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Interview with Brian Percival: Historical Drama, Northern Roots and the Director’s Craft

Brian Percival is a director whose career journey has taken him from his working-class roots in Liverpool to one of the most respected names in British television and film. With notable works such as North and South, The Book Thief and All

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Your Online Events for 2026: Short Stories and More

You are cordially invited to Elizabeth Gaskell’s House’s season of events on Short Stories including Cranford and the Gothic! Fancy some variety? Too busy for a longer novel? These Short Stories are the perfect answer. Plus we have a not-to-be-missed partnership event

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Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein: The Father, the Son and the Spirit of Hope

As the long winter evenings continue, here is a ghost story to get you through these cold and bleak January nights. Mary Shelley’s genre-defining Frankenstein is a fitting tale for this time of year. Shelley strands her protagonist, the scientist Victor Frankenstein,

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Pink roses in the garden

Cousin Phillis

‘“I loved him, father!” she said at length, raising her eyes.’ Cousin Phillis by Elizabeth Gaskell, 1863-64 Cousin Phillis is the perfect length – somewhere between a short story and a novel – and a precursor to Elizabeth Gaskell’s masterpiece Wives and

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19th century black and white print of mill workers

Life in Manchester – Libbie Marsh’s Three Eras

'How long is it since you were a beauty?' Life in Manchester - Libbie Marsh's Three Eras, 1847 Life in Manchester – Libbie Marsh’s Three Eras was one of Elizabeth Gaskell’s earliest works and was published under the pen-name ‘Cotton Mather Mills,

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