When you think of Charles Dickens, you probably picture a champion of the downtrodden, a master storyteller whose novels championed justice and exposed society’s ills. Yet, tucked behind the fame, there are 10 strange stories that showcase a wildly eccentric side to the Victorian legend— from dabbling in mesmerism to secretive heroics on a railway disaster.
10 He Believed He Could Heal People Through Hypnosis
In the spring of 1837, a curious Dickens attended a public demonstration by Dr. John Elliotson, a well‑known mesmerist who claimed that a magnetic fluid coursed through every human being and could be manipulated via hypnosis. The spectacle left a deep impression on the young writer.
Enthralled, Dickens began to practice the technique himself, soon claiming to be able to “magnetize a frying pan.” He turned his own household into a laboratory, hypnotizing friends, acquaintances, and most notably his wife Catherine, who became a frequent subject of his experiments.
Ten years later, when his longtime illustrator John Leech suffered a serious concussion, Dickens visited him in the infirmary and attempted a hypnotic session. After Leech recovered, Dickens proudly declared the improvement was due entirely to his own “healing powers,” dismissing the attending physicians as irrelevant.
9 He Performed Magic As ‘The Unparalleled Necromancer’
In 1849, a flamboyant advertisement fluttered through London’s streets, proclaiming a performance by “The Unparalleled Necromancer Rhia Rhama Rhoos, educated cabalistically in the Orange Groves of Salamanca and the Ocean Caves of Alum Bay.” The crowd’s surprise was palpable when the necromancer turned out to be none other than Charles Dickens himself.
During the evening, Dickens dazzled the audience with a series of astonishing feats: he set a deck of cards ablaze, only to coax the exact card an spectator had chosen from the ashes; he sliced open a loaf of bread to reveal a hidden watch; and he transformed a simple gentleman’s hat into a vessel that suddenly produced a fully‑baked plum pudding.
Contemporary observers, including journalist Jayne Carlyle, lauded his performance, calling him “the best conjuror I ever saw” and noting that his magical prowess could provide a “handsome subsistence” should the book‑selling trade falter.
8 He Visited The Last Men To Be Executed For Sodomy
The final two Englishmen ever sentenced to death for sodomy—James Pratt and John Smith—awaited their fate in Newgate Prison when Dickens paid a visit, seeking fresh material for his column “Sketches by Boz.”
While the condemned duo were preparing for the gallows, Dickens entered the prison in search of a vivid, human‑interest scene for his writing. He observed the somber atmosphere and the men’s resigned demeanor, intending to capture the tragedy for his readership.
Rather than offering sympathy, Dickens described the pair in stark terms, labeling them “wretched men” whose crime left them “with nothing to expect from the mercy of the crown.” He emphasized that their destiny was sealed, noting the absence of any hope for clemency or leniency.
7 He Publicly Argued That Spontaneous Combustion Was Real
When a chapter of Dickens’s novel Bleak House was published in 1852, it featured a character who met his end via spontaneous combustion. The sensational scene ignited a nationwide debate over whether humans could truly burst into flames without external cause.
Scientist and writer George Lewes publicly denounced the passage, accusing Dickens of lending “credence to a scientific impossibility” and “currency to a vulgar error.” In response, Dickens inserted a sarcastic paragraph in the following installment, mocking those who dismissed the phenomenon.
The controversy did not end there. Dickens and Lewes exchanged a flurry of private letters, each defending their stance. Their correspondence stretched over ten months, filled with fervent arguments, before both parties grew weary and ultimately agreed to disagree.
6 He Pretended He Was Going To Murder A Woman As A Joke
Dickens possessed a mischievous streak. He delighted in startling strangers with elaborate, bewildering jokes that often bordered on the macabre. One of his favorite routines involved pretending to be a lovesick suitor, delivering an over‑the‑top, theatrical declaration of affection.
On one occasion, he seized a woman he didn’t know, dragged her down to a beach, and announced, with grave seriousness, that they would remain in the surf until the tide carried them away to drown together. The unsuspecting lady, convinced she faced imminent death, panicked wildly.
His own wife, Catherine, witnessed the scene and immediately intervened, shouting for Dickens to release the terrified woman. Undeterred, Dickens clung to his “victim,” watching the waves crash around them as the drama unfolded.
Eventually the woman survived—though her dress was ruined and she was left with a lingering psychological scar from the bizarre encounter. The episode remains a testament to Dickens’s willingness to push the boundaries of humor, even at the expense of others’ comfort.
While the prank was undeniably unsettling, it also illustrates a lesser‑known facet of the author: a penchant for theatrical, sometimes dangerous, practical jokes that left participants bewildered and, occasionally, traumatized.
5 He Called For The Genocide Of All Indians
During the Indian Rebellion of 1857, British newspapers sensationalized the conflict, portraying Indian combatants as savage and ungrateful. The tragedy of a single English child’s death was repeatedly emphasized, stoking public outrage.
Deeply affected by the press coverage, Dickens penned a private letter to his philanthropic friend Angela Burdett‑Coutts. Far from expressing compassion, the correspondence revealed a chilling ambition: “I wish that I were Commander‑in‑Chief in India. I should do my utmost to exterminate the Race.”
This stark statement underscores a darker side of Dickens’s worldview, reflecting the imperialist attitudes that permeated many Victorian thinkers, even those celebrated for their humanitarian concerns in other arenas.
4 He Was Accused Of Having An Affair With His Sister‑In‑Law
Dickens’s close ties to his wife’s family sparked endless speculation. After the untimely death of his sister‑in‑law Mary, who passed away at just 17, Dickens expressed a morbid wish to be buried alongside her, hinting at an unusually deep affection.
The real scandal centered on another sister‑in‑law, Georgina Hogarth. She moved into Dickens’s household, serving as housekeeper and trusted adviser, and reportedly declined two marriage proposals to remain near her brother‑in‑law. Rumors swirled that she and Dickens were engaged in an illicit relationship, a notion Victorians equated with a form of incest.
Public gossip amplified these whispers, painting Georgina as the secret mother of three of Dickens’s children. The scandal reached fever pitch, with many insisting that the family’s domestic stability hinged on this rumored liaison.
In truth, Georgina was not the mother of any of Dickens’s offspring. To clear his name, Dickens went to extraordinary lengths, arranging for Georgina to undergo a virginity test and then publicly sharing the results, a move that shocked contemporaries and cemented the bizarre episode in literary lore.
Despite the sensationalism, the episode illustrates the intense scrutiny Dickens faced in his personal life, where even the most mundane domestic arrangements could be twisted into scandalous narratives.
3 He Did Have An Affair With An 18‑Year‑Old
By 1857, Dickens’s marriage was fraying. While directing a theatrical production, he encountered Ellen Ternan, a talented actress just 27 years his junior. The meeting sparked an immediate, intense fascination.
Dickens became consumed by his admiration, penning whimsical stories in which he imagined himself as a gallant knight rescuing Ternan from imagined perils. His affection grew into a clandestine affair that would endure for thirteen years, persisting until his death.
Given the strict moral codes of Victorian society, Dickens took extraordinary precautions to conceal the relationship. Ellen lived in discreet residences, away from public scrutiny, and their meetings were carefully orchestrated to avoid detection. Their secret liaison, however, profoundly affected Dickens’s personal life, contributing to the eventual breakdown of his marriage.
2 He Took His Children Away From Their Mother
Following the birth of their second child, Catherine Dickens entered a period of deep melancholy, which modern scholars often interpret as postpartum depression. Dickens, notoriously unsympathetic, openly disparaged his wife in letters, once describing her as “as near being a donkey as a woman can be.”
When the scandal surrounding his affair with Ellen Ternan became public, Dickens grew increasingly hostile toward Catherine. He penned letters justifying his actions, branding her an “incompetent mother” and a “mentally disordered” woman unfit to care for their offspring.
In a bid to keep his children under his control, Dickens divided their bedroom, creating a physical barrier that prevented him from seeing his wife. He soon expelled Catherine from the family home entirely, insisting that the children remain with him. Of the nine children, eight stayed under Dickens’s care, while the eldest, Charley, was old enough to choose his own residence and opted to live with his mother.
1 He Saved Lives In A Train Accident And Had To Hide It
In 1865, Dickens found himself aboard a first‑class carriage that disastrously plunged off a bridge during the Staplehurst railway accident. While seven of the eight carriages tumbled into the abyss, Dickens’s carriage remained on the tracks, leaving him in a precarious position.
Displaying quick thinking, Dickens exited the carriage, located the train’s conductor, seized the master key, and unlocked the locked carriage doors, allowing trapped passengers to escape. He then leapt onto the wrecked side, rescuing a person pinned inside a shattered car, administering water and brandy to the wounded, and assisting others in locating their loved ones.
Despite his heroic deeds, Dickens chose to conceal the episode. He was traveling with Ellen Ternan at the time, and feared that public revelation of his presence with his secret lover would ignite scandal. Consequently, he avoided contacting authorities and kept the rescue story hidden from the press.