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Free English Past Papers for Language and Literature

Past papers, inserts and mark schemes for GCSE English Language and English Literature, linked straight to the official exam board files. Covers AQA, Edexcel, OCR, Eduqas, WJEC and Cambridge IGCSE, with a guide to how each exam works.

AQAEdexcelOCREduqasWJECCambridge IGCSEHow to revise

Language, Literature, or both?

Most students in England take two separate GCSEs: English Language, which tests reading unseen texts and writing your own, and English Literature, which tests the set texts you've studied in class. Both are on this page. Check your board on a mock paper or ask your teacher, as each board's papers are very different in style.

EnglandUsually AQA, Edexcel, OCR or Eduqas. AQA is the most widely taken.
WalesWJEC. Wales introduced a new combined GCSE English Language and Literature from September 2025.
International and independent schoolsUsually Cambridge IGCSE English (First Language), code 0500.
Literature textsLiterature papers only ask about the texts your school chose, so find the questions on your set texts in each paper.

English past papers by exam board

How each board sets out its exams, then every paper and mark scheme it publishes, opening straight from the board's own website.

AQA GCSE English

8700 Language8702 LiteratureNo tiers
ExamTimeMarksWeightingWhat it tests
Language Paper 11h 45m8050%Explorations in creative reading and writing: a fiction extract, then your own descriptive or narrative writing
Language Paper 21h 45m8050%Writers' viewpoints and perspectives: two non-fiction sources, then your own writing to present a viewpoint
Literature Paper 11h 45m6440%Shakespeare and the 19th-century novel
Literature Paper 22h 15m9660%Modern texts, the poetry anthology and unseen poetry
AQA tip: Language Paper 1 Question 4 (evaluation) and the writing task carry the most marks. Time yourself: many students spend too long on the early questions and rush the 40 mark writing task.

AQA GCSE English Language past papers

Every link opens the official PDF on AQA's website. The insert contains the source texts you read in the exam.

Exam seriesPapers and mark schemes
June 2025
November 2024
June 2024
November 2023
Paper 2 Mark scheme
June 2023
November 2022
June 2022
November 2021
November 2020
Sample papers (exams from 2026)
Examiner reports on AQA's site

AQA GCSE English Literature past papers

Every link opens the official PDF on AQA's website. In 2021 and 2022 AQA used adapted papers with more choice, so those years are split differently.

Exam seriesPapers and mark schemes
June 2025
June 2024
June 2023
June 2022
Paper 1N (19th-century novel) Paper·Mark scheme
Paper 1M (modern prose and drama) Paper·Mark scheme
Paper 1P (poetry anthology) Paper·Mark scheme
Paper 2 (Shakespeare and unseen poetry) Paper·Mark scheme
November 2021
Paper 1N (19th-century novel) Paper·Mark scheme
Paper 1M (modern prose and drama) Paper·Mark scheme
Paper 1P (poetry anthology) Paper·Mark scheme
Paper 2 (Shakespeare and unseen poetry) Paper·Mark scheme
November 2020
Sample papers
Examiner reports on AQA's site

Edexcel GCSE English

1EN0 Language1ET0 LiteratureNo tiers
ExamTimeMarksWeightingWhat it tests
Language Paper 11h 45m6440%Fiction and imaginative writing
Language Paper 22h9660%Non-fiction and transactional writing, comparing two texts
Literature Paper 11h 45m8050%Shakespeare and post-1914 literature
Literature Paper 22h 15m8050%The 19th-century novel and poetry since 1789
Edexcel tip: Language Paper 2 gives you two non-fiction texts to compare. Practise the comparison question on several past papers, as it's the one students find hardest to structure.

Edexcel GCSE English Language past papers

Every link opens the official PDF on Pearson's website. Pearson keeps the most recent year's papers for teachers only.

Exam seriesPapers and mark schemes
June 2025
June 2024
June 2023
June 2022
Examiner reports on Pearson's site

Edexcel GCSE English Literature past papers

Every link opens the official PDF on Pearson's website. Pearson keeps the most recent year's papers for teachers only.

Exam seriesPapers and mark schemes
June 2025
June 2024
June 2023
June 2022
Paper 2 (19th-century novel) Paper·Mark scheme
Paper 2 (poetry) Paper·Mark scheme
Examiner reports on Pearson's site

OCR GCSE English

J351 LanguageJ352 LiteratureNo tiers
ExamTimeWeightingWhat it tests
Language Component 12h50%Communicating information and ideas: non-fiction reading and writing
Language Component 22h50%Exploring effects and impact: literary texts and creative writing
Literature Component 12h50%Exploring modern and literary heritage texts
Literature Component 22h50%Exploring poetry and Shakespeare
OCR tip: OCR's Language papers pair texts on a shared theme. Reading both texts quickly first, then going back to annotate, helps with the comparison questions.

OCR GCSE English Language past papers

Every link opens the official PDF on OCR's website.

Exam seriesPapers and mark schemes
June 2025
Communicating information and ideas Paper·Insert·Mark scheme
Exploring effects and impact Paper·Insert·Mark scheme
November 2024
Communicating information and ideas Paper·Insert·Mark scheme
Exploring effects and impact Paper·Insert·Mark scheme
June 2024
Communicating information and ideas Paper·Insert·Mark scheme
Exploring effects and impact Paper·Insert·Mark scheme
November 2023
Communicating information and ideas Paper·Insert·Mark scheme
Exploring effects and impact Paper·Insert·Mark scheme
June 2023
Communicating information and ideas Paper·Insert·Mark scheme
Exploring effects and impact Paper·Insert·Mark scheme
November 2022
Communicating information and ideas Paper·Insert·Mark scheme
Exploring effects and impact Paper·Insert·Mark scheme
June 2022
Communicating information and ideas Paper·Insert·Mark scheme
Exploring effects and impact Paper·Insert·Mark scheme
November 2021
Communicating information and ideas Paper·Insert·Mark scheme
Exploring effects and impact Paper·Insert·Mark scheme
Examiner reports on OCR's site

OCR GCSE English Literature past papers

Every link opens the official PDF on OCR's website. In 2021 and 2022 OCR split the papers into separate sections with more choice.

Exam seriesPapers and mark schemes
June 2025
Exploring modern and literary heritage texts Paper·Mark scheme
Exploring poetry and Shakespeare Paper·Mark scheme
June 2024
Exploring modern and literary heritage texts Paper·Mark scheme
Exploring poetry and Shakespeare Paper·Mark scheme
June 2023
Exploring modern and literary heritage texts Paper·Mark scheme
Exploring poetry and Shakespeare Paper·Mark scheme
June 2022
Modern prose or drama Paper·Mark scheme
19th century prose Paper·Mark scheme
Poetry across time Paper·Mark scheme
Shakespeare Paper·Mark scheme
November 2021
Modern prose or drama Paper·Mark scheme
19th century prose Paper·Mark scheme
Poetry across time Paper·Mark scheme
Shakespeare Paper·Mark scheme
Examiner reports on OCR's site

Eduqas GCSE English

C700 LanguageC720 LiteratureNo tiers

Eduqas is WJEC's board for schools in England.

ExamTimeWeightingWhat it tests
Language Component 11h 45m40%20th century literature reading and creative prose writing
Language Component 22h60%19th and 21st century non-fiction reading and transactional writing
Literature Component 12h40%Shakespeare and poetry
Literature Component 22h 30m60%Post-1914 prose or drama, 19th century prose and unseen poetry
Eduqas English past papers →Eduqas official past papers

WJEC GCSE English (Wales)

WJEC

Wales replaced its separate English Language and Literature GCSEs with a new combined GCSE English Language and Literature, first taught in September 2025. Older WJEC English Language papers are still useful for practising reading and writing skills, but check the format of your exams with your teacher.

WJEC English past papers →New WJEC English Language and Literature

Cambridge IGCSE English (First Language)

0500
PaperTimeMarksWeightingWhat it tests
Paper 1 Reading2h8050%Three reading passages with comprehension, summary and analysis questions
Paper 2 Directed writing and composition2h8050%A directed writing task based on texts, plus a descriptive or narrative composition

Cambridge IGCSE English (First Language) papers

These are the papers Cambridge makes public on its own website. A revised syllabus is examined from 2027, so the 2027 specimen papers show the new style. Older series are available to schools through Cambridge's School Support Hub.

Exam seriesPapers and mark schemes
June 2024
Paper 1 Reading Paper·Insert·Mark scheme
Paper 2 Writing Paper·Insert·Mark scheme
Specimen papers (exams from 2027)
Examiner reports on Cambridge's site

How to use English past papers properly

English papers reward technique as much as knowledge. These habits make the biggest difference.

  1. Match your time to the marksWork out roughly a minute per mark, plus reading time, and stick to it. Running out of time on the writing task is the most common way to lose a grade.
  2. Read the mark scheme levelsEnglish mark schemes describe levels rather than right answers. Read the top level descriptions and notice the words examiners use, like "perceptive", "detailed" and "judicious".
  3. Plan every extended answerTwo or three minutes of planning gives your essay a clear argument. Examiners reward a line of thought, not a list of points.
  4. Practise on unseen textsFor Language papers, every past paper is a fresh set of texts. Use them to practise annotating quickly and picking the best evidence.
  5. Learn short quotationsFor Literature, collect short, flexible quotations from your set texts that fit several themes. Past questions show which themes come up.
  6. Read the examiner reportsEach board publishes reports explaining what strong and weak answers did. They're linked from each board's page above.

Revise your set texts and skills

Our sister site World of Teaching has free, teacher made English literature PowerPoints to help you go over texts and techniques before you try the past papers.

🎭
ShakespearePlot, characters, themes and context for the plays most schools study.Literature PowerPoints →
📚
19th-century novelDickens, Stevenson, Shelley and Brontë, with context and key quotations.Literature PowerPoints →
🖋️
PoetryAnthology poems, comparing poems and tackling unseen poetry.Literature PowerPoints →
🏙️
Modern textsModern prose and drama, from An Inspector Calls to Blood Brothers.Literature PowerPoints →
✍️
Creative writingDescription, narrative structure and making every word count.Literature PowerPoints →
📰
Non-fiction and viewpointsReading articles and speeches, and writing to argue or persuade.Literature PowerPoints →

English past papers: common questions

Are these past papers free?

Yes. Every paper linked from this page is free and opens from the exam board's own website. Some boards hold back the most recent papers for a year so schools can use them as mocks.

Why are some source texts missing from a paper?

English papers often use extracts from published books and articles. When a board can't get permission to republish a text online, it removes it from the public copy. The questions are still useful practice.

Are there tiers in GCSE English?

No. Everyone sits the same English Language and English Literature papers, and the full range of grades from 9 to 1 is available.

Literature papers ask about texts I haven't studied. What should I do?

Each Literature paper has questions on every set text the board offers. Just find the questions on your own texts. You only answer those.

Where can I find more English resources?

Our sister site, World of Teaching, has free English literature PowerPoints written by teachers.

Need to revise a set text first?

Free English literature PowerPoints from World of Teaching, made by teachers and free to download.

Browse English PowerPoints →

Exam structures checked October 2026. Always confirm details with your school or the exam board, as specifications can change.