Dickensblog

Cast announcement for 'Edwin Drood' on Broadway

The Roundabout Theater Company has finally announced their cast list for the upcoming production, and released a cute little trailer for it.

For those unfamiliar with the show, the reason each performer has so many names is that they do it as a show-within-a-show; thus, for instance, Stephanie J. Block plays Alice Nutting, who plays Edwin Drood. (Also, in this show, Edwin is always played by a woman.)

Read more here.

Another interview with Jessie Cave

I don't know why Jessie Cave (Biddy) seems to be the only performer giving interviews about the upcoming Great Expectations film, but God bless her for it, I say! Here she is talking about the movie in Digital Spy.

Dickens on the bookshelf

What does it say about you if you have the works of Charles Dickens on your bookshelf? Good things, according to this article. (The Dickens part is near the end.)

Discussion question

I'm so enjoying the reread/discussion of A Tale of Two Cities at this blog. It's astounding how much one can still learn about a book that one has been rereading and loving for years! All the details and different points of view are enlightening and fascinating.

Here's a question that has recently come up in the comment thread at this post: Is Lucie "trapped" in domesticity? Some say yes; I say no. What do you think, and why?

You can post about it here, or contribute to the discussion there, but please note: If you comment over there, don't mention anything that occurs after Book the Second, Chapter Six ("Hundreds of People"). That's where the readthrough has gotten to, and they're trying to read it the way Dickens's readers would have, which means no discussion of spoilers beyond where they are right now.

Helena revisited

Author Truda Thurai has written a short story about Helena Landless from The Mystery of Edwin Drood, called "The Cinnamon Peeler's Daughter." You can download it here, as either a PDF or a Kindle version.

Dickens film festival in Portsmouth

It's on Monday night, and will feature several shorts, a couple of extracts from longer films, and a new documentary. Go here and here for details!

Terry Pratchett goes Dickensian

I haven't yet read any Pratchett, but they tell me he's something pretty special in the sci-fi/fantasy world. So it's good to hear that he's got a new takeoff on Oliver Twist coming out in the fall, titled Dodger. It's available for pre-order, and here's a description.

A Dickens of a job

John Drew of Dickens Journals Online has a nice letter in the Guardian thanking those who helped to edit the online archives of Household Words and All the Year Round.

(From one who did a tiny bit of that work, Mr. Drew, you're very welcome!)

An art exhibit and a mystery

The Telegraph reviews an exhibit called "Dickens and the Artists" at the Watts Gallery in Surrey -- and points out that there's something missing: a painting of Kate Nickleby that disappeared more than a century ago.

New Dickens stamps

They're about to be released. Read all about them here!

ETA: And here they are! And here's a fun promotional shot of them.

(Image copyright The Royal Mail)