Hiram Otis comes to England with his wife, daughter and two sons on a research grant; he and his family will live in a castle called Canterville Hall. But the Castle is haunted by the ghost of a deceased ancestor, Sir Simon de Canterville, doomed to remain on the estate after the death of his wife; his goal is to send the family packing so he begins a ghostly reign of terror: reappearing blood residue, clanking chains, haunting moans. As is revealed by Lord Canterville (Sir Simon's descendant) and the servants Mr. and Mrs. Umney, numerous people have stayed at Canterville Hall in the last few years and have all been scared away by Sir Simon - the locals start betting on how long the Otis family will stay.