To really miss traditional ghost story movies?

I completely agree about the Dead of Night.
The Ventriloquist story is the best and most famous. It frightened the life out of me. I always hated ventriloquist dummies after seeing that.
Also the one where the girl meets the little boy who's crying because his sister was hurting him. Sad and very spooky.

I was going to say the baby monitor episode too! Put me off baby monitors for life 😂

My first thought when I real this thread title, was, you have to watch The Changeling.

The Living and the Dead was enjoyable, pity it wasn't renewed after one short season.

The baby monitor one gave me sleepless nights and I'm a hardened horror fan.
I don't know why the series doesn't get talked about more

Yes - that’s great. I just think it’s nigh on impossible to do a spooky TV film in less than an hour. The point is to gradually build the suspense and dread and you can’t do it I’m less time than that. The BBC should realise this!

Oh gosh yes, I had totally forgotten about this. Unsettling is the word.

One of my absolute favourites is The Signal-Man which was made into a film in 1976. Genuinely spooky.

I’ve got a collection of the older Ghost Stories For Christmas, I think Christopher Lee reads some (all) of them and I’ve got the original Whistle and I’ll Come To You with Michael Hordern which is well worth tracking down. Plus some of the more recent ones, there have been a lot but I could only find one on iPlayer yesterday. I didn’t look very hard though

I’m glad this tradition has been revived and I have a lot of respect for Mark Gatiss, but … I have to admit I’ve been disappointed by his adaptations. I think it’s partly because the BBC only allow half an hour and that’s just not enough to develop the atmosphere or tension in a ghost story. I’ve found the recent offerings very unspooky.

The old BBC adaptations of M R James were good - the best by far is The Stalls of Barchester. There’s also at least one of Whistle and I’ll Come to You and a very good version of The Three Crowns.

Shalcken the Painter (Sheridan le Fanu) was also dramatised well in the distant

For my money the best TV adaptation of a ghost story is Afterwards (Edith Wharton). I think it’s on YouTube - a masterpiece.

Also on YouTube, The Strawberry Tree by Ruth Randell. Not exactly a ghost story but absolutely terrifying and haunting.

There’s a ghost story for Christmas most years. Often Mark Gatiss, often MR James. Real classics

I love a good ghost story. No extreme violence or horror please. I do watch crime series but I'm getting fed up of beautiful-woman-gets-killed-by-male-psychopath. Most of my faves have been mentioned already.

The Others and Sixth Sense are hard to beat.

Woman in Black - spoiled for me somewhat by watching it in the cinema behind a shrieky girl who yelled just before every fright, which she spotted a fraction of a second before I did!

What Lies Beneath - excellent.

The Haunting of Hill House - OK. The Haunting of Bly Manor - I gave up after one episode when I realised it was based of The Turn of the Screw, which I've read and hated. I've sworn off Henry James, his writing style is as subtle as a brick.

Sleepy Hollow was good.

The Terror (TV series) - some gore but I liked this one.

Crimson Peak, yes!

Afterlife - really good

There must be more, but I'm struggling to think of them.

I also liked Marchlands and Lightfields (think I’m remembering the right ones) on TV a few years ago. Going back many, many years, Dramarama Spooky used to terrify me. They’d probably seem really corny now.

I do like horror and fantasy as well but proper ghost stories are more frightening for me. Thanks for all the recommendations.

I have found my type of person. I agree, I love a ghost story. My favorite is The Changeling (not the angelina Jolie one) and The Haunted based on the smirl family. Those two scared the shit out of me as a kid.

The Others is on Film 4 at some point either this week or next. I saw it while flicking through the movies coming up from now until Halloween. Can’t recall which day though 🤔

Agree that J horror and K horror are great for ghost stories.
Would particularly recommend A Tale of Two Sisters, it’s terrifying and heartbreaking - so well done.

I will pluck up the courage to watch the film!

The Power, British movie from 2021. Very tense, creeping dread

@CoffeeCantata interesting, I would've thought you'd need the context of the whole film to find that really scary.

It is a superb bit of cinema.

I haven’t watched the whole film….too scared to…but Insidious has a very spooky scene….the one with Tiptoe through the Tulips. Have a look on YouTube if you’ve never seen it. Subtly terrifying…but I think the film also contains less subtle special jump scares which put me off a bit because they’re usually so heavy-handed and spoil things.

I hate violence and gore too . it’s too realistic , somewhere in the world some sick fuck is torturing women/ people in cabins/ honeymoon couples for real.

A good ghost story explains those things you know aren’t real but could be.
I’d add “What Lies Beneath ” to the pile. I love the way it’s a thriller and it’s not a ghost story until halfway through.

Terrifying! Do not watch if alone. And made on a tiny budget, I think. Just goes to show that extravagant special effects aren’t everything.

Yeah its spainish.

I just find a lot recently the build up is good and there is tense moments but its like they cant think of ending so its always something disappointing or rushed. Or some odd reveal like not a ghost but someone in the walls..

Hill house/Bly manor just found so moving because you cared in a way!

I liked the older older conjuring films but the last few..again decent concept and halfway just went a bit odd!

Also The Halfway House (another old but spooky one) and The House on Marsh Road (or Lane….can’t remember).

everyone talking about 00s horror? did none of you
see the Scary Movie franchise? ruined them all!