Das Geisterschloss

Perhaps the greatest thing about portraying Alexander Oldknowe in the 1986 BBC Children's Television series 'The Children of Green Knowe' was meeting Lucy M. Boston, who wrote the novel upon which the four-part series was based, and who also wrote 'The River at Green Knowe'. She was a delightful lady, and I remember that we - myself and the other principal cast members - had our photograph taken with her.

Also great to work with Heather Ramsay, who played my mother. She noticed that I was reading Stephen King's awesome 1985 short story collection 'Skeleton Crew' during the making of the series, and recommended the work of acclaimed British horror author Ramsey Campbell. Thanks heaps, Heather!

Great too to work with the very talented Danny Schiller, who played Gabriel, the manic choirmaster. Danny went on to play Snorri the Miserable in Terry Gilliam's hilarious 'Erik the Viking' and also to portray a barrister in the 1992 thriller 'Under Suspicion', which starred Liam Neeson and Laura San Giacomo. And after all these years, I still remember the lyrics of song I sing before the King and his court (by the way, the banquet that you will descry laid out was fireproofed, so no one was game to pick at it!):-

Return, return you happy men/To your own blessed shades again/Lest staying long some new desire/In your cool bosom raise a fire/Like a perfumed gale o'er flowers/Now glide again to your own bowers

Saw Polly Maberly in an episode of 'Frost' in early 2001, and she acquitted herself very well indeed. She has grown into quite the young lady.

As Montague H. Withnail declares in 'Withnail and I', 'Alas! I have little more than vintage wine and memories'. But what memories!

James Trevelyan (Alexander Oldknowe)

"Make up a great blaze, Tolly, and I'll tell you a story!" I will always associate The Children of Green Knowe with poached eggs on toast and cup of tea; as a kid I used to watch this religiously with said meal and beverage. My parents used to have this on one of those old single-reel Betamax videos (does anyone actually remember those?) and, of course, when the VCR eventually broke, we couldn't get it repaired. We lost so many wonderful videos with that.

If only the BBC would re-run this lovely little series, or better still, release it on DVD. They did it with the Box of Delights (splediferous) and I'm sure they can do it with this as well. I've since begun reading the books and they do not disappoint. The role of Tolly's Grandmother could have been written for Daphne Oxenford - a truly wonderful performance. For me, this is the epitome of what children's drama should be - simple, yet magical!

For all of you leaving comments or reading the comments here I can only recommend that if you ever get the chance you should visit the original Manor House (see location above)the book was written in. The house is simply warm and wonderful and very evocative and during the spring and summer months the garden is nothing short of a delight. The lady who now owns and runs the house and garden with the help of a number of fine gardeners is very amiable and shows you round the house if she has time herself. I visited over 4 years ago and still have fond memories and a collection of fine photographs of my visit. The quilt collection is amazing and the stories of the parties and war time evenings by the host really bring the house alive. The son's bedroom with its toys and chest is really the touchstone of the whole adventure.

A lot of British kids have memories of watching the original run of DR WHO and being forced to hide behind the sofa because they were too scared to watch the screen. I had the same experience, but with me it was THE CHILDREN OF GREEN KNOWE, a Children's BBC 4-part TV series adaptation of the 1950s novel by Lucy M. Boston. I watched this live on TV in 1986 at the age of 5 and it scared the life out of me. It was the bits in which inanimate objects come to life which really disturbed me, although even the rocking horse was spooky. Thankfully, the film has just come out on DVD over here in the UK, so I was able to catch up with it as an adult and I wasn't disappointed.

THE CHILDREN OF GREEN KNOWE is short, simple entertainment. A young boy goes to stay in an old ancestral house over the Christmas break, and soon becomes aware that there are ghostly children from the Stuart era that he can sometimes see. There are also various myths and legends associated with the place that he becomes involved in. This type of story was very familiar in TV & book form back in the day, but it's handled in a completely charming way here. The low budget effects aren't up to much, but the story and execution have bags of atmosphere and charm that make it impossible to dislike. Daphne Oxenford is like Maggie Smith but even better. I miss the days when the BBC had the skill to make stuff like this, as it's the kind of thing which manages the very difficult job of recapturing the magic of being a child - something that modern film and TV makers seem to have forgotten.

I was fortunate enough to see this series for the first time yesterday at the NFF (South Bank), followed by a Q&A with Alec Christie, who played Tolly. I was amazed at the quality of the print which looked superb on the big screen of NFF 1. The magic, I think, lies in the detail of the settings and in the atmosphere which is created by a story which moves at a dignified pace. I wondered whether the singing was 'lip-syncd' by the boy who plays Alexander? The first time he sings, in the Cathedral church, I thought the sound was amazingly beautiful. The singing at the concert for King Charles was more authentic. Throughout, there is a wonderful feel for the mood of the drama which is in stark contrast to so much of today's TV dramas for kids!