Dickens in Darlington

A series of events, organised by Darlington Civic Theatre, will reveal the town's strong connections to Charles Dickens involving theatre, music hall and the railways.

Performances, workshops, talks, a book club and storytelling will be staged plus an exhibition in Crown Street library, from October 1 to November 3, featuring images from the Charles Dickens Museum, a reconstruction of the author's reading desk, footage from an early film as well as a dolls’ house based on Dickens’ home in Doughty Street, London.

On Saturday, October 8, actor and storyteller Chris Connaughton performs two spooky tales: The Signal-Man, where a railway worker is haunted by a ghostly figure and The Trial for Murder, a ghost story with a chilling twist. Performances: 2pm and 7pm in the Crown Street Art Gallery. Tickets: £5 with discounts at £2.50 with a recommended age of 8+.

On Monday, October 17, at 1.30pm, Margaret Watson tells the story of creating and owning a dolls’ house – a 1:12 scale model of 48 Doughty Street, the London home of Dickens, now the Charles Dickens Museum.

A book group on Tuesday, October 25 will have sessions at 1.30pm and 7pm in the Crown Street Art Gallery to discuss Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities. The book group highlights the community production of A Tale of Two Cities taking place in the Dolphin Centre in November and are open to people who have purchased a ticket for the production. Free copies of the book can be provided.

The Forum, on Borough Road, shows David Lean's 1946 adaptation of Dickens' Great Expectations on Monday, October 3, at 8pm. Tickets are priced £3 and are available by emailing darlingtonfilmclub@gmail.com