Robert Wynne-Simmons

An exploration of the cinematic history of the folk horror, from its beginnings in the UK in the late sixties; through its proliferation on British television in the seventies and its many manifestations, culturally specific, in other countries; to its resurgence in the last decade.

In pre-famine Ireland when poverty and magic were rife, introverted farm girl Maura discovers a magical world of the imagination through the mysterious wanderer Scarf Michael. When her isolated rural community accuses her of witchcraft, she turns to her own supernatural powers for protection. (BFI)

In pre-famine Ireland when poverty and magic were rife, introverted farm girl Maura discovers a magical world of the imagination through the mysterious wanderer Scarf Michael. When her isolated rural community accuses her of witchcraft, she turns to her own supernatural powers for protection. (BFI)

British horror short from 1962.

British horror short from 1962.

British horror short from 1962.

Shows the Common Stock Theatre Company working on a project involving old people living in the London Borough of Hammersmith. By direct contact with elderly people, and in conjunction with a writer, the members of the company attempt to create a dramatised impression of the life of the elderly.

Among the Brighton gangs, the Mods and Rockers, a teenager is victimised by a member of his own group, who then steals his girlfriend. He can take no more, and knives his rival in a fight. But his troubles are just beginning. His girlfriend is not coming back. The police are after him, as are the other members of the gang. Everywhere he is a fugitive. He suffers a breakdown, and fantasises that the doctors in the hospital are killing his injured rival, and that he will be blamed. He steals a bottle of serum that a doctor had used for an injection, hoping to convince his former friends that he is innocent, but it is just an empty bottle which will convince no-one. He finds himself cornered in a dark lane where there is no way out.

Among the Brighton gangs, the Mods and Rockers, a teenager is victimised by a member of his own group, who then steals his girlfriend. He can take no more, and knives his rival in a fight. But his troubles are just beginning. His girlfriend is not coming back. The police are after him, as are the other members of the gang. Everywhere he is a fugitive. He suffers a breakdown, and fantasises that the doctors in the hospital are killing his injured rival, and that he will be blamed. He steals a bottle of serum that a doctor had used for an injection, hoping to convince his former friends that he is innocent, but it is just an empty bottle which will convince no-one. He finds himself cornered in a dark lane where there is no way out.

Visual commentary on the way in which the prophetic poems of William Blake are reflected in modern London and the political upheavals of 1968.

Visual commentary on the way in which the prophetic poems of William Blake are reflected in modern London and the political upheavals of 1968.