Émile Erckmann and Alexandre Chatrian
This episode Mike and Will pop across the channel for some booze-heavy French/German shinanigans in ‘The White and the Black’ by Erckmann-Chartrian.
M.R. James says this writing partnership “produced some quite first-class romances”, but this tale of murder and mayhem is no love story!
Show notes:
- Erckmann-Chatrian (Wikipedia)
About the authors - Breisach, Germany (Wikipedia)
About the town in which the story is set. Also, take a look on Google Maps. - ‘Buried Treasure’ by Erckmann-Chatrian (Archive.org)
This public domain scan of an Erckmann-Chatrian anthology contains a number of translations of their short stories, including ‘The White and the Black’ (albeit in a very different translation to the version we cover in the podcast). - Anabaptism (Wikipedia)
The following also get a mention in this episode:
- Nunkie Theatre (nunkie.co.uk)
Robert Lloyd Parry is releasing another of his excellent M.R. James performances as a pay-to-stream release before Christmas. - Haunted Advent Calendar (moorereppion.com)
To entertain lovers of the strange and horrible over the festive season, authors Leah Moore and John Reppion have produced this highly enjoyable advent calendar, packed with weird and horrifying tit-bits.
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Tags: Alexandre Chatrian, Alsace-Lorraine, Anabaptism, Emile Erckmann, Erckmann-Chatrian, France, M.R. James, The White and the Black, Theodore Blitz
Just wanted to say I really appreciate what you guys have done and am really enjoying series 2 so far.
This story was really fantastically weird and felt quite contemporary with well-drawn characters.
Erckmann-Chatrian are definitely on my radar now so thanks for helping popularise this.
Very impressed that you actually translated this story for the book. There are some other great stories in the book – many of them well-known classics – and am looking forward to the extra insights you bring to these.
Thanks Danny! We really enjoyed this one.
Only just catching up with this episode, but I really, really like the sound of this story, and I had not heard of the authors previously. Looking forward very much to the rest of Season 2.
There was another link to M R James stories that occurred to me here; the quote from the temple of Isis about “no-one penetrating the mystery that surrounds me” reminded me of the inscription on the metal globe at the centre of Mr Humphrey’s maze, “Penetrans ad interior mortis.”
I kept wondering whether I had read this or not in the past – it sounded vaguely familiar. Then, when the character started fiddling, I was sure. I think it was in a thick paperback collection of ghost stories I might have bought in the 1980s. It was interesting to hear it discussed after all these years.
That’s where I first found this tale too. It’s in the 1995 Mammoth boom of Victorian and Edwardian ghost stories, right near the back.
Great collection, some of James as well if I recall.
That’s where I first found this tale too. It’s in the 1995 Mammoth book of Victorian and Edwardian ghost stories, right near the back.
Great collection, some of James as well if I recall.