Haunted 80-06-28 (02) What Was It

Summary

---

Podcast Summary – Harold's Old Time Radio

Episode: Haunted 80-06-28 (02) What Was It

Air Date: October 26, 2025
Source Material: “What Was It?” by Fitz James O’Brien (adapted by Derek Hoddinott)
Cast:

• Peter Marinka as Harry Crown
• Blaine Ferman as Stephen Hammond
• Helen Horton as Mrs. Moffat

---

Episode Overview

In this atmospheric audio adaptation of Fitz James O’Brien’s classic supernatural tale, the story unfolds within a reputedly haunted boarding house in 1850s New York. The episode explores the boundaries between the physical and the invisible, as a group of rational skeptics become enmeshed in a terrifying encounter with an unseeable intruder. Engaging themes include scientific curiosity, opium-fueled speculation, and the terror of the unknown.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Setting and Reputation of the House

• [01:40] Harry Crown (narrator) introduces the setting: a once-abandoned mansion on 26th Street, infamous for eerie phenomena after the suicide of its former owner.
• Mrs. Moffat turns the house into a boarding house despite its haunted reputation, dismissing local rumors of “strange noises,” moving furniture, and unseen footsteps.
  • Notable quote ([03:19], Mrs. Moffat): “Oh, strange noises and the like… the rustle of silk dresses, the usual things.”
• The skepticism of the tenants is emphasized; all agree to move in despite ghostly legends.

Early Incidents and Mr. Crown’s Purpose

• [04:30] Dr. Hammond notes that nothing unusual has happened since moving in, but Harry hints otherwise.
• An unexplained event: Dr. Hammond’s candle goes out with no natural cause, fueling speculation about supernatural forces.
• The reveal of Harry’s expertise in the supernatural, as author of a recent “history of supernaturalism.”
  • Notable quote ([05:33], Dr. Hammond): “Good Lord, Mrs. Moffat, we have an author in our midst. And not only an author, but a specialist in spirits. An expert in ghosts.”

Opium, Friendship, and the Root of Terror

• [06:53]–[08:38] A critical bond forms between Harry and Dr. Hammond as they openly discuss their shared opium use. This creates an atmosphere where their perceptions may be suspect.
  • Notable exchange ([07:58], Harry & Stephen):
    • Stephen: “You smoke opium?”
    • Harry: “Well, yes. Yes, I do. But please don't mention it to Mrs. Moffat."
• They muse philosophically on the greatest element of terror.
  • Notable quote ([09:56], Harry): “Well, there are many things that would frighten me, terrify me, stumbling over a corpse in the dark… I never considered the subject before.”

The Supernatural Assault

• [12:01] A sudden nighttime attack: Harry is assaulted by an invisible force.
  • [13:08] He describes physically grappling with something tangible but utterly unseen.
  • Key moment ([13:42], Harry):
    “I had one arm firmly clasped around a breathing, panting, corporeal shape… I beheld absolutely nothing. Not even an outline.”
• Dr. Hammond, at first skeptical, is convinced after reluctantly touching the invisible intruder:
  • [15:06], Dr. Hammond: “You felt it. Flesh and bone. Sinew and blood.”
• They manage to tie it up, their scientific curiosity growing with their horror.

Scientific Reasoning Amidst Fear

• [18:09]–[19:33] The pair attempt to rationalize the phenomenon by likening it to tangible but transparent elements like air and glass.
  • Notable quote ([18:12], Dr. Hammond): “Here is a solid body which we touch, but which we cannot see… Glass does not breathe. Air does not breathe. This thing has a heart that palpitates, a will that moves it. Lungs that play and inspire and respire.”
• Hammond references similar “spirit phenomena” reported at séances.

Experimenting and Revealing the Form

• [21:18]–[22:09] They use chloroform and plaster to try and reveal their captive’s form.
  • [22:42], Harry: “Never was anything revealed that was so horrible… Shaped like a man. Distorted, uncouth and horrible, but still a man.”
• The being is described as ghoul-like, about four feet tall with unsettlingly developed limbs.

Moral Dilemma and Aftermath

• Harry and Stephen debate whether to reveal their discovery to the boarding house—and to the world.
  • [24:08], Harry: “We have to make our discovery public.”
  • [24:10], Stephen: “Think what might happen to us… We might become outcasts by society… practicing some form of black magic.”
• The creature refuses all offered food and ultimately dies after ten days of imprisonment, its fate veiled in gloom and regret.
  • [25:54–26:39] Harry is distraught, debating whether what they witnessed was human:
    • Harry: “I sat there and watched another human being die.”
    • Stephen: “Human?”
    • Harry: “If it wasn’t human, what was it?”

---

Memorable Quotes & Moments with Timestamps

• [03:19] – Mrs. Moffat: “Strange noises… unseen steps on the stairs in broad daylight, the rustle of silk dresses, the usual things.”
• [05:33] – Dr. Hammond: “Good Lord, Mrs. Moffat, we have an author in our midst… a specialist in spirits.”
• [09:56] – Harry Crown: “Well, there are many things that would frighten me, terrify me, stumbling over a corpse in the dark…”
• [13:08] – Harry Crown: “I shudder now as I think of that terrifying moment… I beheld absolutely nothing.”
• [15:06] – Dr. Hammond: “You felt it. Flesh and bone. Sinew and blood.”
• [18:12] – Stephen Hammond: “Here is a solid body which we touch, but which we cannot see.”
• [22:42] – Harry Crown: “Never was anything revealed that was so horrible, so even now I feel sick at the thought of."
• [24:10] – Stephen Hammond: “Think what might happen to us… We might become outcasts by society in the belief that we might possess some hidden powers.”
• [26:39] – Harry Crown: “I sat there and watched another human being die.”

---

Important Segment Timestamps

• 01:40: Introduction to the haunted house’s history and rumors.
• 04:30: The group discusses their experiences (or lack thereof) and Harry’s supernatural interests.
• 06:53: Harry and Hammond bond over opium and seek the root of true terror.
• 12:01: The invisible attack in the night.
• 13:08–15:10: Struggle with the unseen entity; Hammond feels the being.
• 18:12: Rationalizations and scientific explanations.
• 21:18–22:09: Chloroforming and plaster-casting the entity.
• 24:08–24:10: Dilemma over exposing their find; ethical fears.
• 25:54–26:39: The creature’s death and Harry’s existential reckoning.

---

Tone and Style

The episode maintains a classic gothic horror tone, imbued with scientific curiosity, existential dread, and unsettling suspense. The language is formal with period-appropriate dialogue, rich in introspection and atmospheric detail — faithfully preserving the spirit and style of the source material.

---

Final Thoughts

This adaptation explores not just the terror of an inexplicable haunting, but also the fragile hopes and limits of rational inquiry when confronted with the truly unknown. The climax’s moral ambiguity and emotional fallout leave listeners pondering not only the nature of the supernatural, but humanity’s capacity—and responsibility—for understanding it.

---

Transcript

[Harry Crown]

And Doug.

[Stephen Hammond]

Here we have the Limu Emu in its natural habitat helping people customize their car insurance and save hundreds with Liberty Mutual. Fascinating. It's accompanied by his natural ally, Doug.

[Harry Crown]

Limu is that guy with the binoculars watching us.

[Stephen Hammond]

Cut the camera. They see us.

Only pay for what you [e-mail] Liberty Liberty.

Liberty.

Liberty Savings. Very unwritten by Liberty Mutual Insurance Company and affiliates.

[Harry Crown]

Excludes Massachusetts.

[Narrator]

We present haunted stories of the supernatural.

[Harry Crown]

What was it?

[Narrator]

By Fitz James o' Brien Adapted to radio by Derek Hoddinott Starring Peter Marinka as Harry, Blaine Ferman as Hammond and Helen Horton as Mrs. Moffat. Haunted?

[Harry Crown]

It is, I confess, with considerable diffidence that I approach this strange narrative. The events which I purpose detailing are so extraordinary in character that I am quite prepared to meet with an unusual amount of incredulity and scorn. Having said that, I wish now to relate some facts which came to pass July last in the year 1854, and which in the annals of the mysteries of physical science are wholly unparalleled. I had just arrived at number 2826th Street, New York City. A large rambling house previously owned by a Mr. Arbuthnot, a well known New York merchant who became the center of a gigantic financial swindle and who as a result committed suicide abroad. The house, after remaining empty for years, gained a reputation for being haunted. But this did not DETER A certain Mrs. Moffat from turning it into a reputable boarding house.

[Mrs. Moffat]

No, Mr. Crown, neither I nor my guests believe all the stories put about by the neighbors.

[Stephen Hammond]

In fact, Mr. Crown, when Mrs. Moffat challenged us to follow her here, we couldn't wait to accept.

[Mrs. Moffat]

Dr. Hammond here was at my previous abode. I owned a smaller boarding house some two blocks away. But when I heard that this property was for sale, well, at a reasonable cost, I felt I had to jump at such a bargain despite its reputation.

[Harry Crown]

PRAY Tell me, Mrs. Moffat, what stories were circulating about the house?

[Mrs. Moffat]

Oh, strange noises and the like. The caretaker and his wife who were looking after the property during those three years spoke of furniture being moved, of unseen steps on the stairs in broad daylight, the rustle of silk dresses, the usual things.

[Harry Crown]

And what happened to the caretakers?

[Stephen Hammond]

Oh, the estate agent dismissed them. That's right, isn't it, Mrs. Moffat?

[Mrs. Moffat]

Well, he had no hope of selling the property while they were spreading such morbid tales. He had to get rid of them.

[Stephen Hammond]

Then when Mrs. Moffat was telling us that this house would be ideal for expanding her business and that the accommodation would be much better, we, her guests, that Is were unanimous in taking up the challenge of the unknown and joining her.

[Mrs. Moffat]

Naturally, Mr. Crown, I had to consult my guests because they too must have heard the stories about the house. I couldn't afford to lose such respected clientele if they felt. Well, any qualms about the possibilities of spectres appearing at the foot of their beds in the dead of night.

[Stephen Hammond]

And we were proved right. For since moving here, nothing has happened.

[Harry Crown]

Nothing at all. Well, something has.

[Mrs. Moffat]

Then there is an explanation. As I pointed out to Dr. Hammond.

[Stephen Hammond]

What was happened in my bedroom as I was washing before going to bed, the candle suddenly went out.

[Mrs. Moffat]

A window was open.

[Stephen Hammond]

A breeze.

The window was not open. And if it had been, the night I recall was still. I'm sure there is an explanation.

[Harry Crown]

But you haven't found one?

[Stephen Hammond]

Not as yet, no.

[Mrs. Moffat]

It's an overactive mind caused by all that reading, Doctor.

[Stephen Hammond]

You're probably right, Mrs. Moffat. All of us have read up on supernaturalism, psychic research and.

[Mrs. Moffat]

What's the matter?

[Stephen Hammond]

Harold Crown, you said?

[Harry Crown]

Yes.

[Stephen Hammond]

Are you the author of the history of supernaturalism that I've just read?

[Harry Crown]

For my sins? Yes, I have.

[Stephen Hammond]

Good Lord, Mrs. Moffat, we have an author in our midst. And not only an author, but a specialist in spirits. An expert in ghosts.

[Harry Crown]

I wouldn't call myself an Expert.

[Mrs. Moffat]

Tell me, Mr. Crone.

[Harry Crown]

Yes, Mrs. Moffat?

[Mrs. Moffat]

What brought you to my establishment? How did you hear of its existence?

[Harry Crown]

From a friend.

[Mrs. Moffat]

He stayed here, then?

[Harry Crown]

No. He'd heard the rumors, that's all. He had a house, the garden of which backed onto yours. Naturally, he could not help but hear the gossip.

[Mrs. Moffat]

Oh, I see. But you do have business in New York.

[Stephen Hammond]

You see what Mrs. Moffat is doing, don't you, Crown?

[Harry Crown]

What's that?

[Stephen Hammond]

She's trying to find out the real reason for your coming here. Business? Or merely ghost hunting? I suggest we move into the dining room. I think tea is going to be particularly interesting. I can't wait to introduce Mr. Crown to them. I believe he's come here for one thing only. To try and catch our ghost.

[Harry Crown]

It was only after a month of psychological excitement that it was with the utmost dissatisfaction that I was forced, like my fellow boarders, to admit that nothing in the remotest degree approaching the supernatural manifested itself. I suppose I should have left there and then, for Mrs. Moffat and Dr. Hammond were right. I had come to the house in order to seek out the strange happenings which had been reported to me. But I struck up a great and deep friendship with Dr. Hammond, whom I discovered had a secret vice the same as mine, in fact. It was a discovery I made as I smoked my pipe in the garden one evening after dinner.

[Stephen Hammond]

Harry, forgive me for asking.

[Harry Crown]

Yes, Stephen, what is it?

[Stephen Hammond]

I thought so.

[Harry Crown]

What's the matter?

[Stephen Hammond]

My friend, we share a common interest. I wasn't sure at first, but now. You smoke opium?

[Harry Crown]

Well, yes. Yes, I do. But please don't mention it to Mrs. Moffat. I don't think she. My dear Stephen, you don't mean regularly?

[Stephen Hammond]

Usually alone in my room or when I'm outside, walking in the streets or parks.

This is wonderful, Hal.

[Harry Crown]

I've smoked it for some time now.

[Stephen Hammond]

So have I.

At least two years.

That's marvelous.

My dear friend, do not leave this house without us smoking. At least once together we can share our experience. I would find it scientifically interesting to see whether its effects are the same on two different individuals or whether its effects are common to all, irrespective of mental and physical abilities. What do you say?

[Harry Crown]

I would be happy to. My dear friend, we enjoyed together those wonderful moments when our thoughts expanded, our perceptive facilities intensified, and when our bounds of existence exploded so that we were able to touch all points of the universe. But the hours which the doctor and I spent together were regulated with scientific accuracy. We did not blindly smoke the drug of paradise and leave our dreams to chance. We talked calmly, steering our conversation through the brightest and calmest channels of thought. We talked of art, poetry and literature. When we spoke of Shakespeare's Tempest, we lingered over Ariel, never Caliban. Until one evening when we had talked some time upon the mysticism and the almost universal love of the terrible, Stephen Hammond suddenly said to me, harry.

[Stephen Hammond]

What.

Do you consider to be the greatest element of terror?

[Harry Crown]

What do you mean, my dear friend?

[Stephen Hammond]

Come, come, Harry. Surely the question is a simple one.

[Harry Crown]

Well, there are many things that would frighten me, terrify me, stumbling over a corpse in the dark, beholding, as I once did, a woman floating down a deep and rapid river with wildly lifted arms and awful upturned face, shrieking in fear as she died in the freezing waters. I must say, Stephen, I never considered the subject before. I cannot, therefore, attempt even the most vague definition.

[Stephen Hammond]

Well, I am somewhat like you, Harry. I feel my capacity to experience a terror greater than anything yet conceived by the human mind. Something combining in fearful and unnatural amalgamation, hitherto supposed incompatible elements.

[Harry Crown]

Look, I think we should stop talking like this. We shall suffer for it, depend on it.

[Stephen Hammond]

I don't know what's the matter with me tonight, but my brain is running upon all sorts of weird and awful thoughts.

[Harry Crown]

I'm off to bed. Opium and nightmares should never be brought together. How sultry it is anyway. Good night, Stephen.

[Stephen Hammond]

Good night, Harry. Pleasant dreams to you.

[Harry Crown]

To you, gloomy wretch. Visions of ghouls and enchanters we parted and each went to his respective chamber. I undressed and got into bed. I resolved to go to sleep. Turned down my gas lamp so that only a little blue point of light glimmered at the top of the tube. I composed myself to rest. And then. Dear God. Even recalling the incident now makes me shudder and recoil. Something awful happened.

[Stephen Hammond]

My God, what's that? Get off me. For God's sakes. What's happening? Let me go. For God's sake, let me go. I can't. The light. I must turn off the light. My throat. Take your hands from my throat. I can't breathe. I can't breathe.

Oh, my God.

Leave me alone. Where are you? Where are you? I can't see. Dear God, I cannot see. I can hear you, but I can't see you. Take your hands off me. Let go of me. Help. Help. Assassin. Please, someone.

[Harry Crown]

I've got you.

[Stephen Hammond]

I've got you.

[Harry Crown]

Now stay still.

[Stephen Hammond]

Stay absolutely still while I turn the light up.

[Harry Crown]

I shudder now as I think of that terrifying moment, for I saw nothing. I had one arm firmly clasped around a breathing, panting, corporeal shape, my other hand gripped with all its strength, a throat as warm and apparently fleshy as my own. And yet, with this living substance in my grasp, with its body pressed against my own and the bright glare of a large jet of gas, I beheld absolutely nothing. Not even an outline.

[Stephen Hammond]

A vapor. My God, Harry, what's going on in here? Stephen, help me. Harry, what's happened? What. What are you doing? Come closer. For God's sakes, come closer. I can hold this thing down only a short time longer. What? Hold its arm down. There. Its arm is there. It's gradually overpowering me. Help me. For God's sakes, help me.

Harry, there's nothing there. You've been smoking too much opium.

I swear to you, Stephen, this is no vision. Don't you see how my whole body shakes as it struggles beneath me? Please, Stephen, if you're not convinced, Feel it. Touch it.

Harry, please.

There is nothing there.

[Harry Crown]

Can't you hear it breathe?

[Stephen Hammond]

Listen, Harry, please listen, damn you, Harry. You'll have Mrs. Moffat. Listen.

That's you.

Oh.

[Harry Crown]

Touch it.

[Stephen Hammond]

Feel it. Go on, Stephen. Do as I say. Feel its arm. There. Its head. Go on. Right.

All right. Oh, my God.

[Harry Crown]

You felt it. Flesh and bone. Sinew and blood.

[Stephen Hammond]

Oh, my God.

Harry. What is it? In the cupboard, man. Over there. A length of cord. I cannot hold it much longer. We'll tie him up with a cord. But there's nothing there. We get the cord, for God's sake, before he gets free again. Yeah, with the cord, Harry. Go on, tie him up. Tie the thing or whatever it is up. Very well. His hands are there.

I tie them first.

Hurry. I'm weakening. Let's go. I can feel the hand. God. Creep. We ought to get help now. The other hand, please, Stephen, hurry. What are you gonna do now?

[Harry Crown]

Pull the hands together.

[Stephen Hammond]

Then we'll tie the feet. He nearly got three men. Quickly, Stephen, tie the feet together. Feel sick, Harry? I'm gonna be sick to touch something and not do it. Stephen, for heaven's six, man, just do it. All right, Harry. You may let go. That. The.

The thing can't move.

[Harry Crown]

It's all right, Steven.

[Stephen Hammond]

No, no, no, no, it's not. It's the opium. It affected both of us. We took too much. Oh, it isn't that.

[Harry Crown]

It exists.

[Stephen Hammond]

How can a living, a solid, living body be invisible? I don't know, my friend. But now it is bound and cannot hurt us.

[Harry Crown]

I propose to find out.

[Stephen Hammond]

Stephen. What?

[Harry Crown]

There is something there. See the indentation on the seat?

[Stephen Hammond]

It moves and struggles with the ropes. I cannot watch. My friend, you are witnessing a miracle. Don't you realize? The first visible signs of a being from another world, a world we know nothing of, that has shape and form like us, but we cannot see.

You say it's like us, but how do you know?

I don't know, of course.

[Harry Crown]

Look, look, let us sit down and think this out.

[Stephen Hammond]

Please.

[Harry Crown]

Stephen, I need your help. You're a doctor. Your views could be useful to me. Now, we've got over the first shock. Now it's time to use our heads to think what to do.

[Stephen Hammond]

What scientific value we can expose to the world.

You don't intend to tell.

[Harry Crown]

Nothing like this has occurred since the.

[Stephen Hammond]

Birth of the world.

[Harry Crown]

I know not what to think at this precise moment. God grant that I am not mad.

[Stephen Hammond]

And that this is not some insane fancy to see.

All right, Harry. Now let us reason.

[Harry Crown]

A little, good man.

[Stephen Hammond]

Here is a solid body which we touch, but which we cannot see. Now, the fact is so unusual that it. It strikes us with terror. Is there no parallel for such a phenomenon? Take a piece of pure glass. It is tangible, but transparent. A certain chemical coarseness is all that prevents its being entirely transparent as to be totally invisible. We do not see the air. But we breathe it, feel it.

[Harry Crown]

That's all very well, Stephen, but these are inanimate substances. Glass does not breathe. Air does not breathe.

[Stephen Hammond]

This thing has. Has a heart that palpitates, a will that moves it. Lungs that play and inspire and respire.

[Harry Crown]

Listen. You hear it breathe. It sleeps.

[Stephen Hammond]

But you forget. You forget the phenomena of which we have heard so often of late at the meetings called spirit circles. Invisible hands have been thrust into the hands of those persons around the table. Warm, fleshy hands that seem to pulsate with normal life.

[Harry Crown]

Then, like me, you think that this thing is.

[Stephen Hammond]

I don't know what it is, but please the gods, I will, with your assistance, thoroughly investigate it.

It's Harry. Yes.

What form, what shape do you think it takes?

[Harry Crown]

Well, as far as I can make out by touch, it has a human shape. There is a mouth, a round spot. Smooth head without hair. There is one thing, Stephen.

[Stephen Hammond]

What?

[Harry Crown]

His hands.

[Stephen Hammond]

What about them?

[Harry Crown]

They seem to be that of a boy's.

[Stephen Hammond]

What are we going to do, Harry? Tomorrow morning, when the house is a stir, when Mrs. Moffat has the rooms cleaned. We can't leave it here. It's asleep now. But tomorrow when it wakes up, we.

[Harry Crown]

Shall have to pretend that I'm ill, gone down with a fever. You. You can say that you think it ill advised for anyone to enter the room. For the time being, apart from yourself. Stephen, I just had a marvelous idea.

[Stephen Hammond]

What? A setting of plaster.

[Harry Crown]

What?

[Stephen Hammond]

What are you talking about?

[Harry Crown]

By covering it with a setting of plaster, we shall be able to determine its form.

[Stephen Hammond]

That's all right if it remains still, Harry. But look how it struggled with you. Look at the strength it contains. The plaster would never set.

And we.

[Harry Crown]

Have to find a way of keeping it still. Tying it down doesn't totally prevent movement.

[Stephen Hammond]

Chloroform.

[Harry Crown]

That's a good idea.

[Stephen Hammond]

If it'll work.

[Harry Crown]

Why shouldn't it? If.

[Stephen Hammond]

If it.

[Harry Crown]

If he has the same senses, feeling as a human being. Why not?

[Stephen Hammond]

Stephen, we ought to tell Mrs. Moffat. The others have a right to know.

[Harry Crown]

When we have the answer, Stephen.

[Stephen Hammond]

Now. Now look.

[Harry Crown]

Tomorrow morning, you. You tell them I'm ill. And it will be necessary for you to remain in my room all day in order to keep my fever down. Now, bring the chloroform and plaster. Tomorrow we'll know. We'll know what lies there. And then. Only then can we truly explain to the world what we have discovered. And so it was. All day we worked silently in my bedroom so that Mrs. Moffat would not suspect the lie having been Communicated to the rest of the guests. Dr. Hammond returned to my room with the chloroform and the plaster. By this time, the thing had woken up. It struggled at its fettles, breathing deeply and angrily. We chloroformed it, and within minutes it fell silent. We managed to undo the rope and then carefully, slowly, we covered it in the plaster. Never was anything revealed that was so horrible, so even now I feel sick at the thought of. Was shaped like a man. Distorted, uncouth and horrible, but still a man. It was small, not over 4ft high. And its limbs revealed development that was unparalleled. It had the physiognomy of what I should fancy a ghoul might be. It looked as if it were capable of feeding on human flesh.

[Stephen Hammond]

My God.

[Harry Crown]

I know.

[Stephen Hammond]

I wish we'd never started on this.

[Harry Crown]

We cannot let the others see it or know its existence.

[Stephen Hammond]

But what do we do?

[Harry Crown]

It lives.

[Stephen Hammond]

It breathes. But now we can see it too. I. I can barely remain in this room.

[Harry Crown]

Don't desert me now, Stephen. Please don't desert me. What do we do?

[Stephen Hammond]

Do we.

[Harry Crown]

We have to make our discovery public.

[Stephen Hammond]

No.

No. Think. Think what might happen to us. Having gone this far, it's not beyond the realm of possibility that we might become outcasts by society in the belief that we might possess some hidden powers. That through even practicing some form of black magic.

Oh, no. No.

It is too dangerous.

[Harry Crown]

Stephen.

[Stephen Hammond]

Help me. It's moving violently. More chloroform. The blast is breaking. Chloroform. Quick.

[Harry Crown]

Several days passed. The most distressing part of the affair was that we were entirely ignorant of what the creature habitually fed on. Everything in the way of nutriment that we could think of. Was placed before it, but was never touched. It was awful to stand by and hear the hard breathing and know that it was becoming hungrier. Hungrier. Weaker and weaker. Finally, on the tenth day, he died. The thing died at half past two. Exactly. And the sudden silence in my room was deafen. Ready?

[Stephen Hammond]

Yes.

If anyone should be watching.

What?

Seeing us bury an imaginary body.

They.

They think us cruelly mad.

[Harry Crown]

I'm keeping the plaster cast as scientific evidence.

[Stephen Hammond]

No one will believe you.

[Harry Crown]

I'll have to risk it.

[Stephen Hammond]

Come on.

[Harry Crown]

Let's fill it.

[Stephen Hammond]

What's the matter now?

[Harry Crown]

I was just thinking. I sat there last night in my room and watched it die. I actually sat there and watched another human being die.

[Stephen Hammond]

Human?

[Harry Crown]

Well, Stephen, if it wasn't human, what was it?

[Stephen Hammond]

It.

[Narrator]

What was it? By FitzJames O' Brien starring Peter Marinka as Harry, Blaine Ferman as Hammond and Helen Horton as Mrs. Moffat. Haunted was adapted and directed by Derek Hoddinott.