The Stalls of Barchester

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The Stalls of Barchester
Stalls of Barchester.jpg
Title screen, showing Barchester Cathedral. Doctor Black is seen passing through the arch.
Based on"The Stalls of Barchester Cathedral"
by M. R. James
Written byLawrence Gordon Clark
Directed by Lawrence Gordon Clark
Starring
Production
ProducerLawrence Gordon Clark
Running time45 minutes
Original release
Release24 December 1971 (1971-12-24)
Related
A Ghost Story for Christmas

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, [1] 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 (Clive Swift), and first aired on BBC1 on 24 December 1971. [2]

Contents

Clark was inspired to initiate the series by Whistle and I'll Come to You (1968), based on a James story and directed by Jonathan Miller for the BBC documentary strand Omnibus , and the oral tradition of telling ghost stories at Christmas of which James' stories were a part. It was commissioned by Paul Fox and, like Miller's film, produced by the BBC Documentary Unit; Clark's approach was likewise inspired by his background as a documentarian, particularly his insistence on location shooting at Norwich Cathedral on colour 16mm film, which would become hallmarks of the series' original run. [3]

Since airing, the film has received praise as a work of supernatural television and horror cinema, and as a strong inaugural instalment of what would become a long-running strand. [4] [5]

Plot

Whilst cataloguing the library of Barchester Cathedral in 1932, a scholar, Dr Black (Clive Swift) is shown a box containing a 50-year-old diary (sealed under the order of the Dean) detailing the events leading up to the mysterious death of Dr Haynes (Robert Hardy), a former Archdeacon of the cathedral. From the diary, Dr Black is able to piece together how the murder of Haynes' agéd predecessor, a 17th-century carving on the cathedral choir stalls and the appearance of a large black cat ultimately cursed the former archdeacon. [2] It is implied that Dr Haynes caused the death of his aged predecessor, and therefore falls under the curse of "Austin the Twice-Born", a carver who made the wooden decorations (the Devil, death and a black cat) of the cathedral's Archdeacon's stall from oak brought from a nearby wood and from a tree known locally as "The Hanging Oak".

Cast

The cast includes several actors now better known for their roles in situation comedies, or lighter dramas. [1]

Production

Norwich Cathedral's spire and south transept viewed from the cloisters. Norwich Cathedral from Cloisters, Norfolk, UK - Diliff.jpg
Norwich Cathedral's spire and south transept viewed from the cloisters.

In adapting the story for film, Clark set the story of the Archdeacon within the frame narrative of Dr Black's discovery of his diary, and the scholar's subsequent investigation into the origin of the carvings. Unlike the original story, the supernatural elements are shown, as opposed to being implied by the diary, albeit in shadowy glimpses. [1] The adaptation was filmed on location at Norwich Cathedral and the surrounding cathedral close. [2] Unusually for a BBC television drama of the 1970s, both interior and exteriors in "The Stalls of Barchester" were originated on 16 mm film, as opposed to the standard studio videotape for interiors. As a result of this, cameraman John McGlashan was able to make use of night shoots in dark, shadowy cloisters and rooms. [1]

The choir of Norwich Cathedral is featured during the scenes of the Anglican Evensong service, and the Nunc dimittis ("Lord, thou lettest now thy servant depart in peace"), Richard Ayleward's Preces and Responses and Henry Smart's Cathedral Psalter chant for Psalm 109 ("Let his days be few; and let another take his office") are used as a storytelling device. [1]

Home video

"The Stalls of Barchester" was first released on DVD in Australia in 2011 by Shock Entertainment as part of the box set The Complete Ghost Stories of M. R. James. [6]

In 2012, to mark the 150th anniversary of James' birth, "The Stalls of Barchester" was released on DVD by the BFI alongside A Warning to the Curious (1972) 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. [7] [8] All three releases featured an essay on The Stalls of Barchester by film historian Jonathan Rigby 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), "A Warning to the Curious", and "Lost Hearts" (1973) as Ghost Stories for Christmas - Volume 1. [9] This included Jonathan Rigby's essay, the Lawrence Gordon Clark introduction, and a newly-recorded commentary by critics Kim Newman and Sean Hogan.

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)

Clive Walter Swift was an English actor and songwriter. A classically trained actor, his stage work included performances with the Royal Shakespeare Company, but he was best known to television viewers for his role as Richard Bucket in the BBC sitcom Keeping Up Appearances. He played many other television and film roles.

<i>The Barchester Chronicles</i> 1982 British TV series or programme

The Barchester Chronicles is a 1982 British television serial produced by Jonathan Powell for the BBC. It is an adaptation by Alan Plater of Anthony Trollope's first two Chronicles of Barsetshire, The Warden (1855) and Barchester Towers (1857). The series was directed by David Giles. Location work was videotaped in and around Peterborough Cathedral, using locations such as the Deanery and Laurel Court.

<i>The Warden</i> Novel by Anthony Trollope

The Warden is a novel by English author Anthony Trollope published by Longman in 1855. It is the first book in the Chronicles of Barsetshire series, followed by Barchester Towers.

Lawrence Gordon Clark is an English television director and producer, screenwriter, and author, best known for creating the supernatural anthology series A Ghost Story for Christmas, which originally aired on BBC One from 1971–1978, with Clark directing all but the final instalment as well as writing and producing the first two, The Stalls of Barchester (1971) and A Warning to the Curious (1972). The first five of these were based on the ghost stories of M. R. James, as was Casting the Runes (1979) which he directed for the ITV drama anthology series Playhouse.

<i>Whistle and Ill Come to You</i> (1968 film) 1968 TV series or program

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

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<i>The Collected Ghost Stories of M. R. James</i>

The Collected Ghost Stories of M. R. James is an omnibus collection of ghost stories by English author M. R. James', published in 1931, bringing together all but four of his ghost stories.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A Warning to the Curious</span> 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>Number 13</i> (2006 film) 2006 TV series or program

Number 13 is a short film which is part of the British supernatural anthology series A Ghost Story for Christmas. Written by Justin Hopper, produced by Richard Fell, and directed by Pier Wilkie, 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 Four on 22 December 2006.

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

Stigma is a short film which is part of the British supernatural anthology series A Ghost Story for Christmas. Written by Clive Exton, produced by Rosemary Hill, and directed by the series' creator, Lawrence Gordon Clark, it first aired on BBC1 on 29 December 1975, the latest airdate in the series relative to Christmas. At 31 minutes 47 seconds, it is the shortest episode in the original run, being 3 seconds shorter than "The Ash Tree" (1975)

The Ice House is a short film which 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 on Christmas after "Lost Hearts" (1973).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Stalls of Barchester Cathedral</span> Ghost story by M.R. James

"The Stalls of Barchester Cathedral" is a ghost story by British writer M. R. James, originally published in 1910. It is included in his collection More Ghost Stories of an Antiquary.

<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 2005. At 52 minutes it is the longest entry in the series' history.

"The Haunted Dolls' House" (1923) is a short story by M. R. James, collected by him in A Warning to the Curious and Other Ghost Stories (1925). It was commissioned by Queen Mary, wife of George V, as a miniature book for her famous Dolls' House, which can still be seen in Windsor Castle. It is in many ways a typical James story, thematically linked to other works of his, especially "The Mezzotint". Though usually considered a story for adults, it has also been claimed as children's fiction.

<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>A Warning to the Curious</i> (film) 1972 TV series or program

A Warning to the Curious is a short film, the second 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 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. At 50 minutes it is the longest instalment in the series' original run.

<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 3 4 5 Kerekes, David (2003). Creeping Flesh: The Horror Fantasy Film Book. London: Headpress. pp. 12–15. ISBN   978-1-900486-36-1.
  2. 1 2 3 "The Stalls of Barchester". British Film Institute Database. Archived from the original on 1 June 2009. Retrieved 22 August 2010.
  3. ↑ Broughton, Lee (30 November 2020). "A Ghost Story for Christmas - The Stalls of Barchester". Horrified Magazine. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
  4. ↑ Bass, George (21 December 2021). "50 years of Ghost Stories for Christmas, the BBC's classic strand of festive terror". BFI . Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  5. ↑ Higson, Richard (9 November 2021). "A Ghost Story for Christmas - The Stalls of Barchester". Horrified Magazine. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
  6. ↑ "Ghost Story for Christmas (A) AKA Ghost Stories for Christmas (TV) (1968-2022)". Rewind. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
  7. ↑ BFI press release Archived 11 May 2012 at the Wayback Machine , Retrieved 2012-5-18
  8. ↑ BFI releases, retrieved 2014-1-21
  9. ↑ "Ghost Stories for Christmas: Volume 1". BFI. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
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