Ghost stories

I like ghost stories, but I find most of them disappointing. I’m not into vampires, werewolves and demons, just pure ghost stories. I can only think of two classic ghost stories that deserve mention: The woman in black by Susan Hill and A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. Anybody got any more.

 

Recommend giving Uncanny on BBC Sounds a listen. Mostly ghost stories with the occasional UFO story thrown in.

 

This is a song about a supposed ghost at Heath between Wakefield and Normanton.

I was recently contacted by the current owner of Heath Old Hall inviting me to look around.

 

Wife sez give The Third Hotel a go.

 

Most of MR James' works are traditional ghost stories, Whistle and I'll Come to You, Turn of the Screw, a Warning to the Curious. Dickens' The Signalman is good and the TV adaptation is a Christmas Eve tradition. Some of the more recent Mark Gatiss Christmas ghot stories have been decent as well, Martin's Close and The Mezzotint were enjoyable.

 

The Changeling

 

Yep, highlight of every Christmas for me. There's a great BBC dvd box set with all the old 'Ghost Story for Christmas' dramas on. Essential viewing.

 

The scariest ghost film I've ever seen is the black and white Haunting of Hill House (not sure of the exact title) from the 1960's. Terrifying, and I never saw a ghost!

 

The Others and Sixth Sense are pure ghost stories. Very good too imho.

 

I took a picture of a ghost last year.
Well, I actually took a picture of an iced over mosaic floor, but when I got home there was a figure floating over it.

 

Talk to former Miners, wiv got some beauties.

 

I was never a big believer in ghosts and stuff until I saw this, this is a regular occurrence in our house, I still can’t explain it

 

I used to live in St Briavels castle, often considered the most haunted building in the UK. My dad was a youth hostel warden there. Plenty of ghosts stories from that place - some of which are included on various tv shows.

 

Borley Rectory, Beast of Berkeley Square, Amityville, Pendle Hill

 

"Lets Scare Jessica to Death" for me - just so creepy and unsettling

 

Aye, white horse in Melton Field Seam at Houghton Main. Apparently a pit pony that went berserk at shaft side and went down the shaft., another doing the rounds was, during the holiday period a Deputy went into one of the old disused seams as they often did to check gas levels etc, on his way back he got talking to a couple of guys near the shaft side. He then went to the shaft phone to call the winder to send the chair down for them. Winder says. What do you mean us, thar only one down there. He turned around and there was no-one there. Needless to say, the winder couldn’t get the chair down fast enough for him.

 

If you’re talking films there’s a few that are brill:

- The Awakening (proper old fashioned ghost story)
- The Orphanage (Spanish)
- The Devil’s Backbone (also Spanish)
- Hell House LLC - (very low budget, but very scary)
- The Innocents (the book on which it is based, The Turn of the Screw, is also worth reading)
- The House At the End of Time (an incredibly clever Venezuelan film - watch it closely, although you’ll probably want to rewatch it)

But the daddy of all things ghosts is the TV series, The Haunting of Hill House. It is absolutely brilliant. If you don’t know anything about if just watch it. Look out for the episode that is done in very few takes. But when you’ve watched it, read about it and I guarantee you’ll start rewatching it.

 

This was taken by my neighbour at a church Christmas fair. She saw nothing out of the ordinary until she developed it. I’ve never seen one either btw.

 

Forgot the turn of the screw and The Signalman. Great stories. I live in Cambridge and went to an MR James reading at the Leper Chapel. Very spooky.