The Ash-tree

"The Ash-tree"
Ghost Stories of an Antiquary
Author	M.R. James
Country	England
Language	English
Genre(s)	Horror short story

"The Ash-tree" is a ghost story by M.R. James, found in his 1904 collection Ghost Stories of an Antiquary.

Synopsis

The tale documents the tale of Sir Richard Castringham, who has just inherited a country seat with an unfortunate history. The house has been cursed since the day his ancestor, Sir Matthew, condemned a woman to death for witchcraft. It is soon discovered that the ancient ash tree outside his bedroom window is the root of the problem.

Adaptations

"The Ash Tree"
A Ghost Story for Christmas episode
Title screen
Episode no.	Season 1 Episode 5
Directed by	Lawrence Gordon Clark
Written by	M. R. James (story) David Rudkin (adaptation)
Original air date	23 December 1975

It was adapted in 1975 by David Rudkin as "The Ash Tree" and part the BBC's A Ghost Story for Christmas strand.^[1] It was first broadcast on 23 December 1975 at 11.35.^[2] The adaptation stars Edward Petherbridge as Sir Richard and it was directed by Lawrence Gordon Clark.^[3][4]

References

1. The Ash Tree at the Internet Movie Database
2. "The Ash Tree". British Film Institute Database. Retrieved 22 September 2010.
3. Brockhurst, Colin. "A Ghost Story for Christmas". phantomframe.co.uk. Retrieved 10 September 2010.
4. Angelini, Sergio, The Ash Tree at the BFI's Screenonline. Retrieved 2010-7-7.

External links

• The full text of The Ash-tree at Wikisource
• The Ash Tree public domain audiobook at LibriVox
• The Ash Tree at the BFI's Screenonline
• The Ash Tree at the Internet Movie Database