Charles Dickens and the Great Theatre of the World

As an actor Simon Callow has played the part of Dickens and performed Dickens's works; as a writer he focuses on the role of theatre in the life of the novelist, public speaker and self-styled 'Sparkler of Albion'. The result is an exuberant, passionate portrayal of Dickens and the 'abundant living' that he crammed into a relatively short life. 'Callow not only admires his subject', wrote David Edgar in the Guardian, 'but has got inside him'.