There are stark differences between rich and poor in the Manchester of Elizabeth Gaskell's novel, Mary Barton. Factory owners such as Mr Carson, do not understand the anger of their poverty stricken workers, and care little for their welfare. Mary Barton has a choice to make: either protect a member of her family or sit back and watch a terrible miscarriage of justice. Will she make the right decision in time?
Elizabeth Gaskell was born in the south of England, but became a strong advocate for the (mainly northern) working classes, and the trials and tribulations they faced daily in the factories and mills during the time of the Industrial Revolution.
Read by Maggie Ollerenshaw
