Happy Halloween! We hope everyone has a safe, fun, and spooky evening!
For those who, like us, will be staying in, we thought this would be a good time to mention some one-off episodes of British TV shows that lean into themes of ghosts, hauntings, folk horror, and so on…
Agatha Raisin: The first episode of season 3 concerns a supposed haunting
Agatha Christie’s Poirot: “Hallowe’en Party” (S12 E2) comes to mind quickly, but there are a couple others you may also want to check out: “The Adventure of the Egyptian Tomb” (S5 E1) and “The Tragedy at Marsdon Manor” (S3 E6).
Midsomer Murders: Check out “Things That Go Bump in the Night” (S8 E1), “Night of the Stag” (S14 E6), “The Dark Rider” (S15 E1), and “The Ghost of Causton Abbey” (S20 E1).
Father Brown: Look for “The Ghost in the Machine” (S2 E1), “The Curse of Amenhotep” (S3 E2), and “The Mask of the Demon” (S4 E1).
Rosemary & Thyme: “The Tree of Death” (S1 E6)
Jonathan Creek: “Danse Macabre” (S2 E1), “Ghost’s Forge” (S3 E4), “The Seer of the Sands” (S4 E4), “Gorgon’s Wood” (S4 E6), “The Grinning Man” (S4 E7), “The Judas Tree” (S4 E8), “Daemon’s Roost (S5 E4) - these are all specials that came later in the series, but we’ve listed the episodes as numbered on BritBox.
Endeavour: “Harvest” (S4 E4), “Cartouche” (S5 E2)
Sister Boniface Mysteries: “The Book of Shadows” (S2 E4), “A Murder of Crows” (S4 E3)
Shakespeare & Hathaway: “O Thou Invisible Spirit of Wine” (S3 E9)
Whitstable Pearl: “Walking With Ghosts” (S3 E5)
If you’re looking for shows that are entirely concerned with spooky things, scroll down to the bottom of this email for that list.
True Halloween specials are actually quite rare in British TV (S4 E8 of My Family comes to mind) - and that’s mostly because Halloween isn’t as widely or enthusiastically celebrated in the UK. You can read more about the differences HERE.
What we’re…
Watching: The Woman in Black - I haven’t watched this one in a few years, and it’s great if you enjoy films that are more atmospheric and spooky than gruesome or horrifying. In it, Daniel Radcliffe plays a young solicitor sent to a remote marsh house, where he encounters a vengeful spectre.
Reading: What Child Is This? by Alice K Boatwright - As much as I love the spooky season, I spotted this Cotswolds-based cozy mystery on a free promotion today, so I now have one foot in the Christmas season. Ellie Kent’s Cotswolds Christmas turns into a cold-case hunt for a missing Oxford student, leading to an abandoned baby, a drama club, Ophelia-obsessed girls—and the possibility of a murderous “Hamlet.”
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THIS WEEK IN BRITISH TV
On BritBox, new episodes of season 3 of Beyond Paradise continue weekly through the 18th of November. The period drama Ten Pound Poms premiered on the 29th (two episodes, then weekly episodes).
On Acorn TV, new episodes of Murder Before Evensong, The Light in the Hall, and Summertide continue on Mondays. On November 3rd, they’ll add Season 2 of The Gone (new episodes air weekly), along with Season 2 of Black Snow and the film 45 Years.
On Netflix, Ballad of a Small Player premiered on the 29th. Colin Farrell stars as Lord Doyle, a corrupt English lawyer who's escaped prosecution by fleeing to the East.
On PBS and PBS Masterpiece, episodes of the new Maigret adaptation continue on Sundays.
On Amazon Prime Video, October 22nd brought the premiere of Harlen Coben’s Lazarus (binge premiere).
On AMC+, the Graham Norton Show continues with new episodes on Thursdays.
Over on Apple TV+, all episodes of Season 5 of Slow Horses are now available. Another Mick Herron adaptation, Down Cemetery Road, premiered on the 29th with two episodes (additional episodes weekly through December 10th). Emma Thompson and Ruth Wilson star in this Oxford-area thriller.
Don't get too attached. George and Nina aren't gonna like us after we kill their friend.
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