#GhostStoryAdvent

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1 December: Lost Hearts by M.R. James

Read the story here. Join the Ghost Story Advent Facebook Group.

Another advent is upon us and so I begin my spooky annual tradition: Ghost Story Advent. One ghost story suggested and reflected upon every day until Christmas eve. Some of these I’ve ready many times before, others are brand new to me. So, I can’t always vouch for their quality. But, in that, there’s something of adventure! Also, for the first time, this year I’m going to be including a couple of films and TV shows that fit well with the genre. So, look out for those.

Ghost stories are so perfect for December - cosy, chilling, thrilling. Whether hair-raising or melancholy, they’ve always brought me so much joy. And there are so many of them out there! So, sit down by a roaring fire (or load up that log fire film on Netflix), peel open that dusty tome (/Kindle) and submerge yourself in these ghostly yarns. 

I would love to know what you think of them. I have a Facebook group where you can follow along and leave your comments on the stories. Join it here. 

Our first tale is legendary. ‘Lost Hearts’ is a creepy, upsetting and satisfying tale of black magic, kidnapping and comeuppance. It involves a young man - Stephen Elliot - who goes to stay with his eccentric older cousin, Mr Abney. The old man’s academic interest in the dark arts is soon revealed to be dangerously practical and the disappearances of two children taken into his care soon resurface as a dangerous warning to Stephen. 

The story is creepy and gruesome. Mr Abney is a real horror of a character and his actions are both shocking and grisly. The haunting moments are deliciously and horribly described, complete with that inimitable Jamesian economy. If you’ve never read ‘Lost Hearts’, I’m very jealous indeed because you’re about to discover a new favourite. There’s also a highly-regarded BBC film adapted from the James story. It hasn’t aged particularly well in some aspects but, if you allow yourself to be immersed, it is brilliantly effective.

And so... we’re off! Don’t forget to leave me your own comments on the Facebook group. 

If you love ghost stories, I am touring my adaptation of A Christmas Carol with my theatre company The Book of Darkness & Light this December. If ghostly storytelling is your thing, you can book tickets here. 

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16 December: Hurst of Hurstcote by E. Nesbit

Listen to the story here. Join the Facebook page here 

Today’s story is another by the very brilliant E. Nesbit. I wasn’t going to include another by her (though I’m so glad of this opportunity to do so)  but then I spotted this version of ‘Hurst of Hurstcote’ on BBC Sounds. Have a listen...

This is the story of John Hurst, a student mesmerist and dabbler in the occult. Hurst is quite the cad on campus and viewed suspiciously by many of his male classmates and colleagues. Much to the chagrin of our narrator, Bernard, Hurst begins a relationship with Kate Danvers and, after university, marries her and retires to his family pile of Hurstcote. After a confession from Kate - with whom Bernard is still, evidently, in love - that Hurst has hypnotised her many times, her health begins to deteriorate. After her untimely death, Hurst’s grief manifests as ravings and claims of visions of his lost wife. Then comes Hurst’s own confession, which may explain why the two mens’ love is being prevented from her eternal rest. 

It is a chilling, beautifully written story. It has a feminist allegory at the heart of the tale, too, which makes it all-the-more compelling and engrossing. The horror, here, comes from a man so controlling and possessive of his wife that he believes even her soul is his to claim and use as a possession. Her lack of autonomy and agency at the hands of her husband is chilling. The resolution is grim and ambiguous (a classic Nesbit device) and may reveal more about the male gaze than the realm of the supernatural. A fantastic story which seems to reimagine and challenge Edgar Poe’s ‘The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar’ and, perhaps, even ‘The Fall of the House of Usher’. It’s well worth your time. 

If you love ghost stories, I am touring my adaptation of A Christmas Carol with my theatre company The Book of Darkness & Light this December. Also, my show Upon The Stair is now on sale. It’s touring early 2020 in Halifax, Salisbury and Harrogate. Grab your tickets here

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7 December: The Innocents (1961) dir. Jack Clayton

Watch the trailer here. Read ‘The Turn of the Screw’ here.

Surely, one of the finest and most famous ghost stories ever is Henry James’s ‘The Turn of the Screw’. I remember reading it for the first time when I was in college and being totally mesmerised by its strangeness and its boldness and its textual complexity. I’ve seen many adaptations of the story over the years (fllm, television, theatre, opera) but I’ve always been underwhelmed and left slightly cold by the many attempts to capture the uncanny terror realised by the original. 

The Innocents, however, is a different matter entirely. It is creepy, shadowy, menacing and encompasses all of the unsettling atmosphere of the original text. The story is of Miss Giddens (Deborah Kerr) who comes to Bly Manor to take charge of children Miles (Martin Stephens) and Flora (Pamela Franklin), niece and nephew of a negligent, wealthy bachelor. Soon, a series of strange and chilling episodes lead Giddens to realise that the children are under the control of two deceased lovers. 

It’s a peculiar, troubling and thrilling story; one that resonates long after the film has ended. The performances are so engrossing - particularly Martin Stephens as Miles, who is astonishingly creepy and composed for so young a performer. Jack Clayton directs a moody and, at times, genuinely scary picture which remains faithful to James’s tale but also manages to forge its own sinister path. 

Some of the set pieces have passed into cinematic legend owing to their sheer striking brilliance. The exchanges between Miles and Giddens are unsettling in the extreme and tiny details (the face at the window, the darkly-clad figure standing, staring at a distance, the dead pigeon under Miles’s pillow) leap out and take you by the throat with an icy hand. It’s a classic, cosy, ghostly movie; an ideal candidate for a December movie night with mulled wine and mince pies. 

If you love ghost stories, I am touring my adaptation of A Christmas Carol with my theatre company The Book of Darkness & Light this December. You can book tickets here.

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5 December: School for the Unspeakable by Manley Wade Wellman

Read the story here. Join the Ghost Story Advent Facebook Group.

Today’s ghostly tale is ‘School for the Unspeakable’ by Manley Wade Wellman. This story was on a list of of Jeremy Dyson’s (The League of Gentlemen, Ghost Stories) Top 10 Ghost Stories recently. It comes from Weird Tales magazine and has that flavour of cosy childhood surreptitiousness; reading scary stories under the blankets with a torch when you really ought to be fast asleep. It’s quite a twisty thing, this one, which feels like it might be very predictable... but I was surprised by the ending. 

It’s the story of Bart Setwick, who has been sent away to boarding school in Carrington. On arrival at the station, he meets a school colleague who takes Bart to his new home for the next eight months. However, when the new student encounters more of his would-be classmates, Bart realises that something altogether nefarious is a afoot and that this may not be the safe, scholarly place he believed it was. 

There’s an interesting sort of finger-wagging going on in this short tale and yet there’s also something eerie and transgressive in what plays out between the boys. It’s a fun little read and thought it relies almost entirely on dialogue and exposition, it certainly provokes a chill or two. 

If you love ghost stories, I am touring my adaptation of A Christmas Carol with my theatre company The Book of Darkness & Light this December. If ghostly storytelling is your thing, you can book tickets here.

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15 December:  A School Story by M.R. James

Read the story here.  Join the Facebook group 

Another M.R. James belter. ‘A School Story’ - along with another of my absolute favourites, ‘Wailing Well’ - was apparently written for children. If you know these tales, this is quite surprising, because they do not pull back on the grisliness nor the horror.

The tale begins in a stuffy-enough way: “Two men in a smoking-room were talking of their private-school days�� and then gently proceeds into a story about a recollection of a school teacher, McLeod, who makes the classic ghost story protagonist error of taking an item of antiquary that he had no right to be in possession of. Then follows, of course the classic Jamesian whallop…

There are some delicious, heart-stilling moments in this short tale. For example, the first real glimpse of the ghoul: “…there was a man sitting or kneeling on Sampson’ window-sill, and looking in, and I thought he was beckoning…” For me, though, the epilogue of this tale is everything. It’s so final, so brutal, so satisfyingly uncanny. If you haven’t read this one, do. If you have, read it again. The devil is in the detail with James’s stories and this one has more to offer with every next visit. If you love ghost stories, our show Upon The Stair is now on sale. It’s touring early 2020 in Halifax, Salisbury and Harrogate. Grab your tickets here.

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10 December: Reality or Delusion? by Ellen Wood (Mrs Henry Wood)

Read the story here.  Join the Ghost Story Advent Facebook Group.

Ellen Wood’s melancholic ‘Reality or Delusion’ begins with the immortal line ‘This is a ghost story. Every word of it is true.’ Though, now, an all-too familiar opening, it gives us that crackle of excitement and, for me at least, sends me into the story grinning wickedly. ‘Reality or Delusion’ a relatively simple tale of jealousy, betrayal and crime in the small community of North Crabb. The writing has a pleasing anecdotal quality which lends it the air of being told by a close friend or acquaintance - it’s a neat trick and, when pulled off effectively, makes the yarn all the more engrossing. 

This is the story of Daniel Ferrar and the woman to whom he is engaged to be married, Maria Lease. Into the community comes Harriet Roe and Daniel’s wandering affections are suddenly split between the two women. It is a beautiful character drama which moves slowly but hooks from that first inviting sentence. There’s a sadness and a frustration in the character of Maria which burns at the centre of the story. The bad treatment of her on Daniel’s part is so carefully drawn that we almost forget that this is a ghost story until the last few pages. Indeed, this feels like a secondary consideration for the author, but it hardly matters in a story so well told and with characters so well rendered. 

All of that said, the more supernatural scenes and descriptions towards the end are chilling and although the climax isn’t particularly surprising it induces that cold knot in the stomach, a feat which only the very best ghost story writers can accomplish. 

If you love ghost stories, our show Upon The Stair is now on sale. It’s touring early 2020 in Halifax, Salisbury and Harrogate. Grab your tickets here.

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20 December: The Villa Lucienne by Ella D’Arcy

(Read the story here)

Why don’t people sit around and tell ghost stories anymore? Perhaps at the lap of some brilliant matriarch with a fire roaring in the grate? I blame Netflix. Too much good stuff on there at the moment. Anyway, today’s ghost story is Ella D’Arcy’s The Villa Lucienne and its beginning is simple, yet it made me shuffle down on the chair and smile in anticipation of a chilling little read: “Madame Koetlegon told the story...”

The paragraph sets the mood - decay, former grandness, neglect and secrecy are all striding around in this story. The majority of the tale is a tour of the titular villa. In this regard, the story allows little expansion of character and the narrative, which is a shame as there’s clearly a more expansive story bursting to be told. But D’Arcy’s descriptions and conjuring of the world make up for this. Her writing is vivid and shimmers on the page, like the strange heat of the day she’s depicting. 

Through the broken places in the woodwork we could see the thick, inextricably twisted stems; and beyond again was a tangled matting of greenery, that suffered no drop of sunlight to trickle through.

The most powerful thing in this tale, perhaps, is the shift from the safety of daylight to the horrid peril of darkness. Its use of uncanny, too, is wonderful and when little Renée claims “...She’s looking at me still” for the first time, it provokes chills and a wee glance over one’s shoulder. Just in case. 

If you love ghost stories, we’re currently touring SHIVERS our theatre show. Shows are finished for 2018 but we begin again from 10 January at Salisbury Playhouse. Three chilling tales with live violin accompaniment. Book tickets here.

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17 December: Playmates - A.M. Burrage

‘Smee’ by A. M. Burrage quickly went into my top 10 ghost stories when I read it last year. A remarkably creepy story. This year’s entry from the same writer is ‘Playmates’. It’s equally creepy but there’s a melancholia in the tale which gives it added depth and establishes Burrage in my mind as a very skilful writer in this genre.

The story is of Andrew Everton, a prosperous and stern man who takes in a orphaned child. Little Monica becoming Everton’s ward is confusing to all who know the man and he treats her strictly, shrewdly and largely without affection. After being there for a while, Monica starts to report the presence of several children in the ‘schoolroom’ of the house. When another child (a living one, this time) is invited to the house to play with Monica, she is frightened off by these little ghostly figures and Everton begins to consider that his adopted-daughter may not be so deceitful after all.

The story is a long-ish one and takes its sweet time with the narrative. But it’s beautifully written and manages to raise a shudder or two. The ending, too, is rather devastating and not at all what I expected. It’s one of those endings that makes you reassess the entire story and want to re-read what’s come before. ‘Playmates’ is a charming and sombre little tale.

If ghost stories are your thing, I am currently touring my show The Book of Darkness & Light around the UK. Join us!

TONIGHT & TOMORROW: Sat 16 & Sun 17 Dec HARROGATE THEATRE

Tue 19 & Wed 20 Dec CAMDEN PEOPLE’S THEATRE

13 - 14 January 2018 SHIVERS - HARROGATE THEATRE

20 -21 January 2018 SHIVERS - HARROGATE THEATRE

26 January 2018 WATERSIDE ARTS, SALE

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3 December: Luella Miller by Mary E. Wilkins Freeman

I’ve become a big fan of Mary E. Wilkins Freeman’s work. I’ve covered ‘The Lost Ghost’ and ‘The Vacant Lot’ in previous Ghost Story Advents, both of which I enjoyed immensely.  So I’m very pleased to include ‘Luella Miller’ in this year’s bumper crop of macabre yarns. It begins as a tale of a New England house with a bad reputation and then, through the recollections of one Lydia Anderson, we are drawn into the strange history of the eponymous Luella. 

This is a strange, melancholy and uncanny tale. As for out-and-out horrors and scares, really, there are none. But the language and weird descriptions of Luella and her fatal influence are truly shudder-inducing. It’s a truly gripping and emotional little tale. 

There are some gorgeously unsettling elements to the story - the comparison between Luella and an animated tree, the subtlety of the unbroken panes of glass in her abandoned house, the simultaneous laughing and crying when she becomes agitated., to name a few. It’s a great and satisfying story with rich layers which beg to be re-explored in repeat readings. 

If you haven’t read Mary E. Wilkins Freeman’s work before, I strongly recommend seeking it out. She appears in many of the best ghost story anthologies and much of her writing is available (being in the public domain) online.

If you love ghost stories, our show Upon The Stair is now on sale. It’s touring early 2020 in Halifax, Salisbury and Harrogate. Tickets are on sale now. Grab yours here:

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24 December: Canon Alberic’s Scrapbook by M.R. James

(Read the story here)

Well, then, here we are at last! ‘Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even... a penwiper? No, no such thing in the house. A rat? No, too black. A large spider? I trust to goodness not — no. Good God! A hand! (If it’s possible to do Ghost Story in-jokes, that was one. But only until you’ve read this belter by M.R. James).

Canon Alberic’s Scrapbook was the very first James story I ever read (and the first he ever wrote). I read it at college and promptly forgot the author. Later, I picked up a very cheap collection of Monty’s tales - perhaps a 99p edition - rediscovered the tale and became a devotee. I used to read from the tatty little book every Christmas. I’ve upgraded, somewhat, to a gorgeous hardback of the complete tales. But I still have that book. Whenever I see it, it makes me feel automatically cosy and think of Christmas and of home. 

This chilling tale, then, is the story of Dennistoun who visits the glorious church of St Bertrand de Comminges. On monopolising the nervy sacristan for the day, Dennistoun finds himself rather quickly possession of a book from around, he estimates, AD 700. Inside, treasures beyond his wildest imagination and then... an image which has haunted each and every soul who has witnessed it, one way or another. 

This is yet another example of a story that seems to grow on each reading. Each new visit turns up more shades in the shadows, more strange laughter, more furtive looks between knowing, fearful experts. On the surface, it appears to be a rather simply story and perhaps its beauty is in this very fact. But, once again, the devil is in the detail: ready each sentence carefully, slowly and the true horror of Dennistoun’s pursuer presents itself far earlier than you might have earlier supposed. When the climax comes, you’ll be glad of the attention you paid. It’s utterly thrilling, terrifying and strange. I’ve never forgotten the first time I read that encounter - how powerful it was to read and how, even as the memory of the rest of the tale faded (before my second, third, fourth readings, of course) the horror of that bizarre, biblical encounter haunted my imagination. 

This is a glorious tale to round off Ghost Story Advent. It’s one of my all-time favourite stories and it has brought me much pleasure and cosy comfort over the years. If you get the chance, read it aloud (or better yet, have it read to you). These tales were meant to be spoken! 

And so, here we are, at the end of another Ghost Story Advent. Thank you for joining me on my annual ghostly ramble through these haunted vaults. Don’t forget, you can always go back and re-visit any tales you didn’t manage to read. I’ll keep them on this blog for you to dip back into. A Merry Christmas, season’s greetings and good will to all of you! See you next year...?

If you love ghost stories, we’re currently touring SHIVERS our theatre show. Shows are finished for 2018 but we begin again from 10 January. Three chilling tales with live violin accompaniment. Book tickets here. 

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22 December: Let Loose by Mary Cholmondeley

(Read the story here)

We’re twenty-two tales in to Ghost Story Advent and, at this point, I didn’t expect a tale to surprise me as much as ‘Let Loose’ by Mary Cholmondeley did. It begins familiarly enough with the set up for a ‘second hand’ ghostly encounter; someone recounting someone else’s story. There is an odd reference to the (eventual) storyteller’s high collars, which is intriguing and is, of course, the key to the entire story. 

What seems like a run of the mill story of an architect visiting a remote northern church to investigate a fresco in the bowels of an old church (standard) soon becomes something altogether darker and more strange. It has all the hallmarks of a modern vampire tale and yet it does something much more original. It’s comparisons to F.G. Loring’s ‘The Tomb of Sarah’ are, I think, unjust (I read that tale for GSA last year and did not care for it). This story, despite its clear understanding of gothic in terms of setting and atmosphere, I feel treads its own path. 

The narrator’s stern rationalism can seem cold at times and it’s quite hard to sympathise with him. I found some of the references to Yorkshire, Yorkshire folk and the certain horror derived from ‘the North’ in general a little patronising, rather than fun and affectionate. But, these things aside, Cholmondeley builds brilliant atmosphere throughout and isn’t afraid of savage plot points to keep the reader hooked. 

The surrounding characters are mysterious and their behaviour suitably odd. The sense of death which pervades ‘Let Loose’ serves to smother and suffocate in a very effective way. The title, too, is a belter - it’s so inviting. The crypt itself is scary (reminiscent of the catacombs in Paris) and the eventual backstory are peculiar and unnerving. It’s a skilfully composed story and cautiously, carefully walks the line between realism and the ridiculous. 

The climax is truly shocking. Cinematic and bold, it made me sit forward in my chair and quietly chunter to myself that what I’ll call the awful incident must be a misdirection or a fake-out. But it wasn’t. It’s a really tough moment. The denouement, though, is so satisfying (while at once harking back to Amicus horror in a gruesome and ludicrous show) that the awful incident feels necessary. It’s a gutsy little story to bring us into the final furlong of Ghost Story Advent. 

If you love ghost stories, we’re currently touring SHIVERS our theatre show. Shows are finished for 2018 but we begin again from 10 January. Three chilling tales with live violin accompaniment. Book tickets here.

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19 December: The Fortunes of Sir Robert Ardagh by J. Sheridan Le Fanu

(Read the story here)

J. Sheridan Le Fanu was much admired by M.R. James. It’s easy to see why Monty was so inspired by his elegant and lyrical prose but, for my money, James has the edge and his sense of priority in telling a good tale trumps Le Fanu’s sometimes meandering (if enchantingly-written) stories. 

‘The Fortunes of Sir Robert Ardagh’ is a tale of two halves. In the first, we get the story of Sir Robert Ardagh senior: his travels abroad, his gambling habits, his morose temperament and his untimely end, seemingly at the hand of some mysterious, shadowy acquaintance. Secondly, is the story of his heir (also called Robert) and his marriage and, again, subsequent demise. 

The story is atmospheric and, at times, thoroughly creepy. It is, for me, a little lacking in terms of narrative momentum and, though there for colour, characterisation and tension, I found many of the long passages detailing the circumstances that were unfolding a little tough to wade through.

The strange, recurring character who seems to spell the doom of each Sir Robert is intriguing (and, perhaps, an inspiration for a certain Count in James’s work...?). But, I wasn’t really hooked by this tale as I’d hoped I might be. I enjoy Le Fanu’s work immensely but this tale didn’t quite have the pace I wanted to a good and thrilling ghost story. 

Some of the imagery is grisly and brilliantly realised (the death of Sir R senior is quite horrible) and there’s plenty of Horace Walpole-esque Gothicism to really establish the mood. Worth reading for the language and writing alone, but don’t expect the short, sharp economy of James, Nesbit, Rolt et al. 

If you love ghost stories, we’re currently touring SHIVERS our theatre show. TONIGHT you can see us at The Haymarket in Basingstoke - it’s our final show of the year! Tickets on sale here. 

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17 December: Hear Not My Steps and The Garside Fell Disaster by L.T.C. Rolt

(Hear ‘The Garside Fell Disaster’ here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9wOQEANL4U)

I was recently introduced to L.T.C. Rolt by one of the participants of a Ghost Story Writing course that I ran in Leeds (thanks Jonathan!) The slender volume of fourteen short tales was bought for me and I’ve recently jumped in. Sometimes ghost stories need room to stretch their legs and to allow a narrative to unfurl slowly and organically (think The Woman in Black). Others spend thirty or so pages outstaying their welcome. Rolt’s work has arrived and left before many writers would have even finished their introductions. It’s pleasingly effective.

Because they are very short, I’ve decided to look at two stories. The first tale (from his collection Sleep No More) that I’ve chosen is ‘Hear Not My Steps’ - a knowing and intriguing reference to Macbeth. It begins with a description of a room. Simple, spooky and effective, it’s a room one would expect to find a ghost in. Instead, we find a tired and jaded psychical researcher on yet another investigation with no supernatural activity to speak of (much less, report on). A simple enough premise, a familiar enough trope. And then it changes. And then it changes again.

On the arrival of the apparition I was, frankly, a little disappointed. One thing I talk about in my writing workshops is ‘burying your treasure’. Readers will wait for good writers to reveal the secrets; we don’t need everything suddenly and all at once. But, I only needed wait a few lines to realise this was a ruse. There’s something more sinister - more dark, honest, upsetting - at play in Rolt’s short, sharp story. The climax is grisly, surprising and upsetting.

The tale - just three pages long - does an astonishing amount in a very short space of time and feels fresh and new in a genre Rolt so demonstrably has a deep love for and understanding of. It’s way, way smarter than it seems, too, and demands to be read at least twice to fully appreciate its depth. 

The second story is ‘The Garside Fell Disaster’. This, I believe, is Rolt’s most well-known tale. The subtitle of the book is ‘Railway, Canal and Other Stories of the Supernatural’ and this, indeed, is a story set on the railway. 

Perhaps the superlative railway-based ghost story is ‘The Signalman’ by Charles Dickens (which I included in a previous year for Ghost Story Advent). This story of Rolt’s will, of course, court similarities and there’s a familiar ‘premonition-not-ghost’ aspect to the tale. Yet, it retains its own solid identity and is a disturbing and memorable little thing. 

The story is told by a bluff Northerner called Alf Boothroyd. He has many years experience on the railways, as do most of his family. Later in his career he ends up as a signalman and, in this short tale, recounts the harsh conditions (”...you don’t know what snow is down here in the south...”) and savage landscape of (the fictional) Garside, where he is stationed. Along with his colleagues, Perce and Job, Alf begins to notice strange happenings in the Garside tunnel; occurrences which lead Job to quit his position and request a transfer. Some weeks later, a terrible, fatal event leads Alf to contemplate the significance and meaning of these bizarre incidents. 

The story has a wonderful matter-of-factness to it and an authentic Northernness that I recognise from many a tale told by men of a certain age down t’pub when I was growing up in Halifax. Alf is loveable but, obviously, a no nonsense sort of character. His account is both stubbornly told but has an air of apology and disbelief even as he tells it. The references to the smell of the tunnel felt both novel and, after reading the story, horrific. There’s an authenticity to the story which makes the final speculation, in particular, powerfully haunting. 

This book is a real treat and I’m delighted to add it to my ever-growing shelves of ghost stories. My advice: seek out Rolt’s tiny tales of terror.

By the way, if you love ghost stories, my play SHIVERS is currently touring and you can buy the book here. It’s a perfect Christmas present, too!

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16 December: The Diary of Mr Poynter by M.R. James

(Read the tale here: http://www.thin-ghost.org/items/show/137)

He’s back again - our third tale from the great M.R. James. Every year, when I do Ghost Story Advent, I worry that I’ve covered the best of Monty already. The more famous works such as ‘Oh, Whistle...’, ‘The Mezzotint’ and ‘A Warning to the Curious’, I’ve done. ‘The Stalls of Barchester Cathedral’, ‘Casting the Runes’, ‘The Ash Tree’, ‘The Tractate Middoth’, in the bag.  And so I now go to the (arguably) lesser known tales, such as ‘The Diary of Mr Poynter’. But, frankly, I needn’t ever worry...

This is an excellent, playful and cold-sweat-inducing story. It has all of the hallmarks of a Jamesian classic, too. An antique book, a squabbling nephew and aunt and... lots of hair. Our academic youngster in this story is Denton, who comes into possession of a diary belonging to one (you guessed it) Mr Poynter. Opting to visit an antique book store rather than collecting some chintzes (curtains, in this case) for his aunt. 

Happenstance leads to a discovery of an intriguing pattern sample which falls from the tome and tickles the fancy of both Denton and his aunt for the design of their new curtains. After having the pattern copied and the curtains made, the concealed history of the strange design begins to rear its hairy head. 

Some of the encounters in this story are extraordinarily effective. The curtains themselves become a source of horror in that way only James can achieve. That slight sliver of rationalism - that this may be explainable by science or merely common sense - leads us to a feeling of relative safety. The comedy between the two relatives, too, eases much of the tension. But when the wallop comes... my goodness, grab your bible. 

The backstory is grim and satisfying. There’s the sense that James has discovered a similar story and phenomenon and used this as the basis of the entire story. Whether this is the case or not, there’s an odd believability running through the majority of this tale, making it even more chilling and brilliant. 

By the way, if you love ghost stories, my play SHIVERS is currently touring and you can buy the book here. It’s a perfect Christmas present, too!

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11 December: The Snow by Hugh Walpole

(Read the story here)

Hugh Walpole is one of my very favourite ghost story writers. I would rank ‘The Tarn’, ‘The Little Ghost’ and the terrifying ‘Mrs Lunt’ very highly in my top 100 haunting tales, if I could ever bring myself to commit to such a list. ‘The Snow’ is another belting little tale, with humour, hideous character traits and several moments where the flesh rises in goosebumps. 

Walpole’s tales are always wryly funny, but with a real honestly at their core. He draws characters that are both flawed and sympathetic. The mistake, I think, some ghost story writers make is abandoning all sense of the human in favour of cartoonish scares and ghoulish grotesques. Not this guy. He understands people and pours this understanding into his writing. His work is brilliantly-paced, beautifully composed and, frequently, viscerally scary. 

The tale is short and simple. It has one of the finest and most telling opening paragraphs in any short story I’ve read (in fact, the second I read it I realised it was going to form the basis of a writing workshop I’m doing in the coming months): 

The second Mrs. Ryder was a young woman not easily frightened, but now she stood in the dusk of the passage leaning back against the wall, her hand on her heart, looking at the grey-faced window beyond which the snow was steadily falling against the lamplight.

It give us so much: who’s present, who’s absent; something of the nature of everybody involved in the story we’re about to read. It tells us the whole story and, yet, makes its impossible not to continue. What’s played out is a tale of insecurity, bitterness, sad union, loss, protectiveness, cruelty and fear. And all of this in nine pages, for crying out loud! And it takes place on Christmas eve. It could not be more perfect. 

Mrs Ryder (the second) is by turns monstrous, tragic, funny, smart, loving and hateful. She is clearly suffering and does not know how to express this. When she gets her ‘comeuppance’ (so to speak) it satisfying on a first read. On a second, however, it’s desperately sad. 

I read this story in a gorgeous collection called All Souls’ Night by Walpole. I implore you to find it and you can thank me later. 

If you love ghost stories, we’re currently touring SHIVERS our theatre show. Three chilling tales with live violin accompaniment. Book tickets here.

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10 December: The Affair at Grover Station by Willa Cather

(Read the story here)

In some cases with ghost stories, the scares and spooky episodes take centre stage and good storytelling falls by the wayside. It’s why I return to M.R. James so often. He spins a damned good yarn and the scares are there in anger. Willa Cather’s ‘The Affair at Grover Station’ is at once an economical, chilling and a fantastic tale. Her storytelling is second to none. It was a treat to read.

The story, essentially, is of two rivals who are both seeking the hand of one Miss Masterson at a forthcoming dance. We dig into the history of the two men, O’Toole and Freymark, and uncover a long-running dispute between them. O’Toole is established as an honourable, upstanding member of the community. Freymark is carved as a villain (in fact, within the recounted tale, there are some very uncomfortable moments which go way beyond xenophobia in the depiction of Freymark and I found each of these extremely, wince-inducingly unpleasant). There’s a bubbling tension from the word go and we’re aware things are not going to end well for O’Toole.

At the top of the tale, it establishes itself as a story of murder and jealousy. It is paced brilliantly and feels like a melodramatic mini-series episode, perhaps from the old Hitchcock Presents series. The supernatural elements are eerie and satisfying and there’s a good gut-punch in the final section which - in me at least - provokes a grin of macabre satisfaction. A fantastic story to kick off our next week of winter chillers!

If you love ghost stories, you can buy my book, SHIVERS, here. A perfect Christmas present for that special ghoul in your life. BUY IT HERE!