Casting The Runes

Made by Yorkshire Television for the ITV Playhouse strand, this updated adaptation of M.R. James' 1911 ghost story was filmed in a very snowy Leeds in February 1979, and starred Iain Cuthbertson and Jan Francis. It was produced and directed by Lawrence Gordon Clark, who used to direct the M.R. James adaptations for the Ghost Story at Christmas strand for the BBC, Yorkshire's boss Paul Fox, (who'd greenlit the James adaptations while he was controller of BBC1), poached Clark from the BBC as Fox felt Clark's talents were being wasted there, Clark also did Flambards and Harry's Game for Yorkshire. Casting the Runes had been pitched to the BBC a few years before and it was rejected, much to Clark's surprise, so Yorkshire made it.