From Wikipedia: "A Ghost Story for Christmas" was a strand of annual British short television films originally broadcast on BBC One between 1971 and 1978, and revived sporadically by the BBC since 2005. With one exception, the original instalments were directed by Lawrence Gordon Clark and the films were all shot on 16 mm colour film. The remit behind the series was to provide a television adaptation of a classic ghost story, in line with the oral tradition of telling supernatural tales at Christmas. Each installment is a separate adaptation of a short story, ranges between 30 and 50 minutes in duration, and features well-known British actors such as Clive Swift, Robert Hardy, Peter Vaughan, Edward Petherbridge and Denholm Elliott. The first five are adaptations of ghost stories by M. R. James, the sixth is based on a short story by Charles Dickens, and the last two instalments from the 1970s are original screenplays by Clive Exton and John Bowen respectively. Although the strand (or series) was titled "A Ghost Story for Christmas" in listings such as the Radio Times (followed by the title of the individual story being shown), the strand title did not actually appear on screen until "The Signalman" in 1976. An earlier black-and-white adaptation of M. R. James's "Oh, Whistle, and I'll Come to You, My Lad", directed by Jonathan Miller and shown as part of the series "Omnibus" in 1968, is often cited as an influence upon the production of the films, and is sometimes included as part of the series. The series was revived by the BBC in 2005, with a new set of ongoing adaptations, although these have been produced sporadically rather than annually. THE EPISODES: 1) "The Stalls of Barchester" (24 December 1971): An ambitious cleric murders an aged Archdeacon at Barchester Cathedral. However, he is soon stalked by a sinister black cat and by a hooded figure, both of whom seem to be embodiments of carvings on the cathedral's choir stalls. 2) "A Warning to the Curious" (24 December 1972): An amateur archaeologist travels to a remote seaside town in Norfolk to search for the lost crown of Anglia, but after unearthing it he is haunted by a mysterious figure. 3) "Lost Hearts" (25 December 1973): An orphan moves into the house of his older cousin, but is disturbed by visions of a pair of ghostly children. Is their message a warning to be fearful of his cousin's obsession with immortality? 4) "The Treasure of Abbot Thomas" (23 December 1974): A respected medieval historian and his protégé unearth clues to find the hidden treasure of a disgraced monk in an abbey library. Should he have heeded his own advice not to go treasure-hunting? 5) "The Ash Tree" (23 December 1975): An aristocrat inherits his family estate and is haunted by visions of his ancestor's role in a witchcraft trial. 6) "The Signalman" (22 December 1976): A railway signalman tells a curious traveler how he is being troubled by a spectre that seems to predict calamity. 7) "Stigma" (28 December 1977): After a young couple move into a remote country house in the middle of a stone circle workmen disturb an ancient menhir, unleashing a supernatural force. 8) "The Ice House" (25 December 1978): Residents at a health spa begin to suspect that a strange flower growing in an old ice house in the grounds may be the cause of a series of misfortunes.

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