I discovered M.R. James about 2-3 years ago after watching a filmed compilation of four stories staring John Hurt and Greg Wise. I was so scared that my husband had to stay up half the night with me because I was so freaked out. James was like Alfred Hitchcock in that he knew that the human mind would fill in all of the scary details of a story rather than show every detail. I then downloaded all of James’ stories from Project Gutenberg. Finding this group of stories is a wonderful bit of serendipity. Thanks!
I remember discovering M.R. James about 40 years ago. I read two or three stories in some Horror anthologie, wanting to read more I discovered his stories weren't translated in Dutch. I had to order A copy from the Koninklijke Bibliotheek Den Haag (Royal Library The Hague). As it turned out is was "The Collected Ghost Stories of M.R. James" printed in 1906 and it was so rare that when I failed to return it in the allotted time a policeman came to my house to ask if I still had it in my possession. I did, they were so happy to have it back I didn't even had to pay the fee for being to late...... great writer...!
I love the narration of these old stories. M.R.James I've long been a fan of. His stories take you back to long forgotten time's. Of sleepy town's and crumbling college's. Like something out of goodbye Mr chips. A brilliant choice of stories Ian thank you 😊
A wonderful reading. I was first read this story when I was 9 years old I was in my first year at a boarding school in a fairly remote part of Dorset - very much reminiscient of the school described in the story - read to us by the headmaster on the last night of the christams term before our parents came to pick us up the next day. I don't think any of us slept that night 44 years ago and I remember it like it was yesterday - especially at this time of year
Chapters: 0:00:27 - The Ash-tree 0:32:09 - Count Magnus 1:05:43 - Lost Hearts 1:30:15 - Number 13 2:06:39 - A School Story 2:22:47 - Wailing Well 2:47:21 - Oh, Whistle, and I'll Come to You, My Lad At least once a year I listen again to the stories of M.R. James. They stand out among the many other stories. They are in a class all by themselves. Among the best ever written in my opinion.
Always bloody impressed with how smoothly you folks relate tales beholden of more archaic or ungainly syntax. So many potential places to screw it up, but always so cleanly done. GJ y'all. The Nerd Lobby appreciates all yr hard work.
M.R. James rules! Anything I have ever read by Henry James leaves me cold. Never saw what apparently the rest of the world did with Henry, but may he rest in peace nevertheless.
You’re comparing apples and oranges. Henry James,the great novelist and stylist and explorer of human relationships takes his time to explore them. M R James an excellent writer of the short story genre.
The one about the Wailing Well is one of the creepiest I have heard. No one actually says what the figures in the field look like so your imagination fills it in to terrible effect. That and the fact that there's a place like that adjacent to our property in Scotland! Scary! Also, I have been listening to a Libravox book called Grim Tales and I thought it was maybe Ian narrating?
Check out "Bitesized Audio Classics" which is s fantastic channel which does ghost stories, mystery stories etc from the Victorian and Edwardian era. The best narrator of ghost stories in my opinion at the moment.Forgive me for being so forward but if that is your genuine profile picture you are an absolutely gorgeous Scottish lass. Keep safe in these challenging times.
Awesome picture. I keep thinking about actually being there and just experiencing the silence and dismal light for a while, sort of simulating what it would be like to be there for all eternity. And how it would be if the dead were there for eternity, but conscious, and how they would feel when someone like me comes to visit to experience for a short while their home.
James' original "Wailing Well" story begins "In the Year 19--." Why have you changed it to "In the eighteenth century," when there were no Boy Scouts in existence then?
“Inhabited, exhibited.” When Ian hits a word fast it’s so funny..... I’m a pretty good reader, but he’s great! “Stupidity, necessitated.” Love the skills.
A collection of seven classic ghost stories, written by British writer, Montague Rhodes James. Chapters: 00:27 - The Ash-tree 32:09 - Count Magnus 1:05:43 - Lost Hearts 1:30:15 - Number 13 2:06:39 - A School Story 2:22:47 - Wailing Well 2:47:21 - Oh, Whistle, and I'll Come to You, My Lad Bandcamp link: horrorbabble.bandcamp.com/album/the-ghost-stories-of-m-r-james Narrated by Ian Gordon for HorrorBabble Music and production by Ian Gordon Support us on Bandcamp or Patreon: horrorbabble.bandcamp.com www.patreon.com/horrorbabble HorrorBabble MERCH: teespring.com/stores/horrorbabble-merch Search HORRORBABBLE to find us on: AUDIBLE / ITUNES / SPOTIFY Home: www.horrorbabble.com Rue Morgue: www.rue-morgue.com Social Media: facebook.com/HorrorBabble instagram.com/horrorbabble twitter.com/HorrorBabble
Lolol they practice lifesaving by tying the hands and feet of a younger boy and throwing him in to the deep end then waiting for the older boy to save him... Only 4 boys have "succumbed". Oh wow, lol.
Amazing narration, as always :D You, sir, can make even the seemingly dullest and most difficult to read books engaging by the sheer power of your voice alone. Not that M. R. James' stories are bad by any stretch, I actually quite enjoyed them. I was just wondering about the "Wailing Well" story. [Spoilers follow] In the end, after Judkins ends up dying, "...One of the first to recover his spirits was Judkins ...". So, since Judkins and Wilcox looked so much alike, and Wilcox was praised as a constant do-gooder while Judkins was rude, nasty and whathaveyou, does this mean that it was in fact Wilcox who was the evil one and constantly pushed the blame on Judkins? Since Judkins apparently survived? And when Wilcox received his merit badge, all had voted for him except for Judkins, who claimed that "he had good reason to do so". This last twist was just kind of a headscratcher for me, and I was wondering if anyone felt the same? In the end it says "If it has a moral, that moral is, I trust, obvious", but I feel like I've missed something here....
Ian! or anyone - help! - What does the "next morning BUT ONE" mean? i can't find an explanation anywhere! and the "but one" (i've even seen 'but two') is used in a lot in different contexts. Thank you so much. and all of you Keep safe :) 🌷
Some years ago there was a daytime interior illustration of an open-air mausoleum or crypt showing a wall of closed drawers. What video was that? I can't seem to find it anymore.
@@HorrorBabble very close! Back then I commented on how much I liked it and why, but I didn't see my comment among the 57 comments there. Would you happen to have a way of finding any comments I made on your videos?
@HorrorBabble no im afraid not, except to say it wouldn't have been anything about vampires or werewolves. Most likely skeletons or ghosts and maybe possibly cthulu and at least 5 years or more ago, possibly as far back as 2014 after my mother died.. I know thats not much to go on. I'm looking manually right now, starring 5 years ago. I appreciate your responsiveness! It was a very poignant picture for me and the one you found is awfully close if not the right video.
Ok I dont know what I'm talking about. I found my original comment from exactly 5 years ago and it was indeed this video. For some reason searching through HorrorBabble videos never came up with this video, but finally we have indeed found it. Thanks for your help!
I'd like it if there were brief 30-60 second intermissions between stories. It would make it easier for me to tell when I've accidentally lost my place by losing my attention. A little song or talk about the author between stories. Something to interrupt the switch from one story to another.
M. R. James wrote adequate stories technically, but his degrading and disrespectful decision to present allegorical doubt regarding the innocence of cruelly accused supposed witches shows him to be as abusive and unjust as the proud and powerful Englishmen who destroyed the credibility of accused witches, tortured them, and saw them sickeningly and sadistically put to death for a crime that has never been committed by anyone. What a coward and a fool M. R. James has shown himself to be. Strong academic achievement did not build this man's character. He is nothing more than an artful exploiter.
Burdette Kent-Wilson i disagree with you entirely. M R James, or the narrator, and we do not know that the two are the same, makes it quite clear that the women are made scapegoats of for no reason at all.
only in America are people so bored that they have to fabricate bullshit like you do so that they can feel like they've "defended" something. if we went thru and got rid of every artist and creative that were typical of their time or even a deviant there'd be nothing in the Louvre and one book in all libraries. get a hobby or go out and effect the change you want. otherwise your mewling about long dead authors stories being unfair to "x" is literally an exercise in futility. also. fuck off.
I discovered M.R. James about 2-3 years ago after watching a filmed compilation of four stories staring John Hurt and Greg Wise. I was so scared that my husband had to stay up half the night with me because I was so freaked out. James was like Alfred Hitchcock in that he knew that the human mind would fill in all of the scary details of a story rather than show every detail. I then downloaded all of James’ stories from Project Gutenberg. Finding this group of stories is a wonderful bit of serendipity. Thanks!
I remember discovering M.R. James about 40 years ago. I read two or three stories in some Horror anthologie, wanting to read more I discovered his stories weren't translated in Dutch. I had to order A copy from the Koninklijke Bibliotheek Den Haag (Royal Library The Hague).
As it turned out is was "The Collected Ghost Stories of M.R. James" printed in 1906 and it was so rare that when I failed to return it in the allotted time a policeman came to my house to ask if I still had it in my possession. I did, they were so happy to have it back I didn't even had to pay the fee for being to late...... great writer...!
If you like M R James then you would almost certainly like Sheridan Lefanu. James thought him the greatest writer of ghost stories.
Has your husband recovered yet??
This was wonderfully dramatised many years ago- BBC. I think. I watched it recently on a streaming service. It’s well worth a look.
@@tallandhandsome29 Yes I saw that it was very well made and acted..
James has one of my favorite styles of writing and the subtle humor is just great. My favorite. Nightly watcher for about a year now.
I just started reading M.R.James, and when I found this collection felt like I was in "Shiver Heaven."
Thanks, Horror Babble.
I love the narration of these old stories. M.R.James I've long been a fan of. His stories take you back to long forgotten time's. Of sleepy town's and crumbling college's. Like something out of goodbye Mr chips. A brilliant choice of stories Ian thank you 😊
Got to love it when the first story is set just up the road 😂 makes it much easier picture the area when regularly used drive around there for work.
Oh wow how uncanny.. Ohhhhh errrr 🙏
@@ninawalker4453 jqqqqq1qqq
London Calling. Sooo happy 😊. Thank you 🙏 what a great voice for great stories 👌
A wonderful reading.
I was first read this story when I was 9 years old
I was in my first year at a boarding school in a fairly remote part of Dorset - very much reminiscient of the school described in the story - read to us by the headmaster on the last night of the christams term before our parents came to pick us up the next day.
I don't think any of us slept that night
44 years ago and I remember it like it was yesterday - especially at this time of year
Love that all these are just right here, talk about a seasoned runners best runners mix lol!
I think horror is best suited to the short story/novella rather than drawn out over a long novel. You get that rollercoaster ride of terror!
I thank God for You. Love, Light, Peace, Music and Joy
Can't wait to listen. My all time favorite "ghost writer" 😀
Impressive output for both writer and narrator. And here I was proud of myself when I bang out a 2K story and narrate it for my channel once a week...
Just to reassure you Horace, this a compilation of earlier recordings!
Good stuff 😁. Thanks again for all of your hard work! Brilliantly done
Our pleasure!
Amazing as usual :)
You have such an amazing voice. Listening to you read these stories is a treat! Thank you.
Chapters:
0:00:27 - The Ash-tree
0:32:09 - Count Magnus
1:05:43 - Lost Hearts
1:30:15 - Number 13
2:06:39 - A School Story
2:22:47 - Wailing Well
2:47:21 - Oh, Whistle, and I'll Come to You, My Lad
At least once a year I listen again to the stories of M.R. James. They stand out among the many other stories. They are in a class all by themselves. Among the best ever written in my opinion.
Beautiful narration!
Absolutely delightful. Thank you so much!
And yet another compilation I enjoy tremendously. So once again thank you so much! Great work!
Oh this is simply brilliant, thank you very much!!
I
ممكن الاشتراك بقناتي ومردوده بليزز
Excellent! Very good! Thank you Mr. Gordon and Horror Babble. Until next time.
These are tremendously narrated! Thank you
Always bloody impressed with how smoothly you folks relate tales beholden of more archaic or ungainly syntax. So many potential places to screw it up, but always so cleanly done. GJ y'all. The Nerd Lobby appreciates all yr hard work.
I love his readings , most amazing voice
Not sure why horror stories appeal to me now during Covid-19 lockdown, but I keep coming back to this channel. Thank you!! I love your voice.
Because they are a relief and release from reality. Nothing is more terrifying than reality.
@@Tipi_Dan Ain't it the truth!
a few years ago I found some MR James short films on TH-cam very very scary (the short films are kind of old but well filmed well acted and so scary)
Thank you for introducing me to a new series.
I can listen to the stories over and over to just listen to his voice
M.R.James was one of the best British horror writers of all time! The James best story I think is "The Count Magnous"!
Ty
Please tell me more horror writers name
@@Yourhotshorts oops
I like 'Martin's place'. There was an adaptation of the story on TV a couple of Christmas's ago, really good.
Even better is "Count Magnus."
M.R. James rules! Anything I have ever read by Henry James leaves me cold. Never saw what apparently the rest of the world did with Henry, but may he rest in peace nevertheless.
What's Henry James got to do with the price of cheese? What's your opinion on Sid James? Or Geraldine?
I'm not a fan of Henry either, even Turn of the Screw has been done better on film than on the page. But MR James is my jam.
You’re comparing apples and oranges. Henry James,the great novelist and stylist and explorer of human relationships takes his time to explore them. M R James an excellent writer of the short story genre.
Ian Gordon deserves a knighthood! Excellent rendition! TYVM!
The NHS
@@chrisdansey2600 loooooò
Blimey .. 🤣🤣
Loved these . Ta
Thank you 😊
The one about the Wailing Well is one of the creepiest I have heard. No one actually says what the figures in the field look like so your imagination fills it in to terrible effect. That and the fact that there's a place like that adjacent to our property in Scotland! Scary! Also, I have been listening to a Libravox book called Grim Tales and I thought it was maybe Ian narrating?
I haven't done any Libravox recordings... There are some great productions on there though! Ian
Check out "Bitesized Audio Classics" which is s fantastic channel which does ghost stories, mystery stories etc from the Victorian and Edwardian era. The best narrator of ghost stories in my opinion at the moment.Forgive me for being so forward but if that is your genuine profile picture you are an absolutely gorgeous Scottish lass. Keep safe in these challenging times.
'Casting the Runes' is my favourite, but 'Wailing Well' is a close second for M R James. The scariest story I know is "The Monkeys Paw" by W W Jacobs.
Sweet! Thanks so much for sharing!
Awesome picture. I keep thinking about actually being there and just experiencing the silence and dismal light for a while, sort of simulating what it would be like to be there for all eternity. And how it would be if the dead were there for eternity, but conscious, and how they would feel when someone like me comes to visit to experience for a short while their home.
This is so good that I feel any compliments I could give would fall short. Ian you are just brilliant. Thank you
Thank you! That's kind of you to say. Ian
I liked Robert Powell doing these a few years ago for the BBC.
Thank you
James' original "Wailing Well" story begins "In the Year 19--." Why have you changed it to "In the eighteenth century," when there were no Boy Scouts in existence then?
Dang it...! An oversight obviously. Thanks for pointing it out!
Excellent! Thank you.
I was going to save this up for next Christmas but with the winterstorm coming in, I couldn't help but click.
Amazing.
Awesome narration! Thank you😁
“Inhabited, exhibited.” When Ian hits a word fast it’s so funny..... I’m a pretty good reader, but he’s great! “Stupidity, necessitated.” Love the skills.
I'm tongue tied on a daily basis, Lulu! Ian
Yeah. Description of the inside and below the ash tree oooh nonono Decay and infestation Creeps me out. So thank you 🙉
Total excellence
Such great stories; the vocabulary and the style, that which I would incorporate into my own.
So sweet!
enjoyed the narration very much
A collection of seven classic ghost stories, written by British writer, Montague Rhodes James.
Chapters:
00:27 - The Ash-tree
32:09 - Count Magnus
1:05:43 - Lost Hearts
1:30:15 - Number 13
2:06:39 - A School Story
2:22:47 - Wailing Well
2:47:21 - Oh, Whistle, and I'll Come to You, My Lad
Bandcamp link: horrorbabble.bandcamp.com/album/the-ghost-stories-of-m-r-james
Narrated by Ian Gordon for HorrorBabble
Music and production by Ian Gordon
Support us on Bandcamp or Patreon:
horrorbabble.bandcamp.com
www.patreon.com/horrorbabble
HorrorBabble MERCH:
teespring.com/stores/horrorbabble-merch
Search HORRORBABBLE to find us on:
AUDIBLE / ITUNES / SPOTIFY
Home: www.horrorbabble.com
Rue Morgue: www.rue-morgue.com
Social Media:
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instagram.com/horrorbabble
twitter.com/HorrorBabble
Thank you sir for all the info as it makes listening easier if u want a certain story so thank you.
About 10 minutes in. I'm in love.
I Saw the movie the stone tape and I listened to a discussion on it and that led me to whistle and I'll come to you my lad
Lovely narration as always. And a rare treat to hear of my home country. I wonder if the De La Gardies know they're the subject of a ghost story?
Lolol they practice lifesaving by tying the hands and feet of a younger boy and throwing him in to the deep end then waiting for the older boy to save him... Only 4 boys have "succumbed". Oh wow, lol.
M R James is a great horror writer, but he's an amazing satirist.
At that time, they hadn't quite worked the kinks out from SEAL training.
Really enjoyable. Thank you.
And a scary merry Christmas to you my good sir ❤👌
Same to you!
Amazing narration, as always :D You, sir, can make even the seemingly dullest and most difficult to read books engaging by the sheer power of your voice alone. Not that M. R. James' stories are bad by any stretch, I actually quite enjoyed them.
I was just wondering about the "Wailing Well" story. [Spoilers follow]
In the end, after Judkins ends up dying, "...One of the first to recover his spirits was Judkins ...". So, since Judkins and Wilcox looked so much alike, and Wilcox was praised as a constant do-gooder while Judkins was rude, nasty and whathaveyou, does this mean that it was in fact Wilcox who was the evil one and constantly pushed the blame on Judkins? Since Judkins apparently survived? And when Wilcox received his merit badge, all had voted for him except for Judkins, who claimed that "he had good reason to do so".
This last twist was just kind of a headscratcher for me, and I was wondering if anyone felt the same? In the end it says "If it has a moral, that moral is, I trust, obvious", but I feel like I've missed something here....
Yes I agree with you about that one..what was that ending? Thought Wilcox went on a round the world cruise?
Avoid hubris, then take heed of and trust local traditional knowledge, even (especially) when you are a foolish boy.
I just noticed that it’s March 24th while listening to the story “Lost Hearts”
Dark room,windchimes outside the window singing softly & the blanket pulled up to my nose,to protect me...
Sounds absolutely lovely
USELESS...ALL USELESS!.....as protection against the night haints! Mmmhahahaha!🎃
@@brettrobinson2901 but wind chimes with pieces of mirror will keep the tweakers away from your house at least
No. 13 - that laugh is so good. both scary and funny :)
Yep great
2:00:31 Idk what song Herr Jensen was singing in #13 but i was imagining 'Dance through the danger' while he was narrated as dancing.
2:00:43 yeah you gotta burn that room.
Cabins International didnt allow tricker treating, IBAN issued for Health and Safety.
I love Mr james
Can you get “a backward glance” breaks my heart I can’t find it
in my grandfather's time, that is 92 years ago...
I love my ash tree❤😢
goodnight everyonre :)
Have you ever done H.P. Lovecraft's The Tomb?
Yes, but it is currently exclusive to Patreon.
Mrs Mothersole's incantations caused erectile dysfunction to Sir Matthews.
Ian! or anyone - help! - What does the "next morning BUT ONE" mean? i can't find an explanation anywhere! and the "but one" (i've even seen 'but two') is used in a lot in different contexts. Thank you so much. and all of you Keep safe :) 🌷
Hi Alexa! It’s an odd phrase, but it essentially means “the day after tomorrow”.
@@HorrorBabble thanks much. it is so confusing. the day after tomorrow seems easier to me. :)
Wait. Wait. Wait. They did WHAT to a junior boy during life saving practice?
Bigfoot watching from Washington
what about the story a warning to the curious.
Some years ago there was a daytime interior illustration of an open-air mausoleum or crypt showing a wall of closed drawers. What video was that? I can't seem to find it anymore.
Was it the standalone recording of Count Magnus? th-cam.com/video/wliBOacwM30/w-d-xo.html
@@HorrorBabble very close! Back then I commented on how much I liked it and why, but I didn't see my comment among the 57 comments there. Would you happen to have a way of finding any comments I made on your videos?
We used to be able to search by username, but annoyingly YT have disabled that feature now. Can you remember anything about the story?
@HorrorBabble no im afraid not, except to say it wouldn't have been anything about vampires or werewolves. Most likely skeletons or ghosts and maybe possibly cthulu and at least 5 years or more ago, possibly as far back as 2014 after my mother died.. I know thats not much to go on. I'm looking manually right now, starring 5 years ago. I appreciate your responsiveness! It was a very poignant picture for me and the one you found is awfully close if not the right video.
Ok I dont know what I'm talking about. I found my original comment from exactly 5 years ago and it was indeed this video. For some reason searching through HorrorBabble videos never came up with this video, but finally we have indeed found it. Thanks for your help!
I
l
Lo
Lov
Love
I
It
Akwow
Wow
Why are you commenting wow on your own comment 😂
I'd like it if there were brief 30-60 second intermissions between stories. It would make it easier for me to tell when I've accidentally lost my place by losing my attention. A little song or talk about the author between stories. Something to interrupt the switch from one story to another.
Thanks for the feedback!
Excellent/ brilliant and based as F.
Completely garbled version of 'The Wailing Well'! If you don't understand what the text means, don't read it.
👻👻☠☠☠☠👻👻🎃🎃
1hr 05min.
❤😣scarwy
M. R. James wrote adequate stories technically, but his degrading and disrespectful decision to present allegorical doubt regarding the innocence of cruelly accused supposed witches shows him to be as abusive and unjust as the proud and powerful Englishmen who destroyed the credibility of accused witches, tortured them, and saw them sickeningly and sadistically put to death for a crime that has never been committed by anyone. What a coward and a fool M. R. James has shown himself to be. Strong academic achievement did not build this man's character. He is nothing more than an artful exploiter.
Burdette Kent-Wilson i disagree with you entirely. M R James, or the narrator, and we do not know that the two are the same, makes it quite clear that the women are made scapegoats of for no reason at all.
only in America are people so bored that they have to fabricate bullshit like you do so that they can feel like they've "defended" something. if we went thru and got rid of every artist and creative that were typical of their time or even a deviant there'd be nothing in the Louvre and one book in all libraries. get a hobby or go out and effect the change you want. otherwise your mewling about long dead authors stories being unfair to "x" is literally an exercise in futility. also. fuck off.
@@smutskates well said. Especially the last bit
It is always the case that those with no talent inevitably seek to hijack that of those who have.
. . . And by the way, what do you mean, adequate stories? You're not only talentless, but you're a smug little tart, as well.
M.R.James is my boyfriend ♥...so is Putin
Sir wont you do more Vampire stories like maybe the Dracula? This was super duper great 🖤🖤🖤🖤🤺👌👍👍👍
It's a long one, but we'd like to record Dracula eventually!