Charles Dickens escapes certain death

I had never heard this before. Dickens was involved in a train crash while he was writing Our Mutual Friend (one of my favorites). 'The engine and the first part of the train went across the 21 foot breach, avoiding plunging into the River Beult through a mixture of momentum and luck. Coaches in the middle and the rear of the train, however, fell through the breach and plunged into the river below. All of the first class coaches fell into the river, apart from one: The coach that carried Charles Dickens and his companions.' More... (via)