Loading...Academic Drawing — Royal Drawing School
Shoridich · starting at £28 per session
The Royal Drawing School is a school with a rigorous academic approach that also welcomes complete beginners. You can draw the nude, learn portraiture and perspective, and sketch in museums and on the streets of London. There are also themed courses: for example, a five-week course on how to draw the archetype of the mother starts on October 19, and there are lunchtime sessions. For those who aren’t afraid of a long-distance commitment, there’s a comprehensive online course on the basics of drawing that offers a professional certificate upon completion. But for now, the editorial team’s absolute favorite is “Drawing as Diary,” which will transform your sketchbooks and journals into works of art.
You can try it out as early as tomorrow, October 17—the school is holding a life drawing class with a model from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The class costs £50 for a full day or £28 for a half-day.
Ceramics — Turning Earth Hoxton
Hoxton · starting at £340 per course
A spacious studio located in the railway arches, where students learn to work on a potter’s wheel, sculpt by hand, and glaze their pieces. The school has several branches throughout the city: in addition to Hoxton, there are locations in Leyton and Highgate. The most popular pottery wheel course lasts eight weeks and starts on October 19, but there are also combined ceramics courses that include both hand-building and the pottery wheel. You’ll only be asked to bring an apron to keep your clothes clean—everything else will be provided during class.
The studio also offers short workshops—including private sessions—for those who want to try working with clay for the first time. And if you’re already comfortable with the potter’s wheel, you can purchase a membership that includes 15 hours of self-guided practice per week.
Art History — The Courtauld Institute of Art
Upper Kings Cross, Vernon Square · starting at £245
One of the UK’s most prestigious art history institutions offers short courses open to everyone: from the Renaissance and medieval painting to contemporary art theories. You can purchase a package of pre-recorded online lectures, or you can choose a course held on campus—for the full student experience. For example, a course on the Renaissance in painting and music begins on November 4—every Wednesday evening for five weeks, PhDs will be waiting for you in the beautiful lecture hall on Vernon Square. The full price of the course is £465, but the institute also offers more affordable courses, as well as individual lectures and tours starting at £14.
Literary Craft — Faber Academy
Hatton Garden · Starting at £100 for an introductory seminar
Imagine this: a dreary November day—it’s dark and pouring rain outside, and you’re sitting in a warm sweater by the fireplace in a pub or under a green lamp in the library, writing your novel… If that sounds appealing, now is the perfect time to sign up for the fall creative writing workshops.
For example, at the Faber Academy—a writing school affiliated with the legendary British publishing house Faber & Faber, which has published books by Sylvia Plath, T. S. Eliot, and Kazuo Ishiguro. Here, you’ll learn to write novels, short stories, poetry, and nonfiction; your work will be analyzed, and your manuscripts will be edited under the guidance of professional writers. Getting to know the instructors and other aspiring authors can be useful even outside the classroom—especially if you’re seriously considering getting published.
You can start your journey toward a career in writing right on Halloween: On October 31, there will be a one-day “Start to Write” workshop for beginners. For those who are already writing, there are “Writing Evening” gatherings for £20; the next one is on November 5.
Philosophy and Open Lectures — Gresham College
Holborn · Free
If lectures are among your fondest memories of your youth, we have good news: in London, you can once again immerse yourself in the atmosphere of student life—and completely free of charge. Gresham College has been hosting public lectures since 1597. Its founders decided to make education accessible to ordinary Londoners and to deliver lectures in English rather than Latin, as was customary at universities. Over the years, the college’s faculty has included architect Christopher Wren and scientist Robert Hooke, and in 1660, the first meeting of what would become the Royal Society was held here.
Today at Gresham College, you can attend lectures on philosophy, literature, history, music, and the natural sciences. Many of them take place in Barnard’s Inn Hall—a historic hall with wooden beams and stained-glass windows, just a stone’s throw from Chancery Lane. Incidentally, Barnard’s Inn itself is mentioned in Charles Dickens’s *Great Expectations*. It’s the perfect place to spend a rainy evening in the company of intelligent people and learn something new at the same time.
On October 22 at 6:00 p.m., “Plato on Truth, Lies, and Power” will take place—a lecture by Princeton University professor Melissa Lane on Plato, the art of rhetoric, and how lies become a tool of power. Actually, the program is so compelling that you’ll want to attend every day: there are lectures on true stories in journalism, Indian cinema, ancient Syria, the AI crisis, and the dialect of 16th-century Londoners.
Wine School — Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET)
Bermondsey · £250 for the introductory course
If you’ve long wanted to learn how to appreciate wine as well as a professional sommelier, but still choose a bottle based on the beauty of its label, fall is the perfect time to change that. WSET School London is the UK’s largest wine education school, located in the culinary heart of the city on Bermondsey Street, near Borough Market. It attracts both aspiring sommeliers and enthusiasts who simply want to understand what’s in their glass. Classes teach students to distinguish between grape varieties, navigate different wine regions, pair wines with food, and recognize nuances of flavor and aroma. Beginner students taste nine different wines, and at the end of the course, they take an exam; passing it earns them an international WSET certificate. And who knows—by Christmas, you might just be the top wine expert among your friends.
You can start with the three-session Level 1 Award in Wines course—an evening course consisting of three sessions on November 17 and 24 and December 1, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. The cost is £250.
Photo: London School of Photography
Shoreditch · £250 for the introductory course
Gray fog over the Thames, red buses in rain-streaked shop windows, the first Christmas lights, and passersby with colorful umbrellas… If you’ve long dreamed of learning to see London through the eyes of Henri Cartier-Bresson or Vivian Maier, now is the time to put down your smartphone and pick up a real camera.
The London School of Photography, located in Shoreditch, teaches both beginners and those who are already confident behind the camera. Here, you can master street photography, portrait photography, and photojournalism; learn how to work with light and composition; and finally figure out what those mysterious terms—ISO, “shutter speed,” and “aperture”—actually mean. Classes are entirely practice-based: even in the basic course, 70% of the time is devoted to hands-on work, and with a strict limit of eight participants per group, everyone is guaranteed personalized feedback.
For beginners, a good option is, for example, the two-day Level 1 Photography Workshop on November 14–15 or 28–29 (cost: £250). But there are also individual master classes, as well as genre-specific courses—including, for example, food photography.
Acting — City Academy
Farringdon · Starting at £20 for a trial class
“To be or not to be”—that is the most important question in the history of theory. In this case, we invite you to consider whether you should be an actor or not. London is one of the world’s theater capitals, and it’s only natural that, while sitting in the audience, you might sometimes find yourself wanting to be on the other side of the stage. The good news is that you don’t have to quit your job and enroll at RADA to make that happen.
At City Academy, they teach the basics of acting from scratch—even if you’ve never been on stage before. Here, you’ll learn how to use your voice and body, improvise, create characters, and analyze dramatic scenes. Classes are taught by professional actors. The most important thing for learning is a willingness to experiment—and sometimes to look a little silly.
The Acting Beginners Course—a six-week evening course held on Fridays—starts on November 6 and costs £250. For those who are unsure, there will be an Acting Taster session on October 23 for £20.
Bookbinding — City Lit
Covent Garden · Starting at £149 per workshop
We live in an age of e-books, digital music libraries, and phone notes instead of paper journals. Do you miss the tactile experience? You might enjoy making your own books and notebooks: choosing the paper, binding the pages, designing the cover—and ending up with a one-of-a-kind creation in your hands. If you love old bookstores, beautiful notebooks, and the smell of printing ink, this might be your perfect fall hobby.
You can learn the art of bookbinding at City Lit—a London college of continuing education for adults founded back in 1919. Incidentally, its alumni include David Bowie and the writer Andrea Levy. Today, the college offers hundreds of creative classes, including courses in traditional bookbinding. Here, students learn the basics of the craft while also being introduced to historical and contemporary bookbinding techniques. No prior experience is required, and you can take your finished projects home with you. What better reason to treat yourself to a beautiful new journal or make a unique Christmas gift?
The two-day “Bookbinding: Notebooks and Folders” workshop will take place October 31–November 1 and costs £179. Under the guidance of bookbinder Kate Rochester, participants will make several notebooks, including a multi-page notebook with a pocket and a clasp, as well as a paper case. There’s also a one-day introduction to the craft—“Try it out: Bookbinding”—on November 29 for £149.
Perfumes — Experimental Perfume Club
Marylebone / Mayfair · starting at £15
Looking for the perfect fall fragrance? Or maybe it’s time to take matters into your own hands and create one from scratch? The Experimental Perfume Club is an intimate lab in Marylebone where you can feel like a real perfumer. The club was founded in 2016 by Emmanuel Moglen, a graduate of the renowned French perfumery school ISIPCA who previously worked with L’Oréal and Puig. In the classes here, you’ll learn about the structure of perfume compositions, how to distinguish between aromatic notes, and how to blend them together. Under the guidance of an expert, you’ll be able to mix several ready-made bases, create your own fragrance, give it a name, and even receive a bottle with a personalized label. Of course, this is more of a creative workshop than a full-fledged course. But if you get seriously into it, the club also offers an online perfumery school with professional ingredient kits, hands-on assignments, and a certificate upon completion.
You can start with a Blending Discovery Session—an introductory consultation that gives you the chance to try creating your own fragrance. The session costs £15, which can be applied toward the purchase of a personalized perfume priced at £100 or more. There are also three free online lessons available on the school’s website. The more in-depth Luxe Blending Experience costs £195; the price includes a one-hour private master class and a 50-ml bottle of your own perfume.
