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Our languages and culture courses span the length and breadth of England and Scotland, with the option to study online or in person at a time that suits you. Whether you’re looking to learn a new language and immerse yourself in another country, or you simply wish to indulge in your love and fascination of film, we have the course for you. 

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Our creative writing courses will nourish your inner writer, providing you with a platform to develop your love of poetry, non-fiction or script development. If literature courses are more your kind of thing, then you’re in luck too, as there are a wide range of topics to choose from.  

Literary greats and great periods in history

Our language courses offer you the perfect opportunity to immerse yourself in a completely new culture, developing your skills so that you can speak confidently in countries right across the world. German, Italian and Greek are just a few examples of the language courses we have to offer, with many others taking place throughout the year.  

As you’d expect, literary greats such as Agatha Christie and Shakespeare feature regularly. There’s also the option to examine other time periods in English literature too, helping you develop your critical reading and analysis skills - perfect whether you’re a beginner or more experienced in the subject.  

If you prefer history then you’ve got a choice too, from courses on subjects you’d expect such as the first world war, or art history and studying the works of iconic painters such as Salvador Dali. 

Support and guidance

Whatever course you choose, you'll learn in a supportive environment where the class sizes are small, ensuring you get the attention you deserve, with an experienced and qualified tutor on-hand to guide you through your learning too.  

A lot of our cultural learning is delivered by our branch network: learn more here.

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Creative Writing: Body and Earth

This friendly creative writing course will invite you to enter into relationship with your bodies and surroundings. The session will be held in a supportive way and will integrate some simple meditation (adaptable to all bodies), prompts for creative and reflective expression through writing, and even some environmental science! You will be guided to a holistic understanding of person and place. This course is ideal for people who like to write and to contemplate how to live more skilfully as individuals, as a community and in relationship with their surroundings. There will be time for sharing small parts of your writing towards the end of the workshop but no pressure, it’s about an unfolding individual/shared creative process and participants need to feel at ease to write freely.

Course Information

Dates:
Tue 07/01/2025 -
Tue 18/03/2025
Times:
6:30pm - 8:30pm
Duration:
10 sessions
Location:
Online
Tutor:
Ione Harris
Course code:
Q00019161
How you'll learn:
Online
Availability:
10+ places remaining
Status:
Available
Fee range
Free to £74.00

Art Appreciation: Vincent van Gogh – A short career of enormous significance

In this course, we will focus on an extraordinary artist, well-loved from today’s public: Vincent van Gogh. You will learn about his Dutch origins, his interests and friendships while in Paris, the dreams he nurtured in Arles, and, his last months in Auvers-sur-Oise. As we study the main phases in his life, we will study key examples of his paintings and drawings to better understand his artistic identity. What was the purpose of painting for him? Why did he paint with bright colours and thick brushstrokes? We will seek to understand van Gogh’s art not simply in light of his own mindset, but also in light of the wider cultural context he was part of.

Course Information

Dates:
Tue 07/01/2025 -
Tue 28/01/2025
Times:
2:00pm - 4:00pm
Duration:
4 sessions
Location:
Online
Tutor:
Caroline Levisse
Course code:
Q00019205
How you'll learn:
Online
Availability:
2 places remaining
Status:
Available
Fee range
Free to £29.60

British Novels in the 70s and 80s (Part 2)

This course will consider and analyse the following authors and their texts. These are: Strange Meeting - Susan Hill. So Long Hector Bebb - Ron Berry. Flaubert’s Parrot - Julian Barnes. The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro. Innocence - Penelope Fitzgerald. These texts will provide a window into the different regions of Britain during two decades of major change in the social fabric and political nature of Britain, though several of our texts will trace these changes back to the earlier part of the twentieth century, and in doing so, we will encounter themes of identity, class and the decline of Empire. There will be much to prompt discussion and challenge our assumptions.

Course Information

Dates:
Wed 08/01/2025 -
Wed 19/03/2025
Times:
2:15pm - 4:15pm
Duration:
10 sessions
Location:
Rose House (London)
70 Barnes High Street
London
SW13 9LD
Tutor:
Stephen Smith
Course code:
Q00017376
How you'll learn:
In venue
Availability:
10+ places remaining
Status:
Available
Fee range
Free to £100.00

Music:

The course aims to encourage learners to attend art exhibitions and/or musical events with a greater background knowledge in order to enhance appreciation. If actual attendance is not possible, to undertake independent research and hence, enjoy a more active and cultural lifestyle. The class also offers an opportunity for learners to interact socially with like- minded people in intellectual pursuits. It also encourages learners to acquire critical and analytical skills through debate and discussion. The course covers all styles and periods from the Renaissance to the present day. It is multi media to accommodate diverse learning styles and preferences. It is suitable for beginners and connoisseurs alike.

Course Information

Dates:
Wed 08/01/2025 -
Wed 19/03/2025
Times:
1:30pm - 3:30pm
Duration:
10 sessions
Location:
Wanstead House (London)
21 The Green
Wanstead
London
E11 2NT
Tutor:
Andrew Rothwell
Course code:
Q00017609
How you'll learn:
In venue
Availability:
10+ places remaining
Status:
Available
Fee range
Free to £100.00

ܽƵ Membership

For just £15 a year, you can:

  • Join our popular, award-winning weekly lecture series,
  • Access an archive of over 100 past lectures,
  • Get priority online and phone booking for autumn courses (England only),
  • Receive our Highway magazine and access back issues,
  • Attend our members’ annual conference.

Just add us to your basket to sign up today!

Membership Information

Duration:
12 months
Fee:
£15

Creative Writing: Creative Writing Workshop – Fiction, Poetry and Memoirs

This course will cover all forms of writing – fiction, including novels, short stories and plays, also poetry and autobiography and memoirs. The aim is to help develop and channel your writing ability, whether as a hobby or for publication with discussion of many aspects of writing, projects and readings of your work in a constructive and friendly setting. The emphasis is on individual development. For improvers and beginners, who are welcome. All that is needed is an int.erest in developing and enjoying your writing skills

Course Information

Dates:
Wed 08/01/2025 -
Wed 12/03/2025
Times:
10:00am - 12:00pm
Duration:
10 sessions
Location:
Online
Tutor:
Stella Stocker
Course code:
Q00018502
How you'll learn:
Online
Availability:
10+ places remaining
Status:
Available
Fee range
Free to £74.00

Creative Writing for Wellbeing

Enhance your well-being through writing with our Creative Writing for Wellbeing course. Learn techniques for using creative writing as a tool for self-expression and emotional healing. Ideal for individuals looking to improve their mental health through writing.

Course Information

Dates:
Wed 08/01/2025 -
Wed 16/04/2025
Times:
1:00pm - 3:30pm
Duration:
13 sessions
Location:
Shekinah Endeavour House (Torquay)
Endeavour House, 228 Union Str
Torquay
TQ2 5QS
Tutor:
Ione Harris
Course code:
Q00017176
How you'll learn:
In venue
Availability:
10+ places remaining
Status:
Available
Fee range
Free to £88.20

Intermediate Spanish

Ready to take your Spanish language skills to the next level? If you have completed a previous beginners course then this is the next step in your journey to fluency. Like to holiday in Spain or Spanish speaking countries or just want a new hobby, then this is the course for you. This is the introductory course which will run for 6 weeks, if you would like to carry on with your classes then the full 12 week course will be following this one. This can be used as a continuing course after the prior beginners course or feel free to join at this stage.

Course Information

Dates:
Wed 08/01/2025 -
Wed 12/02/2025
Times:
6:00pm - 8:00pm
Duration:
6 sessions
Location:
Online
Tutor:
Andrea Ostapski
Course code:
Q00019153
How you'll learn:
Online
Availability:
10+ places remaining
Status:
Available
Fee range
Free to £44.40

Literature: The Fables of Robert Louis Stevenson

The course presents all twenty-two “fables” of Robert Louis Stevenson, some as short as a few lines, others running to several pages, all of them challenging the reader with unexpected approaches to human life. We will read all the fables in six weeks, coming together on Zoom to share responses and questions, examine the literary merits and explore the ways the fables might enhance our understanding of ourselves and others we come into contact with day by day. There are podcasts for each fable to supplement our discussions, as well as space on the Canvas site to continue the Zoom discussions.

Course Information

Dates:
Wed 08/01/2025 -
Wed 12/02/2025
Times:
1:00pm - 2:30pm
Duration:
6 sessions
Location:
Online
Tutor:
Robert-Louis Abrahamson
Course code:
Q00019254
How you'll learn:
Online
Availability:
10+ places remaining
Status:
Available
Fee range
Free to £33.00

British Literature 1980 - 2011 (Part 2)

Part 2 of this course builds on our first ten weeks before Christmas, but as each text is studied individually, it is possible to pursue Part 2 separately. We will explore the following texts: On Chesil Beach - Ian McEwan. Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell (2004) Day - A.L. Kennedy. Affinity - Sarah Waters. The Sense of an Ending - Julian Barnes. There will be a wealth of opportunity for discussion of these texts and their themes, which will involve memory, how narratives are structured and gender issues. The texts will also introduce concepts relating to how one reads texts closely and aligns these texts with modern literary movements.

Course Information

Dates:
Thu 09/01/2025 -
Thu 20/03/2025
Times:
2:15pm - 4:15pm
Duration:
10 sessions
Location:
Friends Meeting House (Sutton)
10 Cedar Road
Sutton
SM2 5DA
Tutor:
Stephen Smith
Course code:
Q00017594
How you'll learn:
In venue
Availability:
10+ places remaining
Status:
Available
Fee range
Free to £100.00

Literature: Gissing and Zola – further studies in 19th century naturalist fiction

This course will look at a range of novels by late 19th century naturalist writers George Gissing and Emile Zola. Zola is seen as the leading exponent of French naturalist fiction and Gissing is often classified as an English naturalist writer. Naturalism is a literary genre that considers human character as being determined by environment, social conditions and evolution. Naturalism is similar to realism in that both genres focus on social commentary, they reject romanticism, but naturalism emphasises scientific objectivism. The novels we will study are Zola’s: The Earth (1887); La Bête Humaine (1890); L’Assommoir (1877) and Gissing’s: The Odd Women (1893); The Nether World (1889); The Whirlpool (1897).

Course Information

Dates:
Thu 09/01/2025 -
Thu 03/04/2025
Times:
3:00pm - 5:00pm
Duration:
13 sessions
Location:
Online
Tutor:
Greta Depledge
Course code:
Q00017844
How you'll learn:
Online
Availability:
10+ places remaining
Status:
Available
Fee range
Free to £81.60