Dickens Museum

The Dickens House Museum stands on the seafront at Broadstairs on the Kent coast, in a small cottage immortalised by Charles Dickens as the home of Betsey Trotwood in David Copperfield. The original owner, Miss Mary Pearson Strong, was the inspiration for the character, and Dickens was a frequent visitor during the summers he spent in the town between the 1830s and 1850s.

Inside, rooms have been arranged to evoke Victorian seaside life and the novelist's connection with Broadstairs. Displays include letters in Dickens's own hand, personal possessions, prints, costumes and editions of his novels, along with furniture and china associated with Miss Strong. A reconstruction of Betsey Trotwood's parlour brings the David Copperfield scenes vividly to life.

The museum is small but atmospheric and forms part of the wider Dickens trail around Broadstairs, which also takes in Bleak House on the cliff above and the streets the writer knew well. The annual Broadstairs Dickens Festival each June fills the town with costumed characters and performances.