A Ghost Story for Christmas: Lot No.249 – the forged and director communicate

This yr, BBC Two as soon as once more brings us A Ghost Story for Christmas – Lot No.249. 

There’s nothing fairly like having the wits scared out of you at Christmastime! The BBC used to make these movies within the Nineteen Seventies and revived the advantageous custom in 2010.

2023’s festive frightener is as soon as once more tailored by Mark Gatiss. Lot No.249 comes from quick story by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and described as “an end-of-Empire chiller.

Monkhouse Lee (Colin Ryan), Smith (Equipment Harington) and Bellingham (Freddie Fox). I(mage: BBC/Cute Media Ltd/Colin Hutton)

Right here’s the synopsis:

Previous Faculty, Oxford performs host to 3 very totally different younger lecturers: Abercrombie Smith (Equipment Harington), a mannequin of Victorian manhood, clear of limb and sound of thoughts; Monkhouse Lee (Colin Ryan), a fragile and unworldly pupil from Siam; and the unusual and unique Edward Bellingham (Freddie Fox), whose arcane analysis into Historical Egypt is the speak of the campus. Might Bellingham’s unnatural experiments deliver the breath of life to the horrifying bag of bones tagged Lot No.249?

The story stars Equipment Harington, Freddie Fox, Colin Ryan, John Heffernan, James Swanton, Jonathan Rigby and Andrew Horton. It’s an Cute Media manufacturing, government produced by Isibéal Ballance.

Mark Gatiss, who has tailored and directed the story, introduces Lot No.249

“It’s a brief story by Arthur Conan Doyle and it’s a few group of scholars at a university in Oxford in 1881.  One in all them is a square-jawed Victorian hero, one in every of them is a overseas pupil from Siam who’s fairly much less worldly and the third one is a scholar of Japanese languages referred to as Edward Bellingham who has an unhealthy curiosity in reviving the lifeless. He buys an public sale lot which is a mummy – Lot No. 249.”

Lot No.249 Mark Gatiss with Kit Harrington
Mark Gatiss, Smith (Equipment Harington) (Picture: BBC/Cute Media Ltd/Colin Hutton)

He additionally considers what makes this a very good ghostly festive story

“I’d say it’s an overripe field of candies – it’s a usually full-blooded Victorian melodrama with parts of Boy’s Personal story in addition to that Doyle/Rider Haggard really feel. It’s the unique “mummy” story so far as we all know.  It’s actually one of many first tales to characteristic a mummy as an instrument of revenge. So every thing we affiliate with the Mummy from Hollywood to Hammer begins right here.  It’s acquired a terrific forged and it must be a scrumptious Christmas deal with.”

And talks concerning the variations in type between M.R. James and Arthur Conan Doyle

“James may be very a lot a few gradual accumulation of dread –  you typically begin with fairly regular circumstances, often with a middle-aged bachelor who transgresses some unwritten supernatural legislation or finds one thing he shouldn’t have after which is regularly hunted down by a vengeful spirit. The Doyle story is way more of a simple horror archetype – it’s about reviving the lifeless, it’s concerning the mummy as an instrument of revenge. Doyle is a really totally different author to James – he’s one of many best quick story writers we’ve ever produced.  He writes the Victorian man and the unusual threats they encounter fairly brilliantly.”

Equipment Harrington tells us about his character, Abercrombie Smith

“He performs with a straight bat! Very correct. Doesn’t need something disturbing his world order. Doesn’t belief something that’s not out of the textual content books of the time… he’ll keep on with his phrenology and be carried out with it, thanks very a lot!”

Lot No.249 - Kit Harrington as Smith & James Swanton as The Mummy

Smith (Equipment Harington), The Mummy (James Swanton) (Picture: BBC/Cute Media Ltd/Kieran McGuigan)

He additionally reacts to Mark Gatiss saying that he actually embodied the Victorian gentleman

“Mark clearly noticed that I’m a closet Victorian man trapped in a millennial physique. I liked these costumes, I liked the moustache…I’d positively do one thing of this era once more.”

Freddie Fox performs Edward Bellingham and talks about us curiosity within the occult

“Bellingham is clearly a toddler of cash and privilege, however he didn’t match into the mannequin of what a person of the time must be, and so consequently I believe fairly than attempting to adapt he went additional the opposite means and go, I’m going to ‘un-conform’ – as a result of society doesn’t recognise any person like me, so I’m not going to recognise this society – I’m going to look elsewhere.”

Lot No.249 - Freddie Fox as Bellingham
Bellingham (Freddie Fox) (Picture: BBC/Cute Media Ltd/Colin Hutton)Bellingham (Freddie Fox) (Picture: BBC/Cute Media Ltd/Colin Hutton)

He additionally explains how he would persuade his next-door neighbour to look at Lot No.249

“It’s the Christmas Conan Doyle chiller tailored by Mark Gatiss, I don’t suppose you have to do very a lot else – it sells itself! But when I needed to summarize it I’d say it’s the story of three college students in an Oxford school, one in every of whom is attempting to deliver a Mummy to life.”

A Ghost Story for Christmas: Lot No.249 haunts BBC Two and BBC iPlayer this Christmas Eve from 10pm.