BleakChesneyWold

       Sensation Novel Transformed into a Social Concern Romance             'The New Magdalene' , serialised in 1872-1873, then as a novel in 1873, is certainly an interesting and surprisingly difficult  work: Arguably contains three quite diverse sections under one title. In the 21st century Wilkie Collins ( 1824- 1889) is largely known for 'The Woman in White' ( published in 1860) and 'The Moonstone' ( 1868). The former is a major work in the development of the Victorian 'sensation novel', the latter a key player in the rise of the detective novel. It is hard to imagine 'The New Magdalene' being dramatised for modern television, or film, though a stage version did appear shortly after its publication.  This novel deals with plight of a 'fallen woman' , a social usurper, who is eventually redeemed by the love of a good Christian gentleman, but remained displaced by wider society. They both go into voluntary exile. Collin...

                                             The Charles Dickens connection  Acting obsessed him ( Dickens) . He supported actors experiencing financial hard times and even dreamed of great actor Macready as his desirable double. John Glavin.  The play referred to here was . 'The Frozen Deep'  written by Wilkie Collins in 1853 with a certain input from Charles Dickens:  Dickens also played one of the leading roles, that of Richard Wardour. Collins and Dickens had been literary associates and friends from 1851. Dickens expert, Michael Slater went as far as to describe this play as a "melodrama expressly written for Dickens and his amateurs." SLATER  And the play was based on true events: In 1845 Captain Sir  John Franklin of the Erebus accompanied by the Terror sailed from Greenhithe, Kent, to The Arctic in a bid to discover the north west pa...