Charles Dickens: A Brain on Fire! 🔥
Actor Dominic Gerrard hosts an exciting new series that explores the Life and Times of Charles Dickens: his extraordinary novels, who he was as a person, his career as a performer, and his activism.
Guests include: Stephen Fry, Miriam Margolyes, Armando Iannucci, Alice Loxton, Robert Douglas-Fairhurst, Lucinda Hawksley, John Mullan, Pen Vogler, Andrew Davies, Rosie Holt, Bernard Cornwell .... and many more academics, writers, actors, directors and descendants of the great man himself!
Along side these interviews there are special Dickens readings from across his works ...
Thank you for listening 🔥
Guests include: Stephen Fry, Miriam Margolyes, Armando Iannucci, Alice Loxton, Robert Douglas-Fairhurst, Lucinda Hawksley, John Mullan, Pen Vogler, Andrew Davies, Rosie Holt, Bernard Cornwell .... and many more academics, writers, actors, directors and descendants of the great man himself!
Along side these interviews there are special Dickens readings from across his works ...
Thank you for listening 🔥
Episodes
67 episodes
The Gordon Riots: with Ian Haywood
Dominic is joined today by the inimitable Professor Ian Haywood, of the Centre for Inclusive Humanities at the
•
50:49
DROOD ...📚 And Our Endless Attempts To End It: with Pete Orford
Dominic is joined again by the inimitable Dr. Pete Orford for Part II of his examination of The Mystery of Edwin Drood ... P...
•
40:34
Mrs Dickens: with Emily Howes
Dominic is joined by the inimitable Emily Howes, author of The Painters Daughters, who is currently writing her second book,
•
36:18
NEW EPISODES FOR 2024 !!! 🔥
A new series of Charles Dickens: A Brain on Fire! 🔥 will launch on Friday 5th April ...The first episode takes place deep inside London’s Royal National Theatre, mid-rehearsal, for
•
1:14
"The Haunted Man" (Excerpt): Read by Tom Andrews
Our final festive extract comes from Dickens’ last Christmas Book The Haunted Man and The Ghost’s Bargain - read today by the fantastic actor Tom AndrewsTom...
•
9:28
“The Battle of Life” (Excerpt): Read by Rebecca Tanwen
Happy 6th Day of Christmas! Today’s guest is the wonderful Rebecca Tanwen reading for us the opening pages of Dickens’ 4th Christmas book The Battle of Life …<...
•
11:45
"The Cricket on the Hearth" (Excerpt): Read by Tom Bennett
Happy 5th Day of Christmas!The fantastic actor Tom Bennett reads an excerpt from Dickens’ third Christmas book The Cricket on the Hearth …Caleb Plummer and ...
•
13:14
"The Chimes" (Excerpt): Read by Carlyss Peer
The wonderful actress Carlyss Peer returns to the series to read an excerpt from Dickens' second Christmas Book The Chimes You'll be transported to Trott...
•
11:38
Christmas Carols: with Harry Christophers & The Sixteen
Dominic is joined by the inimitable Harry Christophers CBE , founder and conductor of The Sixteen, one of...
•
52:28
"The Holly Tree" (Excerpt): Read by Chris Nayak
The wonderful actor Chris Nayak reads the from the First Branch of The Holly-Tree Inn - one of Dickens' rarer Christmas stories … Packed with self-deprecating humour, ...
•
13:47
A Dickensian Christmas Dinner: with Pen Vogler
Dominic is joined by the wonderful award winning food historian Pen Vogler who returns to the podcast to talk about...
•
40:43
"A Christmas Carol" Stave One (Excerpt) : Read by Rosie Holt
Award-winning actress, comedian, and satirist Rosie Holt returns to the series to read the opening of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol on the 180th anniversary of its publication toda...
•
11:20
The Lost Portrait: with Emma Rutherford
Dominic’s guest today is the inimitable Emma Rutherford who recalls her time working on the rediscovery of a lost portrait of Dickens, painted by Margaret Gillies in 1843, and lost for over a...
•
39:56
"Christmas at Dingley Dell": Read by Gina Beck
Light up your holiday season with the enchanting narration of our guest, the brilliant Gina Beck as she transports us to the charm and warmth of a festive journey from Cha...
•
11:26
Charles Ignatius Sancho: with Paterson Joseph
The award-winning actor and writer Patterson Joseph takes the listener on a fascinating journey into the captivating life of
•
50:20
Palimpsest: with Céleste Callen
Celeste Callen returns to share her insights on how Henri Bergson's theories of the 'superficial self' and the 'mechanical man' permeate through Dickens' novels such as ...
•
25:16
The Haunted Actor: with James Swanton
Dominic is joined by the inimitable James Swanton who is performing A Christmas Carol, The Chimes and Haunted Man
•
47:00
Stuffed (A History of Good Food and Hard Times in Britain): with Pen Vogler
Dominic is joined by the award-winning author and food historian Pen Vogler who offers insightful reflections on how Charles Dickens used food as complex metaphors in hi...
•
31:24
The Gunpowder Plot (from 'A Child's History of England') 📚 : Read by Dominic Gerrard
Host Dominic Gerrard reads Dickens' account of The Gunpowder Plot from his 1851 A Child's History of England ...Dickens transports back us to 1605, the era of King James I, Guy Fawkes and a conspiracy that shook...
•
19:31
Charles and Catherine: with Helena Kelly
It is Publication Eve for today’s guest the inimitable Dr. Helena Kelly. Her latest book
•
25:50
THE SIGNAL-MAN 📚: with John Bowen
Dominic is joined by the inimitable Professor John Bowen who returns to this series to explore the hidden dep...
•
42:04
THE LAZY TOUR OF TWO IDLE APPRENTICES 📚: with Dr. Emily Bell
Dominic is joined by the inimitable Dr. Emily Bell who guides the listener through the rollercoaster that...
•
51:28
The Shorthand Mysteries: with Dr. Claire Wood & Prof. Hugo Bowles
Are you an unsung codebreaker? Does your knowledge and feel for Dickens mean that you could be the next person to crack some of the hieroglyphic mystery of the shorthand system that Dickens created for himself. Or are you able to trace the sour...
•
31:44
