Drama and English Literature

Drama and English literature is a combination rooted in the understanding that stories matter and that the way they are told shapes how we make sense of the world. Literature invites you to read closely, think critically, and engage with texts across centuries and cultures. Drama asks you to bring those texts and ideas to life, exploring performance, storytelling, and the relationship between audience and stage.

Together, the disciplines develop your creative voice and your analytical mind in ways that reinforce each other.

At Liverpool Hope University, this three-year full-time programme immerses you in both traditions, drawing on Liverpool's rich cultural life and its strong connections to performance, literature, and the arts. In the drama strand, you will explore the origins and history of theatre, develop practical skills in performance, direction, and devising, and engage with contemporary practice. In the English literature strand, you will read widely across periods and genres, developing the close reading and critical interpretation skills that are central to literary study.

Liverpool, as a city with a thriving cultural scene, provides an inspirational context for both areas of the programme. A sandwich year, year abroad, and work placement opportunities are available, giving you the chance to extend your experience professionally and internationally during your studies.

Graduates from drama and English literature programmes go on to careers in theatre, education, arts administration, publishing, journalism, broadcasting, and the cultural sector. The ability to communicate compellingly, to analyse texts and situations critically, and to collaborate creatively is valued across a wide range of professional contexts. Many graduates go on to postgraduate training in teaching, theatre directing, or creative writing, and some pursue academic careers in literature or performance studies.