Finding yourself weighed down by the global scene? Lighten the mood by coming along to this tutor-led exploration of novels with a distinctly comic vein. As selected passages will be provided, prior reading is not essential. You can just turn up and enjoy chatting about our extracts and the arising attitudes and values.

Now that we have completed our brief tour through a range of comic novels – from Henry Fielding and Jane Austen at one end, to Angela Carter and Salman Rushdie at the other – we will zoom in to individual works, and in so doing, will continue to consider fiction that entertains as much as it instructs and stimulates.

These 2026 sessions will look closely at one particular novel, and throughout, we will find ourselves both laughing out loud and quietly smiling to ourselves. Each evening will comprise a short introduction to some of the important contexts and narrative methods, followed by discussion of selected passages and the ideas stemming from them. The novels we will consider – in order – are: The Beginning of Spring (Penelope Fitzgerald); Northanger Abbey (Austen); Be Mine (Richard Ford); Under the Greenwood Tree (Hardy); No Fond Return of Love (Barbara Pym); Between the Acts (Woolf).

Tutor: Ruth McLoughlin

I am a newly retired English Literature teacher from a leading London school, and my qualifications include a Doctorate from Oxford University in contemporary Irish poetry. Alongside being Second in the English Department, I led the school for many years in Academic Partnerships. Now I am keen to share my passion for great writing with like-minded souls in Woodbridge and the surrounding area.

This event is part of Third Space. Every Wednesday, we're opening New Street Market for free or low-cost events centering community and togetherness. We'll be hosting fun, thought-provoking, and social gatherings with a wide range of vibes. Get out of the house, leave work behind you, and join us for the night.