In the Footsteps of Little Nell

Podcast: Ramblings · BBC Radio 4

Opublikowano: 2026-07-02

Clare joins Alistair MacNichol for part of his long‑distance walk from Holborn in London to Tong in Shropshire as he recreates the journey made by Little Nell and her grandfather from Charles Dickens’s novel The Old Curiosity Shop. The 166‑mile route has been meticulously researched by Alistair, who for many years has questioned whether this fictional adventure could ever be mapped onto real English landscapes. Preparing for the walk has taken him deep into Dickens’s world: re‑examining the novel, studying nineteenth‑century maps, and delving into many decades of Dickensian research. He has even careful...