Episode 198 - Hammer Britannia 024 - Nightmare (1964)
Reel Britannia
Hammer opens the door to a nightmare where every shadow has a secret. For the latest episode of Reel Britannia, we step into the chilly corridors and troubled dreams of Nightmare, Hammer’s 1964 psychological thriller from director Freddie Francis and writer Jimmy Sangster. This is Hammer without the fangs, capes, castles, or buckets of Kensington Gore. Instead, it gives us something colder and more unsettling: a black-and-white tale of fear, memory, manipulation and madness, where the terror creeps in quietly and then refuses to leave. The story follows Janet, a young woman haunted by...
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Episode 197 - The Tall Guy (1989)
Reel Britannia
Episode 197 - The Tall Guy (1989) “What in the name of Judas Iscariot's bumboy is going on?” Dexter King (Jeff Goldblum) is an awkward American actor stranded in London, suffering from severe hay fever and a chronic case of career stagnation. His day job consists of being repeatedly humiliated on stage as the hapless straight man to Ron Anderson (Rowan Atkinson), a spectacularly arrogant and insecure British comedian who wields his ego like a blunt instrument. Dexter's miserable existence takes a sharp upward turn when a trip to the clinic for allergy shots introduces him to Kate...
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Episode 196 - School For Scoundrels (1960)
Reel Britannia
Episode 196 - School For Scoundrels (1960) "Hard cheese old boy!" School for Scoundrels is one of those wonderfully sharp British comedies that takes something faintly ridiculous and plays it with a completely straight face, which of course makes it even funnier. Released in 1960, it follows Henry Palfrey, a polite, mild-mannered man who seems to be permanently stuck on the losing side of life. He is decent, respectable and reasonably successful on paper, yet somehow he always ends up second best, especially when faced with people who have more confidence, more nerve and rather fewer...
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Episode 195 - Home At Seven (1952)
Reel Britannia
Episode 195 - Home At Seven (1952) He came home on time... a day too late. Home at Seven is a neatly unsettling British mystery that begins with one of the simplest ideas imaginable and turns it into something deeply unnerving. David Preston, a mild-mannered bank clerk, arrives home after work expecting an ordinary evening with his wife. Instead, he is met with shock, confusion and growing alarm, because as far as everyone else is concerned, he has not been gone for the day. He has been missing for over twenty-four hours. David is utterly baffled. To him, nothing is wrong. He left work,...
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Episode 194 - Go to Blazes (1962)
Reel Britannia
Episode 194 - Go To Blazes (1962) "So many firms nowadays prefer conflagration to liquidation." If you are looking for a cracking way to spend eighty minutes, Go to Blazes is a proper hidden gem of British cinema. It has that pitch-perfect 1962 atmosphere—stylish, colourful, and just a touch rebellious. The plot is an absolute hoot: three ambitious but slightly dim-witted crooks decide the ultimate way to beat the London traffic after a smash-and-grab is to nick a literal fire engine. It is one of those "so barmy it just might work" ideas that keeps you smiling as you watch them navigate...
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Episode 193 - Hammer Britannia 023 - Taste Of Fear / Scream Of Fear (1961)
Reel Britannia
Taste Of Fear / Scream Of Fear (1961) "You say my mind is affecting my legs. You're wrong. It's my legs that are affecting my mind." Taste of Fear, released in 1961 and also known in some territories as Scream of Fear, is one of those wonderfully chilly British thrillers that shows just how much tension can be created without a drop of gore. Directed by Seth Holt for Hammer Films, it stands slightly apart from the studio’s more famous horror output of the period. Instead of Gothic castles, vampires and lurid supernatural shocks, this is a sleek, sinister psychological suspense picture,...
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Episode 192 - To Sir With Love (1967)
Reel Britannia
Episode 192 - To Sir WIth Love (1967) "If you must play these filthy games, do them in your homes, and not in my classroom!" Set against the vibrant, swinging backdrop of 1960s London, To Sir, With Love is a timeless feel-good classic that radiates warmth and optimism. The film stars the legendary Sidney Poitier as Mark Thackeray, an unemployed engineer who takes a temporary teaching position at a rough-and-tumble East End school. At first, the situation seems impossible. The students are rowdy, rebellious, and determined to drive their new teacher away just as they did the...
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Episode 191 - The L Shaped Room (1962)
Reel Britannia
Episode 191 - The L Shaped Room (1962) "You've had eight over the eight, you lovely bit of crumpet, you!" Directed by Bryan Forbes and based on the novel by Lynne Reid Banks, The L-Shaped Room is a quintessential example of British "kitchen sink" realism. The film tells the poignant story of Jane Fosset (played by Leslie Caron in a BAFTA-winning performance), a young French woman who arrives in London unmarried and pregnant—a precarious social position in the early 1960s. Seeking anonymity, Jane moves into a bug-ridden boarding house in Notting Hill. Her room, grim and L-shaped, becomes...
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Episode 190 - Carry On Cabby (1963)
Reel Britannia
Episode 190 - Carry On Cabby (1963) "I wonder if I've got the right soap? I can't remember if it was green for oily skin or oily for green skin." "Carry On Cabby" is widely celebrated as one of the most heartwarming and narrative-driven treasures in the famous franchise. Stepping away from the purely episodic sketches of its predecessors, this 1963 classic delivers a genuinely sweet romantic comedy that stands the test of time. It is a delightful battle of the sexes that combines wit, charm, and a surprising amount of emotional depth. The story centers on workaholic Charlie Hawkins, played...
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Episode 189 - You Only Live Twice (1967)
Reel Britannia
Episode 189 - You Only Live Twice (1967) "I must say, you have a lot of energy for a dead man, Mister Bond." Get ready for the ultimate 1960s spy spectacle! You Only Live Twice (1967) isn't just a movie; it is a massive, colourful adventure that takes Sean Connery’s James Bond to the vibrant landscapes of Japan for one of his most ambitious missions ever. From the opening moments, the film radiates a distinct, larger-than-life energy that defined the "blockbuster" era of the franchise. The film is a masterclass in escapism. Bond trades his usual Aston Martin for "Little Nellie," a heavily...
info_outlineEpisode 197 - The Tall Guy (1989)
“What in the name of Judas Iscariot's bumboy is going on?”
Dexter King (Jeff Goldblum) is an awkward American actor stranded in London, suffering from severe hay fever and a chronic case of career stagnation. His day job consists of being repeatedly humiliated on stage as the hapless straight man to Ron Anderson (Rowan Atkinson), a spectacularly arrogant and insecure British comedian who wields his ego like a blunt instrument.
Dexter's miserable existence takes a sharp upward turn when a trip to the clinic for allergy shots introduces him to Kate (Emma Thompson), a brisk, hyper-pragmatic nurse with a devastatingly dry wit. Naturally, Dexter is immediately smitten. What follows is a courtship that culminates in one of cinema’s most gloriously destructive love scenes, where the sheer force of their pent-up, awkward passion obliterates an entire apartment, claiming a piano, a mattress, and several lamps as collateral damage.
However, the path to happily-ever-after is rarely smooth. After finally snapping and getting fired by the tyrannical Ron, Dexter desperately auditions for the only gig available: the title role in Elephant!, a West End musical adaptation of The Elephant Man. It is a masterpiece of terrible taste, featuring upbeat tap numbers, grotesque latex prosthetics, and lyrics that rhyme "freak" with "eek."
Just as Dexter is tap-dancing his way toward theatrical infamy, his newfound happiness with Kate is threatened by a misunderstanding and the predatory advances of his former boss, Ron. To win the girl back, Dexter must navigate the treacherous waters of opening night, outmaneuver a megalomaniac, and prove that underneath the giant, rubbery head of a Victorian medical curiosity beats the heart of a true romantic. It’s a quintessential British rom-com, laced with absurdity, sharp theatrical satire, and a deeply relatable desire to punch your terrible boss in the face.
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