BBC Radio 4, December 19, 2018

The truth behind the death of Archdeacon Haynes…

There’s a lovely line in James’ original story that sums up Neil Brand’s adaptation of this tale, and indeed the whole series: “How much I shall quote and how much epitomize must be determined by considerations of space.” With just under a quarter of an hour to relate events, some are explained, others dramatized – and it’s in this story that Mark Gatiss’ James comes into his own as narrator. Some of Haynes’ diary entries merit a full scene, others we learn purely as narrative (and one of the weirdnesses of James’ original – that someone deliberately puts down in a diary something which they want to forget – is retained).

The feel of the cathedral is evoked by some appropriate choral music, and director David Hunter allows the story’s key points to linger as required. It’s another of James’ stories that can be – and has been – easily extended but this slightly abbreviated version loses none of the story’s eerie creepiness.

Verdict: Another tale to listen to on a dark winter’s night… if you dare. 9/10

Paul Simpson