The Woman in Black (1989)

The Woman in Black is a 1989 British television horror film directed by Herbert Wise, and starring Adrian Rawlins, Bernard Hepton, David Daker and Pauline Moran. The teleplay is adapted from the 1983 novel of the same name by Susan Hill. It focuses on a young solicitor who is sent to a coastal English village to settle the estate of a reclusive widow, and finds the town haunted by her ghost.

The programme was produced by Central Independent Television for the ITV Network, and premiered on Christmas Eve 1989 and was an unexpected success, though author Susan Hill reportedly disagreed with some of the slight changes Kneale made in the adaptation. Another film version was released in 2012, starring Daniel Radcliffe in the lead role.

Synopsis

A young solicitor, Arthur Kidd, is sent to a big city on the East Coast of England to attend the funeral of Mrs. Alice Drablow, an elderly reclusive widow. On the train, Kidd meets Sam Toovey, a local land owner who is unsettled upon hearing that Kidd is dealing with the Drablow estate. Arriving at Crythin Gifford, Kidd lodges at a local inn where he finds the townspeople reluctant to talk about Mrs. Drablow's dreary home, Eel Marsh House.

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