In a new interview on Blazing Minds, I had the opportunity to ask A.G. Smith and Robert Whitehouse a few questions about their immersive ghost story show, Weeping Bank, which is currently on tour.

Q. Weeping Bank is currently on tour across the UK. Can you please tell us a bit about this tour and what audiences can expect?

RW: In a nutshell, we bring immersive readings of original ghost stories, in the tradition of great ghost storytellers like M. R. James and Charles Dickens, to libraries, community spaces and theatres around the country throughout all 12 months of the year, not just Halloween.

The stories will change each time, but the setup and staging will remain largely the same. Expect tense, unsettling stories, written and performed by The Librarian of Weeping Bank himself from his private study, read by candlelight and his solitary brass reading lamp.

Q. How did the idea first come about for the character of the Librarian and Weeping Bank?

AG: I have vivid memories of visiting my local library as a child and taking books to the desk to be stamped by the librarian – and never knowing their name, because no one said it and they never wore a name badge. When I began to write the Weeping Bank tales in 2009 that memory came back to me – coupled with my love of the Amicus Portmanteau movies from the 60’s and 70’s which invariably were glued together by a single character who would introduce each new story. I realised that it would be perfectly plausible to have a character who is only ever referred to by their title.

I loved the idea of creating a community that would feel like something out of an Agatha Christie novel – but then adding layers of folklore, witchcraft and supernatural dread to every corner of it. A village in many ways out – of-time yet believable. At the heart of the community is the library, which is situated in woodland close to the canal – here The Librarian resides and is the keeper of all the strange tales that unfold in this eerie landscape. He is not the villain of the piece, nor is he the hero – The Librarian is the custodian of the secret history of Weeping Bank.

Q. Who are some of your inspirations as a horror writer?

AG: In the world of literature, I always credit Robin Jarvis with inspiring me to want to become a writer. I discovered his books when I was ten years old – his children’s novels had a dark edge to them, often woven with folklore and gothic horror. The Whitby Witches trilogy remains a particular favourite. He also has an incredible mastery of language, never dumbing down for his audience and pushing children on with their reading. I greatly admire that and try to bring a flavour of that into the Weeping Bank tales.

It was television that inspired me to embrace the world of horror more than films. Dr Who’s fabulous 13th season with Tom Baker terrified and enthralled me – introducing Gothic Horror into my life and setting me on the path to discover Universal, Hammer and Amicus films and the seminal BBC Ghost Stories for Christmas of the 1960’s and 70’s. I loved that out of time feel to shows like Sapphire and Steel, early The Avengers, The Prisoner and of course Quatermass. Whilst I went on to embrace most strands of horror movies, it is these early influences that still inform my writing today.

Q. Have you experienced any issues during the tour?

RW: There are always going to be issues with any performance, even one with such simple staging as ours, but thankfully nothing so serious that the audience would really have been aware of it. For us, the main issues surround getting the venue just the way we want it – dark, quiet and in a suitably period and atmospheric setting. This can be difficult when in a modern library with large glass windows in the suburbs of a city centre, but it’s really amazing how you can create atmosphere in any room with low level light, lots of candles, a couple of pieces of antique furniture, some ambient sound effects, a tense story and an engaging performer.

Although not really issues as such, there are elements we’ve been working on for a while, such as creating a backdrop that looks more and more like The Librarian’s study (even when in quite a plain room) and a small portable stage so even people at the back can see, but we’re now at the point where we have all the elements in place for what we believe is a really unique and special night out, not just for horror fans, but for anyone who enjoys live storytelling or even just wants something different to do in their local area.

Q. How has the experience been doing the stories in front of an audience, and what were some of your favourite reactions from the audience?

AG: When I first started writing the Weeping Bank tales it was never my intention to perform them myself. I wrote in the hope they would be adapted for the radio – ideally for one of the horror greats like Sir Christopher Lee to read them late at night – it was a complete accident that I was asked by a dear friend to do a reading of one of the tales in a library around 2010 – there were only a few people in the audience and it was broad daylight – yet despite this the reaction to the story was very positive and I surprised myself as to how much I’d enjoyed doing it.

The readings became a regular yearly event – and slowly the audiences grew and grew. I began to enhance the character of The Librarian with a costume and props – the stories expanded and a buzz began to build around what a different experience these readings were to theatrical events or films – as a writer and performer you feed off the audience and begin to realise what works and what doesn’t – you shape the work until, usually unexpectedly, the puzzle fits together and you have the Weeping Bank’ that it has become today.

My favourite reactions are the screams and jumps that occur – the tension that builds as the stories grow darker and the tangible sense of dread that creeps throughout the audience as we build to the final moments of the tale. It becomes more real than a theatrical play or a film because sitting in the dark – it is as though The Librarian is telling this tale just for you – and that is a dangerously close experience.

Q. You can currently stream some of the stories from the website. Are these stories included in the live show?

RW: No. The two stories currently available on weepingbank.com are ones we have performed online at Halloween and Christmas in the past, but never in person. A Weeping Bank show usually consists of one long story with an interval halfway. The only exception to this is ‘Tales After Dark’, which is actually two short stories, and usually the ones we bring to each venue at the first visit. The only exception to this has been our theatre shows in London, Wolverhampton, Leicester, Leeds and Liverpool, where we felt one long story would be more appropriate in a theatre setting. 

Q. Are some of your stories available in a physical format?
RW: When we started this process, we often talked about finding the right publisher to create a series of collections selected from The Librarian’s private library, but that hasn’t happened yet. We’re not adverse to the idea of self-publishing either, but not unless the quality is so good that it looks and feels like an old book from a forbidden, dark collection.

We didn’t want to rush into it though so have kept prioritising the performances. As time has gone on, it’s still something we’d like to do, but there is something rather special about having to come out and listen to the latest story from The Librarian. People do ask when a book will come out, and audiences are more than happy buying a copy of our programme, which is really a kind of companion guide to Weeping Bank, complete with maps, histories of locations, more about The Librarian and an exclusive short story.

Q. Your website says that you have a podcast coming soon. Do you know when you are looking to launch the Podcast and what can we expect?

RW: Another ‘Wouldn’t it be nice if…’ that we’ve talked about for quite a while. All I can promise you is that it is coming and it will be quite unlike many of the ghost-related podcasts available to hear – an audio experience that exists purely to provide additional content for fans and to deepen audience’s experiences of the world of Weeping Bank.

Q. What are some of your favourite spooky tales which you think people should read?

AG: The Companion by Ramsey Campbell – it’s very difficult to choose just one tale from him as he is really the benchmark for supernatural writers, but it’s the fairground setting of this particular tale that haunts me still.

Ringing the Changes by Robert Aickman – he can be an acquired taste, but this is a perfect starting point – more accessible than some of his greatest wor,k yet laced with the ‘strangeness’ that became his trademark.

Mr Wrong by Elizabeth Jane Howard – without doubt one of the most deeply troubling tales I’ve ever read – a masterclass in unnerving fiction.

Michael by Jeremy Dyson – Hauntingly beautiful – he captures perfectly longing, unease and a mood of melancholy that seems to permeate from the pages. An extraordinary writer.

Q. If someone wanted to write their own horror story, do you have any advise for them?

AG: Think about what frightens you. That was my starting point for Weeping Bank.

Whatever that ‘something’ is – that’s what you must capture in your story – the essence of the intangible. The most effective ghost stories contain very little by way of description of the ghost, the fear is generated by a prevailing atmosphere of dread. It is a completely different approach to writing a horror novel. I spend more time editing Weeping Bank than I do writing the tales. Each one takes about 4 months to write, and a further 6 months to edit.

Often, I won’t know until I perform the reading for the audience whether I’ve got this right and I may have to resume editing after the first performance. I would also say to people to write for themselves to begin with. Don’t worry about whether an agent or a publisher will like it – those things don’t matter – if the story is good it will find readers and ultimately, it’s their opinion that counts.

You can find out more about Weeping Bank on the following website weepingbank.com and following social media Facebook – X (Twitter) – Instagram – BlueSky

Philip Rogers

Published in various websites, Philip is a reviewer who is best known for his interviews and media coverage of independent projects including; films, books, theatre and live events. Always on the lookout for something different to cover!