Blogs & News

: Father’s Day at Elizabeth Gaskell’s House

Join us for short talk from one of our volunteers 'Through the Study Window'. This short talk will discuss what the Revd. William Gaskell (husband and father) would have seen from his window in the study at Plymouth Grove, and how that outlook changed during the Gaskells' residency. Who were there neighbours and where did these people move to as Manchester pushed its way further into the suburbs? All Dads will get a free cup* of the Elizabeth

: International Women’s Day: Was Elizabeth Gaskell a Feminist?

Join one of our volunteers for a short talk to explore Elizabeth's views on the 'woman question'. Looking at the evidence from her letters and her published writing, we consider Gaskell's views on the position of women in the mid nineteenth century. And did she really fit the subservient Victorian stereotype suggested by the Richmond portrait of Gaskell in the Drawing Room? This short talk will take place in the dining room and is included in admission.

: Mothering Sunday at Elizabeth Gaskell’s House

Diane Duffy will give a short talk in the Dining Room at 1pm about how Elizabeth constructed a space to write amidst her busy life as a wife and mother. All mums will get a free cup* of the Elizabeth Gaskell's House Tea or filter coffee in the tea room. Included in admission. There will also be scones (with jam and butter) for sale in the tearoom for £2.50. *One cup per mum.

: Victorian Parlour Music

Join amateur musicians Matt Holker and Robert Nicholls in the Drawing Room for an afternoon of Victorian parlour songs, including some referred to by Elizabeth Gaskell. At intervals from 2pm. Included in admission

: Hearts, Hands and Cake

… make the world (if I am but strong enough in expression), honour the woman as much as they have admired the writer 'Hearts, Hands, and Cake’ is a creative re-imagining of a period in the life of Elizabeth Gaskell, charting her rise from debut novelist and minister’s wife to established author and social reformer. Following her first novel ‘Mary Barton’, Elizabeth is thrust into the inner circles of British literary society, meeting the renowned Charles Dickens and