The Gaskell Society and its partners host a year-round programme of meetings and special events, most of which are open to everyone. We’re very friendly – and we’d love to meet you, whether or not you choose to join the Society.
January 2020
Knutsford Meeting – January 2020
In January, we'll be discussing the short story, Mr Harrison's Confessions. Our monthly meetings are held on the last Wednesday of each month, between October and April (except December). An excellent buffet lunch is served at 12.30pm followed by a talk and discussion, led by Dr Diane Duffy, 2-3pm. There will also be a chance to visit the Gaskell Exhibition Room, upstairs in the Chapel Hall building. Everyone is most welcome - £10 members, £11 non-members if you'd like lunch.…
Find out more »February 2020
The Old Nurse’s Story – a dramatic reading
Elizabeth Gaskell's House hosts a spine-tingling dramatic reading of Gaskell's Gothic ghost story. Join us in the Drawing Room - entry includes a glass of wine. Advance booking essential. Read Diane Duffy's blog about the Old Nurse's Story.
Find out more »London & South East Gaskell Society Meeting
Was it quite impossible but that your Ruth should die?: Elizabeth Gaskell’s self-sacrificial heroine and the Life of Charlotte Brontë A talk by Dr Angharad Eyre How did Elizabeth Gaskell manage to present the controversial Charlotte Brontë as a popular Victorian heroine? This was no easy task, especially given Gaskell’s own disapproval of Brontë’s novels. Nevertheless, Gaskell’s Life of Charlotte Brontë secured Brontë’s place in respectable Victorian culture for the rest of the century. This paper explores the various religious literary traditions…
Find out more »February Second-hand Book Sale
On the second Sunday of each month, Elizabeth Gaskell's House hosts a fantastic second-hand book sale, downstairs in the Servants Hall. All proceeds go towards supporting operations and events in the House. The tearoom always has a fine selection of new and second-hand books for sale, but this is the big one! It's a chance to browse a much wider selection – two rooms filled with second-hand books, donated by book-lovers! The selection includes a variety of fiction, art, gardening,…
Find out more »Writing Anne Lister – SOLD OUT
To celebrate LGBT History Month, the Gaskell Society is delighted to welcome Dr Jill Liddington, whose scholarly research into the diaries of Anne Lister inspired the BBC/HBO series Gentleman Jack. How do you begin to write about a woman who has already written a diary of over four million words? How do you start to decipher the code in which she writes about the most private parts of her life? In 1990, Dr Liddington began work on the now-famous Anne…
Find out more »Lunchtime Reading: International Mother Language Day
It’s International Mother Language day! Join the fabulous team of Elizabeth Gaskell House volunteers from across the globe, as they read extracts from Elizabeth Gaskell’s writings in their own languages. Lunch-time talks and readings are included in usual House entry No booking required, but please make sure you arrive in good time to get a seat.
Find out more »Knutsford Meeting – February 2020
In February, we'll be discussing the short story, The Doom of the Griffiths. Our monthly meetings are held on the last Wednesday of each month, between October and April (except December). An excellent buffet lunch is served at 12.30pm followed by a talk and discussion, led by Dr Diane Duffy, 2-3pm. There will also be a chance to visit the Gaskell Exhibition Room, upstairs in the Chapel Hall building. Everyone is most welcome - £10 members, £11 non-members if you'd…
Find out more »Lunchtime Talk: Ruskin in Manchester
John Ruskin had a lot to say about Manchester. Find out just what he thought of our great city in this lunch-time lecture with the Gaskell Society's Anthony Burton. Stay to explore some of the correspondence between Ruskin and Elizabeth Gaskell in the Ruskin exhibition too. Lunch-time talks are included in usual House entry No booking required, but please make sure you arrive in good time to get a seat.
Find out more »Reading the Nineteenth Century 2 – Adam Bede
A new, five-part evening reading course at Elizabeth Gaskell’s House - enter the world of fallen women in the Victorian novel. When a women’s virtue is compromised, what choices lie open to her? Whose fault is it that she falls in the first place? And what will happen to the children born as a result? To answer these questions, Sherry Ashworth, Visiting Teaching fellow at Manchester Writing School, will lead you into the turbulent fictional lives of these Nineteenth-Century women,…
Find out more »March 2020
March Second-hand Book Sale
On the second Sunday of each month, Elizabeth Gaskell's House hosts a fantastic second-hand book sale, downstairs in the Servants Hall. All proceeds go towards supporting operations and events in the House. The tearoom always has a fine selection of new and second-hand books for sale, but this is the big one! It's a chance to browse a much wider selection – two rooms filled with second-hand books, donated by book-lovers! The selection includes a variety of fiction, art, gardening,…
Find out more »Lunchtime Talk: International Women’s Day
Celebrate International Women’s Day with Dr Diane Duffy, as she explores the writing of Elizabeth Gaskell’s fellow female authors. Were Elizabeth Gaskell’s women writer friends female scribblers or literary lions? Find out in this talk on Victorian women writers. And it’s our famous second-hand book sale today too! Enjoy a leisurely browse of our huge selection of books, and treat yourself to delicious tea and cake in our tea room! Lunch-time talks and readings are included in usual House entry…
Find out more »Knutsford Meeting – March 2020
In March, we'll be discussing the short story, The Well of Pen-Morfa. Our monthly meetings are held on the last Wednesday of each month, between October and April (except December). An excellent buffet lunch is served at 12.30pm followed by a talk and discussion, led by Dr Diane Duffy, 2-3pm. There will also be a chance to visit the Gaskell Exhibition Room, upstairs in the Chapel Hall building. Everyone is most welcome - £10 members, £11 non-members if you'd like…
Find out more »Reading the Nineteenth Century 3 – Tess of the D’Urbevilles
A new, five-part evening reading course at Elizabeth Gaskell’s House - enter the world of fallen women in the Victorian novel. When a women’s virtue is compromised, what choices lie open to her? Whose fault is it that she falls in the first place? And what will happen to the children born as a result? To answer these questions, Sherry Ashworth, Visiting Teaching fellow at Manchester Writing School, will lead you into the turbulent fictional lives of these Nineteenth-Century women,…
Find out more »April 2020
Creative Writing Workshop: Cranford!
Dust off your dialect and prepare to get creative in this fascinating writing workshop inspired by Elizabeth Gaskell’s Cranford and the upcoming Cranford Exhibition at Elizabeth Gaskell's House. In this wonderful half-day writing and poetry workshop, you’ll join ballad singer Jennifer Reid in exploring the street literature available at the time in the city and the dialect used in the village. From this exploration of the oral and print traditions of the area, you’ll write your own dialect pieces in…
Find out more »April Second-hand Book Sale
On the second Sunday of each month, Elizabeth Gaskell's House hosts a fantastic second-hand book sale, downstairs in the Servants Hall. All proceeds go towards supporting operations and events in the House. The tearoom always has a fine selection of new and second-hand books for sale, but this is the big one! It's a chance to browse a much wider selection – two rooms filled with second-hand books, donated by book-lovers! The selection includes a variety of fiction, art, gardening,…
Find out more »The Gaskell Society AGM 2020
A warm welcome to our Annual General Meeting. The AGM is open to Gaskell Society members only, but the talks and lunch are open to members and non-members alike. Timetable 10.00 am: Tea and Coffee 10.30 am: AGM 11.30 am: The Daphne Carrick Memorial Lecture ‘Was it quite impossible but that your Ruth should die?’ Elizabeth Gaskell’s self-sacrificial heroine and the ‘Life of Charlotte Brontë’ by Dr. Angharad Eyre, Teaching Associate at Queen Mary, University of London. How did Elizabeth Gaskell manage to present…
Find out more »Reading the Nineteenth Century 4 – The Unclassed
A new, five-part evening reading course at Elizabeth Gaskell’s House - enter the world of fallen women in the Victorian novel. When a women’s virtue is compromised, what choices lie open to her? Whose fault is it that she falls in the first place? And what will happen to the children born as a result? To answer these questions, Sherry Ashworth, Visiting Teaching fellow at Manchester Writing School, will lead you into the turbulent fictional lives of these Nineteenth-Century women,…
Find out more »Lunchtime Talk: Forgotten Female Novelists
Discover the work of women authors whose fiction has been forgotten. Join our Chair, the wonderfully engaging Libby Tempest, as she uncovers the work of these unsung writers. Lunch-time talks and readings are included in usual House entry No booking required, but please make sure you arrive in good time to get a seat.
Find out more »Knutsford Meeting – April 2020
In April, we'll be discussing the short story, The Squire's Story. Our monthly meetings are held on the last Wednesday of each month, between October and April (except December). An excellent buffet lunch is served at 12.30pm followed by a talk and discussion, led by Dr Diane Duffy, 2-3pm. There will also be a chance to visit the Gaskell Exhibition Room, upstairs in the Chapel Hall building. Everyone is most welcome - £10 members, £11 non-members if you'd like lunch.…
Find out more »May 2020
London & South East Gaskell Society Meeting
Eco-Gothic and Mary Barton A talk by Dr Lindsey Stewart This talk will consider how Mary Barton presents emotional and psychological distress and argue that, in this novel, Gaskell uses eco-gothic tropes to frame the environment as pathological. Lindsey is a member of our branch and a Visiting Fellow in the English Department at the Open University, having received her PhD from the OU last year. She is currently converting her research, which considered the medical and cultural uses of the Victorian…
Find out more »May Second-hand Book Sale
On the second Sunday of each month, Elizabeth Gaskell's House hosts a fantastic second-hand book sale, downstairs in the Servants Hall. All proceeds go towards supporting operations and events in the House. The tearoom always has a fine selection of new and second-hand books for sale, but this is the big one! It's a chance to browse a much wider selection – two rooms filled with second-hand books, donated by book-lovers! The selection includes a variety of fiction, art, gardening,…
Find out more »Reading the Nineteenth Century 5 – Esther Waters
A new, five-part evening reading course at Elizabeth Gaskell’s House - enter the world of fallen women in the Victorian novel. When a women’s virtue is compromised, what choices lie open to her? Whose fault is it that she falls in the first place? And what will happen to the children born as a result? To answer these questions, Sherry Ashworth, Visiting Teaching fellow at Manchester Writing School, will lead you into the turbulent fictional lives of these Nineteenth-Century women,…
Find out more »June 2020
June Second-hand Book Sale
On the second Sunday of each month, Elizabeth Gaskell's House hosts a fantastic second-hand book sale, downstairs in the Servants Hall. All proceeds go towards supporting operations and events in the House. The tearoom always has a fine selection of new and second-hand books for sale, but this is the big one! It's a chance to browse a much wider selection – two rooms filled with second-hand books, donated by book-lovers! The selection includes a variety of fiction, art, gardening,…
Find out more »July 2020
July Second-hand Book Sale
On the second Sunday of each month, Elizabeth Gaskell's House hosts a fantastic second-hand book sale, downstairs in the Servants Hall. All proceeds go towards supporting operations and events in the House. The tearoom always has a fine selection of new and second-hand books for sale, but this is the big one! It's a chance to browse a much wider selection – two rooms filled with second-hand books, donated by book-lovers! The selection includes a variety of fiction, art, gardening,…
Find out more »August 2020
August Second-hand Book Sale
On the second Sunday of each month, Elizabeth Gaskell's House hosts a fantastic second-hand book sale, downstairs in the Servants Hall. All proceeds go towards supporting operations and events in the House. The tearoom always has a fine selection of new and second-hand books for sale, but this is the big one! It's a chance to browse a much wider selection – two rooms filled with second-hand books, donated by book-lovers! The selection includes a variety of fiction, art, gardening,…
Find out more »As you’ll appreciate, arrangements can change, so please be sure to check details before you leave home.