J. Sheridan Le Fanu: A BBC Radio Full-Cast Gothic Horror Collection

One of the leading ghost story writers of the Victorian era, Sheridan Le Fanu is renowned for his chilling tales of mystery and horror. His pioneering lesbian vampire novella Carmilla was a major influence on Bram Stoker's Dracula, and spawned numerous film adaptations including Hammer Horror's Karnstein Trilogy.

Opening this anthology is a dramatisation of that classic tale, starring as Laura, the lonely girl living in a solitary Austrian castle, who strikes up a dangerous friendship with the mysterious, bewitching Carmilla. It is followed by 's reading of 'Schalken the Painter', the eerie story of a 17th Century Flemish artist in love with his master's daughter.

Le Fanu's suspenseful Gothic thriller, Uncle Silas, about a young heiress placed under the guardianship of her father's disgraced brother, is dramatised with a full cast including and . Also featured is The Le Fanu Ballads, a supernatural portmanteau drama bridging Le Fanu's era and our world today. Based on the short stories 'The Watcher', 'Madam Crowl's Ghost', 'Schalken the Painter' and 'Mr Justice Harbottle', and set in a basement nightclub in Dublin, it stars and .

One unabridged readings conclude our collection. In 'The Ghost and the Bonesetter', read by , a terrified house-sitter receives an unusual request from the tyrannical spirit of a local squire.

Cast and credits
Written by Sheridan Le Fanu
First published 1838 ('The Ghost and the Bonesetter'), 1839 ('Schalken the Painter'), 1847 ('The Watcher'), 1864 (Uncle Silas), 1871 ('Madam Crowl's Ghost'), 1872 (Carmilla, 'Mr Justice Harbottle')


Cast: , , , , , , ,
Dramatised by Don McCamphill. Produced by Lawrence Jackson
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 5 June 2003


Read by Ian McDiarmid. Produced by Lawrence Jackson
First broadcast BBC Radio 7, 29-30 May 2006


Cast: , , , , , , , , , ,
Dramatised by Alan Drury. Directed by Enyd Williams
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 8-22 October 1995


Cast: , , , ,
Sheridan Le Fanu's ghost stories adapted by Neil Brand
Directed by Tracey Neale.
Music composed and played by Neil Brand, with 'Nuala's Ballad' sung by Ruth Everett
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 17 April 2022


Read by Sean Barrett. Produced by Gemma Jenkins
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 23 September 2001

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