Bookplanet: Dickens world

From NY Times: 'What the dickens would Charles Dickens have made of plans to build a $116.6m theme park, Dickens World, around his life and works? The South East Development Agency, a body responsible for planning in the Chatham area, 35 miles from London in southeast England, has announced that construction will start in two months as part of a regeneration project in the town's former dockyard section. Dickens (1812-70) lived in Chatham from ages 5 to 12. Scheduled for completion in April 2007, the roofed attraction devoted to the author of "David Copperfield," "Oliver Twist" and other classics will include an Ebeneezer Scrooge ride, cobbled streets with a replica of the Old Curiosity Shop and themed restaurants, a marketing spokesman said. A re-creation of a Victorian theater will present evening dinner shows with "naughty delights" in the "free and easy" style of Victorian music hall, according to the development agency. Thelma Grove, joint secretary of the International Dickens Fellowship, who is advising on the project, said: "I think it's a marvelous thing. It's an entertainment but also instructional and educational and will put Dickens across to a new audience." Kevin Christie, chief executive of the project, said, "We have great expectations."