Ghost Stories

I have to admit to being surprised at how many people admitted they were followers of the paranormal world when questioned at the beginning of Ghost Stories currently showing at the Theatre Royal in Glasgow, the venue which boasts its own spooky residents, Nora, a former cleaner who wanted to go on stage, but failed in her audition and is said to get her revenge in the Upper Circle by flipping seats. And an unnamed fireman who tragically died in 1869, tackling an electrical blaze and is said to haunt the theatre by moving props around the stage.

It was intriguing to jump feet first into the spooky goings on of the play written by The League of Gentlemen’s Jeremy Dyson and Derren Brown collaborator Andy Nyman.

With Professor Goodman (Dan Tetsell) at the helm, the audience is gently introduced into the delights of parapsychology through three short and scary stories.

As the lights fall and the hearts begin to race, the 90 minute production tells of different experiences of paranormal.

It’s tense in the run up and the audience plays its part by nervously shrieking and giggling as the tales unfold and all in all, it’s a fun night out.

The first story features Tony Matthews (David Cardy), a night watchman who sees more than he bargains for when on patrol. But the question is, does the experience frighten him more because of what he has seen or what secrets are hidden deep inside his head.

Eddie Loodmer-Elliott plays Simon Rifkind, a nervous teenager trying to escape the clutches of an overprotective mother, only to cause more mental breakdowns during a late night car crash.

And theatre stalwart Clive Mantle is wonderful as businessman Mike Priddle, a man who becomes a father late in life.

All three have brushes with the paranormal world, but it’s up to the audience to work out whether it’s all in their minds because of their personal circumstances.

With a simple but dark set and costumes by Jon Bausor, spooky lighting from James Farncombe and special sounds by Nick Manning, Ghost Stories is a great out of the norm experience for theatre goers.

Ghost Stories runs until Saturday 12^th April in Glasgow before moving to Norwich, 15^th to 19^th April, Newcastle, 22^nd to 26^thApril, then on to Nottingham, 29^th to 3^rd May, Southend, 13^th to 17^th May, Birmingham, 20^th to 24^thMay and over to Belfast from 27^th to 31^st May.

It heads to Leicester, 3^rd to 7^th June, High Wycombe, 10^th to 14^th June, Southampton, 24^th to 28^th June, then on to Wolverhampton, 1^st to 5^th July, Brighton, 8^th to 12^th July, Shrewsbury, 15^th to 19^th July, Malvern, 22^nd to 26^th July, with the tour rounding off in Cardiff from 29^th July to 2^nd August 2025.

For more information and ticket availability please visit www.atgtickets.com and www.ghoststoriesplay.com.

Author Bio:

Rebecca Hay is an experienced travel writer and member of The British Guild of Travel Writers. Follow her adventures with her family on Twitter and Instagram @emojiadventurer and on Facebook via EmojiAdventurers2.

Photographs by Hugo Glendinning