Blogs & News

news : October at Elizabeth Gaskell’s House

Manchester’s most famous literary home, Elizabeth Gaskell’s House, will be packed to the rafters with eerie events this October, as Halloween brings a terrifying timetable of talks, creepy crafts and scary stories. And Elizabeth Gaskell would definitely approve – she wrote a whole series of ghostly gothic tales. In addition to the Halloween fun, there’ll be a riotous Raucous Afternoon Tea, a Script-writing Masterclass, a chance to meet the author of a new book as part of the...

blog : Open Book – Mrs Gaskell & Me

On Sunday 9 September, I appeared on BBC Radio 4’s Open Book with Mariella Frostrup and Nell Stevens.  On the show, we discussed the increase in profile that Elizabeth Gaskell has received in recent years: both from Nell’s own writing and from the re-opening of Elizabeth Gaskell’s House in Manchester in 2014. This was also a great chance for me to talk about my own PhD research on the use of dialect in Gaskell’s work and in other...

blog : Butts, Leaves and a Shed

It's a quiet time at the moment for flowers in the garden as it recovers from the drought. But the signs are promising; shrubs I thought were dying have produced new leaves and dahlias are showing the beginnings of very delayed flower buds. There are also little delights such as the morning glory and geranium wallichianum. Human activity has not stopped, however; the volunteer gardeners not only weed, prune and plant out for later displays but have also rearranged...

blog : Florence Nightingale and Elizabeth Gaskell

In the drawing room of the House , underneath the copies of Richmond's drawings of Elizabeth Gaskell and Charlotte Bronte, we have a print of a popular engraving of Florence Nightingale with her friend Charles Bracebridge - both of them on horseback - which shows them in May 1855 on Cathcart's Hill looking towards Sevastopol in the Crimea. This popular engraving was produced by Parthenope  (Florence's sister) and Lady Anne Blunt from a sketch by Selena Bracebridge. Selena...

blog : Mia’s Work Experience Placement

I am a first-year, university history student who decided to apply for work experience at Elizabeth Gaskell’s House. Replies to my emails were quick and friendly, making me feel wanted and welcome before even stepping through the door. My family had previously visited the house and reported back on how wonderful the objects were and how detailed the information given by volunteers was (but my mother especially liked the Tea Room!). Over the course of my work experience...
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