
M.R. James
Writing
Biography
Montague Rhodes James OM FBA was an English author, medievalist scholar and provost of King's College, Cambridge (1905–1918), and of Eton College (1918–1936). He was Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge (1913–15). James is best remembered for his ghost stories, which some consider among the best in the genre. He redefined the ghost story for the new century by abandoning many of the formal Gothic clichés of his predecessors and using more realistic contemporary settings. However, his protagonists and plots tend to reflect his own antiquarian interests. Accordingly, he is known as the originator of the "antiquarian ghost story".
Known For

Omnibus was an arts-based BBC television documentary series, broadcast mainly on BBC1 in the United Kingdom. The programme was the successor to the long-running arts-based series 'Monitor'. It ran from 1967 until 2003, usually being transmitted on Sunday evenings. During its 35-year history, the programme won 12 Bafta awards. Among the series' best remembered documentaries are Cracked Actor, a profile of David Bowie, and Rene Magritte, a graduate film by David Wheatley, 'Madonna: Behind the American dream', a film produced by Nadia Hagger, and a profile of the British film director Ridley Scott. For a season in 1982, the series was in a magazine format presented by Barry Norman. The series was replaced by 'Imagine' hosted by Alan Yentob.
Omnibus

ITV Playhouse is a British comedy-drama TV series that ran from 1967 to 1983, which featured contributions from playwrights such as Dennis Potter, Rhys Adrian and Alan Sharp. The series began in black and white, but was later shot in colour and was produced by various companies for the ITV network, a format that would inspire Dramarama. Actors appearing in the series included Leslie Anderson, Gwen Nelson, Ricky Alleyne, Pat Heywood, Michael Elphick, Ian Hendry, Edward Woodward, Margaret Lockwood, Jessie Matthews and Lloyd Peters.
ITV Playhouse

Mystery and Imagination is a British television anthology of classic horror and supernatural dramas. Five series were broadcast from 1966 to 1970 on ITV and produced by ABC and Thames Television.
Mystery and Imagination

A strand of annual British short television adaptations of classic ghost stories, referencing the oral tradition of telling supernatural tales at Christmas. First broadcast on BBC One from 1971 to 1978, and revived in 2005 on BBC Four.
A Ghost Story for Christmas

American professor John Holden arrives in London for a conference on parapsychology only to discover that the colleague he was supposed to meet was killed in a freak accident the day before. It turns out that the deceased had been investigating a cult lead by Dr. Julian Karswell. Though a skeptic, Holden is suspicious of the devil-worshiping Karswell. Following a trail of mysterious manuscripts, Holden enters a world that makes him question his faith in science.
Night of the Demon

In a Gothic cathedral built on the mass grave of a Teutonic purge, an ancient discovery by the new librarian will release an unholy maelstrom of madness, violence, and demonic vengeance.
The Church

Horror legend Christopher Lee hosts and narrates a series of four half hour ghost stories all based on stories by M.R. James. 'The Stalls of Barchester', 'The Ash Tree', 'Number 13' and 'A Warning to the Curious' are the tales told.
Ghost Stories for Christmas

Five partially-dramatized readings of classic M.R. James ghost stories by actor Robert Powell. Including "The Mezzotint", "The Ash-Tree", "The Rose Garden", "Wailing Well" and "Oh, Whistle, and I'll Come to You, My Lad".
Classic Ghost Stories

1923. In the heart of an old English college, Edward Williams receives an engraving of of an unknown country house with an imposing facade, a sweeping lawn - and, just perhaps, something else.
A Ghost Story for Christmas: The Mezzotint

A young squire accused of murdering a young girl that did not return his feelings of love reveals a supernatural secret at his trial.
Martin's Close

After placing his ailing wife Alice in a care home, elderly academic James Parkin goes to stay at a wintry out-of-season hotel which they used to visit together. But at night he seemingly becomes the victim of a ghostly revenge - but who is the avenger?
Whistle and I'll Come to You

In order to authenticate some historical papers in a cathedral town, Oxbridge academic Anderson stays at a local hotel in room 12, initially disregarding the lack of a number 13 as provincial superstition. During the night, noise conspires to keep him awake and the historian is astonished to come face to face with door number 13. Continuing his work, a history of a reformation era witchcraft scandal emerges. The nocturnal disturbances escalate, leading Anderson with no choice but to open the door to room number 13...
Number 13

A university professor, confident that everything which occurs in life has a rational explanation, finds his beliefs severely challenged when, during a vacation to a remote coastal village in Norfolk, he blows through an ancient whistle discovered on a beach, awakening horrors beyond human understanding.
Whistle and I'll Come to You

Presents a rare selection of innovative stories in literature from gothic to science fiction.
The Charm of the Unusual

The inquisitive Mr Wraxhall discovers that a long-dead Swedish nobleman does not lie easy in his tomb.
A Ghost Story for Christmas: Count Magnus

Paxton, an amateur archeologist, travels to the town of Seaburgh and inadvertently stumbles across one of the lost crowns of Anglia, which, according to legend, protect the county from invasion. On digging the crown up, Paxton is stalked by its supernatural guardian.
A Warning to the Curious

The producer of an investigative television programme which is critical of an occultist finds out that he has a curse put on her.
Casting the Runes

Scholar Dr. Black's seemingly mundane assignment of sorting through the assets of the Barchester Cathedral library takes an eerie turn when he comes across the papers of the late Archdeacon, who plotted to gain his position through murder. However, he soon comes to discover something truly horrific about the wooden choir stalls in the church, which are tied to a famous local tree and a sinister local legend.
The Stalls of Barchester

The chilling story of Dr Rant, whose wicked streak continues from beyond the grave. Based on the festive ghost story by MR James. When a relative comes to find a particular book at the university library, young student Garrett is drawn into a family feud over a will and its legacy - with terrifying consequences.
The Tractate Middoth

A young orphan, Stephen, is sent to go and live with his strange, much older cousin at his remote country house. Once there, Stephen experiences terrible dreams in which he sees a young girl and boy who are missing their hearts.