FROM THE GREAT LIBRARY OF DREAMS PODCAST

In this episode Mr Jim Moon unearths a strange news report, printed in the St. Louis Globe-Democrat back in 1890, which details the capture of a ghoul in rural Ireland.

Tonight we have a special tale to celebrate the birthday of the late great R Chetwynd-Hayes, the writer dubbed Britain's Prince of Chill, whose tales features in classic horror movies such as From Beyond the Grave and The Monster Club, plus series such as Vincent Price's The Price of Fear, Night Voices, Dramarama and Rod Serling's Night Gallery

The world's first occult detective Mr Flaxman Low is called in to investigate a house where former tenants erected a strange temple and allegedly practised strange rites there...

In this episode we have a fantastical poem about a fabled land from the pages of legendary pulp magazine Weird Tales!

Tonight we have a weird tale from Lord Dunsany, one of the pioneers of fantasy literature. However this is no fairy story, as a treasure-seeking knight will discover...

April 25th is the Eve of St Mark, according to folklore a night for a rather eerie divination ceremony, as documented in a Victorian poem which is very much a tale of terror in verse!

Another fascinating case for the world's first occult detective Mr Flaxman Low, in which he is called to investigate a house where tenants die mysteriously after the apparition of a whispering face is seen!

In the third and final chapter of Robert E Howard's classic weird tale uncover the sinister secret of The Call of Zuvembie! 

In the second chapter of Robert E Howard's classic weird tale we encounter The Snake's Brother! 

The first episode of a three part reading of a classic weird novella by Robert E Howard - Pigeons From Hell. In this chapter we encounter - The Whistler in the Dark!

A reading of an early short tale by HP Lovecraft, Hypnos - a story of obsession, dreams, and cosmic horror.

We open a new year of a reading with a little tale from Fredric Brown, one of what he called his "short short stories" - tiny tales but with memorable twist endings!

Mr Jim Moon relates a eerie ghost story for Christmas of his own...

A tale of festive fears and Christmas chills, set in the heart of the Lake District! This story and other seasonal shockers by assorted writers can be found in the volume Christmas Under the Covers, edited by Marc Damian Lawler! 

We begin this year's season of ghost stories for Christmas with a tale from the great MR James, a sinister tale of curses and witchcraft entitled simply The Ash-Tree...

A haunting tale from a writer that the great MR James himself considered to be the finest ever author of ghostly tales - J Sheridan le Fanu.

Another case for occult detective Mr Flaxman Low - involving a family curse and a dread spectre whose appearance brings death! 

A classic tale of Lovecraftian terror from Robert Bloch. When young Willie Osbourne goes to stay with his aunt in and uncle on their remote farm in the country, he becomes aware of strange things lurking in the forest, sinister things that are getting closer as Hallowe'en approaches... 

A tale of autumnal terror that was a favourite of HP Lovecraft. Appearing in Weird Tales in 1923, this is an eerie story of a long-lost friend refound... 

A seasonal reading of a much loved classic poem for this time of year...

Tonight we have a reading of an early classic short story by the great HP Lovecraft, a tale that begins in a benighted castle deep beneath the earth...

Tonight we have a reading of one of the all-time classic ghost stories, The House of the Nightmare by Edward Lucas White! When a gentlemen's roadster breaks down on a lonely road he finds curious company in the house where he stays the night... 

In this visit to the Great Library we have a sunlit tale of folk horror from Mr Algernon Blackwood, where a walk in the woods turns out to be no picnic... 

Concluding our summer season of vampiric tales, in this show Mr Jim Moon reads classic chiller For the Blood is the Life by F Marion Crawford, the story of a curious vision revealed by moonlight and its dark history... 

In this show, we return to the chilling tales of EF Benson. In this particular story we discover that even the English countryside at the height of a glorious summer can be home to dark and dreadful things... 

In this podcast, we have a reading of an eerie tale by Hume Nisbet, in which a summer holiday goes terribly wrong when our narrator encounters The Vampire Maid...

Another adventure for famed occult detective Mr Flaxman Low, who is called to investigate a curious and often lethal menace haunting an overgrown country house.. 

In this tale of creeping terror from Elizabeth Bowen, we visit a quiet corner of war-time London where a sinister rendezvous is about to occur... 

From the pages of Weird Tales, a very dark and disturbing tale from Allison V Harding.

A classic tale of ghostly terror and proto-folk horror by Flavia Richardson AKA Christine Campbell Thomson, the pioneering editor of the legendary Not At Night horror anthology series.

In this show we start a series of readings for Women in Horror month, beginning with a very dark tale from E Nesbit, who was just as adept at crafting grim horrors for grown-ups as she as conjuring enchanting adventures for children.

In the first of our ghost stories for Christmas this year, we have a little story set in the depths of winter and in the shadow of an ancient cathedral. It's Christmas Eve, it's snowing, and this is a truly chilling tale from Hugh Walpole!

Another tale from the casebook of Mr Flaxman Low, the original occult detective! In this story Mr Low encounters a highly dangerous apparition that haunts a lonely road, something that's far more sinister than your usual ghost...

In this show we have a little story from Mr Frederick Cowles from his 1936 collection The Horror of Abbot's Grange and Other Stories, a suitably seasonal tale of terror set in the month of October!

Continuing our season of readings exploring places important to MR James, and showing a lighter side to the master of ghost stories, in this show we have a reading of the earliest surviving supernatural tale he ever wrote - a whimsical nocturnal adventure set in King's College, Cambridge.

A strange tale of a walk upon a summer's night from MR James. Set at Eton College, this little yarn shows a more whimsical side to the  master of ghost stories... well, at first at least.

Beginning a little summer season of readings from MR James, we start with something of a rarity - an atmospheric poem from the master of ghost stories!  

From his 1910 collection Midnight House & Other Tales,  we bring you a story of sunlit horror by WF Harvey - August Heat!

A classic tale of cosmic horror from Donald Wandrei, the cofounder of legendary weird fiction publisher Arkham House. Take a trip to the end of time and witness the final end of the universe itself... 

We return to the casebook of Mr Flaxman Low, the original occult detective. In this third case, we encounter a very unusual haunting which proves to be horribly physical and highly dangerous! 

First published in Weird Tales in March 1936, The Graveyard Rats by Henry Kuttner is one of my all-time favourite tales of terror, a story of escalating subterranean horror! 

In this episode we delve into the casebook of Mr Flaxman Low, fiction's first occult detective. In this tale Mr Low investigates a most troubling haunting involving a sinister figure in black.

A vintage tale from the great Philip K Dick, first published in Imagination magazine in 1953. 

On a quiet asteroid, an unusual threat is waiting in the forests...

Meet Mr Flaxman Low - athlete, scholar, scientist and ghost hunter! Join the the original occult detective on his first case - investigating a highly violent haunting in Hammersmith in old London town! 

Just in time for Valentine's Day, a reading of a celebrated love poem by the great Edgar Allan Poe, the exquisite gothic tale in miniature that is Annabel Lee! 

Hear the saga of a mighty hero from the days of Arthurian legend - the farm boy turned monster slayer, Jack the Giant Killer! As retold by folklorist Joseph Jacobs in his classic volume English Fairy Tales (1890).

For our final festive tale this year, we have one of the oldest Christmas ghost stories. Taken from Grettis saga Ásmundarsonar, an Icelandic saga from the late 13th century, and translated by Sabine Baring-Gould, this tale of terror tells of the horrors that haunt a lonely farm far to the north in the Vale of Shadows in Iceland.

No Christmas is complete without a ghost story from MR James, and so here we have a reading of one of his best loved tales - Lost Hearts.

In this show, we are hoping to bring a chill to your Yuletide this year with a special series of ghost stories for Christmas. And we are starting out with the tale of a curious train journey that took place, not so long ago, on a dark and damp December night - Passenger From Crewe by Frederick Cowles.

As winter approaches and nights grow long and frosty, Mr Jim Moon has an eerie tale of whispering snow and icy secrets that's guaranteed to bring you a chill!

An eerie poem by John Masefield, drawn from authentic maritime folklore, concerning the dark forces that await sailors on the high seas!

In this episode we are very proud to present a classic modern tale of the Cthulhu Mythos - The Horror Under Penmire by Adrian Cole, a story of Lovecraftian dread and ancient secrets lurking in mist-shrouded Cornwall! 

In this show we return to the weird verse of Mr Edgar Allan Poe to hear the seminal poem The City in the Sea first published in 1845.

"Tomorrow it is proposed that the Lower Master takes me by car to Worbarrow Bay in Dorset where the Scouts are in camp—it is further proposed that by the camp fire I should read them a story of a terrible nature, which I have made—contrary to my expectation."

So wrote MR James in a letter dated 26th July 1927. And so, in this podcast, Mr Jim Moon invites you to take a place by the campfire to hear that ghost story from MR James, which was first told at a boy scouts camp on 27th July 1927. Gather round folks, for the dark tale of Wailing Well... 

In this podcast we present a reading of one of the most celebrated tales ever published in Weird Tales. An eerie story of mysterious transmissions and a strange, menacing fog - The Night Wire by HF Arnold.

As it is midsummer - a time of magic and mystery - we have a tale of sunlit horror from the great EF Benson. In The Man Who Went Too Far we discover ancient and terrifying powers are very much alive and well in the heart of the English countryside.

In this little show we have an eerie poem from Robert E Howard. While he is best known as the creator of Conan the Barbarian and other two-fisted heroes, Howard also wrote a great deal of verse, much of it on weird and fantastic themes. The poem in this podcast takes us back England in years gone by, the days when gibbets still stood at crossroads... 

Something strange falls from the skies, and a creeping terror comes to earth. Considered to be one of his best stories, here is The Colour Out of Space by HP Lovecraft, a masterful and far-sighted fusion of science fiction and horror, complete and unabridged! 

A tale of terror from one of literature's greatest writers. Guy de maupassant wrote many novels and hundreds of short stories, and is recognised as a giant of French literature. However he also penned a series of haunting tales about the strange and the macabre. The story Lui? known either He? or sometimes The Terror asks us if we are ever truly alone, or is there an unseen other haunting us... 

This week Mr Jim Moon delves into local history and folklore to unearth a true tale of crime, madness and the Devil - the strange case of the Brass Murders!

In this show we have a tale from a modern master, Mr Thom Burgess, who has created a string of highly acclaimed ghostly graphic novels. 

His latest opus, a collection of short tales entitled Nyctophobias which delivers twenty very good reasons to be scared of the dark. One story you will find in this gorgeous illustrated anthology is a deceptively innocent sounding tale called Teacups...  

HP Lovecraft is regarded of the one of the masters of the 20th century horror story, but a good many of his tales also contain a great deal of science fiction. And this early short tale is a prime example of how Lovecraft fused science and terror... 

Mr Edgar Allan Poe surely needs no introduction, but as well as writing a legion of classic horror tales, his poetry often went to dark and strange places too... 

Mr HH Munro forged as successful career as a writer under his pen name Saki, and is now hailed as one of the masters of the short story.  Many of his tales contain a dark humour, and a good few ventured into the realm of the weird and the macabre. Here is a short classic by Saki detailing a most unusual haunting... 

While Walter de la Mare is usually best remembered as a highly respectable poet, he also wrote a good deal of fiction, and in particular, several highly individual tales of the macabre. . One such story is Seaton's Aunt, which in a  visit to a friend's quiet country house leads to some strange and haunting experiences... 

When we talk of ghost stories, there is one man who is reckoned to the master of all - the great Mr James. And tonight we present one of his finest little creepy stories, a cautionary tale about prying into rooms that stay locked for good reason...  

While the great HG Wells is best known for his pioneering science fiction, he also wrote come cracking tales of terror too. Indeed this story The Red Room is reckoned by many to be one of the most terrifying ghost stories ever written... 

Welcome to the the Great Library of Dreams Podcast, where we present readings of classic tales of the weird and the wonderful! Here you will find stories of the magical, the mysterious, the marvelous, and the macabre!