20th century

Edward Gorey photographed in the window of a department store.

There Was Just One, and Now It’s Dead: Remembering Edward Gorey

Posted on by The Gothic Dispatch

During his lifetime, Edward Gorey was presumed to be English, Victorian and dead. One of them, at least, is now true.

Join me in marking what would have been the 100th birthday of the Grandfather of Goth with a whistle-stop tour of his life, work and death. Hear his stories of a perfectly ordinary childhood that was really anything but. Follow him to New York City and the Gotham Book Mart, where he became a cult icon. And see if you can succeed where he could not in escaping the long shadow of Dracula.

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In a black and white film still, a woman points a small pistol at a man, the two staring at each other in early 20th century fashion.

How Can I Use That?: The Influences of Edward Gorey

Posted on by The Gothic Dispatch

He famously read Dracula at the age of seven. From then on, Edward Gorey and his host of pale-skinned, dark-eyed characters feasted on culture wherever they could find it.

Join me in marking what would have been the 100th birthday of the Grandfather of Goth by digging into his biggest influences. Piece together the clues scattered throughout his life. Examine the strange and disturbing marks they left on his work. And hunt his favourite artists, writers and filmmakers around the world and through the centuries.

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The cover of Edward Gorey's book, The Gashlycrumb Tinies.

Goofy, Elegant Murders: The Essential Works of Edward Gorey

Posted on by The Gothic Dispatch

Edward Gorey wrote 116 books of his own, illustrated more than 500 for other writers and left behind boxes of unfinished manuscripts. So, where should you start?

Join me in marking what would have been the 100th birthday of the Grandfather of Goth by picking out some of his most essential and influential stories. Learn why The Gashlycrumb Tinies and The Doubtful Guest are still delighting readers today. Discover disturbing stories you might have missed. And hear the writer-illustrator pick out his own favourites – before drawing your own conclusions.

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A young woman is sitting in a chair reading a story which has made her nervous. Source: Wellcome Images

I Waked One Morning From a Dream: What Is Gothic Literature?

Posted on by The Gothic Dispatch

There have been many nights when I’ve laid awake wondering: What makes a book Gothic? Who decides what is and isn’t Gothic fiction? And why, why, why do I keep reading them?

It’s time to reveal the truth about Gothic literature. Together, we’ll unravel the fragments, falsehoods and frame narratives to separate fact from fiction. Interrogate Gothic literature’s most renowned writers – including Horace Walpole, Ann Radcliffe and Matthew Lewis. And find out why this obscure, 200-year-old genre is still haunting us today.

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The Parkland Walk spriggan leans out from under a railway arch. All around, wild vines creep and hang – against the dark stone, colourful graffiti.

The Parkland Walk spriggan, guardian of the wilderness

Posted on by The Gothic Dispatch

Under the castle ruins, among the standing stones and in the barrows under England, the old world is sleeping. One magical creature, however, had the misfortune to draw the night shift.

Greetings from Parkland Walk, once a battlefront of industrialisation, now reclaimed by the wilderness and its spriggan guardian. Join me as I walk the three-mile path through London. Pay tribute to the powers at work here – whether of our world or another. And follow the Gothic Dispatch if only to keep me from being led maliciously astray.

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