Alice outside Oxford

There are plenty more Wonderland adventures to be had further a field in fantastic locations all over Britain, including museums, galleries and libraries.   

Alice in Wonderland exhibition, Tate Liverpool 

4 November 2011 - 29 January 2012

The exhibition includes the original 1864 handwritten manuscript with Lewis Carroll’s own Wonderland illustrations, alongside Victorian Alice memorabilia and Tenniel’s preliminary drawings for the first edition of the novel.  The stories went on to inspire the work of 1930s surrealist artists and later inspired responses in Pop and Psychedelic art. Expect to see works from artists including Salvador Dali, Peter Blake and Yayoi Kusama. 

£8.00 per person, £6.00 concessions.  Free for Tate Members and children under 12.  Book online or call 0151 702 7400

St Peter's Church, Croft on Tees

Oxford may not be the only site of inspiration for the Alice tales.  From the age of 11 Leiws Carroll lived in Croft on Tees, near Darlington, where his father was rector of the local church, St Peters.  The church features a carved stone face of a cat that is said to have a wide smile when seen from a pew, but which disappears if you stand up, just as the Cheshire cat's smile eventually did. 

National Gallery, Trafalgar Square, London

Visit the 16th century painting, entitled Grotesque Old Woman by Quinten Massy, which is thought to have inspired John Tenniel's depiction of the manly Duchess in his original illustrations for Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.  FREE ENTRY. Open Saturday to Thursday 10.00 am to 6.00 pm and Friday 10.00 am to 9.00 pm. 

The National Portrait Gallery, London

The gallery houses a collection of images documenting Lewis Carroll throughout his life, including family photgraphs from his early years and later images taken by his Oxford contemporaries, alongside a number of portraits taken by Carroll himself.  FREE ENTRY.  Open Saturday to Wednesday 10.00 am to 6.00 pm.  Open Thursday and Friday 10.00 am to 9.00 pm.

The National Media Museum, Bradford 

Lewis Carroll was a respected photographer as well as author.  This Museum is home to many of his prints and negatives, including 13 that Alice Liddell, the real Alice, and her siblings sat for as children.  FREE ENTRY.  Open Tuesday to Sunday 10.00 am to 6.00 pm.  Visit the Museum of the History of Science in Oxford to see the original photography equipment Carroll used at the time.

British Library, 96 Euston Road, London

Alice's Adventures Underground, by Lewis Carroll was presented to the British Library in 1848 by a group of Americans and is one of the Library's most famous literary manuscripts.  The document is the first version, handwrittemn by Lewis Carroll, the later work Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, published in 1865.  Alice's Adventures Underground contains only 12, 715 characters, significantly fewer than Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, which was expanded to contain 26, 211.  Carroll illustrated the original manuscript with his own images of Wonderland, some of which served as a base for later illustrations by commissioned artist John Tenniel.

View the original Alice's Adventures Underground manuscript at The British Library online gallery.

The Surrey History Centre 

Who was the real Lewis Carroll?  The Surrey History Centre holds significant archives about the life of the lesser known Charles Dodgson.  In 1965 the Dodgson family decided to deposit many of their surviving records, the Dodgson Family Collection Archive is now at the Surrey History Centre.  The collection includes important information relating to his time as a Reverend, his meeting and correspondence with family and friends, photographs and other material.  Sibsequent donations have further enriched the collection, including a series of illustrated letters. 

For more information and booking: 01483518737 or email.

Lewis Carroll Walking Tour of Guildford 

Lewis Carroll regularly spent periods of hid adult life in his unmarried sisters' home The Chestnuts, Guildford, where he died in 1898.  Join this walking tour of Guildford visit this site along with other historic buildings associated with the author, including St Mary's Church and the Alice Garden.

For further information or to book a place contact Guildford Tourist Information Centre: 01483444333 or email.