Dickensblog

'Our Mutual Friend' in Maryland

A new dramatic adaptation of Our Mutual Friend is playing at the Lumina Studio Theatre in Silver Spring, Md. I won't be able to make it over there before it closes, but if any of you do, have fun!

'To Begin With' to premiere next month

Tickets are now available for To Begin With, the new play about Dickens's writing of The Life of Our Lord, starring Gerald Dickens. It premieres February 19 at the Music Box Theatre in Minneapolis. If any of you are lucky enough to go, please comment and tell us all about it!

A film sequel to 'Oliver'

Dodge and Twist, a steampunk film that catches up with Oliver and the Dodger 20 years after the events of Dickens's novel, has been in the works for a couple of years. Now Edgar Wright has turned in a new draft of the script, and rumors are that some high-profile stars may be approached to play the leads. More information (along with some speculation) is here, here, and here!

An honor for a hero

The Reading Room blog has put together a list of "Top 20 Heroes and Heroines from Books," and Sydney Carton is on it. (Of course it goes without saying that there are major spoilers in his blurb!)

A look at Dickens's handwriting

Because it's National Handwriting Day, I thought I'd share a couple of samples of Dickens's handwriting here! First up: the beginning of Great Expectations, demonstrating that even the greatest of the greats had frequent scratchouts and rewritings.

And here's a picture of Dickens's signature with its famous flourish. At the Dickens Fellowship Conference last summer, we had a whole session on that flourish, its meanings, and how it changed over the years. 

 

(Images courtesy of The Wire and My Strength and My Song, respectively.)

 

Dickens memorabilia stolen

A caravan containg some "rare and expensive" Dickens memorabilia was stolen in the Isle of Thanet (Kent, England). Here's hoping it's recovered very soon!

Dickens and the 'Daily News'

On this day in 1846, Dickens published the first edition of the Daily News. Poynter has a nice informative article about the founding of the paper and Dickens's journalistic career in general, with a photo of that first issue.

'A Tale of Two Cities' writing gloves

What could be better than having Dickens's words all over your hands when you're writing? I fell in love with these gorgeous writing gloves when Rachel McMillan got a pair, and I just had to get a pair for myself! They're not just beautiful and literary, they're also very helpful if you have a problem with cold hands when you're typing, as I tend to do.

Rare Dickens program on DVD

Creative Arts Television has made avaliable a DVD of the 1958 television special "London by Dickens," starring Alan Bates, which draws from many of Dickens's lesser-known writings. Thanks to Patrick McCarthy of the Dickens Forum for the tip!

(In case you're wondering, as I was, The Pic-Nic Papers mentioned in the description is not a typo. There really was such a work.)

Chicken and Dickens

We've often heard that Mr. Micawber was inspired by Dickens's conference. But the Yorkshire Post argues that he may also have been inspired by one Richard Chicken.