The Invisible Woman: The Story of Nelly Ternan and Charles Dickens by: Claire Tomalin

Publisher: Penguin
Release date: 25th March, 2004
Media: Paperback

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Editorial Review

Presents the story of the life of Nelly Ternan and Charles Dickens. This book provides a truthful portrait of the great Victorian novelist.

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Rating: - `It seemed like a good moment to start putting something on paper which might restore Nelly to visibility.'

This book, first published in 1990, is about the actress Nelly Ternan, who had a relationship with Charles Dickens from 1857 until his death in 1870. Ms Tomalin writes that Nelly Ternan `played a central role in the life of Charles Dickens at a time when he was perhaps the best-known man in Britain.' While Nelly Ternan was the first person named in Charles Dickens's will, there is very little documentary evidence of her involvement or importance in his life.

So, who is Nelly Ternan, and why was her name effectively removed from history?

Sadly it appears that none of the letters between Charles Dickens and Nelly Ternan survived. By piecing together clues found in contemporary playbills, other documents and photographs, Ms Tomalin has created a portrait of Nelly Ternan and her family. As a consequence of Ms Tomalin's research, we also have a clearer picture of the last years of Dickens's life, some potential insights into his writing, as well as of the times in which he lived.

The main reason that Nelly Ternan does not appear in most accounts of Charles Dickens was because he and others worked so hard to protect his image of respectable Victorian morality. After his death, Nelly Ternan kept quiet as well because of her fear of scandal and humiliation. The second reason had to do with Nelly Ternan's origins: as an actress and as a member of an acting family, she belonged to a class of women not considered respectable. Ironically, Charles Dickens first met Nelly Ternan through his own fascination with the theatre: when her family were hired by his amateur theatrical company.

After Dickens died in 1870, Nelly Ternan married a schoolmaster with whom she had two children. Neither of these children learned of her involvement with Dickens until after her death in 1914.

Much of this biography is based on interpretation and speculation, and Ms Tomalin makes this very clear. I found this an absorbing and often sad story about the shadowy life of a woman who was a hidden part of Charles Dickens's life.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

Rating: - A masterly biography

With little original material, most of which was destroyed by the parties concerned, Tomalin has skilfully constructed a convincing account of Nelly Ternan's life, aspects of which she, and those around her, attempted to keep secret.

So, of necessity, much of the biography is theory, but Tomalin theorises based on psychological analysis; she makes convincing cases because she looks at the evidence with a nineteenth century mindset; this is likely to have happened, she opines, because this is the way things were in the Victorian period. She backs up her theories by sketching in the required background, whether is the perception of actresses by society or the improvements in railway systems.

The biography is well written with comprehensive notes and bibliography. It will appeal not just to readers interested in Dickens or Victorian literature, but also to anyone who enjoys a good detective story, to those interested in genealogy, the role of women in Victorian society and theatrical life in the mid-nineteenth century.

Ternan's story demonstrates how easy it was to lead double lives, cover one's tracks, and re-invent oneself in the days before mass communication, the internet and intrusive journalism.

I could have read it at one sitting, if I didn't have to get on with the business of eating and working!

Rating: - The Hidden Life of Victorian England's most iconic author

I came to this after ploughing through Peter Ackroyd's biography of Dickens, intrigued by the shadowy figure of Nelly Ternan and her possible inolvement in Dickens' appalling behaviour concerning the break-up of his marriage. Tomalin has done an impressive job teasing out a story that was never intended to be revealed, and probably never will be in its entirity. Though she refuses to be drawn into speculation, she builds a convincing case for the probability that Dickens did pursue a serious, long-term affair with Nelly, that they may well have had at least one child and, perhaps most controversial of all, that his friends and his family closed ranks to conceal the fact that he was with her on the day he died.

But the book isn't just about Dickens. It takes you deep into the the alluring yet harsh world inhabited by "theatricals", despised and feared by respectable society, and whatever prejudices you begin the book with are likely to be challenged before you reach the final page. Tomalin is to be congratulated for bringing to life a woman who clearly brought Dickens comfort and joy as well as guilt and anguish and showed a remarkable dignity, independence and capacity for self-reinvention.

Rating: - Not so great expectations

I read this book shortly after finishing Ackroyd's 'Dickens' (1990 version). Tomalin's findings give a extra, sharper slant on that biography. Particularly the depiction of Dickens' death.

The accumulation of research and detective work go a long way to casting light on the elusive relationship between Nelly Ternan and the most famous English novelist of the 19th century.

It is eventually a sad - but all too human - story. And it did make me reassess Dickens' heroines and his approach to women in general. I agree with the author that Estella (from 'Great Expectations') is his most alluring female character.

Claire Tomalin has written a clear sighted, carefully outlined and moving/rather troubling history here. It certainly deserves all the critical plaudits it has recieved. I now look forward to reading her book on Thomas Hardy.

Rating: - The secret life of Dickens

Claire Tomalin's biographies often reveal (or rescue) the life of a woman who lived on the margins of society. Her ability to rediscover these lives is amazing. Ellen Ternan is one such woman. She was a member of a family of actors in Victorian England, who had a long, secret relationship with the most popular novellist of the day, Charles Dickens. Tomalin describes the world of the theatre (which was not considered respectable), the limited choices for Ellen and her sisters, and the impossible position Ellen was in as Dickens' mistress. Ellen was invisible to respectable society, and to posterity, because Dickens couldn't marry her. Dickens' dreadful behaviour to his wife, Catherine, is also detailed here This is a fascinating story for anyone interested in Victorian society and the ambiguous position of women living on the margins.

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