# History of Horror TV series...



## Pyan (Oct 11, 2010)

For those that can receive* BBC4* (Freeview 9, Freesat 107, Sky 116 and Virgin 107), there is a new series starting tonight at 9pm: *A History of Horror with Mark Gatiss.*

The first of three tonight "explores the early horror era of Lon Chaney, Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff."

Link:

BBC - BBC Four Programmes - A History of Horror with Mark Gatiss


Followed on the same channel by *The Bride of Frankenstein* (1935)...


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## Alex Davis (Oct 28, 2010)

It was a great series as well... is there a thread anywhere else to discuss?


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## mr kite (Oct 29, 2010)

This was indeed a great series .
Mark is a true fan of horror .
Shows are allways better when it`s done by someone who is into the subject .


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## Alex Davis (Nov 1, 2010)

Couldn't agree more - it was nice that it felt quite personal as well, and picked a lot of films beyond the obvious. I discovered quite a few films I'd never seen before as a result of watching!


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## Foxbat (Nov 1, 2010)

I thought it was a good series but could have been so much more. Granted it was a deeply personal telling of the history of horror but that very personal touch (in my opinion) rendered it a touch  skewed. 

So here's my reply and my personal history of horror (probably just as skewed)

Although the great Lon Chaney was mentioned, the general impression given was that horror began in Hollywood but, for me, the visual side of horror in film started in the silent era and the birth of German Expressionism in  1919 with the Cabinet of Dr Caligari. Then that iconic film Nosferatu……how could a horror series not give this some reasonable consideration? After that it could have covered Sweden’s The Phantom Carriage or Conrad Veidt in The hands of Orlac. And there’s always Dreyer’s Vampyr with its independent shadows (resurrected so effectively by Coppola in Bram Stoker’s Dracula so many years later) to consider. 

What I have just described is an episode in itself that could have opened a door to a whole new audience for these ancient yet beautiful pieces of half forgotten horror celluloid……and why, I ask you, did Hollywood strive so hard to create the dim landscapes and dingy castles of Central Europe in its backlots and stages? Because that was where the Horror movie genre was truly born. 

As Colin Clive would say….It’s alive!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## Pyan (Nov 1, 2010)

Yes, I thought that it was a laudable attempt, but the subject is just too large to cover in three one-hour programmes. I'd have liked to have seen at least eight episodes, and covered each era in much more depth (and to be frank, I'd have omitted the slasher films of the late 20th century altogether.) 

7/10 for effort, 4/10 for achievement...

(and thread moved to _General TV Discussion_)...


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## Foxbat (Nov 2, 2010)

Yes, more episodes would have helped. I think he spent about ten seconds extolling the virtues of modern horror outside Hollywood and the UK despite the fact that Hollywood often looks abroad and then merely remakes (The Ring for example).

Episodes covering Japanese and European Horror and even an episode covering specific directors of the genre (Carpenter, Argento etc) would have been nice.


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## Pyan (Nov 2, 2010)

What really annoys me is that this must have been on of the cheapest BBC programmes to make for years (talking heads + film clips cost _peanuts_) - and they're spending much more on each episode of _Merlin_, for example, than a proper in-depth treatment of the subject would have cost. 

A missed opportunity.


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