The Stalls of Barchester
Episode of A Ghost Story for Christmas / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"The Stalls of Barchester" is a short film which serves as the first episode of the British supernatural anthology television 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]
"The Stalls of Barchester" | |||
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A Ghost Story for Christmas episode | |||
![]() Title screen, showing Barchester Cathedral. Doctor Black is seen passing through the arch. | |||
Episode no. | Episode 1 | ||
Directed by | Lawrence Gordon Clark | ||
Written by | Lawrence Gordon Clark | ||
Based on | "The Stalls of Barchester Cathedral" by M. R. James | ||
Produced by | Lawrence Gordon Clark | ||
Original air date | 24 December 1971 (1971-12-24) | ||
Running time | 45 minutes | ||
Guest appearances | |||
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Episode chronology | |||
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List of episodes |
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 insistance 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 inaugral instalment of what would become a long-running strand.[4][5]