Gormenghast (series) for the rest of their life and that he felt it should be required reading in secondary schools. "The Daily Telegraph" has described Steerpike as one of the all-time greatest villains in western literature. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation produced a dramatization of all three Gormenghast novels. It was first broadcast in 1983 as eight one-hour episodes, and repeated in 1986 in four two-hour parts. This is the first adaptation that includes "Titus Alone" in addition to "Titus Groan" and "Gormenghast". In 1984, BBC Radio 4 broadcast two 90-minute plays based on "Titus Groan" and "Gormenghast", adapted by Brian Sibley and
Gormenghast (castle) Qufu in Shandong Province, the birthplace of Confucius. His descendants lived there for two thousand years, practising obscure rituals worthy of Gormenghast in a sprawling mansion with hundreds of rooms (partially destroyed by a fire in 1877). The eldest son in each generation inherited the title of Yansheng Duke. The last to live in the Mansion was the posthumous son of the 76th Duke (and therefore the 77th holder of the title, just like Titus Groan). Born in 1920, the 77th Yansheng duke was forced to flee to the island of Taiwan in 1937 when the Japanese invaded China. The