Episode List
With the exception of the final film, the tales were directed by Lawrence Gordon Clark and produced by Rosemary Hill. The final 1978 episode was directed by Derek Lister, after which the series was discontinued.
Title | Author | UK broadcast date | Description | Main cast |
The Stalls of Barchester | M. R. James, adapted by Lawrence Gordon Clark | 24 December 1971 | An ambitious cleric murders an aged Archdeacon at Barchester Cathedral. However, he is soon being stalked by a sinister black cat and by a hooded figure both of whom seem to be embodiments of carvings on the cathedral's choir stalls. | Robert Hardy, Clive Swift, Thelma Barlow |
A Warning to the Curious | M. R. James, adapted by Lawrence Gordon Clark | 24 December 1972 | An amateur archaeologist travels to a remote seaside town in Norfolk to search for the lost crown of Anglia, but after unearthing it is haunted by a mysterious black figure. | Peter Vaughan, Clive Swift |
Lost Hearts | M. R. James, adapted by Robin Chapman | 25 December 1973 | An orphan moves into the house of his uncle, but is disturbed by visions of a pair of ghostly children. Is their message a warning to be fearful of his uncle's obsession with immortality? | Simon Gipps-Kent, Joseph O'Conor |
The Treasure of Abbot Thomas | M. R. James, adapted by John Bowen | 23 December 1974 | A respected theologian and his protégé unearth clues to find the hidden treasure of a disgraced monk in an abbey library. Should he have heeded his own advice not to go treasure hunting? | Michael Bryant, Paul Lavers |
The Ash Tree | M. R. James, adapted by David Rudkin | 23 December 1975 | An aristocrat inherits his family estate and is haunted by visions of his ancestor's role in a witchcraft trial. | Edward Petherbridge, Preston Lockwood |
The Signalman | Charles Dickens, adapted by Andrew Davies | 22 December 1976 | A railway signalman tells a curious traveller how he is being troubled by a ghostly spectre that seems to predict calamity. | Denholm Elliott, Bernard Lloyd |
Stigma | Clive Exton | 28 December 1977 | After a young couple move into a remote country house in the middle of a stone circle, workmen disturb an ancient menhir, unleashing a supernatural force. | Kate Binchy, Peter Bowles |
The Ice House | John Bowen | 25 December 1978 | Residents at a health spa begin to suspect a strange flower growing in an old ice house in the grounds may be the cause of a series of misfortunes. | John Stride, Geoffrey Burridge |
Read more about this topic: A Ghost Story For Christmas
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