What The Ghost And Mrs Hobbs Actually Is
The Ghost And Mrs Hobbs is a 2006 British television film starring Jane Horrocks and Ian McNeice. It's based on the novel by R.D. Wingfield, who also created the Inspector Morse universe. The story follows a widow who moves into a seaside B&B where the former owner's ghost refuses to leave. It aired on ITV and was directed by David Livingston. If you're looking for this on streaming platforms, availability changes frequently depending on your region. In the UK it sometimes rotates through ITVX or Amazon Prime Video's catalog. The US release has been spotty — I've seen it on Tubi occasionally but it disappears just as fast. The DVD exists as a Region 2 release from ITV Studios Home Entertainment but it's largely out of print now, so buying secondhand is basically your only option if you want physical media. One thing worth noting: the production quality is solid but understated. It's not a big-budget affair. The B&B location was filmed in real houses along the North Norfolk coast, which gives it an actual texture that a lot of TV dramas from this era lack. The humor lands better if you've ever dealt with difficult elderly relatives or shared accommodation, because the core premise is essentially two mismatched people forced to coexist with zero negotiation power.
I tried tracking down a clean digital copy a while back and found that the most reliable source ends up being the BritBox library, which tends to keep it listed longer than other platforms. The picture quality there is decent, not Blu-ray standard but watchable. Avoid any uploads from random torrent sites — the audio is usually poorly synced and the video is compressed to something unwatchable. I learned that the hard way after downloading a version that turned out to be a cam recording with someone talking over the dialogue the entire film. The runtime is approximately 93 minutes. It plays as a straightforward drama-comedy hybrid without pretense. If you're in the mood for that kind of thing it's fine. If you're expecting something more ambitious it probably won't satisfy you.
