Mr Spike's Bedtime Stories

Our narrator finds himself lost on the moors of Brittany in north-western France, where he encounters a mysterious stranger. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions If you are enjoying these tales, please consider leaving a review on the listening platform of your choice.

Following the death of his sister, Roderick Usher's mental condition deteriorates still further. Our narrator attempts to cheer his spirits by reading him a classic tale of adventure and romance. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions If you are enjoying these tales, please consider leaving a review on the l...

After learning of the rapid decline in his sister's condition, our narrator spends time with the master of the House of Usher and grows ever more concerned by his increasingly eccentric behaviour.  Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions If you are enjoying these tales, please consider leaving a review o...

An unnamed narrator arrives at the ancient mansion owned by a boyhood companion, Roderick Usher, from whom he has recently received a letter. Usher is suffering from an illness and hopes that seeing his old friend will lift his spirits once more. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions If you are enjoying the...

In the concluding part of The Ash Tree, Sir Matthew Fell's grandson discovers that his inheritance is not entirely fortuitous. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions If you are enjoying these tales, please consider leaving a review on the listening platform of your choice.

Castringham Hall in Suffolk is a house with an unfortunate history. Many years ago its owner's testimony was instrumental in the guilty verdict and hanging of a supposed witch. Could it be that her last words laid a curse upon the family? Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions

Our unnamed narrator has taken rooms in an old property in New York City. As he settles down for the night he is disturbed by a very unnerving set of events. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions

When, just two days before his wedding to May Forster, the prettiest girl in the village, John Charrington is called to visit his seriously ill godfather, May worries that something will happen to delay his return. John, however reassures her that nothing will prevent him from arriving at his wedding on time. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https...

It is a time of Civil War and military justice is about to be served on a railroad bridge in Alabama. As the man waits for his execution at the hands of Federal soldiers, he looks down at the water below him and thinks of his wife and children. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions

Slightly delayed due to an unexpected encounter with a malevolent staircase, the final part of of The Colour Out of Space concerns the return to the Gardner farm by Ammi and the Arkham authorities. What they experience during the night leaves them shaken to the very core. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductio...

In the second part of The Colour Out of Space, the fortunes of the Gardner family go from bad to worse through Spring, Summer and Autumn. When Ammi Pierce pays a visit in late October what he finds threatens very reason itself. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions

In order to mark the first anniversary of my little podcast I have a special treat in store. Over the next three episodes, I'll be reading a classic tale of cosmic horror by H.P. Lovecraft. The Colour Out of Space tells the story told to a surveyor by an old man of the secrets behind a shunned place referred to by the locals as the "blasted heath." The man claims that the troubles began when a met...

A tale is told among friends of a certain man of science who has a narrow escape from an old enemy. Some time later, however, events suggest that his enemy may not have yet given up the pursuit even from beyond the veil. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions

A young Paris student eagerly shows his comrades a curious item he has recently picked up whilst visiting his home town. However the company's amusement at the finding is somewhat short lived. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions

In "The Open Window" a Mr. Framton Nuttel, on the advice of his doctor, travels to a village to affect a cure for his nervous condition. There he meets young Vera who tells him the terrible tale of a family tragedy. One might think that living in the country sounds a lot more peaceful than a the hustle and bustle of town. However, in "The Music on the Hill" the newly wed Mrs Sylvia Seltoun finds t...

The Mezzotint is the story of Mr. Williams, the curator of a university art museum who receives a mezzotint from an art dealer. The very disturbing engraving changes each time Mr. Williams and the colleagues he enlists look at it. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions

A seasonally-adjacent tale to see out 2021. The tale of The Kit-Bag concerns the young private secretary of a noted barrister who has just won the acquittal (by reason of insanity) of an especially vicious murderer. Worn out by the case, and haunted by the evil-looking face of the murderer, he plans to recover by spending his Christmas holiday in the Alps. Assuming he manages to finish packing the...

In this classic short story, three wishes are granted to the owner of a curious mummified paw, but the wishes come with an terrible price for interfering with fate. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions

A tale from The House of Apprehension. A cautionary tale in which an orchid collector finds that Mother Nature, despite her beauty, can often be treacherous, dangerous, and even deadly.  Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions Grateful thanks to Tom Bagatelle for the use of "The House of Apprehension"

A tale from The House of Apprehension. First published in Weird Tales, August 1925, In the Forest of Villefère tells of de Montour's passage through a supposedly haunted forest. There he comes upon a most unusual travelling companion. Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/privatehellproductions Grateful thanks to Tom Bagatelle fo...

A tale from The House of Apprehension. This short story tells the tale of a small town schoolmaster named Ichabod Crane whose unsuccessful attempts to woo a beautiful young heiress named Katrina Van Tassel end in a most hair-raising journey home. I have abridged the tale somewhat to focus on Ichabod's flight through a local wood, supposedly haunted by the spectre of a headless horseman. Opening mu...

I'm little tardy with this story I'm afraid as I've been unusually busy of late. In this short tale by Edward John Moreton Drax Plunkett, 18th Baron Dunsany, a consummately professional businessman takes on a young apprentice. Between them they embark upon a most tricky proposition... Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud.com/private...

A mysterious and deadly disease is sweeping the land. Wealthy noble Prince Prospero retreats with a retinue of friends and hangers-on to the seclusion of one of his abbeys, where they set about enjoying themselves with parties, revels, and other entertainments. But are they as safe as they think? Opening music for Mr. Spike's Bedtime Stories "The Bag" by Private Hell Productions https://soundcloud...

A tale from The House of Apprehension. In this short tale, our narrator relates the story of how a law forbidding the killing of cats came to be in the ancient town of Ulthar. Introduction & closing music and effects https://mixkit.co/license/#sfxFree https://help.videvo.net/article/29-royalty-free-license Classic Horror 1 by Kevin MacLeod Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3511-class...

A tale from The House of Apprehension. First published in 1920, this is the third story in Lovecraft's Dream Cycle. It tells the history of the ancient city of Sarnath and its rise ... and fall. Introduction & closing music and effects https://mixkit.co/license/#sfxFree https://help.videvo.net/article/29-royalty-free-license Classic Horror 1 by Kevin MacLeod Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic...