(originally published as The Ghosts)
An enthralling ghost story with a time travelling twist. Now a Sky Original film, starring Mark Gatiss, Simon Callow and Tamsin Greig.
It’s 1918, and Lucy and Jamie live in a small flat in Camden Town with their widowed mother. One day, a mysterious stranger named Mr. Blunden appears at their door with an unbelievably attractive offer: a job as caretaker for a rundown but once magnificent house in the countryside. They hastily relocate, only to discover the local villagers are afraid of the house, with claims they have seen the figures of two child ghosts wandering about the grounds.
Lucy and Jamie’s encounter with the supernatural whisks them through time to the same spot, 100 years earlier. It may be out of the usual time, but the clock is ticking – in only a few short days, the dreadful accident will play out once again, claiming the lives of their two new friends. That is, unless Lucy and Jamie can find a way to stop it…
Antonia Barber’s novel The Ghosts was first published in 1969 and shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal. It was later made into the popular film, The Amazing Mr Blunden in 1972*,* remade as a feature film for Sky in 2021 by Mark Gatiss. Her novel The Ring in the Rough Stuff also reached the Carnegie Medal shortlist, and her picture book The Mousehole Cat, illustrated by Nicola Bayley, was awarded Illustrated Children's Book of the Year at the British Book Awards and won the Children's Choice in the Nestlé Smarties Book Prize.
<aside> 🕰️ “Charming, magical and life-affirming, Antonia Barber's clever and moving tale has become a much-loved favourite. The Wheel of Time spins - and off we go into an unforgettable adventure!” – Mark Gatiss
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<aside> 🕰️ “A haunted house and a sinister custodian, Barber's classic festive children's ghost story is every bit as magical as it was when first published over half a century ago.” – Waterstones
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WEL Publisher: Virago
Editor: Donna Coonan
Primary Agent: Caroline Walsh
Film/TV Rights: DHA (Clare Israel)
Extent : 256 pages
Co-Agents: Chinese - Bardon Chinese Media Japanese - Japan Uni
Rights sold: Italian - Giunti
Mark Gatiss TV version brings The Amazing Mr Blunden back into print
