Sally Lockhart
Encyclopedia
Veronica Beatrice "Sally" Lockhart is a fictional character in a series of books by Philip Pullman
.
. In the play, sixteen-year-old Sally Lockhart attempts to investigate her father's apparently accidental death. In the course of her investigation she uncovers her father's connections to the opium
trade, the Indian Mutiny, and a cursed ruby
.
Philip Pullman was attracted to the story and characters so much that he rewrote the play as a children's book; he later extended the story into a series of four books.
, the first of the four novels in the Sally Lockhart Quartet. The book begins in London in 1872, where Pullman states Lockhart is "sixteen or so." Physically, Lockhart is described as being "uncommonly pretty"; she has blonde hair, dark brown eyes and is "slender and pale". works as a financial consultant - an unusual job for a woman in the Victorian era. In the beginning, Sally is placed under the care of her father's second cousin, a widow
named Caroline Rees who insisted upon being called "Aunt Caroline". The two reside at Peveril Square, Islington, until Sally moves out during the beginning of The Ruby in the Smoke.
She befriends Jim Taylor, an office boy, Frederick Garland, a brilliant photographer; and his sister Rosa, a caring actress. Sally's high intelligence opens a career path for her as a financial consultant, an extremely difficult job for a woman to obtain considering women at this point still were refused the right to vote. She also finds out, in a late plot twist, that Captain Lockhart is not her true father.
Sally Lockhart realises she loves Frederick Garland almost too late in "The Shadow in the North"; they consummate their love and conceive their child hours before Frederick is killed in a fire started by associates of Axel Bellmann. Sally mourns the fact she and Fred never had a chance to marry and that their daughter, named Harriet, is illegitimate.
At the end of "The Tiger in the Well", Sally realises that Jewish-Hungarian socialist and journalist, Daniel Goldberg, is the only man who would ever measure up to Fred's bravery, understanding, and love. And Sally realises that Fred would have liked Daniel very much. She decides at the end of the book that she should marry Daniel. It is unknown whether Sally Goldberg, née Lockhart, converts to Judaism on her marriage to Daniel.
Sally appears in all four of the books, although her appearance in "The Tin Princess" is only brief, and the importance of her role is considerably diminished compared to previous titles.
and broadcast on BBC One
in the UK, with Billie Piper
cast in the role of Sally Lockhart. The first story, The Ruby in the Smoke
, aired on 27 December 2006. The second, The Shadow in the North
, aired on 30 December 2007 .
To date there has been no indication of plans to follow up with productions of the final two novels.
The first two stories aired in the US as part of Masterpiece Mystery! series.
Jim is in all of the books, although his appearance in The Tiger in the Well is only brief.
Sally's pain for most of The Shadow in the North and The Tiger in the Well revolves around the fact that had Fred survived the fire, the couple would have married and brought up their daughter, Harriet Rosa Lockhart, together.
Frederick is in The Ruby in the Smoke and The Shadow in the North.
servant, which is mainly just a monkey. The dybbuk is killed by the Tzaddik's valet, Michelet. He is killed in the Blackbourne River Flood.
Ah Ling/Hendrik van Eeden/Tzaddik is in The Ruby in the Smoke and The Tiger in the Well.
Trembler and Mrs Molloy are one of Sally's ports of call in The Tiger in the Well as they now own a boarding house and she arranges to hide with them after running from her court appearance with Harriet.
Trembler is not seen or mentioned in the BBC adaptation.
Rosa and her brother, Fred, were originally disowned by their parents for taking up career choices that their parents did not agree with and were supported by their father's brother, Webster Garland. Rosa was accepted by her parents after giving up the stage and marrying Reverend Bedwell. Although she loves her husband, Rosa still longs for the stage and puts on parish pageants and pastorals (The Tiger in the Well).
Philip Pullman
Philip Pullman CBE, FRSL is an English writer from Norwich. He is the best-selling author of several books, most notably his trilogy of fantasy novels, His Dark Materials, and his fictionalised biography of Jesus, The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ...
.
Background
The character of Sally Lockhart first appears in The Ruby in the Smoke, a play Pullman wrote for performance by a secondary schoolSecondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
. In the play, sixteen-year-old Sally Lockhart attempts to investigate her father's apparently accidental death. In the course of her investigation she uncovers her father's connections to the opium
Opium
Opium is the dried latex obtained from the opium poppy . Opium contains up to 12% morphine, an alkaloid, which is frequently processed chemically to produce heroin for the illegal drug trade. The latex also includes codeine and non-narcotic alkaloids such as papaverine, thebaine and noscapine...
trade, the Indian Mutiny, and a cursed ruby
Ruby
A ruby is a pink to blood-red colored gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum . The red color is caused mainly by the presence of the element chromium. Its name comes from ruber, Latin for red. Other varieties of gem-quality corundum are called sapphires...
.
Philip Pullman was attracted to the story and characters so much that he rewrote the play as a children's book; he later extended the story into a series of four books.
Character
Sally Lockhart is first introduced in The Ruby in the SmokeThe Ruby in the Smoke
The Ruby in the Smoke is a novel by the English author Philip Pullman. It was also adapted for television in 2006.-Plot summary:This book takes place in 1872. A sixteen year old girl named Veronica Beatrice “Sally” Lockhart goes to visit where her father used to work, a shipping company named...
, the first of the four novels in the Sally Lockhart Quartet. The book begins in London in 1872, where Pullman states Lockhart is "sixteen or so." Physically, Lockhart is described as being "uncommonly pretty"; she has blonde hair, dark brown eyes and is "slender and pale". works as a financial consultant - an unusual job for a woman in the Victorian era. In the beginning, Sally is placed under the care of her father's second cousin, a widow
Widow
A widow is a woman whose spouse has died, while a widower is a man whose spouse has died. The state of having lost one's spouse to death is termed widowhood or occasionally viduity. The adjective form is widowed...
named Caroline Rees who insisted upon being called "Aunt Caroline". The two reside at Peveril Square, Islington, until Sally moves out during the beginning of The Ruby in the Smoke.
She befriends Jim Taylor, an office boy, Frederick Garland, a brilliant photographer; and his sister Rosa, a caring actress. Sally's high intelligence opens a career path for her as a financial consultant, an extremely difficult job for a woman to obtain considering women at this point still were refused the right to vote. She also finds out, in a late plot twist, that Captain Lockhart is not her true father.
Sally Lockhart realises she loves Frederick Garland almost too late in "The Shadow in the North"; they consummate their love and conceive their child hours before Frederick is killed in a fire started by associates of Axel Bellmann. Sally mourns the fact she and Fred never had a chance to marry and that their daughter, named Harriet, is illegitimate.
At the end of "The Tiger in the Well", Sally realises that Jewish-Hungarian socialist and journalist, Daniel Goldberg, is the only man who would ever measure up to Fred's bravery, understanding, and love. And Sally realises that Fred would have liked Daniel very much. She decides at the end of the book that she should marry Daniel. It is unknown whether Sally Goldberg, née Lockhart, converts to Judaism on her marriage to Daniel.
Sally appears in all four of the books, although her appearance in "The Tin Princess" is only brief, and the importance of her role is considerably diminished compared to previous titles.
TV Adaptation
All four novels were expected to be adapted into TV Movies by BBC DramaBBC television drama
BBC television dramas have been produced and broadcast since even before the public service company had an officially established television broadcasting network in the United Kingdom...
and broadcast on BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
in the UK, with Billie Piper
Billie Piper
Billie Paul Piper is an English singer and actress.She began her career in the late 1990s as a pop singer and then switched to acting. She started in acting and dancing and was talent spotted at the Sylvia Young stage school by Smash Hits magazine who wanted a "face" for their magazine...
cast in the role of Sally Lockhart. The first story, The Ruby in the Smoke
The Ruby in the Smoke
The Ruby in the Smoke is a novel by the English author Philip Pullman. It was also adapted for television in 2006.-Plot summary:This book takes place in 1872. A sixteen year old girl named Veronica Beatrice “Sally” Lockhart goes to visit where her father used to work, a shipping company named...
, aired on 27 December 2006. The second, The Shadow in the North
The Shadow in the North
The Shadow in the North is a book by the English author Philip Pullman. It was originally published as The Shadow in the Plate.-Plot:...
, aired on 30 December 2007 .
To date there has been no indication of plans to follow up with productions of the final two novels.
The first two stories aired in the US as part of Masterpiece Mystery! series.
The Ruby in the Smoke
In 1872, Sally becomes involved in numerous intrigues involving the identity of her father, the British opium trade in India, and a mysterious ruby.The Shadow in the North
It is 1878. Following a fraudulent medium's ramblings, a Scottish magician's visions, and a transport ship's disappearance, Sally finds that she must seek help from old friends, and finds herself losing all she holds dear trying to uncover the truth behind the North Star, the Steam Gun, and Bellman.The Tiger in the Well
It is 1881. A trap has been sprung, a trap which has been in preparation for years. The barely-human Tzaddik is behind this, and his demons are far greater than anything Sally Lockhart can muster. With the law, the Tzaddik's henchmen, and luck against her, she is forced to go undercover, leaving behind her family and friends as she is sucked into the well...The Tin Princess
It is 1882. Jim finds Adelaide, a girl who went missing as a poor urchin during Sally's first encounter with danger, and finds that she has married into the royal family of Razkavia, a small country near Germany. However, resentment is rife within the palace, and plots develop to dethrone the family and join Germany. Only the Eagle can stop them.Jim Taylor
A loveable Cockney ragamuffin, Jim is an avid theatregoer who loves stories and regularly falls in love. He is courageous and outgoing, and has an ability to see a person's true nature long before anyone else. He looks up to Sally and Fred. In The Shadow in the North he falls from a window, whilst trying to save Fred, leaving him with a limp for the rest of his life.Jim is in all of the books, although his appearance in The Tiger in the Well is only brief.
Frederick Garland
A photographer with an imaginative streak and a wonderful personality. Although he has feelings for Sally(but not shown in the ruby in the smoke), they almost always argue, but their friendship is still strong. He dies in a fire midway through The Shadow in the North, causing Sally to murder Axel Bellmann.Sally's pain for most of The Shadow in the North and The Tiger in the Well revolves around the fact that had Fred survived the fire, the couple would have married and brought up their daughter, Harriet Rosa Lockhart, together.
Frederick is in The Ruby in the Smoke and The Shadow in the North.
Ah Ling/Hendrik van Eeden/Tzaddik
A corrupt pirate who illegally ships low-quality opium to Europe. Sally thought that she killed him in The Ruby in the Smoke, but did not. The bullet pierced his spinal cord, and he was paralyzed. In The Tiger in the Well, he has assumed the name "Tzaddik" and runs a prostitution ring throughout Europe. He also has a dybbukDybbuk
In Jewish folklore, a dybbuk is a malicious or malevolent possessing spirit believed to be the dislocated soul of a dead person.Dybbuks are said to have escaped from Sheol or to have been turned away for serious transgressions, such as suicide, for which the soul is denied entry...
servant, which is mainly just a monkey. The dybbuk is killed by the Tzaddik's valet, Michelet. He is killed in the Blackbourne River Flood.
Ah Ling/Hendrik van Eeden/Tzaddik is in The Ruby in the Smoke and The Tiger in the Well.
Mr 'Trembler' Molloy
He worked for the Garlands in The Ruby in the Smoke and is very nervous, hence his nickname. He takes to Adelaide very quickly and loves her like a daughter.Trembler and Mrs Molloy are one of Sally's ports of call in The Tiger in the Well as they now own a boarding house and she arranges to hide with them after running from her court appearance with Harriet.
Trembler is not seen or mentioned in the BBC adaptation.
Rosa Bedwell/Garland
Fred's sister. She was a small-time actress, and later married a clergyman, Nicholas Bedwell, the twin brother of Matthew Bedwell, the unfortunate opium-addicted sailor from The Ruby in the Smoke. She and Reverend Bedwell went on to have two children, May and Matthew Bedwell. She helps Sally and Harriet (Sally's daughter, Rosa's niece) through a court case in The Tiger in the Well.Rosa and her brother, Fred, were originally disowned by their parents for taking up career choices that their parents did not agree with and were supported by their father's brother, Webster Garland. Rosa was accepted by her parents after giving up the stage and marrying Reverend Bedwell. Although she loves her husband, Rosa still longs for the stage and puts on parish pageants and pastorals (The Tiger in the Well).