Charles Dickens and the Great Theatre of the World
by Simon Callow

Simon Callow is an actor, director and writer. He has appeared in many films, including the hugely popular Four Weddings and a Funeral, Shakespeare in Love and Phantom of the Opera. On Dickens, Callow’s acting credits include The Mystery of Charles Dickens, Dr Marigold and Mr Chops, A Christmas Carol and playing Dickens himself in the BBC’s Dr Who. He is a Patron of the Charles Dickens Museum Charity and of Dickens2012. Simon Callow was made Commander of the British Empire in 1999.

Acclaimed actor and writer Simon Callow captures the essence of Charles Dickens in a sparkling biography that explores the central importance of the theatre to the life of the greatest storyteller in the English language.

From his early years as a child entertainer in Portsmouth to his reluctant retirement from ‘these garish lights’ just before his death, Dickens was obsessed with the stage. Not only was he a dazzling mimic who wrote, acted in and stage-managed plays, all with fanatical perfectionism; as a writer he was a compulsive performer, whose very imagination was theatrical, both in terms of plot devices and construction of character.

Dickens was the original ‘celebrity’ author: he attracted thousands of adoring fans to his readings, during which he gave voice to his unforgettable cast of characters.

In Charles Dickens and the Great Theatre of the World, Callow brings his own unique insight to a life driven by performance and showmanship. He reveals an exuberant and irrepressible talent, whose ‘inimitable’ wit and personality crackle off the page. He will be performing a nationwide reading tour – in a similar vein to Dickens himself – to mark the bicentenary. Find out more at www.facebook.com/SimonCallowOfficial
 

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