A Warning to the Curious | A Ghost Story by M. R. James | A Bitesized Audiobook
Bitesized Audio Classics
52,016 views
A visitor to Seaburgh is fascinated by the local legend of an Anglo-Saxon crown buried nearby, guarding against invaders. He follows the clues to see where they lead, but soon finds himself wishing he'd left well alone... The story starts at 00:01:28
Narrated/performed by Simon Stanhope, aka Bitesized Audio. If you enjoy this content and would like to help me keep creating, there are a few ways you can support me (and get access to exclusive content):
Occasional/one-off support via Buy Me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/bitesize...
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Visit my Bandcamp page to hear more of my performances of classic stories, and you can purchase and download high quality audio files to listen offline: https://bitesizedaudio.bandcamp.com/
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00:00:00 Introduction
00:01:28 A Warning to the Curious
00:45:52 Credits, thanks and further listening
Montague Rhodes James (1862–1936) was a medievalist and scholar, and is probably the best known and most celebrated English ghost story writer of the 20th century, although he actually began composing supernatural tales in the late Victorian era, beginning with 'Canon Alberic's Scrapbook' and 'Lost Hearts' (both 1893). He was born in Kent, but spent most of his childhood in Suffolk, a county which features prominently in many of his stories, including 'Oh, Whistle, and I'll Come to You, My Lad'. Several of James's protagonists also reflect his own antiquarian interests, with academics and historians featuring regularly. James published four volumes of ghost stories in his lifetime: 'Ghost Stories of an Antiquary' (1904), 'More Ghost Stories of an Antiquary' (1911), 'A Thin Ghost and Others' (1919) and 'A Warning to the Curious and Other Stories' (1925).
During a long academic career which encompassed several positions at King's College, Cambridge, and Eton College, M. R. James developed a tradition of reading his ghost stories aloud to a group of friends, most famously on Christmas eve, and the majority of his published stories were first heard in that setting.
'A Warning to the Curious' originally appeared in the 'London Mercury' in August 1925, and became the title story in James's fourth and final collection of ghost stories published later that same year. The fictional town of Seaburgh is based on Aldeburgh, the Suffolk seaside town which James knew well from his childhood: his grandmother lived there and he visited her regularly until she died in 1870. Many of the landmarks mentioned in the story can still be seen nearby, including the Martello tower, The Bear (actually The White Lion), the church, and William Ager's cottage.
Note for returning listeners who think you may have heard this one before: you probably have; it was previously uploaded in 2020, but this version has been re-edited and re-mastered to clean up some slightly muddy or boxy audio, and fix some processing errors.
Recording © Bitesized Audio 2020–2024.
20 Comments
Your readings always have me feeling like I'm in the story. A person standing in the street, someone looking out of the window as the main characters walk by.
A Warning to the Curious | A Ghost Story by M. R. James | A Bitesized Audiobook
Bitesized Audio Classics
52,016 views
A visitor to Seaburgh is fascinated by the local legend of an Anglo-Saxon crown buried nearby, guarding against invaders. He follows the clues to see where they lead, but soon finds himself wishing he'd left well alone... The story starts at 00:01:28
Narrated/performed by Simon Stanhope, aka Bitesized Audio. If you enjoy this content and would like to help me keep creating, there are a few ways you can support me (and get access to exclusive content):
Occasional/one-off support via Buy Me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/bitesize...
Monthly support on Patreon: Patreon: bitesizedaudio
Donate via PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted...
Visit my Bandcamp page to hear more of my performances of classic stories, and you can purchase and download high quality audio files to listen offline: https://bitesizedaudio.bandcamp.com/
Become a Bitesized Audio Classics member on YouTube, from $1 / £1 / €1 per month:
bitesizedaudioclassics
00:00:00 Introduction
00:01:28 A Warning to the Curious
00:45:52 Credits, thanks and further listening
Montague Rhodes James (1862–1936) was a medievalist and scholar, and is probably the best known and most celebrated English ghost story writer of the 20th century, although he actually began composing supernatural tales in the late Victorian era, beginning with 'Canon Alberic's Scrapbook' and 'Lost Hearts' (both 1893). He was born in Kent, but spent most of his childhood in Suffolk, a county which features prominently in many of his stories, including 'Oh, Whistle, and I'll Come to You, My Lad'. Several of James's protagonists also reflect his own antiquarian interests, with academics and historians featuring regularly. James published four volumes of ghost stories in his lifetime: 'Ghost Stories of an Antiquary' (1904), 'More Ghost Stories of an Antiquary' (1911), 'A Thin Ghost and Others' (1919) and 'A Warning to the Curious and Other Stories' (1925).
During a long academic career which encompassed several positions at King's College, Cambridge, and Eton College, M. R. James developed a tradition of reading his ghost stories aloud to a group of friends, most famously on Christmas eve, and the majority of his published stories were first heard in that setting.
'A Warning to the Curious' originally appeared in the 'London Mercury' in August 1925, and became the title story in James's fourth and final collection of ghost stories published later that same year. The fictional town of Seaburgh is based on Aldeburgh, the Suffolk seaside town which James knew well from his childhood: his grandmother lived there and he visited her regularly until she died in 1870. Many of the landmarks mentioned in the story can still be seen nearby, including the Martello tower, The Bear (actually The White Lion), the church, and William Ager's cottage.
Note for returning listeners who think you may have heard this one before: you probably have; it was previously uploaded in 2020, but this version has been re-edited and re-mastered to clean up some slightly muddy or boxy audio, and fix some processing errors.
Recording © Bitesized Audio 2020–2024.
Or for a selection of Victorian ghost stories by various authors, including Charles Dickens, Amelia Edwards, Edith Nesbit, H. G. Wells, and many more: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLi95qAoufCZISCGdeBUtYxynNFtZCeRrv
A note on the text: I've opted to use a specific date, April 1920, in dating this reading, whereas in the text it is rendered as "April 19--". I chose 1920 to give the story context, because the modern-day narrator is recounting events which happened to him a few years previously (it was first published in 1925), but to me the story has a post-Great War feel about it. William Ager is said to have died "quite recently", aged 28, after spending many nights staying up out of doors... presumably guarding the crown - successfully - during the First World War. Also, there is mention of Ager's father acting as guardian during the South African War (1899-1901) and his grandfather during the War of 1870 (i.e. the Franco-Prussian War) so this timeline seemed to make sense. That's my interpretation anyway; if you disagree, or agree, or have other thoughts on it, do let me know in the comments!