GHOST STORIES FOR CHRISTMAS

Originally broadcast in the dying hours of Christmas Eve, the BBC's A GHOST STORY FOR CHRISTMAS series was a fixture of the seasonal schedules throughout the 60's and 70's. Tucked away from the more joyous yuletide celebrations late at night, the hour-long films gave viewers an extra winter chill, continuing a long tradition of spooky stories that undercut the seasonal cheer. The films are classic slow-burners. There's no rush to get to the scares, nor any false jump-shocks to punctuate proceedings; just a buildup of dread, taking time to concoct a thick atmosphere of unease, with strange, intriguing characters, things glimpsed out of the corner of the eye, and then great payoffs that are impossible to completely shake off.

This year's program includes:

A WARNING TO THE CURIOUS (1972)

An unemployed treasure hunter digs up an ancient crown and discovers its guardian hasn’t let death interfere with his duties. A merciless M.R. James adaptation that makes the open English coastline feel impossibly claustrophobic: nowhere to hide, and a black figure coming across the sand.

THE ASH TREE (1975)

A country gentleman inherits an estate poisoned by his ancestor’s witch-hunting. Adapted by PENDA’S FEN writer David Rudkin, this second M.R. James nightmare gives aristocratic comfort a hideous underside, with something hungry stirring in the tree outside the bedroom window.