Charles Dickens wrote "A Christmas Carol" in 1843 as an attempt to stir the British public to an awareness of the poverty and hardships around them. Its tale of a miserly old man who learns the importance of generosity and "Christmas spirit" was an immediate success and has been in continual print to this day. It was first adapted to the stage within months of publication and is one of the most-filmed stories in cinematic history. Dickens himself took to reading the tale to audiences and "Carol" was the work he chose for his farewell performance, mere months before his death.

[source: MuCCC website, 2015-Dec-21]