News

Quick LinksRoald Dahl’s "Lamb to the Slaughter" Was Adapted Into an Episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents"Lamb to the Slaughter" Was Only One of 17 Episodes Directed by Alfred HitchcockAlfred Hitchcock Presents Was Rebooted in 1985

A combination that the average viewer might not expect is that of acclaimed horror pioneer director Alfred Hitchcock and children's author Roald Dahl. Dahl was mostly known for his whimsical and offbeat children's books, like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Witches, Matilda, and James and the Giant Peach. However, Dahl had another side to his writing that involved numerous collections of short stories, both weird and bizarre, including a collection written for Playboy Magazine between 1965 and 1974. Peel back the layers of Dahl's storied career, and it seems to suit Hitchcock's sentiments completely. So, when one of his stories was chosen as fodder for an episode of Hitchcock's TV show, Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955-1965), it made perfect sense.

After surviving the games in season 1, Seong Gi-hun is craving revenge in Squid Game season 2 episode 1. Here’s our review.

Warning! These reviews will be spoiler-free for the week in question but will discuss previous episodes, including the entirety of season 1 in detail.

Watching 455 people die while playing simple kids’ games would really mess you up, wouldn’t it? It’s really no wonder that we find Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae), the winner of the deadly games introduced in Squid Game season 1, rather rattled in the first episode of season 2.

Squid Game, released in 2021, became a major hit for Netflix and broke several records with several nominations across Hollywood’s biggest TV awards shows. And no wonder: the first season was an entertaining, brutal watch, and very addictive too. The show’s political themes of capitalism and class added another layer to the otherwise quite straightforward, contained narrative which found...

Murder, infidelity, gambling, and sinister bed and breakfasts. We rank the stories in Tales Of The Unexpected’s first series…

From 1979 to 1988, Tales Of The Unexpected served up a semi-regular diet of murder, cruelty, betrayal and intrigue. An anthology show initially based on short stories by Roald Dahl (later seasons introduced work by other writers), the series could be described as ITV’s answer to Alfred Hitchcock Presents.

Indeed, several of its stories were previously adapted in that American anthology show. And, just as Hitchcock showed up in front of the camera to introduce his episodes, Dahl appears here, seated next to a roaring open fire, providing an opening ramble about each story.

The title sequence, meanwhile, with its infuriatingly catchy theme tune and silhouettes of dancing ladies, feels like something from an early James Bond movie. Maybe it was Dahl’s homage to his contemporary and friend, 007 creator Ian Fleming…...

While most folks regard Christmas as a time for merriment and peace, the minds behind Inside No. 9 were more inclined to explore the dark side of the holidays. Back in 2016, multi-hyphenates Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith were running at full tilt as they pulled off their anthology’s first special, “The Devil of Christmas.” The creative pair’s well of imagination and craftsmanship was overflowing here, and to make this genre gift for the holiday season all the more memorable, Pemberton and Reece garnished their endeavor with what is arguably the most shocking ending in the show’s entire run.

Some knowledge of 1970s and 1980s British television is helpful — yet not required — when watching “The Devil of Christmas,” a conspicuous but adoring technical simulation of vintage anthologies like Thriller (1973) and Tales of the Unexpected (1979). Fans of those kinds of shows, however, may be more incentivized to watch. From production to atmosphere,...

Tales of the Unexpected (1979–1988) started off with a foundation of Roald Dahl-based stories, but over time, this classic television anthology sought out other inspirations. One such source was Elizabeth Taylor, an esteemed English author whose short piece of fiction, “The Flypaper,” was adapted in 1980.

Fans of the show will often cite this episode as one of the best, not to mention the scariest. In the troubling episode, a schoolgirl is hounded by a stranger, only to then realize her peril is greater than first imagined. Now, Tales of the Unexpected did not always live up to its title; some stories were more foreseeable than others. “The Flypaper,” however, caught everyone off guard, including the young and unfortunate protagonist who, despite her efforts, could not escape harm.

“She stared up at a flypaper hanging in the window — the only disconcerting thing in the room. Some of the flies were still half alive,...

Deaddash: "Like many struggling actors in Hollywood, Sean makes ends meet by spending his nights driving for a popular food delivery app. After receiving a phone call from his roommate, Sean decides to end his night with one final delivery from a local burger joint, where he is informed by the creepy, but seemingly harmless cashier that his customer has requested he drop the food off inside the house. Brushing this ominous exchange off, Sean arrives at the customer’s house in the Hollywood Hills, where he quickly realizes he’s stumbled right into a trap, and that this delivery may very well be his last."

Crew: Writer/Director - Devan Schoelen Director of Photography - Federico La TonaEditor - Justin JonesComposer - Dan R. HowardSound Design - Oliver Boon and Kofi Baffour

Cast: Devan Schoelen, Maria Olsen, Stef Beaton

Screening Details: After a fantastic festival run, DeadDash will premiere online on Friday,...

Just ahead of Halloween, a horror-centric Fast channel is set to make its debut in the United States.

Scream TV, owned by Nyx Media Corp., will debut via the Distro TV app on Oct. 13 and be available to stream via Roku and Amazon Fire TV devices, as well as on mobile platforms. Nyx, which is based in Edmonton, Alberta, also operates Fast channels in Canada and the U.K.

“We are so excited to launch Scream TV and bring our unique horror entertainment experience to the fans across North America for free,” Nyx Media Corp. CEO Corinne Ferguson said in a statement. “One of our passions as horror fans is to painstakingly craft a journey through the horror genre worthy of the viewer’s time every night and 24/7. Our programming is done with the utmost respect towards our viewer’s time — which we feel is one of the most precious...

The Professor Sprout actor Miriam Margolye in Harry Potter is urging all avid adult fans of the wizarding world to grow up and move on, as she believes the series is primarily for children. While there’s truth to her statement, it’s undeniable that the series has played a significant role in the lives of many millennials and Gen Z individuals. Even though they’ve grown up, their love for Harry Potter continues to provide a much-needed escape from reality, when it gets a bit too much.

Miriam Margolyes as Professor Sprout in the Harry Potter franchise

Miriam Margolyes Urges Adult Harry Potter Fans to Move On!

It’s not easy to move on from Harry Potter, especially when companies continuously fuel the nostalgia with spin-offs like Fantastic Beasts, the Cursed Child play, and the countless merchandise and theme parks and experiences. They’re all flawlessly designed to whisk...

Malachy McCourt, the Irish-American actor, raconteur and author best known to TV audiences for his long-running role as Kevin the bartender on ABC’s soap Ryan’s Hope, died today in Manhattan after battling a heart condition and cancer. He was 92.

His death was announced by his wife Diana McCourt to The New York Times.

The brother of Pulitzer Prize-winning Angela’s Ashes memoirist Frank McCourt, Malachy McCourt left an indelible mark on New York City’s Irish American community. As the owner of the quintessential 1950s Irish pub Malachy’s on Third Avenue in Manhattan – McCourt would often call it the city’s first singles bar, since he welcomed unaccompanied women to the establishment – the Brooklyn native became one of the city’s great story-tellers, regaling patrons from longshoremen to the actor Richard Harris with blarney, rugby talk and biographical anecdotes.

His way with words would hold him in good stead...

Tom Smothers, one half of The Smothers Brothers, has sadly passed away at the age of 86 after battling cancer. The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, their popular variety show in the 1960s, launched the careers of many future stars and featured iconic musical acts. Smothers had a successful career in comedy and music. He received a special Emmy Award in 2008.

As one half of The Smothers Brothers, Tom Smothers was a comedy icon, best known for working with his brother, Dick, on their 1960s variety program The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. It was announced today that the legendary star is the latest to sadly pass away this year, as confirmed in a statement by his younger brother. Smothers was 86.

Following a battle with cancer, Smothers died on Tuesday at his Santa Rosa home in California. Dick Smothers released a statement, through a spokesperson, to share the sad news. The statement said:...

Tom Smothers, who with his brother Dick performed as the Smothers Brothers comedy team, passed away peacefully on Dec. 26, following a recent battle with cancer. He was 86.

Dick Smothers said in a statement that Tom was at home with his family at the time of his death.

More from TVLineBobby Rivers, TV Personality and Food Network Alum, Dead at 70Lee Sun-kyun, of Parasite and TV's My Mister and Dr. Brain, Dead at 48Kamar de los Reyes, One Life to Live Actor, Dead at 56

“Tom was not only the loving older brother that everyone would want in their life, he was a one-of-a-kind creative partner,...

As the living embodiment of God's vengeance, the Spectre is one of DC's most powerful characters - and traditionally, he's the most blood-drenched and violent too. However, despite many of his extreme, R-rated kills, the Spectre's fearsome reputation came from a real-life altercation.

Created in 1940 by Jerry Siegel and Bernard Bailey, the Spectre is (usually) the alter ego of police detective Jim Corrigan. After he is killed in the line of duty, Corrigan is bonded with the Spectre, the heavenly Spirit of Vengeance sworn to punish evil-doers everywhere. With near-omnipotent powers, the Spectre has found endless ways to punish his victims, whether it's burning them alive, summoning sharks to eat them in their beds, or imprisoning them to drown in a pillar of water. However, all these vicious punishments began with a single event in the seventies.

The Spectre Changed After a Real-Life Mugging

The Spectre returned as the lead...

Charles Kimbrough, best known to TV fans as straitlaced anchorman Jim Dial on “Murphy Brown,” died on Jan. 11, his son, John Kimbrough, told The New York Times. He was 86.

A cause of death was not given.

The St. Paul, Minnesota, native actor began his career on stage as a member of the Milwaukee Repertory Theatre in the late 1960s, where he and his wife of 30 years, Mary Jane Wilson, appeared in productions of “Cat Among the Pigeons” and “The White House Murder Case.”

It was shortly thereafter, in 1971, that he appeared in the Stephen Sondheim musical, “Company,” a role for which he earned a Tony nomination for Best Featured Actor. He was among the original Broadway cast to perform in another Sondheim hit, “Sunday in the Park With George” in 1984. A decade later, he starred in the original Off-Broadway production of the A.R. Gurney comedy “Sylvia” about a dog and the couple who adopts her.

British actor Stephen Greif, who appeared in such series as the BBC’s Blake’s 7, Citizen Smith and EastEnders as well as Netflix’s The Crown, has died. His representatives announced the news in a Twitter post. No cause of death was revealed. He was 78.

Greif’s long career spanned theater, television and film. Born in Hertfordshire, he attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and went on to become a member of the National Theatre Company at the Old Vic and Southbank, the UK Press Association reported.

Starring on stage throughout the 1960s and early 1970s, Greif segued to television and landed the role of space commander Travis in sci-fi adventure series Blake’s 7. The show ran from 1978-1981 and also starred Gareth Thomas, Paul Darrow, Michael Keating and Sally Knyvette.

Greif’s credits also included such other series as Citizen Smith, Tales of the Unexpected, Doctors, Coronation Street,...

Stars: Fiona McQuinn, Tim Tanner, Lory Tom Thompson Sr., G. Tremain Merrell, Lucas T. Matchett, Elizabeth McCoy, Sherry Lattanzi, Nicole Prunty, Raylen Ladner, Jesse Hartsog | Written and Directed by Sean Riley

I can’t say I’ve seen many horror movies that involve bees. If we just forget That moment from The Wicker Man remake, then there’s not too much to talk about. I’m almost certain I’ve seen a movie titled Killer Bees but I remember very little about it – so Royal Jelly at least doesn’t have many challengers in this very small horror sub genre.

Seemingly a twist on the Roald Dahl short story of the same name (a short story that was previously filmed as an episode for Tales of the Unexpected), it tells the tale of a teenager who is a bit of an outcast at school but is groomed by a stand...

Norman Lloyd, the Emmy-nominated veteran actor, producer and director whose career ranged from Orson Welles’ Mercury Theatre, Alfred Hitchcock’s Saboteur and acting with Charlie Chaplin in Limelight to St. Elsewhere, Dead Poets Society and The Practice, died May 10 in his sleep at his Los Angeles home. He was 106. A family friend confirmed the news to Deadline.

During one of the famous Lloyd birthday celebrations, Karl Malden said, “Norman Lloyd is the history of our business.”

Blessed with a commanding voice, Lloyd’s acting career dates back to Orson Welles’ Mercury Theatre troupe, of which he was the last surviving member. He was part of its first production — 1937 a modern-dress adaptation of Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar on Broadway titled Caesar.

He originally was cast in Welles’ epic Citizen Kane and accompanied the director to Hollywood. When the filmmaker ran into his proverbial budget problems, Lloyd quit the project and returned to New York,...

Above: 1962 poster for The Human Condition III: A Soldier’s Prayer.The extraordinary German graphic designer Hans Hillmann (1925–2014) should need no introduction to readers of this column: I’ve written about him on a number of occasions and anyone who loves movie poster design should know his name. For a long time, however, it has been hard to find a lot of his work online, certainly not all in one place. For a while I had entertained the idea of trying to collect images of every single movie poster he ever designed and ranking them from best to least-best. But I knew that even if I could gather together his more than 160 posters that I would tie myself in knots trying to put them in any kind of order.Thankfully author and publisher Jens Müller has done half of the work for me. Müller had first met Hillmann when he curated...

Chicago – There was a time in Hollywood when the character actor was a familiar and reassuring presence in great movies and TV series. Shirley Knight, who worked from 1959-2018, was one of those reliable performers. Knight passed away on April 22nd, 2020, at the age of 83.

Shirley Knight was born in Kansas, and came up through the famous Pasadena Theatre School and the Hb Studio in New York City in the 1950s. Her unique look and talent was evident in her Oscar nominated roles in “The Dark At the Top of the Stairs” (1960) and “Sweet Bird of Youth” (1962). She worked steadily in film during the 1960s, with roles in “The Group” (1966) and “Petulia” (1968), which have become cult favorites.

In subsequent years, she was cast in films as diverse as “Beyond the Poseidon Adventure” (1979). “Endless Love” (1981), “As Good As it Gets” (1997), “Paul Blart: Mall Cop” (2009) and the Blumhouse Production, “Mercy” (2014). On TV,...

Stuart Whitman, best known for his role in the TV western series Cimarron Strip and his Oscar-nominated turn in the drama The Mark, died in his home in Montecito, California. He was 92.

According to TMZ, Whitman had been in and out of the hospital as a result of skin cancer seeping into his bloodstream. He was surrounded by family at the time of his death.

More from DeadlineR.D. Call Dies: 'Into The Wild', 'Born On The Fourth Of July' Actor Was 70Earl Pomerantz Dies: 'Mary Tyler Moore Show' & 'Cheers' Writer, 'Major Dad' Producer Was 75Mart Crowley Dies: The Trailblazing 'Boys In The Band' Playwright Was 84

Whitman was born on February 1, 1928 in San Francisco before his family would move to Brooklyn. He went on to graduate from Hollywood High School and served in the United States Army in the Corps of Engineers.

James Schmerer, a veteran television writer with credits on numerous 1970s and 1980s classics like “CHiPs,” “MacGyver,” “Fantasy Island” and “Hawaii Five-0,” died in his Oregon home on Oct. 4, the Writers Guild of America West announced Tuesday. He was 81, and had recently suffered a stroke.

Born in Flushing, New York, Schmerer’s career on television began in the 1960s — he was admitted to Wgaw in 1965 — with his rise to prominence coming during the following decade. His many credits also included “Vega$,” “Starsky & Hutch,” “The Six Million Dollar Man,” “The High Chaparral,” “Eight is Enough,” “T.J. Hooker” and “The Fall Guy.”

Schmerer also wrote for “The Rookies,” “The Streets of San Francisco,” “The Mod Squad,” “Medical Center,” “Mannix,” “Wimzie’s House,” “Matt Helm,” “Isis,” “True Confessions,” “The New Mike Hammer,” “Logan’s Run,” “Code R,” “24-Robert,” “Tales of the Unexpected,” and “Star Trek: The Animated Series.”

Also Read: John Clarke,...

Prolific television writer James Schmerer, whose credits included “The High Chapparal,” “MacGyver” and “CHiPs,” died on Oct. 4 at his home in Eugene, Ore., following a stroke. He was 81.

Schmerer, a native of Flushing, N.Y., launched his television writing career in the 1960s and became a member of the Writers Guild of America West in 1965. He was an in-demand TV writer during the 1970s and ’80s, with credits on “Vega$,” “Fantasy Island,” “Starsky & Hutch,” “Hawaii Five-0,” “The Six Million Dollar Man,” “Eight is Enough,” “T.J. Hooker” and “The Fall Guy.”

He also had TV writing credits on “The Rookies,” “The Streets of San Francisco,” “The Mod Squad,” “Medical Center,” “Mannix,” “Wimzie’s House,” “Matt Helm,” “Isis,” “True Confessions,” “The New Mike Hammer,” “Logan’s Run,” “Code R,” “24-Robert,” “Tales of the Unexpected” and “Star Trek: The Animated Series.” Schmerer was a producer on “The High Chaparral,” “Chase,” “The Delphi Bureau,...

Veteran television writer James Schmerer, whose credits encompass some of the most popular series of the 1970s and ’80s including MacGyver, CHiPs, Vega$, Fantasy Island and Starsky & Hutch, died Oct. 4 at his home in Eugene, Oregon, following a stroke. He was 81.

Schmerer’s death was announced by Writers Guild of America West.

A native of Flushing, New York, Schmerer launched his television writing career in the 1960s (he became a Wgaw member in 1965), and by the ’70s was a sought-after scripter for action series of all types, with the occasional family series – Eight is Enough – and sci-fi show – Star Trek: The Animated Series – tossed in for good measure.

Just a few of the other series that carried a Schmerer “Written by” credit: Hawaii Five-0, The Six Million Dollar Man, The High Chaparral, T.J. Hooker, and The Fall Guy.

Schmerer also wrote scripts for The Rookies, The Streets of San Francisco,...

…And not all Frankensteins were created equal. Case in point: Frankenstein Created Woman (1967), the fourth film in the series from Hammer and one that’s decidedly different and sufficiently weird enough to set itself apart from the pack. This isn’t your granddad’s Frankenstein.

Now, I’m still playing catch up with Hammer, especially the Frankenstein series; but the biggest recurring theme seems to be the Baron (once again assayed by Peter Cushing)’s assholery, and his utter disregard for existing human life while chasing his re-animating dream. Fear not; Created Woman does not disappoint on this front, in fact it introduces new colors into the Hammer lexicon that prevents it from being a musty retread.

Released Stateside in March with a U.K. rollout in June, Created Woman was not a hit with critics or filmgoers, although Martin Scorcese is a big fan, so it’s got that...

Alex Westthorp Apr 5, 2019

For its 40th anniversary, we revisit Roald Dahl's classic series that kept us guessing and inspired some modern anthology greats...

Tales Of The Unexpected was an anthology series of imaginative and compelling dramas each with a "twist in the tale" produced for the ITV network by Anglia Television. Anthology series on British television had been decidedly sci-fi orientated, hitherto, with the BBC series Out Of The Unknown (1965-71) capitalizing on the imported success of the granddaddy of them all, Rod Serling's The Twilight Zone. The story has it that Anglia's Drama supremo Sir John Woolf had a chance meeting with Roald Dahl, master of macabre tall stories, at a Christmas party in 1976. Dahl asked Woolf, "How would you like to make a television series of my stories?" Woolf immediately saw the potential and commissioned Dahl to adapt some of his best stories for a series...

Nash was most recently head of film and TV at Endor.

The Ink Factory, the London and Los Angeles-based production company behind The Night Manager and Fighting With My Family, has hired Tom Nash as executive producer.

Nash was most recently head of film and television at Endor Productions, where his credits included William McGregor’s BFI-backed drama Gwen, which premiered in Toronto last year, and the TV series Deep State. starring Mark Strong, for Fox/Epix.

Prior to Endor, he was producer and script editor on Channel 4 series Coming Up.

In his new role, Nash will work...

“Bohemian Rhapsody” co-producer New Regency has launched a London-based international TV division, recruiting former Scott Free exec Ed Rubin to run the new operation and hiring Emma Broughton from The Ink Factory (“The Night Manager”) as head of scripted.

New Regency produced “The Revenant,” “12 Years a Slave” and “Birdman.” It recently opened up shop in London and hired former Lionsgate and eOne exec Charlotte Thorp to head international sales.

The newly minted New Regency Television International will work up high-end international scripted projects. It will fund and develop TV drama from the ground up and co-produce with others.

Rubin has worked in both film and TV. His TV credits include Bafta-nominated “The Crimson Petal & The White” and “Death Comes to Pemberley.” Broughton was head of creative at The Ink Factory, the production company run by John Le Carré’s sons, and has developed various Le Carré projects as well...

Adult Swim’s dark, disturbing new anthology series will swallow you whole and reshape your mind. We are not worthy.

TV

“And that’s my message to you: No one cares.”

There's an iconic episode of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia where the gang is about to put on a risky performance. "Laughs are easy," a character remarks. "I'm going for gasps." There are many shows on Adult Swim that have made me laugh, but The Shivering Truth is one of the extreme few that has made me gasp. It also made me involuntarily moan, "Dear Lord." It made me actually sick to my stomach and groan. It also made me cry a whole bunch. The Shivering Truth is the kind of television that you'd use to break someone's mind and we are so very fortunate to have it in our lives.

It’s upsetting how good this show is.

Joseph Baxter Nov 27, 2018

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Bfg and Matilda are amongst Roald Dahl stories that Netflix will adapt as part of an event series.

Netflix is diving into the proverbial chocolate pool that is Roald Dahl adaptation projects, and ensuing scolding songs of the Oompa Loompas will do little to discourage the streaming giant, which is set to tackle a slate of animated versions of classics like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda and The Bfg, brandishing plans of “extending the Roald Dahl universe.”

While adaptations of the fantastical literary works of the legendary British author – who passed away back in 1990 – have never been in short supply in film and television, Netflix’s small screen animated plans are unprecedentedly ambitious, especially when dropping the word “universe.” Indeed, the seemingly Herculean task of tackling the immense array of Dahl’s classic works will take shape within the confines...

Joseph Baxter Nov 20, 2018

Tales of the Unexpected, Roald Dahl’s fantastical story collection and TV anthology series, is about to be rebooted by The Ink Factory.

The media-spanning works of legendary author Roald Dahl have had their share of reboot treatments, with multiple movies currently on studio slates, notably new iterations Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and The Witches. However, U.K. television fans with rose-colored 1980s memories of the Dahl-inspired fantasy anthology series, Tales of the Unexpected, should be especially elated to know that a reboot series is in development.

Surging upstart studio The Ink Factory – having achieved international small screen success with joint BBC/AMC TV miniseries adapting selections of John le Carré spy literature in 2016's The Night Manager and the currently-running The Little Drummer Girl – are set to shift gears to Roald Dahl with a TV adaptation of Tales of the Unexpected, reports Deadline. The...

Exclusive: The Ink Factory has successfully mined the library of John le Carré with "The Night Manager" and "The Little Drummer Girl" and it seems that the company is now looking do the same with acclaimed British author Roald Dahl.

I hear that Simon and Stephen Cornwell’s firm is rebooting Roald Dahl’s "Tales of the Unexpected" for TV and has set up a number of writers to work on the project. The company is working closely with the Roald Dahl Estate on the project.

The series, which was originally produced by Anglia Television for British commercial broadcaster ITV between 1979 and 1988, told a different story each week with Dahl’s trademark sinister and comedic undertones with a twist at the end.

Aliya Whiteley Feb 9, 2018

Strange things are lurking in the woods in episode 2 of the BBC's ghost story Requiem. Spoilers ahead in our review...

This review contains spoilers.

See related Murder On The Orient Express review Willem Dafoe interview: Murder On The Orient Express, White Sands, Clear & Present Danger

A bit of cello practice, a watcher in the woods, a dusty room that’s been locked for years: there’s a lot of interesting events happening in this episode of Requiem. But before we get into that, let’s sing the praises of an element that can often get overlooked: an excellent title sequence.

The swirling, kaleidoscopic patterns and effects combined with high-pitched, eerie music reminds me of other series of the past that knew how to build up the suspense and fantastical elements from the start: Tales of the Unexpected, for instance, or The Box of Delights, both of...

Louisa Mellor Jan 23, 2018

We chatted to director Steve Hughes about making Cbbc’s eerie anthology series Creeped Out and Doctor Who…

TV and film-making is an arduous, competitive business. Unless a project is particularly close to the hearts of those making it, it’s unlikely to survive the process. Talent and a good idea can get you part of the way, but it takes really, really loving that idea to drive it through to the end, attracting more talent and love along the way.

See related Riverdale season 2 episode 10 review: The Blackboard Jungle Riverdale season 2 episode 9 review: Silent Night, Deadly Night Riverdale season 2 episode 8 review: House Of The Devil

Cbbc’s Creeped Out buzzes with love from the people who make it. A thirteen-part eerie anthology series inspired by Spielberg’s Amazing Stories, it tells emotionally resonant horror, sci-fi and fantasy-tinged tales that are suitable for kids and irresistible to adults.

Andrew Moir Oct 26, 2017

Andrew takes a nerdy dive into the pop culture real and fictional that's made its way into the world of Red Dwarf...

Creating culture within science-fiction can be tricky. It’s potentially alienating, with the audience required to understand allusions without a reference point. Then again, if you throw in too many contemporary references, the future starts to look dated pretty quickly. Red Dwarf has walked that fine line, building its own stars and entertainment but chucking in the familiar, just to keep the world grounded. We take a look at humanity’s future culture as seen through the eyes of Lister, Rimmer, Cat, Kryten and Holly.

See related Gunpowder episode 1 review Amazon Prime UK: what’s new in October 2017? New on Netflix UK: what's added in October 2017? Music

Red Dwarf set out its fictional musical world early on with the opening scenes of the first episode...

It was, for its time, the coolest comic book on the racks. Lucky for me, having just turned eight years old I was at the perfect age to best enjoy it.

In fact, I already was lusting for the comic by the time it hit my local drug store. The house ad promoting the issue had been running in several of the DC comics for a few weeks, and it intrigued the hell out of me. Back in those days when dinosaurs roamed the Earth, new comic book heroes were very few and very far between, even though 1958 was something of a boom year. DC had a title called Showcase that offered new concepts a try out – usually three issues. Yes, it was joined by The Brave and the Bold, but not until the summer of 1959. Showcase begat the Challengers of the Unknown, Lois Lane, the Metal Men, and the silver age Flash,...

The director of Jeune et Jolie returns with another slice of erotica-lite, in this tale of an ex-model in therapy who ends up with two lovers – who are twins

The softcore silliness and lite-erotic stylings of François Ozon’s horribly middleweight psycho-suspense thriller may yet give it camp classic status, like a super-porny version of Roald Dahl’s Tales of the Unexpected.

There’s admittedly a cheeky wit to the opening visual gag, which converts a gynaecological image into a crying eye. And it has what future cultural historians may come to think of as the best female strap-on scene since Myra Breckinridge. Who knows?

Continue reading...

Some very sad news is making the rounds today, as it has been reported that Fritz Weaver has passed away at the age of 90.

News of Fritz Weaver's passing was confirmed by Weaver's son-in-law, Bruce Ostler, according to The New York Times. In addition to winning a Tony award for his performance in 1970's Child’s Play, Weaver accumulated an impressive number of acting credits within the horror and sci-fi genres—on both the big and small screens—throughout his career.

Stephen King fans likely remember Weaver as Dexter Stanley from "The Crate" segment of Creepshow, where he starred alongside Hal Holbrook, Adrienne Barbeau, and the creepy creature unleashed from its prison.

Weaver also left his mark on a number of anthology series, including The Twilight Zone, Monsters, Tales From the Darkside, Night Gallery, and Tales of the Unexpected, in addition to appearances on Friday the 13th: The Series and The X-Files.

An ongoing series looking at the scariest moments in TV history. This round: “The Flypaper” from Tales Of The Unexpected. In the pantheon of horror TV, a show that often gets missed whilst discussing this subject in polite conversation is Tales Of The Unexpected. The series was the brainchild of revered author Roald Dahl, whose…

The post Terror on TV: ‘The Flypaper’ From Roald Dahl’s Tales Of The Unexpected appeared first on Shock Till You Drop.

facebook

twitter

google+

We take a spoiler-free look at Sky Arts' terrific quartet of Neil Gaiman short stories, starting on Thursday the 26th at 9pm...

Neil Gaiman's success gives me faith in the world. He's a great writer, and he's well known because of that fact. I think it springs from the particular way he has of looking at humanity, and passing along his insights to us - with wit, warmth, and not a small bath of uncomfortable self-realisation topped with the occasional cold shower of fear. If that sounds like a lot for a writer to accomplish, well, that's why he's so good, and why he should be able to make a living with his words. The fact that he does makes me feel better about us all.

The big challenge of Likely Stories, therefore, is to capture Gaiman's appeal and put it across without losing any one of those elements.

From the mid sixties to the mid seventies, omnibus (or anthology, or portmanteau if you’re really fancy) horror films were big business. And Amicus Productions ruled the roost. Between ’65 and ’74 they released seven such films, starting with Dr. Terror’s House of Horrors (not to be confused with Dr. Tongue’s Evil House of Pancakes) and culminating with From Beyond the Grave. Today’s film lands in the middle, The House that Dripped Blood (1971) showcasing a company just starting to hit their stride with anthologies.

Popularity of the omnibus format has ebbed and flowed throughout the last 50 years; after Amicus stopped making them, George Romero and Stephen King collaborated on one of the finest, Creepshow (1982), which didn’t so much kick start a revival as have everyone afraid to compete. Throughout the late ‘80s and ‘90s there were pockets of inspiration, Tales from the Hood (1995) and of course HBO...

Written by Roman Dirge | Art by Roman Dirge | Published by Titan Comics | Format: Hardback, 128pp

Roman Dirge is probably best known as the author and artist of Lenore: The Cute Little Dead Girl, but Dirge has also turned his hand to other stories and other mediums, and Something at the Window is Scratching is an excellent example of his gruesome type of storytelling at work.

A collection of short poems, this collection of Dirge’s work is filled with twisted tales for children of all ages From serious sinister one page poems like Critter Pie and Pear Head Man & Bread Boy, to longer stories such as The Sideways Man and the brillaint titular story Something at the Window is Scratching.

Something at the Window is Scratching is Roman Dirge at his macabre best, each and every poem and story has a creepy sting in its tale, reminding me very much...

Paul Weedon chats to Brian Limond, aka Limmy, about comedy, gallows humour, and new book, Daft Wee Stories. Strong swearing ahead...

Warning: the following contains frequent strong swearing and content some readers may find er, offensive.

With a cult following that would make even the most mainstream of comedians jealous, Brian Limond, better known to his legion of fans as Limmy, has spent the past decade and a half building a reputation as one of the strangest, most bafflingly brilliant comedians currently working. With the release of his new book, Daft Wee Stories, we sat down for a lengthy chat with Glesga’s favourite son.

“I love saying terrible things,” Limmy exclaims with a wry smile. “Things that I think are terrible and I’ve gotten in to trouble in the past – just hearing it come out of my mouth or seeing it typed and seeing it out there – something...

Stars: Michael Shannon, Samantha Morton, Peter Fonda, Natasha Calis, Charlie Tahan, Peter Fonda, Leslie Lyles | Written by Stephen Lancellotti | Directed by John McNaughton

John McNaughton, enfante-terrible of the BBFC thanks to his stunning 1986 debut feature Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, returns to genre film making after two decades away from horror (his Masters of Horror episode in 2006 is his only “horror” credit in 25 years), with Can’t Come Out to Play, a psychological thriller starring Britain’s very own Samantha Morton and everyone’s favourite Superman villain, Michael Shannon, who play married medical professionals Katharine and Richard Young who keep their sick son Andy isolated from the outside world in their remote countryside house.

However that isolation is broken when Maryann, following the death of her parents, moves in with her grandparents just down the road. Having left all she knows behind and feeling alone, she eventually befriends Andy...

Stars: Amber Benson, Angela Bettis, Aj Bowen, Jose Pablo Cantillo, James Duval, William Forsythe, Eddie Hargitay, Danielle Harris, Noah Hathaway, Marc Senter, Megan Thompson, Alex Urbom, Ray Wise | Written and Directed by Tom Holland

Originally conceived and made as a 9-episode web series for the now defunct FearNet, Tom Holland’s Twisted Tales has been released on to DVD as yet another horror anthology rather than TV show – running a huge 144 minutes – encompassing the entire series in one “movie”; and an inconsistent movie at that.

Some would say that you have to give web-based programming some leaway, after all budgets aren’t as high etc. However when said web series comes from FearNet, a site that had backing and had the resources, you have to wonder why they didn’t spend that little bit more money to make something a little more polished. Apparently the budget for Twisted Tales was...

Stars: Lily Laight, Charlie Rixon, Daniel Fraser, Eleanor Wyld, Owen Pugh, Dylan Llewellyn, Georgina Minter-Brown, David Broughton-Davies, David Barnaby, Timothy Block, Ria Carroll | Written and Directed by Darren Paul Fisher

Thematically similar to the Divergent franchise – in that children are tested at a young age and their place in society is determined given the results – British sci-fi film Frequencies plays out like an extended episode of Tales of the Unexpected crossed with the philosophical science of a film such as Darren Aronofsky’s Pi and/or The Fountain….

In a dystopian future, children’s ability to succeed in life is determined at a young age, based on their own personal ‘frequency’ which dictates just how lucky they will be. In the process of testing one particular group, it transpires that Marie (Laight) has an impossibly high frequency, making her the luckiest girl in the world. At the same testing, Zak...

Here's a spoiler-free look at what to expect from the second series of Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith's glorious Inside No. 9...

Inside No. 9 returns to BBC Two on Thursday the 26th of March for six more ingenious genre slices of horror, suspense and psychology. Those who were rattled and gripped by the first round of half-hour plays from Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith know to expect to be skilfully sucker-punched with sharp, tricksy writing and well-drawn characters.

Viewers engrossed by the psychological character focus of series one’s Tom & Gerri, the jump scares of series finale The Harrowing, and the unexpected emotional sting of opener Sardines have lots to look forward to from the second series’ first brace of episodes. La Couchette and The 12 Days Of Christine tell the respective stories of a fraught overnight train journey and a woman plagued by a mysterious visitor, featuring guest roles from Mark Benton,...

BBC

This New Year’s Day Roald Dahl’s lovable tale of neighbourly pensioner romance and tortoise replacement Esio Trot will be coming to screens courtesy of the BBC. The TV film, whose starry cast includes Dustin Hoffman, Judi Dench and an army of tortoises, is just the latest attempt to film the works of Britain’s most beloved children’s author.

The former Raf pilot, spy and sometime lothario was enormously productive in creating stories for children of all ages that were charming, imaginative and just the right level of gruesome (not to mention a whole lot of playfully dark adult stories). Naturally these stories have proved rich pickings for various filmmakers down the years.

On top of short films and TV episodes (including the anthology series Roald Dahl’s Tales of the Unexpected), there have been nine feature length adaptations of the Norwegian-Welsh novelist’s work prior to Esio Trot.

We chatted to Charlie Brooker, Jon Hamm and Rafe Spall about tech dystopia Black Mirror’s terrific festive episode, White Christmas…

This interview contains a spoiler for, er, The Snowman.

Airing tonight on Channel 4 is White Christmas, a feature-length episode of Black Mirror that weaves together three tech-paranoia tales set against the backdrop of the festive season. Writer Charlie Brooker likens the special to a selection box - a sound description if you can imagine Cadbury’s substituting Crunchies and Curly Wurlies for tragicomic ruminations on voyeurism, torture and ostracisation.

It’s a terrific ninety minutes; funny, acerbic and eventually horrifying. It feels exactly like watching a condensed series of Black Mirror in a single sitting, which should be both recommendation and warning to fans of the show. However disturbing a reflection of our world Brooker shows us though, in his own words, “There’s nothing in that that...

The London Short Film Festival will return for its 12th year from January 9-18.

The festival this year received a record 1500 submissions, which included international submissions – a first for the festival – via its new online submissions platform, Flock.​

Screenings of the festival’s 34 programmes will be shared between the Institute of Contemporary Arts and the Hackney Picturehouse, while industry-related talks and workshops will be restricted to the Hackney Picturehouse.

The awards ceremony will take place on Jan 17 at Oval Space with award sponsors including British Council and Women in Film & Television.

Progammes include F*cked Up Love, Lo-Budget Mayhem, Night of the Living Docs, Surreal Worlds, Teenage Girls Go Crazy!, Funny Sh*t, Tales of the Unexpected, Wtf: Outside the Box, Gothic! and A Musical Box.

Industry talks will focus on development, working with a casting director, documentary funding, improv, insurance, music in film and many more.

The festival will include a tribute to the BFI’s Chris Collins...

Treehouse screens Sunday November 16th at 8:30pm at The Tivoli Theater (6350 Delmar Boulevard) as part of The St. Louis International Film Festival. Tickets can be purchased Here

Britsih-born director Michael Bartlett made a name for himself in horror circles with The Zombie Diaries, its sequel, The Zombie Diaries 2. and The Paranormal Diaries: Clophill. His latest shocker is Treehouse. When a young girl and her little brother are the latest to go missing without a trace, their hometown imposes a curfew, and no one is allowed to go out after dark. But two brothers break the rules, and when they unwittingly stumble across an old treehouse deep in the woods, they find themselves in the middle of an unimaginable nightmare. Inside the treehouse, the brothers discover the missing girl, terrified and hiding, but her brother has vanished. Together, the trio will soon face a fight for survival against an unexpected and bone-chilling evil.

If you like twisted, but funny and intelligent television, you should definitely check out Channel 4's Black Mirror. Created by Charlie Brooker (Dead Set, Nathan Barley) Black Mirror is a British anthology series, with a different cast and setting for each episode. Brooker has said his series is "about the way we live now . and the way we might be living in 10 minutes' time if we're clumsy," with others describing it as "a hybrid of The Twilight Zone and Tales of the Unexpected...