A STAR of the Harry Potter franchise will return to North Yorkshire for this year’s celebration of Charles Dickens.

BAFTA winning actress Miriam Margolyes, who played Professor Sprout in the series, will attend the Malton Dickensian Festival in December, joining his great, great, great granddaughter Lucinda Hawksley for a question and answer session following a screening of her latest film The Man Who Invented Christmas.

The film tells the story of Dickens’ creation of A Christmas Carol, and stars Christopher Plummer, Dan Stevens and Jonathan Pryce. The screening takes place on December 16, at The Palace Cinema.

Miriam Margolyes said: “It’s a sweet film.

“There have been many iconic films of A Christmas Carol, and this latest shows how this very special book endures. It’s timeless, and perhaps its message of kindness and hope are ones we should value now more than ever. Malton should be rightly proud of its rich association with Dickens and this magical book, and I’m honoured to be celebrating the town’s literary legacy once more.”

Dickens most famous book A Christmas Carol has had a long association with the town, and he was apparently inspired to base Scrooge’s famous Counting House on Smithson’s Counting House in Malton, now a Dickensian museum and visitor attraction.

Other events at this year’s festival will include local primary school children performing festive songs at The Milton Rooms on December 8, street theatre in the town centre on December 9, and a lunchtime performance of A Christmas Carol at The Milton Rooms on December 10 by the Hardcastle Mighty Excelsior Theatre Company.

The Scrooge Counting House Museum in Malton will be open every Saturday in December, between 10am and 1pm, with a performance of A Christmas Carol in Scrooge’s office at 2pm and 3pm on Saturday December 9, in return for donations .

Clair Challenor-Chadwick, MD of Cause UK, who established the Malton Dickensian Festival as an arts and education charity, set up the festival in 2015.

She said: “The festival is part of our overall work to reclaim Yorkshire’s literary heritage and celebrate the remarkable connection Dickens had to Malton.

“It’s put together on a volunteer-basis by me, and kindly supported by Miriam, Lucinda and the volunteers at the Counting House in Malton, so we really hope people come out and support it, and get involved in some truly Christmas spirit and festivities.”

For more information on the festival and announcements about the lineup, go to maltondickensianfestival.com

Tickets for the screening of The Man Who Invented Christmas on Saturday, December 16, can be booked on 01653 600008 and cost £12 plus a booking fee.