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News and
06.03.2023 |
News ArchiveThe external links on this page worked when we archived them, but we can't guarantee that they won't have moved since then
The Dickensian Christmas Festival 3rd nd and 4th December 2022
The 2022 Dickensian Christmas festival took place on Saturday December 3rd and Sunday December 4th 2022. As always the festival 'curtain raiser' was the Costumed Ball on the preceding Friday evening, attended by 80 or so Dickensian ladies and gentlemen. This year because of special financial pressures it wasn't viable to include a meal but guests were encouraged to bring a picnic, which worked out well. Thanks to the support of a local company there was also a generous provision of 'nibbles', which were well received. This was followed by dancing to the band 'Legacy', which included 'old tyme' as well as the usual party music. The raffle in support of the Dickens Chalet Restoration fund raised £251. We are delighted to report that we enjoyed the services of an 'official photographer', Judy Campbell, at the ball, and you can see her pictures in our gallery . Judy has also added an album of photos of the Grand Parade at the Dickensian Christmas.
Dickens Festival June 4th and 5th 2022
We were told that this year because of the Queens Platinum Jubilee the Dickens Festival would be a little different, and that was certainly true! The festival took place on its traditional weekend, but as part of the Jubilee celebrations. The curtain raiser for the festival was, as usual, the Dickens Ball on the Friday. This year we were honoured by the presence of the young Queen Victoria, resplendant in her Coronation Robes, accompanied by the young Prince Albert and supported by our own Rochester Town Crier. Her Majesty generously welcomed her subjects as they arrived. The evening's entertainment was preceded by a one minute silence in honour of Ashley Davis. Ashley and his sister Shirley ran the ball from its inception for over twenty years and Ashley sadly passed away two weeks before the festival. Numbers were a little down, but Sue and her team adopted a new layout in the Queens Hall which suited the occasion well. It was notable that the smaller dance floor was well used through the evening. Our undercover reporter attended on the first day proper of the festival; the weather wasn't kind to Rochester but we hear that other parts of the country were worse off, and we soldiered on in the best British tradition. This year there was only one grand parade each day, at lunch time. We reckoned that the number of Dickensian characters was larger than it has been on recent occasions and the crowd enjoyed the spectacle. Crowd numbers were down, but still impressive considering the weather and the number of alternative events. Hopefully the festival will be back at full strength next year. Gerald Dickens, great-great grandson of the great man, isn't always available for the festival because his performances are in demand around the world, but his performances are always well supported, especially when he is in the magnificent Guildhall. This year he was sharing a yellow tent, (apparently known as 'The Raven Stage)' with a double bass and some microphones. We only just managed to get inside the entrance, but even with the tent roof hitting us on the back of the neck we enjoyed his piece. Gerald has made over the 7th June edition of his blog 'on the road' to an extended report of his experience and it is well worth a read. Kentonline has some nice pictures We have put together albums of our pictures at the ball and the festival - they are in our picture gallery.
The Dickensian Christmas Festival 2021
This year the curtain-raiser was, as always, The Mistletoe Ball in the Queens Hall of the Rochester Corn Exchange on Friday evening. This was attended by 103 Victorian ladies and gentlemen, including our friends the steampunks from Great Kentspectations. This year the event was hosted by Sue Haydock and reports so far are favourable, with the meal particularly well received. We would be happy to share your pictures of the festival - click here for the link
Rochester Dickensian Christmas Festival December 2019
Our album of the ball is available from our gallery,along with an album shared by Sue, and we have some nice 'candle-lit' pictures of the Sunday evening parade and carol service. The weather over the weekend was as kind as could be expected in December. The Saturday was quite mild and saw large a large turnout . The Sunday started off with a very cold wind, but the turnout was still substantial, and there were no more than a few drops of rain during the day. The high spot for most visitors who didn't have to get back to their coaches early was the candle-lit parade and carol service outside the Cathedral. This year saw the first appearance at the festival of David Chapman as the Musical Director and we had a new MC. Together they steered a steady course through the perils of the Powerpoint presentation of the words to the crowd. Newcomers may have been taken by surprise by the second verse of 'Jingle Bells', which always closes the event. There are apparently four verses in the original words of 1857, but the words were considered to 'racy' for public performance. Verse two ends with a young Fanny Bright and her beau being 'upsot' in the sleigh - this could refer to an upset, or getting drunk. Plenty more in Wikipedia
Rochester Dickens Festival June 2019
The festivities started with the Dickens Ball on the Friday evening. this year the evening was themed as 'A Day at the Seaside', which gave some of our guests the excuse to join in the fun as as sailors, pirates, and even in Victorian bathing costumes! Saturday the weather was very warm, which was great for our visitors, but some of the Dickensian characters suffered a little. Sunday was more breezy, with a mixture of sunshine and clouds, which was more comfortable for all. The Dickens Festival Public Forum (known to all as 'the wash-up meeting'!) took place on Monday 24th June in the Corn Exchange, Rochester. Numbers were reported as slightly down, but plenty of ground was covered.
Rochester Dickensian Christmas Festival December 2018The Rochester Dickensian Christmas Festival 2018 took place on the weekend of 1st and 2nd December. The Saturday weather was less than kind with heavy showers, but Sunday was mild and mostly dry. We will be posting more news and pictures here soon, and will be very happy to share your contributions. If you want to contribute follow this link |
The opening event was the Mistletoe Ball in the magnificent Corn Exchange, on Friday November 30th. This year for the first time we welcomed the local band 
This year the festival photo albums all seem to be on Facebook, but not everyone is registered. 
Antoine Briche came over on the Calais shuttle to see us - 
20-28 August 2011
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3-5 June 2011
Rochester Dickens Summer Festival
The Festival Summer Ball on Thursday was as spectacular as ever, as well as a chance to show off new costumes and catch up on gossip. An extra feature was a lighthearted celebration of our 'sister' Festival at Llandrindod Wells. We sent our best wishes for them at a difficult stage in their history.
Friday was as always aimed particularly at chidren. The weather was warm and sunny, setting the scene for Saturday.
Saturday was hot and sunny - verging on too hot for some of the Dickensian costumes. In a departure from previous years all the competitions were held on this day; there was a good number of contestants and a good audience, so the change worked well - competition photos are now in our picture gallery.
The compere for the afternoon was Ashley, and the first competition was 'Mr and Mrs Rochester', judged by an elite panel of previous winners. Under the rules, entrants have to dress for the (Dickensian) beach, and perform a party piece. 'Mr. Rochester' was won by Rob in a most unlikely costume and a wierdly predictable party piece,, and 'Mrs. Rochester' was won by Francesca,with a more traditional outfit, and a party piece which stunned the crowd (picture in our gallery).
The Best Dressed Ladies competitions were judged by Sheila, who has a long history of entering previous competitions and a deep interest in the techniques of the time.
Jan won first prize for her outfit, which was judged to be the most authentic in presentation and needlecraft.
Francesca won in the 'newcomers' category. Her dress was meticulously crafted by her grandmother, and the overall effect was stunning
Don Barcott was guest judge for the 'Best Dressed Gentleman' competition.
The Best Dressed Dickens Adult character was judged by Thelma Grove from the Dickens Fellowship. Thelma is one of the foremost experts in this field, and always seems to understand Dickens' characters in depth, no matter how obscure. The winner was Miss Ninetta Crummles from Nicholas Nickleby, 'The Infant Phenomenon', enacted by Francesca completing her hat trick having already won 'Mrs. Rochester' and 'best Dressed Ladies' competitions. Francesca is seen in our picture with the runner up.
Many of the characters seen on Saturday were at 'Dickens World' later at the 'Hoi Polloi Ball' - the scenario was that the ball was a treat for the lower servants at the grand house, who
had already been on a day trip to the seaside. Apparently some
of the ladies were still in their bathing costumes, and one or two had smuggled in a sailor they had met on their travels. The event was organised by David Hawes.
Sunday started with the costumed
river trip on the Kingswear Castle, leading to the morning grand parade. The weather started out cloudy, but the rain held off until mid afternoon, when it turned to light drizzle. The characters didn't give in, but our audience wasn't quite so tough!
Dickensian Christmas
2010
Nobody in the UK can have failed to notice that the week leading up to the Festival was marked by heavy snowfall and extremely low temperatures. To their great credit Medway Council decided to go ahead, and put huge efforts into making the event work. Regrettably a few events had to be cancelled because entertainers just couldn't get to the town, but by the weekend the weather was was relatively kind (except for a couple of sharp showers), the public turned up to support us, and the weekend was a success.
The Saturday morning parade was led as usual by the Mayor. Some familiar faces were unavoidably missing, but the crowds were still there, and cheered everyone on. 
Instead
of the usual marching
band we sang
carols, led by the Lamplighter playing his pipe. After a
short but nasty shower mid-afternoon the weather was remarkably warm for the Carol Service led by the Dean of Rochester. The singing and cheering didn't sound in any way dampened by the weather, and on both nights the biggest cheer was in support of our forces in armed fighting on our behalf over the Christmas period.
By Sunday more characters and entertainers had managed to fight their way through the snow. The weather was colder, but the only shower of the day was short. The carol service was led by Councillor Carl Madjitey, supported by Councillor Howard Doe.
More pictures can be found in our picture gallery - now three albums.
The Dickens Christmas Market at Rochester Castle ran from December 3rd to 19th 2010
The Dickens Museum in Doughty Street, in London, has received a £2m grant from the Lottery fund for restoration in preparation for the bicentenary of Dickens' birth, in 2012.
News snippet October 2010
Sharp-eyed viewers may have noticed that a couple of dozen Rochester Dickens Festival regulars were much in evidence in the village of Midsomer Morchard in the episode of Midsomer Murders transmitted on October 13th 2010, titled 'The Noble Art'. They were members of the 'Victorian Strollers' group of re-enactors, and unusually for Midsomer, all survived!
Members of the group also regularly appear at Dickens World
ROCHESTER DICKENS SUMMER FESTIVAL 2010
The Summer Festival kicked off as always with a magnificent costumed ball in the Cornmarket. This year we welcomed a delegation from Foshan and Hong Kong who had flown in the same morning for the third Chinese Culture Festival. Despite their thirteen hour flight our guests enjoyed the evening to the full.
Friday saw perfect weather - a sunny day but not hot enough to be uncomfortable. Attendance was good through most of the day, but quiet later on.
Saturday was busy, and the weather was perfect for visitors, but more than a trifle warm for those in Dickensian costume; some were wilting before the end of the day.
Saturday night was close and muggy, with a fairly impressive thunderstorm in the early hours. This cleared the air for Sunday.
Sunday was cooler and more comfortable for characters and visitors alike. Because of the conditions of the tide the opening costumed sailing of the 'Kingswear Castle' was a round trip from Rochester Thunderbolt pier. Our Mayor, Cllr David Brake, was in attendance. Although all looks calm in this picture, our gallery tells a different
story!
After the event there was the traditional 'sing along'' at the Bull - this year the format was changed due to organisational problems and attendance was a bit sparse, but as always it proved to be a great way to end the weekend.
Pictures of the event can be seen by clicking here.
ROCHESTER DICKENSIAN CHRISTMAS 2009
Friday
The Festival kicked off on Friday with the Dickens Ball, organised by Ashley Davis. This event attracted 188 enthusiasts, all in Dickensian costume, the largest number in recent years.
Saturday
The day started in glorious sunshine, with huge numbers attending to take advantage of the weather. The day stayed mild until late afternoon, when we saw a little light rain, but not enough to spoil the afternoon's candlelit parade and carol service outside the Cathedral
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For Saturday evening David had organised a 'Hoi Polloi' ball for the lower orders, hosted by Dickens World. the evening's entertainment included 'Right Royal Revels', music by 'Skinners Rats', and a tribute to the days of the music hall from Julia Burnett. A raffle and collection was held for the 'Help For Heroes' charity. An added excitement was a real live Victorian marriage proposal!. |
Sunday
After heavy rain early in the morning the skies cleared in time to give us a mild and largely sunny day, with large crowds right through to the end of the final carol service