Teesway One Nine Nine - Richard Jemison, Chris Firth and Nigel Whitfield
Price:£20.00
Great great grandson of Dickens to visit Teesdale
May 11, 2010
THE great great grandson of Charles Dickens is to retrace his relative’s footsteps by visiting Bowes this month.
As part of its 70th anniversary celebrations, the Rotary Club of Barnard Castle is presenting a Dickensian Evening in Bowes on Friday, May 21.
The event will begin at 7pm with a tour of Dickensian sites in Bowes led by Cliff Brown. This is to be followed at 7.3pm with a performance of ‘The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby’ by Gerald Dickens, in Bowes Church.
Inspired by the Royal Shakespeare Company’s eight-hour version of Nicholas Nickleby, Gerald’s version packs the plot into 45 minutes.
The book was written by Dickens following a visit to Bowes where he investigated some of the area’s notorious boarding schools.
Gerald Dickens has been working as an actor, director and producer for many years. In 1993 he created his first one-man show, a theatrical performance of ‘A Christmas Carol’ inspired by Charles’ own energetic readings of the 1860s.
A fascination in the life and works of his subject led him to write and
direct further one-man shows
including ‘Mr Dickens is Coming!’, ‘Nicholas Nickleby’ and ‘Sketches by Boz’. Critics and audiences in the USA and Canada have given him rave reviews and standing ovations during 15 annual Christmas tours. He has recorded his one-man dramatisation of ‘A Christmas Carol’.
He has recently recorded unabridged versions of The Pickwick Papers, Oliver Twist and A Christmas Carol which are available to download from the internet and is currently recording Nicholas Nickleby for release later in the year.
Tickets are £10, and may be bought from the tourist information centre, the library or Mon Petit Spa, all in Barnard Castle. For more information, phone 01833 650899 or 01833 695000.