Astronomy
Chris Sperring MBE may be known to some for his work in Wildlife Conservation for which he was awarded the M.B.E by the Queen in 2001. Chris also presents on TV and Radio bringing his enthusiasm for the natural world … More details …
Selected novels of Jane Austen
Austen’s use of irony, social commentary, humour and realism are some of the reasons why her novels have remained popular over the last 200 years. This course will look at Sense and Sensibility (1811) which an early review described as … More details …
Empires: Part 3 – the rise of Europe
This day school focuses on the history and interaction of Empires in the Modern Era from about 1450 CE to the present day. The main theme is the rise of Europe, but we will not forget the formidable adversaries European … More details …
Vaughan Williams – Renaissance Man
The composer Ralph Vaughan Williams was fascinated by the ancient music of his homeland and as his explorations widened, he led a generation of English composers in a new renaissance of national music. Renowned for his quintessentially English compositions, Vaughan … More details …
Birds on a String
This course is now fully booked. Please contact us if you would like to be placed on a waiting list in case of any cancellations. Traditionally, these strings of embellished textile birds were found in homes throughout India. It was … More details …
National Treasures: More Iconic Paintings from the National Gallery
This course is now fully booked. Please contact us if you would like to be placed on a waiting list in case of any cancellations. In this study day we will continue to investigate some of the greatest paintings in … More details …
Goodbye Mutti? German politics during the Merkel years and beyond
After the upheaval of the social and economic reforms enacted by the Schröder government, Angela Merkel seemed the voice of reason, and Germans didn’t mind her wooden demeanour. Her handling of the financial and migration crises as well as the … More details …
Mozart – The Soul of a Genius
Mozart stands as the epitome of musical genius, revered and cherished by scholars, critics, performers and listeners alike. The universal allure of his compositions begs the question: what elements make his music so universally captivating? Our exploration today aims to … More details …
Film Music in the Modern Era
An exploration of movie scoring from the 1970s to the present day. Following on from Ben’s Film Music course last year, this day course will look at the art of writing music for movies and TV, including examples of music … More details …
‘Answering Back’
Contemporary poets were invited to select a poem from our literary heritage and respond to it in any way they wished. “Answering Back” is the resulting anthology. In this day school, we shall be discussing a selection from the anthology, … More details …
More Mixed Media
This course is now fully booked. Please contact us if you wish to be placed on the waiting list for any cancellations. On the first Mixed Media course we experimented with mixing different art materials. Even more variations still wait … More details …
The Cult of Gloriana – Elizabeth I and the Elizabethans – a cultural golden age
This course is fully booked. Please contact us if you would like to be placed on the waiting list for any cancellations. Elizabeth I was the most remarkable woman of a remarkable age. Her reign was one of the great … More details …
Alexander the Great
This course is specifically aimed at students who have heard of Alexander but know very little about him. We will look at his background, his character and his extraordinary achievements. This will be underpinned by an introduction to the main … More details …
Richard Strauss – a first-class second-rate composer
The last of the great German romantic composers, Strauss provides an important bridge between 19th century ideals and early modernism. We’ll discuss his life-story and his guiding philosophical beliefs as well as listening to his tone poems, his operas, his … More details …
Seamus Heaney: poet of place
This course is fully booked. Please contact us if you would like to be on the waiting list for any cancellations. Throughout his life, Seamus Heaney derived poetic inspiration from various quarters. However, many of his poems are rooted … More details …