Jack Dawkins, better known as the Artful Dodger, is a character in the Charles Dickens novel Oliver Twist. Dodger is a pickpocket, so called for his skill and cunning in that respect. He is the leader of the gang of child criminals, trained by the elderly Fagin.
In the novel He becomes Oliver's closest friend (although he betrays him when Oliver is mistakenly caught) and he tries to make him a pickpocket, but soon realizes that Oliver won't succeed, and feels sorry for him, saying "What a pity it is he isn't a prig!" He also has a close relationship with Charley Bates. The Artful Dodger is characterized as a child who acts like an adult. He is described as wearing adult clothes which are much too large for him. Like an adult, he seldom gives in to childish urges.
Ultimately the Dodger is caught with a stolen silver snuff box and presumably sent to a penal colony in Australia (only alluded to in the novel). The absurdity of the master pickpocket being caught over something so small is remarked upon in the book.
Artful Dodger (formed in 1973 in Fairfax, Virginia) are an American power pop rock band, noted for their tight rock compositions, deft lyricism, vocal harmonies, and live shows. The group was heavily influenced by The Beatles, Faces, and The Rolling Stones and drew frequent comparisons to Raspberries. Artful Dodger's studio releases received high critical praise, but the band was unable to penetrate the charts.
Artful Dodger is an English garage band based in the city of Southampton, which became famous through its 2-step hits, and gave Craig David's career a boost after he appeared on their No. 2 hit, "Re-Rewind", in December 1999.
The band originally consisted of Mark Hill (born 22nd December 1972 in Cwmbran, Wales) and Pete Devereux, but Devereux left prior to the release of the single "TwentyFourSeven", and Hill continued from then on to produce "TwentyFourSeven" by himself under the same moniker. The UK garage act now comprises MC Alistair and includes producer and DJ Dave Low. Many Artful Dodger tracks can be found on the UK garage compilation album series Pure Garage, mixed by DJ EZ.
The band is named after a character in the Charles Dickens novel Oliver Twist, because of the many bootlegs they made in the early days. They are referred to in The Streets' single "Let's Push Things Forward".