EVENT: Pleasing Terrors: The MR Festival, 8-9 November, London

Pleasing Terrors: The 2026 M R James Symposium ; Drayton Arms Theatre, 8 November 2026

Pleasing Terrors: The M R James Festival, is a Festival celebrating the life and work of Montague Rhodes James, the classic British ghost story writer and scholar. The 2026 inaugural edition includes a scholarly and literary symposium on the life and work of M R James, and performance events on Jamesian themes.

Pleasing Terrors: The 2026 M R James Symposium  is a two-part symposium discussion of Britain’s most celebrated creator of classic ghost stories on 8 November 2026, at the Drayton Arms Theatre. The 2026 Symposium comprises panels on M R James – the writer, his life and times; and on M R James’ writing and Jamesian fiction – the classic ghost story tradition.

Panel 1: M R James – the writer, his life and times
1:30 – 3:00 PM
Panelists: Paula Dempsey, Tracy Hayes, Darryl Jones, Marisa Linton
Moderator: Elena Tchougounova-Paulson

Panel 2: M R James’ writing and Jamesian fiction – the classic ghost story tradition
3.30 – 5:00 PM
Panelists: Helen Grant, Tim Jarvis, Reggie Oliver
Moderator: Dan Coxon

Blurbs for the two theatrical events held as part of the Festival are below:

A Night with Nunkie: A Warning to the Curious – Two Ghost Stories by M R James; Drayton Arms Theatre, 8 November 2026

Nunkie Theatre Company presents:
A Warning to the Curious – Two Ghost Stories by M R James
Performed by Robert Lloyd Parry

“Sometimes, you know, you see him, and sometimes you don’t. It’s just as he pleases. I think: he’s there, but he has some power over your eyes…”

M R James first wrote his ghost stories to perform to friends in Kings College Cambridge. Now, 120 years after their first publication, Nunkie Theatre Company have bought two of the eeriest and most entertaining back to life in this gripping, candlelit one-man show.
Lost Hearts was among the first stories the author wrote and it offers one of his most memorable villains, the predatory scholar Mr Abney. It is paired here with perhaps James’s most poignant and personal work: A Warning to the Curious, in which a young archaeologist is haunted and hunted by the guardian of an ancient treasure.
The English seaside has never looked so menacing.

“Lloyd Parry’s mastery of the role is itself an act of possession.” – The New Yorker

“Shh! At the Old College Library Open Access Day”; Drayton Arms Theatre, 9 November 2026

As a part of “Pleasing Terrors,” we’ve commissioned an original theatrical work … In this case, interactive! “Shh! At the Old College Library Open Access Day”, at the Drayton Arms Theatre on 9 November 2026.

For centuries, access to the the Old College Library’s collections, including its legendary historical, esoteric, and folkloric tomes, has been restricted. Following recent criticism from governmental, journalistic, and other quarters, we are pleased to announce a revised policy: the annual open access day.

We are now seeking volunteers to represent various individuals* at the Open Access Day. With access to a wide variety of facsimiles, originals, and artefacts, your patron will give you priorities, information, and other resources to use to further their interests. We are aware of the excitement this opportunity has generated among the academic and fringe communities, and will endeavour to respect all requests for access.

Attendees will be able to confer, negotiate, and share resources when not consulting the collections; we ask all volunteers to adhere to the library code of conduct. 

*We have taken all reasonable measures to ensure that no disreputable academics, conspiracists, cults, fringe groups, or individuals using fraudulent identities will not be given patronage positions. 

Please find more information here: https://www.facebook.com/people/Pleasing-Terrors-The-M-R-James-Festival/61593211361435/?rdid=mGQHB1tv7sjxTMV8&share_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fshare%2F1C9cyA92hg%2F