Boy in Darkness - Definition and Overview

"Boy in Darkness" is a horror novella written by Mervyn Peake and first published in 1956 in the anthology Sometime, Never. Boy in Darkness has also been published separately in the United Kingdom. It has been out of print in the United States for decades. Boy in Darkness is a part of the Gormenghast series, albeit one which is not well-known.

Upon publication of the work in 1956, a Glasgow Herald reviewer called it "completely hair-raising". The story was one of Mervyn Peake's final major works before his death in 1968. Titus Alone and Titus Awakes follow Boy in Darkness.

Plot

The story concerns an unnamed boy (actually Titus Groan), who, yearning for freedom from his ceaseless duties as 77th Earl of Gormenghast, escapes the ancient castle and encounters the nightmare world outside the keep.

Adaptations

Boy in Darkness was made into a short film in 2000. Created by the BBC Drama Lab, it utilized computer generated imagery and was set in a virtual world. The film starred Jack Ryder and Terry Jones.