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.
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- Introduction to political philosophyCourse start date: Mon 22 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Christopher HornerWhat are the ends and means of politics? Interweaving modern history and politics with key philosophical texts, study and debate the ideas, ideologies and concepts underpinning our thinking about the organisation of society.Full fee £239.00 Senior fee £191.00 Concession £155.00 - Key Texts of 20th and 21st century drama: Arthur Miller, James Graham, Phillip McMahonCourse start date: Mon 22 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Jenny StevensThis course will explore the concerns, styles and influences of three 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 Arthur Miller’s A View from the Bridge (1956), James Graham’s This House (2012), and Phillip McMahon’s Once Before I Go (2019) and considers how the art and craft of drama can illuminate significant moments of time and place.Full fee £259.00 Senior fee £207.00 Concession £168.00 - British Cinema: The Whole StoryCourse start date: Mon 22 Sep 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: John WischmeyerThis course will take you on a journey through the development of British Cinema from its earliest films through to some of its most recent. We will explore some of the most significant periods of British filmmaking creativity and commercial enterprise and consider some of the famous names associated with it. Join me in City Lit’s Cultureplex as I tell – through image and sound – the whole story of British Cinema.Full fee £309.00 Senior fee £247.00 Concession £201.00 - Looking at paintingsCourse start date: Mon 22 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Julia MusgraveLook at masterpieces in major London galleries in this introduction to European painting. Explore different painting techniques and genres (landscape, portrait and history painting) for a basic understanding and increased enjoyment of Western art. - City Lit evening reading groupCourse start date: Mon 22 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Claire AllenShare thoughts and ideas about what you are reading, with books chosen by the group. Please come to the first session with suggestions (contemporary literary fiction in paperback) and having read 'The Wren, The Wren' by Anne Enright. We meet on the following dates: 22/9, 20/10, 24/11, 12/1, 16/2, 16/3, 11/5, 8/6, 6/7.Full fee £189.00 Senior fee £189.00 Concession £123.00 - Philosophy reading group: Nietzche's Beyond Good and EvilCourse start date: Mon 22 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Christopher HornerBeyond Good and Evil, is a one of the greatest, most famous and unsettling works of philosophy. A groundbreaking work that challenges conventional morality, truth, and values, it sets the agenda for much of modern philosophy and critical theory. This reading group offers an opportunity to explore Nietzsche’s critique of traditional philosophy and his vision for a “philosophy of the future.”.Full fee £269.00 Senior fee £269.00 Concession £175.00 - Literary ScienceCourse start date: Mon 22 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Julian BirkettFrom the theory of evolution to quantum physics and artificial intelligence, modern science has upended our understanding of the world and our place in it. How have writers of fiction responded to these radical changes?
We consider a range of fiction, including Frankenstein by Mary shelley, Angles and Insects by AS Byatt, Copenhagen by Michael Frayn and Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro.Full fee £259.00 Senior fee £207.00 Concession £168.00 - Global finance: a brief introduction
Course start date: Tue 23 Sep 2025Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Caglar EzikogluExplore the essentials of global finance, learning about international markets, exchange rates, and financial instruments. Gain a foundational understanding of global economic dynamics.Full fee £129.00 Senior fee £129.00 Concession £84.00 - National GalleryCourse start date: Mon 29 Sep 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Leslie PrimoDiscuss a differently themed group of paintings each week in front of the pictures. An opportunity to understand our national collection in greater depth.Full fee £299.00 Senior fee £239.00 Concession £194.00 - Ways into playwriting Course start date: Mon 28 Apr 2025 (and 3 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Nicole AcquahExplore 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 £239.00 Senior fee £239.00 Concession £120.00 - Nineteenth century French fictionCourse start date: Mon 29 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Megan BeechPassion, marriage, crime, class, and murder: these are just some of the key issues at play in the three exhilarating French novels we will discuss in this online course. Focusing on George Sand’s Indiana (1832), Balzac’s Père Goriot (1835) and Zola’s Thérèse Raquin (1868), we’ll explore French literary style and the influence of serialisation on sensation fiction and these author’s depictions of social class, romance, and realism.Full fee £179.00 Senior fee £179.00 Concession £116.00 - Cradles of Civilisation: The SumeriansCourse start date: Mon 29 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Hugo CookHeard about the Sumerians and want to know more? In this course we will explore the first great civilisation of Mesopotamia, and of the world as a whole.Full fee £119.00 Senior fee £95.00 Concession £77.00 - Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs: part 5: module 1Course start date: Mon 29 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Hugo CookImprove your ability to read texts in hieroglyphs and gain (or continue to gain) a deeper understanding of ancient Egyptian literature and culture. Suitable for those who have completed part 3 of the hieroglyphs course but also for those who have attended the same course in previous years.Full fee £219.00 Senior fee £219.00 Concession £142.00 - The discovery of Humanism through the lens of MontaigneCourse start date: Mon 29 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Cristina PaternoDiscover the rise of Humanism in the 14th and 15th centuries through Montaigne’s pioneering ideas on self-reflection. Explore how his philosophy connected medieval and modern thought, shaping the way we understand personal identity and human experience.Full fee £259.00 Senior fee £207.00 Concession £168.00 - Introduction to art history Course start date: Mon 12 May 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Sarah JaffrayAre you interested in art and want to get more out of looking at art and exhibitions? Want to know what an art historian does? Develop your interpretative skills by exploring at how art is made and what social and cultural factors construct our understanding of it.Full fee £249.00 Senior fee £249.00 Concession £162.00
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