The international travels and enduring global impact of Charles Dickens will be explored by a new exhibition opening in his London home. Often regarded as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era, Dickens's stories and characters have powered the imaginations of readers across the world. CGTN's Juliet Mann reports.

Here we have a remarkable example of Dickens international celebrity. A first edition copy of travelogue American Notes, translated into Polish - just one of the treasures inside the London townhouse where Charles Dickens wrote Oliver Twist and Nicholas Nickleby and completed The Pickwick Papers. His stories conjure images of Victorian London, yet during his lifetime Charles Dickens was a global star.

JULIET JOHN CHARLES DICKENS EXPERT "His first very famous text was The Pickwick Papers and this was immediately translated into French and German and spread around the continent like wildfire. Then by the late 19th century he was in Japanese, by 20th century he was actually the most adapted novelist of all time - still is."

A savvy businessman, Charles Dickens travelled widely to experience different cultures, to find writing inspiration - and to promote book sales. His forays around the world spanned Europe and North America. The vast majority of his books were published in tens of thousands of copies to reach readership far and wide.

Eventually even as far as China. This is a very rare early Chinese edition here of The Old Curiosity Shop, first published in English in 1841, first Chinese edition published in Shanghai in 1914.

BRIAN LAKE ANTIQUARIAN BOOKSELLER "The reality is that he still sells in enormous numbers and all his books are still in print. You can buy first editions, early editions, illustrated editions, simply in terms of sales of his books he is still enormous and has global reach - everybody has heard of Charles Dickens."

Dickens priced his books keenly to maximise sales with "every nation on earth" in mind. Specialist booksellers say collectors now could buy an English Dickens first edition for a few hundred dollars and special presentation copies up to three hundred thousand dollars.

JULIET MANN LONDON "This museum - his home - A Victorian house in London - is where we imagine Charles Dickens to be. But he saw himself as a truly global author. His travels helped him achieve just that. And the impact his works continue to have all around the world means Charles Dickens is still a global brand. Juliet Mann, CGTN, London."