Dickensblog

New 'Bleak House' illustrations

Artist Gerry Mooney, an active member of the Dickensblog Facebook group, is offering a free download of the first seven chapters of Bleak House with his illustrations. He hopes to do a full version of the book someday, but this PDF version is his proof-of-concept. Gerry does beautiful work and his Dickens illustrations are a treat for the eye. Visit his website to get your free download! 

You can learn more about Gerry's ideas and process from this post he wrote for the Dickens Society blog.

A new Dickens/Bricusse collaboration

On its way to Netflix (no date announced yet) is a new European animated version of ... wait for it ... A Christmas Carol! I know, you're stunned. But this one has an interesting twist -- the songs were written by the late Leslie Bricusse, who, as you may remember, c0-wrote the songs for the 1970 film Scrooge. So I'm sure there will be some intriguing comparisons to make between his vision for the story from more than 50 years ago, and his more recent vision. And it will be nice to have one last set of songs from him.

'Oliver!' comes to New York

Lionel Bart's beloved musical version of Oliver Twist will have a week-and-a-half run in May 2023 as part of New York City Center's Encores! season. Go here and here for more information.

'Loved, revered, and honoured'

A thought for the 152nd anniversary of Charles Dickens's death:

"Oh cold, cold, rigid, dreadful Death, set up thine altar here, and dress it with such terrors as thou hast at thy command: for this is thy dominion. But of the loved, revered, and honoured head, thou canst not turn one hair to thy dread purposes, or make one feature odious. It is not that the hand is heavy and will fall down when released; it is not that the heart and pulse are still; but that the hand was open, generous, and true; the heart brave, warm, and tender; and the pulse a man’s. Strike, Shadow, strike. And see his good deeds springing from the wound, to sow the world with life immortal!"

--A Christmas Carol, Stave IV

Don't do it, Pip!

Photos of Fionn Whitehead filming a scene as Pip in Great Expectations show him putting a noose around his neck and apparently preparing to jump off a bridge. What scene is this supposed to be? Your guess is as good as mine ...

TCM alert

David Copperfield (1935) airs on the channel at 12 p.m. (noon) Eastern today. 

Return of the Dodger

Of the making of Oliver Twist adaptations, there is no end! The newest is The Artful Dodger, to be filmed in Australia for Disney+. The eight-episode series "picks up the story of Jack Dawkins 15 years after the events of Oliver Twist, with the former pickpocket now a surgeon with a lingering taste for crime in Australia."

TCM alert

Oliver! (1968) airs on the channel today at 5:15 p.m. Eastern.

Dickens the magician

You may know that Dickens was a skilled amateur magician, but do you know what some of his favorite magic tricks were? Literary Hub has the scoop!

Dickens in living color

Marina Amaral, well known as a digital colorist of old photographs, has applied her talents to an 1850 portrait of Charles Dickens. Visit her Substack to see the photo, and visit her shop to buy yourself a print!