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The Idler Academy

Bookseller. Coffeehouse. School.

"Competence is the foundation of happiness," William Cobbett.

Address
81 Westbourne Park Road
LONDON W2 5QH
0845 250 1281

Opening Hours
Tuesday — Saturday: 10am - 6.30pm
Sunday: 11am - 5pm
Monday: Closed

In Ancient Greece, the word which turned into our word for school, scholee, originally meant ‘leisure’. Education was a pleasure; it was a privilege freely chosen by the freeborn citizens of Athens. The Idler Academy brings this spirit of cultivated leisure to the 21st century, and crosses it with the lively atmosphere of an 18th century coffeehouse. We sell a wide range of new and secondhand books, largely educational in nature.

In the coffeehouse, we serve Monnouth coffee, Oolong tea from the Himalayas and Valrhona hot chocolate. We sell delicious cakes from Blueberry Hill.

We also offer a delicious Ploughman’s Lunch as well as cream teas, all made from organic and home made ingredients.

We run courses in academic and practical subjects, from Latin to embroidery, from book-keeping to ukulele, from life-drawing to ancient philosophy. This is a place to read, think, debate and learn, to sharpen your mind and learn creative skills. Above all, we seek liberty, and our Latin motto, libertas per cultum, means ‘freedom through education’.


Events

Ukulele Course for Beginners

Due to very popular demand, we have organized our first ukulele evening course.

Your teacher will be artist and musician Mr Danny Wootton, who has played guitar in bands such as Jesus Licks, and has played ukulele for the pop group Razorlight. There will be guest appearances from Arthur Jeffes of Penguin Café and Tom Hodgkinson of the Idler.

The course will cover all the basics, from chords, to strumming to picking. You will learn how to play a multitude of popular songs. Basic theory will be covered. You will also start to look at composition.

The course will last eight weeks and will take place on Tuesday evenings at 6.30pm. There will be a break for St Valentine’s Day, so the course will finish on Tuesday 6 March.

Bring your own ukulele or buy one from the Idler Academy.

Dates: Tuesday 10 January at 6.30pm and every Tuesday for eight weeks

Time: 6.30pm

Place: The Idler Academy, 81 Westbourne Park Road, London W2 5QH. Tel: 0207 221 5908

Cost: £150 inc VAT for eight lessons. BOOK HERE.