| Author | Message | ||
     John Llewellyn Probert (John_l_probert) Username: John_l_probert Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 90.203.130.191 |
Back in the 1970s whoever was in charge of the ITV children's dept obviously thought that what 7 year olds needed when they came home from school was to have the shit scared out of them. And quite right too - after all I was one of those 7 year olds and it never did me any harm ;-> And so finally, after 33 years, I get to see some episode of 'Shadows' again. Does anyone else remember it? It must have run to several series as the episodes I have obtained have different title sequences, but the first few are from 1975, starting with: The Waiting Room What's better than mid-70s British TV horror? Mid-70s British TV horror starring Jenny Agutter that's what! This is a neat little ghost story set in a rotting Victorian railway station waiting room. The action never leaves this single set and there are only four actors. I'm probably getting old but I enjoyed this a lot, and the static camerawork and stagey approach only added to the sense of realism (today's shakeycam only tends to remind me that I'm watching something). Recommended, and quite possibly enjoyed more by the older JLP than his younger self. I can't wait to watch the others now. | ||
| Mick Curtis (Mick) Username: Mick Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 194.106.220.83 |
JLP - don't recall this at all, although that tale sounds excellent - somewhat reminiscent of that Sapphire & Steel story about the haunted railway station. The old 'seventies static television stuff can really build up the atmosphere beautifully. Is it pertinent to ask where you got hold of these? | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 213.219.8.243 |
John, please, please, please tell me where you got these (email me!). I bloody loved Shadows - even had the paperback book. The programme still haunts me now, despite my failing memory. | ||
| Mick Curtis (Mick) Username: Mick Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 194.106.220.83 |
Just looked it up on IMDB - bloody hell, Gabrielle Drake as well! I'm sure at some point I'll remember and think "oh that", but at the moment I'm lost... | ||
| Mark_lynch (Mark_lynch) Username: Mark_lynch Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 217.171.129.71 |
Ah... The lovely Jenny Agutter... I don't remember Shadows, but the railway episode of Saphire & Steel rings a bell. | ||
| Huw (Huw) Username: Huw Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 218.168.198.107 |
Lord P, I watched these when they first aired, back in the '70s, and they gave me the shivers (not as much as Hammer House of Horror, of course, which was far more intense, being an adult show). I have them on disc now (maybe the same set you have?), and agree that they're still enjoyable. The one I always remembered most had someone turning into a tree. Also, the one about the magic tricks. I must watch them again... | ||
| John Llewellyn Probert (John_l_probert) Username: John_l_probert Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 90.208.48.111 |
Delighted to see that on IMDB Shadows is classed as Family / Horror under genre. Kind of heartwarming, that. Mick - the only writer I recognise in the stories I've got is PJ Hammond but I haven't got to his episode yet. Huw - One of my favourites was 'After School' about the boys in detention in the Welsh school who find the skeleton of a boy who got trapped underground. Sadly that's not on the disk, but 'An Optical Illusion' and 'And Now for My Next Trick' are :-> | ||
| John Llewellyn Probert (John_l_probert) Username: John_l_probert Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 90.208.48.111 |
In case it jogs any memories, but mainly because I feel like writing a few reviews I'll keep describing these as I go. Next up is: The Witch's Bottle Matthew Hopkins forces the teenaged daughter of Agnes Bewley to watch as her mother is tortured and drowned. Understandably the young girl curses the villagers for letting mum die and so they drag her out of her cottage and burn her. In 1975 her spirit is still trapped at the old country cottage that's the setting for this episode that feels like Hammer House of Horror for kids (& I mean that in a good way). It also has another good spooky ending (as did The Waiting Room) that I won't give away. And this was a genuine blast of nostalgia as while The Waiting Room had always been a favourite I'd completely forgotten I'd seen this one. | ||
| John Llewellyn Probert (John_l_probert) Username: John_l_probert Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 90.208.48.111 |
An Optical Illusion My God they don't make them like this anymore. Slipping effortlessly from what feels almost like a kids' sitcom into straight gothic horror about halfway through, this tale of three cockney kids larkin' about a heritage trust property and then getting lost and finding some 17th century clothes to dress up in works beautifully as a little 22 minute nugget of ghostly entertainment. That's it for my series one episodes, but I remember the plots of the others having looked up the titles on IMDB and they were: The Future Ghost - The one about the Victorian chambermaid who finds herself in 1975. The house she works in has become a hotel and a girl in one of the rooms is dying. I remember the maid takes a 50p piece back with her to prove she was there. After School - See above The Other Window - This scared me silly. There's a window in a house that looks out onto a garden but when the garden is viewed through a particular pane it shows events from the past. Horrible ones, of course. Ah nostalgia! Huw - I actually think these scared me more than Hammer House of Horror, probably because I was a lot younger and had experienced a lot less in the way of scary stuff. | ||
| Steve Bacon (Stevebacon) Username: Stevebacon Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 90.208.112.230 |
I don't remember these. I was born in 1971, and I watched practically every horror-based tv shows. They sound incredibly interesting. | ||
| Allybird (Allybird) Username: Allybird Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 79.78.22.187 |
I loved the Sapphire and Steel story about the haunted railway station. The pace of it - everything slowing down to a heartbeat. | ||
| John Llewellyn Probert (John_l_probert) Username: John_l_probert Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 90.208.48.111 |
OK on to the second series and a distinct move from the Jamesian and gothic atmosphere of the first series to more contemporary urban tales as reflected in the almost Gilliamesque title sequence: The Eye I almost dismissed this as a load of old rubbish until the single Dad of the two Welsh children came into their cramped flat in his motorcycle leathers and blacked out helmet possessed by the spirit of the blind Greek 'cloud watcher' Stratus, searching for new eyes. The bit where he peels off his black gloves to reveal rotting mummified hands must have sent a few kids to bed with nightmares, even if the rest of the plot is a bit garbled. And Now for My Next Trick PJ Hammond's tale of Clive Swift's impoverished magician whose act gets vastly improved by the appearance of three magical eggs. But there's a price to pay for each of his new tricks. The fade-out on the horrified children at the end is sheer class. | ||
| John Llewellyn Probert (John_l_probert) Username: John_l_probert Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 90.208.48.111 |
The Dark Streets of Kimball's Green Kimball's Green is an urban development built on an ancient British settlement. While her foster mother goes off to bingo little orphan Emmeline prefers to spend her time in the library where she befriends old Mr Campbell (!) who helps her discover the history of the place. When her stepbrother sets off with his gang to kill her cat Emmeline gets revenge with some very ancient allies. Written by Joan Aiken both this and 'The Eye' are probably the closest TV will ever get to doing 'Ramsey Campbell for Kids'. | ||
| John Llewellyn Probert (John_l_probert) Username: John_l_probert Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.142.146.96 |
Just in case anyone's interested, apparently Network DVD are going to release Shadows this Summer | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 195.166.117.210 |
Yessssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss sssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss...I've been waiting for this for ages. I loved this show as a kid; even bought the anthology book ( my first ever antho) from the school book club.  | ||
| John Llewellyn Probert (John_l_probert) Username: John_l_probert Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.142.146.96 |
I knew YOU'D be interested my friend! | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 195.166.117.210 |
Oh, yes. Oh, yes indeedy, my good friend.  | ||
| Paul_finch (Paul_finch) Username: Paul_finch Registered: 11-2009 Posted From: 195.93.21.74 |
I remember THE WITCHES' BOTTLE vividly. There's a particularly scary scene during a seance, where the young female lead is possessed by the spirit of the burned witch. I recall my hair standing on end when the youthful actress suddenly and rather effortlessly switched her dulcet Home Counties tones into a harsh East Anglian drawl. My dad was also watching, and I clearly remember him passing comment that it was far too frightening for children's television If memory serves wasn't THE WAITING ROOM an adaptation of the Robert Aickman story of the same name? I can't remember if the ghosts in the station were the remnants of a terrible accident, or whether it was something slightly more complex - had the station once been part of a prison where condemned prisoners were kept? The one with the two kids on detention was particularly effective - especially for someone like me, who was always on after-school detention. Another difference between old TV and modern TV. They had no hesitation in going out 'to the provinces' in those days. Weren't the two lads living in a Welsh pit village? I think the skeleton was that of a boy who had been buried when a slag heap collapsed. We were very well served with TV horror back in the 1970s, despite the shaky, three-wall sets. A few years ago I got hold of a DVD box-set of BEASTS, the classic Nigel Kneale series from Thames. Six one-hour long horror stories, not connected to each other except that they all had an 'animal' theme. I'm pleased to say that they are just as good now as they were then. A bit talkie maybe, but that's inevitable given the restricted budgets. To make studio-bound drama of that sort frightening required real ingenuity, but nine times out of ten it worked. If only - IF ONLY, I say - we could get modern day TV execs to sign off on something similar. Every pitch I've made has so far fallen on stony ground, unfortunately. | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 195.166.117.210 |
Hear-hear, Paul. | ||
| John Llewellyn Probert (John_l_probert) Username: John_l_probert Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 194.176.105.56 |
I remember THE WITCHES' BOTTLE vividly. There's a particularly scary scene during a seance, where the young female lead is possessed by the spirit of the burned witch. I recall my hair standing on end when the youthful actress suddenly and rather effortlessly switched her dulcet Home Counties tones into a harsh East Anglian drawl. Yes - that scared me silly as a youngster as well! If memory serves wasn't THE WAITING ROOM an adaptation of the Robert Aickman story of the same name? I'm not sure, but I don't remember seeing his name listed on the credits Weren't the two lads living in a Welsh pit village? I think the skeleton was that of a boy who had been buried when a slag heap collapsed. That's it! Final shot was of the boy's skull placed on top of a ?tall bookcase because 'he had been in the dark too long' and the ends credits played out over a boy treble's voice singing a lament. | ||
| Carolinec (Carolinec) Username: Carolinec Registered: 06-2009 Posted From: 82.38.75.85 |
I'm going to have to get this DVD when it comes out. I've heard great things about Shadows - it sounds right up my street - but I somehow managed to miss it when it was on telly. | ||
| Stevie Walsh (Stephenw) Username: Stephenw Registered: 03-2009 Posted From: 82.17.252.126 |
Caroline, I'm exactly the same. The show doesn't ring any bells for me at all but sounds incredible! Must get the DVD and find out what I was missing. Does anyone remember what channel and time slot it was on? Can't understand how this could have passed me by... maybe it wasn't shown over here?  | ||
| Carolinec (Carolinec) Username: Carolinec Registered: 06-2009 Posted From: 82.38.75.85 |
Ah, I wonder if it was a regional thing if it was on ITV? Also what about when it was shown? If it was later than 1974, I was off at college enjoying myself (a bit too much most of the time  ) and didn't get to watch much telly at that point. If it was before 1974, perhaps it was never shown on HTV West? Anyway, it sounds like a must-watch to me. | ||
| Stevie Walsh (Stephenw) Username: Stephenw Registered: 03-2009 Posted From: 82.17.252.126 |
I was more a BBC child than ITV - Blue Peter over Magpie, etc. so that's probably why I missed it. | ||
| Paul_finch (Paul_finch) Username: Paul_finch Registered: 11-2009 Posted From: 195.93.21.74 |
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shadows_(TV_series) As always with these things, looking back for the first time from the post-Star Wars era is dfficult. But if the writing is good enough, I usually find myself getting drawn in. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I had a good experience with BEASTS. There was one incredible episode - DURING BARTY'S PARTY - in which a married couple are besieged in an isolated cottage by a horde of carnivorous rats. You never see a rat, or any other actor - but the dialogue and the performances make it totally gripping. I had a less happy time, however, when I got pirate copies of SUPERNATURAL, a BBC anthology series of the 1970s. While the stories were all good, I felt the appallingly poor production values really got in the way. Even in the earliest and cheapest days of DOCTOR WHO, to have actors superimposed over crude line-drawings that are supposed to represent cities like Venice and Prague, with an accompaniment of the sort of 'hooves on cobbles' sound effects that you got off BLUE PETER, is just not good enough. For these reasons, I can't yet comment on how SHADOWS will be received in the 21st century, but I'll definitely be going looking for it. | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 195.166.117.210 |
BEASTS is brilliant. My favourite is "Baby"...the one where they find that thing in the wall. It's influenced everything I've written. It was (and still is) terrifying. I actually thought I'd dreamt it until I saw the DVD recently. | ||
| Paul_finch (Paul_finch) Username: Paul_finch Registered: 11-2009 Posted From: 195.93.21.74 |
BABY is an out-and-out classic, Gary. Surely the ultimate 'couple renovate an old farmhouse in the Cotswolds' chiller. Some time ago, I proposed to several editors and publishers that we approach the estate of Nigel Kneale to see if there might be some scope for adapting BEASTS in a written antho form. At the time there were no takers, and now of course the entire series has been restored on DVD, so I doubt it would work. Pity. | ||
| Carolinec (Carolinec) Username: Carolinec Registered: 06-2009 Posted From: 82.38.75.85 |
Oh yes, Beasts - absolutely superb! I've got the DVD and recently rewatched them. "Baby" is probably the best, but "During Barty's Party" certainly is an excellent example of how to terrify by suggestion, without actually showing anything gory or graphic. Shadows sounds similar, which is why it appeals so much to me. | ||
| Paul_finch (Paul_finch) Username: Paul_finch Registered: 11-2009 Posted From: 195.93.21.74 |
To be honest, Caroline - I think BEASTS was probably a cut above all the others because, after all, it was Nigel Kneale. But British TV was unashamed in its attempts to put genuinely scary material on the small screen back in those days. There didn't need to be a subtext or social metaphor concealed inside it. It was just rattling good frightening fun. Even BBC2's OMNIBUS, which was an arts programme, presented their own version of SCHALKEN THE PAINTER around 1977, and they went all-out to make it as gothic and scary as possible. There may have been intellectual undertones that I missed as a teenager, but I still remember it most for being genuinely hair-raising, particularly in its final moments. For me, the best by far of the Beeb's Christmas ghost story adaptations was THE SIGNALMAN, which kept me awake at night the first time I saw it and even now has a raw, supernatural power. For some reason, though, the last few Christmas specials the BBC did had nothing like the same impact. I don't quite know why, but I strongly suspect that they simply didn't believe in the material. Jeremy Dyson's 'haunted house' thing of a couple of years ago, though well intentioned by the author, fell very flat. There was almost nothing to it - it was as if the execs had decided that such subject-matter simply wasn't worthy of a good, hour-long time slot. Further back than that, but more recently than the era we're mainly talking about, Steve Volk will tell you how his excellent GHOSTWATCH hung in the balance until almost the night it was due to be aired, with some folk at the BBC not at all happy about screening it. Sadly, these are the 'we know better' forces that we supernaturalists contantly strive against. | ||
| John Llewellyn Probert (John_l_probert) Username: John_l_probert Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 213.253.174.81 |
At last!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! http://www.networkdvd.net/product_info.php?products_id=1270 | ||
| Seanmcd (Seanmcd) Username: Seanmcd Registered: 03-2009 Posted From: 86.141.30.2 |
This is a definite 'must have' at only 7.99 !! | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 81.96.253.77 |
I wonder why it isn't showing up on Amazon or Play.com... | ||
| Patrick Walker (Patrick_walker) Username: Patrick_walker Registered: 01-2010 Posted From: 79.79.181.148 |
I think it's not released till 22nd November; that's maybe why. | ||
| Tony (Tony) Username: Tony Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.140.191.81 |
Dramarama was the follow up to Shadows, in a way. It was never fully horror but had the odd scary episode, especially one about a boy who visits the seaside only to be followed about by a grim reaper-like figure (which actually caught him in the end). I loved Shadows. | ||
| Tony (Tony) Username: Tony Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.140.191.81 |
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G1S_9BNWqwU I've posted this for the tiny credit scene more than the ep, which isn't the one I remember. But what a weird feeling to see that title scene again... |