Bram Stoker and Dracula

I recently read Joseph O’Connor’s fascinating book Shadowplay which blends fact and story telling to track the lives of Bram Stoker, Ellen Terry and Henry Irving. They were, apart from Bram, superstars of the English theatre in their day.

Dracula, his seminal novel which has never been out of print since 1897, did not make Bram much money and did not cement his critical legacy until after his death. He spent years writing Dracula, publishing it to generally positive reviews, but it never amounting to much in his lifetime. He never knew how much admired his writing would be become.

I recommend you read Bram’s original version of Dracula. At times you can feel how he saw this could be played on the stage coming through.

Bram stoker and Ellen Terry in a railway car