Gollancz was aickmans main uk publisher over several years. Taken from the collection cold hand in mine, the hospice is a deeply unsettling tale of a man stumbling into a situation that he cannot understand when lack of petrol and an inexplicable. James with regard to method both writers lure the reader into their imaginary trap with an initial creation of an ordinary prosaic world before an uncanny sense of creeping dread begins to descend but in terms of sheer atmospheric description, he is perhaps more like franz kafka or angela carter, what. I hadnt heard of him until i stumbled on one of his stories called the hospice. British short story writer, critic, lecturer and novelist 19141981. Robert aickmans story the hospice adapted for television by robert smith, directed by dominique otheningirard, and starring jack shepherd, alan dobie, marthe keller and jonathan cecil. Aickman withholds rationales and rationalisation, sparking our interest and curiosity. Small wonder, because over the course of his career, hed been writing it piecemeal all along. The hospice robert aickman it was as if most of these people had been with one another for a long time, during which things to talk about. Robert fordyce aickman was born in london on june 27, 1914.
The hospice is one of aickmans most surreally dreamlike and kafkaesque tales, set in a building that seems to be a cross between a hotel or boarding house and a care home or mental hospital or perhaps something else entirely. Robert aickman the hospice omnibus bbc 6musics gideon coe reads robert aickmans teasingly elusive strange tale, with a newly commissioned soundtrack by vic mars. Then come the hospice and the same dog, both highly readable, intriguing, with clearly delineated settings and such. Robert aickman was the grandson of the prolific victorian novelist richard marsh whose occult thriller the beetle 1897 was in its time as popular as bram stokers dracula. Taken from the collection cold hand in mine, the hospice is a deeply unsettling tale of a man stumbling into a situation that he cannot understand when lack of petrol and an inexplicable animal attack lead. Out of the darkness comes the authoritative voice of the. Dec 28, 2017 robert aickman s story the hospice adapted for television by robert smith, directed by dominique otheningirard, and starring jack shepherd, alan dobie, marthe keller and jonathan cecil. First published in the usa in 1988 and in the uk in 1990 the winedark sea contains eight stories that will leave the reader unsettled as the protagonists fears and desires, at once illogical and terrifying, culminate in a disturbing yet enigmatic ending. The strange horrors of robert aickman electric literature. This is true of the aforementioned the hospice, in which a traveller with car trouble seeks shelter in a. While most aickman stories function well enough on evocative atmosphere and the slow accumulation of dread, the swords is startling enough that the less is relayed about its actual plot the better.
Another one of these tales, the hospice, my favorite in all four volumes, demonstrates the full range of aickmans gifts. As a conservationist, he cofounded the inland waterways association, a group which has preserved from destruction and restored englands inland canal system. Mar 24, 2015 the story were discussing is the hospice, by robert aickman. Jul 06, 2007 robert fordyce aickman was born in london on june 27, 1914. His father, william, was the oddest man i have ever known. Jul 31, 2015 so it was with interest that i recently picked up a reissue of robert aickmans oddly described strange stories, this one a collection called cold hand in mine. Oct 20, 2017 robert aickman was born in london in 1914, and perhaps had weirdness in his dna. Robert fordyce aickman 191981 was a british author of stories he himself best described as strange. I was intrigued by neil gaimans blurb on the cover.
William had married at age 53 to a woman 30 years his junior and, being deeply set in his bachelor ways and accustomed to living alone, could not adapt to married life. But it is the long shortstory the stains that has stayed with my thoughts more than any other. Robert aickman project gutenberg selfpublishing ebooks. During his lifetime he published fortyeight stories, mostly of longstory to novella length.
Also memorable is the hospice, a kafkaesque tale of a motorist getting lost at night and asking for shelter at the institution of the title. The hospice robert aickman youtube if only the other aickman adaptations in that series would turn up. For my money the hospice my own personal gateway story represents aickman. The story is the pinnacle of a wellhoned technique and persists as a modern. In the decades following his death, british writer robert aickman 19141981 has emerged as one of the pioneering authors of weird fiction in the later twentieth century. The former is about a traveler who gets lost and winds up dining at a sort of hotelwaypost filled with overlyattentive aides and oddlybehaviored guests. Many thanks for your appreciation of robert aickman, probably my favorite author of strange stories, as he called them. Cofounded the inland waterways association, a group devoted to restoring and preserving englands inland canal system.
Mephistopheles offers faust unlimited knowledge and unlimited power in exchange for his soul. Today is the thirtieth anniversary of the death of robert aickman, the author of some of the best weird fiction of the twentieth century. In ringing the changes, one of the great robert aickmans bestknown strange stories, a woman asks her husband why a place in their inn is called the coffee room when no coffee is served there. Born in london in 1914, aickman wrote less than fifty such stories before his death in 1981. Also a huge campbell fan, and the entertainment is a tribute to aickman, according to the story notes.
I opened it at random to the tale of a traveler at a roadside inn who discovers the oddly carved chair in. Robert aickman 19141981 is the author of eight collections. The story were discussing is the hospice, by robert aickman. Oct 31, 2014 another one of these tales, the hospice, my favorite in all four volumes, demonstrates the full range of aickmans gifts. Robert fordyce aickman 27 june 1914 26 february 1981 was an english conservationist and writer of fiction and nonfiction. Aickmans hospice march 1 2014 3 august 1 june 1 may 1 20 20. With jonathan cecil, alan dobie, marthe keller, jack shepherd. Mar 23, 2016 this documentary explores and provides new insights into the life and writing of british author robert aickman 19141981, with special reference to his celebrated strange stories modern. Fans of aickman tend to have a soft spot for the first of his stories they encountered, the one which ushered them into the heady territory of aickmanland. One other critical thing ive noticed about aickmans tales and this is particularly true of the hospice is that aickman will suggest details which the reader expects to tie into the plot, as if they will later contribute to some kind of revelation.
The image within it is probably a mistake to label robert aickman 1914 1981 a horror writer. There are many robert aickman 19141981 stories that i could have chosen famous contenders like the hospice and the swords are rightly celebrated and could easily be on this list. Robert aickman, the hospice, in cold hand in mine, reissued 2014. His very best, such as the hospice, the view, into the wood and the stains which, despite its share. In case you are unfamiliar with him, aickman was a twentiethcentury english.
Robert aickman, like many of the finest british horror writers, was a respectable jekyll who indulged his hyde on the side. Aug 02, 20 many thanks for your appreciation of robert aickman, probably my favorite author of strange stories, as he called them. Jf and phil focus on one of his most chilling, the hospice, from the collection cold hand in mine, published in 1975. Also memorable is the hospice, a kafkaesque tale of a. For fans of the horror genre robert aickman is a must read. Even when its fairly clear whats mainly happened in a robert aickman story, the text still puzzles and disturbs with unanswered questions and loose ends. The listener is introduced to a variety of characters, from a man who spends the night in a hospice to a german aristocrat and a woman who sees an image of her own soul.
As a writer, he is best known for his supernatural fiction, which he described as strange stories. He chalks it up to the lucus a non lucendo explanation, which he explains as the principle of calling white black. His work is characterised by maddeningly dreamlike events, the meanings of which slip through your brain like greased eels, all communicated through. Have only read a dozen stories, so plenty of treats in store for me, im sure. Jf and phil discuss robert aickmans masterwork of weird fiction, the hospice, from his 1975 collection cold hand in mine. Supernatural fictions best kept secret robert aickman will. The hospice, my favorite in all four volumes, demonstrates the full range of aickmans gifts. Like the great prophetic work of the modern world is goethes faust, so little appreciated among the anglosaxons. After listening to an audio reading of the hospice on the bbc a short while ago i was reminded very strongly of this. Oct 29, 2012 robert aickman, like many of the finest british horror writers, was a respectable jekyll who indulged his hyde on the side.
This documentary explores and provides new insights into the life and writing of british author robert aickman 19141981, with special reference to his celebrated strange stories modern. The hospice by aickman posted friday, 15 january 2010 bless his heart, gary mcmahon zed if i can read his intentions correctly made an ironic absurdist. By day he was cofounder of the inland waterways association and. Another look at robert aickmans speculative short fiction.
In case you are unfamiliar with him, aickman was a twentiethcentury english writer of what he referred to as strange stories. The grandson of victorian novelist richard marsh, aickman won the world fantasy award in 1975 for his. Robert fordyce aickman 27 june 1914 26 february 1981 was an english writer and conservationist. As a writer, he is best known for his supernatural fiction, which he. The story the hospice, first appeared in the uk gollancz edition of cold hand in mine. Robert aickman s story the hospice adapted for television by robert smith, directed by dominique otheningirard, and starring jack shepherd, alan dobie, marthe keller and jonathan cecil.
Supernatural fictions best kept secret robert aickman. For the first time, new editions of his books are plentiful, making this a golden age for readers who appreciate the uniquely unsettling effect of. For my money the hospice my own personal gateway story represents aickman at his most unsettling, all the more so because it contains, on the surface, so little in the way of. William had married at age 53 to a woman 30 years his junior and, being deeply set in his bachelor ways and. The hospice, an almost comical kafkaesque piece, centerstages aickmans obsession with the perversion of hospitality. Robert aickman, into the wood thirtyfive years after his death, robert aickman is beginning to receive the attention he deserves as one of the great 20th century writers of short fiction. Robert aickman was an english writer of strange stories his term of which he wrote some 48 that have been collected and. The hospice is one that i have read, and one of my favourites by any author. Maybury, the protagonist, seeks shelter here after getting. Oct 27, 2016 while most aickman stories function well enough on evocative atmosphere and the slow accumulation of dread, the swords is startling enough that the less is relayed about its actual plot the better. During his lifetime, he published eight collections of tales, beginning with we are for the dark 1951 and concluding with intrusions 1980. Patrick the hospice evoked a very similar response in me. O ver some childhood holiday, visiting relatives, i discovered on their bookshelf a collection of charles dickenss ghost stories. Feb 26, 2011 today is the thirtieth anniversary of the death of robert aickman, the author of some of the best weird fiction of the twentieth century.
Oct 28, 2016 robert aickman, into the wood thirtyfive years after his death, robert aickman is beginning to receive the attention he deserves as one of the great 20th century writers of short fiction. It was included in an anthology of horror stories, something my husband laurence had given me for christmas. Robert aickman written with real psychological depth. Bbc radio 4 extra robert aickman the hospice omnibus. Robert aickmans story the hospice adapted for television by robert smith, directed by dominique otheningirard, and starring jack. Hospice, the x x houses of the russians, the x x x x inner room, the x x x insufficient answer, the x x into the wood x x x just a song at twilight x x x larger than oneself x x x laura x x x letters to the postman x x x mark ingestre.
As a conservationist, he is notable for cofounding the inland waterways association, a group which has preserved from destruction and restored englands inland canal system. The story is the pinnacle of a wellhoned technique and persists as a modern classic. Robert aickman took a sadistic and indefensible pleasure in depicting sexual. Cold hand in mine stands as one of aickman s best collections and contains eight stories that show off his powers as a strange story writer to the full. Oct 05, 2018 there are many robert aickman 19141981 stories that i could have chosen famous contenders like the hospice and the swords are rightly celebrated and could easily be on this list. The customers tale x x marriage x x x x meeting mr millar x x miroir, le x x x. They also did hand in glove, the trains and the inner room. Dec 19, 2014 robert aickmans the hospice emerged near the end of his life.
Gollancz was aickman s main uk publisher over several years. Atmospheric and eerie, the story triggers a lingering feeling of deep unease. Jan 27, 2017 cold hand in mine by robert aickman 1975. Robert aickman library of weird fiction centipede press. Apart from the superb the inner room, its the closest he comes to kafkas unique blend of the eerie, the horrifying, the comically absurd, and the emotionally resonant. Aickman knows that the reader is probably expecting old dark house tropes when maybury stumbles upon the hospice, yet the author cunningly proceeds in a different direction, one that gradually becomes more and more skewed. While his stories have been featured for decades in a myriad of horror fiction anthologies, i believe he was uncomfortable with confining his output to any single tradition. Robert aickman was a british conservationist and author who primarily wrote from the 1950s through the 1970s. Reading robert aickman is like watching a magician work, and very often im not even sure. The hospice is yet another puzzling tale featuring a lost motorist who finds shelter in an odd hotel where guests are encouraged to overeat and where much more than meets the eye is actually going on. Robert aickmans the hospice emerged near the end of his life. Not only a classic aickman tale but a classic weird tale in which the precise natu. Cold hand in mine stands as one of aickmans best collections and contains eight stories that show off his powers as a strange story writer to the full. Although he is one of the luminaries of the weird tale, robert aickman referred to his irreal, macabre short works as strange stories.