Ghost Stories of an Antiquary
Encyclopedia
Ghost Stories of an Antiquary is the title of M. R. James' first collection of ghost stories, published in 1904 (some had previously appeared in magazines). Some later editions under this title contain both the original collection and its successor, More Ghost Stories
(1911), combined in one volume.
Montague Rhodes James (1862–1936) was a medieval scholar; Provost
of King's College, Cambridge
. He wrote many of his ghost stories to be read aloud in the long tradition of spooky Christmas Eve
tales. His stories often use rural settings, with a quiet, scholarly protagonist getting caught up in the activities of supernatural forces. The details of horror are almost never explicit, the stories relying on a gentle, bucolic background to emphasise the awfulness of the otherworldly intrusions.
.
After Jonathan Miller
adapted "Oh, whistle and I'll come to you, my lad"
for Omnibus in 1968, several stories from the collection were adapted as the BBC's yearly Ghost Story for Christmas
strand, including "Lost Hearts
", "The Treasure of Abbot Thomas
", "The Ash Tree
" and "Number 13
". "Whistle and I'll Come to You
" was also heavily adapted by Neil Cross
for broadcast on Christmas Eve 2010.
More Ghost Stories
More Ghost Stories is the title of M. R. James' second collection of ghost stories, published in 1911. Some later editions under the title Ghost Stories of an Antiquary contain with the preceding "Ghost Stories of an Antiquary" in one volume....
(1911), combined in one volume.
Montague Rhodes James (1862–1936) was a medieval scholar; Provost
Provost (education)
A provost is the senior academic administrator at many institutions of higher education in the United States, Canada and Australia, the equivalent of a pro-vice-chancellor at some institutions in the United Kingdom and Ireland....
of King's College, Cambridge
King's College, Cambridge
King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. The college's full name is "The King's College of our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge", but it is usually referred to simply as "King's" within the University....
. He wrote many of his ghost stories to be read aloud in the long tradition of spooky Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve refers to the evening or entire day preceding Christmas Day, a widely celebrated festival commemorating the birth of Jesus of Nazareth that takes place on December 25...
tales. His stories often use rural settings, with a quiet, scholarly protagonist getting caught up in the activities of supernatural forces. The details of horror are almost never explicit, the stories relying on a gentle, bucolic background to emphasise the awfulness of the otherworldly intrusions.
Contents of the original edition
- "Canon Alberic's Scrap-BookCanon Alberic's Scrap-Book"Canon Alberic's Scrap-Book" is the first story in the first collection of ghost stories published by M. R. James, Ghost Stories of an Antiquary...
" - "Lost Hearts"
- "The Mezzotint"
- "The Ash-Tree"
- "Number 13"
- "Count Magnus"
- "'Oh, Whistle and I'll Come to You, My LadOh, whistle and I'll come to you, my ladOh, whistle and I'll come to you, my lad is the title and refrain of a 1793 poem and song by Robert Burns.In 1904 it was used as the title of a ghost story in the book Ghost Stories of an Antiquary by Montague Rhodes James in which a man digs up a bronze whistle in a possible Templar preceptory...
'" - "The Treasure of Abbot Thomas"
Adaptations
"The Mezzotint" was adapted as "The Lost Will of Dr. Rant" during the 1950s for the NBC television series Lights OutLights Out (radio show)
Lights Out is an extremely popular American old-time radio program, an early example of a network series devoted mostly to horror and the supernatural, predating Suspense and Inner Sanctum...
.
After Jonathan Miller
Jonathan Miller
Sir Jonathan Wolfe Miller CBE is a British theatre and opera director, author, physician, television presenter, humorist and sculptor. Trained as a physician in the late 1950s, he first came to prominence in the 1960s with his role in the comedy revue Beyond the Fringe with fellow writers and...
adapted "Oh, whistle and I'll come to you, my lad"
Whistle and I'll Come to You
Whistle and I'll Come to You is the name of two BBC television drama adaptations based on the ghost story "Oh, Whistle, And I'll Come To You, My Lad" by Victorian and Edwardian academic and supernatural writer M. R. James. The story tells the tale of an introverted academic who happens upon a...
for Omnibus in 1968, several stories from the collection were adapted as the BBC's yearly Ghost Story for Christmas
A Ghost Story for Christmas
A Ghost Story for Christmas is a strand of annual British short television films originally broadcast on BBC One from 1971 to 1978, and later revived in 2005 on BBC Four. With one exception, the original instalments are directed by Lawrence Gordon Clark and the films are all shot on 16 mm...
strand, including "Lost Hearts
Lost Hearts
"Lost Hearts" is a ghost story by M.R. James, found in his 1904 book Ghost Stories of an Antiquary. The tale tells the story of Stephen, a young boy who is sent to stay with his uncle at a remote country mansion. His uncle is a reclusive alchemist obsessed with making himself immortal...
", "The Treasure of Abbot Thomas
The Treasure of Abbot Thomas
"The Treasure of Abbot Thomas" is a ghost story by M.R. James, found in his book Ghost Stories of an Antiquary. The original tale tells the story of Rev...
", "The Ash Tree
The Ash Tree
"The Ash-tree" is a ghost story by M.R. James, found in his 1904 collection Ghost Stories of an Antiquary. The tale documents the tale of Sir Richard Castringham, who has just inherited a country seat with an unfortunate history. The house has been cursed since the day his ancestor, Sir Matthew,...
" and "Number 13
Number 13 (short film)
Number 13 is the second of three recent adaptations of ghost stories by M.R. James broadcast by the BBC in a loose revival of the A Ghost Story for Christmas tradition of the 1970s. Following A View from a Hill the previous year and preceding Whistle and I'll Come to You in 2010, the forty minute...
". "Whistle and I'll Come to You
Whistle and I'll Come to You
Whistle and I'll Come to You is the name of two BBC television drama adaptations based on the ghost story "Oh, Whistle, And I'll Come To You, My Lad" by Victorian and Edwardian academic and supernatural writer M. R. James. The story tells the tale of an introverted academic who happens upon a...
" was also heavily adapted by Neil Cross
Neil Cross
Neil Cross is a Booker Prize nominated novelist, crime writer and television scriptwriter born and raised in the United Kingdom, and now living in Wellington, New Zealand.-Life:...
for broadcast on Christmas Eve 2010.
External links
(Part 2)- LibriVoxLibriVoxLibriVox is an online digital library of free public domain audiobooks, read by volunteers and is probably, since 2007, the world's most prolific audiobook publisher...
public domain audio-recording: Ghost Stories of an Antiquary by M. R. James