Great Expectations (NHB Modern Plays)

By Charles Dickens

A gritty adaptation of Dickens' least sentimental love story with a cast of some of his most unforgettable characters.
Whilst at his parents' graveside, Pip is accosted by Magwitch, a convict escaped from one of the prison ships. Terrified, he is forced to help the man to get away. An unexpected invitation to the house of rich old Miss Havisham forces him into the path of her beautiful, cruel niece Estella and their strange, ruthless games. After an anonymous benefactor grants him a small fortune, Pip turns his back on his humble life as a blacksmith's apprentice - he moves to London to become a gentleman in the hopes of winning Estella. But he has no idea of the dangers that await him there, or from where his salvation will come.
'Expectations fulfilled ... a show that is by turns frightening, funny and deeply affecting' - Daily Telegraph
'a wonderfully involving and eloquent adaptation ... a fine example of fast, fluent ensemble story-telling ... tremendous' - Independent
'bursting with snappy humour... Donnellan's adaptation beautifully conveys the world as seen by a child' - Sunday Telegraph

• Language: English
• Publisher: Nick Hern Books
• Release date: Nov 13, 2014
• ISBN: 9781780014623

Charles Dickens

Charles Dickens was born in 1812 and grew up in poverty. This experience influenced ‘Oliver Twist’, the second of his fourteen major novels, which first appeared in 1837. When he died in 1870, he was buried in Poets’ Corner in Westminster Abbey as an indication of his huge popularity as a novelist, which endures to this day.

Book preview

ACT ONE

The whole company come onto a bare stage.

CHORUS. My father’s family name being Pirrip,

CHORUS. and my Christian name Philip,

CHORUS. my infant tongue could make of both names nothing longer or more explicit than . . .

CHORUS. Pip!

CHORUS. So, I called myself

CHORUS. Pip,

CHORUS. and came to be called

CHORUS. Pip.

CHORUS. Ours was the marsh country,

The scene opens up to show a distant flat horizon.

A graveyard.

CHORUS. down by the river, within twenty miles of the sea.

CHORUS. My first most vivid and broad impression of the identity of things seems to me to have been gained on this memorable raw, Christmas Eve afternoon towards evening. I found out for certain,

CHORUS. that this bleak place overgrown with nettles was the churchyard;

CHORUS. and that Philip Pirrip, late of this parish, and also Georgiana, wife of the above, were dead and buried;

CHORUS. and that the dark flat wilderness beyond the churchyard was the marshes;

CHORUS. and that the low leaden line beyond was the river;

CHORUS. and that the distant savage lair from which the wind was rushing was the sea;

CHORUS. and that the small bundle of shivers growing afraid of it all and beginning to cry was Pip.

MAGWITCH appears from behind a gravestone.

MAGWITCH. Hold your noise! Keep still, you little devil, or I’ll cut your throat! Tell us your name. Quickly.

YOUNG PIP. Pip, sir.

MAGWITCH. Once more. Give it mouth!

YOUNG PIP. Pip. Pip, sir.

MAGWITCH. Show us where you live. Point out the place!

PIP points. MAGWITCH grabs his ankle, turns him upside down and shakes him. A crust of bread falls out of a pocket. MAGWITCH eats it ravenously.

What fat cheeks you ha’ got. Darn me if I couldn’t eat ’em too. Now lookee here! Where’s your mother?

YOUNG PIP. There, sir!

MAGWITCH starts up. PIP points to the gravestone.

Also Georgiana. That’s my mother.

MAGWITCH. Oh! And is that your father alonger your mother?

YOUNG PIP. Yes, sir, him too; late of this parish.

MAGWITCH. Ha! Who d’ye live with – supposin’ you’re kindly let to live, which I han’t made up my mind about?

YOUNG PIP. My sister, sir – Mrs Joe Gargery – wife of Joe Gargery, the blacksmith, sir.

MAGWITCH. Blacksmith, eh? You know what a file is?

YOUNG PIP. Yes, sir.

MAGWITCH. And you know what wittles is?

YOUNG PIP. Yes, sir.

MAGWITCH. You get me a file and you get me wittles. You bring ’em both to me. Or I’ll have your heart and liver out. You bring the lot to me, at that old battery over yonder. You do it, and you never dare to say a word or dare to make a sign concerning your having seen such a person as me, or any person sumever, and you shall be let to live. You fail, or you go from my words in any partickler, no matter how small it is, and your heart and your liver shall be tore out, roasted and ate.

The Gargery parlour.

MRS JOE. Where have you been, you young monkey? Tickler wants to know. Tell me directly where you’ve been to wear me away with fret and fright and worrit.

YOUNG PIP. The churchyard.

MRS JOE. Churchyard! If it warn’t for me you’d have been to the churchyard long ago, and stayed there. Who brought you up by hand?

YOUNG PIP. You did.

MRS JOE. And why did I do it, I should like to know?

YOUNG PIP. I don’t know.

MRS JOE. I don’t! I’d never do it again! I know that. I may truly say I’ve never had this apron of mine off since born you were. It’s bad enough to be a blacksmith’s wife – and him (Indicating JOE.) a Gargery – without being your mother. Hah! Churchyard, indeed! You may well say churchyard, you two. You’ll drive me to the churchyard betwixt you, one of these days, and oh, a pr-r-recious pair you’d be without me!

A distant rumble.

YOUNG PIP. Was that the guns, Joe?

JOE. Ah! There’s another conwict off.

YOUNG PIP. What does that mean, Joe?

MRS JOE. Escaped. Escaped.

YOUNG PIP. What’s a convict?

JOE. There was a conwict off last night, after sunset-gun. And they fired warning of him. And now, it appears they’re firing warning of another.

YOUNG PIP. Who’s firing?

MRS JOE. Drat that boy, what a questioner he is. Ask no questions, and you’ll be told no lies.

YOUNG PIP. Where does the firing comes from?

MRS JOE. Lord bless the boy! From the hulks!

YOUNG PIP. Oh-h! Hulks! What’s hulks?

MRS JOE. That’s the way with this boy! Answer him one question, and he’ll ask you a dozen directly. Hulks are prison-ships, right ’cross th’ meshes.

YOUNG PIP. Who’s in the prison-ships?

MRS JOE. I tell you what, young fellow, I didn’t bring you up by hand to badger people’s lives out. It would be blame to me, and not praise, if I had. People are put in the hulks because they murder, and because they rob, and forge, and do all sorts of bad; and they always begin by asking questions.

MRS JOE cuts and butters bread.

CHORUS. Though I was hungry,

CHORUS. I felt that I must have something in reserve for my dreadful acquaintance.

CHORUS. Joe had just looked away and I got my bread and butter down my leg.

JOE stares in disbelief.

MRS JOE. What’s the matter now?

JOE. I say, you know! Pip, old chap! You’ll do yourself a mischief. It’ll stick somewhere. You can’t have chawed it, Pip.

MRS JOE. What’s the matter now?

JOE. If you can cough any trifle on it up, Pip, I’d recommend you to do it. Manners is manners, but still your elth’s your elth.

MRS JOE attacks JOE and tweaks his whiskers.

MRS JOE. Now, perhaps you’ll mention what’s the matter, you staring great stuck pig.

JOE. You know, Pip, you and me is always friends, and I’d be the last to tell upon you, any time. But such a – such a most oncommon bolt as that!

MRS JOE. Been bolting his food, has he?

JOE. You know, old chap, I bolted, myself, when I was your age – frequent – and as a boy I’ve been among a many bolters; but I never see your bolting equal yet, Pip, and it’s a mercy you ain’t bolted dead.

MRS JOE grabs YOUNG PIP by the hair.

MRS JOE. You come along and be dosed.

CHORUS. Some medical beast had revived tar-water in those days as a fine medicine,

CHORUS. having a belief in its virtues correspondent to its nastiness.

CHORUS. Joe got off with half a pint.

MRS JOE. Now, you get along to bed!

YOUNG PIP runs up the stairs. JOE and MRS JOE exit.

CHORUS. I was never allowed a candle to light me to bed

CHORUS. and, as I went upstairs in the dark, I felt fearfully sensible of the great convenience that the hulks were handy for me.

CHORUS. I was clearly on my way there.

CHORUS. I had begun by asking questions, and I was going to rob Mrs Joe.

CHORUS. As soon as the great black velvet pall outside my window was shot with grey, I got up and went downstairs.

YOUNG PIP reappears. It is now dark. He creeps down the stairs. A board creaks. He freezes.

CHORUS. Every board upon the way, and every crack in every board, calling after me,

CHORUS. Stop

Reviews for Great Expectations (NHB Modern Plays)

[steve02476 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I spent my whole adult life thinking I’d read this book in Jr High school - but this month it was my book club’s selection and I discovered that the first few chapters seemed very familiar; the rest was a total surprise, clearly I’d only started the book as a kid. Anyway, an amazing story and I’m glad I read it now.

[kslade-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A favorite book. I read it in 8th grade and most everyone else hated it, but I was enthralled! I could relate to Pip somehow.

[anniik_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

After being forced to read parts of The Tale of Two Cities in high school, I’d convinced myself that I couldn’t stand Dickens. After reading this book, I can definitely say that I was wrong. I very much enjoyed this book, its story, and the characters.

[ghost_boy-691444 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

"I looked at the stars, and considered how awful it would be for a man to turn his face up to them as he froze to death, and see no help or pity in all the glittering multitude."

One of the many quotes I liked from this book, but this one really spoke to me for some reason. Probably because it's semi-haunting. Compared to other Dickens books that I'v read so far this one is the best written.

I'm very happy this was better than Oliver Twist. You can't really compared the two, but I really don't like Oliver Twist. This book made up for that one though. The character I liked far better. Pip I liked better because he's telling the story, but he also seemed more aware of what was going on. I also really liked Miss Havisham, she stole the show, she was on fire (okay bad joke).

If you're looking for a semi-Gothic and semi-crime novel, this is a good choice. I was in fact looking for something with a little crime and something that was Gothic, but not too Gothic.

[luminous4path · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

It was okay. I think its themes are meant more for a YA audience.

[chwiggy · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I did not finish reading this book. It just felt like an eternity every so often. And while I sometimes caught a sliver of enjoyable writing, the premise had never hooked me enough to now keep going. I think I've had enough at least for now.

[connorshirs · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I took a buzz-feed quiz on which classic novel I should read and got this. 1) The cover is beautiful. 2) I thought Miss Havisham was a ghost the entire story. I loved Estella the most as a character. She proves that every individual has the ability to love; despite their background. One of my favorites.

[kittycunningh-815148 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Better toward the end than at the beginning. Listening to it through tedium was better than trying to read it for myself.

[profh-1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I remember my mother expressing surprise that Dickens wasn't read in any of my college English classes. I can't think of a single graduate student in or around my cohort who worked on him either, yet I knew he was one of my grandfather's favorites and that Dickens was very popular in his day. In sum, I think this is a fairytale style of prose that's gone out of fashion (and for good reason). Everyone in the novel is an exaggerated caricature. It makes for very predictable dialogue and a static, boring plotline. There's an interesting central idea: Does the source of wealth matter and does money change a person? The examination of this question is fairly surface level for a work of nearly five-hundred pages. I'm content to have had the experience of reading one of his more famous novels, but I would only recommend Dickens to someone interested in that particular time/place in the history of England and English Literature.

[composingcomposer · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It took longer to get invested in than some of Dickens's other works, but by the end I did care what happened to the various characters.

[paul_s-289480 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A sensible chuckle. I was surprised to see how little humour has changed and how old the "old jokes" really are. Poor Pip, forever blueballed.

[elenchus_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Recognisably Dickensian in all the ways I remembered, perhaps 30 years after my first Dickens novels. I was not bowled over the way I was in freshman seminar, but well-enough pleased and the specific title was decided by R's school assignment so I'm content with that, too. Great Expectations points up Dickens's clear-eyed insight into the hearts of neglected if not destroyed children. I broadly recall a similar outlook in other novels, and it may not even be particularly manifest here. That deep psychology into other people (people different than me, and yet recognisable) registered then and now as a key characteristic of the modern novel.No doubt influenced by my reading in noir, I found in the central plot a mystery without a sleuth; Dickens's own asides the same role as the shamus's distracting tough talk in Chandler, Hammett, Macdonald.The fact that every character is in the end found to be connected to all others (Six Degrees of Pip Pirrip), amused me and more or less was expected, but R found it almost infuriating. Great Expectations has a clearer message than I recall from Bleak House or Little Dorrit, as though Dickens imagined characters and situations as a means to assess the myriad ways Pip might delude himself: class or caste, public acceptance or accolade, wealth or comfort -- all manner of outer appearance, in other words, in contrast with inner meaning. The sheer variety of it all, and the cast of characters with their idiosyncracies, kept it interesting.Uncertain whether I will next re-read one of the three novels from that freshman seminar, or pick another novel. My initial impression 30 years ago stands, Dickens is worth reading.//Favourite characters: Wemmick, Herbert Pocket, Havisham, Jaggers -- and Satis House. (I wonder if Peake thought of it when writing Gormenghast.)

[steve_walker-348810 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Not my cup of tea.

[veritythefox · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

One of the best novels ever written.

[felixfern · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Required reading for being a human. Also it's epic.

[tehya13 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Although lengthy, this book was hard to put down. Amazing characters all with unique personality and plot twists I didn't see coming. This book had a lot of humor in it surprisingly! And it had me laughing for 5 minutes straight. Pip living through hardship and experiencing family deaths at such a young age is bound to get someone down. But it never did get him down. He was a hard worker and always polite to his surroundings. Although he despised Mr. Pumblechook's claims of raising Pip up to the man he is today, he never snapped or said wrong things to him. His sister did more works in his life than he ever thought she did, she taught him well and he starts to realize it towards the end. (God rest Mrs. Joe Gargery's soul.) The ending is bittersweet yet happy. Turning over a new leaf at the end. I loved this book more than I thought I would and I'm happy I experienced it after years of it sitting on my shelf. (also my favorite character was Herbert, he's such a nice boy.)

[nx74defiant · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Bit slow in parts. Since it was originally published in installments it has peaks and valleys. It pay better to have the story be longer. The ending is fitting

[dinadansfriend · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Charles Dickens' classic of unrequited love, and failures of communication. Pip grows up without an understanding of where his situation in Victorian england comes from, and later suffers in his quest for understanding who he really is. A tearjerker by modrn standards, and certainly lacks the fairy tale ending that dickens must have tired of by 1861.

[steller0707 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Second time reading this - the first was in high school. First published as a serial in a magazine, I can see how it would have been very popular. It has a little bit of everything in it - adventure, crime, coming-of-age, love gothic and humor!

[stevenjohntait · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great book. "You are part of my existence, part of myself. You have been in every line I have ever read, since I first came here, the rough common boy whose..." Perfect. I think I've read it four times, but I'm sure I'll read it again.

[gilroy_1 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

This could be listed with the subtitle of "The Misadventures of Pip." It's interesting, though not something that caught me to focus on it.If I'm understanding this correctly, Joe was abused by an alcoholic father and as such married an abusive woman to take the place of the abusive father. This is not openly displayed in the text, per se, but it is discussed by the narrator on a few occasions. This felt like a book written and published in stages, so the various parts feel a little stilted when pushed together. Though to bring the file up again did connect them some. Also the whole deal with the dying of Ms. Havernsham is kinda creepy.Something I did have to keep correcting myself in my mind was that the use of certain words has changed mightily since this was written. When someone asks is he an intimate, this isn't referring to a date, but to a close friend, for instance.I noted that unless he's given them no first name, Dickens has a habit of referring to characters by their title and first name. Mr. and Mrs. Joe. Mr. and Ms. Cecelia. It's a touch unnerving.I've gotten just about past the half way point. My loan expires tomorrow. I'm not looking to renew. The story isn't real compelling to me, and the "Great Expectations" are two fold: what Pip expects of himself and what others expect of Pip. This is definitely a long winded fictional biography. I'm not into biographies most times. Might be why this isn't my type of book.

[threadnsong · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I'm quite impressed with this book, read for a F2F book group. By this point in Dickens' writing career, he is less intrigued with cartoonish, humorous caricatures of people and more involved in the depth of their personalities. Joe, the simple but loving blacksmith who is unhappily married to Pip's sister, Estelle, and Miss Havisham have all finally received reasons and intrigue and a backstory to explain themselves.The basic story is a tale of an orphaned boy who lives with his b*tch of a sister and her husband near the marshes of Kent. He stumbles upon an escaped fugitive one night who terrifies him and colors his childhood for many years. Time passes, schooling might start (or not), and Pip meets the odd Miss Havisham who lives on abandoned home and brewery with her ward, Estelle. Pip spends almost as much time there as at school, and events at home include his sister and her alliance with narrow-minded townsfolk.As Pip grows older, his heart remains compassionate towards Joe, towards Estelle, and towards the strange Herbert, despite Pip's abuse at his sister's hands. She is beaten during a robbery and left without an ability to speak, while Pip is sent off to London to claim his inheritance. What gives this book its depth is that Pip has "great expectations" about where his new-found fortune originates, how much more richly he can live, and yet nothing becomes as it seems. Herbert and he become fast friends; Herbert knows the backstory for Miss Havisham; Pip's personal lawyer, Mr. Wemmick is a different person at home and at the office; and finally Pip's personal benefactor becomes a central character.Definitely one of Dickens' best writings, and worth the time put into it.

[isatyajeet · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Speechless...!

[comfypants · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A poor boy is promised to inherit a fortune.4/4 (Great).Pip is usually unsympathetic, but there are enough lovable secondary characters, and enough twists and suspense, to keep the book enjoyable, and to make a lasting impression.

[booksfordinner · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

What on earth can you say? Pip!

[nittnut · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is classic Dickens. I know he uses a lot of words, but he tells tales of the human condition with such humor and compassion. My favorite characters were Joe Gargery and Wemmick. Wemmick was particularly endearing with his "aged P" and his life away from work. So glad I persevered and finished it.

[justagirlwithabook · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is another one of my favorites of Dickens'! I have no clue when I read this one but the whole story of Pip really touched me. There were moments I thought he was a fool, but the vast majority of the time I really empathized with him. It's another classic example of Dickens' atmospheric style and wit coming together for an altogether great novel.

[deckla_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Who can resist Pip and Miss Haversham and Joe and Estella and the motley crew of characters that make up this extraordinary novel.

[csdaley-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

As I slowly work my way through Charles Dickens for the second time in my life (I was 13 when I worked my way through the first time) I am impressed at how well I still like the books. This one isn't my favorite. It is slow at times. This was the only flaw for me. Dickens captures me. There is something about his writing that transports me to a gray and sooty London. I am not sure which one I read next but this book has done nothing to slow down my desire to reread them all.

[m.belljackson · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Dickens' descriptions of locations, people and their characters (or lack of it) create a mellow reading experience.They make the plot, at times revolving around Bonkers Chicken predictable twists with a few delightful surprises, more memorable and enduring.His description of Pip's early encounters with the alphabet and numbers is a treasure:"...I struggled through the alphabet as if it had been a bramble-bush...""After that I fell among those thieves, the nine figures, who seemed every evening to do something new to disguise themselves and baffle recognition."Though not as compelling as A TALE OF TWO CITIES, Great Expectations offers fewerannoying personages than his other books and Joe, Wemmick, Herbert, and the Aged givereaders people to care about. Pip and his convict are more of a challenge.