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Charles Dickens: Author. Orator. Social reformer. Animal lover.
That's right, Dickens' Doughty Street abode — now the Charles Dickens Museum — was a regular menagerie back when the author lived there, home to dogs, ravens, goldfinches, cats — you name it.
You couldn't go anywhere in London in Dickens' day without seeing horses pulling carriages, cattle being driven to market, or dogs performing tricks for money. Such was the writer's own interest in animals (it was "inexhaustible" according to his friend, John Forster) the Charles Dickens Museum has found enough material to create a new exhibition.
Faithful Companions: Charles Dickens & his Pets — which opens in May 2024 — reveals the stories behind the creatures in Dickens' life. Rarely-seen letters, photo albums and illustrations tell of pets like the mischievous Bob the cat, who regularly put out Dickens's reading light, vying for his attention; and Dick the canary who liked to hop about the breakfast table.
These animals were seen as part of the Dickens family, even appearing in photo albums — including Dickens' favourite dog, a mastiff called Turk (see the image at the top of the article). Some directly inspired Dickens' writing — or even appeared in it. Take Dickens' prized raven Grip, who became a character in Barnaby Rudge — and may even have been the inspiration for Edgar Allen Poe's The Raven. In fact, if you trawl through the pages of Dickens' novels, you'll find a number of creatures woven into the narratives, including the evil Bill Sikes' terrier Bull's-eye, in Oliver Twist. (Though we're assuming Dickens never owned such a dastardly pooch.)
Faithful Companions: Charles Dickens & his Pets, Charles Dickens Museum, 15 May 2024-12 January 2025, included with (paid) entry to the museum
