The Horror Double Bill

Welcome to episode 51 of The Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we pair two movies to create something greater than the sum of their parts.

This week we are exploring the amorphous world of the science fiction horror hybrid, with two movies that pit man against gelatinous monstrosities from inner and outer space.

First up, we have X the Unknown from 1956, an early entry into the horror market from British studio Hammer, This was directed by Leslie Norman and stars Dean Jagger, Leo McKern and Edward Chapman.

Then we jump forward to 1988 for the enjoyably goofy The Blob, from director Chuck Russell and co-writer Frank Darabont, and stars Kevin Dillon, Shawnee Smith, Donovan Leitch, Jeffrey DeMunn and Candy Clark.

Along the way, we will be discussing the careers of writer-directors Jimmy Sangster and Chuck Russell, unlikely parallels with Spielberg’s Jaws, shapeless monstrosities in the horror movie, the inspiration for and the production story of the 1958 version of the Blob, and much, much more.

References

The House that Hammer  Built Volume 2, 1950 – 1954 & Volume 3: 1955–1958 by Wayne Kinsey

Hammer and Beyond: The British Horror Film by Peter Hutchings,

Hammer Films: An Exhaustive Filmography by Tom Johnson and Deborah Del Vecchio

Father of the Blob: The Making of a Monster Smash and Other Hollywood Tales by Jack H Harris

https://strasbourgfestival.com/en/interview-jimmy-sangster/

https://www.hammer-graveyard.org.uk/jimmy-sangster/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimmy_Sangster

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2011/aug/21/jimmy-sangster-obituary

The Blob (1988) - Scream factory blu ray interviews, commentaries and extras 

https://ia801403.us.archive.org/4/items/Fear_04_1989-01-02_no_ads/Fear_04_1989-01-02_no_ads.pdf

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0762727/

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0751080/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Blob_(1988_film)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Blob

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X_the_Unknown

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email: [email protected]

youtube: @thehorrordoublebill

artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)

Welcome to episode 50 of The Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we pair two movies to create something greater than the sum of their parts.

Cannibal Man/The Week of the Killer/The Apartment on the 13th Floor (1972) dir. Eloy de la Iglesia, w. Vicente Parra, Emma Cohen, Eusebio Poncela, Vicky Lagos and Charly Bravo.

Ecologia del delitto/A Bay of Blood/Twitch of the Death Nerve/Carnage/Blood Bath (1971) dir. Mario Bava w. Luigi Pistilli, Claudine Auger, Claudio Camaso, Laura Betti and Anna Maria Rosati.

Recommendations

The Glass Ceiling (1971) 

No-one Heard the Scream (1973)

Kill Baby Kill (1966)

Danger Diabolik! (1968)

Hatchet for the Honeymoon (1970)

References

Spanish Horror Film by Antonio Lázaro-Reboll

Cannibal Man blu-ray edition (Severin Films)

Subversive Effects of Perversion: Sexuality and Social Construction in The Cannibal Man by Carlos Gómez

https://www.terrorweekend.com/2021/11/la-semana-del-asesino-review.html?m=1h

ttps://www.vanitatis.elconfidencial.com/famosos/2021-03-06/vicente-parra-galan-homosexual-amigo-sara-montiel_2977668

https://www.elconfidencial.com/cultura/2006-03-24/muere-el-realizador-de-cine-eloy-de-la-iglesia_741304

https://www.cageyfilms.com/2021/10/the-films-of-eloy-de-la-iglesia/

https://elpais.com/cultura/2006/03/23/actualidad/1143068408_850215.html

So Deadly, So Perverse Volume One by Troy Howarth,

The Haunted World of Mario Bava by Troy Howarth

Italian Horror Cinema, edited by Stefano Baschiera and Russ Hunter

A Bay of Blood blu-ray special edition (Severin Films)

https://www.davinotti.com/articoli/intervista-allo-sceneggiatore-dardano-sacchetti/55

https://www.sdangher.com/2022/04/06/speciale-reazione-a-catena-mario-bava-e-lecologia-della-critica-italiana/

https://cinepugno.home.blog/2020/10/10/interview-with-mario-bava-1970-1971/

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email: [email protected]

youtube: @thehorrordoublebill

artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)

Welcome to episode 49 of The Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we pair two movies to create something greater than the sum of their parts.

Paperhouse (1988) Dir. Bernard Rose w. Charlotte Burke, Glenne Headly, Elliott Spiers, Gemma Jones

Candyman (1992) Dir. Bernard Rose w. Tony Todd, Virginia Madsen, Kasi Lemmons, Xander Berkeley, Vanessa Williams.

Recommendations

Shockheaded Peter by Heinrich Hoffmann

Marianne Dreams by Catherine Storr

The Gashlycrumb Tinies by Edward Gorey

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz

The Books of Blood by Clive Barker

The Great & Secret Show by Clive Barker

Coldheart Canyon by Clive Barker

Night of the Living Dead (1990)

IvansXTC (2000)

References

https://filmfreakcentral.net/2022/08/bernard-rose-interview/

https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/interviews/mystic-nic-praise-nicolas-roeg

https://www.theotherfolk.blog/dissections/paperhouse

https://www.scifinow.co.uk/interviews/its-that-weird-thing-that-happens-when-things-arent-concrete-bernard-rose-remembers-paperhouse/

https://www.mikesouthon.biz/portfolio/paperhouse-highlights

Candyman by John Towson (Devil’s Advocates)

Candyman Special Edition 4k (Arrow Video)

https://www.clivebarkerarchive.com/blog/tag/The+Forbidden

https://www.clivebarker.info/salomeforbidden.html

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2019/jun/25/how-we-made-candyman-virginia-madsen-tony-todd-bee-sting

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2024/nov/09/tony-todd-star-of-candyman-dies-aged-69

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2020/oct/01/tony-todd-candyman-sequel-black-lives-matter-platoon

https://horrornewsnetwork.net/twenty-year-retrospective-of-candyman-with-virginia-madsen/

https://people.com/virginia-madsen-reveals-plan-candyman-prequel-mourns-tony-todd-8744052

https://www.movingpictureshow.com/?p=9402

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernard_Rose_(director)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Candyman_(1992_film)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paperhouse_(film)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clive_Barker

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Books_of_Blood

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Todd

https://flexiblehead.blog/2016/02/10/tony-todd/

Instagram: @thehorrordoublebill

email: [email protected]

youtube: @thehorrordoublebill

artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)

Welcome to episode 48 of The Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we pair two movies to create something greater than the sum of their parts.

Dracula (1931) dir. Tod Browning, w. Bela Lugosi, Edward Van Sloan, Dwight Frye, Helen Chandler.

Count Yorga, Vampire (1970) dir. Bob Kelljan , w. Robert Quarry, Roger Perry, Michael Murphy

Recommendations

Murders in the Rue Morgue (1932)

Island of Lost Souls (1932)

The Black Cat (1934)

The Raven (1935)

Son of Frankenstein (1939)

Dark Eyes of London (1939)

The Body Snatcher (1945)

References

Universal Horrors: The Studio’s Classic Films, 1931 to 1946 by Tom Weaver, Michael Brunas, and John Brunas

Tod Browning’s Dracula by Gary D. Rhodes

American Gothic by Jonathan Rigby

The Blood Is the Life by various authors, published by We Belong Dead. 

https://militaryhistorynow.com/2019/10/29/dracula-goes-to-war-bela-lugosi-ww1-and-the-making-of-a-macabre-hollywood-legend/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bela_Lugosi

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dracula_(1924_play)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dracula_(1931_English-language_film)

https://drphibesvibes.wordpress.com/2015/04/15/robery-quarry-interview-from-2004

www.filmink.com.au/unsung-auteurs-bob-kelljan

https://www.zomboscloset.com/count-yorga-vampire-1970pressbook/?doing_wp_cron=1777637670.0476369857788085937500

https://thelastdrivein.com/category/directors-and-filmmakers/bob-kelljan-director-actor/

https://www.tcm.com/articles/181323/in-the-know-count-yorga-vampire-trivia

https://thelastdrivein.com/category/top-classic-horror-films/page/19/

https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2009-mar-02-me-passings2.s1-story.html

https://i0.wp.com/www.zomboscloset.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Count-Yorga-Pressbook-008.webp

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Count_Yorga,_Vampire

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Return_of_Count_Yorga

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Quarry

Instagram: @thehorrordoublebill

email: [email protected]

youtube: @thehorrordoublebill

artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)

Welcome to episode 47 of the Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we pair two movies to create something greater than the sum of their parts.

First up is Daniel Isn’t Real (2019) dir. Adam Egypt Mortimer, w Miles Robbins & Patrick Schwarzenegger

Then The Lighthouse (2019) dir. Robert Eggers, w Willem Dafoe & Robert Pattinson.

Recommendations

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1940/10/thus-i-refute-beelzy/654631/

Enoch by Robert Bloch

Asylum (1972)

Tales that Witness Madness (1973)

In This Way I Was Saved by Brian DeLeeuw

Easy Riders, Raging Bulls by Peter Biskind, 

Some Kind of Hate (2015)

At Close Range (1986)

Archenemy (2020)

References

https://rue-morgue.com/exclusive-interview-director-adam-egypt-mortimer-speaks-the-truth-about-daniel-isnt-real-part-two/

https://www.creativescreenwriting.com/adam-egypt-mortimer-discusses-his-cosmic-horror-film-daniel-isnt-real/

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffewing/2020/12/11/interview-a-chat-with-director-adam-egypt-mortimer-about-archenemy-superheroes-and-genre-film/

https://bloody-disgusting.com/editorials/3596127/8-films-inspired-daniel-isnt-real/

https://screenrant.com/patrick-schwarzenegger-interview-daniel-isnt-real-clip/

https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/culture/article/patrick-schwarzenegger-daniel-isnt-real

https://www.dreadcentral.com/news/314433/exclusive-interview-with-daniel-isnt-real-director-adam-egypt-mortimer/

https://dailydead.com/sxsw-2019-interview-director-adam-egypt-mortimer-talks-daniel-isnt-real/

The Lighthouse - Arrow Video 4k special edition extras and comentaries

https://www.eapoe.org/works/tales/lightha.htm

https://www.bfi.org.uk/interviews/robert-eggers-lighthouse-influences

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/04/04/robert-eggerss-historical-visions-go-mainstream

https://silverscreenriot.com/talking-robert-eggers-witch/

https://www.bafta.org/media-centre/press-releases/screenwriters-lecture-series-2019-robert-eggers/

https://www.theguardian.com/global/2019/dec/22/robert-pattinson-i-dont-really-know-how-to-act-batman-the-lighthouse

https://www.gq.com/story/willem-dafoe-on-why-the-lighthouse-worked-so-well

https://www.indiewire.com/features/general/the-lighthouse-robert-eggers-filmmaker-toolkit-podcast-episode-94-1202186291/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smalls_Lighthouse#Smalls_Lighthouse_Tragedy

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Isn%27t_Real

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Light-House

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lighthouse_(2019_film)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Eggers

Instagram: @thehorrordoublebill

email: [email protected]

youtube: @thehorrordoublebill

artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)

Welcome to episode 46 of The Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we pair two movies to create something greater than the sum of their parts.

This week we are back with haunted houses, classic ghost stories, and more than a little ambiguity, with one film based on a novella by Henry James and the other based on a novel by Peter Straub.

First up, we have The Innocents from 1961, directed by Jack Clayton. This stars Deborah Kerr, Megs Jenkins, Martin Stephens, and Pamela Franklin.

Then we jump forward to 1977 for Full Circle, which was released in the US as The Haunting of Julia. This was directed by Richard Loncraine and stars Mia Farrow, Keir Dullea, Tom Conti, and Jill Bennett.

Recommendations

The Turn of the Screw by Henry James

Julia by Peter Straub

Ghost Story by Peter Straub

The Other by Thomas Tryon

Momsy, Nanny, Sonny & Girlie (1970)

References

The Innocents by Christopher Frayling (BFI Film Classics) 

https://youtu.be/ZpV5J91BnV0?si=SPH8nq8FBgApLusl

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Innocents_(play)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Innocents_(1961_film)

https://www.bfi.org.uk/features/gothic-glamour-innocents

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Clayton

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_James

Full Circle (BFI blu ray) - interviews and extras 

https://bfidatadigipres.github.io/events/2023/04/19/full-circle/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Full_Circle_(1977_film)

https://academic.oup.com/screen/article/65/1/47/7632062

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosemary%27s_Baby_(film)

RichardLoncraine.com.

Instagram: @thehorrordoublebill

email: [email protected]

youtube: @thehorrordoublebill

artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)

Welcome to episode 45 of The Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we pair two movies to create something greater than the sum of their parts.

This week we are discussing

Possession (1981) dir. Andrzej Żuławski w. Isabelle Adjani and Sam Neill

Las Brujas de Zugarramurdi aka Witching and Bitching (2013) dir. Alex de la Iglesia w. Hugo Silva, Mario Casas, and Carmen Maura

Recommendations

The Story of Adele H (1975)

The Driver (1978)

Camille Claudel (1988)

One Deadly Summer (1983)

Subway (1985)

The Last Circus (2010)

References

Possession by Alison Taylor

Possession 4k Special Edition from Second Sight Films

House of Psychotic Women by Kier-La Janisse

https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/biggest-regret-of-isabelle-adjanis-career/

www.filmcomment.com/blog/film-comment-interview-andrzej-zulawski

https://metrograph.com/making-a-monster/

https://a-rabbitsfoot.com/editorial/film/isabelle-adjani-in-confession

https://www.indiewire.com/news/general-news/isabelle-adjani-possession-never-accept-again-1234895552

https://www.indiewire.com/features/general/sam-neill-possession-could-not-be-made-today-abuse-on-set-1234821437

https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2025/jul/09/possession-movie-film-1981-octopus-isabelle-adjani-sam-neill

https://www.glamour.es/placeres/cultura/articulos/entrevista-con-alex-de-la-iglesia-y-carmen-maura-por-las-brujas-de-zugarramurdi/18848

https://www.glamour.es/placeres/cultura/articulos/entrevista-con-alex-de-la-iglesia-y-carmen-maura-por-las-brujas-de-zugarramurdi/18848

https://cinema.everyeye.it/articoli/intervista-las-brujas-de-zugarramurdi-alex-de-la-iglesia-21024.html

https://cineuropa.org/en/interview/244346/

Instagram: @thehorrordoublebill

email: [email protected]

youtube: @thehorrordoublebill

artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)

Welcome to episode 44 of The Horror Double Bill, where each week we pair two movies to create something greater than the sum of their parts.

The Wind (2018) dir. Emma Tammi, with Caitlin Gerard, Ashley Zukerman, Julia Goldani Telles, and Miles Anderson.

The Dark and the Wicked (2020), dir. Bryan Bertino, with Marin Ireland, Michael Abbott Jr., Lynn Andrews, and Xander Berkeley.

Recommendations 

Curse of the Undead (1959), Near Dark (1987), Ravenous (1999), The Burrowers (2008), Bone Tomahawk (2015), The Monster (2016)

References

The Geography of Horror by Marco Lukic

The Rural Gothic in American Popular Culture by Bernice M. Murphy

Desert Horror Movies and Horror Westerns by John LeMay

West of Everything: The Inner Life of Westerns by Jane Tompkins.

https://www.thecherrypicks.com/stories/emma-tammi-on-the-horrors-of-isolation

https://filmthreat.com/interviews/the-wind-with-emma-tammi

https://moveablefest.com/caitlin-gerard-emma-tammi-teresa-sutherland-wind/

https://latinhorror.com/interview-emma-tammi-the-wind/

https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/prairie-madness-study-silence-great-plains

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1893/09/the-isolation-of-life-on-prairie-farms/523959/

https://www.dallasobserver.com/arts-culture/director-bryan-bertino-vicious-horror-movie-north-texas-40601111

https://www.dreadcentral.com/news/355261/interview-michael-abbott-jr-talks-working-with-bryan-bertino-on-the-dark-and-the-wicked-and-that-three-legged-goat/

https://www.wmagazine.com/culture/the-dark-and-the-wicked-marin-ireland-interview

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/how-dark-and-the-wicked-star-marin-ireland-faced-her-fears-4089466/

https://dailydead.com/interview-xander-berkeley-discusses-his-enigmatic-character-in-the-dark-and-the-wicked-and-reflects-on-candyman/

www.gonewiththetwins.com/interview-bryan-bertino-strangers

https://rue-morgue.com/exclusive-interview-producer-adrienne-biddle-on-the-family-terrors-of-the-dark-and-the-wicked/

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Welcome to episode 43 of The Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we pair two movies to create something greater than the sum of their parts.

This week we are visiting church with two films which that suggest our holiest of buildings could hide mysterious ancient forces lurking in their cellars.

Prince of Darkness (1987) dir. John Carpenter w. Donald Pleasence, Victor Wong, Jameson Parker, Dennis Dunn, and Lisa Blount.

The Borderlands aka Final Prayer (2013) dir. by Elliot Goldner w. Gordon Kennedy, Aidan McArdle, and Robin Hill.

Recommendations

Starman (1984)

The Caretaker: https://youtu.be/4e6x5j_JKWA?si=Xr02l4TdF7gf77bw

The Great Escape (1963)

Wake in Fright (1971)

Death Line (1972)

From Beyond the Grave (1974)

Sources & References

The Films of John Carpenter by John Kenneth Muir

John Carpenter: Prince of Darkness by Giles Boulenger. 

Prince of Darkness blu-ray special edition release from StudioCanal.

The Borderlands blu ray release from Second Sight Films

https://www.heyuguys.com/heyuguys-interview-elliot-goldner-borderlands

https://blueprintreview.co.uk/2014/03/borderlands-qa

https://hmzfilm.com/2013/12/08/hmz-film-exclusively-interviews-the-creators-and-cast-of-the-borderlands

https://www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk/2014/03/27/the-borderlands-interview-with-jennifer-handorf

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Borderlands_(2013_film)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_of_Darkness_(film)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Pleasence

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/nov/12/italian-mystic-gisella-cardia-faces-trial-over-claim-virgin-mary-statue-wept-blood

https://www.dartmoor.gov.uk/learning/dartmoor-legends/the-legend-of-brentor-church

https://m.imdb.com/name/nm0000587/

https://m.imdb.com/name/nm3283841/

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email: [email protected]

youtube: @thehorrordoublebill

artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)

Welcome to episode 42 of The Horror Double Bill the podcast where each week we pair two movies to create something greater than the sum of their parts

This week we are exploring the horrors of colonialism with two films that suggest that the price for cultural oppression and appropriation is a very heavy one.

I Walked with a Zombie (1943) dir. Jacques Tourneur, with Frances Dee, Tom Conway, Edith Barrett and Christine Gordon.

The Reptile (1966) dir. John Gilling, with Jennifer Daniel, Noel Willman, Ray Barrett and Jacqueline Pearce.

Fundraiser :

https://www.instagram.com/progressionsocietyartschool/

https://www.gofundme.com/f/a-new-home-for-ronys-mother-and-sister/cl/s?utm_campaign=fp_sharesheet&utm_content=amp20_control&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=copy_link&lang=de_DE&attribution_id=sl%3Ac5c89064-7ffd-45fc-a316-21cbf99be3a4&ts=1774109063

References:

I Walked with a Zombie by Clive Dawson

The Book of the Dead by Jamie Russell

Horror Noir a History of Black American Horror by Robin R means Coleman 

Jacques Tourneur The Cinema of Nightfall by Chris Fujiwara

Val Lewton The Reality of Terror by Joel E Siegel.

English Gothic by Jonathan Rigby

Hammer Films: An Exhaustive Filmography by Tom Johnson and Deborah Del Vecchio

Little Shoppe of Horrors magazine iss 20.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haitian_Revolution

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haitian_independence_debt

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_Haiti

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Ripper

https://dandayjr35.blogspot.com/2017/12/the-what-character-blogathon-michael.html?m=1

https://m.imdb.com/name/nm0728085/

Instagram: @thehorrordoublebill

email: [email protected]

youtube: @thehorrordoublebill

artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)