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Gaskell’s Visit to Chatsworth – Recording

£5.00

‘I feel more like Cinderella, than anyone else you can imagine’: Elizabeth Gaskell’s visit to Chatsworth

This is access (via a private web link) to a recording of the talk given by Fran Baker at our March meeting in Manchester.

In September 1857, Elizabeth Gaskell and her daughter Meta were amongst many tourists arriving at Chatsworth House in Derbyshire with their printed admission tickets. Their tour of the house was interrupted by an invitation to stay for luncheon and an announcement that rooms were being made ready for them as guests of the 6th Duke of Devonshire!! This talk explores Gaskell’s memorable account of her experience at Chatsworth, and also examines what the episode can tell us about her professionalism as an author, the relationship between writers and aristocratic patrons in the age of the professional writer, and the rise of literary tourism as a leisure pursuit alongside country house visiting.

Please note that this talk (40 minutes) will be available for viewing at any time (and as often as you like) until 11.59pm (UK time) on Sunday 30 April 2023. It cannot be downloaded.
Please note – you’ll see the download link when you complete your purchase (in the section headed Downloads). Click for a PDF which contains your ticket link. 

Please don’t share this link with others: The Gaskell Society is a charity and relies on income from events to fund future events. 

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‘I feel more like Cinderella, than anyone else you can imagine’: Elizabeth Gaskell’s visit to Chatsworth

This is access (via a private web link) to a recording of the talk given by Fran Baker at our March meeting in Manchester.

On Saturday 12 September 1857, Elizabeth Gaskell and her daughter Meta were amongst many tourists arriving at Chatsworth House in Derbyshire with their printed admission tickets. Their tour of the house was interrupted by an invitation to stay for luncheon and an announcement that rooms were being made ready for them as guests of the 6th Duke of Devonshire!! This talk explores Gaskell’s memorable account of her experience at Chatsworth, and also examines what the episode can tell us about her professionalism as an author, the relationship between writers and aristocratic patrons in the age of the professional writer, and the rise of literary tourism as a leisure pursuit alongside country house visiting.

Fran Baker is the Archivist & Librarian at Chatsworth, the historic house in Derbyshire which is home to the Devonshire family. Previously she worked at the John Rylands Library in Manchester, where she curated the literary archives (including the papers of Elizabeth Gaskell) and the social/political history archives, as well as leading on digital archives.

Please note that this talk (45 minutes) will be available for viewing at any time (and as often as you like) until 11.59pm (UK time) on Sunday 30 April 2023. It cannot be downloaded.

Please note – you’ll see the download link when you complete your purchase (in the section headed Downloads). Click for a PDF which contains your ticket link. 

Please don’t share this link with others: The Gaskell Society is a charity and relies on income from events to fund future events.