As a Christmas treat in the late 1960s and 70s, the BBC produced adaptations of ghost stories based on the works of MR James, the Cambridge academic and author of some of the most spine-tingling tales in the English language, which were broadcast to terrified viewers in the dead of winter. This was a tradition that was briefly revived by the BBC between 2007 and 2010.
These adaptations, which have a subtlety and style all of their own, have been a major influence on many contemporary British horror filmmakers and have come to be some of the most sought after British TV titles by their legions of eager fans.
This volume Ghost Stories from the BBC pairs both versions of the terrifying Whistle and I'll Come to You: the 1968 adaptation directed by Jonathan Miller and starring Sir Michael Hordern, and the more recent reinterpretation, starring the legendary John Hurt, from 2010.
Jonathan Miller and Christopher Frayling discuss the 1968 version (2012, 3 mins)
Introduction to the 1968 version by horror writer Ramsey Campbell (2001, 16 mins)
MR James' original story 'Oh Whistle, and I'll Come to You, My Lad' read by Neil Brand (2001, 42 mins)
Ramsey Campbell reads his own MR James inspired story 'The Guide' (2001, 27 mins)
