The Signalman – a ghost story by Charles Dickens

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Why is the signalman so frightened and what is the significance of his strange premonitions?

In this famous ghost story, Charles Dickens brings to life the character of both the lonely, troubled signalman and his visitor, and builds suspense right to the dramatic end.


This course comes in 4 modules over 4 days, all with transcripts of the audio files and full notes on vocabulary and style, so you can understand every word.

As Dickens’s language is rather obscure for modern ears, the first module is an adaptation into modern English.

Module 2 is the original Dickens version.

On Day 3 you will get a recording of a real conversation about the story and about Dickens, between the actor Ross Armstrong and DailyStep’s Jane Lawson and Brendan O’Connell, which is extremely useful for training your ear to listen to the speed and rhythm of everyday conversation.

Module 4 contains a short audio background to the novelist Charles Dickens, including why he wrote The Signalman.


I recommend that you start with the modern adaptation and then move on to the original Dickens version in order to fully appreciate the richness of Dickens’s use of English. The two versions also contrast both direct speech and indirect speech, and formal and less formal English – great practice for intermediate to advanced students.


The great Victorian novelist Charles Dickens introduced us to some of the most memorable characters in British literary history. The Signalman is a fine example of his writing. In these DailyStep audio e-books, the actor Ross Armstrong skilfully brings the characters to life. These stories also come with original music and illustrations.


All 4 modules of this course will be permanently available to you in a DailyStep Personal Lesson Bank so you can study the course as often as you like. You can also download them as MP3 audio and e-books.