Dickensblog

'Oliver Twist' in the news

Today we have a few different Oliver-related items of interest:

• The Daily Mail has some photos from the set of the new "Dodger" series, featuring Christopher Eccleston (Fagin) and Saira Choudhry (Nancy).
• The Guardian has a nice article about the Charles Dickens Museum's new Oliver Twist-themed walking tour.
• Finally, i news has an article about a couple of letters that the Museum is displaying in its new exhibit on Oliver Twist, which opened yesterday. The letters -- one written by Dickens himself, and one by his doctor -- show the toll that Dickens's public readings of the "Sikes and Nancy" episode took on his physical and emotional health.

Dickens tributes coming in

In honor of the 151st anniversary of Dickens's death on June 9, a wreath was laid on his grave today -- a day early, "so as not to clash with the Abbey's use as a temporary vaccination centre," according to the Dickens Museum. Meanwhile, a bouquet of roses was left near his home in Rochester.

Dickens Museum reopens tomorrow

And Dickens descendant Lucinda Hawksley will be there signing her books! Hope some of you Londoners can make it! 

Dickens/Hogarth lockets on display

A pair of lockets exchanged by Charles Dickens and sister-in-law Mary Hogarth are now on display at the Dickens Museum. Follow the link to read the details and see a picture! Thanks to Tai French for the tip.

Happy Easter!

In honor of the holiday, the Dickens Museum is offering special "Easter Explorers" virtual family tours this week. Click here for all the details!

Dickens's door

Atlas Obscura has a fun little piece about the door and mirror that are all that's left of Dickens's stay at the Parker House Hotel in Boston.

A Dickens birthday party

The Dickens Museum is hosting an online party tomorrow at 7 p.m. UK time (2 p.m. Eastern ), and all are invited! Lucinda Dickens Hawksley and Miriam Margolyes will be on hand to take questions, do readings, and talk about how Dickens celebrated his birthday. The cost is 10 pounds plus a .50 pound booking fee (about $14.50).  Register now to get the Zoom link e-mailed to you!

The letter that wasn't?

British shopping channel Ideal World had to pull a Dickens letter they were offering for sale when Dr. Leon Litvack of The Charles Dickens Letters Project claimed it was a forgery. But the channel promises "further enquiries" to try to verify that the letter is genuine. Read more here.

A crown for Scrooge

In honor of the 150th anniversary of Dickens's death, Ascension Island released a commemorative Christmas Scrooge crown, available in Cupro Nickel or Proof Sterling Silver. I would have posted about this last month, but they were out of stock. They've since restocked, but the nickel have run out again and the silver are running low, so get them while you can! More information is here.

Join the Dickenses!

The Dickens Museum will host a virtual Dickens Family Christmas at 7:30 p.m. London time (2:30 p.m. Eastern time) and all are invited to join in! Gerald Dickens, Lucinda Dickens Hawksley, and other descendants of the author will be sharing readings, recipes, and more. Go here to read more, and go here to sign up and get the Zoom link.