Harry by Rosemary Timperley
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- Опубликовано: 8 сен 2024
- A ghost story set in post-war London. A couples suburban dream becomes a nightmare with a haunting presence that just won't leave their family alone. An unnerving story that really got to me.
Harry by Rosemary Timperley
Thank you to Steve Cuff for suggesting I read this story.
Rosemary Timperley was born in 1920 in North London and died in November 1988. Her father was an architect and her mother a teacher. Timperley went to her local girls school and became a teacher herself. She taught English and History in a state school. Her pupils said she was a very dramatic figure (she ran the drama club) and wore long swirling black dresses with long drop or hoop earrings.
While she was a teacher she began to submit her stories to magazine and they began to be accepted. She became a staff writer and agony aunt on the magazine Reveille. She lived in Richmond, Surrey (a well-heeled suburb of London now) for many years. Many of her stories are set in London.
During the Second World War she worked at the Citizens’ Advice Bureau in Kensington, London. She got married to a. Physics teacher in 1952 and they lived in Essex just outside London. They separated in the early 1960s according to some sources, but they appear to have been officially married until his death in 1968.
In 1961 she mentions she is living in an old-fashioned flat and living on coffee, pink-gin and cigarettes. In 1964 she became seriously ill and had a long spell in hospital. I’m not surprised hearing about her diet.
She was very prolific and was the author of 66 novels as well as radio plays and short stories. She was also editor of the 5th to the 9th Ghost Books.
Harry has been filmed several times. She described herself as a recluse
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If you like this you might like The Lodgers ruclips.net/video/UsistIIp61E/видео.html
As the father of a daughter, I definitely felt the anxiety evoked by this story. And what I've learned in the decade between the age of Christine and my own daughter's is that the fear something bad will happen to her both lessens and increases the older she gets. Being older means she's better equipped to take care of herself and look out for potential dangers, but it also makes spotting those dangers much less cut and dried. To an adolescent girl, the greatest threats might appear as the most appealing, so trying to protect her from that kind of danger isn't as simple as just trying to push it away with raw authority and brute (though not necessarily physical) force as was possible when she was younger. Consequently, while I know it doesn't work as a straightforward reading, the subtext of this story felt like that a young girl in love with someone her mother recognizes as manipulative, controlling, and possessive--a narcissist, maybe. But like most narcissists, initially he's adept at appearing to be the nice guy, so that the more the mother speaks out against him, the deeper she drives an emotional wedge between her daughter and herself, and the more unfair or even unbalanced she appears to friends and family. That was the unsettling part of the story for me: the perspective of the parent who sees danger to his/her child unrecognized by everyone else, including the child herself; and unsuccessfully trying to get others to wake up to the danger. A very disturbing story, but a good one for that very reason.
This has always been my scariest ghost story
Superb!!!! Excellent reading, very disturbing and sad story. I really like the small paragraph she uses to begin and end the story.
This story is in one of our literature textbooks which has a lot of short stories. We used to write literature essays for our Year 13 exams about whichever short story, drama or novel we read. It was my first time reading a horror story rather than watching it as a movie and I really loved the way it was written. The imaginative phrases like white roses, children with red hair, sunshine, shadows on grass and the name Harry, these were enough to give me chills. And the most interesting thing about this story is that these phrases were written at the beginning of the story and at the ending of the story as well. Kind of gives curiosity to the readers at first that why these ordinary things are making the character afraid. Then towards the end, we get our answers.
Very creative piece of writing indeed. The author 'Rosemary Timperley' was definitely a genius.
"Hornsey Girls School . . . I haven't been there lately. Actually, I've never been there at all." Best laugh of the day and perfect release after a pensive story like "Harry".
Children stolen into another realm is always unsettling, whether it's fairies or the dead.
Leave the dang kids alone!
I think when Harry jumped out with his baby sister, he was trying to save themselves. He just loved her so much that he had to come back for her.
I think so too. Poor Harry.
I agree!👍
Love. Love Loved it
Liking it so far
Yes! New story time!
I just listened to "The Mistress in Black." I loved it so much that I searched for "Harry" by the same author, Rosemary Timperly. I remember listening to this story a while back. Mr. Walker always does a great job of narrating these stories.
The mentally unwell are drugged into silence for fear their words and visions may be true.
Thank you for another gem.
1000 blessings and smiles *
I love this story. Great ghost story. Thanks Tony.
A sad story with beautiful imagery. Wonderfully read, as always. The story feels unsettling, not just for Harry's unknown agency, but Christine's unknown outcome. What truly creeps me out? Nature. Very real and wholly uncontrollable.
Same
Yes, that was an unnerving story!
A very disquieting story. I think every parent's secret dread is of something happening to their children. Thank you very much.
I like the start of this, it will make my shift much less monotonous. Quite nice.
Such a tragic story. Could feel the anguish of the mother when she realised that the child is missing. At the same time the conditions of the child's family before she was adopted is so heartbreaking. Harry's love for his sister is rather obsessive.
I was pondering on that. On whether Harry was evil or the circumstances they grew up in made it hard for him to believe, even in death, that this family would truly love and take care of his little sister as well as he could
Excellent story Tony. Quite unsettling.
Once you understand who Harry is and why he's there the story has more sad feeling too it. I see Harry as more of a tragic figure rather then some scary ghost come to drag his sister away.
Thank you to Mr Salmon my year 7 English teacher (1992-3) who gave us this short story in class. It's stuck with me all this time..we had to then write our own ghost stories. Unfortunately all my school books were lost in a basement flood so I can't go back and see what I wrote 😢
TS 25:50 best lines...a good one ... *THX Tony* 👍👍👍👍👍
Yes, the dead who aren't dead. He who was living is now dead
We who were living are now dying
With a little patience
It's odd; my son was an only child, but instead of having an imaginary friend, he had imaginary children. Five of them. They were always there, and were of both sexes and all different ages. Each one also had different personalities and mannerisms. There were times I could really believe that either they were ghosts, or he was remembering a past life. I had never heard of someone having imaginary children before, outside of some women who had suffered miscarriages, and then had babies appearing to them.
A few years passed like this, and then one day I noticed that he hadn't mentioned the children in a few days; I asked if they were still around, and received a novel answer. " I sent them to live in my mind," he said. " There's more room there for them, anyway".
I love those replies of his. I might borrow them for a story :)
Great story Mr. Tony. It was very creepy, and wonderfully dark.
Thank you so much Tony for doing full justice to my favourite ghost story! I enjoyed your rendition even more than my own when reading it, which doesn't happen often. Thank you for the kind name-check too. Hope everyone enjoys this one like we do. Steve
Very welcome Steve
Long, long been a favourite of mine. Fear among the sun-drenched rose-bushes...
Thank you for introducing me to this author. Terrifying story.
Another brilliant performance of a decidedly creepy story. For some reason it's left me unsettled, but that's why we listen right? 💎💙
I love this author and of course this narrator
Ooo, good one!
I love this story! It's been 15 years since I first read it as a barely-teenager during a rainy summer. My hobby as a tween/teen was getting as many ghost books as I could from the library and reading them as fast as possible, and this story was among the ones I got into. It was the first time I ever heard the name Rhiannon, and even years later I recall the slow build of dread I felt while reading it, wondering what was going to happen.
+Cryptie Creep that is a great hobby by the way
I missed 'Rhiannon' - is that the name of the mother/narrator?
What a terribly sad story.
I am stuck on why the mother didn't try and befriend Harry instead of alienating Chris and the ghost.
I met a woman who said she never adopted because she was afraid the birth mother would take the child back. Maybe her fear is rooted in something like that - she senses that Harry can take her right from the start.
Erie. You are so right. Heard it over the tv. because the audio is better than on my pc. Back here so I can give thumbs up and comment. I will listen to it again after I catch my breath. So much is triggered in me in this story--don't want to deal with it now. I was crying. Your presentation, accents-masterful. Thank you
As an adopted only child this story really resonated with me. I used to imagine I had an older brother. I used to imagine all sorts of fanciful things lol. My mother was also very over protective like the mother in this story. My adoption was shrouded in secrecy as was common in the 60s. Later in life I met my half brother and sister - both younger. And there are still 3 half brothers on my father's side I've not met and maybe never will.
I'm just in the business of getting my adoption papers. I was adopted by my step-father and my biological mother after they married. Those 1960s eh? But yes, this is a bit of a triggering story I think for a number of people for a number of reasons
Need spoiler alerts! Loved this thank you
This was one where the after-chat is just as valuable and entertaining as the story.
And as a fellow psych worker, I'd advise checking the medlist before the history. Maybe it's an "American over-medicating" thing, but I usually get a pretty solid picture of who I'm about to meet from that lol
I usually see the list of medications and think "How come they can wake up?" and "Who the heck prescribed all those for that person? They should be sacked." But it's usually different. people adding adding and no one taking away. Then I spend ages trying to take away the CNS depressant meds, all the codeine and tramadol and diazepam and zopiclone and quetiapine on top of any street drugs they are taking. Very often people like that sedative load and fight fist and knuckle to stop me removing their meds. But this is another channel... (I've got the poetry channel (not yet) and this one and the true supernatural and the mental health channel (not yet).
Thank you, Tony, again! Great story.
Thanks for listening
This would make an amazing movie 🔥
"Brain fever" - how Victorian!
I really loved this story, thank you 🙏
A favourite.
Just found this channel and I ❤ it!! 😮😂
ditto this time around. Masterful. Thank you
Thanks for listening again Marti! And thanks for buying the Unreal City audiobook
Thank you for answering. I am going to find time to listen to Unreal non-stop! Your channel helps me to survive this insane world.@@ClassicGhost
This was great as always… The news of the last few days about the snowed in guests in the UK inn got me thinking about being snowed in with ghost stories ❄️ 😀 📖 m 👻
Yeah apparently they don't want to leave.
Don't know why but the "Morning Milk " bit really grated on my nerves .
Currently reading through the more Cumbrian ghost stories and it's so good so far.
In the middle of the story, I stopped and looked up when this was written -- 1955 -- which tracks with the feel of the story for me, one of frustration. Mrs. James feels what is going on, the foreboding, but she cannot get the two male "authority" figures, her husband and the doctor, to acknowledge that there can be any validity to what she says. In my mind, I see this story played out in black and white on TV, like an old Alfred Hitchcock or Thriller episode, reflecting a society where women's views are not valued.
Whew - I just checked and "The Lodgers" can't be the ghost story I was thinking of, because that was "The Mysterious Lodger". Good. It was a pretty creepy story and I didn't want to hear it. Reading it was bad enough.
Well it was always going to go wrong BUT I would have tried befriending him as he was a good heroic person, if he had been bad fair enough… perhaps sit near the roses and talk to him, invite him in etc. give him his own room, set a place for him at the table, just kidding!!!! I’m acting like it was all real because of the marvellous way you read it!!!! I wouldn’t really have wanted Harry around! Perhaps an exorcist could have helped? I’m doing it again!!!! Brilliant☺️💕
I don’t know how I missed this! Excellent thank you so much! Looking forward to the next one now! You’re spoiling us!🌟
I love this one! It was brilliant! Very scary though, I agreed with you! I love dogs too!
It's called The Mistress in Black. It's one of my favorite stories.
Yes that’s it
@@ClassicGhost I would love to hear you read it. I read it when I was 10 and it stuck with me all this time.
As always firstly, thanks Tony.
I read this story about six or seven years ago, and I have read a lot of ghost stories, but even though I forgot the title the very first line brought it to my memory.
One of my favourite "eerie" stories is 'The Specialist's Hat', by Kelly Link. If you have time to track it down, I believe that many the other phantasmagoriafiles would really get the weirdness of it.
🎩 🐍👭
I will put it in my spreadsheet!
Bravo Tony 👏🏼
Very enjoyable 😬
Great job all around 🏆
Thank you mate 🙏🏼
Looking forward to the next 🥺🤓!!
Loved your narrating of this stellar story! I looked her up on wikipedia 'cause I liked the story so much. You're right! Such a list of books - I hope some are still in print. They have to be really great reads. I'm looking forward to your reading another story of hers! She created a very suspenseful read! Loved it!
Glad you enjoyed it! Oh, you reminded me I need to post up her Christmas Meeting.
Tony your wrap ups are amazing I will now have to re-listen to all the old ones and hear you out. So glad that you talked about What Ever Happened to Corporal Cuckoo cuz I too couldn’t listen (“read on” you said) past this point, haha.
Cheers
Glad you like them. I try to write notes but I wander off them and skip around
I would have ended this differently. The little girl would be safely at home, and the Mother, calling her daughter in for milk and biscuits, would have put two glasses and two plates.
Not two minutes in and I fear for Christine's survival.
PS: I don’t blame the dog for being less than keen on cold wet paws!
🐾 🐾 🐾
Based on a true story
Coffee for SHADE…Your grand step daughter PUP!🤭🤭🤭
+@banterj She is. And that makes Ruby and Jasper her pups my …. erm?
Tell Shade I said, “Hiiiiiiiiiiii!” Also, I forgot to post the give away thing, but I’m just going to buy those books, so you don’t need to add me to the contest, but I’ll still post it! The main thing though is that I think she’s “mad” just like Harry is an imaginary friend. That’s why she’s not convincing. She only appears mad if you’re one of us boring skeptics, like the husband and the doctor. She even doubts herself whether these things are real or she’s just mad, but Christine has proof that she’s not, that Harry is actually interacting with the world.
Little Shade. awwww. I know loads of people who see and hear things. Some of them are my patients and others are my friends. Some are both!
thank you Tony----really, really enjoyed this story and your reading of it. Perfect! (p.s. NO ONE likes earwigs!! lol!)
I don't. Not a fan of cockroaches either
You should move to Northern Michigan! We don’t have cockroaches. I did have a flying squirrel in my dining room the other day though. And unfortunately we don’t have rats, so you have to get them from the pet store, but I know some people like that we don’t have rats.
@@skeleczar OK, I know it takes all kinds to make up a world, but I would never have believed that I could encounter this sentence in the comments section for ANY video
"Unfortunately we don't have rats" lol.
In the town where I grew up, there were rats the size of small dogs in the section of town down by the railroad tracks. In fact, one time when my sister and I were teens, I was driving by the railroad tracks, and my sister and her friend wanted me to stop the car, so they could get out and pet the small dog. I said, " No, you're not getting out of the car to pet a rat! Can't the two of you tell the difference between a rat and a dog?". If you ever come to the northern NJ area let me know, and I'll give you directions to where the rats are, lol. You can get yourself a rat the size of a Yorkie 🐀 🤣
@@wmnoffaith1, Oh, my gosh!!! That sounds amazing! You know, I’ve always loved that urban legend where she takes the little street dog she found in Mexico or whatever and it turns out it’s a rat! 😂 I remember hearing that and being like, “Oh, my goodness! That would be such a dream come true! Actually, my ratty is pretty big. I think partly he is just rotund, but he is also quite long. He’s such a doll. When I scratch his back he licks, similar to how a dog will kick his leg when you get the right spot. The other day he was doing that while lying on my chest in bed, and he lifted his cute little rat head up and pressed his little snoot against my lips. It was the cutest thing ever. He is just the sweetest. Honestly, between my 3 cats and my dog, he is definitely the sweetest and cuddliest.
@@skeleczar Do you mean places like Detroit really have no rats? Or is that not near where you live? Not familiar with geography at all.
If anyone can track down the film pls let us know 👻
Ah, *agony aunt* I know what that means b/c i just hear something similar to this on: *Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries* free here on YT ...I like having the author bios available in the link...something not every YT ch includes ... *THX Tony* 👍👍👍👍👍
Ha ha. I didn't know it was British (Australian/NZ/SA /Irish probs and maybe even Canada)
Very poignant...Hi Tony and family. Getting ready for Christmas? Namaste
Yeah, but not in the mood yet.
is Harry jump from the window just to save Chris or to die with her??
Who's Harry? Harry Potter!
Perhaps that's who he became - zombie Harry Potter.
The dog wants you to go to bed with her. Sounds like my sister and her dog.
So i take it she never never went to see a
Harry potter film.
Rosemary never did.