"The Empty House" tells of Jim Shorthouse, who accompanies his aunt to an old house where, a century ago, a servant girl was thrown to her death from a balcony by a jealous stableman. The house has lain unoccupied other than for brief periods ever since. Unoccupied, but perhaps not ... empty. My thanks to Graham Walmsley for the marvellous opening and closing themes he has composed for the podcast. Graham is the creator of the role playing game 'Cthulhu Dark' and you can find him on...

I am delighted to open the second season of my podcast with this cautionary tale from the compendium "The Private Life of Elder Things" "Devo Nodenti" tells of Peggy Connings, who made a decision over half a lifetime ago which had unforeseen and terrible consequences. My heartfelt thanks go out to the author herself, who has very kindly given me permission to read her wonderful story for you. As well as being an accomplished novelist under both her own name and others, Keris is an associate...

A short announcement to introduce the forthcoming new season of my little podcast....

A visitor to the Italian Riviera has a dark foreboding about the villa in which they are staying. Then, that night they experience a most unusual dream - or is it a dream? Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions If you are enjoying these tales, please consider leaving a review on the listening platform of your choice.

Our narrator, an Englishman travelling through Germany from Munich on the last day of April is warned not to return late to his hotel. Despite this, the young man leaves his carriage at a crossroads to head in the direction of a mysterious abandoned village. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions If you are enjoying these tales, please consider leaving a review on the listening platform of your choice.

Our narrator arises the following morning to learn more of the Château d’Ys and its inhabitants Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions If you are enjoying these tales, please consider leaving a review on the listening platform of your choice.

Our narrator finds himself lost on the moors of Brittany in north-western France, where he encounters a mysterious stranger. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions If you are enjoying these tales, please consider leaving a review on the listening platform of your choice.

Following the death of his sister, Roderick Usher's mental condition deteriorates still further. Our narrator attempts to cheer his spirits by reading him a classic tale of adventure and romance. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions If you are enjoying these tales, please consider leaving a review on the listening platform of your choice.

After learning of the rapid decline in his sister's condition, our narrator spends time with the master of the House of Usher and grows ever more concerned by his increasingly eccentric behaviour.  Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions If you are enjoying these tales, please consider leaving a review on the listening platform of your choice.

An unnamed narrator arrives at the ancient mansion owned by a boyhood companion, Roderick Usher, from whom he has recently received a letter. Usher is suffering from an illness and hopes that seeing his old friend will lift his spirits once more. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions If you are enjoying these tales, please consider leaving a review on the listening platform of your choice.

In the concluding part of The Ash Tree, Sir Matthew Fell's grandson discovers that his inheritance is not entirely fortuitous. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions If you are enjoying these tales, please consider leaving a review on the listening platform of your choice.

Castringham Hall in Suffolk is a house with an unfortunate history. Many years ago its owner's testimony was instrumental in the guilty verdict and hanging of a supposed witch. Could it be that her last words laid a curse upon the family? Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions

Our unnamed narrator has taken rooms in an old property in New York City. As he settles down for the night he is disturbed by a very unnerving set of events. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions

When, just two days before his wedding to May Forster, the prettiest girl in the village, John Charrington is called to visit his seriously ill godfather, May worries that something will happen to delay his return. John, however reassures her that nothing will prevent him from arriving at his wedding on time. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions

It is a time of Civil War and military justice is about to be served on a railroad bridge in Alabama. As the man waits for his execution at the hands of Federal soldiers, he looks down at the water below him and thinks of his wife and children. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions

Slightly delayed due to an unexpected encounter with a malevolent staircase, the final part of of The Colour Out of Space concerns the return to the Gardner farm by Ammi and the Arkham authorities. What they experience during the night leaves them shaken to the very core. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions

In the second part of The Colour Out of Space, the fortunes of the Gardner family go from bad to worse through Spring, Summer and Autumn. When Ammi Pierce pays a visit in late October what he finds threatens very reason itself. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions

In order to mark the first anniversary of my little podcast I have a special treat in store. Over the next three episodes, I'll be reading a classic tale of cosmic horror by H.P. Lovecraft. The Colour Out of Space tells the story told to a surveyor by an old man of the secrets behind a shunned place referred to by the locals as the "blasted heath." The man claims that the troubles began when a meteorite crashed into his neighbour's land in June 1882. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime...

A tale is told among friends of a certain man of science who has a narrow escape from an old enemy. Some time later, however, events suggest that his enemy may not have yet given up the pursuit even from beyond the veil. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions

A young Paris student eagerly shows his comrades a curious item he has recently picked up whilst visiting his home town. However the company's amusement at the finding is somewhat short lived. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions

In "The Open Window" a Mr. Framton Nuttel, on the advice of his doctor, travels to a village to affect a cure for his nervous condition. There he meets young Vera who tells him the terrible tale of a family tragedy. One might think that living in the country sounds a lot more peaceful than a the hustle and bustle of town. However, in "The Music on the Hill" the newly wed Mrs Sylvia Seltoun finds that old customs and beliefs are best not mocked... Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime...

The Mezzotint is the story of Mr. Williams, the curator of a university art museum who receives a mezzotint from an art dealer. The very disturbing engraving changes each time Mr. Williams and the colleagues he enlists look at it. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions

A seasonally-adjacent tale to see out 2021. The tale of The Kit-Bag concerns the young private secretary of a noted barrister who has just won the acquittal (by reason of insanity) of an especially vicious murderer. Worn out by the case, and haunted by the evil-looking face of the murderer, he plans to recover by spending his Christmas holiday in the Alps. Assuming he manages to finish packing the kit-bag which he has borrowed from his employer for his trip. Opening music for Mr. Spike's...

In this classic short story, three wishes are granted to the owner of a curious mummified paw, but the wishes come with an terrible price for interfering with fate. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions

A tale from The House of Apprehension. A cautionary tale in which an orchid collector finds that Mother Nature, despite her beauty, can often be treacherous, dangerous, and even deadly.  Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions Grateful thanks to Tom Bagatelle for the use of "The House of Apprehension"