"It was a rather indifferent mezzotint, and an indifferent mezzotint is, perhaps, the worst form of engraving known... What in the world Mr. Britnell could mean by affixing the price of £2 2s. to such an object was more than Mr. Williams could imagine." The classic tale of a sinister engraving by the Edwardian master of the ghost story, M. R. James. 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):

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00:00:00 Introduction
00:01:28 The Mezzotint
00:31:17 Credits, thanks and further listening

This is one of a series of the ghost stories of M. R. James I've narrated for this channel; you can hear the others on this playlist:    • M. R. James Ghost Stories  
Or for a selection of Victorian ghost stories by various authors, including Charles Dickens, Amelia Edwards, Edith Nesbit, H. G. Wells, and many more:    • Victorian Ghost Stories  

About the author: 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.

'The Mezzotint' is one of M. R. James' earliest ghost stories. It is placed third in the 1904 volume published by James, 'Ghost Stories of an Antiquary', but was certainly read aloud by James at the Chit-Chat club at some point in the 1890s. The reference in the story to Mr. Dennistoun recalls the main character in James' first story, 'Canon Alberic's Scrap-book' (1893).

Recording © Bitesized Audio 2024.