Bridgerton and The Diplomat Stars Lead BBC’s Spine-Chilling Christmas Ghost Drama With Joanna Lumley — Viewers Say It Could Be “The British Haunting of Hill House” as a Room of Secrets, Shadows, and Unimaginable Terror Is Finally Unlocked! Mark Gatiss has done it again. This Christmas, BBC isn’t giving us sugar and sparkle — it’s delivering a nightmare wrapped in candlelight. With Joanna Lumley, Bridgerton’s Polly Walker, and The Diplomat’s Nancy Carroll at the helm, critics are already whispering that this unsettling tale could rival The Haunting of Hill House and The Woman in Black for pure atmospheric dread. A story of buried sins, restless spirits, and one cursed room that swallows the living whole — it’s being hailed as “the most terrifying holiday tradition Britain has ever unleashed.”

The star-studded cast of Mark Gatiss’ latest ghost story adaptation for the BBC this Christmas has been revealed. Tobias Menzies (The Crown; F1) and Joanna Lumley (Absolutely Fabulous; Motherland) will star in this year’s A Ghost Story for Christmas, titled The Room in the Tower, alongside the likes of Nancy Carroll (The Crown; The Diplomat), Polly Walker (Bridgerton; Rome) and Ben Mansfield (Endeavour; Sister Boniface Mysteries). The story will air on BBC Two and iPlayer this Christmas.

You know you’re in safe hands when it comes to Mark Gatiss, who is known for his work on acclaimed shows such as Sherlock, Doctor Who and The League of Gentlemen. With a stellar cast led by acting icon Joanna Lumley, there’s no doubt that The Room in the Tower is a must-watch for the festive period. Keep reading to find out more.

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What is The Room in the Tower about?

The upcoming “spine-chilling” festive special, which is Gatiss’ eighth ghost story for Christmas on the BBC, is set in the inter-war years and follows Roger Winstanley, whose recurring nightmare becomes a reality. The synopsis reads: “For 15 years, Roger Winstanley has been haunted by an unsettling, recurring dream: an invitation to spend the night in the house of an acquaintance, where an unseen terror lurks and the figures who populate the dream seem to age in real time. Nightmare and waking life seem to finally collide when an invitation to the dreaded “room in the tower” becomes all too real.”

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Mark Gatiss, who writes and directs the story, said in a statement: “I’ve always wanted to adapt the great E.F. Benson’s ghost stories and this is one of his chilling best. I’m also very grateful to have been able to continue the most Christmassy of Christmas traditions. The Room in the Tower has been prepared for you – and with Tobias Menzies and the legendary Dame Joanna Lumley to boot!”

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What are Mark Gatiss’ previous festive tales?

Mark’s previous stories for the BBC at Christmas include last year’s Woman of Stone, The Mezzotint, Martin’s Close, Count Magnus and The Tractate Middoth – all of which were based on works by M.R. James. In 2023, he wrote and directed an adaptation of Arthur Conan Doyle’s short story, Lot No. 249.