Dickens

An unorthodox look at the life of Charles Dickens: actors play various individuals in his life (as well as the man himself), interviewed as if appearing in a contemporary documentary. Their words are from actual letters and journals of the individuals involved, and serve to illuminate the hardships and successes in Dickens' life, and the way his experiences found their way into his works.

• Ep 1

  1.Secrets

  11-05-200258m

  An exploration of how the writer's early years shaped his life and work.

• Ep 2

  2.Blazing Away

  18-05-200259m

  Amid the brutality of industrialised England, Dickens used his fame to change society. But his private life was troubled.

• Ep 3

  3.Terror to the End

  25-05-200259m

  Dickens creates his greatest works in the last decade of his life. But success comes at a price as he embarks on a complex double life.