There is a fascination with being unnerved, with the macabre, and being safely scared. There’s something delicious about feeling cosy and being told a creepy story, making your hair stand on end and giving you goosebumps. It’s like a mug of hot chocolate and a fireside on a cold night, or listening to the rain when you know you’re not out in it. That little pulse of adrenalin, that letting us know that we are alive, when we know there’s no real danger. It’s at odds with this current climate of special effects and instant attention grabbing shock and gore tactics that many recent films resort to.
How gratifying to find a concept which embraces the original creepy, eerie and unnerving supernatural stories and isn’t afraid to let them speak for themselves. These are stories of creeping dread rather than shock, the ones that wonderfully ask you to use your imagination and follow the stories being told. They are wonderfully soundscaped and underscored, adding to the ambience, although there were some tech issues on this particular evening, it did not detract from the quality of the show.
The four multi-rolling actors are incredible. Their story telling techniques are sublime. These are monologues delivered with precision yet still flexibility due to their surroundings and reacting to the audience. The rise and fall, emphasis and ability to paint pictures and evoke atmospheres and scare the audience to bits just with their individual performances are just gorgeous. Conjuring pictures from a bygone time in the candlelight, they delight the audience who devour what they present.
In terms of shaping the show, having The Pale Man interspersed between two other stories is a wonderful idea and worked perfectly. Carl Lovejoy’s delivery changing from self-assured to almost smiling resignation at the end is a joy to watch. Sam Nixon’s The Old Nurse’s Story is so believable and gripping, and Phil Nair-Brown’s The Boarded Window again is told with such authenticity you almost believe it’s true. Each of the actors have pitched the emotions and character work on these roles beautifully. The Monkey’s Paw is a wonderful rounded ending to the show with narration woven seamlessly with the action of all four actors, the fourth being Jake Marchant who appears several times throughout. Being so close to all the actors telling the tales really helps with the feelings of dread and fear which makes it all the more delicious.
This is very much an emerging and developing concept with performances in different venues, with half of the team from Brighton and half from just outside. In discussion with Brighton Source they are currently developing this show, so how wonderful to be at the beginning of this unique Ghost Stories experience. There are moments of light-heartedness at different points, it’s possible that these have been added with care and attention to the audience so they can be allowed to breathe, however, these moments of levity are not needed as the audience has these moments between each story. What works best is where the soundscaping of the eerie echo and dripping water is allowed to build the suspense without us being reminded that this is just a story: enveloping us all in the world of each of the stories is what works better than anything.
The only issues with this excellent production are some of the other audience members, some of whom on this particular occasion seemed to think they were just in the pub with their mates: talking loudly through part of the performance, getting so drunk that they couldn’t actually sit in their seat, grabbing for integral props and interrupting frequently by getting up and going to the toilets every 20 minutes. The actors rose above it with professional verve, however, it interfered with other audience members enjoyment as it disturbed and took people out of the moment, many of whom were heard telling them not so gently to be quiet.
Creators Phil Nair-Brown and Sam Nixon have created something very special with this concept, which reflects our need for the creepy tale told in cosiness, to be able to cling onto those we care for and look carefully over our shoulders into the shadows. There is always that question: what if. Nobody does know for certain, so what if that shadow isn’t just a shadow, what if there are ghosts and things that go bump in the night? Experiencing this show, and it is an experience, is a wonderfully chilling and spine-tingly way to spend your evening, whatever you believe.
The Brooksteed, Worthing, 2 November 2025
Ghost Stories runs in various locations and times – see Ghost Stories Theatre
Photos credit: Simon Nixon
