'More popular than Dickens' Corelli celebrated

Marie Corelli will be celebrated in talks over the weekend

A festival to celebrate a writer said to be the most popular author of her day will take place to coincide with the 100-year anniversary of her death.

Marie Corelli eclipsed "Charles Dickens, H.G. Wells and Wilkie Collins combined", the Stratford Society charity said.

Corelli, from Stratford-upon-Avon, wrote novels exploring romance, spirituality and gothic drama.

A festival of talks, exhibitions and a recital will be held in the town this weekend.

Nick Birch, from the Stratford Society, said: "One of her books called The Master Christian, which was published in 1900, sold 260,000 copies in the first year.

"She was getting advances of, in today's terms, about half a million pounds, so at the time she was the best-selling and most successful author of her time."

Historian Anouska Lester stated Corelli had "incredible characters".

She said: "She invented these elaborate scenarios of science fiction, fantasy, gothic. At [the] time that was quite unusual, so... she was a bit of a pioneer."

There were more than 30 major novels, collections of short stories and poems, the Stratford Society said

Corelli lived in townhouse Mason Croft, now home to The Shakespeare Institute, with her lifelong companion Bertha Vyver.

On Saturday, the site will host an academic centenary conference, a keynote speech and a question and answer event.

A public exhibition has been organised at Harvard House between Saturday and Monday,

The Town Hall schedule on Sunday includes an exhibition, a reading, a lecture, a piano recital of music she composed and a guest appearance by a Corelli in costume.

Corelli lived in Mason Croft, where some of the activities will take place

Queen Victoria was "a great fan", the society said.

Besides writing, Corelli was a passionate conservationist, campaigning to save and preserve many of Stratford's timber-framed buildings.

But while she liked to give the impression of being of Italian stock, and could often be seen riding up and down the River Avon in a gondola, it was not true.

One fan, who has come from Brazil to pay homage to the author, Thelma Crespo, said: "Every book has a message, a good message for humankind. It's very interesting."