The Haunted Moustache

As part of our Folk Horror series, enjoy one man’s fantastical and hilarious quest to unravel the occult secrets of a unique family ‘hairloom’. 

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After inheriting a 100-year old moustache, David Bramwell embarks on a ten-year odyssey to discover all he can about its former owner, a Victorian freakshow host called Ambrose Oddfellow. His quest draws him into the underbelly of Brighton – its séances, spiritual churches and a seedy basement club – where he unwittingly becomes the host of a modern-day freakshow. Coming to believe that his ‘hairloom’ is possessed, Bramwell joins a cult, dabbles with Amazonian psychedelics and comes close to losing the plot entirely. Can he solve the mystery before his sanity gives in?

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A supernatural coming-of-age story, an exploration of magic and the nature of reality, and an affectionate portrayal of England’s rich counterculture. It’s quite funny, too.

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The Haunted Moustache was dramatised for Radio 3, winning a Sony Silver Award.

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'A marvellous demonstration of how beautifully the mechanism of reality functions, if you’re paying sufficient attention. Neurologically, this will light you up like a Christmas tree.' (Alan Moore)

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'A taste for genius, matched by eccentricity' (The Guardian)