Dickensblog

The best of times: Notes from my bicentenary trip

By David Perdue, Guest Blogger

Upon my return from London for events surrounding the Dickens Bicentenary. I received an email from a fellow Dickens Web site owner, Ritva Raesmaa, from Finland. She also attended the events, although sadly I did not meet her. She summed up the few days in London as a “once in a lifetime” trip . . . and I heartily agree!

Should've been a doctor

I don't know if I believe in handwriting analysis, but I find it fascinating. One expert, Allie Bradley, tried her hand at analyzing two samples of Dickens's handwriting. All these samples told me was that his handwriting was hard to read, but she deduced several personality traits from them. How do you think she did?

Archiving 101

It ought to be the First Law of Archivists: If you have archives relating in any way to Dickens, always check them for undiscovered Dickens letters!

Dickens in L.A.

That is, some of his letters are in L.A.

I wonder whether Dickens ever would have made it there himself had he lived in modern times. Somehow I'm doubtful. Victorian rock star he may have been, but I'm not sure I can see him enjoying the celebrity lifestyle.

Treasures from Dickens

Some lucky collectors have made off with some wonderful Dickens memorabilia lately, including autographed books and personal letters. My favorite item that recently went up for auction: a copy of The Pickwick Papers inscribed by Dickens to Hans Christian Andersen. Why that one didn't sell, I can't imagine; I'd SO much rather have that than an unsigned Bleak House, even if the latter was the original serialized version.

And then there was the collector who spent $9150 on Dickens's . . . retractable toothpick. Seriously. His toothpick. Look, I love the man, but there are limits. Although if there were any hope of retrieving a bit of DNA from it, and hiring someone with expertise in cloning . . .

Never at rest

How strange it is to be never at rest, and never satisfied, and ever trying after something that is never reached, and to be always laden with plot and plan and care and worry, how clear it is that it must be, and that one is driven by an irresistible might until the journey is worked out! It is much better to go on and fret, than to stop and fret. As to repose –- for some men there’s no such thing in this life… The old days –- the old days! Shall I ever, I wonder, get the frame of mind back as it used to be then?

Charles Dickens to John Forster, April 13, 1856

It's a good time to be British

Here are a few Dickens-related events going on, or coming up, in his home country:

• Simon Callow will perform "Dickens & Me: An Evening with Simon Callow" in Norwich on October 11, the 150th anniversary of Dickens's own first public reading there.The event will raise money for EDP We Care Appeal, which "help[s] elderly, infirm, sick and disabled people in Norfolk by providing financial and practical support to their carers."
• Charles Dickens's England has begun airing on Sky Arts 2. Here's an interview with narrator Sir Derek Jacobi, here's one with writer/producer David Wilkinson, and here's one with director Julian Richards. Poor reviews or not, I expect it's still worth checking out.
• The Museum of Richmond has opened an exhibit called "Richmond on Page and Screen" that features a Dickens letter, excerpts from his novels, and more. Lucinda Hawksley, Dickens's great-great-great granddaughter, will be there on December 1 to give a talk.
• And then, of course, there's the world premiere of A Christmas Carol in London on November 3. The London Paper reports, "This year, the annual Christmas lights at Regent Street will go on at 3 November to coincide with the world premiere of the Disney film of the same name. . . . For the first time, the lights on Oxford Street and Regent Street will be turned on at the same time. The world of Dickens will be brought to life in London with a series of public concerts, special events and a world-record gathering of carol singers." If you're there, enjoy it!

The 'Christmas Carol' Train, part 2

I'm going to need another post after this one, after all. Too many photos.

Here are a couple more shots of THE PEN. Again, please pardon my inability to rotate photographs. The program simply refuses to do it, and I don't have all night to fight with it.

More below the jump!

A very singular letter

A reporter for TheNewsStar.com writes about a previously unknown letter from Dickens that's on loan to Louisiana Tech -- but doesn't say what's in it! Tease.

Some things never change

I see a press more mean, and paltry, and silly, and disgraceful than any country I ever knew. . . .

On the American press, from letter to William Charles Macready, 1842, quoted in The Wicked Wit of Charles Dickens