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Languages week timetable

Our Courses

Languages Week 2026

Welcome to The Big Beautiful Languages Week with The Language Academy!

The Big Beautiful Languages Week is our first annual celebration of everything that makes languages joyful, fascinating, and potentially life‑changing. Across six vibrant days, students step into a world of culture, creativity, and connection – exploring French, Spanish, Italian, Catalan, Portuguese, Ukrainian * and more through hands‑on workshops, food, music, trivia, and real‑life experiences.

This is not a week of “lessons.”  It’s a week of discovering, tasting, listening, speaking, laughing, and living languages. Please find the full list in the timetable above, and book from the list at the bottom of the page.

Students will dive into the hidden regions of Europe, explore dialects and accents, master verbs and pronunciation, and experience the rhythm of each language through songs, poetry, and storytelling. You will learn how to navigate life abroad and understand cultural traditions.

Alongside our language‑specific sessions, students can enjoy a rich programme of general events: wine and cheese tasting, the language of coffee, TEFL tasters, study‑abroad pathways, careers in languages, opera, and our famous multilingual quiz nights.

You can pick and choose, attending multiple sessions (in which case, check out our Freedom Pass!) or just the ones that particularly interest you.

The Big Beautiful Languages Week is a reminder that languages aren’t just subjects – they’re bridges. They connect us to people, places, opportunities, and versions of ourselves we haven’t met yet.

This is your invitation to step into that world.

Learn, explore, and celebrate with us.

Please note * that the programme is subject to change and not all items are guaranteed to run.

Languages Week 2026 Courses

Country Focus: the Regions of France

Location

  • Winchester

Details

Ages 17+
10 students max

Required level

  • No previous knowledge.

Course Date

  • Thu 27 Aug -
  • Thu 27 Aug
  • 12:00 -
  • 13:00
  • Day(s): Thursday

Duration

Weeks: 1
Hours: 1

Description

Step inside France and discover its hidden worlds. In this session, we journey through the diverse regions of France, exploring how geography, history and local identity shape everyday life. From food traditions and cultural quirks to language varieties, accents and regional mindsets, you’ll get a rich, colourful picture of what it’s really like to live in different parts of the country, and useful info if this is your plan! Expect stories, insights, surprises and plenty of chances to compare regions, challenge stereotypes and deepen your cultural understanding.
Original price was: £16.00.

(Early bird offer expires 13 Aug 26)

Current price is: £14.40.Per Person

This course has already started, but you’re still very welcome to join. The price has been adjusted.

Find out more

Languages Week Freedom Pass

Location

  • Winchester

Details

Ages 17+
100 students max

Required level

Course Date

  • Thu 27 Aug -
  • Tue 01 Sep
  • 00:00 -
  • 00:00
  • Day(s): Every day

Duration

Weeks: 1
Hours: 100

Description

Languages Week Freedom Pass Looking to make the most of Languages Week? The FREEDOM PASS allows you to attend as many sessions as you wish throughout the week – all for one fixed price. PLEASE NOTE: Even with a Freedom Pass you will still need to register for each session via our website so that we can manage numbers effectively. Once you have paid for the pass, we will send you a 100% discount code which you can use when signing up to all the sessions you wish to attend.  
Original price was: £99.00.

(Early bird offer expires 6 Aug 26)

Current price is: £89.00.Per Person

This course has already started, but you’re still very welcome to join. The price has been adjusted.

Find out more

Language and Politics – Languages Week 2026

Location

  • Winchester

Details

Ages 17+
10 students max

Required level

  • No previous knowledge

Course Date

  • Thu 27 Aug -
  • Thu 27 Aug
  • 17:00 -
  • 18:30
  • Day(s): Thursday

Duration

Weeks: 1
Hours: 1.5

Description

Language can be powerful, so it’s not surprising that politicians and others with influence take an interest in it, from dictators like Franco banning the use of Catalan, to the Académie Française trying to keep English out!  In this session we will look at this issue, giving a range of examples and inviting discussion.
Original price was: £24.00.

(Early bird offer expires 15 Aug 26)

Current price is: £21.60.Per Person

This course has already started, but you’re still very welcome to join. The price has been adjusted.

Find out more

Discover Ukrainian – Languages Week 2026

Location

  • Winchester

Details

Ages 17+
10 students max

Required level

  • No previous knowledge

Course Date

  • Thu 27 Aug -
  • Thu 27 Aug
  • 09:00 -
  • 10:30
  • Day(s): Thursday

Duration

Weeks: 1
Hours: 1.5

Description

This session will introduce you to Ukrainian and you will learn a few useful expressions. It’ll be a valuable taster, and you will be able to gauge whether it’s a language you could embark on learning.
Original price was: £24.00.

(Early bird offer expires 15 Aug 26)

Current price is: £21.60.Per Person

This course has already started, but you’re still very welcome to join. The price has been adjusted.

Find out more

Inside Italian Opera – Languages Week 2026

Location

  • Winchester

Details

Ages 17+
10 students max

Required level

  • No previous knowledge

Course Date

  • Thu 27 Aug -
  • Thu 27 Aug
  • 19:00 -
  • 20:00
  • Day(s): Thursday

Duration

Weeks: 1
Hours: 1

Description

Chris Polatch, our Founder, is an opera fan as well as Italian speaker and he will introduce you to some of the most famous Italian operas (Verdi’s and Mozart’s in particular) and will focus on some key arias.  Some of them you can even sing along to!  Suitable for all but most relevant to Italian students.
Original price was: £16.00.

(Early bird offer expires 15 Aug 26)

Current price is: £14.40.Per Person

This course has already started, but you’re still very welcome to join. The price has been adjusted.

Find out more

French Verbs Workout – A2/B1 Levels – Languages Week 2026

Location

  • Winchester

Details

Ages 17+
10 students max

Required level

  • Post-beginner

Course Date

  • Thu 27 Aug -
  • Thu 27 Aug
  • 10:30 -
  • 12:00
  • Day(s): Thursday

Duration

Weeks: 1
Hours: 1.5

Description

You can’t go very far without verbs, so need to master them!  Our French verbs workout will involve drilling some key verbs and you will be asked to do some “mini-translations” to put them into practice. You will cover present and passé composé.
Original price was: £24.00.

(Early bird offer expires 13 Aug 26)

Current price is: £21.60.Per Person

This course has already started, but you’re still very welcome to join. The price has been adjusted.

Find out more

The Language of Coffee – Languages Week 2026

Location

  • Winchester

Details

Ages 17+
10 students max

Required level

  • No previous knowledge

Course Date

  • Thu 27 Aug -
  • Thu 27 Aug
  • 14:00 -
  • 15:30
  • Day(s): Thursday

Duration

Weeks: 1
Hours: 1.5

Description

A bit like the Language of Love, the Language of Coffee allows you to express your deepest desires but without the emotional fallout.  This session will help you negotiate coffee shops around Europe, to get the best available, tailored to your proclivities.  From the French noisette to a Galão or “Bica” in Portugal to the Italian ristretto or lungo, we will take you on a whistle-stop tour of coffee.
Original price was: £24.00.

(Early bird offer expires 15 Aug 26)

Current price is: £21.60.Per Person

This course has already started, but you’re still very welcome to join. The price has been adjusted.

Find out more

German Gender Assignment – Languages Week 2026

Location

  • Winchester

Details

Ages 17+
10 students max

Required level

  • Beginner

Course Date

  • Thu 27 Aug -
  • Thu 27 Aug
  • 15:30 -
  • 17:00
  • Day(s): Thursday

Duration

Weeks: 1
Hours: 1.5

Description

One of the (many!) challenging aspects of learning German is having to deal with 3 genders: masculine, feminine and neuter. For every new noun you learn, learning the gender is part of the process and this affects the form of words used around nouns (eg adjectives or possessives).  There are some rules that can help you with this and we will introduce you to some of these, with examples.  While you will not be able to assign the gender to any given word, you will get a serious leg-up!  We’ll get you involved, learning common words that conform to the rules as well as guessing the gender of some that don’t!  If it all sounds a bit “serious”, don’t worry, it’s going to be fun!
Original price was: £24.00.

(Early bird offer expires 15 Aug 26)

Current price is: £21.60.Per Person

This course has already started, but you’re still very welcome to join. The price has been adjusted.

Find out more

Country Focus: the Regions of Spain

Location

  • Winchester

Details

Ages 17+
10 students max

Required level

  • No previous knowledge.

Course Date

  • Fri 28 Aug -
  • Fri 28 Aug
  • 12:00 -
  • 13:00
  • Day(s): Friday

Duration

Weeks: 1
Hours: 1

Description

Step inside Spain and discover its hidden worlds. In this session, we journey through the diverse regions of Spain, exploring how geography, history and local identity shape everyday life. From food traditions and cultural quirks to language varieties, accents and regional mindsets, you’ll get a rich, colourful picture of what it’s really like to live in different parts of the country, and useful info if this is your plan! Expect stories, insights, surprises and plenty of chances to compare regions, challenge stereotypes and deepen your cultural understanding.
Original price was: £16.00.

(Early bird offer expires 13 Aug 26)

Current price is: £14.40.Per Person

This course has already started, but you’re still very welcome to join. The price has been adjusted.

Find out more

French topic based discussion – B1 intermediate +

Location

  • Winchester

Details

Ages 17+
10 students max

Required level

  • Intermediate - A2/B1+ Please see our check your level page

Course Date

  • Fri 28 Aug -
  • Fri 28 Aug
  • 09:00 -
  • 10:30
  • Day(s): Friday

Duration

Weeks: 1
Hours: 1.5

Description

This session is designed to increase your fluency, by introducing a series of discussion points around topics.  You will develop your vocabulary range both in terms of individual words and expressions.  You will practise structures and grammatical elements in context.  Lots of fun, and you will increase your confidence! The idea is to have you conversing and debating for all of the class. We feel the key skills to master (being of most interest to the majority of our learners) are speaking and listening, so that you can communicate when travelling.  Listening is probably the harder of these, as you may make yourself understood but understanding what comes back can be demanding, as how people phrase responses is unpredictable!
Original price was: £24.00.

(Early bird offer expires 13 Aug 26)

Current price is: £21.60.Per Person

This course has already started, but you’re still very welcome to join. The price has been adjusted.

Find out more

The Language of Wine – Languages Week 2026

Location

  • Winchester

Details

Ages 17+
10 students max

Required level

  • No previous knowledge

Course Date

  • Fri 28 Aug -
  • Fri 28 Aug
  • 17:00 -
  • 18:30
  • Day(s): Friday

Duration

Weeks: 1
Hours: 1.5

Description

While we would never want you to become a wine bore, it’s pretty useful to understand some of the basic language around wine, so that you can buy the best bottle you can afford!  We are sure you already know that terroir is not a dog and appellation does not involve mountain climbing but there may be some other terms and expressions you are only half-familiar with.  We’ll mostly look at French, Italian and Spanish terms.  Oh, and we’ll be offering you some samples of very nice wines to taste as part of the session!
Original price was: £24.00.

(Early bird offer expires 15 Aug 26)

Current price is: £21.60.Per Person

This course has already started, but you’re still very welcome to join. The price has been adjusted.

Find out more

Spanish Songs

Location

  • Winchester

Details

Ages 17+
10 students max

Required level

  • No previous knowledge.

Course Date

  • Fri 28 Aug -
  • Fri 28 Aug
  • 14:00 -
  • 15:30
  • Day(s): Friday

Duration

Weeks: 1
Hours: 1.5

Description

Our Spanish Songs sessions celebrate the golden age of Latin romance – the era when boleros drifted out of open windows, dance halls glowed softly in the evening heat, and love was always just a little dramatic. In this session we’ll explore classics such as Bésame Mucho and Quizás, Quizás, Quizás – songs born not in Spain but in Mexico and Cuba, yet adored across the entire Spanish‑speaking world. Expect longing, hesitation, passion and a touch of melodrama as we unpack the stories behind the lyrics and the cultural worlds they evoke. You may even find yourself swaying along before you realise it. Come along! Suitable for all, but especially delightful for lovers of Spanish‑language music and culture, with some language knowledge.
Original price was: £24.00.

(Early bird offer expires 13 Aug 26)

Current price is: £21.60.Per Person

This course has already started, but you’re still very welcome to join. The price has been adjusted.

Find out more

Language learning aptitude tests – Languages Week 2026

Location

  • Winchester

Details

Ages 17+
10 students max

Required level

  • Post-beginner and above

Course Date

  • Fri 28 Aug -
  • Fri 28 Aug
  • 10:30 -
  • 12:00
  • Day(s): Friday

Duration

Weeks: 1
Hours: 1.5

Description

Do you have an aptitude? It is believed that some people have a knack for languages.  Women are generally considered to be better linguists than men.  Is this true?  We will look at some language aptitude tests and try them out on you!  But we’ll also talk about motivation, which is another key to language learning success, whether it’s “intrinsic” or “extrinsic” – we will explain!
Original price was: £24.00.

(Early bird offer expires 15 Aug 26)

Current price is: £21.60.Per Person

This course has already started, but you’re still very welcome to join. The price has been adjusted.

Find out more

French Quiz Night! Languages Week 2026

Location

  • Winchester

Details

Ages 18+
25 students max

Required level

  • Beginner +

Course Date

  • Fri 28 Aug -
  • Fri 28 Aug
  • 19:00 -
  • 20:30
  • Day(s): Friday

Duration

Weeks: 1
Hours: 1.5

Description

Our Quiz Nights are a light-hearted night out that are a lot of fun as well as being educational!  Think Pub Quiz, conducted in French, with a number of rounds dedicated to vocabulary, geography, people and, well, come along and find out!  Meet like-minded people, improve your listening skills and have a glass of wine or two (included in the price) and a few nibbles.
Original price was: £24.00.

(Early bird offer expires 14 Aug 26)

Current price is: £21.60.Per Person

This course has already started, but you’re still very welcome to join. The price has been adjusted.

Find out more

Italian Songs #1

Location

  • Winchester

Details

Ages 17+
10 students max

Required level

  • No previous knowledge.

Course Date

  • Fri 28 Aug -
  • Fri 28 Aug
  • 15:30 -
  • 17:00
  • Day(s): Friday

Duration

Weeks: 1
Hours: 1.5

Description

Italy has a fine tradition of cantautori, who flourished particularly in the mid to late 20th century.  Some of us can still remember when the originals came out!  Join us for either or both of these sessions to be charmed by the lyrics of iconic singers such as Fabrizio de Andre and Lucio Battisti.  You will be transported to a land of bruschette, vino, sole ed amore while never leaving Winchester.  Each of these 2 sessions (Italian Songs 1 & 2) will introduce 3 classic songs – and we might even get you singing along!  Come to either or both – sessions are independent of each other, so you don’t need to have attended the previous one!  Suitable for all but will be appreciated most by lovers of all things Italian, with some language knowledge.
Original price was: £24.00.

(Early bird offer expires 13 Aug 26)

Current price is: £21.60.Per Person

This course has already started, but you’re still very welcome to join. The price has been adjusted.

Find out more

Varieties of Spanish: Iberian and Latin American ‘Spanishes’

Location

  • Winchester

Details

Ages 17+
10 students max

Required level

  • Pre-intermediate

Course Date

  • Sat 29 Aug -
  • Sat 29 Aug
  • 10:30 -
  • 12:00
  • Day(s): Saturday

Duration

Weeks: 1
Hours: 1.5

Description

We are often asked if Latin American Spanish is the same as Spanish Spanish (Castellano).  The answer is more complicated, in fact!  Across South and Central America there are different varieties of Spanish, just as English varies across the US and in other countries where it is a first or official language.  We will introduce you to some of the varieties, with audio.
Original price was: £24.00.

(Early bird offer expires 13 Aug 26)

Current price is: £21.60.Per Person

This course has already started, but you’re still very welcome to join. The price has been adjusted.

Find out more