Dickensblog

A few 'Great Expectations' details

British magazine TV Choice visited the set of the BBC's Great Expectations. Alas, no photos -- instead, they illustrated the piece with a shot of Gillian Anderson in Any Human Heart. Um, okay. . . . But there are some interesting details in the article about the set and costumes, so go take a look. (At least it's better than the Jay Leno interview last night, which was a total bust.)

Also, we have a Joe Gargery!

Miss Havisham alert

Gillian Anderson is scheduled to appear on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno tonight. Here's hoping she'll talk a bit about how the Great Expectations miniseries is coming along!

Dickens and film

I've recently come across several articles combining the two:

• An organization called Film London is holding a competition for short film scripts inspired by Dickens, in honor of the bicentennial. For more information, go here and here.
• Speaking of the bicentennial, the Sydney Morning Herald has an interesting interview with Adrian Wootton, who "is in charge of the screen component of London celebrations planned for the bicentenary."
• And finally, Layla Sinclair at Screen Junkies recommends some Dickens films. Elsewhere on the site, Annette Smith praises the 1994 BBC adaptation of Hard Times and the 2005 Oliver Twist as two of the best films about the Industrial Revolution.

The Dickens family in Ireland

Gerald Dickens is about to perform in Ireland for the first time. About time, since his sister Nicky lives there! (Can you imagine being named Nicky Dickens?)

Charles Dickens, flashy dresser

The blog Past Is Present shares a rather amusing diary entry from a bank cashier who saw Dickens during his American tour in 1842.

Speaking of 'Martin Chuzzlewit' . . .

I just came across this lovely passage from G. K. Chesterton's introduction to it:

We go for a particular novel to Dickens as we go for a particular inn. We go to the sign of the Pickwick Papers. We go to the sign of the Rudge and Raven. We go to the sign of the Old Curiosities. We go to the sign of the Two Cities. We go to each or all of them according to what kind of hospitality and what kind of happiness we require.

Rather unfortunately, Chesterton goes on to argue that Martin Chuzzlewit is the exception to the rule, thanks to its "melancholy" feel. Still, the imagery is brilliant and, I think, profoundly true.

And Chesterton does go on to say, "He poured into this book genius that might make the mountains laugh, invention that juggled with the stars." So there's that!

And it begins

"As no lady or gentleman, with any claims to polite breeding, can possibly sympathise with the Chuzzlewit Family without being first assured of the extreme antiquity of the race, it is a great satisfaction to know that it undoubtedly descended in a direct line from Adam and Eve; and was, in the very earliest times, closely connected with the agricultural interest."

Of course you realize what this means: I have at last begun to keep my resolution of reading Martin Chuzzlewit!

I'll second that

The Oxford Student has a delightful little review of A Tale of Two Cities, finishing up with "It’s just a mystery why no-one[']s made a TV series of it recently…" From your lips to God's ears, Oxford Student.

Stump the genie!

Had some fun this evening playing this game. Basically, you think of a character and the genie tries to guess who it is. I stumped him with Eugene Wrayburn; then I tried Amy Dorrit and he got that one, but only after first guessing Jane Eyre and Anne Elliot! Might be fun to see what other Dickensian characters he knows and doesn't know . . .

(Note: You want the "Play" button on the left, in the purple lamp. The silver one tries to make you download a file or something.)

'Hugely successful extended run' for 'Twist'

Twist, the new updated Oliver Twist musical, has done very well in its Pasadena run, becoming "a critical and box office success." It closes July 24.