Photo: Sander Korvemaker.
Despite no known historical connection with Charles Dickens, this Dutch town plays host to an annual Dickens festival, the world’s largest.
Today’s story about a town that loves Charles Dickens drew me in because I also love Dickens. That is, I love his novels. With the exception of The Old Curiosity Shop and Barnaby Rudge — neither of which I liked — I have read them all multiple times. But I have also read about the man himself and am pretty sure he was not a very nice guy.
The surprising Dickens festival that Senay Boztas writes about at the Guardian focuses on both the novels and the guy.
Boztas reports, “Soon after limited Sunday trading started in the Netherlands, an anglophile shopkeeper in the small city of Deventer decided it could all be a bit more fun.
“ ‘My 82-year-old mother, Emmy Strik, is England-minded because my grandfather always went to England and read a lot of Dickens,’ said her daughter, Liesbeth Velders, who now runs the Dille & Kamille homeware store. ‘So when we were going to open on Sunday, she decided to make it a fancy-dress party – except the fancy-dress party got a bit out of hand.’
“Decades later, Strik’s experiment in literary frivolity has gone further than she could have imagined. The event she began in 1991 to commemorate Charles Dickens has run for 33 years, with a two-year break during the Covid pandemic.
“Despite no known historical connection with the author, Deventer, in the eastern province of Overijssel, now plays host to what is believed to be the world’s largest Dickens festival. This weekend [in December 2023], 950 volunteers will fill the streets of the ancient Bergkwartier, performing street theatre and selling hot punch and Victorian treats. There are strict rules for actors and traders: no [sneakers], modern watches or mobile phones.
“Among the expected 125,000 visitors will be Ebenezer Scrooge, Tiny Tim, Queen Victoria, Miss Havisham, beggars, thieves and, for the first time, Dickens himself.
“Ojon van Strijland, a bookseller and volunteer at the Dickens Kabinet museum, said he and Strik had learned while on a trip to Kent, where Dickens spent much of his childhood, that authenticity was essential.
“ ‘Years ago, Emmy and I went to [the city of] Rochester’s Dickensian Christmas festival to seek inspiration but there were things there we would not want,’ he said. ‘There were people walking around with Christmas lights on, Santa hats and polyester costumes.’ …
“Strik amassed almost 1,000 authentic costumes, collected enough Dickensian items to fill a museum and grew the Dickens Festijn with commercial sponsorship and support from Events dEVENTer. She has now – largely – handed over the reins to her daughter.
“ ‘We can’t roast chestnuts in big drums any more; there’s a fist-thick book of rules from the fire brigade and the police, but it’s still a real festival,’ said Velders.
“The festival has huge local status. One couple’s 50th wedding anniversary is being incorporated into this year’s edition, while 62-year-old system administrator Wessel Lindeboom is polishing insults in multiple languages for his dream role of Scrooge. …
“At a time when Dutch children’s reading skills are declining, some hope the festival will encourage a wider love of literature. ‘A lot of the visitors have never read a Dickens book but everyone recognizes Scrooge, who walks around calling “humbug!” and insulting people,’ said Velders. ‘There are also storytellers who recount the story of the books.’ …
“The mayor of Deventer, Ron König, hopes visitors will have an enormous amount of fun but also take home a more profound message. ‘The festival beautifully portrays the differences between rich and poor, an issue we are still trying to tackle.’ …
“Peter Jan Margry, professor of European ethnology at Amsterdam University, believes this kind of event provides a welcome break, particularly in dark days. …
“ ‘The festival of Christmas is also about stepping out of your own time into an atmosphere of carols and Christmas trees and a flight from reality,’ he said. ‘But it’s also a form of occupying yourself, a type of tourism, stepping out of your daily life, that you see in all fantasy and live action role-playing. … It’s about stepping into another world.’ “
I hope my blogging friends at Cook and Drink will weigh in on this aspect of life in their beautiful and surprising country.
More at the Guardian, here. No firewall. Subscriptions encouraged.
Suzanne's Mom's Blog 
Thanks! About Deventer: it is one of the oldest cities of the Netherlands, founded in the 10th century. It’s one of the Dutch cities in the Hanseatic League. It is also host to Europe’s largest outdoor book fair (in August). But perhaps most importantly, it’s a really lovely city, with medieval streets and a picturesque city centre. It is beautifully located along the river IJssel and the countryside is perfect for cycling.
Culinary the city is known for its Deventer koek, a honey cake that is flavoured with candied orange peel. The secret recipe hasn’t been changed for over 400 years. The cake is sliced and then served with butter.
This is wonderful! Now I feel I would like to see it. Have you ever tried to replicate the honey cake?
Actually no. It’s typically something you would buy because you want to taste the real Deventer koek.
That sounds like quite the festival. Fun! I, too, have heard that Dickens wasn’t a nice man, but to paraphrase my blogging friend Skyler, if we only read books written by authors who were nice, we would not read very many books.
LOL. How true is that!
What a creative idea, expanded with time. I like that it still has social significance, thinking about others.
Yes, I thought that sounded like an unusual mayor.