Mystery and Imagination is a British television anthology series of classic horror and supernatural dramas. Five series were broadcast from 1966 to 1970 by the ITV network and produced by ABC and (later) Thames Television.[1]
| Mystery and Imagination | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Horror anthology |
| Starring | David Buck |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 5 |
| No. of episodes | 24 (16 missing) |
| Production | |
| Production companies |
|
| Original release | |
| Network | ITV |
| Release | 29 January 1966 – 23 February 1970 |
Outline
editThe series featured television plays based on the works of well-known authors such as Robert Louis Stevenson, Bram Stoker, Mary Shelley, M. R. James, and Edgar Allan Poe. All Bar one of the first two ABC series starred David Buck as Richard Beckett, originally a character from Sheridan Le Fanu's story "The Flying Dragon", as narrator. Beckett was made the central character of the series, taking the roles of various characters from some of the original stories.[2] The first two series, although transmitted as two separate runs, were recorded in a single production block. The episode without Buck as the lead ("The Open Door") features Jack Hawkins. Unlike BBC dramas from the period, location exterior shots were also recorded onto video tape rather than 16mm film, giving a more consistent look to the production. Only series 5 was filmed in colour.
Episodes
editSeries 1
edit| # | Title | Story | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The Lost Stradivarius" | J. Meade Falkner | 29 January 1966 |
| 2 | "The Body Snatcher" | Robert Louis Stevenson | 5 February 1966 |
| 3 | "The Fall of the House of Usher" | Edgar Allan Poe | 12 February 1966 |
| 4 | "The Open Door" | Margaret Oliphant | 19 February 1966 |
| 5 | "The Tractate Middoth" | M. R. James | 26 February 1966 |
| 6 | "Lost Hearts" | M. R. James | 5 March 1966 |
| 7 | "The Canterville Ghost" | Oscar Wilde | 12 March 1966 |
Series 2
edit| # | Title | Story | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | "Room 13" | M. R. James | 22 October 1966 |
| 9 | "The Beckoning Shadow" | Charlotte Riddell | 29 October 1966 |
| 10 | "The Flying Dragon" | Sheridan Le Fanu | 5 November 1966 |
| 11 | "Carmilla" | Sheridan Le Fanu | 12 November 1966 |
| 12 | "The Phantom Lover" | Vernon Lee | 19 November 1966 |
Series 3
edit| # | Title | Story | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | "Casting the Runes" | M. R. James | 22 March 1968 |
| 14 | "The Listener" | Algernon Blackwood | 30 March 1968 |
| 15 | "A Place of One's Own" | Osbert Sitwell | 6 April 1968 |
| 16 | "The Devil's Piper" | Walter Scott | 13 April 1968 |
| 17 | "The Tell-Tale Heart" | Edgar Allan Poe | 22 June 1968 |
| 18 | "Feet Foremost" | L. P. Hartley | 29 June 1968 |
Series 4
edit| # | Title | Story | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 19 | "Uncle Silas" | Sheridan Le Fanu | 4 November 1968 |
| 20 | "Frankenstein" | Mary Shelley | 11 November 1968 |
| 21 | "Dracula" | Bram Stoker | 18 November 1968 |
Series 5
edit| # | Title | Story | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 22 | "The Suicide Club" | Robert Louis Stevenson | 9 February 1970 |
| 23 | "Sweeney Todd" | George Dibdin Pitt adaptation by Vincent Tilsey | 16 February 1970 |
| 24 | "The Curse of the Mummy" | Bram Stoker | 23 February 1970 |
Archive status and availability
editOf the episodes from the ABC era, only the versions of "The Fall of the House of Usher" and "The Open Door" (series 1) have survived. All the other episodes from the first three series are not known to exist, although the Thames episodes (series 4 and 5) survive.[3] A brief clip from "Casting the Runes" (from series 3) also exists. Domestic audio recordings of the otherwise missing episodes "The Lost Stradivarius", "The Body Snatcher", "The Tractate Middoth", "Lost Hearts", "The Canterville Ghost" and "Room 13" also exist. These recordings have been uploaded to YouTube.[4]
Network has released all eight remaining episodes on a four disc DVD set along with the surviving clip of "Casting the Runes".
References
edit- ^ The change from ABC to Thames occurred because of the July 1968 franchise changes.
- ^ IMDb claims Buck appears in eleven episodes from the first two series. According to Helen Wheatley "Mystery and Imagination" in Janet Thurmin Small Screens, Big Ideas: Television in the 1950s [sic], London: IB Tauris, 2002, p.169-70, Buck also appears in the third.
- ^ Mystery and Imagination, lostshows.com
- ^ "Mystery & Imagination - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 9 June 2023.
- Wheatley, Helen. Gothic Television (Manchester University Press 2006) p36 ff.
- Thumim, Janet; Helen Wheatley (2002). "Mystery and Imagination: Anatomy of a Gothic Anthology Series". Small Screens, Big Ideas: Television in the 1950s. I.B.Tauris. pp. 165–179. ISBN 1-86064-683-2.