The Secret of Crickley Hall

Shows like this are hard to find. When we do find them they are too often cheesy and ridiculous. The Secret of Crickley Hall is anything but. This was a wonderful show about an old house in the north of England. It takes place both in modern times and in 1943.

After having their son go missing, a family moves to this old estate for a few months hoping to deal with their loss. Unfortunately, the house has a lot of secrets of its own...secrets that need to come out.

Shows like this should be made more often. This was atmospheric - especially the first episode - it was tragic and haunting, and it was emotional. Anytime you have ghostly goings-on in an large, old, creepy house in England, you know you're heading in the right direction.

This is an actual ghost story, but it's very well done. It's not cheesy, it's not hokey. It allows you to meld into the story, you feel their pain and frustration as well as their emotional rollercoaster dealing not only with their missing son but the tragedies of the past that they begin to uncover.

I wish there were more shows like this. Ignore the bad reviews, they probably come from people who read the book and think this isn't a perfect representation. Fortunately, I haven't yet read the book so my viewpoint isn't tainted.

Usually Mystery Drama/Thrillers like this that are aired on the BBC are slow, boring, drawn out affairs, but this is actually a pretty good mini-series. I mean there's nothing spectacular about it, but it does keep you watching with interest.

Also with it being a BBC TV program there's obviously not going to be anything too graphic about it, like blood or very heavy scares so you need to keep that in mind if you decide to watch it as it MAY be a bit disappointing if you were expecting any of that.

Be prepared for it being a wee bit slow for the first couple of episodes as well, but it's not a boring kind of slow. It's a slower pace, but it builds everything up pretty nicely for the third and final episode where everything comes to a head.

You also have to pay attention to it as well because it jumps back and forth a lot from present time to 1943. I mean it's obvious when it happens but with it being constantly back and forth all the time you do still need to watch closely to follow both the story lines.

The series is well played out by the cast, but the character of Eve Caleigh (played by Suranne Jones) did grate on my nerves a bit. I understand she's a mother who wasn't giving up hope of finding her son, even a year on from his disappearance, but some of her actions just rubbed me the wrong way. Douglas Henshall did a fine job playing the part of Augustus Cribben, the uncaring and heartless owner (along with his sister, Magda) of the orphanage, and a person who you never feel any sympathy for.

Overall, this is a pretty enjoyable series to watch and one I'd recommend giving a go, especially if you enjoy a bit more of a subtle approach to your Supernatural movies.

I purposely hadn't watched this series, based on the mainly negative reviews I'd read, but a dark miserable wet day and it went on, if I wasn't miserable enough before, I certainly was about fifteen minutes into this.

The story itself is dark and disturbing, but the way in which it was produced it was overly macabre and grim. It has a very good opening episode, a sound second, and a rather disappointing conclusion. It all fell apart a little at the end.

The best thing that can be said about this drama is the acting, some quality performances, Suranne Jones, Tom Ellis, David Warner, Sarah Smart etc all really good, Douglas Henshall is great as the creepy Augustus Cribben, but it's the wonderful Olivia Cooke that gave the most endearing performance as Nancy Linnet, she was great.

Worth a watch I guess, but if you've read it I fear you may be a little disappointed in it. 6/10.

I watched the entire thing in one night. This is really right up my alley with the horror and drama vibes. It was like an earlier version of Haunting of Hill House - just as gripping and enjoyable to watch. I would say it's more disturbing than scary but I appreciate the effort of not resorting to cheap scares. I see the effort that was put in the storyline. The acting was also on par and honestly, this was a good find.

The core of any good story is the story, and this little treasure packs a WALLOP. The Secret of Crickley Hall is, firstly, a drama for people who like to read. There are certainly ghosts, but the story is what will invest you in these characters, not its special effects, so be prepared to carve out a block of time to see the series complete and uninterrupted. Like any good book, I couldn't put it down.

There isn't just one story here, and so the multiple plot lines converge with devastating — and at times, shocking — effect as the story takes unexpected twists and turns you couldn't possibly have seen coming.

Based on James Herbert's best selling novel, The Secret of Crickley Hall is so well written, cast & produced, I've given it 8 stars _and_ a review (rare for me). Bravo.