The Clifton House Mystery

Lore & Background

The plot centers on conductor Timothy Clare and his family, who move into an old Bristol house purchased from the elderly Mrs Betterton. While exploring, the two sons discover a hidden room containing a skeleton in a four-poster bed. Strange events follow: a ghostly old woman appears via a music box, objects smash, a dragoon's helmet glows, and a blood-like liquid drips through the ceiling. The boys recruit ghost hunter Milton Guest, who links the haunting to the Bristol Riots of 1831 and a dragoon commander named George Bretherton, who was court-martialled for leniency and disappeared. Guest performs an exorcism that initially stops the phenomena, but after the skeleton is given a Christian burial, the events resume.

Reader's Guide

The Clifton House Mystery is notable as a children's supernatural drama that incorporates historical events—the Bristol Riots of 1831—into its plot. The subplot draws on the real case of Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas Brereton, a dragoon commander court-martialled for leniency during the riots, who committed suicide. The series was released on Region 2 DVD in 2010 by Network. Its significance lies in its blend of family drama, ghost story, and historical reference, typical of late-1970s British children's television. The unresolved ending, with phenomena recurring after the skeleton's burial, adds a lingering eerie quality.

Did You Know?

• The subplot is based on the real-life case of Thomas Brereton, a Lieutenant-Colonel in the Dragoons who was court-martialled for leniency during the Bristol Riots of 1831.
• The ghost hunter Milton Guest was played by Peter Sallis.