I've covered a few British series, especially children's series with a slight creeping horror. However it wasn't just in Blighty that children's series were scaring children, during the 90's Nickelodeon aired Are You Afraid Of The Dark, a programme that had 52 episodes and lasted for 10 years. I never watched the series when it was shown but having looked at several websites and blogs with the best of lists I compiled a 20 episode watch list and over the course of October have been watching them, one episode a night. So now submitted for the approval of the Midnight Society my list of the 13 best AYAOTD episodes.

The dandy big bad is quite malevolent for a children's show

The Tale of the Whispering Walls

While driving back home from a carnival, a babysitter and the two children she's looking after get lost. When their car breaks down, she goes inside a house to call for help. Trouble begins when she disappears and the kids soon find out that while they aren't the only ones in the house, they're the only ones that are alive. Their only hope in escaping comes in the form of a helpful female ghost who must right the wrongs of her former master's crimes.

This vampire story is pretty scary and the special effects are quite effective

The Tale of the Nightshift

Amanda starts volunteering during the nightshift at the local hospital. But the hospital seems to have more than just a new volunteer. Someone or something is feeding on the hospital's patients and employees draining them of their blood and turning them into walking blood-thirsty zombies.

The Tale of the Midnight Madness

A movie theater on the brink of closure due in large part by a new multiplex that recently opened in town gets a revival courtesy of Dr. Vink, who offers a rare copy of the 1922 film Nosferatu for screening -- as long as they agree to show his other films one night a week. When the arrogant manager refuses to honor his deal with Vink, strange things begin to happen.

The Tale of Watcher's Woods

Long ago, three girls attending camp got lost in the woods never to be seen or heard from again leaving only their whistles behind. At the same exact time, a camper went crazy and started babbling about a "Watcher" lurking within the woods creating the nickname Watcher's Woods. When Kelly and Sarah, two present-day campers, get lost in the woods they soon discover that there's definitely something evil lurking within.

The fashion and style in this episode are great and quirky

The Tale of the Thirteenth Floor

Karen and her adopted brother Billy like to spend all their free time playing hockey on the empty 13th floor of their apartment building. One day, the regular elevator operator disappears and they find that the floor is now being used by a company to manufacture toys and games. However the toys that they're creating aren't exactly from this world and it's later revealed that Karen is actually Olga's daughter whom she, Leonid and Raymond had been trying to rescue.

They're ooky and they're kooky, they're the mysterious gothic family

The Tale of the Nightly Neighbours

When a new family moves in next door to Emma and her brother, the kids can't get over their strange behavior. They notice that their new neighbors seem to only come out at night and they always wear black. When several people start to get sick, they come to the conclusion that their new neighbors are vampires.

The Tale of Many Faces

A struggling teenage model named Emma finds employment with a stage actress who uses a magic book to steal the faces of her young workers and forces them to be faceless slaves.

The editing in this episode is suitably quirky and fun

The Tale of The Ghastly Grinner

Ethan wants to be a comic book artist but his submissions are constantly rejected and his lazy parents don't believe he has the talent for it. One day he's invited to a comic shop where he gets the only copy of the comic "The Ghastly Grinner" a comic book featuring a Joker-esque clown villain who turns his victims into drooling giggling idiots by staring them into their eyes. Things get an unexpected dark turn when he accidentally brings the villain to life by microwaving the comic after it gets wet.

This story is similar to the classic TV series 'Escape into Night' and 'Paperhouse'

The Tale of the Dollmaker

A young girl named Melissa goes to the countryside to spend a summer with her uncle and aunt and her best friend Susan. However, upon arriving she discovers that Susan's family has moved back to the city and that Susan is missing. Soon Melissa discovers that a mysterious dollhouse in the attic of Susan's house may be responsible for her friend's disappearance. To set things right, Melissa must go inside the dollhouse and rescue Susan.

The Tale of the Crimson Clown

After stealing the money his older brother Mike had saved up for their mother's birthday present, a young bratty boy Sam learns a lesson when an evil clown doll comes to life and starts terrorizing him.

The Tale of Laughing in the Dark

Weegee, his little sister Kathy, and his friend Josh come across the rebuilt funhouse called Laughing in the Dark and Weegee asks Josh if he had ever been inside to which Josh replies that he hasn't. Weegee subsequently dares Josh to go in and he accepts, deciding to prove that he went through by finding the clown dummy, which is modeled after Zeebo, and stealing its nose. The spirit of the clown is disturbed and chases Josh to retrieve his nose.

Who wouldn't look pimp with these glasses?

The Tale of the Super Specs

Weeds loves April Fool's Day and has planned numerous pranks for everyone that he knows. After buying a pair of "Super Specs" from Sardo's store they give his girlfriend, Marybeth the power to see beings from another dimension who live among humans. Soon everywhere she looks she sees strange figures covered in black...

The Tale of the Deadman's Float

Zeke is good at chemistry but not at girls. When he befriends Clorice she teaches him how to swim at the school pool. However the pool has a secret: It was built on top of a graveyard and is haunted by the angry ghost of a body that was previously buried there and who takes vengeance upon anyone who dares to swim in the pool. "home".