The Falkirk Wheel is a unique rotating boat lift which links the Union Canal, which ends in Edinburgh, with the Forth and Clyde Canal, which ends in Glasgow. It may not be the most obvious place to hold a exhibition onthe horror films of the British film company Hammer, especially as the Wheel looks more like something out of a Thunderbirds episode, but as part of their Halloween celebrations the Falkirk Wheel Visitor Centre did just that.
The small exhibition was free to enter and was split between the main Visitor Centre restaurant area and an exhibition/conference room. The majority of the exhibits were 30 Hammer film posters mainly British, American, French and Australian.
While it was claimed both in the exhibition and on the Wheel’s website that all the posters were originals, the "Hammer Glamour" double bill poster for She and One Million Years BC was actually a reproduction.
With most of the posters and a selection of framed autographs being on display in the exhibition room, the restaurant had more posters, costumes and a selection of merchandise. Customers could sip their Cock-a-leekie
soup whilst admiring the large French posters, or checking that the reproduction Mummy was still in exactly the same position it had been the last time they looked at it.
While the costumes did attract some comments as to their apparent newness, the merchandise on display was certainly authentic and included the first issue of Dez Skinn’s House of Hammer magazine and the EMI LP Hammer presents Dracula with Christopher Lee - “A horrifying story of vampirism with spine-chilling sounds and music”.
• The exhibition runs until Sunday 11 November at the Falkirk Wheel Visitor Centre where entrance is free and car parking is £2 per day.
Hi Jeremy,
ReplyDeleteThanks forthe review on the Hammer Exhibition. We were limited in what we could include in this one due to the the size of the venue.
Just a wee point, the Double bill poster for 'She' is an original, both that poster and the 'Dracula has risen from the Grave' quad were produced in far higher numbers than the other Hammer quads of the period, as the company used them as a promotional tool for give aways to fans in 1968, and they are subsequently easier to find on the marker and are more often than not still rolled.
We are planning a load more Cult TV, Film and Sci-Fi related exhibitions over the next couple of years, if you want us to keep you posted.
Best Regards
Henry Cook
Cult Heroes Ltd