A Christmas Carol at Alexandra Palace Theatre, December 2021

A Christmas Carol ''A Christmas Carol. In Prose. Being a Ghost Story of Christmas'', commonly known as ''A Christmas Carol'', is a novella by Charles Dickens, first published in London by Chapman & Hall in 1843 and illustrated by John Leech. ''A Christmas C ...

'', the popular 1843 novella by

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...

(1812–1870), is one of the British author's best-known works. It is the story of

Ebenezer Scrooge Ebenezer Scrooge () is the protagonist of Charles Dickens's 1843 novella ''A Christmas Carol''. At the beginning of the novella, Scrooge is a cold-hearted miser who despises Christmas. The tale of his redemption by three spirits (the Ghost of ...

, a greedy miser who hates Christmas, but is transformed into a caring, kindly person through the visitations of four ghosts (

Jacob Marley Jacob Marley is a fictional character in Charles Dickens's 1843 novella ''A Christmas Carol'', a former business partner of the miser Ebenezer Scrooge, who has been dead for seven years.Hawes, Donal''Who's Who in Dickens'' Routledge (1998), Goog ...

and the ghosts of Christmas

past The past is the set of all events that occurred before a given point in time. The past is contrasted with and defined by the present and the future. The concept of the past is derived from the linear fashion in which human observers experience t ...

present The present (or here'' and ''now) is the time that is associated with the events perception, perceived directly and in the first time, not as a recollection (perceived more than once) or a speculation (predicted, hypothesis, uncertain). It is ...

, and

future The future is the time after the past and present. Its arrival is considered inevitable due to the existence of time and the laws of physics. Due to the apparent nature of reality and the unavoidability of the future, everything that currently ...

). The classic work has been dramatised and adapted countless times for virtually every medium and performance genre, and new versions appear regularly.

Public readings

The novel was the subject of Dickens' first public reading, given in

Birmingham Town Hall Birmingham Town Hall is a concert hall and venue for popular assemblies opened in 1834 and situated in Victoria Square, Birmingham, England. It is a Grade I listed building. The hall underwent a major renovation between 2002 and 2007. It no ...

to the Industrial and Literary Institute on 27 December 1853. This was repeated three days later to an audience of 'working people', and was a great success by his own account and that of newspapers of the time. Over the years, Dickens edited and adapted the piece for a listening, rather than reading, audience. Dickens continued to give public readings of ''A Christmas Carol'' until his death. Public readings of the novel continue to be held today, with some readers performing in character as Dickens.

Theatre

An early theatrical production was ''A Christmas Carol: Or, the Miser's Warning!'', a two-act adaptation of ''

'' by C. Z. Barnett, first produced at the Surrey Theatre on 5 February 1844, just weeks after the publication of the novella.''A Christmas Carol, or, the Miser's Warning!''

Project Gutenberg Project Gutenberg (PG) is a Virtual volunteering, volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, as well as to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks." It was founded in 1971 by American writer Michael S. Hart and is the ...

eBook

1964–1999

* Throughout the late nineteenth century, and into the early years of the twentieth, British actor

Seymour Hicks Sir Edward Seymour Hicks (30 January 1871 – 6 April 1949), better known as Seymour Hicks, was a British actor, music hall performer, playwright, actor-manager and producer. He became known, early in his career, for writing, starring in and p ...

toured England with his own non-musical adaptation of the story, in which he played Scrooge. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1964 to present), an original musical stage adaptation written and directed by Tim Dietlein, celebrated its 50th anniversary of consecutive shows in 2015 at the Glendale Centre Theatre. GCT's ''A Christmas Carol'' is the longest running adaptation in theatre history. The live performance was filmed and released in 2015 starring Tom Killam as Scrooge and Bradley Bundlie as Tiny Tim. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1972, 1974 and 1978), an adaptation by

Keith Fowler Keith Franklin Fowler (born February 23, 1939) is an American actor, director, producer, and educator. He is a professor emeritus of drama and former head of directing in the Drama Department of the Claire Trevor School of the Arts of the Univer ...

in "Story Theater" style, was presented in Richmond, Virginia. This version premiered in 1972 at the Virginia Museum Theater and was revived in 1974 at the larger Mosque Theater. In 1978, the American Revels Company at the Empire Theater also performed this version. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1974 to present), original musical-comedy stage adaptation written and directed by, and starring (as Scrooge) Ira David Wood III, which has been performed for the last 39 years on stage at Raleigh's Memorial Auditorium. Wood's ''A Christmas Carol'' is the longest running indoor show in North Carolina theatre history. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1975 to present), a theatrical adaptation that has been performed annually at the Guthrie in

Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

, celebrating over 45 years of production. The original adaptation was by Barbara Field; she created a new adaptation for the Guthrie in 1996. The Guthrie Theater changed to a new adaptation by Lavina Jadhwani in 2021. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1975 to present), a theatrical adaptation that has been performed annually by the

Milwaukee Repertory Theater Milwaukee Repertory Theater ("Milwaukee Rep") is a theater company in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founded as the Fred Miller Theatre Company, the group is housed in the Patty & Jay Baker Theater Complex, which includes the Quadracci Powerhouse Theater, ...

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee is ...

, WI. The production has taken place annually in the adjacent Pabst Theater, and is now in its fifth adaptation * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1976 to present), a musical adaptation by Charles Jones performed annually at the

Omaha Community Playhouse The Omaha Community Playhouse, located at 6915 Cass Street in Omaha, Nebraska, United States, is a nationally recognized community theater. Founded in 1924, the Playhouse's first president was Alan McDonald, architect of the Joslyn Art Museum, and ...

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest cit ...

, as well as two touring companies with the

Nebraska Theatre Caravan The Omaha Community Playhouse, located at 6915 Cass Street in Omaha, Nebraska, United States, is a nationally recognized community theater. Founded in 1924, the Playhouse's first president was Alan McDonald, architect of the Joslyn Art Museum, and ...

. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1977 to present), a theatrical adaptation performed annually at

Theatre Memphis Theatre Memphis is a non-profit community theatre located in Memphis, Tennessee. As one of the oldest and most successful community theatres in the country, Theatre Memphis has offered an opportunity for people with every degree of talent to bec ...

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...

. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1978 to present), a theatrical adaptation performed annually at the

Goodman Theatre Goodman Theatre is a professional theater company located in Chicago's Loop. A major part of the Chicago theatre scene, it is the city's oldest currently active nonprofit theater organization. Part of its present theater complex occupies the lan ...

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1980 to present), adapted by Jerry Patch, has been presented annually by the Tony-winning

South Coast Repertory South Coast Repertory (SCR) is a professional theatre company located in Costa Mesa, California. Tony Award-winning South Coast Repertory, founded in 1964 by David Emmes and Martin Benson, is led by Artistic Director David Ivers and Managing Direc ...

Company in Costa Mesa, California. John-David Keller is the director, and Hal Landon, Jr. plays Scrooge. *''A Christmas Carol'' (198? to present) has been staged annually in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

, since the 1980s, first at the Academy Theatre, and then at the

Alliance Theatre The Alliance Theatre is a theater company in Atlanta, Georgia, based at the Alliance Theatre, part of the Robert W. Woodruff Arts Center, and is the winner of the 2007 Regional Theatre Tony Award. The company, originally the Atlanta Municipal T ...

. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1981 to present) has been staged annually in the Matthews Theater at

McCarter Theater McCarter Theatre Center is a not-for-profit, professional company on the campus of Princeton University in Princeton, New Jersey. The institution is currently led by Artistic Director Sarah Rasmussen and Managing Director Michael S. Rosenberg ...

Princeton, NJ Princeton is a municipality with a borough form of government in Mercer County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It was established on January 1, 2013, through the consolidation of the Borough of Princeton and Princeton Township, both of whic ...

. 1981-1990 written and adapted by Nagle Jackson. 1991 to present adaptation by David Thompson, directed by

Scott Ellis Scott Ellis (born April 19, 1957) is an American stage director, actor, and television director. Biography Ellis graduated from Goodman School of Drama at the Art Institute of Chicago (now at DePaul University) in Chicago.

1991–2000, directed by Michael Unger 2000–2015, directed by Adam Immerwahr 2016–present. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1981), a

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...

adaptation which premiered in 1982 at the Hartman Theatre,

Stamford, Connecticut Stamford () is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut, outside of Manhattan. It is Connecticut's second-most populous city, behind Bridgeport. With a population of 135,470, Stamford passed Hartford and New Haven in population as of the 2020 ...

. The show was workshopped as a tour in 1981. *''Scrooge'' (1982-Present) is a musical adaptation of the 1970 musical motion picture, performed annually by the Spring Lake Theatre Company in Spring Lake, New Jersey. The show celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2022. * ''The Gospel According to Scrooge'' (1982), a stage

emphasizing the religious elements of the story began at Jesus People Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1980; in 1981 it debuted at the Historic State Theater and was later made into a television special featuring actor Dean Jones as the host. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1982 to present), a theatrical adaptation by Neal Radice performed annually by Alleyway Theatre, Buffalo, NY. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1983), a theatrical adaptation by Jeffrey Sanzel has been performed annually at Theatre Three in

Port Jefferson, New York Port Jefferson (informally known as "Port Jeff") is an incorporated village in the town of Brookhaven in Suffolk County, New York, on the North Shore of Long Island. Officially known as the Incorporated Village of Port Jefferson, the population ...

, for 28 years. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1985), an adaptation by

Bille Brown William Gerald Brown AM (11 January 195213 January 2013) professionally known as Billie Brown was an Australian stage, film and television actor and acclaimed playwright. Early life Brown was born in Biloela, Queensland and studied drama at t ...

with music and staged by W. Stuart McDowell, was performed at the

Symphony Space Symphony Space, founded by Isaiah Sheffer and Allan Miller, is a multi-disciplinary performing arts organization at 2537 Broadway on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Performances take place in the 760-seat Peter Jay Sharp Theatre (also called Pe ...

in New York City as a fundraiser for the

Riverside Shakespeare Company The Riverside Shakespeare Company of New York City was founded in 1977 as a professional ( AEA) theatre company on the Upper West Side of New York City, by W. Stuart McDowell and Gloria Skurski. Focusing on Shakespeare plays and other classical ...

, with narration by

Helen Hayes Helen Hayes MacArthur ( Brown; October 10, 1900 – March 17, 1993) was an American actress whose career spanned 80 years. She eventually received the nickname "First Lady of American Theatre" and was the second person and first woman to have w ...

, featuring

Len Cariou Leonard Joseph Cariou (; born September 30, 1939) is a Canadian actor and stage director, best known for his portrayal of Sweeney Todd in the original cast of '' Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street'', for which he won the Tony Award ...

as Scrooge, and MacIntyre Dixon,

Celeste Holm Celeste Holm (April 29, 1917 – July 15, 2012) was an American stage, film and television actress. Holm won an Academy Award for her performance in Elia Kazan's ''Gentleman's Agreement'' (1947), and was nominated for her roles in ''Come to th ...

Raul Julia Raúl Rafael Carlos Juliá y Arcelay (March 9, 1940 – October 24, 1994) was a Puerto Rican actor. Born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, he took an interest in acting while still in school and pursued the career upon completion of his studies. After ...

Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio (born November 17, 1958) is an American actress and singer. She made her Broadway debut in the 1980 revival of ''West Side Story'', and went on to appear in the 1983 film '' Scarface'' as Al Pacino's character's sist ...

, Harold Scott,

Carole Shelley Carole Augusta Shelley (16 August 1939 – 31 August 2018)Bartlett, Rhett"Carole Shelley, One of the Pigeon Sisters From 'The Odd Couple,' Dies at 79"''The Hollywood Reporter'', 1 September 2018

, and

Fritz Weaver Fritz William Weaver (January 19, 1926 − November 26, 2016) was an American actor in television, stage, and motion pictures. He portrayed Dr. Josef Weiss in the 1978 epic television drama, ''Holocaust'' for which he was nominated for a Primetime ...

, and the children's choir of the Anglo-American School. This script was restaged the following year at the

Marriott Theatre The Marriott Theatre in Lincolnshire, Illinois is a respected Chicago area regional theatre. Attached to the Marriott Lincolnshire Resort, the theatre produces an average of five musicals each year, presented in the round, as well as productions ...

on Broadway, produced by McDowell and directed by Robert Small, narrated by Ms. Hayes, featuring

F. Murray Abraham F. Murray Abraham (born Murray Abraham; October 24, 1939) is an American actor. Known for his roles on stage and screen, he came to prominence for his acclaimed leading role as Antonio Salieri in the drama film '' Amadeus'' (1984) for which he wo ...

as Scrooge, and

Ossie Davis Raiford Chatman "Ossie" Davis (December 18, 1917 – February 4, 2005) was an American actor, director, writer, and activist. He was married to Ruby Dee, with whom he frequently performed, until his death. He and his wife were named to the NAACP ...

as Marley's Ghost,

June Havoc June Havoc (born Ellen Evangeline Hovick; November 8, 1912 – March 28, 2010) was a Canadian American actress, dancer, stage director and memoirist. Havoc was a child vaudeville performer under the tutelage of her mother Rose Thompson Hovick, ...

, and Rex Smith as Bob Cratchit. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1988), is an original musical adaptation which was written for The Chatham Players in Chatham, New Jersey, by Phillip Wm. McKinley. The ensemble production features Charles Dickens as narrator. In 2008, the production celebrated its 20th anniversary; actor Alan Semok has portrayed Scrooge in the Chatham Production every production year to date since 1994. In 2020, Charles Grayson assumed the role in a filmed version produced by Joe DeVico and directed by Susie Speidel during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2022, the live version was produced at the theater, with Susie Speidel and Joe DeVico reprising their roles as director and producer. Ed Faver assumed the role of Scrooge, and David Romankow assumed the role of Charles Dickens. * ''

'' (1988),

Patrick Stewart Sir Patrick Stewart (born 13 July 1940) is an English actor who has a career spanning seven decades in various stage productions, television, film and video games. He has been nominated for Olivier, Tony, Golden Globe, Emmy, and Screen Actor ...

's one-man reading/acting of the story, made its first appearance in London and later on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

. On stage he would use a table, chair, stool, lectern and a book with an oversized print cover to enact the entire story. The production has been revived in London and New York several times. It has also been released on compact disc. * ''The Scrooge Diary'' (Canada) (1990 to the present) (In the USA: Scrooge Tells All). Adaptation by Avril Kelly, performed by Welsh actor

Phil Arnold Phil Arnold (born Philip Aronoff Arnold; September 15, 1909 – May 9, 1968) was an American screen, stage, television, and vaudeville actor. He appeared in approximately 150 films and television shows between 1939 and 1968. Arnold is familiar ...

, in a solo staged performance. Later performed on license only (two performances) by John Gray, late of RSC. * ''A Christmas Carol – A Ghost Story of Christmas'' (1990), a theatrical adaptation by

Michael Wilson (director) Michael Wilson (born 1964) is an American stage and screen director working extensively on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and at the nation's leading resident theaters. He made his screen directorial debut with the 2014 Lifetime/Ostar television film ...

, with original music by

John Gromada John Gromada (born February 22, 1964) is a prolific, award-winning composer and sound designer. He is best known for his many scores for theatrical productions in New York on and off-Broadway and in regional theatres. Broadway plays he has scored i ...

, performed at the Alley Theatre for 19 years (1990–1998; 2005–present); Hartford Stage for 17 years (1998–present); and at Washington D.C.'s Ford's Theater for 11 years; published by Dramatists Play Service. * ''Scrooge!: A Dickens of a One-Man Show'' (1991), a theatrical adaptation

one person show A solo performance, sometimes referred to as a one-man show or one-woman show, features a single person telling a story for an audience, typically for the purpose of entertainment. This type of performance comes in many varieties, including auto ...

written by and starring Kevin Norberg portraying all 40-plus characters in a solo performance. * '' Scrooge: The Musical'' (1992), a British

stage musical Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movement ...

adapted from the 1970 film and starring

Anthony Newley Anthony Newley (24 September 1931 – 14 April 1999) was an English actor, singer, songwriter, and filmmaker. A "latter-day British Al Jolson", he achieved widespread success in song, and on stage and screen. "One of Broadway's greatest leading ...

. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1993 to the present), a

one-man show A solo performance, sometimes referred to as a one-man show or one-woman show, features a single person telling a story for an audience, typically for the purpose of entertainment. This type of performance comes in many varieties, including auto ...

of the work performed by

Gerald Charles Dickens Admiral Sir Gerald Louis Charles Dickens (13 October 1879 – 19 November 1962) was a senior Royal Navy officer and the grandson of Victorian novelist Charles Dickens. Early life and career Born in Kensington, London, Dickens was the son of ...

, great-great-grandson of

, in which he plays 26 characters. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1993 to the present), a theatrical adaptation at the Public Theatre in

Lewiston, Maine Lewiston (; ; officially the City of Lewiston, Maine) is List of cities in Maine, the second largest city in Maine and the most central city in Androscoggin County, Maine, Androscoggin County. The city lies halfway between Augusta, Maine, August ...

adapted by Christopher Schario, Executive and artistic director of the Public Theatre. The adaptation features only 6 actors and a fiddler. Each actor portrays multiple characters except for the actor portraying Scrooge.

Michael Bradshaw Michael Bradshaw (18 April 1933 – 13 December 2001) was an English actor. Early life in England Born in Plumstead, London, he grew up in Boxmoor, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire to the north west of London. While growing up there he ...

originated the role of Scrooge in this adaptation. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1994), a theatrical adaptation by Kevin Von Feldt, produced at the Raymond Theatre in

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. I ...

with recorded narration by

John Gielgud Sir Arthur John Gielgud, (; 14 April 1904 – 21 May 2000) was an English actor and theatre director whose career spanned eight decades. With Ralph Richardson and Laurence Olivier, he was one of the trinity of actors who dominated the Briti ...

. Von Feldt staged the show again in 2008 at the

Kodak Theatre The Eastman Kodak Company (referred to simply as Kodak ) is an American public company that produces various products related to its historic basis in analogue photography. The company is headquartered in Rochester, New York, and is incorpor ...

with

Christopher Lloyd Christopher Allen Lloyd (born October 22, 1938) is an American actor. He has appeared in many theater productions, films, and on television since the 1960s. He is known for portraying Dr. Emmett "Doc" Brown in the ''Back to the Future'' tril ...

as Scrooge,

John Goodman John Stephen Goodman (born June 20, 1952) is an American actor. He gained national fame for his role as the family patriarch Dan Conner in the ABC comedy series '' Roseanne'' (1988–1997; 2018), for which he received a Golden Globe Award, an ...

, and

Jane Leeves Jane Elizabeth Leeves (born 18 April 1961) is an English actress. Leeves played Daphne Moon on the NBC television sitcom ''Frasier'' from 1993 until 2004, for which she was nominated for an Emmy Awards, Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Awards, Gold ...

. * '' A Christmas Carol: The Musical'' (1994), a Broadway musical adaptation with music by

Alan Menken Alan Irwin Menken (born July 22, 1949) is an American composer, best known for his scores and songs for films produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. His scores and songs for ''The Little Mermaid'' (1989), ''Beauty and the Beast'' (1991), ''A ...

and lyrics by

Lynn Ahrens Lynn Ahrens (born October 1, 1948) is an American writer and lyricist for the musical theatre, television and film. She has collaborated with Stephen Flaherty for many years. She won the Tony Award, Drama Desk Award, and Outer Critics Circle Awa ...

, ran at The Theatre at

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...

, New York City yearly until 2003. Starring as "Scrooge" were

Walter Charles Walter Charles (born April 4, 1945 in East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania) is an American actor and singer. Charles made his Broadway debut in '' Grease'' in 1972. Additional Broadway credits include '' 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue'' (1976), ''Sweeney Tod ...

(1994),

Terrence Mann Terrence Vaughan Mann (born July 1, 1951) is an American theatre, film and television actor. He is best known for his appearances on the Broadway stage, which include Chester Lyman in ''Barnum'', Rum Tum Tugger in '' Cats'', Javert in '' Les ...

(1995),

Tony Randall Anthony Leonard Randall (born Aryeh Leonard Rosenberg; February 26, 1920 – May 17, 2004) was an American actor. He is best known for portraying the role of Felix Unger in a television adaptation of the 1965 play ''The Odd Couple'' by Neil Sim ...

(1996),

Hal Linden Hal Linden (born Harold Lipshitz, March 20, 1931) is an American stage and screen actor, television director and musician. Linden began his career as a big band musician and singer in the 1950s. After a stint in the United States Army, he began ...

and

Roddy McDowell Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall (17 September 1928 – 4 October 1998) was a British actor, photographer and film director. He began his acting career as a child in England, and then in the United States, in ''How Green Was My Valley'' (1 ...

(alternating) (1997),

Roger Daltrey Roger Harry Daltrey (born 1 March 1944) is an English singer, musician and actor. He is a co-founder and the lead singer of the Rock music, rock band The Who. Daltrey's hit songs with The Who include "My Generation", "Pinball Wizard", "Won't Ge ...

(1998), Tony Roberts (1999),

Frank Langella Frank A. Langella Jr. (; born January 1, 1938) is an American stage and film actor. He has won four Tony Awards: two for Best Leading Actor in a Play for his performance as Richard Nixon in Peter Morgan's '' Frost/Nixon'' and as André in Flori ...

(2000),

Tim Curry Timothy James Curry (born 19 April 1946) is an English actor and singer. He rose to prominence for his portrayal of Dr. Frank-N-Furter in the film ''The Rocky Horror Picture Show'' (1975), reprising the role he had originated in the 1973 London ...

(2001),

(2002) and

Jim Dale Jim Dale (born James Smith; 15 August 1935) is an English actor, composer, director, narrator, singer and songwriter. In the United Kingdom he is known as a pop singer of the 1950s who became a leading actor at the National Theatre. In Britis ...

(2003). The 2004 television version of the musical starred

Kelsey Grammer Allen Kelsey Grammer (born February 21, 1955) is an American actor and producer. He gained notoriety and acclaim for his role as psychiatrist Dr. Frasier Crane on the NBC sitcom '' Cheers'' (1984-1993) and its spin-off ''Frasier'' (1993-2004), ...

as "Scrooge". * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1996), an adaptation for a " ast ofeight actors and a lightbulb" by British director and playwright Neil Bartlett OBE. Currently performing (December/January 2014) at the Old Red Lion Theatre in Islington, London, a well-known fringe theatre. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1997), a musical adaptation with music by Steve Parsons and book/lyrics by John Popa was performed from 1997 to 2000 at The Players Guild Theatre in

Canton, Ohio Canton () is a city in and the county seat of Stark County, Ohio. It is located approximately south of Cleveland and south of Akron in Northeast Ohio. The city lies on the edge of Ohio's extensive Amish country, particularly in Holmes and ...

and was subsequently revived in 2009, continuing to play each holiday season to the present day. This version spawned three cast recordings, one featuring the original cast, a 10th anniversary recording in 2008, and the 2015 cast recording. In 2016 the musical was published for domestic and international licensing by Steel Spring Stage Rights in Los Angeles.

2003–2009

* ''A Christmas Carol'', written and performed by Greg Oliver Bodine, is a one-man stage adaptation enacted by Charles Dickens himself based on a condensed version of the novel that he used while on the second of his reading tours of the United States. First performed in 2003. * '' Steve Nallon's Christmas Carol'' (2003), theatrical adaptation starring impressionist Nallon as a number of famous people. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (2003), theatrical adaptation by Karen Louise Hebden produced by and performed at

Derby Playhouse Derby Playhouse was a theatre production company based in Derby, England and the former name of the theatre which it owned and operated from its opening in 1975 until 2008, when the company ceased operating after a period in administration. The th ...

in 2003 and revived in 2006. On both occasions, Scrooge was played by Ben Roberts. * ''A Dickens' Christmas Carol'' (2003 to present), theatrical adaptation created specifically for

Silver Dollar City Silver Dollar City is a amusement park in Stone County, Missouri, near the cities of Branson and Branson West. The park is located off of Missouri Route 76 on the Indian Point peninsula of Table Rock Lake. Silver Dollar City opened on May 1, 19 ...

Branson, MO Branson is a city in the U.S. state of Missouri. Most of the city is situated in Taney County, with a small portion in the west extending into Stone County. Branson is in the Ozark Mountains. The community was named after Reuben Branson, post ...

. Performed yearly, the 60-minute Broadway-style show is expected to be viewed by more than 1,000,000 people during the 2013 Christmas season. * ''A Christmas Carol: the Musical'' (2005), musical adaptation by Stephen DeCesare. Follows 99% of the original book and has had over 300 performances around the world. It starred Carl DeSimone as Scrooge, Scott Morency as "Marley" and Kim Kalunian as "Belle" from the Academy Players in

East Greenwich East Greenwich is a town and the county seat of Kent County, Rhode Island. The population was 14,312 at the 2020 census. East Greenwich is the wealthiest municipality within the state of Rhode Island. It is part of the Providence metropolitan st ...

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...

. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (2007), theatrical adaptation by Jacqueline Goldfinger produced by and performed at North Coast Repertory Theatre in San Diego. This adaptation has become North Coast Rep's annual Christmas show. * ''A Christmas Carol'', adapted by Tom Haas, has been performed each year at the

Indiana Repertory Theatre Indiana Repertory Theatre, frequently abbreviated IRT, is a professional regional theatre in Indianapolis, Indiana that began as a genuine repertory theatre with its casts performing in multiple shows at once. It has subsequently become a regio ...

for more than 25 years. Set on a minimalist stage covered in snow, this adaptation features the characters narrating their own actions to the audience and intersperses carols and dance along with the visits of the ghosts. * ''A Christmas Carol'', an adaptation by Adam Graham, first performed on 6 December 2007 by Performing Arts Winchester, part of

Winchester Student Union , mottoeng = Wisdom and Knowledge , established = 1840 - Winchester Diocesan Training School1847 - Winchester Training College1928 - King Alfred's College2005 - University of Winchester , type = Public research university ...

. A one-hour version, it was performed twice a night for the holiday season. * ''A Christmas Carol'', an adaptation by

Ron Severdia Ron is a shortening of the name Ronald. Ron or RON may also refer to: Arts and media *Big Ron (EastEnders), Big Ron (''EastEnders''), a TV character *Ron (King of Fighters), Ron (''King of Fighters''), a video game character *Ron Douglas, the pr ...

, premiered on 6 December 2006 at the Barn Theatre in Ross, CA. In 2007, he toured Europe with a new adaptation of the show. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (2003) a new stage adaptation by Scott Harrison which has been produced in both the UK and the US. Originally performed by The Dreaming Theatre Company in the Kirkgate Victorian street exhibition inside the

York Castle York Castle is a fortified complex in the city of York, England. It consists of a sequence of castles, prisons, law courts and other buildings, which were built over the last nine centuries on the south side of the River Foss. The now-ruined ...

Museum, it has also recently been performed across the United States by three separate theatre companies. * '' Fellow Passengers'' (2004), a three-actor narrative theatre adaptation using nearly every word of the novel, first presented at Strawberry Theatre Workshop in Seattle. * ''A Christmas Carol: The Traditional Story with Modern Music'' (2005), a musical adaptation with music and lyrics by

Matt Corriel Matthew Joseph "Matt" Corriel (born November 12, 1982) is an American composer and lyricist. He was raised in Nanuet, New York.Duckett, Richard (December 4, 2005). "A new twist for a classic: Young writers contribute to the Dickens masterpiece" ...

and book by Erica Lipez, premiered at the Foothills Theatre in Worcester, MA in 2005 and is published by Dramatic Publishing Company. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (2006), a stage adaptation by Jeannette Jaquish for the Firehouse Theater in Fort Wayne, Indiana, was performed Decembers of 2006, 2007 & 2009. * ''Scrooge!'' (2006), a musical adaptation by Ken Skrzesz and Doug Yetter performed annually at the Clear Space Theatre Company in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. * ''A Christmas Carol – As told by Jacob Marley (deceased)'' (2009/10); adapted and performed as a one-man show by James Hyland. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (2008), a stage adaptation by

Bryony Lavery Bryony Lavery (born 1947) is a British dramatist, known for her successful and award-winning 1998 play '' Frozen''. In addition to her work in theatre, she has also written for television and radio. She has written books including the biography ...

with songs by Jason Carr, was written for the Chichester Youth Theatre and performed at

Chichester Festival Theatre Chichester Festival Theatre is a theatre and Grade II* listed building situated in Oaklands Park in the city of Chichester, West Sussex, England. Designed by Philip Powell and Hidalgo Moya John Hidalgo Moya (5 May 1920 – 3 August 1994), ...

for Christmas 2008 and 2015. This adaptation was also performed by

Birmingham Repertory Theatre Birmingham Repertory Theatre, commonly called Birmingham Rep or just The Rep, is a producing theatre based on Centenary Square in Birmingham, England. Founded by Barry Jackson, it is the longest-established of Britain's building-based theatre c ...

for Christmas 2009 (with

Peter Polycarpou Peter Polycarpou is an English-Cypriot actor, best known for playing Chris Theodopolopodous in the television comedy series '' Birds of a Feather'' and Louis Charalambos in ''The Lost Honour of Christopher Jefferies''. Early life Polycarpou w ...

as Scrooge,

Hadley Fraser Robert Hugh "Hadley" Fraser (born 21 April 1980) is an English actor and singer. He made his West End debut as Marius in ''Les Misérables''. He also originated the role of Tiernan in the Broadway show '' The Pirate Queen''. Life and career ...

as Bob Cratchit and

Rosalie Craig Rosalie Mae Craig (born 30 May 1981) is an English actress, noted for her performances in musical theatre. In 2013 she received her first major award, a London Evening Standard Award for Best Performance in a Musical. Life and career Craig g ...

as Mrs Cratchit) and 2013 and the

West Yorkshire Playhouse Leeds Playhouse is a theatre in the city centre of Leeds, West Yorkshire. Having originally opened in 1970 in a different location in Leeds, it reopened as West Yorkshire Playhouse, on Quarry Hill, in March 1990. After a refurbishment in 2018-20 ...

for Christmas 2010 (with Phillip Whitchurch as Scrooge). * ''A Christmas Carol'' (2009), a stage adaptation written by Alexandria Haber and produced by Geordie Productions, premiering in December 2009 at the D.B. Clarke Theatre in Montreal, Quebec (Canada).

2010–present

* ''A Christmas Carol'' (2010), a new stage adaptation written by

Jim Cook Jr. Jim Cook Jr. (born August 25, 1987, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is an American writer, actor, and filmmaker, who served in the United States Army. In 2012, Cook ran a successful election campaign by only using social media. He graduated from W ...

and produced by the Off Broad Street Players Theater Company in

Bridgeton, New Jersey Bridgeton is a city in Cumberland County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is the county seat of Cumberland County The Pantaloons The Pantaloons are an English touring theatre company specialising in open-air productions of the plays of William Shakespeare. Their work draws from a wide variety of popular theatre traditions, and is often performed for free in public spaces. ...

theatre company, touring England in Winter 2010. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (2010–present), a new stage adaptation by Preston Lane, produced by Triad Stage in Greensboro, North Carolina. Premiered November 2010, starring Gordon Joseph Weiss as Ebenezer Scrooge. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (2010), a musical stage adaptation by

Bruce Greer Bruce Greer (born October 2, 1961 in Longview, Texas) is an American pianist, singer and composer. Biographical information Greer recalls arranging hymns for choir and piano by age twelve. By the time he was in high school, his compositions were ...

and Keith Ferguson that premiered in Carrollton, Texas, in December 2010. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (2011), a

National Theatre of Scotland The National Theatre of Scotland, established in 2006, is the national theatre company of Scotland. The company has no theatre building of its own; instead it tours work to theatres, village halls, schools and site-specific locations, both at h ...

production adapted, designed and directed by Graham McLaren, premiered at Film City Glasgow. The production was awarded Best Production and Best Ensemble by the

Critics' Awards for Theatre in Scotland The Critics' Awards for Theatre in Scotland (CATS) are an annual event awarding performances "substantially produced in Scotland, or developed, rehearsed and premiered in Scotland". Awards ceremony The ceremony is itinerant in terms of location, sw ...

. * ''Ebenezer'' (2011), a

prequel A prequel is a literary, dramatic or cinematic work whose story precedes that of a previous work, by focusing on events that occur before the original narrative. A prequel is a work that forms part of a backstory to the preceding work. The term " ...

musical by Maurice Walters and Christopher Sparkhall performed at the

Canford School Canford School is a public school (English independent day and boarding school for pupils aged 13–18). Situated in 300 acres of parkland near to the market town of Wimborne Minster in Dorset, south west England, it is one of the largest s ...

. * ''3 Ghosts'' (2011), a

steampunk Steampunk is a subgenre of science fiction that incorporates retrofuturistic technology and aesthetics inspired by 19th-century industrial steam-powered machinery. Steampunk works are often set in an alternative history of the Victorian era or ...

inspired stage adaptation by PiPE DREAM Theatre, written by C.E. Simon and Liz Muller. Premiered in December 2011 at the Beckett Theatre on Theatre Row. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (2012), a musical adaptation with book and lyrics by Ben Horslen and John Risebero and music by Christopher Peake and Nick Barstow, first performed by Antic Disposition in

Middle Temple Hall The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to Call to the bar, call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temp ...

, London, in December 2012 and revived in 2014, 2015, 2017 and 2019. A cast recording featuring

Brian Blessed Brian Blessed (; born 9 October 1936) is an English actor, presenter, writer and mountaineer. Blessed is known for portraying PC "Fancy" Smith in ''Z-Cars'', Augustus in the 1976 BBC television production of ''I, Claudius'', King Richard IV i ...

as The Ghost of Christmas Present was released in 2019. * ''

'' (2014), a musical with book and lyrics by

Richard Hough Richard Alexander Hough (; 15 May 1922 – 7 October 1999) was a British author and historian specializing in maritime history. Personal life Hough married the author Charlotte Woodyatt, whom he had met when they were pupils at Frensham Heigh ...

and music by Ben Morales Frost, first performed at

The Castle Theatre, Wellingborough Castle Theatre Wellingborough is located in the town of Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The ...

in December 2014. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (2015), an adaptation by Patrick Barlow, starring

Jim Broadbent James Broadbent (born 24 May 1949) is an English actor. He won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award for his supporting role as John Bayley in the feature film ''Iris'' (2001), as well as winning a BAFTA TV Award and a Golden Globe for hi ...

as "Scrooge" at

Noël Coward Theatre The Noël Coward Theatre, formerly known as the Albery Theatre, is a West End theatre in St. Martin's Lane in the City of Westminster, London. It opened on 12 March 1903 as the New Theatre and was built by Sir Charles Wyndham behind Wyndham's ...

in London. * ''

'' (2017), a new adaptation by

Jack Thorne Jack Thorne FRSL (born 6 December 1978) is a British playwright, television writer, screenwriter, and producer. He is best known for writing the stage play ''Harry Potter and the Cursed Child'', the films ''Wonder'' and '' Enola Holmes'', an ...

, directed by

Matthew Warchus Matthew Warchus (born 24 October 1966) is a British theatre director, filmmaker, lyricist, and playwright. He has been the Artistic Director of London's The Old Vic since September 2015. Personal life Warchus is married to American actress Lau ...

for

The Old Vic The Old Vic is a 1,000-seat, nonprofit organization, not-for-profit producing house, producing theatre in Waterloo, London, Waterloo, London, England. Established in 1818 as the Royal Coburg Theatre, and renamed in 1833 the Royal Victoria Th ...

. Original cast included

Rhys Ifans Rhys Ifans (; born Rhys Owain Evans; 22 July 1967) is a Welsh actor and musician. He was the frontman of Welsh rock music bands the Peth and Super Furry Animals. As an actor, he is best known for his roles in ''Notting Hill'' (1999), ''Kevin & ...

as Scrooge. The production has played every year since due to popular demand (including via live broadcast for the Christmas 2020 season due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

) and opened at the Lyceum Theatre on

in 2019, winning 5

Tony Awards The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual cer ...

. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (2017), a new adaptation by David Edgar, directed by Rachel Kavanaugh for the

Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and produces around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, St ...

. Cast included Phil Davis as Scrooge. This production was revived for Christmas 2018 with Aden Gillet as Scrooge and will be revived again for the Christmas 2022 season with

Adrian Edmondson Adrian Charles Edmondson (born 24 January 1957) is an English actor, comedian, musician, writer and television presenter. He was part of the alternative comedy boom in the early 1980s and had roles in the television series ''The Young Ones (TV s ...

as Scrooge. * ''Humbug'' (2017), a new adaption by Chuck Puckett, directed by Carol Puckett, performed by The Bank Street Players at the Princess Theater in Decatur, AL. * ''An Evening With Charles Dickens Reading A Christmas Carol'' (2018), a new adaptation by Ronald Rand, directed and performed by Ronald Rand at the Tuscumbia Roundhouse in Tuscumbia, AL. * ''Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol'' (2018), a one-man show adaptation of the story performed by

Jefferson Mays Lewis Jefferson Mays (born June 8, 1965) is an American actor. He is the recipient of numerous accolades, including a Tony Award, a Helen Hayes Award, a Lucille Lortel Award, two Drama Desk Awards, two Outer Critics Circle Awards and three Ob ...

Geffen Playhouse The Geffen Playhouse (or the Geffen) is a not-for-profit theater company founded by Gilbert Cates in 1995. It produces plays in two theaters in Geffen Playhouse, which is owned by University of California Los Angeles. The Playhouse is located i ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. In 2020, the show was filmed live at New York's

United Palace The United Palace (originally Loew's 175th Street Theatre) is a theater at 4140 Broadway in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. The theater, occupying a full city block bounded by Broadway, Wadsworth Avenue, and W ...

and released for a limited time on streaming site On The Stage *''Ebenezer: A Haunted Tale'' (2020), a virtual play written by Robert Frankenberg and staged/filmed at Open Stage Works in

Hauppauge, New York Hauppauge ( ) is a Hamlet (New York), hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the Administrative divisions of New York#Town, towns of Islip, New York, Islip and Smithtown, New York, Smithtown in Suffolk County, New York on Long Island. The popu ...

*''A Very Covid Christmas Carol'' (2020), a virtual play written by Pamela Morgan and streamed at This Moment Productions in Chicago, IL. *''A Christmas Carol'' (2020), adapted and directed by

Nicholas Hytner Sir Nicholas Robert Hytner (; born 7 May 1956) is an English theatre director, film director, and film producer. He was previously the Artistic Director of London's National Theatre. His major successes as director include ''Miss Saigon'', ''Th ...

for the Bridge Theatre, London, features three-actors. Opened in December 2020 during the

before returning in December 2022. *''A Christmas Carol - A Ghost Story'' (2021), an adaptation by

Mark Gatiss Mark Gatiss (; born 17 October 1966) is an English actor, comedian, screenwriter, director, producer and novelist. His work includes writing for and acting in the television series ''Doctor Who'', '' Sherlock'', and '' Dracula''. Together with ...

(who also played Marley), directed by Adam Penford ran at the Nottingham Playhouse and then Alexandra Palace Theatre for Christmas 2021 season *''A VHS Christmas Carol'' (2021), a 1980s musical style adaptation by

StarKid Productions StarKid Productions, also known as Team StarKid, is an American musical theatre company founded in 2009 at the University of Michigan by Darren Criss, Brian Holden, Matt Lang, and Nick Lang. Originally known for the viral success of their fi ...

. With Music by Clark Baxtresser. *''A Christmas Carol'' (2022), an upcoming adaptation by Kevin P. Kern produced by

Impact Youth Theatre Impact may refer to: * Impact (mechanics), a high force or shock (mechanics) over a short time period * Impact, Texas, a town in Taylor County, Texas, US Science and technology * Impact crater, a meteor crater caused by an impact event * Impac ...

Film

Live action films

* ''

Scrooge, or, Marley's Ghost ''Scrooge, or, Marley's Ghost'' is a 1901 British short silent drama film, directed by Walter R. Booth, featuring the miserly Ebenezer Scrooge (played by Daniel Smith) confronted by Jacob Marley's ghost and given visions of Christmas past, p ...

'' (1901), a short British film that is the earliest surviving screen adaptation. * ''

'' (1908), with Thomas Ricketts as Scrooge. Lost film. * ''

'' (1910), a 13-minute version of the story starring

Marc McDermott Marcus McDermott (also credited as Marc MacDermott; 24 July 1871 – 5 January 1929) was an Australian actor who starred on Broadway and in over 180 American films from 1909 until his death.Nick Murphy at the Forgotten Australian Actors webs ...

as Scrooge and Charles Ogle as Cratchit, with William Bechtel,

Viola Dana Viola Dana (born Virginia Flugrath; June 26, 1897 – July 3, 1987) was an American film actress who was successful during the era of silent films. She appeared in over 100 films, but was unable to make the transition to sound films. Early lif ...

, Carey Lee, and Shirley Mason. * '' Scrooge'' (1913), starring

Sir Seymour Hicks Sir Edward Seymour Hicks (30 January 1871 – 6 April 1949), better known as Seymour Hicks, was a British actor, music hall performer, playwright, actor-manager and producer. He became known, early in his career, for writing, starring in and p ...

and retitled ''Old Scrooge'' for its U.S. release in 1926. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1914), with Charles Rock as Scrooge. * ''

The Right to Be Happy The Right to Be Happy is a 1916 American silent Christmas fantasy film directed by Rupert Julian. The film is based on the 1843 novella ''A Christmas Carol'' by Charles Dickens. The movie stars Rupert Julian as Ebenezer Scrooge and Claire McDowe ...

'' (1916), the first

feature-length A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...

adaptation, directed by and starring

Rupert Julian Rupert Julian (born Thomas Percival Hayes; 25 January 1879 – 27 December 1943) was a New Zealand cinema actor, director, writer and producer. During his career, Julian directed 60 films and acted in over 90 films. He is best remembered for di ...

as Scrooge. * ''Scrooge'' (1922), an 18-minute version of the story directed by George Wynn and starring Henry V. Esmond. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1923), produced in the UK and starring Russell Thorndike, Nina Vanna, Jack Denton, and Forbes Dawson. * ''Scrooge'' (1928) short film made in Lee DeForest

Phonofilm Phonofilm is an optical sound-on-film system developed by inventors Lee de Forest and Theodore Case in the early 1920s. Introduction In 1919 and 1920, Lee De Forest, inventor of the audion tube, filed his first patents on a sound-on-film process, ...

sound-on-film process, with

Bransby Williams Bransby Williams (born Bransby William Pharez; 14 August 1870 – 3 December 1961) was a British actor, comedian and monologist. He became known as "The Irving of the music halls". Early years Born in Hackney, London, the son of William M ...

as Scrooge (British Film Institute) * '' Scrooge'' (1935), a British movie, again starring Seymour Hicks as Scrooge. * ''

'' (1938), starring

Reginald Owen John Reginald Owen (5 August 1887 – 5 November 1972) was a British actor. He was known for his many roles in British and American films and television programs. Career The son of Joseph and Frances Owen, Reginald Owen studied at Sir Herbert ...

as Scrooge and

Gene Lockhart Edwin Eugene Lockhart (July 18, 1891 – March 31, 1957)"Gene Lockhart"
''The ...

and

Kathleen Lockhart Kathleen Lockhart (née Arthur; 9 August 1894 – 18 February 1978) was a prolific English-American actress during the early-mid 20th century. Early life Kathleen Arthur was born on August 9, 1894 in Southsea, Hampshire, England. Caree ...

as the Cratchits. * ''Leyenda de Navidad'' (1947), Spanish Adaptation * '' Scrooge'' (1951), re-titled ''A Christmas Carol'' in the U.S., starring

Alastair Sim Alastair George Bell Sim, CBE (9 October 1900 – 19 August 1976) was a Scottish character actor who began his theatrical career at the age of thirty and quickly became established as a popular West End performer, remaining so until his ...

as Scrooge,

Michael Hordern Sir Michael Murray Hordern CBE (3 October 19112 May 1995)Morley, Sheridan"Hordern, Michael Murray (1911–1995)" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004, online edition, May 2009, accessed 22 July 2015 was ...

, and

Mervyn Johns Mervyn Johns (born David Mervyn John; 18 February 18996 September 1992) was a Welsh stage, film and television character actor who became a star of British films during the Second World War. Johns was known for his "mostly mild-mannered, lugubrio ...

and

Hermione Baddeley Hermione Youlanda Ruby Clinton-Baddeley (13 November 1906 – 19 August 1986) was an English actress of theatre, film and television. She typically played brash, vulgar characters, often referred to as "brassy" or "blowsy".Folkart, Burt, "Noted ...

as the Cratchits. According to critic A. O. Scott of ''The New York Times'', this film is the best one ever made of the Dickens classic. * '' Scrooge'' (1970), a

musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, but in some cases, they serve merely as breaks ...

adaptation starring

Albert Finney Albert Finney (9 May 1936 – 7 February 2019) was an English actor. He attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and worked in the theatre before attaining prominence on screen in the early 1960s, debuting with '' The Entertainer'' (1960) ...

as Scrooge and

Alec Guinness Sir Alec Guinness (born Alec Guinness de Cuffe; 2 April 1914 – 5 August 2000) was an English actor. After an early career on the stage, Guinness was featured in several of the Ealing comedies, including ''Kind Hearts and Coronets'' (194 ...

as Marley's Ghost. * ''

Scrooged ''Scrooged'' is a 1988 American Christmas fantasy comedy film directed by Richard Donner and written by Mitch Glazer and Michael O'Donoghue. Based on the 1843 novella '' A Christmas Carol'' by Charles Dickens, ''Scrooged'' is a modern retelling ...

'' (1988) a comedy film starring

Bill Murray William James Murray (born September 21, 1950) is an American actor and comedian. He is known for his deadpan delivery. He rose to fame on ''The National Lampoon Radio Hour'' (1973–1974) before becoming a national presence on ''Saturday Nigh ...

as a Scroogelike regional boss of a TV station set to direct a Scrooge musical. * ''

The Muppet Christmas Carol ''The Muppet Christmas Carol'' is a 1992 American Christmas musical comedy drama film directed by Brian Henson (in his feature directorial debut) from a screenplay by Jerry Juhl. Adapted from the 1843 novella ''A Christmas Carol'' by Charles Dic ...

'' (1992), a musical film featuring

The Muppets The Muppets are an American ensemble cast of puppet characters known for an absurdist, burlesque, and self-referential style of variety- sketch comedy. Created by Jim Henson in 1955, they are the focus of a media franchise that encompasses ...

, with

Michael Caine Sir Michael Caine (born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite; 14 March 1933) is an English actor. Known for his distinctive Cockney accent, he has appeared in more than 160 films in a career spanning seven decades, and is considered a British film ico ...

as Scrooge. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (2012) Digital film adaptation released online starring Vincent Fegan as Scrooge. It was released by Guerilla Films worldwide via the Distrify player at 12:01am on 1 January 2012 on the Dickens Fellowship website and a number of other websites and Facebook pages, making it the first new production based upon a new work by Charles Dickens in his bicentennial year. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (2015), an original musical featuring

Colin Baker Colin Baker (born 8 June 1943) is an English actor who played Paul Merroney in the BBC drama series '' The Brothers'' from 1974 to 1976 and the sixth incarnation of the Doctor in the long-running science fiction television series '' Doctor ...

(''Doctor Who'') and Anthony D.P. Mann as Scrooge. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (2018), a

BBC Films BBC Film (formerly BBC Films) is the feature film-making arm of the BBC. It was founded on 18 June 1990, and has produced or co-produced some of the most successful British films of recent years, including ''Truly, Madly, Deeply'', '' Alan Part ...

stage-to-film adaptation of a one-man performance by

Simon Callow Simon Phillip Hugh Callow (born 15 June 1949) is an English film, television and voice actor, director, narrator and writer. He was twice nominated for BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for his roles in ''A Room with a View (1985 ...

, which ran for several seasons on stage in London, based on Charles Dickens's own performance adaptation * ''The Passion of Scrooge'' (2018), a film adaptation by H. Paul Moon of the opera by Jon Deak, featuring the composer with baritone William Sharp and the 21st Century Consort. * ''

Spirited ''Spirited'' is an Australian television Supernatural fiction, supernatural comedy-drama series made for subscription television channel W that aired for two seasons, 2010 and 2011. The series stars Claudia Karvan as dentist Suzy Darling, wh ...

'' (2022), a comedic modern musical re-imagining forcing on the perspective of the Ghosts, with Will Ferrell as the Ghost of Christmas Present and Ryan Reynolds as the person visited b the ghosts.

Animated films

* ''

Mister Magoo's Christmas Carol ''Mister Magoo's Christmas Carol'' is a 1962 animated musical holiday television special produced by UPA. It is an adaptation of Charles Dickens' 1843 novella '' A Christmas Carol'', and it features UPA's character Mr. Magoo as Ebenezer Scro ...

'' (1962), an American animated Scrooge adaptation from the popular cartoon series '' Mr. Magoo'', where Mr. Magoo is the main character in a stage production of ''A Christmas Carol''. * ''

'' (1982) an Australian

made-for-television A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

animated Animation is a method by which still figures are manipulated to appear as moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Today, most anim ...

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus, Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by country, around t ...

fantasy film Fantasy films are films that belong to the fantasy genre with fantastic themes, usually magic, supernatural events, mythology, folklore, or exotic fantasy worlds. The genre is considered a form of speculative fiction alongside science fiction f ...

from

Burbank Films Burbank Animation Studios was an Australian film animation production company, formerly named Burbank Films Australia. History The company's first animated productions in 1982 were a series of adaptations of books from Charles Dickens; these ...

as part of the studio's series of Dickens adaptations from 1982 to 1985. It was originally broadcast in 1982 through the Australian

Nine Network The Nine Network (stylised 9Network, commonly known as Channel Nine or simply Nine) is an Australian commercial free-to-air television network. It is owned by parent company Nine Entertainment and is one of five main free-to-air television netw ...

. * ''

Mickey's Christmas Carol ''Mickey's Christmas Carol'' is a 1983 American Animation, animated family comedy-drama featurette directed and produced by Burny Mattinson. The cartoon is an adaptation of Charles Dickens's 1843 novella ''A Christmas Carol'', and stars Scrooge ...

'' (1983), an animated featurette film featuring the various

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...

characters with

Scrooge McDuck Scrooge McDuck is a cartoon character created in 1947 by Carl Barks for The Walt Disney Company. Appearing in Disney comics, Scrooge is a Scottish-American anthropomorphic Pekin duck. Like his nephew Donald Duck, he has a yellow-orange bil ...

playing the role of Ebenezer Scrooge,

Mickey Mouse Mickey Mouse is an animated cartoon Character (arts), character co-created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. The longtime mascot of The Walt Disney Company, Mickey is an Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic mouse who typically wears red sho ...

as Bob Cratchit,

Goofy Goofy is a cartoon character created by The Walt Disney Company. He is a tall, Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic dog who typically wears a turtle neck and vest, with pants, shoes, white gloves, and a tall hat originally designed as a rumpled f ...

as Jacob Marley, and

Donald Duck Donald Fauntleroy Duck is a cartoon character created by The Walt Disney Company. Donald is an anthropomorphic white duck with a yellow-orange bill, legs, and feet. He typically wears a sailor shirt and cap with a bow tie. Donald is known fo ...

as Fred. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1994), an animated version produced by

Jetlag Productions Jetlag Productions was an American animation studio that, like the similar studio Golden Films, has created a number of animated films based on different, popular children's stories, while creating a few original productions. Produced mainly for t ...

, written by Jack Olesker. * ''

'' (1997), an animated production produced by

DIC Productions, L.P. DIC Entertainment Corporation (; also known as DIC Audiovisuel, DIC Enterprises, DIC Animation City, DIC Entertainment, L.P., and DIC Productions), branded as The Incredible World of DIC, was an international film and television production comp ...

featuring the voice of

as Scrooge as well as the voices of

Whoopi Goldberg Caryn Elaine Johnson (born November 13, 1955), known professionally as Whoopi Goldberg (), is an American actor, comedian, author, and television personality.Kuchwara, Michael (AP Drama Writer)"Whoopi Goldberg: A One-Woman Character Parade". ' ...

Michael York Michael York OBE (born Michael Hugh Johnson; 27 March 1942) is an English film, television and stage actor. After performing on-stage with the Royal National Theatre, he had a breakthrough in films by playing Tybalt in Franco Zeffirelli's ''Ro ...

and

Ed Asner Eddie Asner (; November 15, 1929 – August 29, 2021) was an American actor and former president of the Screen Actors Guild. He is best remembered for portraying Lou Grant during the 1970s and early 1980s, on both ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' an ...

. * ''

An All Dogs Christmas Carol ''An All Dogs Christmas Carol'' is a 1998 American animated musical television special which was released as the direct-to-video film on November 17, 1998. To date, it is the final installment in the ''All Dogs Go to Heaven'' film series and it al ...

'' (1998), an animated direct-to-video film and the de facto finale of the ''

All Dogs Go to Heaven ''All Dogs Go to Heaven'' is a 1989 animated musical fantasy adventure comedy-drama film directed by Don Bluth and co-directed by Gary Goldman (his directorial debut) and Dan Kuenster. It tells the story of Charlie B. Barkin (voiced by Burt Re ...

'' franchise; features the villainous Carface (

Ernest Borgnine Ernest Borgnine (; born Ermes Effron Borgnino; January 24, 1917 – July 8, 2012) was an American actor whose career spanned over six decades. He was noted for his gruff but relaxed voice and gap-toothed Cheshire Cat grin. A popular perfor ...

) as Scrooge, with Itchy (

Dom DeLuise Dominick DeLuise (August 1, 1933 – May 4, 2009) was an American actor, comedian, director, producer, chef, and author. Known primarily for his comedic performances, he rose to fame in the 1970s as a frequent guest on television variety shows ...

) as the Ghost of Christmas Past, Sasha (

Sheena Easton Sheena Shirley Easton (; born 27 April 1959) is a Scottish singer and actress. Easton came into the public eye in an episode of the first British musical reality television programme '' The Big Time: Pop Singer'', which recorded her attempts to ...

) as Present, and Charlie (

Steven Weber Steven Robert Weber (born March 4, 1961) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his role as Brian Hackett on the television series ''Wings'' which aired from April 1990 to May 1997 on NBC, as Sam Blue in '' Once and Again'', and ...

) as Future. * '' Christmas Carol: The Movie'' (2001), an animated version produced by Illuminated Films (Christmas Carol), Ltd/The Film Consortium/MBP; screenplay by

Robert Llewellyn Robert Llewellyn (born 10 March 1956) is a British actor, comedian, presenter and writer. He plays the mechanoid Kryten in the sci-fi television sitcom ''Red Dwarf'' and formerly presented the engineering gameshow ''Scrapheap Challenge''. He ...

& Piet Kroon; with the voices of

Kate Winslet Kate Elizabeth Winslet (; born 5 October 1975) is an English actress. Known for her work in independent films, particularly period dramas, and for her portrayals of headstrong and complicated women, she has received numerous accolades, incl ...

and

Nicolas Cage Nicolas Kim Coppola (born January 7, 1964), known professionally as Nicolas Cage, is an American actor and film producer. Born into the Coppola family, he is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Screen Actors Gu ...

. * ''

'' (2006), a computer animated adaptation featuring anthropomorphic animals in the lead roles. * ''

Bah, Humduck! A Looney Tunes Christmas ''Bah, Humduck! A Looney Tunes Christmas'' (also known as ''Looney Tunes: Bah Humduck'') is a 2006 animated direct-to-DVD Christmas comedy film starring the Looney Tunes characters, directed by Charles Visser, produced by Warner Bros. Animation a ...

'' (2006), a modern retelling featuring

Daffy Duck Daffy Duck is an animated cartoon fictional character, character created for Warner Bros. Cartoons, Leon Schlesinger Productions by animators Tex Avery and Bob Clampett. Styled as an Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic American black duck, black ...

in the Scrooge role, and

Bugs Bunny Bugs Bunny is an animated cartoon character created in the late 1930s by Leon Schlesinger Productions (later Warner Bros. Cartoons) and voiced originally by Mel Blanc. Bugs is best known for his starring roles in the '' Looney Tunes'' and '' ...

as the host. * ''

'' (2009), a

performance capture Motion capture (sometimes referred as mo-cap or mocap, for short) is the process of recording the movement of objects or people. It is used in military, entertainment, sports, medical applications, and for validation of computer vision and robo ...

film directed by

Robert Zemeckis Robert Lee Zemeckis (born May 14, 1952) is an American filmmaker. He first came to public attention as the director of the action-adventure romantic comedy ''Romancing the Stone'' (1984), the science-fiction comedy ''Back to the Future'' film tr ...

, and starring

Jim Carrey James Eugene Carrey (; born January 17, 1962) is a Canadian-American actor, comedian and artist. Known for his energetic slapstick performances, Carrey first gained recognition in 1990, after landing a role in the American sketch comedy te ...

as Scrooge and the three ghosts. From

Walt Disney Pictures Walt Disney Pictures is an American film production company and subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, which is owned by The Walt Disney Company. The studio is the flagship producer of live-action feature films within the Walt Disney Studios uni ...

and

ImageMovers ImageMovers (IM), known as South Side Amusement Company until 1997, is an American production company which produces CGI animation, motion-capture, live-action films and television shows. The company is known for producing such films as ''Cast A ...

, it was released in November 2009 in

Disney Digital 3-D Disney Digital 3-D is a brand name used by The Walt Disney Company to describe three-dimensional films made and released by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures mostly under the Walt Disney Pictures label and shown exclusively using digital pr ...

. This adaptation, while mostly faithful to the novel, includes such scenes as Scrooge being chased through London and being dropped into his own grave by the Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come. * '' Scrooge: A Christmas Carol'' (2022), an animated musical version and a remake of ''Scrooge'' (1970), produced by Timeless Films and written and directed by Stephen Donnelly. It was released on December 2, 2022, on

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

Television

Between 1944 and 1956, most television versions of the story were staged live. * An early

live television Live television is a television production broadcast in real-time, as events happen, in the present. In a secondary meaning, it may refer to streaming television over the Internet when content or programming is played continuously (not on demand) ...

adaptation was broadcast by DuMont's New York station

WABD WABD (97.5 FM) is an American radio station licensed to serve the community of Mobile, Alabama. The station, established in 1973 as WABB-FM, is owned and operated by Cumulus Media. Its studios are on Dauphin Street in Midtown Mobile, and its ...

on 20 December 1944. * ''Christmas Night'', with a ballet and with music by

Ralph Vaughan Williams Ralph Vaughan Williams, (; 12 October 1872– 26 August 1958) was an English composer. His works include operas, ballets, chamber music, secular and religious vocal pieces and orchestral compositions including nine symphonies, written over ...

was broadcast on

BBC television BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1927. It produced television programmes from its own studios from 193 ...

on 25 December 1946. * A 25 December 1947 live television version on DuMont starred

John Carradine John Carradine ( ; born Richmond Reed Carradine; February 5, 1906 – November 27, 1988) was an American actor, considered one of the greatest character actors in American cinema. He was a member of Cecil B. DeMille's stock company and later Jo ...

as Scrooge, and featured

David Carradine David Carradine ( ; born John Arthur Carradine Jr.; December 8, 1936 – June 3, 2009) was an American actor best known for playing martial arts roles. He is perhaps best known as the star of the 1970s television series ''Kung Fu'', playi ...

and

Eva Marie Saint Eva Marie Saint (born July 4, 1924) is an American actress of film, theatre and television. In a career spanning over 70 years, she has won an Academy Award and a Primetime Emmy Award, alongside nominations for a Golden Globe Award and two Brit ...

, the latter in her TV debut. * A 24 December 1948 live television version on ABC performed by the Rufus Rose Marionettes. * A 1948 live television adaptation which aired on ''

The Philco Television Playhouse ''The Philco Television Playhouse'' is an American television anthology series that was broadcast live on NBC from 1948 to 1955. Produced by Fred Coe, the series was sponsored by Philco. It was one of the most respected dramatic shows of the Golde ...

'' starred

Dennis King Dennis King (born Dennis Pratt, 2 November 1897 – 21 May 1971) was an English actor and singer. Early years Born on 2 November 1897 in Coventry, Warwickshire, or Birmingham, England, King was the son of John and Elizabeth King Pratt. He ...

as Scrooge. * ''The Christmas Carol'', broadcast 25 December 1949, is a 30-minute television adaptation that starred

Taylor Holmes Taylor Holmes (May 16, 1878 – September 30, 1959) was an American actor who appeared in over 100 Broadway plays in his five-decade career. However, he is probably best remembered for his screen performances, which he began in silent films in ...

as Scrooge with

Vincent Price Vincent Leonard Price Jr. (May 27, 1911 – October 25, 1993) was an American actor, art historian, art collector and gourmet cook. He appeared on stage, television, and radio, and in more than 100 films. Price has two stars on the Hollywood Wal ...

as the on-screen narrator. * A British television version, with

as Scrooge, was televised in 1950. * An adaptation of ''A Christmas Carol'' with

Ralph Richardson Sir Ralph David Richardson (19 December 1902 – 10 October 1983) was an English actor who, with John Gielgud and Laurence Olivier, was one of the trinity of male actors who dominated the British stage for much of the 20th century. He wo ...

as Scrooge was shown as a 30-minute filmed episode of

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

's ''

Fireside Theater ''Fireside Theatre'' (also known as ''Jane Wyman Presents'') is an American anthology drama series that ran on NBC from 1949 to 1958, and was the first successful filmed series on American television. Productions were low-budget and often based ...

'' in 1951. * The story was dramatized twice, in 1952 and 1953, on ''

Kraft Television Theatre ''Kraft Television Theatre'' is an American anthology drama television series running from 1947 to 1958. It began May 7, 1947 on NBC, airing at 7:30pm on Wednesday evenings until December of that year. It first promoted MacLaren's Imperial Chees ...

'' (NBC). * ''

'' (1954), a filmed musical television adaptation starring

Fredric March Fredric March (born Ernest Frederick McIntyre Bickel; August 31, 1897 – April 14, 1975) was an American actor, regarded as one of Hollywood's most celebrated, versatile stars of the 1930s and 1940s.Obituary ''Variety'', April 16, 1975, p ...

as Scrooge and

Basil Rathbone Philip St. John Basil Rathbone MC (13 June 1892 – 21 July 1967) was a South African-born English actor. He rose to prominence in the United Kingdom as a Shakespearean stage actor and went on to appear in more than 70 films, primarily costume ...

as Marley, was shown on the TV anthology ''Shower of Stars''. The adaptation and lyrics were by

Maxwell Anderson James Maxwell Anderson (December 15, 1888 – February 28, 1959) was an American playwright, author, poet, journalist, and lyricist. Background Anderson was born on December 15, 1888, in Atlantic, Pennsylvania, the second of eight children to ...

, the music by

Bernard Herrmann Bernard Herrmann (born Maximillian Herman; June 29, 1911December 24, 1975) was an American composer and conductor best known for his work in composing for films. As a conductor, he championed the music of lesser-known composers. He is widely re ...

. The first version in color, only a black-and-white version is currently known to survive. March received an

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

nomination for his performance. * ''Eye on New York'' (1955) A live broadcast on A Christmas Carol with Jonathan Harris as Scrooge * ''The Stingiest Man in Town'' (1956) was the second musical adaptation. It starred

and

Vic Damone Vic Damone (born Vito Rocco Farinola; June 12, 1928 – February 11, 2018) was an American traditional pop and big band singer and actor. He was best known for his performances of songs such as the number one hit " You're Breaking My Heart", an ...

as, respectively, the old and young Scrooge. This was a live episode of the dramatic anthology series ''

The Alcoa Hour ''The Alcoa Hour'' is an American anthology television series that was aired live on NBC from 1955 to 1957. The series was sponsored by Alcoa. Overview Like the ''Philco Television Playhouse'' and ''Goodyear Television Playhouse'' that had prec ...

''. None of the later versions were done live but were either shot on videotape or filmed. They include: * ''Tales from Dickens: A Christmas Carol'' (1959), was another filmed episode of the half-hour anthology series, again featuring Rathbone as Scrooge, with Fredric March as narrator, produced by Desmond Davis, with the cooperation of The Dickensian Society, London, distributed by Coronet Films "Copyright 1959, Transcription Holdings Ltd.". * ''Mr. Scrooge'', a 1964 CBC television musical adaptation, starring

Cyril Ritchard Cyril Joseph Trimnell-Ritchard (1 December 1898 – 18 December 1977), known professionally as Cyril Ritchard, was an Australian stage, screen and television actor, and director. He is best remembered today for his performance as Captain Hook in ...

(''

Peter Pan Peter Pan is a fictional character created by List of Scottish novelists, Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie. A free-spirited and mischievous young boy who can fly and Puer aeternus, never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending ...

'' Captain Hook) as Scrooge, with

Alfie Bass Alfie Bass (born Abraham Basalinsky, 10 April 1916 – 16 July 1987) was an English actor. He was born in Bethnal Green, London, the youngest in a Jewish family with ten children; his parents had left Russia many years before he was born. He a ...

and

Tessie O'Shea Teresa Mary "Tessie" O'Shea (13 March 1913 – 21 April 1995) was a Wales, Welsh entertainer and actress. Early life O'Shea was born in Plantagenet Street in Riverside, Cardiff to newspaper wholesaler James Peter O'Shea, who had been a soldie ...

as Bob Cratchit and his wife. *'' Carry on Christmas'' was broadcast in 1969. Scripted by long-term ''Carry On'' author Talbot Rothwell, the story was an irreverent take on the tale and featured Sid James as Scrooge. * ''A Christmas Carol'' (1977), a

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

...

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