Squire John Martin (
Wilf Scolding) is brought before 'the hanging judge' George Jeffreys (
Elliot Levey) for the murder of Anne Clark (
Jessica Temple) who, in the words of the prosecutor Dolben (
Peter Capaldi) “
was one to whom Providence had not given the full use of her intellects.”, and who has, since her murder, been heard and seen around the village.
Originally published in 1911 in '
More Ghost Stories' this is perhaps one of
M.R. James' lesser stories but one eminently suitable for a low-key adaptation. Screenwriter / director
Mark Gatiss does just this with a minimal but well chosen cast although, as welcome a presence as
Simon Williams is, Gatiss' decision to retain the presence of the narrator is an odd one that splits the telling over different eras pulling us jarringly from the story. It is short on chills but with an excellent cast and a lively script that keeps the line between haunting, madness and revenge nicely blurred it's an entertaining enough watch
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