I saw theatre's most terrifying play in Glasgow - my verdict

It’s not even the jump scares, really, which make The Woman in Black the most terrifying night you will ever have in the theatre.

(And there are several of them - jump scares - prompting actual screams from the Theatre Royal audience, followed by nervous giggles as we all sheepishly collected ourselves.)

It’s the silences, the subtle build-up of tension, the ominous shadows and clever use of sound effects which are truly unsettling, as a spooky old house on remote marshland comes alive.

Maybe alive is the wrong word. Death and trauma fill this house like the cold, creeping fog which surrounds it, as young lawyer Arthur Kipps tries to sort out the late owner’s estate, while dealing with a series of strange and decidedly unnerving encounters.

John Mackay and Daniel Burke (Image: Mark Douet)

The Woman in Black, based on the novel by Susan Hill, is the second-longest running play in London’s West End, after The Mousetrap and it is currently on tour, playing at the Theatre Royal until Saturday.

It is the story of solicitor Mr Kipps (John Mackay), who is desperately trying to exorcise a curse he believes hangs over him and his family. He employs a young actor (Daniel Burke) to help him tell his terrifying tale.

Despite the audience’s jittery laughter, The Woman in Black is not a comedy, or a spoof.

It is a genuinely scary, cleverly crafted ghost story with two outstanding performances at its heart.

Mackay is brilliant, flitting between characters with deft changes of accent, gait and costume making it seem like a whole cast of actors is on stage; Burke is equally fantastic, becoming increasingly agitated and troubled as the story unfolds.

Both men use the simple set and few props very skilfully – we have no problem believing the wicker basket is a train carriage, then a pony and trap; or that the shapes covered in swathes of cloth are gravestones; or that the little, invisible dog is real.

The easy comedy of the opening scenes, as the sceptical but sympathetic young actor teases Mr Kipps about his delivery, lulls the audience into a false sense of security.

Soon, the horror ramps up, however, and the deeply disturbing, nerve-jangling final scenes will have you checking behind your curtains and making sure all the lights are on for days afterwards.