Oliver Twist

The BBC really know how to 'do' Dickens.

From Dudley Simpson's haunting title music to Eric Porter's sinister Fagin, this is truest adaptation of the book that I know.

The production values are spot-on, capturing the filth and seediness of Dickens' London. Michael Attwell is the most menacing of Bill Sykes and Ben Rodska makes Oliver innocent without being too goody-goody.

If that were not enough, the length of the production (6 hours) means that, for once, the sub-plots are included and the main plots are laid out as Dickens wrote them.

If 6 hours is too long then David Lean still represents the safest bet but, for the purist, this will probably never be improved upon.

I have seen virtually all of the version of Oliver Twist. This one is difficult to come by now in the UK, I had to buy a dutch DVD and use an old DVD player. However, I was not disappointed as this is by far the most complete and definitive version of Oliver Twist. This version adheres very closely to the novel. Usually in Oliver adaptations you have the workhouse stuff at the beginning, then as soon as Oliver gets to London it is virtually then a story about Fagin and Bill Sykes and it uses the gritty romance of these characters to carry the rest of the story home. But it is not a story of Fagin, it is called Oliver Twist. And more specifically, Oliver Twist, the Parish Boy's Progress. This version really keeps Oliver and his challenges and progress through his young life as central to the story. We learn in full depth about his scheming relative Monks and all of his family relations as they come to learn about each other, stuff that is sometimes left out entirely but which is absolutely essential for the story to make sense. Fagin was just as cruel a human being as Bill Sykes and spends the entire novel trying to exploit him for his own ends. Often this is lost in Oliver adaptations which romanticise the life of the thieves as if they were dodgy but well-meaning members of the underclass.

But it is not simply because it the most faithful that this version is in my opinion the definitive. The production and casting is just perfect too. There is no greater Bill Sykes than Michael Atwell (sorry oliver reed), Amanda Harris is fantastic as Nancy, and Eric Porter does a great Fagin too. Ben Rodska is perhaps not as easily lovable as Mark Lester but he is very sweet and does a great job.

This to my mind is the only version of Oliver worth watching now. Oliver! 1968 will have a fond place in many peoples hearts, and has great music and the perfect Mr Bumble (Harry Secombe). But at the end of the day it is not truly Oliver Twist. Alec Guinness perhaps does the perfect Fagin in David Lean's 1948 version. But make sure you see this for the complete Oliver experience. The story and characters will make so much more sense to you.

It is not easy televising Dickens. His novels are so vivid you have a picture of the characters in your mind. This series uses its 12 29 minute parts to make the images its own and enhance them. I could get carried away with superlatives so let's look at the negatives which really centre on the Maylie household. This takes up the best part of 2 or 3 episodes and is pretty dull. The first couple of episodes are difficult but that is part of the acclimatisation process noted above. Now onto the superlatives.

The BBC has done an amazing job in conjuring up both the riches of the middle classes but more importantly the desperate poverty on the streets. The state of Fagin's quarters and Sykes' disgusting one room hovel are hard to contemplate. The state of the Thames is reminiscent of Dickens' telling.

The acting is top class. Too many to mention but Eric Porter as sly, devious, charming and mercenary Fagin is one, Michael Attwell brings menace to Bill Sykes. Pip Donaghy triumphs as Monks. Godfrey James as bully boy Mr Bumble and Miriam Margoyles as his soon to be domineering wife. The list goes on. So refreshing to see a case of actors building on substantial roles.

The story is modified: Betsy disappears altogether and Monks takes on a starring role. The last few parts are riveting as the net closes. I could go on. TV does not get much better

I've seen a bunch of the others. This takes its time setting the long suffering Oliver and the terribly low characters persecuting him. The ending is more earned than the confines of appears in other versions. Great script and solid production for BBC 85.

This is an excellent version, well-acted, long enough to permit inclusion of Dickens' myriad confusing plots that keep the viewer guessing. It is broken into 12 28-minute episodes, reminiscent of the way Dickens serialized his novels. I dare anybody to watch just one - every one's a cliffhanger inviting you onwards. The acting is outstanding, though the strong dialect caused me to miss some lines. As Scott Funnell has noted in an earlier comment, the child actor who coincidentally has the same name does an outstanding job (and is rather adorable) as the young Oliver, as does the actor playing the larger (but according to Scott less important) role of the older Oliver.

This is one of a whole series of superb BBC adaptations of the major Dickens novels, every one a gem. Like some of the others, the DVD re-release of Oliver Twist includes as an extra an excellent performance by Simon Callow as Charles Dickens, reading a lengthy passage from the novel, recreating Dickens' own reading tours that played to packed houses. Don't miss it!