Ghosts at Christmas

Ghosts at Christmas examines how the festive season became linked with ghost stories, setting familiar fictional examples such as A Christmas Carol alongside accounts presented as real encounters. Darren W. Ritson considers the subject in literature and film, including Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas, before turning to reported hauntings from across Britain.

The cases include Christmas Eve Kitty in Blackpool, the Carlisle Devil Dog, the ghost children of Bramber Castle and the skulls of Calgarth Hall. Other accounts concern apparitions and poltergeist activity recorded in historical and contemporary sources. More than 70 images accompany this collection, which brings together folklore, popular culture and investigations associated with the Christmas season.