Great expectations for Dickens conference

Press release issued: 5 April 2012



Charles Dickens

Charles Dickens

World-leading experts will be converging on Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge on Saturday, 14 April to celebrate the bicentenary of Charles Dickens' birth.

A conference, on the theme of "Dickens' Legacy", will feature talks from Professor Michael Slater and Professor Malcolm Andrews, as well as academics from Anglia Ruskin, the University of Cambridge, the University of Kent and the University of East Anglia.

Discussing 'Dickens, Childhood and the Romantics' will be Professor Andrews, editor of The Dickensian, while Professor Slater, the Emeritus Professor at Birkbeck College, University of London, will examine 'The Immortal Memory: Dickens and Fame'. Professor Slater is the author of Dickens and Women and the highly-acclaimed 2009 biography, Charles Dickens.

Dr Valerie Purton, Reader in English Literature at Anglia Ruskin, said:

"Charles Dickens is still, after nearly two centuries, probably the most popular novelist in the world and the one-day 'Dickens Legacy' conference is Cambridge's celebration of his bicentenary.

"Dickens was a master entertainer as well as a great novelist, and our conference reflects this by combining academic papers with more light-hearted events. These include a street theatre performance from Great Expectations during the lunch break and dramatised readings during the afternoon.

"We also hope to use the event to set up a Cambridge branch of the Dickens Fellowship. This worldwide organisation has established branches across the globe - including cities in Japan, the United States, India and New Zealand - but so far not in Cambridge!"

The conference runs from 9.30am-6pm and places cost £15 (£12 concessions), which includes refreshments. For further information or to book your place, please email valerie.purton@anglia.ac.uk or visit the English and Media Conferences and seminars page.
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