How's your Dickens?

"They admired everything--the old grey porch, the mullioned windows, the venerable gravestones dotting the green churchyard, the ancient tower, the very weathercock; the brown thatched roofs of cottage, barn, and homestead, peeping from among the trees; the stream that rippled by the distant water-mill; the blue Welsh mountains far away. It was for such a spot the child had wearied
in the dense, dark, miserable haunts of labour. Upon her bed of ashes, and amidst the squalid horrors through which they had forced their way, visions of such scenes--beautiful indeed, but not more beautiful than this sweet reality--had been always present to her mind. " (The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens)


Those of you who know your Dickens will know that the church Dickens had in mind for the ultimate departure of Little Nell in The Old Curiosity Shop was allegedly this one in Tong in Shropshire.  I was open so I went in and was given a quick tour by one of the parishioners.  Some incredibly ornate tombs inside and a few years ago a story emerged of a church verger who falsified a record of Little Nell's Death in the Parish Registers and created a false grave which is still visited - although visitors are apparently told the true story!


On 7 February it will be the anniversary of Dickens' birth, so Chantler63 and I had the idea of doing a Dickens challenge for the month of February.  So if you like challenges, watch this space as we want to challenge you to be creative in your responses to some of the writing of Dickens.  We're excited!  Hope you will be too.  More information next week!