A Warning to the Curious (film)

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A Warning to the Curious
A Warning to the Curious title 1972.jpeg
Title screen
Based on"A Warning to the Curious"
by M. R. James
Written byLawrence Gordon Clark
Directed by Lawrence Gordon Clark
Starring
Production
ProducerLawrence Gordon Clark
Running time50 minutes
Original release
Release24 December 1972 (1972-12-24)
Related
A Ghost Story for Christmas

A Warning to the Curious is a short film, the second of the British supernatural anthology series A Ghost Story for Christmas . [1] Written, produced, and directed by the series' creator, Lawrence Gordon Clark, it is based on the ghost story of the same name by M. R. James, first published in the collection A Warning to the Curious and Other Ghost Stories (1925) and first aired on BBC1 on 24 December 1972. [2] At 50 minutes it is the longest instalment in the series' original run.

Contents

It stars Peter Vaughan as Paxton, an amateur archaeologist whose attempt to track down one of the three legendary crowns of East Anglia causes him to be followed by the ghost of its last guardian, William Ager (John Kearney). He seeks the assistance of the vacationing scholar Dr. Black (Clive Swift) in order to return the crown and end the haunting.

Since airing, the episode has received critical acclaim as one of the best in the series, and one of the greatest works of horror television ever made. [3] [4] It was the last to be written and produced by Clark under the BBC Documentary Unit; starting with the following year's "Lost Hearts", the series would be produced by Rosemary Hill under the Drama Department, and other writers would be brought in. [5] Though the series is traditionally regarded as airing on Christmas Eve, this was the last episode to do so until Whistle and I'll Come to You (2010).

Synopsis

Three crowns emblem at Saxmundham parish church, Suffolk, England Three crowns emblem.jpg
Three crowns emblem at Saxmundham parish church, Suffolk, England

In the 1930s the recently made unemployed Paxton (Peter Vaughan), an amateur archaeologist who has fallen on hard times during the Great Depression, travels to a remote seaside town in Norfolk to search for one of the three lost crowns of East Anglia, which, according to legend, protect the East Anglian coast from invasion. Paxton tracks down the location of the buried crown by discovering that the local Ager family have been the guardians of the crown and its burial site for generations. The last of the family was William Ager (John Kearney), who had died a few years previously. Upon unearthing the crown, Paxton is stalked by its supernatural guardian.

Realising the danger he is in, Paxton, with the assistance of his fellow hotel guest Dr Black (Clive Swift), reburies the crown in an attempt to appease the wrathful guardian spirit that watches over it; but the two men greatly underestimate the punishment that awaits those who are curious enough to dig for the crown.

The Shipwrights Arms at Wells-next-the-Sea was used as a location in the drama Shipwrights Arms Wells Norfolk.jpg
The Shipwrights Arms at Wells-next-the-Sea was used as a location in the drama

Cast

Production

In adapting the story, Clark changed the protagonist of the original from a young, innocent amateur who discovers the crown by accident to a middle-aged man (Peter Vaughan) who travels to Seaburgh specifically to find the crown. The era is updated to 1929, the background of the Depression adding an extra layer to Paxton's search for the treasure. [1] The narrative layering of the original James story is dispensed with and a chronological narrative is used instead. [6] Clark noted in a 2014 interview that he tried to make A Warning to the Curious as "essentially, a silent film, with the tension building slowly throughout the visual images". [7]

Clark also included the character of Dr. Black (Clive Swift), who first appeared in "The Stalls of Barchester".

Locations

"It is a fine porch, isn't it?" St Mary's Church in Happisburgh, Norfolk, a film location in "A Warning to the Curious". St Mary, Happisburgh, Norfolk - geograph.org.uk - 321510.jpg
"It is a fine porch, isn't it?" St Mary's Church in Happisburgh, Norfolk, a film location in "A Warning to the Curious".

For "A Warning to the Curious", "Seaburgh" (a disguised version of Aldeburgh, Suffolk) was filmed on the coast of North Norfolk at Holkham Beach and Holkham Wood at Holkham Gap, Happisburgh, Wells-next-the-Sea and at the Sheringham and Weybourne stations of the North Norfolk Railway. [8] [9] Clark recalls filming in North Norfolk in late February, with consistently fine cold weather "with a slight winter haze which gave exactly the right depth and sense of mystery to the limitless vistas of the shoreline there." [7]

Music

A Warning to a Curious did not have an original score composed for it, but although Clark talks about using "stock music", Adam Scovell, analysing the aural aesthetics of the BBC Ghost Stories, notes that the film makes use of what were then new, avant-garde classical works found in the BBC's gramophone library at Egton House. [10] György Ligeti's Atmosphères in particular is used within the film to signify the presence of the ghost of William Ager. [10]

Home video

"A Warning to the Curious" was first released on home video by the BFI alongside separate releases of "Whistle and I'll Come to You" (1968) and "The Signalman" (1976) on VHS in 2002 and DVD in 2003. [11] It was released on DVD in Australia in 2011 by Shock Entertainment as part of the box set The Complete Ghost Stories of M. R. James. [12]

In 2012, to mark the 150th anniversary of James' birth, it was rereleased on DVD by the BFI, now alongside "The Stalls of Barchester" (1971) in the same release, and the entire run of A Ghost Story for Christmas from 1971-2010 was released in a DVD box set, which was updated the following year to include additional material. [13] [14] All three releases featured an essay on "A Warning to the Curious" by writer Adam Easterbrook and a filmed introduction by Lawrence Gordon Clark.

In 2022 it was remastered in 2k resolution by the BFI and released on Blu-ray alongside "Whistle and I'll Come to You" (1968 and 2010), "The Stalls of Barchester", and "Lost Hearts" (1973) as Ghost Stories for Christmas - Volume 1. [15] This included Adam Easterbrook's essay, the Lawrence Gordon Clark introduction, and a newly-recorded commentary by TV historian Jon Dear.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">M. R. James</span> British author and scholar (1862–1936)

Montague Rhodes James was an English medievalist scholar and author who served as provost of King's College, Cambridge (1905–1918), and of Eton College (1918–1936) as well as Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge (1913–1915). James's scholarly work is still highly regarded, but he is best remembered for his ghost stories, which are considered by many critics and authors as the finest in the English language and widely influential on modern horror.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clive Swift</span> English actor and songwriter (1936–2019)

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Vaughan</span> English actor (1923–2016)

Peter Ewart Ohm, known professionally as Peter Vaughan, was an English actor known for many supporting roles in British film and television productions. He also acted extensively on stage.

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<i>A Ghost Story for Christmas</i> British television series

A Ghost Story for Christmas is a strand of annual British short television films originally broadcast on BBC One between 1971 and 1978, and revived sporadically by the BBC since 2005. With one exception, the original instalments were directed by Lawrence Gordon Clark and the films were all shot on 16 mm colour film. The remit behind the series was to provide a television adaptation of a classic ghost story, in line with the oral tradition of telling supernatural tales at Christmas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A Warning to the Curious</span> 1925 short story by M. R. James

"A Warning to the Curious" is a ghost story by British writer M. R. James, included in his book A Warning to the Curious and Other Ghost Stories first published in 1925. The tale tells the story of Paxton, an antiquarian and archaeologist who holidays in "Seaburgh" and inadvertently stumbles across one of the three lost crowns of East Anglia, which legendarily protect the country from invasion. Upon digging up the crown, Paxton is stalked by its supernatural guardian. Written a few years after the end of the First World War, "A Warning to the Curious" ranks as one of M. R. James's bleakest stories.

<i>A View from a Hill</i> (film) 2005 British television film directed by Luke Watson

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<i>The Stalls of Barchester</i> 1971 television ghost story

The Stalls of Barchester is a short film which serves as the first of the British supernatural anthology series A Ghost Story for Christmas. Written, produced, and directed by the series' creator Lawrence Gordon Clark, it is based on the ghost story "The Stalls of Barchester Cathedral" by M. R. James, first published in the collection More Ghost Stories (1911). It stars Robert Hardy as Archdeacon Haynes of the fictional Barchester Cathedral, whose mysterious death is investigated 50 years later by the scholar Dr. Black, and first aired on BBC1 on 24 December 1971.

<i>The Signalman</i> (film) 1976 television ghost story

The Signalman is a short film which is part of the British supernatural anthology series A Ghost Story for Christmas. Written by Andrew Davies, produced by Rosemary Hill, and directed by the series' creator, Lawrence Gordon Clark, it is based on the ghost story "The Signal-Man" (1866) by Charles Dickens, and first aired on BBC1 on 22 December 1976, the earliest airdate in the series relative to Christmas.

<i>Stigma</i> (1977 film) 1977 TV series or program

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The Ice House is a short film that is part of the British supernatural anthology series A Ghost Story for Christmas, and the final instalment of the original 1971-78 run. Written by John Bowen, who wrote the earlier instalment The Treasure of Abbot Thomas (1974), produced by Rosemary Hill, and directed by Derek Lister, it first aired on BBC1 on 25 December 1975, only the second of the films to air at Christmas after Lost Hearts (1973).

He was a British actor probably best known for playing opposite Rosamund Greenwood and Roy Evans in an acclaimed early film by director Tony Scott, Loving Memory, which was shown at the 1971 Cannes Film Festival. Other film roles included Daft Jamie in Burke & Hare (1971), one of the leads in the 1972 sex comedy The Love Pill, and a creditor in Christine Edzard's 1987 Dickens adaptation, Little Dorrit.

The Concerto for Cello and Orchestra is a cello concerto by György Ligeti written in 1966. It is dedicated to cellist Siegfried Palm, who gave the concerto its premiere performance.

<i>Whistle and Ill Come to You</i> (2010 film) Television drama

Whistle and I'll Come to You is a short film which is part of the British supernatural anthology series A Ghost Story for Christmas. Written by Neil Cross, produced by Claire Armspach, and directed by Andy De Emmony, it is based on the ghost story of the same name by M. R. James, first published in the collection Ghost Stories of an Antiquary (1904), and first aired on BBC Two on 24 December 2010. At 52 minutes it is the longest entry in the series' history.

<i>The Treasure of Abbot Thomas</i> (film) 1974 TV series or program

The Treasure of Abbot Thomas is a short film which serves as the fourth episode of the British supernatural anthology television series A Ghost Story for Christmas. Written by John Bowen, produced by Rosemary Hill, and directed by the series' creator, Lawrence Gordon Clark, it is based on the ghost story of the same name by M. R. James, first published in the collection Ghost Stories of an Antiquary (1904), and first aired on BBC1 on 23 December 1974.

<i>Lost Hearts</i> (film) 1973 TV series or program

Lost Hearts is a short film, the third of the British supernatural anthology series A Ghost Story for Christmas. Written by Robin Chapman, produced by Rosemary Hill, and directed by the series' creator, Lawrence Gordon Clark, it is based on the 1895 ghost story of the same name by M. R. James and first aired on BBC1 on 25 December 1973. It is the first instalment to have been broadcast on Christmas Day itself, and one of only three in the series' history.

<i>The Ash Tree</i> (film) 1975 TV series or program

The Ash Tree is a short film which is part of the British supernatural anthology series A Ghost Story for Christmas. Written by David Rudkin, produced by Rosemary Hill, and directed by the series' creator, Lawrence Gordon Clark, it is based on the ghost story "The Ash-tree" by M. R. James, first published in the collection Ghost Stories of an Antiquary (1904), and first aired on BBC1 on 23 December 1975.

<i>Casting the Runes</i> (Playhouse) 1979 British television drama

Casting the Runes is a supernatural television drama produced by ITV in 1979. Running at 50 minutes, it was based on the ghost story Casting the Runes by British writer and academic M. R. James, first published in 1911 as the fourth story in More Ghost Stories, which was James' second collection of ghost stories. Directed by Lawrence Gordon Clark for the series Playhouse, produced by Yorkshire Television, it was first broadcast on ITV on 24 April 1979. Adapted by Clive Exton, it reimagined the events of James's story taking place in a contemporary television studio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adaptations of works by M. R. James</span>

The author and medievalist M. R. James (1862-1936) wrote over 30 ghost stories, which have been widely adapted for television, radio, and theatre. The first adaptation of one of his stories was of A School Story for the BBC Midlands Regional Programme in 1932, the only one produced in James' lifetime. The only notable film adaptation is Night of the Demon (1957), directed by Jacques Tourneur and based on Casting the Runes, which is considered one of the greatest horror films of all time. The most celebrated adaptations of his works are those produced for British television in the 1960s and 1970s, which have made him, according to critic Jon Dear, “the go-to folk horror writer for television.”

References

  1. 1 2 Angelini, Sergio, A Warning to the Curious at the BFI 's Screenonline. Retrieved 7 July 2010.
  2. ↑ "A Warning to the Curious". British Film Institute Database. Archived from the original on 1 June 2009. Retrieved 22 August 2010.
  3. ↑ Scovell, Adam (2016-10-28). ""No diggin' 'ere!" – Revisiting the ghostly locations of A Warning to the Curious". BFI . Retrieved 2024-06-01.
  4. ↑ McGachey, Daniel (2021-11-13). "A Ghost Story for Christmas - A Warning to the Curious". Horrified Magazine. Retrieved 2024-06-02.
  5. ↑ Farquhar, Simon (30 June 2015). "Ghosts of Christmas past: M.R. James, Lawrence Gordon Clark and A Ghost Story for Christmas". Sight & Sound . Retrieved 2016-09-02.
  6. ↑ Duffy, Steve; Introduction to "A Pleasing Terror, The Complete Supernatural Writings", Ash-Tree Press 2001
  7. 1 2 D'Amico, John (12 February 2014). "An Interview with Lawrence Gordon Clark, Master of Ghostly Horror". Smug Horror.
  8. ↑ Burton, Nigel (22 August 2007). "A Warning to the Curious in Aldeburgh, Suffolk: East Anglia's Ghost Trail". worldtravelblog.co.uk. Archived from the original on 4 September 2010. Retrieved 2010-08-22.
  9. ↑ Fisher, Mark (15 April 2007). "Bleak and Solemn ..." abstractdynamics.org. Archived from the original on 20 August 2010. Retrieved 2010-08-22.
  10. 1 2 Scovell, Adam (20 October 2014). "The Aural Aesthetics of Ghosts in BBC Ghost Stories – Part 4 (Music)". Celluloid Wicker Man. Archived from the original on 2 April 2016. Retrieved 10 November 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  11. ↑ McCusker, Eamonn, "A Warning to the Curious - DVD review Archived 1 February 2014 at the Wayback Machine ". thedigitalfix.co.uk. May 2003. Retrieved 2010-08-23
  12. ↑ "Ghost Story for Christmas (A) AKA Ghost Stories for Christmas (TV) (1968-2022)". Rewind. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  13. ↑ BFI press release Archived 11 May 2012 at the Wayback Machine , Retrieved 2012-5-18
  14. ↑ BFI releases, retrieved 2014-1-21
  15. ↑ "Ghost Stories for Christmas: Volume 1". BFI. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
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