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A theme park based on the life and work of author Charles Dickens is to be built in Kent, one of the men behind "Dickensworld" says.
The 60 million pound project will recreate the Victorian era when young children worked in sweatshops, Britain ruled over a vast empire and Dickens penned classic works like "Bleak House" and "The Pickwick Papers."
"We have great expectations," said backer Kevin Christie.
The roofed attraction is part of the regeneration of Chatham's old docks, close to where the author lived as a child in the early 19th century.
Characters like Ebenezer Scrooge and the Artful Dodger could be lining up just yards from stylish bars and a new nine-screen cinema showing more modern fables.
But will such a park cheapen the image of Dickens -- one of Britain's best known authors?
Rivals in the Dickens heritage trade do not think so. Staff at the Dickens Museum have even been involved in the operation.
"They were keen to get their Dickens right," General Secretary Tony Williams told reporters. The snuff box, dusty portraits and cigar case on show at the museum would not be upstaged by the more racy Dickensworld, staff there thought.
"I can not see it is going to be any competition. It is very different to our institution," said director Andrew Xavier.
"We would not have been involved if we thought it would dumb down the whole thing."
译文：一位负责“狄更斯世界”的工作人员说他们将在英国东南部的肯特郡建造一座以英国作家查尔斯·狄更斯的生平和作品为基础的主题公园。
这项耗资六千万英镑的工程将重现维多利亚时代，当时孩子们被迫在条件艰苦的血汗工厂里工作，不列颠还统治着一个巨大的帝国。也正是在那个时代，狄更斯创作了《荒凉山庄》和《匹克威克外传》等巨著。
赞助人凯文·克里斯蒂说：“我们对这个项目抱有很高的期望。”
一个盖有屋顶的景点是查塔姆老船坞重建后的一部分。十九世纪早期，少年时代的狄更斯就住在附近。而在时尚的酒吧和有九个屏幕、放映更多现代故事的影院附近，摆放一些像埃比尼泽·斯克鲁奇和小扒手道奇这样的角色。
这样的公园会不会有损狄更斯这位英国最著名的作家的形象呢？
同是经营狄更斯遗产的竞争对手们并不这么认为。甚至连狄更斯博物馆的员工们也参与了该项目。秘书长托尼·威廉姆斯告诉记者说：“他们都想把狄更斯做好。”
虽然“狄更斯世界”生动活泼，但员工们认为它不会抢博物馆里展览的鼻烟壶，灰头土脸的肖像以及烟盒的风头。
安德鲁·艾克查威尔主任说：“我不认为会有什么竞争。它和我们的协会非常地不同。”
“如果我们不想让整个活动成功的话，我们根本就不会参与。”
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