Friday, November 28, 2008

Quatermass Experiment film (1967) on ITV this weekend

DVD cover for Quatermass and the Pit

Sci-fi alert!

I’ve previously mentioned the BBC Four revisioning of The Quatermass Experiment that was first shown in 2005 as a hundred-minute live drama, and was recently repeated at the beginning of October.

I’ve also mentioned reading a Quatermass novel, bought in the second-hand bookshop that used to be tucked in behind Stewarts supermarket in Lisburn’s Graham Gardens. Only problem was that the last page was missing!

ITV are showing the original 1967 film Quatermass and the Pit in the wee small hours of Sunday night, between 02:15 and 03:55. Seems to be scheduled across most of the ITV regions.

If you’re videoing/PVRing the programme, I’d recommend starting the recording early, and finishing at least 10 minutes after the published time as middle-of-the-night programmes float around a lot in the schedule.

The Radio Times blurb explains:

“This is the most popular of the movies taken from Nigel Kneale's acclaimed BBC TV serial. Although the Deluxe Color dissipates some of the atmosphere and mystery, the story of the Martian spaceship uncovered in a London Tube station retains much of its intrigue and sense of disquiet thanks to Roy Ward Baker's careful direction and special effects that never attempt to exceed their technical or budgetary limitations. As well as providing a generous helping of shocks, Kneale's script gives his complex themes and theories plenty of space, and both action and argument are neatly judged by Andrew Keir, James Donald and Hammer favourite Barbara Shelley.”

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Ah, much too late for this auld sod but then I have seen it a dozen times. It ranks up there with The Dunwich Horror and At the Mountains of Madness for atmosphere.