Publisher's Synopsis
Elizabeth Gaskell was one of Victorian England's pre-eminent female novelists. Admired by Charles Dickens, who described her as his 'dear Scheherazade', she mingled storytelling and social realism to superb effect in her highly acclaimed fiction. This comprehensive collection comprises dramas and readings of her finest works and some lesser-known pieces. Among the adaptations are her final, unfinished novel Wives and Daughters, her debut novel Mary Barton and her only historical novel, Sylvia's Lovers; as well as the 1851 novella Mr Harrison's Confession (a prequel to Cranford), and her great novel of industrialisation, female independence and identity, North and South. Also included are readings of Mrs Gaskell's chilling supernatural tale 'The Old Nurse's Story', her much-loved novel of life in a small town and its female inhabitants, Cranford and her festive short story 'Christmas Storms and Sunshine'. Based on true events, Stephen Wakelam's detective drama Death at the Bed End, starring Kenneth Cranham, explores the controversy surrounding Elizabeth Gaskell's biography of Charlotte Brontë and the libel threat that followed its publication. Also included are Mrs Gaskell: Portrait of a Victorian Novelist by Barry Campbell; inspired by the author?s letters. And in Great Lives: Elizabeth Gaskell, historian Amanda Vickery and biographer Jenny Uglow discuss Mrs Gaskell's life, work and achievements with presenter Francine Stock
