Hello, I'm Tim, and today I'm going to tell you one of Charles Dickens' favourite novels.
It's the story of a boy called David Copperfield, who survived the cruel treatment of his stepfather, but grew up to find true love and success.
David spends his first happy years with his loving mother, a widow, and Peggy, their devoted housekeeper.
Everything changes when Clara Copperfield meets the handsome but cruel Mr Murdston, who treats David badly.
Peggy takes David to Yarmouth to visit her brother, a fisherman, who has taken two orphans, Ham and Emily, into his care.
After a wonderful fortnight, David returns to find his mother has married Mr. Merdston.
David's stepfather continues to mistreat him, and one day David bites him.
him. Furious, Mr. Murdstone takes the opportunity to persuade Clara to send David to boarding school.
It's a grim place, but David meets the dashing Steerforth, the school's head boy.
Tragedy strikes when David learns his mother and baby brother have died.
He is sent by Mr Murdstone to work in his London wine factory.
He lodges with the happy -go -lucky Macorber family, who are always in debt.
When the authorities take Mr Macorber off to prison, David runs away to Dover to take refuge with his aunt.
Miss Betsy is quite formidable, but she takes pity on her nephew and sends him to a good school in Canterbury.
He lives with Mr. Wickfield, her business manager, and his daughter.
Agnes is David's good angel.
David also encounters the scheming Uriah Heep, Mr. Wickfield's clerk.
Such a creep and hypocrite.
David takes an instant dislike to him, and indeed, Indeed, Uriah will bring ruin to the Wickhams and Aunt Betsy.
David, now seventeen, leaves school.
En route to Yarmouth, he bumps into Steerforth, who travels with him to Yarmouth.
There they find Emily and Ham are engaged, though Steerforth seems quite taken with Emily.
This doesn't bode well.
well. Agnes, David's friend, warns him about his handsome friend Steerforth, David's bad angel.
She also tells him that Uriah Heep, her father's clerk, has taken advantage of his position to become her father's business partner.
David takes up an apprenticeship with a law firm in London, where he meets and falls in love with Dora, the enchanting daughter of his employer.
Dora's father forbids marriage, but lo and behold, he dies suddenly in an accident.
David's writing begins to take off and he marries Dora.
They live quite happily, despite her childishness and incompetent housekeeping.
Things take a turn for the worse.
David learns that Emily has eloped with Steerforth.
Aunt Betsy turns up financially ruined due to Uriah Heep's scheming.
Dora becomes very ill and Agnes helps David to nurse her.
Before she dies, Dora secretly tells Agnes something.
Meanwhile, Mr Macorber, who has been working for Uriah Heep, exposes him as a fraud.
Emily is eventually tracked down and Mr Peggetty decides to start a new life with her in Australia.
Back in Yarmouth, David witnesses a powerful storm.
Ham tries heroically to save the owner of a boat crashing on rocks, steer forth no less.
Tragically, both men drown.
David travels abroad to get over Dora's death.
death, eventually, he realises that he has loved Agnes all along.
When dying, Dora had asked Agnes to take care of David.
David and Agnes marry, and he becomes a successful writer.
And that's the end of the story.
I hope you enjoyed it, and join me for another one soon.
Bye for now.
