8.4 /10 1 Votes
Country of origin United Kingdom First episode date 28 April 1976 Number of episodes 20 | 8.4/10 No. of series 3 Final episode date 5 March 1978 Number of seasons 3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Starring Arthur EnglishSean FlanaganFreddie JonesNicholas Le PrevostPeter SallisSheila Steafel Cast Similar Rock Follies, Private Schulz, Ripping Yarns, The Kenny Everett Video Sh, Kizzy |
The Ghosts of Motley Hall is a British children's television series written by Richard Carpenter. It was produced and directed by Quentin Lawrence for Granada Television, and broadcast between 1976 and 1978 on the ITV network. The series relates the adventures of five ghosts who haunt the crumbling, abandoned Motley Hall. Each ghost is from a different era, and all except one (Matt) are unable to leave the confines of the building—and even Matt is unable to travel outside the grounds of the Hall.
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The only regular character who is not a ghost is Mr. Gudgin, a real estate agent and the de facto caretaker of Motley Hall. Though Gudgin is tasked with selling the hall and its property, the ghosts are anxious that it be sold to someone who will respect it and restore it to its former glory; consequently, they often work to thwart a potential sale to an unsuitable candidate. Gudgin himself is not an enemy of the ghosts, as he too is respectful of the hall and its history.

The ghosts are generally unable to be seen by the living, although there are exceptions. Most notably, The White Lady can make herself visible to Mr. Gudgin ... although actually communicating with him is difficult, as her appearances instantly terrify him.

Carpenter wrote a companion novel for the series for Puffin Books in 1977.
A 3 DVD set containing the complete series was released by Network in 2005.
The ghosts of motley hall1 9
Main characters

Episode list
Series One (1976)

- "The Last Uproar" (25 April 1976)
- "Old Gory" (2 May 1976)
- "Box of Tricks" (9 May 1976)
- "Bad Lord William and the British Banana Company" (16 May 1976)
- "Perfida Blackart Rides Again" (23 May 1976)
- "Double Trouble" (30 May 1976)
- "The Pogmore Experiment" (6 June 1976)
Series Two (1976–1977)

- "The Christmas Spirit" (24 December 1976)
- "Sir Peveril's Hoard" (2 January 1977)
- "Where Are You, White Feather?" (9 January 1977)
- "Godfrey of Basingstoke" (16 January 1977)
- "Ghost of a Chance" (23 January 1977)
- "Horoscope" (30 January 1977)
Christmas Special (1977)
- "Phantomime" (26 December 1977)
Series Three (1978)
- "Family Tree" (29 January 1978)
- "Ghost Writer" (5 February 1978)
- "Skeleton in the Cupboard - Part 1" (12 February 1978)
- "Skeleton in the Cupboard - Part 2" (19 February 1978)
- "Party Piece" (26 February 1978)
- "Narcissus Bullock's Bell" (5 March 1978)