Supernatural Tales

Stephen Volk will forever be associated with the groundbreaking BBC TV show Ghostwatch (1992), which remains one of the most controversial programmes ever broadcast in the UK. Not bad for a ghost story. Some writers get a bit peeved when they are always mentioned in connection to just one thing when they have done a lot of things. Volk, however, has always seemed good humoured about Ghostwatch, and one story in this collection underlines the point. '31/10' adopts the position that the whole thing was 'real' - Michael Parkinson, in this alternate reality, ended up psychiatric care and Sarah Greene disappeared without trace. Ten years after the fateful broadcast they re-enact the show and wackiness ensues. It's an enjoyable take on conspiracy theories, which proliferated around the show even before social media.  Elsewhere, the various forms and tropes of the literary ghost story are explored. There's a neat homage to Lafcadio Hearn in 'Hojo the Fearless. Thi...