Dickens celebrations - even in Albania

It is staggering that celebrations to mark today’s 200th anniversary of Charles Dickens's birth have been going on all around the world.

An international readathon began in Australia with a reading of Dombey and Son and included Zimbabwe before ending with an excerpt from The Mystery of Edwin Drood in the United Arab Emirates.

Susie Nicklin, director of literature at the British Council which organised the event, said: “We are responding to the huge global demand from audiences in 66 countries with whom Dickens, pictured below, has struck a chord as his themes and characters seem as fresh to them today as they did to British readers in the Victorian era.”

For me one of the most surprising countries celebrating the Dickens anniversary was Albania.

Less than 40 years ago any Albanian caught reading the English author would have been in serious trouble as the dictator Enver Hoxha had banned his people from reading any “Western propaganda”.

It was fascinating to hear an Albanian girl, who was reading some of Martin Chuzzlewit as part of the international readathon , say how much she had enjoyed her grandmother regularly reading stories to her when she was a youngster, with her two favourites being Peter Pan and A Christmas Carol.

Since then she had read most of Dickens’s works including Martin Chuzzlewit.

In London the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall led the celebrations today with Prince Charles laying a wreath at the author’s grave in Poets’ Corner as part of a service at Westminster Abbey before the Royal couple went on to visit the Charles Dickens Museum in Doughty Street, where the author lived from 1837-39.

Dickens died on June 9, 1870, aged 58.

The Westminster Abbey service was attended by a large gathering of the author's descendants including great-great-grandson, Gerald Dickens, pictured below, who had been at The Lion Hotel, Shrewsbury, last weekend for a special festival to celebrate his great, great grandfather’s work.

Gerald, who wrote the foreword to my book, Four Centuries at The Lion Hotel, where Charles had stayed on a number of occasions, gave special Dickens readings on the Friday and Saturday night to a packed house in the ballroom.

At the Abbey service today the Dean of Westminster, the Very Reverend Dr John Hall, said: “Dickens’s humanity and compassion made an extraordinary impact on Victorian England through his writings, which remain immensely popular.

“This bicentenary should help renew our commitment to improving the lot of the disadvantaged of our own day.”

After the service Gerald was due to attend a bi-centenary dinner at London’s Mansion House on Tuesday night, where Sir Patrick Stewart was due to deliver a reading, as well as the launch of a Dickens newspaper and iPad app using his work as content.

Meanwhile, all members of the Cabinet were presented with copies of Dickens's works by Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt to mark the author's bicentennial - Prime Minister David Cameron was given Hard Times and Great Expectations.

Finally, the Royal Mail revealed today two new stamps featuring The Pickwick Papers, pictured below, and Nicholas Nickleby to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Charles Dickens which will go on sale from June 19.

If you would like to read more about Charles Dickens’s visits to Shrewsbury email John@jbutterworth.plus.com to buy a signed copy of Four Centuries at The Lion Hotel  for the special price of £6 including postage anywhere within the UK or £7 including postage anywhere in the world.