Suranne Jones (Scott & Bailey, Single Father, Five Days) will star as Eve Caleigh in a chilling haunted house event drama for BBC One this autumn.

She will be joined by an all-star cast including Tom Ellis (Miranda, The Fades), Douglas Henshall (Primeval, South Riding), David Warner (Wallander), Sarah Smart (Five Days, Wallander), Iain De Caestecker (The Fades, Young James Herriot) and Donald Sumpter (The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, Game Of Thrones) in this adaptation of James Herbert’s best-selling novel made by BBC Drama Production North.

Suranne Jones says: “The Secret Of Crickley Hall is a classic haunted house spine chiller. With an emotional family story at its heart, Joe Ahearne has adapted the novel perfectly, and I am really excited about working with him as a director. It’s a great cast and I am looking forward to working with David Warner, Donald Sumpter, and Tom Ellis.”

Written and directed by Joe Ahearne, this three-part drama is a modern day ghost story especially for Halloween. Told in a dual timeframe, it is full of scares yet underpinned by the heart-breaking story of a family needing to heal and ghosts who need to be laid to rest.

Joe Ahearne says: “Everyone loves a good ghost story and James Herbert is an iconic writer in the genre. He’s come up with a really thrilling and moving story that delights you while it’s terrifying you. It’s a testament to his craft that we’ve attracted such a great cast to play the characters he created.”

A year after their little boy goes missing, Eve (Suranne Jones) and Gabe (Tom Ellis) Caleigh take their family to Crickley Hall to try and escape the past. It seems like the perfect destination, until cellar doors open of their own accord, unseen children cry through the night and water seeps through impervious rock. At the centre of it all, a frenzied spectre wields a cane.

Just as the Caleighs are ready to move out, Eve hears her missing son. Time shifts between present day and 1943 as the Caleighs desperately try to find out what connects Crickley Hall to their lost boy. Will they find him before the evil that stalks Crickley Hall finds their other children?

The Secret Of Crickley Hall will be produced by Ann Harrison-Baxter and the executive producer is Hilary Martin for BBC Drama Production North. The drama was commissioned by Ben Stephenson, Controller, BBC Drama Commissioning and Danny Cohen, Controller, BBC One. Filming starts this month in and around the Manchester area.

Source: BBC