10 British Horror TV Shows You've Probably Never Seen
5. Lost Hearts
The favourite BBC ghost story of confirmed horror fan and writer Mark Gatiss, this tale is another adaptation of an M.R. James story (unsurprising that this well should be returned to again and again, as this author is the master of the short ghost story).
The only entry on this list to feature the distinctive musical accompaniment of a hurdy gurdy, Lost Hearts concerns an orphan who moves into his cousin's manor and begins seeing the apparitions of two children.
With performances from Simon Gipps-Kent and Joseph O'Connor, Lost Hearts is another example of excellent literary adaptation, especially of the ghost story. The actual substance of this tale is particularly ghoulish though that is largely saved for its latter stages, with the sort of atmosphere and racking up of tension that ghost stories live or die on throughout.
Though Lost Hearts is Gatiss's favourite because it frightened him as a child, the adaptation still retains its power to unnerve all ages. The aforementioned hurdy gurdy music is particularly effective, affording Lost Hearts a unique soundscape, distinct even from other period set tales of the supernatural. For fans of ghost stories, this is one overlooked gem.