London | Charles Dickens with Oliver Twist and Nancy Steps

London Quiz - Dickens’ London (Questions)

Charles Dickens was born in 1812 in Portsmouth and died at Higham, Kent aged 58 but it is for his epic tales, vibrant characters and lucid depiction of contemporary London life that he is most remembered today. If you think you know Dicken’s work and especially those set in London, try this quiz to test your knowledge!

The Artful Dodger, Fagin and Bill Sykes are characters in which famous Dickens novel set in London?

[ ]	Great Expectations
[ ]	Oliver Twist
[ ]	Our Mutual Friend
[ ]	A Christmas Carol

In ‘Oliver Twist’, Mr. Brownlow is robbed of what by the Artful Dodger whilst standing at a bookstall near Clerkenwell Green?

[ ]	His wallet
[ ]	His keys
[ ]	His pocket watch
[ ]	His handkerchief

Which pub, still existing today in the City of London, is often mentioned in ‘The Pickwick Papers’?

[ ]	The Jamaica Wine House
[ ]	Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese
[ ]	The George and Vulture
[ ]	The Viaduct Tavern

Villiers Street was the site of Warren’s Blacking Factory where Dickens once worked labelling pots of boot polish. How old was he at the time?

[ ]	9
[ ]	12
[ ]	16
[ ]	18

From which London bridge can one descend the Nancy Steps, named after the character in ‘Oliver Twist’?

[ ]	Chelsea Bridge
[ ]	Southwark Bridge
[ ]	The Millennium Bridge
[ ]	London Bridge

What was the name of Dickens’ first short story, published in The Monthly Magazine?

[ ]	Amadale
[ ]	A Dinner at Poplar Walk
[ ]	Charles Dickens
[ ]	Armageddon

In ‘A Tale of Two Cities’, Charles Darnay visits which pub after being acquitted of high treason?

[ ]	The Slug and Lettuce
[ ]	The Woodin’s Shades
[ ]	Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese
[ ]	The Coach and Horses

In which London prison was Dickens’ father held?

[ ]	Newgate
[ ]	Wormwood Scrubs
[ ]	The Clink
[ ]	Marshalsea

Where is the trial for breach of promise held in ‘The Pickwick Papers’?

[ ]	The Royal Courts of Justice
[ ]	Guildhall
[ ]	County Hall
[ ]	The Old Bailey

10.

Which London church does Dickens dub “Saint Ghastly Grim” in ‘The Uncommercial Traveller’?

[ ]	St Olave, Hart Street
[ ]	All Souls, Grosvenor Park
[ ]	All Hallows by The Tower
[ ]	The Savoy, Chapel Royal

London Quiz - Dickens’ London (Answers)

The Artful Dodger, Fagin and Bill Sykes are characters in which famous Dickens novel set in London?

[ ]	Great Expectations
[x]	Oliver Twist
[ ]	Our Mutual Friend
[ ]	A Christmas Carol

They are all characters from his 1830s novel ‘Oliver Twist’, none of whom one would be fortunate to encounter!

In ‘Oliver Twist’, Mr. Brownlow is robbed of what by the Artful Dodger whilst standing at a bookstall near Clerkenwell Green?

[ ]	His wallet
[ ]	His keys
[ ]	His pocket watch
[x]	His handkerchief

Oliver was shocked to have witnessed the event and was even charged with the crime himself

Which pub, still existing today in the City of London, is often mentioned in ‘The Pickwick Papers’?

[ ]	The Jamaica Wine House
[ ]	Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese
[x]	The George and Vulture
[ ]	The Viaduct Tavern

You can find the pub at 63 Pitfield Street, Hoxton, N1

Villiers Street was the site of Warren’s Blacking Factory where Dickens once worked labelling pots of boot polish. How old was he at the time?

[ ]	9
[x]	12
[ ]	16
[ ]	18

In 1824 Dickens was obliged to leave school and take temporary employment to help pay his father’s debts

From which London bridge can one descend the Nancy Steps, named after the character in ‘Oliver Twist’?

[ ]	Chelsea Bridge
[ ]	Southwark Bridge
[ ]	The Millennium Bridge
[x]	London Bridge

The steps were the scene of Nancy’s murder in the 1960s musical

What was the name of Dickens’ first short story, published in The Monthly Magazine?

[ ]	Amadale
[x]	A Dinner at Poplar Walk
[ ]	Charles Dickens
[ ]	Armageddon

The piece appeared (anonymously) in the magazine in December 1833

In ‘A Tale of Two Cities’, Charles Darnay visits which pub after being acquitted of high treason?

[ ]	The Slug and Lettuce
[ ]	The Woodin’s Shades
[x]	Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese
[ ]	The Coach and Horses

Darnay is taken there by Sydney Carton. The pub still going and is at 145 Fleet Street

In which London prison was Dickens’ father held?

[ ]	Newgate
[ ]	Wormwood Scrubs
[ ]	The Clink
[x]	Marshalsea

John Dickens was committed to the Marshalsea Prison in 1824 for debt

Where is the trial for breach of promise held in ‘The Pickwick Papers’?

[ ]	The Royal Courts of Justice
[x]	Guildhall
[ ]	County Hall
[ ]	The Old Bailey

Guildhall still serves as the City of London’s base today and is well worth a visit. Many actual trials were held there in Tudor times, including that of Lady Jane Grey

10.

Which London church does Dickens dub “Saint Ghastly Grim” in ‘The Uncommercial Traveller’?

[x]	St Olave, Hart Street
[ ]	All Souls, Grosvenor Park
[ ]	All Hallows by The Tower
[ ]	The Savoy, Chapel Royal

It is given this name by Dickens for its fearsome, spiked arch entrance to the churchyard which features three carved stone skulls