In Piers Torday’s adaptation it provides an unexpected treat in its ability to combine ancient rituals with futuristic fantasy. It all climaxes in a fight in an underground river that, if Kay fails, could lead to the cancellation of Christmas. But, by updating the story to 1938, Torday lends Abner’s dream of world domination a chilling political resonance. The story is steeped in folklore and resurrects the antlered Herne the Hunter last seen in The Merry Wives of Windsor. But the real virtue of the show is that it introduces us to the merry eclecticism of the largely forgotten Masefield.

Source: The Guardian December 11, 2017 15:30 UTC