He was the first of the Occult Detectives and set the template for many that followed. Yet he appears in only one short story and hovers in the background of a mere four more.
Doctor Martin Hesselius was the creation of Irish author, Sheridan Le Fanu. Hesselius, a physician and spiritualist, takes a naturalist's view towards the paranormal. He sees the supernatural as simply an extension of nature and not an intrusive outside force. Creatures such as vampires and ghosts are akin to sharks or man-eating tigers; exotic and dangerous, to be sure, but subject to logical rules and easily dealt with by the proper methods.
Hesselius was more of an archivist than a man of action. He is an active participant in just one story, "Green Tea", and even then his role is more that of consulting physician than stalwart ghostbuster. Hesselius merely provides commentary on the other four tales associated with him, which were culled from his collection of nearly 250 such reports by his unnamed assistant and executor, as the good doctor has passed on (under non-specified circumstances) before his works were published.
The most famous tale collected by Doctor Hesselius is "Carmilla", the Le Fanu classic that has influenced all vampire tales that followed. Today's Halloween Treat is the 2003 BBC Radio adaptation of "Carmilla" starring Anne-Marie Duff, Brana Bajic, David Warner, and Jacqueline Pearce. You can stream the play via the embedded player below.
Carmilla - BBC 2003
I'm also re-upping "The Shadow People", a 1953 Hall of Fantasy episode featuring Doctor Hesselius (or at least someone with the same name) as a supporting character. It's a great, creepy tale and perfect Halloween listening!
Hall of Fantasy - "The Shadow People"
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