Just finished my re-read of Titus Groan and, once again, am blown away that there has only ever been one screen adaptation of this.

As I was reading, I couldn't help but think of who I'd cast in a hypothetical film / television adaptation (I actually think it'd work quite well as an animation, but these are on the proviso it's live action).

I present...

Steerpike - Finn Bennett (Irish-British actor, in the most recent True Detective. Has the right kind of forehead for Steeerpike, given it's mentioned so frequently in the book!)

Lord Sepulchrave - Rory Kinnear

Countess Gertrude - Jessica Gunning

Lady Fuscia Groan - Mia Goth

Nannie Slagg - Julie Walters (I was going to suggest Sheila Hancock after her INCREDIBLE turn as the cook in the 1999 Alice in Wonderland film, but she's over 90 so... plus, I think Julie could really lean into the grotesqueness of Nannie Slagg as a character)

Albert Prunesquallor - Mark Gatiss

Irma Prunesquallor - Sian Clifford (preferably with her pencil hairstyle from Fleabag)

Clarice and Cora Groan - Olivia Colman (via some CGI trickery)

Flay - Richard E. Grant

Swelter - Mark Addy

Keda - Lydia West

Sourdust - David Bradley

Barquentine - Ian McShane (I think he'd sell the hell out of acting on crutches, though he's actually the same age as the man playing his father....)

Rottcodd - Kenneth Cranham

Hi! I’m a long time fan of the books, but this is my first re-read in many years (trying to take my mind off current events with literary comfort food). It’s probably my seventh or eighth time reading Gormenghast, but I don’t ever recall noticing chapter 12 before. It’s a short one, which falls right after our first encounter with Bellgrove and the other masters, and right before the rather isolated episode of Spiregrain, Throd, Splint and their “master”. It’s one of the descriptive, relatively plot-free scenes with which the early part of Gormenghast is full, but in the last paragraph a “child”appears, who seems to be (from the way it’s described—it has no gender in the scene) Keda’s wild daughter, “the thing”. The paragraph (and the chapter) ends with the image of it “clasping Titus in a noose of air.”

What do folks think? Is this a literal first encounter (at least since their exchange of cries at the Earling) between the two? Just dreamy foreshadowing? Something in between?

"Titus Alone" is indeed very unsettling. it's modernistic setting is a total opposite previous two books with quasi-medieval setting. It's bizzare. Sometimes incoherent.

But come on. Don't we read Mervyn Peak exactly for that reasons? Not for clear plot, but for weirdness and richness of characters, images and language? And everything in «Titus Alone» is like that. I was stunned by Peake's descriptions of cars and skyscrapers. I love vague eroticism. I love names. I love book's unusual structure with short chapters.

So I think that people dislike third book only because it's different from previous too. But it's not worse.

What are the hopes for the anticipated Gormenghast TV series looking like following the allegations?

I'm rereading Gormenghast, and I've just finished Steerpike's first journey across the roof, and I feel exhausted.

Whatever Steerpike's faults, I have to admire his strength and tenacity.

I think part of the reason Gormenghast is so beautifully written is because of Mervyn Peake's particular way of viewing the world as a painter. One passage that reminded me of this was

"In the haze to the extreme north the Tower of Flints arose [...] like a water-colour drawing of a tower that has been left in the open and whose pigment has been all but washed away by a flirt of rain."

I also find that a lot of his descriptions of light, especially the way light falls upon surfaces, remind me of this since they are described so vividly as in a painting.

Are there any other moments that remind you similarly?

I read Titus Groan a month ago, and I still think about it every day. It's easily become one of my favourite books. I intend to read Gormenghast this october (my expectations are so high, that I fear I'll end up disappointed), but at the moment I was curious to know what are the scenes of this book that stuck the most with Mervyn Peake fans, no matter if it was a particularly gorgeous description or if it was an important event in the plot.

Were he a different person, he could have been a hero. In some ways he is likeable. He does not want to be caged by his lowly social status. He does not want to spend his whole life labouring away in Swelter’s kitchen. He does not want to be trapped by tradition. His desire to climb the social ladder and build a better life for himself is understandable.

The twist is that he goes about attaining a better life in the most sociopathic way imaginable. The fundamental contradiction in him is that his means are so horrifying they eclipse his somewhat understandable end.

There is an initial moment where I have more sympathy for him than I do for Fuchsia. He is starved and freezing, and Fuchsia is so privileged and isolated from the world that she does not understand his plight. He has to act like a clown to get her to help him.

Later the tables are overturned: he is actively predatory towards Fuchsia, who is too unworldly to realise what he is up to. In different ways they have both been impacted by their childhood: Steerpike, suffering and labouring down in the kitchens, developed this desire to break all social conventions to further his position; Fuchsia, born in privilege, is blind to both Steerpike’s plight and to what he is trying to do to her. The traditions of the castle cage them both in different ways.

What a great series.

For those who don't know, the inciting incident is the event which causes the plot to begin.

My question is, what is the inciting incident of Gormenghast? If there isn't a single incident, when does the plot actually begin?

I ask because I'm currently 100 pages into Gormenghast, and absolutely nothing has happened. I'm also not someone who struggles with dense prose or slow plots- I had no trouble at all with Titus Groan, because Titus Groan has a plot. I love the Silmarillion. I read the Prose and Poetic Eddas and understood most of them. So the problem can't be that I don't have the attention span for a slow burn or can't appreciate dense, literary prose.

Can someone tell me how much more I'll have to read before the plot starts? I'm really struggling with all the vignettes about the school. Tell me Steerpike does something interesting.

Edit: thanks to everyone who responded. I should make clear again that I'm specifically asking about book 2 in the trilogy, as I've already read Titus Groan. I'll keep reading and force my way through the section with the professors. It's good to know something's actually going to happen on the other side.

I really enjoyed some passages of the text but I found the characters were way over the top. They were to extreme in their repulsiveness or evilness. The storyline with the twin sisters was just stupid to me. Reminded me of Dhal characters made for children. Wish I loved it but it just felt meh and I hated everyone in it! Does anyone agree as the only other people I’ve seen write about it say it’s either amazing or they disliked it because it was boring

I just caught up on last night’s new House of the Dragon episode, and the whole sequence early on of Daemon skulking around Harrenhal and eventually dining with Simon Strong evoked Gormenghast incredibly strongly for me — the dampness, the crumbling architecture, the incredible scale of the castle (canonically the largest in Westeros). I know Martin is a fan of Peake, and there’s an explicit reference to him in the ASOIAF books with House Peake, their lord Gormon Peake, and their castle Starpike, but this new episode made me realize that Harrenhal is almost certainly inspired by Gormenghast Castle itself. Just an errant thought after watching.

I'm thinking of making some Gormenghast-themed art (a tarot deck maybe?). I'll be re-reading the books, but does anybody know of good online resources eg plot outlines, collections of other fan art for inspo, character maps etc?

Hello! I recently started watching the first part of the Gormenghast show on Youtube, and wanted to start reading the books before finishing. Usually, I listen to audio books during work, and I noticed there are two different versions for each book. For example Titus Groan has a 5hr 8min version and a 17hr 26min version. Obviously I would like to listen to the longer version, I assume it has more details or something but I was wondering what the actual difference is between the two? Or if maybe the long one is an adaptation of all the books? Thank you for any help!

Dear Gormenghast enjoyers,

I'm an italian architecture student working on the study of the architectural space of Gormenghast.
In order to study the subject I'm looking for some volumes which in Italy are really expensive (also considering that I have to buy and I have bought alredy a bunch of them).
Sooner o later I'll visit England, especially the BL's Mervyn Peake Archive but right now i need these books so I'm asking you to share a digital copy or a physical one (if you are willing to sell it for cheap).

The books are:
-Boy in darkness, any edition will work
-Peake's progress
-Mervyn Peake: Writings and Drawings by Shelagh Gilmore

If you are interested in the work I'm doing I will share with you something in the future but right now I'm only at the beginning.

A recent post asking about books similar to Gormenghast got me thinking how ChatGPT would do:

"In the shadowed recesses of Gormenghast, where whispers linger like ghosts and secrets dance in the flickering torchlight, there lies a labyrinth born of the ancient stones themselves. It is a twisting, convoluted maze, carved into the heart of the castle's darkest chambers, where the very essence of time seems to lose its way.

Walls of rough-hewn stone, slick with the dampness of forgotten centuries, rise like silent sentinels, their surfaces etched with cryptic symbols and faded hieroglyphs. Each passageway is a study in uncertainty, veering off at unexpected angles, leading the wanderer deeper into the labyrinth's enigmatic embrace.

Within this maze, the air hangs heavy with the scent of age-old decay, mingled with the faint aroma of distant corridors and hidden chambers. Shadows dance upon the walls, casting shifting shapes that seem to whisper secrets to those who dare to listen.

Here, the very architecture itself conspires against the intruder, leading them on a journey fraught with peril and uncertainty. Dead ends abound, promising escape only to deliver frustration and confusion. Yet for those who possess the tenacity to persist, there are whispers of untold treasures hidden within the labyrinth's depths, waiting to be discovered by those brave enough to seek them out.

In the maze of Gormenghast, time itself seems to hold its breath, waiting for the next unsuspecting soul to lose themselves amidst its winding corridors and endless mysteries."

For me that's pretty lame and cliched. YMMV.

This has been the year where I've found my way back into reading fantasy/fiction I truly love. I read Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrel and thought I couldn't be happier with a novel until I read Titus Groan.

I'm close to the end of Gormenghast and I'm wondering, are there other books or series like this?

Just saw 'Poor things' by Lanthimos - I don't think I've ever seen something that is more Gormenghast-like. I've been looking for media (books, films, video games) that is similar in mood and feeling for a long time - and I found some, but this was different. Godwin Baxter's eccentric home reminded me of Gormenghast castle. Lisbon looked (in my imagination) exactly like the weird sci-fi-steampunk-city in Titus alone. The camera positioning - viewing scenes as from a peephole - reminded me Flay and Rotcod's meeting. Even the themes of being trapped in Baxter's home / the castle are shared.

Of course some things are very different. For one, Gormenghast has much less body horror, less sex, and is less provocative and revolting in general. But in the general mood and feeling... I've never found anything more similar.

What do you think? Did you also think about Gormenghast while watching the film?

Just saw Dune: Part 2 and Austin Butler's portrayal of Feyd Rautha Harkonnen and thought he'd make like the perfect Steerpike. Thoughts? Who else would you cast for what?

501 at the moment, to be sure. Some long time ago I promised to make a post commemorating this figure. I know I haven't been a very diligent mod since then, but I guess stopping to actively search for content yourself and rather seeing it appear in it is a natural stage for any Reddit community. And that's good that new people still come and prevent the sub from dying off completely. My hopes for the surge of popularity caused by the news of the TV series didn't come true, but thanks to your efforts, dear subscribers, the Castle still stands and even growing. That's probably a good sign that it happened right in the beginning of the new year - gives it a good start, hopefully.

So, using this opportunity, I wish that all of your problems and fears stay in the past and this year brings you new joys and opportunities. Happy New Year!

Love Titus Groan. Can’t wait to start the sequel.

I’ve been working through the plot again in my head and find one aspect of the library arson scheme to perhaps have a plot hole. This is related to there being no reaction of any kind from anyone at the Gathering to the absence of the twins. Everyone at the Gathering thought they had been invited, although Steerpike intercepts Nannie Slags invitation and instead tells them they weren’t invited.

Wouldn’t Sourdust, ever adhering to castle rituals, raise an eyebrow that the twins were not there and say something before proceeding?

Nannie Slagg, sitting with Fuschia before heading to the library, goes over all who will be there. Why does she exclude mention of the twins when they were “invited?”

How are the twins not immediately suspected of foul play, given how known their acrimony toward Gertrude and Sepulchrave is and their (seeming) shirking of the invitation to the Gathering?