John Calder Week | Feel Good Friday – London literary tour
30 January 2026 @ 13:00 - 15:30 GMT
£9.50 – £19.50
Join London tour guide, Sam Jacobs as he leads another SoA in person walk through the literary sights in the City of London as part of our John Calder Week.
We will discuss John Calder and his key role in the fight against censorship, as we move through the city.
We’ll be starting from Dickens’ house in Doughty Street, and other Dickensian sites of note in the Chancery Lane area. We lwill take in Dr Johnson’s house, a very old and very literary pub where over 50 writers have drunk as well asancient areas important to Restoration drama. You’ll also be able to see the homes of the writer of King Kong, the first female news editor, Thomas More, Thomas Hobbes, Pope, Milton, William Blake , John Keats, and Samuel Pepys along with Shakespeare’s lodgings and John Donne’s footprint.
This tour is ideal for those who like strolling through London and seeing some its alleys and backstreets and talking about some its great writers.
Places are limited and subject to availability.
John Calder Week
From 27 – 30 January 2026, we are running a week of events to celebrate the SoA’s new John Calder Translation Prize which was launched in November 2024.
The John Calder Translation Prize is an annual award for translations into English of full-length ambitious, groundbreaking works of literary merit and general interest. The winner is awarded £3,000 and a runner-up is awarded £1,000.
The aim of the John Calder Translation Prize is to celebrate new and ambitious translations into English of full-length works (fiction, non-fiction and poetry) which are distinguished by the highly personal and imaginative approach of the authors to their subject. Submissions can be from any language into English.
The week includes:
- 27 Jan | Industry Insider – Editing translation
- 29 Jan | How I write – in conversation with Katharine Halls
- 30 Jan | SoA in Person: Feel Good Friday – London literary tour
Programme
- 1pm – Meet at the SoA’s office for welcome refreshments
- 1.25pm – Welcome from SoA and Sam Jacobs
- 1.30pm – Group leave SoA office for start of tour
- 3.30pm – Tour ends
The Line-up
Sam Jacobs
Sam is a qualified City of London guide and Cambridge literature graduate. He has led many walking groups through the city. He loves exploring the city together. Each tour is different and everybody brings something new to the day.
Sam’s written books about London including its sights, literature, and Whitechapel.
Websites: www.cityoflondonwalks.wordpress.com | www.cityoflondonguides.com/find/samjacobs | www.toursbylocals.com
Substack: samljacobs | Threads: @samuelljacobs | Tripadvisor: Sam L Jacobs | Facebook: Sam Jacobs
Accessibility
- Our events space is located on the ground floor of our office, we have a wheelchair ramp round the side entrance of the building. We also have an accessible toilet by the side entrance.
- Please note that this event will require moving around London for a total of two hours without guaranteed places to sit down along with way.
- If you require BSL interpretation to take part in this event, please email events@societyofauthors.org.
- If you have any other accessibility needs, please email events@societyofauthors.org
Feeling unwell?
We recommend the following:
- Staying home if you’re feeling unwell or have flu-like symptoms
- Washing your hands when coming in from the outdoors and / or before touching your face
- Applying alcohol hand sanitiser (we will have these on site)
- We advise attendees to wear a face mask if they feel comfortable doing so
Tickets
£9.50 for SoA Members
£19.50 for Non-Members
Booking
Book your place using the booking from below. Places are limited.
Please read our event booking Terms and Conditions: https://societyofauthors.org/legal-privacy/event-terms/
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Access 20% off your first year of membership of the SoA with discount code SOAATHOME20
The Society of Authors is the UK’s biggest trade union for authors – representing more than 12,000 writers, illustrators, translators and other creative practitioners.
Our subscription rate is just £137 per year (£97 concessionary) which equates to just under £12 per month (or £8 per month concessionary).
As an SoA member, you’ll get:
- Access to all our #SoAatHome events for free including the Professional Development sessions usually charged at £35 from Feb 2025
- Access to all our Feel Good Friday and Industry Insider events which are usually charged £5 from Feb 2025
- Access all #SoAatHome Vimeo professional development recordings so you can catch up in your own time
- Access Unlimited one-to-one professional advice
- Membership of our online and real-world professional networks and special interest groups
- A range of member-only discounts, including books, insurance and travel
- And much more
‘It was a surprisingly lovely way to meet fellow writers in a friendly, warm surrounding perfectly hosted by the SoA staff. Thank you for all the introductions, the welcome and the nourishment!’ – attendee from SoA in Person: Autumn New Members’ Party 2024
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