Lucinda Hawksley andthe SpiritofA ChristmasCarol

“You can't celebrate Christmas without people mentioning Dickens,” Lucinda Hawksley says with a spirited smile, leading guests out through the scarlet door of the Charles Dickens Museum in London’s literary Bloomsbury neighbourhood. A crisp winter breeze carries the scent of roasted chestnuts from a nearby stall, and at this time of year the Georgian terraced house is decked with ivy garlands, red ribbons, mistletoe sprigs and fir wreaths. Inside, the rooms are fully dressed for a Victorian Christmas: the dining table is set with fine china, a traditional turkey and Christmas pudding, while holly, oranges and candles adorn the mantelpieces. The drawing room features a beautifully decorated tree in the fashion of the 1840s, and the kitchen is laid out with seasonal treats as if the family had just stepped out. The understated yet evocative decorations reflect the period when Dickens lived here and penned A Christmas Carol, the classic tale about a life-changing encounter between a morose financier, Ebenezer Scrooge, and three spirits – the very story at the heart of Hawksley’s yuletide tour.

Indeed, if one looks closely enough, hints of the festive fable are not only woven into the city’s fabric, but also encoded in daily interactions. Before long, Hawksley’s group passes a poster advertising a Christmas knees-up. It cheekily borrows Scrooge’s famous “Humbug!”, now often used with a wink to poke fun at holiday cynicism. And as rush hour swells around the group – workers walking, hopping into black cabs or weaving through traffic on two wheels – Hawksley suddenly laughs, spotting an unusual commuter: “On a scooter with a crutch under his arm? It's like Tiny Tim on speed!” Her quick wit underscores how alive Dickens’ characters remain in the public imagination.

Moving briskly through the winter streets, Hawksley’s gold chain earrings glint in the warm glow of lampposts and decorated shopfronts. An accomplished art historian and biographer, she brings more than scholarship to the tour – she is Dickens’ great-great-great-granddaughter. Having grown up with family recipes for traditional Christmas foods and tipples such as damson gin and rum punch, Hawksley has inherited both the writer’s quirks and a passion for sharing them. As her group approaches the slender spires and York stone façade of the Royal Courts of Justice, Hawksley recounts stories from her lineage, including that of Dickens’ son Henry, a barrister. “Henry used to gather his family together and do a reading of A Christmas Carol,” she says. It’s a tradition carried on by Hawksley: “I read it to my partner every year. That's definitely come down through the family,” she laughs. In her telling, even the city’s chill feels momentarily warmed by memory.

The tour winds into the City of London, the historic financial district, where Hawksley deftly guides her guests through labyrinthine alleyways now filled with bankers knocking back pints at the close of trading day. Fairy lights twinkle in pub windows, casting a seasonal sparkle across the cobblestones. This area, Hawksley explains, is rich with A Christmas Carol references: from the palatial Mansion House to Cornhill, where Bob Cratchit once slid on the ice; to the Royal Exchange, where Scrooge conducted business and overheard a group badmouthing the late “Old Scratch,” only to realise they were speaking of him. Nearby stands the George and Vulture, a tavern steeped in Dickensian lore and the setting for Scrooge’s lonely supper. The pub is still open, although there may be more tempting locales close at hand. “Not one you want to rush into to use the ladies' loo,” Hawksley jokes as the group peers through its dim windows, her tone equal parts mischief and affection.

Curiously, many locations from Dickens’ life and literary oeuvre have been preserved, offering authentic setting for the many filmic adaptations of A Christmas Carol. From historically accurate dramatisations to zany puppet musicals and ubiquitous cartoons, this seasonal story has had its fair share of retellings. This year only, two Hollywood productions have been announced, with Johnny Depp and Willem Dafoe set to impersonate Scrooge. “The only adaptations I don't like are the ones that miss out Ignorance and Want.” Hawksley affirms, referring to the children characters from the novella. “When you see an adaptation that leaves them out, it's terrible, because that was what Dickens wanted us to know about: A Christmas Carol was actually written as a protest against child poverty.”

On the steps of the Royal Exchange, now home to luxury boutiques rather than brokers, Hawksley reflects on Dickens’ intentions. “There was a feeling that Christmas needed a renaissance,” she says. “People had lost the original meaning of Christmas, which was helping those in need, giving food, clothing or firewood to those who were poor.” By writing a novella instead of a government report, he found a way to advocate for social compassion. “He didn't ever stop being a journalist,” says Hawksley.

Despite initial scepticism of the publishers, A Christmas Carol became an instant success – the first edition sold out in a matter of days and it has remained in print since 1843. Perhaps unexpectedly, the bestseller also played a major role in popularising new yuletide customs in Victorian England, Hawksley explains. “Dickens was very much responsible for the food and the feasting and the way that people gathered as a family – playing games and those kinds of things,” Hawksley tells the group. For example, A Christmas Carol is thought to have directly contributed to the popularity of serving turkey, rather than beef, on Christmas Day.

And on that note, her tour concludes beneath the ornate glass roof of Leadenhall Market. Though it no longer sells the turkey that Scrooge sends from here to Bob Cratchit, Hawksley invites her guests to wander through the arcade’s boutique shops and soak up its festive bustle, centred around a magnificent Christmas tree. Others may prefer to continue their browsing at the Fortnum & Mason branch in the Royal Exchange – the grand department store Dickens himself treasured. Her guests linger for a drink in one of the market’s cosy pubs, taking in the festive garlands that sweep between the wrought-iron arches, the golden baubles catching the lantern light, and the cobblestones that glimmer beneath the steady flow of bundled-up shoppers. It is the perfect setting in which to reflect on Hawksley’s insights and the enduring magic of Dickens’ Christmas tale – a story she keeps vividly alive.