Of Ghosts and Ghouls and Goblins...

One of my favourite moments this Christmas was watching the re-imagining of 'Whistle and I'll Come To You' - now usually, I have a lot of problems with remakes: the majority of them tend to be unimaginative cash-in efforts made by people who have spent the minimum required time to even grasp the original effort.

However this being the BBC and Mr. John Hurt; a terrific actor by anyone's standards, being the lead, I found myself slowly getting excited.

And it turns out with good reason, too. After last year's disappointing effort by Mark Gatiss, here, finally, was a ghost story which although clearly inspired by some modern names , managed to instill in the audience an increasing sense of dread and ended on the sort of note that keeps coming back to haunt you at night.

I've always been a big fan of old-fashioned ghost stories. Although most modern horror leaves me cold, the Pan Horror Collections of the late 60s/early 70's continue to throw up gems which can send shivers up anyone's spine.

ON top of this we are privy to some of the best radio adaptation in the world: and with the advent of digital radio more and more old time radio content becomes available at the drop of a hat. For me this is geek nirvana.

The scariest show I know is 'Fear On Four' - a BBC produced anthology which has had an on and off life all over the last couple of decades. I've still not managed to listen to every episode of the show not because of the difficulty in finding the episodes but simply because there is nothing as scary and I simply don't want to run out of broadcasts.

I know many people find it difficult enjoying radio plays - for me though there is nothing like dimming the lights and sitting down with a snifter of cognac and letting your imagination run wild.

Yesterday also brought about a small session of Ghost Stories - the ones produced by BBC; some for Christmas, others for one-off specials. I'd been kindly given an episode of a show called 'Dead Of Night' called 'The Exorcism' and had been meaning to watch it.

Sitting down with it yesterday, I was struck by how menacing the atmosphere on the programme was - a gentle build-up of terror led to a full-blown release of the unknown: by the time the characters rationally accepted their fates, it had become almost unbearable.

The other brilliant point came through the use of sharp and snappy dialogue: two couples, both pair very believable, tried to keep sane as the supernatural manifested itself around them - they tried to use their rationale and their intellect to understand the nature of the evil that was threatening their being.

They spoke like real people and acted like real people; in contrast to most the dramas on offer today because there was no easy access to special effects or fancy camerawork, the scriptwriters hard to work twice as hard to make the story believable. And it paid off. By the time the bleak ending had come round, I truly felt uneasy.

I've always had an infinite love for the moving picture - in my estimation cinema (and television to some extent) somehow always end up being maligned - as one of the branches of Art, they are considered almost too common - cinema being regarded only as a tool of escapism and entertainment.

I thought of this even as I read the contributor's descriptions on the OneADay Project page - my bio ended with: 'Follow Evrim if you want something to talk about at parties' - cinema being the easygoing conversation for people with a glass in their hands.

Now I have no problems with being the sparkle in any party conversation BUT for me the moving image can offer so much more. It can provide the grounds for intelligent and fierce debate - just as classic texts can use language to provide intellectual material m the cinema has its' own lexicon.

A minor point, I'm aware. However it still made me want use it as a springboard.

The audience is part of this problem - in a hideous and ugly circle, what gets consumed is determined by the audience which in turn effects the next layer of production - so a gradual rot, once set in place, gathers momentum over time, reducing the quality of what's on offer.

I understand distinctly that we need more than just high-brow art - there is a need for entertainment and fun, too - no one can watch 'Shoah' everyday , sometimes you need a little 'Titanic', too - however what I can't escape is a lack of standards: our lowest common denominator needs to be kept as high as possible therefore we can be proud of even our smalles achievement.

The BBC used to achieve this often and well - the ratio is less now and watching these old Ghost Stories is a distinct reminder that there are certain skills of storytelling which have dissolved and disappeared over time. Which is tragic.

At least this year's Ghost Story gave me some hope for the future - if the ratings confirm its' succes, maybe the next one will be a similar effort.