The classic David Copperfield was not just Charles Dickens' favorite work. It has been the most popular of his books since it was first published 150 years ago. Micawber, Peggotty, Betsey Trotwood, Uriah Heep, Mr. Creakle, Mrs. Crupp, and Mr. Dick... never were so many of Dickens' famous and vest-loved characters gathered together in just one of his works.

They are all brought to life by a world-class cast including Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone), Oscar-winner Maggie Smith (The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie), Bob Hoskins (Hook), Nicholas Lyndhurst (Bullshot) and Pauline Quirke (The Elephant Man) in this sparkling adaptation.

The most autobiographical of Dickens' work, David Copperfield often echoes the writer's own life. It tells a moving story of David's journey from birth to maturity, a journey which inextricably links his life with some of Dickens' most colorful and extraordinary families.

Special DVD features include: Cast list; Masterpiece Theatre poster gallery; access to David Copperfield Web site featuring production notes, interviews with the cast and crew, a Dickens timeline, a guide to the featured characters, and more; scene selection; English audiotrack; and closed captions.

One one DVD9 disc. Region coding: All regions. Audio: Dolby stereo. Screen format: Widescreen (Anamorphic)

A year before he played his first Quidditch match as Harry Potter, Daniel Radcliffe cast his spell on audiences as young David Copperfield in this stellar British miniseries based on Charles Dickens's classic novel. Vastly superior to the 2000 American-made miniseries (which gave us Michael "Kramer" Richards as Micawber), this impeccable production, originally broadcast on ExxonMobil Masterpiece Theatre, is an embarrassment of riches, with a cast that includes Oscar® winner Maggie Smith (Radcliffe's Potter costar) as the indomitable Aunt Betsey, Oscar nominee Ian McKellen (The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings) as sadistic teacher Mr. Creakle, a wonderful Bob Hoskins (Oscar nominee for Mona Lisa) as the debt-ridden Micawber, Trevor Eve as David's loathsome stepfather Mr. Murdstone (he believes in "firmness" with a vengeance), and Nicholas Lyndhurst as the scheming clerk Uriah Heap. Holding his own with this formidable ensemble is Ciaran McMenamin as the adult David, whose soap opera existence spans an idyll-shattered childhood, unscrupulous villains, tragic romance, and a hard-won happily-ever-after. Rich with incident and populated by some of literature's most memorable characters, this production does full justice to one of Dickens's most beloved and oft-told sagas. --Donald Liebenson