The Secret World of Lewis Carroll

The Secret World of Lewis Carroll

59 mins | Documentary, History, TV Movie | Jan. 31, 2015

It's a timeless classic of children's literature and the third most-quoted book in English after the Bible and Shakespeare. But what lies behind the extraordinary appeal of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland to generations of adults and children alike? To mark the 150th anniversary of its publication, this film explores the life and imagination of its author, the Reverend Charles Dodgson, better known as Lewis Carroll. Journalist Martha Kearney delves into the biographies of both Carroll himself and of the young girl, Alice Liddell, who inspired his most famous creation. She discusses the book with a range of experts, biographers and distinguished cultural figures - from actor Richard E Grant to children's author Philip Pullman - and explores with them the mystery of how a retiring, buttoned-up and meticulous mathematics don, who spent almost his entire life within the cloistered confines of Christ Church Oxford, was able to capture the world of childhood in such a captivating way.

The Secret World of Lewis Carroll

59 mins | Documentary, History, TV Movie | Jan. 31, 2015

The Secret World of Lewis Carroll
It's a timeless classic of children's literature and the third most-quoted book in English after the Bible and Shakespeare. But what lies behind the extraordinary appeal of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland to generations of adults and children alike? To mark the 150th anniversary of its publication, this film explores the life and imagination of its author, the Reverend Charles Dodgson, better known as Lewis Carroll. Journalist Martha Kearney delves into the biographies of both Carroll himself and of the young girl, Alice Liddell, who inspired his most famous creation. She discusses the book with a range of experts, biographers and distinguished cultural figures - from actor Richard E Grant to children's author Philip Pullman - and explores with them the mystery of how a retiring, buttoned-up and meticulous mathematics don, who spent almost his entire life within the cloistered confines of Christ Church Oxford, was able to capture the world of childhood in such a captivating way.
IMDb rating 6.6
Producers BBC, Swan Films
Original title The Secret World of Lewis Carroll
Directors Clare Beavan
Writers

Cast

David Anley

as Himself - Forensic Imagery Analyst

Jane Atkinson

as Herself - Croft Rectory

Peter Atkinson

as Himself - Croft Rectory

Nicholas Burnett

as Himself - Photographic Conservation Specialist

Ian Clayton

as Himself - Ditchling Players

Morton N. Cohen

as Himself - Author, Lewis Carroll: A Biography

Mark Davies

as Himself - Local Historian

Robert Douglas-Fairhurst

as Himself - Author, The Story of Alice

Richard E. Grant

as Himself - Actor

Hugh Haughton

as Himself - University of York

Peter Howell

as Himself - Ditchling Players

Martha Kearney

as Herself

Alice Liddell

as Herself (archive footage)

Caroline Luke

as Herself - Great Great Grandniece of Lewis Carroll

Philip Pullman

as Himself - Writer

Will Self

as Himself - Writer

Nicholas Shrimpton

as Himself - Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford

Vanessa Tait

as Herself - Great Granddaughter of Alice Liddell

Edward Wakeling

as Himself - Editor, Lewis Carroll's Diaries

Jenny Woolf

as Herself - Author, The Mystery of Lewis Carroll