Charles Dickens - The Old Curiosity Shop - BBC Radio 4 Full-cast Dramatisation


Source Cassette Tape
Duration approx 6:10 hours
FhG MPEG 1 Layer III 128 Kbps CBR
44100Hz, 16-bit, Stereo


The book

The tale of Little Nell gripped the nation when it first appeared in 1841. Described as a "tragedy of sorrows", the story tells of Nell uprooted from a secure and innocent childhood and cast into a world where evil takes many shapes, the most fascinating of which is the stunted, lecherous Quilp. Blending realism with non-realistic genres such as fairy-tale, allegory, and pastoral, the tale of Nell's tragedy contains some of Dickens most memorable comic and grotesque creations, including the dwarf Daniel Quilp, Dick Swiveller and Kit Nubbles.


The author

Charles John Huffam Dickens (7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic novels and characters.

Many of his writings were originally published serially, in monthly instalments or parts, a format of publication which Dickens himself helped popularize at that time. Unlike other authors who completed entire novels before serialisation, Dickens often created the episodes as they were being serialised. The practice lent his stories a particular rhythm, punctuated by cliffhangers to keep the public looking forward to the next instalment. The continuing popularity of his novels and short stories is such that they have never gone out of print.

Dickens' work has been highly praised for its realism, comedy, mastery of prose, unique personalities and concern for social reform by writers such as Leo Tolstoy, George Gissing and G.K. Chesterton; though others, such as Henry James and Virginia Woolf, have criticised it for sentimentality and implausibility.


Cast & Credits

Dramatised by Mike Walker

Dickens .......................................... Alex Jennings
Nell .............................................. Emily Chennery
Grandfather ................................ Trevor Peacock
Quilp .................................................. Phil Daniels
Betsy Quilp ......................................... Alison Petit
Mrs Jiniwin ................................... Marcia Warren
Kit ....................................................... Daniel Bliss
Mrs Nubbins ............................ Lindsey Coulson
Dick Swiveller ..................................... Ben Crowe
Single gentleman ............................... Clive Swift
Mrs Jarley ..................................... Julia McKenzie
Miss Monflathers ........................... Anna Massey
Sally Brass ................................... Sandy Toksvig
Sampson Brass ................ Adrian Scarborough
Mr Garland .................................... David Collings
Schoolmaster ..................................... Paul Hilton
Harris ................................................. Ewan Bailey
Frank ....................................... Simon Donaldson
Jerry ........................................ Gerard McDermott
Sexton ........................................ Timothy Bateson
Marchioness ................................. Nicola Hornett
Furnace watcher .......................... Phillip Joseph

with
Lynne Christie, Richard Firth, Ian Masters & Luke Strain

Music by Melanie Pappenheim & Anne Wood

Directed by Jeremy Mortimer & Mary Peate



Enjoy and Seed!!