I had the hairs standing on end on my head(metaphor)= I felt rather frightened(note: this expression describes the physical sensation of your hair standing on end when you are afraid)
when you came to that last bit = when you were reading the final part of the story
you can see why = it is easy to understand why Dickens is regarded as a great storyteller
he works in all different sorts of genres = he wrote in a wide variety of different styles and formats (note: here Ross uses the present tense to describe Dickens in a more immediate style – this is common in conversation but in more formal writing the past tense would be used)
it’s nice to do a sort of ghost story = I enjoy reading a good ghost story
It’s got those big high stakes (metaphor) = in a ghost story, the characters are often in a situation which might be life-threatening
I hadn’t actually come across (phrasal verb)this one = I had never read this story before
I just love the way it’s just set in the valley in the cutting = I really like the fact that the location of the story is limited to a narrow trench in the ground
I went on the Severn Valley Railway not long ago = I recently visited the Severn Valley Railway (note: the Severn Valley Railway is a ‘heritage line’ that runs steam trains like the ones that Dickens would have travelled on)
it’s the sort of in-between spaces = the places between stations, the neglected parts of the old railway infrastructure
you wonder if anybody ever sets foot (idiom) there = you ask yourself if anyone ever goes there
you sort of go, you know, what drama happens in that tiny little hut? = you imagine what kind of events might happen in a hut like that
They’re also supposed to be great places for wildlife = They have a reputation as good places for plants and animals to live
You get all sorts of animals that you don’t normally get = Lots of unusual animals live there
a great sort of lead character = a really good main character
character of intrigue = a character that is mysterious and interesting
it’s kind of a window into (metaphor) a job that is gone now = this story gives you an insight into a job that no longer exists
I very much doubt you get signalmen sitting in a box all day on duty = Surely the job of a signalman in an small track-side box does not exit any more
I think it’s all automated, isn’t it? = The job is no longer done by people but by computers or other machines
he doesn’t actually have to light and hold up a light = he would not need to light a lantern and hold it up as a signal to a train driver to stop
wave the engine driver down (phrasal verb) = wave his arms by the side of the track to tell the driver to stop the train
I guess they were all steam trains = I suppose the trains at that time were all driven by steam engines
I think he always had a thing about railways = I think he was always preoccupied with railways (note: ‘to have a thing about’ is a colloquial expression indicating that someone is mildly obsessed with someone or something, in a positive or negative way)
I sort of think about projectionists now = Another job that is disappearing is that of the projectionist (note: cinemas used to have people operating the film projectors to show the movies on the screen; most cinemas in the UK are now operated digitally, so the projectionist is no longer needed)
it gets rid of (idiom) = it eliminates
that weird feeling that there is one person doing something everywhere = the strange impression that there are people doing lots of unseen jobs behind the scenes
It’s a shame because they were such interesting characters = It is a pity that these jobs have disappeared because the people who did them were so interesting
there’s still a lot of reportage = there is a lot of narrative storytelling (note: ‘reportage’ is usually used to describe a literal recounting of events by newspapers and broadcasters; here Ross uses it to mean that the updated version of the story uses Dickens’s conscientious and precise style of description)
a switch between now and then = alternating between the present and the past
bringing the language up to date (idiom) is so much easier = rewriting the story in modern English makes the story easier to understand
there’s probably a reason why it went out of use = it is easy to understand why this style of language is no longer used (note: when Ross says: ‘there’s probably a reason why…’, he is actually giving the reason.The language used by Dickens is so complicated and difficult to understand that modernreaders might not appreciate it)
you can feel the archaicness = you can sense that even when the story was written, Dickens’s language would have sounded old-fashioned (note:‘archaicness’ is not a real word, but it is easy to understand what it means!)
it’s probably why Dickens is still sort of very resonant today = that is likely to be the reason why people still empathise with Dickens’s writing and his characters today
bit wordy even for Dickens = rather long-winded compared to the rest of Dickens’s writing
he does like his long sentences = he is very keen on (idiom) using long and complex phrases and clauses
We tend not to have so many complex clauses = Modern literature is much less likely to be written in such a complicated style
they were really hard to read let alone (idiom)to listen to = it was difficult to read the sentences out loud, but it is even harder to understand what they mean when you are just listening to them
because nor could we (short form)= because we could not understand them at first, either
to figure out (phrasal verb)exactly what they mean = to understand the precise meaning of each sentence
in those, they’re wonderfully clear, actually, aren’t they = in those works (such as ‘A Tale of Two Cities’), the sentences are easily understood even though they are long and complicated
maybe they’re not at their peak absolutely = perhaps not producing their finest work
it’s not their main… one of their most famous works and you can sort of see why = it is easy to understand why it is not the writing for which they are best known
seeing the cogs a little bit in places = understanding the way in which the great works were written (note: the word ‘cogs’ creates an image of some machinery that would not normally be visible)
I might look that up = I think I should probably find that out
I think I would have done when I was younger = I am sure I must have read a lot of Dickens when I was younger (note: this use of the past conditional perfect tense, ‘I think I would have done’ means that Ross knows that he must have read Dickens at school, but does not necessarily remember it!)
they’ve become images and almost dramatic staples = Dickens’s characters have become well-known beyond his novels and are used metaphorically as stereotypes
people probably refer to people as a bit of a ‘Miss Havisham’ = ‘Miss Havisham’ is used as a way of describing a certain type of person
they were so synonymous like that = Miss Havisham has become such a well-known character that she can be used to describe other people in real life(note: ‘synonymous’ actually means ‘having the same meaning’ but here Ross probably means ‘closely connected in people’s minds’)
her marriage had broken up = her husband had left her
when you’re younger you’re forever playing 60-year-old men = as a young actor at college, you frequently have to play the part of someone much older (because all the students are relatively young)
it’s David Edgar adapted it for the stage = David Edgar turned the novel into a play
He didn’t want it to be a cut-down version = He did not want to make the play less detailed than the book and create a shorter version
easy to put on (phrasal verb)= simple to present on the stage
in the West End = in the area of central London which is famous for having theatres
it did very well (idiom)= it was a very successful production
there was just the sort of power of one person telling a story on stage = the effect of a single actor on stage telling a story was very powerful
it’s worth seeking out (phrasal verb) = I recommend reading the play or seeing a production of it
worth reading if you like Dickens, there’s David Edgar = I would recommend reading David Edgar’s adaptation of Nicholas Nickleby if you enjoy Dickens’s writing
the RSC did it in a four-hour part and a four-and-a-half hour part = the Royal Shakespeare Company performed Nicholas Nickleby in two parts: the first was four hours long and the second was four and a half hours
But the amount of story you got for that = It was good value for money (because you saw a long and detailed story over the course of eight and a half hours)
I suppose we better get on (idiom, phrasal verb) = We really ought to continue working
