renaissance? Explore it through the craft of its masters such as Michelangelo, Raphael, Leonardo, Titian and others and trace its legacy.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £229.00 Senior fee £229.00 Concession £149.00 - Key texts of 20th and 21st century drama: George Bernard Shaw, Tennessee Williams, Harold Pinter and Lucy PrebbleCourse start date: Mon 18 Sep 2023
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Jenny StevensThis course will explore the concerns, styles and influences of four dramatic texts from the 20th and 21st centuries and how they reflect the social, political and cultural conditions in which they were written. It focuses primarily on G.B. Shaw’s Mrs Warren’s Profession, Tennessee Williams’s Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Harold Pinter’s Betrayal, and Lucy Prebble’s Enron, making multiple connections between them as the course progresses.Full fee £239.00 Senior fee £191.00 Concession £155.00 - Ways into poetry Course start date: Mon 17 Apr 2023 (and 7 other dates)
Location on this date: Online
Relatively new to writing poetry? This inspiring course offers an opportunity to experiment with language and a variety of poetic devices alongside fellow emerging poets. Discover the key elements of a poem in a friendly and interactive class.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £209.00 - Starting your novel Course start date: Mon 17 Apr 2023 (and 7 other dates)
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Sophie McKenzieGot a great idea for a novel? Jump start your project in this supportive course that covers craft basics such as character and plot. Ideal for writers of fiction with some experience who have an idea for a novel.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £209.00 - Ways into creative writing Course start date: Mon 17 Apr 2023 (and 18 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Claire CollisonWant to have a go at creative writing in a supportive environment? Join one of these introductory courses. Guided exercises will give you the tools to explore language creatively and find your own writing voice.Full fee £209.00 - Ways into playwriting Course start date: Mon 17 Apr 2023 (and 5 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Grant CorrExplore the fundamental techniques of writing for the stage in this introductory course. Get to grips with dialogue, character, story and structure, and start work on your own play.Full fee £209.00 - Stories of the IslesCourse start date: Mon 25 Sep 2023
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Julian BirkettTake a journey round the British Isles to discover the best of modern writing from Ireland, Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland - and find how writers living hundreds of miles from literary London have found their own way of telling stories and imagining their worlds. Includes James Joyce to Claire Keegan, Dylan Thomas to James Kelman and Shena McKay.Full fee £229.00 Senior fee £183.00 Concession £149.00 - Archaeology of London Course start date: Wed 3 May 2023 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Jill HummerstoneExplore the archaeology and history of London through its cultural monuments, topography and material remains to more fully appreciate the rich archaeological evidence of the capital.
Tutor: Jill Hummerstone. Tutor :Jill Hummerstone.Full fee £259.00 - The great philosophersCourse start date: Mon 8 Jan 2024
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Oliver JosiahExplore the ideas of major philosophers from Plato to Sartre. How does Western philosophy differ from religion
and science? What problems have the great philosophers tried to solve?
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This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £239.00 - Being in the world: Heidegger's philosophyCourse start date: Mon 8 Jan 2024
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: John Goff“The being of 'being' is itself not a being”. Questioning the meaning of ‘Being’ lies at the root of Heidegger’s critique of the ‘crisis’ of Western culture that his philosophy sought to overcome.Full fee £239.00 Senior fee £191.00 Concession £155.00 - Classic drama: Antigone, Measure for Measure, The Country WifeCourse start date: Mon 15 Jan 2024
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Jenny StevensWe will read and discuss three classic plays: Sophocles’ Antigone, Shakespeare's Measure for Measure and William Wycherley’s The Country Wife. Focusing closely on structure, language and tone, we will consider how dramatists across time have explored themes such as sexual politics, family relationships and state power through their plays, as well as considering the social, cultural and historical contexts in which they were produced.Full fee £229.00 Senior fee £183.00 Concession £149.00 - An introduction to the art of seventeenth-century Europe: 1590–1690
Course start date: Mon 15 Jan 2024Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Elizabeth EyresOften referred to as “the Baroque”, the seventeenth century embraces some of the most dramatic, dynamic and acclaimed artworks ever produced, yet also some of the most tranquil and gentle. We will explore a wide range of paintings and sculptures from this period, discover why they look as they do, and investigate the powerful religious and historical contexts that influenced its artists.
This course will be delivered online. 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
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