The Portico Library invites the public to a programme celebrating games and recreation through the ages. From Jane Austen’s depictions of the card-playing Georgian middle classes to Dickens’ festivals and dances, 19th-century literature describes the roles that pastimes play in our cultural lives, and the social, moral and intellectual aspects of game-playing.

The exhibition will open with an interactive web version on Friday 20th November, preceded by an online preview event from 7pm to 8pm on Thursday 19th November, and then in the Library on 3rd December where it will provide the setting for interactive activities throughout winter 2020 and spring 2021.