The Signalman – Drayton Arms Theatre, London

My festive Dickens habit took a slight detour this year with The Signalman at the Drayton Arms Theatre – a brief, atmospheric ghost story I hadn’t encountered before.

The Signalman

I’m always up for a Dickens ghost story at Christmas. A Christmas Carol is my perennial favourite, and I’ve written about it here before. But until now I hadn’t encountered The Signalman. Originally published in the Christmas edition of All the Year Round in 1866, it’s less a festive tale and more a classic Victorian horror story about isolation, uncanny warnings, and a creeping sense of dread and inevitability.

Jennie-Mae James’s adaptation at the Drayton Arms sticks very close to Dickens’s language. She shifts the original narration into dialogue while retaining much of the period feel. One notable choice is a gender swap: he Visitor is now played by Helen Bang as a woman. If I’m being a stickler, it didn’t quite mesh with some of the period social expectations embedded in the text. A woman offering to stay overnight with a man she’s just met would at best be very eccentric. But this is a small quibble in an otherwise very earnest production.

Other reviews have remarked on the brevity of the piece – it runs at roughly 50 minutes including an interval. I quite like productions that stay tightly within their material, and often think less is more. But I couldn’t help thinking The Signalman could sit well as part of a double bill, or paired with another short ghost story, so the evening isn’t over so quickly.

The ensemble is small but resourceful. And, interestingly, this was the second night in a row for me where the Stage Manager made frequent appearances. Natalie Romero, who shares the role with Nyah Felix, slipped in and out of odd roles including a ghostly apparition. Peter Rae then rounds out the cast as the signalman (and a couple of other roles).

A Seasonal Alternative to the Usual Fare

Where this production comes alive most is in its design and world-building. Karen Holley’s set spills beyond the stage, grounding us in a sense of place that works well with Dickens’ story about the lonely railway cutting. Simple touches including the props by Becca Tizzard and costuming by the company and Sue Daykin help sell the Victorian era without over-reaching. The immersive feel draws you in quickly. The surround sound (a first for the Drayton Arms) is used thoughtfully, placing creaks, rumbles and train noises around the space in a way that genuinely enhances the eerie setting rather than just startling the audience.

Peter Rae’s signalman is the emotional anchor here. As the ghostly visitations mount, he cycles through confusion, fear and resignation in a way that embodies Dickens’s original bleakness, where duty, guilt and helplessness weave together. Helen Bang’s Visitor has less variation, perhaps; the contrast between her consistent energy and the signalman’s unraveling blunted, for me, the story’s psychological peak. Still, there’s commitment and clarity in her performance, and the exchanges between the two keep the narrative moving.

There’s a lot to admire in the ambition here. Adapting a lesser-known Dickens ghost story is a brave choice, and doing so in a small intimate space like the Drayton Arms Theatre gives the production a kind of closeness that larger venues rarely achieve.

For Dickens enthusiasts looking for a seasonal alternative to the usual fare, this is an engaging if brief take on a classic haunting. It isn’t quite as chilling as the text itself, but it’s a thoughtful, respectful adaptation that recalls just why Dickens’ stories have endured. As noted, if this were programmed as part of a double feature or alongside another seasonal piece, it would feel even more satisfying. Either way, it’s a worthwhile way to spend an hour with Dickens this winter.

Salterton Arts Review’s rating: 3.5/5

The Signalman on until 2 January 2026. More info and tickets here.