BBC Radio 4, December 21, 2018

Some things are better left undisturbed…

It wasn’t raining this morning when I listened to this while walking the dogs. It wasn’t that cold either. But this final story in Neil Brand’s short season of M R James adaptations brought gooseflesh up on my arms, making me very glad I didn’t listen to it while driving in the dark…

It’s another of James’ tales that focuses on people who really should know better than to go meddling where they shouldn’t, and features in out of the way villages that make sense to the locals even if they seem ridiculous to a visitor. It’s a story whose influence can be felt in numerous horror movies, and many TV episodes and novels but there’s nothing that quite beats the way in which James describes the centrepiece of his story… and it’s quite definitely not the rodents of the title. Mark Gatiss’ delivery of those critical 51 words is the epitome of what this series has been about – and were they not a spoiler for the tale would make a perfect advert for it…

Verdict:  The best kept for last. A truly haunting tale beautifully told. 10/10

Paul Simpson