Broadcast on Yuletide evenings, most of the strand's episodes are adaptations of classic ghost stories by M. R. James, but one adapts a Charles Dickens story and another an Arthur Conan Doyle tale. Some are original stories written for the series. Gatiss has also expressed an interest in adapting the works of other authors, notably E. F. Benson, for the series.
Related works are: Whistle and I'll Come to You (1968), which was an influence on and occasionally included as part of the series; Schalcken the Painter (1979), an episode of the BBC's Omnibus which filled the slot vacated by this series the year before; and Casting the Runes (1979), a then-contemporary James adaptation made by Lawrence Gordon Clark, who directed all but one episode of the original series.
Original Run (1971 - 1978)
- The Stalls of Barchester (1971, M. R. James)
- A Warning To The Curious (1972, James)
- Lost Hearts (1973, James)
- The Treasure of Abbot Thomas (1974, James)
- The Ash Tree (1975, James)
- The Signalman (1976, Charles Dickens)
- Stigma (1977, original)
- The Ice House (1978, original)
Revival (2005 - present)
- A View From A Hill (2005, James)
- Number 13 (2006, James)
- Whistle and I'll Come To You (2010, James)
- The Tractate Middoth (2013, James)
- The Dead Room (2018, original)
- Martin's Close (2019, James)
- The Mezzotint (2021, James)
- Count Magnus (2022, James)
- Lot No 249 (2023, Arthur Conan Doyle)
Tropes
- Adaptation Expansion: In James' The Mezzotint, Mr. Williams has no connection to the titular artwork and he and his friends merely watch the events play out before donating the picture to a museum. Here, it turns out Williams is the last surviving descendent of Arthur Francis, whose heir was abducted by the malevolent ghost of a poacher he had executed, as depicted in the picture, and which turns up at the end to finish the family line for good...
- Adaptational Alternate Ending:
- The Mezzotint's ghost comes to claim Mr. Williams instead of the picture being given to a museum and never changing again.
- In Conan Doyle's "Lot No. 249", Smith and Lee both survive the events of story, whilst Bellingham flees to Sudan after Smith forces him to burn the mummy. In Gatiss' adaptation, however, Lee and Smith are both murdered by a second mummy Bellingham has acquired.
- Adaptational Location Change: Number 13 is set in an unnamed English cathedral town instead of Denmark.
- Adaptational Name Change: George Martin of Martin's Close becomes John Martin in the BBC adaptation.
- Age Lift: Paxton in A Warning to the Curious is now a middle-aged treasure hunter instead of a young amateur.
- Cast as a Mask: Used for a plot twist near the end of "A Warning to the Curious". The ghost tricks both the protagonist and the audience by disguising as Dr. Black. For most of the story, the ghost is portrayed by John Kearney, but for that one scene is played by the actor who plays the character it's impersonating.
- The Cameo: In the adaptation of Arthur Conan Doyle's Lot No. 249, John Heffernan plays Smith's unnamed friend, who is implied to be none other than Doyle's most famous character, who wasn't actually present in the original story.
- Composite Character:
- The unnamed narrator of Count Magnus is conflated with the titular character himself, narrating events from within his tomb.
- In Lot No. 249, Smith relates his tale to Doctor Plumptree Peterson. In the adaptation, Peterson is replaced by an unnamed character who is very heavily implied to be Sherlock Holmes!
- Creepy Changing Painting: The titular artwork in The Mezzotint gradually changes to depict a ghastly spectre creeping into a manor house and abducting a child.
- Death by Adaptation: Mr. Williams in The Mezzotint. Abercromie Smith and Monkhouse Lee in ''Lot No. 249" as well.
- Depraved Homosexual:
- Aubrey (from The Dead Room) either left his boyfriend to die or killed him rather than face the prospect of being exposed as gay.
- Lot No. 249 sees Bellingham twice unleashing the mummy on his former lover Lee, for warning Smith of Bellingham's dangerous nature. The second attempt is successful.
- Distant Finale: Count Magnus ends in the present day where it's revealed that the narrator was the Count all along, speaking from his tomb as he awaits further victims...just as two curious backpackers decide to investigate his mausoleum.
- Later-Installment Weirdness: For the original series, the first few stories were all adaptations of stories by M. R. James, except for a story by Charles Dickens, but the last two were original stories set in contemporary times (that is, the late '70s).
- Oddball in the Series:
- Of the original series, The Signalman, which is based on a story by Charles Dickens rather than by M. R. James.
- Of the revival, The Dead Room is an original story, and the only one that is set in contemporary times rather than the 1800s/early 1900s.
- Related in the Adaptation: Mr. Williams in The Mezzotint is now related to the Francis family, whose house is depicted in the titular picture. This does not lead to anything good.
- Setting Update: A Warning to the Curious takes place in the 1930s, A View From a Hill and The Tractate Middoth in the '50s, and The Mezzotint in 1923.
