Ghost Stories for Christmas.
Two first time viewings for me.
The Signalman by Charles Dickens.
Like every one of these short films this is dripping in atmosphere. Denholm Elliott here brilliant plays the Signalman of the title (or does he?) a railway signal operator on a lonely remote stretch of the line. He is initially fearful when a hiker calls out to him but soon comes to appreciate the company and strikes up a friendship with the unnamed man referred to only as 'The traveller'. Brilliant, one of my favourites now.
Followed up by
Stigma. One of only two installments written specifically for the series and actually set in the present day.
While it's not bad this one wasn't a patch on The Signalman and is a step down from most of the episodes although it held my interest far better than The Ash Tree. This one tells of a family that have moved into a cottage in Wiltshire. In the garden is a huge stone that the husband (Peter Bowles) wants shifted. When workmen try hoisting the rock out strange events begin to occur. Not bad but not top tier like The Signalman or Lost Hearts.
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