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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	ABC Weekend TV (Series 1–3) Thames Television (Series 4–5)
Release
Original network	ITV
Original release	29 January 1966 (1966-01-29) – 23 February 1970 (1970-02-23)

Outline

The 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

Series 1

#	Title	Story	Original airdate
1	"The Lost Stradivarius"	J. Meade Falkner	29 January 1966 (1966-01-29)
2	"The Body Snatcher"	Robert Louis Stevenson	5 February 1966 (1966-02-05)
3	"The Fall of the House of Usher"	Edgar Allan Poe	12 February 1966 (1966-02-12)
4	"The Open Door"	Margaret Oliphant	19 February 1966 (1966-02-19)
5	"The Tractate Middoth"	M. R. James	26 February 1966 (1966-02-26)
6	"Lost Hearts"	M. R. James	5 March 1966 (1966-03-05)
7	"The Canterville Ghost"	Oscar Wilde	12 March 1966 (1966-03-12)

Series 2

#	Title	Story	Original airdate
8	"Room 13"	M. R. James	22 October 1966 (1966-10-22)
9	"The Beckoning Shadow"	Charlotte Riddell	29 October 1966 (1966-10-29)
10	"The Flying Dragon"	Sheridan Le Fanu	5 November 1966 (1966-11-05)
11	"Carmilla"	Sheridan Le Fanu	12 November 1966 (1966-11-12)
12	"The Phantom Lover"	Vernon Lee	19 November 1966 (1966-11-19)

Series 3

#	Title	Story	Original airdate
13	"Casting the Runes"	M. R. James	22 March 1968 (1968-03-22)
14	"The Listener"	Algernon Blackwood	30 March 1968 (1968-03-30)
15	"A Place of One's Own"	Osbert Sitwell	6 April 1968 (1968-04-06)
16	"The Devil's Piper"	Walter Scott	13 April 1968 (1968-04-13)
17	"The Tell-Tale Heart"	Edgar Allan Poe	22 June 1968 (1968-06-22)
18	"Feet Foremost"	L. P. Hartley	29 June 1968 (1968-06-29)

Series 4

#	Title	Story	Original airdate
19	"Uncle Silas"	Sheridan Le Fanu	4 November 1968 (1968-11-04)
20	"Frankenstein"	Mary Shelley	11 November 1968 (1968-11-11)
21	"Dracula"	Bram Stoker	18 November 1968 (1968-11-18)

Series 5

#	Title	Story	Original airdate
22	"The Suicide Club"	Robert Louis Stevenson	9 February 1970 (1970-02-09)
23	"Sweeney Todd"	George Dibdin Pitt adaptation by Vincent Tilsey	16 February 1970 (1970-02-16)
24	"The Curse of the Mummy"	Bram Stoker	23 February 1970 (1970-02-23)

Archive status and availability

Of 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.

Network has released all eight remaining episodes on a four disc DVD set along with the surviving clip of "Casting the Runes". The surviving audio recordings of the missing episodes can be found on YouTube.[4]

References

• 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.

External links

• Mystery and Imagination at IMDb
• Haunted TV.

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