Dickensblog

R.I.P. Richard Williams

The 86-year-old animator, who passed away on Friday, won an Academy Award for his 1971 adaptation of A Christmas Carol, in which Alastair Sim reprised his role as Ebenezer Scrooge.

'A Christmas Carol' at the TCA

Members of the new A Christmas Carol production talked to critics at the Television Critics Association's press tour this week. Writer Steven Knight said of Guy Pearce's Scrooge, “I didn’t want him to look like his soul because his soul is pretty wretched. . . . But on the outside he’s okay and what I wanted to do is to have an audience say to themselves why is this person like this . . . and I hope that in the three hours we explore the reasons behind what Ebenezer Scrooge is, why has he become this person.” Read more here and here.

R.I.P. Rutger Hauer

The 75-year-old actor passed away last Friday. His final role will be the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come in the upcoming BBC miniseries of A Christmas Carol.

TCM alert

If you should happen to have insomnia tonight, you can always catch A Tale of Two Cities (1935), airing at 3:45 a.m. Eastern!

More on 'A Christmas Carol' filming

Filming of the new miniseries moved to Burnley and Warwick this week. 

More on the filming of 'A Christmas Carol'

As filming of the new miniseries moved to Hampstead, new pictures and reports have been coming out. The Daily Mail has photos of Guy Pearce as Scrooge and Joe Alwyn and Vinette Robinson as the Cratchits, along with a few other cast members. And the Camden New Journal has photos of Scrooge's and Marley's gravestones, freshly installed in the churchyard (to the confusion of the tourists!).

FX partners with BBC on 'A Christmas Carol'

We Americans will get to see the three-part drama on the FX channel in December! In addition to this news, Deadline also has a cast list:

"The remake stars Guy Pearce as Ebenezer Scrooge, Andy Serkis as Ghost of Christmas Past, Stephen Graham as Jacob Marley, Charlotte Riley as Lottie, Joe Alwyn as Bob Cratchit, Vinette Robinson as Mary Cratchit, Rutger Hauer as the Ghost of Christmas Future, Kayvan Novak as Ali Baba and Lenny Rush as Tim Cratchit."

(If Ali Baba made it in -- you'll recall that he appears in the book as a vision of young Scrooge's in the past -- it sounds like they studied the original story very carefully! Although I'm not sure who Lottie might be.)

And speaking of A Christmas Carol, it turns out that rumors of its filming at Rainham Hall were correct. The Romford Recorder has details, photos, and video.

R.I.P. John McEnery

The British actor played John Harmon in the 1976 TV adaptation of Our Mutual Friend (click here to read a short reminiscence by co-star Jane Seymour); Mr. Mantalini, William the Waiter, and Mr. Snevellicci in the celebrated stage and television versions of Nicholas Nickleby in the early 1980s; and Captain Hopkins in the 1987 feature film of Little Dorrit. McEnery passed away April 12 at the age of 75.

'A Christmas Carol' filming rumors

There's filming of some sort going on at Rainham Hall in Essex, and speculation is rife that it's the new BBC version of "A Christmas Carol" with Tom Hardy. If you look at the set and the costumes, you can see why that appears likely!

TCM alert

Great Expectations (1946) will air tomorrow at 9:45 a.m. Eastern, as part of the channel's birthday tribute to director David Lean.