The Box of Delights is a children's fantasy novel by John Masefield. It is a sequel to The Midnight Folk, and was first published in 1935. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... John Edward Masefield, OM, (1 June 1878 – 12 May 1967), was an English poet and writer, and Poet Laureate from 1930 until his death in 1967. ... In political geography and international politics, a country is a political division of a geographical entity, a sovereign territory, most commonly associated with the notions of state or nation and government. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Look up Fantasy in Wiktionary, the free dictionary For other definitions of fantasy, see fantasy (psychology). ... A publisher is a person or entity which engages in the act of publishing. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article may require cleanup. ... ISBN-13 represented as EAN-13 bar code (in this case ISBN 978-3-16-148410-0) The International Standard Book Number, ISBN, is a unique[1] commercial book identifier barcode. ... John Edward Masefield, OM, (1 June 1878 – 12 May 1967), was an English poet and writer, and Poet Laureate from 1930 until his death in 1967. ... The Midnight Folk is a childrens fantasy novel by John Masefield. ... 1935 (MCMXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar). ...

Plot summary

The central character is Kay Harker who, on returning from boarding school, finds himself mixed up in a battle to possess a magical box, which allows the owner to go small (shrink) and go swift (fly), experience magical wonders contained within the box and go into the past. Kay Harker is a fictional character, the young hero of the books The Midnight Folk and The Box of Delights by John Masefield, and the BBC series based on The Box of Delights. ...

The owner of the box is an old Punch and Judy man called Cole Hawlings, whom Kay meets on a railway station. They have an instant rapport, and this leads Cole to confide that he is being chased by a man called Abner Brown and his gang. For safety, Cole entrusts the box to Kay, who then goes onto have many adventures. A stained glass illustration of Punch by Professor Ignorant Punch and Judy is a popular puppet show featuring Punch and his wife Judy. ...

BBC adaptation

The Box of Delights UK DVD release

The Box of Delights was adapted for television by the BBC in 1984, featuring Patrick Troughton and Robert Stephens. It was broadcast November–December, in six parts, with the last episode transmitted on Christmas Eve. Starring Devin Stanfield as Kay and directed by Renny Rye, it used an innovative mixture of live action and animation, with Quantel Paintbox and chroma key effects to bring the adventure alive. Noted for its yuletide atmosphere (it is set during Christmas), the series has become something of a nostalgic treat for followers of cult TV. The seasonal theme music is Victor Hely-Hutchinson's orchestral arrangement of "The First Noël" from his Carol Symphony. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... The British Broadcasting Corporation, which is usually known as the BBC, is the largest broadcasting corporation in the world in terms of audience numbers, employing 26,000 staff in the United Kingdom alone and with a budget of more than GB£4 billion. ... Year 1984 (MCMLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1984 Gregorian calendar). ... Patrick George Troughton (March 25, 1920 – March 28, 1987) was a versatile and prolific English actor best known in his role as the second incarnation of the Doctor in the long running British science-fiction television series Doctor Who, which he played from 1966 until 1969. ... Sir Robert Stephens (July 14, 1931 – November 12, 1995) was a leading actor in the early years of Britains Royal National Theatre. ... The Quantel Paintbox is a dedicated computer system for performing real time manipulation of video, and creating graphics. ... This page is a candidate for speedy deletion, because: it is patent nonsense. ... Christian Victor Hely-Hutchinson (born December 26th 1901, Cape Town, South Africa) was a British composer. ... The First Noël (sometimes The First Nowell) is a traditional English Christmas carol, most likely from the 16th or 17th century, but possibly dating from as early as the 13th century. ... Carol Symphony is a collection of four preludes, written by Victor Hely-Hutchinson in 1927. ...

The episodes are:

1. "When the Wolves Were Running"
2. "Where Shall the 'Nighted Showman Go?"
3. "In the Darkest Cellars Underneath"
4. "The Spider in the Web"
5. "Beware of Yesterday"
6. "Leave Us Not Little, Nor Yet Dark"

There was an earlier adaptation for BBC radio, being staple Christmas fare on the programme Children's Hour in the early 1950s. The television version was shown by PBS in the USA for some three years in the late 1980s. BBC Worldwide released the serial on DVD in 2004. It is not available in the US on Region 1 DVD or NTSC VHS tape. See also The Childrens Hour Childrens Hour—at first: The Childrens Hour, from a verse by Longfellow (1)—was the name of the BBCs principal recreational service for children (as distinct from Broadcasts to Schools) during the period when radio dominated broadcasting. ... This does not cite any references or sources. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... BBC Worldwide Limited is the wholly-owned commercial subsidiary of the British Broadcasting Corporation, formed out of a restructuring of its predecessor BBC Enterprises in 1995. ... DVD (Digital Versatile Disc or Digital Video Disc) is an optical disc storage media format that can be used for data storage, including movies with high video and sound quality. ...

Differences between the novel and the BBC adaptation

The novel contains more magical adventures or events than appeared in the BBC version. This was presumably because of budgeting and special effect constraints; however, the BBC did not otherwise alter the plot significantly. The following incidents occur only in the novel:

• After the Punch and Judy show the children are shown various magic tricks that include a minature army of soldiers that walk out of the wainscott and drill.
• Kay Harker and the Jones children take refuge from Abner's men in a tree by a river bank. They are also shown around the tree and the various animal and insect dwellings within it. There is also a scene where the children dance with fairies.
• Kay is taken to witness a medieval jousting match.
• More detail is provided as to how the Box of Delights found its way into the possession of Cole Hawlings. The Novel states that the Box came to England as an antiquity and found its way into the hands of a Countess. Cole Hawlings then discovered hiding place of the Box. Abner Brown also discovered the Box's location but only after Cole had taken it. The BBC adaptation suggests that Cole was given the box by its creator Arnold of Todi.
• Arnold of Todi is convinced to come back out of the past. However, he has no interest in re-claiming the box.

Trivia

• When Kay meets mouse behind the skirtingboard they encounter pirate rats. One of the rats in the tunnel was played by Nick Berry, later of EastEnders and Heartbeat.
• As an adult, Devin Stanfield went on to do behind-the-scenes work in the theatre.
• The outdoor snow scenes were filmed near Aberdeen, Scotland in January 1984.
• The scene with Kay inside Arthur's Camp fighting the wolves was filmed in June 1984, near Reading, Berkshire. There was pressure on the production to get all the shots finished because they were filming on one of the shortest nights of the year.
• The police inspector is played by James Grout who went on to play Chief Superintendent Strange in Inspector Morse
• Robert Stephens, who played Abner Brown, was later married to Patricia Quinn, who played Sylvia Daisy Pouncer. They married in 1995, shortly before Stephens' death.
• The scenes representing the children's party at the house of the Bishop were filmed at Kinlet Hall in Shropshire.
• The scenes showing the external appearance of Abner Brown's theological college are Eastnor Castle, Herefordshire.
• The railway station scene was filmed at Arley railway station on the Severn Valley Railway in north Worcestershire

Nick Berry (born 16 April 1963 in Woodford, Essex) is a British television actor and musician // Berry started acting at the age of eight. ... EastEnders is a popular BBC television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC1 on 19 February 1985[4] and continuing to date. ... Heartbeat is a long-running British TV police drama series set in 1960s Yorkshire. ... Aberdeen (IPA: ; Scottish Gaelic: ) is Scotlands third largest city with a population of 202,370. ... Motto (Latin) No one provokes me with impunity Cha togar mfhearg gun dioladh (Scottish Gaelic) Wha daur meddle wi me?(Scots)1 Anthem (Multiple unofficial anthems) Scotlands location in Europe Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow Official languages English (de facto)1; Gaelic[1]2 and Scots3 (recognised minority... Reading is a town, unitary authority (the Borough of Reading) and urban area in the English county of Berkshire. ... James Grout (born 22 October 1927 in London) is an English television and radio actor. ... Morse (left) as played by John Thaw in the television adaption (with Kevin Whately as Lewis (right)). Detective Chief Inspector Morse is a fictional character, who features in a series of thirteen detective novels by British author Colin Dexter, though he is better known for the 33 episode TV series... Sir Robert Stephens (July 14, 1931 – November 12, 1995) was a leading actor in the early years of Britains Royal National Theatre. ... Quinn with Richard OBrien and Tim Curry in The Rocky Horror Picture Show. ... Year 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full 1995 Gregorian calendar). ... Shropshire (pronounced /ˈʃrɒpʃɪər, -ʃər/), alternatively known as Salop or abbreviated Shrops, is a county in the West Midlands of England. ... Eastnor Castle circa 1880. ... Herefordshire is a historic and ceremonial county and unitary district (known as County of Herefordshire) in the West Midlands region of England. ... Arley station Arley railway station is a station on the Severn Valley Railway heritage line in Worcestershire, situated just over the River Severn from the village of Upper Arley; a footbridge crosses the river to link the station to the village. ... LMS Ivatt Class 2MT 2-6-0 no. ... Worcestershire (pronounced ; abbreviated Worcs) is a county located in the West Midlands region of central England. ...

Opera

John Masefield adapted an opera libretto from his book, also incorporating elements of The Midnight Folk, which was eventually set to music in the late 1980s by British composer Robert Steadman. A libretto is the complete body of words used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, sacred or secular oratorio and cantata, musical, and ballet. ... A composer is a person who writes music. ... Robert Steadman (born April 1, 1965) is a British composer of classical music who mostly works in a post-minimalist style but also writes lighter music, including musicals, and compositions for educational purposes. ...

Reissue

The New York Review of Books Children's Collection will be reissuing a hardcover edition of The Box of Delights in the autumn of 2007. The New York Review of Books (or NYRB) is a biweekly magazine on literature, culture, and current affairs published in New York which takes as its point of departure that the discussion of important books is itself an indispensable literary activity. ...

External links

• Box of Delights (television adaptation) at the Internet Movie Database
• Victor Hely-Hutchinson composer of theme music
• Sea Fever and Cargoes for examples of Masefield's poetry