The Novels that Shaped Our World - BBC2

(Image credit: BBC/IWC Media)

The series The Novels That Shaped Our World comes to an end with a look at class and the major role it's played in the creation of great literature

Writers Natalie Haynes, Howard Jacobson and Kathy Lette are among the experts contributing to the final episode of The Novels That Shaped Our World.

It looks back at the class system and how it has been represented and challenged in literature over the last 300 years (Saturday, 9.55pm, see our TV Guide for full details).

One of the most well known writers who based many of his novels on the divide between rich and poor in Victorian London is of course Charles Dickens, who penned such literary greats as Oliver Twist and A Christmas Carol.

MORE: Dickensian at Whats On TV

The class divide is also examined in the works of Thomas Hardy and Robert Tressell’s The Ragged-Trousered Philanthropists. Featuring readings from Russell Tovey, Freddie Fox and Alex MacQueen.

TV Times rating: ****