Bleak House

Perched on the cliffs above Viking Bay in Broadstairs, Bleak House is a castellated clifftop residence with one of the most famous literary associations on the Kent coast. Charles Dickens spent many summers here from the 1840s onwards, using its first-floor study to write significant portions of David Copperfield and to plan Bleak House, the novel from which the building eventually took its modern name.

Originally built in the late 18th century as Fort House, the property was extended in the Victorian period into the rambling Gothic silhouette that dominates the harbour today. From the study, Dickens looked out across the English Channel and along the curve of Viking Bay towards the North Foreland, a view that visitors say has changed remarkably little.

Bleak House has had a varied life as a private home, hotel and museum, and access arrangements have shifted over the years; visitors should check current opening before travelling. Even when closed, the exterior is a striking landmark on the cliff walk between Broadstairs harbour and Stone Bay, and the surrounding town retains a strong Dickens flavour, celebrated each June at the Broadstairs Dickens Festival.