Hammer Films launches YouTube Channel

To the delight of fans worldwide Hammer, Britain's most celebrated genre film brand which recently produced box office smash The Woman in Black and the acclaimed Let Me In, today launches its first dedicated YouTube Channel at www.youtube.com/hammerfilms.

For the very first time, exclusive new content from current Hammer productions as well as carefully restored classic Hammer feature films will be available to stream online.

The Hammer Films Channel will carry a range of exclusive new content, previews, commentary and behind the scenes material from upcoming new productions such as The Quiet Ones starring Jared Harris and Sam Claflin and The Woman in Black: Angels of Death, the follow up to the worldwide box office hit, The Woman in Black, starring Daniel Radcliffe.

In addition, the Hammer Films Channel will stream a collection of Hammer’s well-known classic feature film titles including The Quatermass Xperiment, The Man In Black and Captain Kronos Vampire Hunter some of which have been newly restored and digitally re-mastered. As additional titles are added to the new platform, this will be the first time fans can view other digitally re-mastered classic Hammer films online under a restoration initiative launched earlier this year by Hammer’s owner Exclusive Media.

From the historic library, the Hammer Films Channel will also carry Classic Hammer TV series such as Hammer House of Mystery and Suspense, as well as new on-air commentary and film introductions from official Hammer historian, Marcus Hearn and Hammer archivist, Robert J.E. Simpson.

Newly created featurettes and original trailer material, not seen by the public for many years, will also be added to the Channel’s far reaching content. The Hammer Films Channel will continually expand its range of programming as it becomes available, with the full schedule to be published and regularly updated at www.hammerfilms.com

Simon Oakes, President and CEO of Hammer said, “The launch of our dedicated YouTube channel truly encapsulates how we have positioned Hammer as a dynamic British genre label with a great heritage. We hope this new platform will allow us to continue to reach fans who have responded so well to films like Let Me In and The Woman in Black, while continuing to honour the great filmmaking history of our company."

Hammer were advised by the London based digital distribution and marketing agency Showstream Media Limited (www.showstreammedia.com).

 

Hammer brings 'Screamboard' to iPhones

Legendary British film brand Hammer has today launched the ‘ScreamBoard’ in the UK – a free app for the iPhone which enables horror fans to mix their own selections of classic Hammer film sound clips.

The app will appeal to both old and new fans of the celebrated film brand, many of whom will have recently enjoyed The Woman In Black, starring Daniel Radcliffe. The film is the UK’s highest grossing British horror film and has taken over $100m internationally.

The ‘ScreamBoard’ is now available to download for free from the UK iTunes App Store and comes preloaded with assets from two classic Hammer films, Four Sided Triangle and The Quatermass Xperiment. In addition to sound cues, other app content includes video clips, stills, film trivia and Google map information on filming locations.

Additional film assets can be purchased for either 69p (‘Standard’ title modules) or £1.49 (‘Premium’ title modules). The first additional ‘Premium’ titles, Dracula and The Curse Of Frankenstein, will be available until 1st May for the special launch price of 69p.

Forthcoming modules include Dracula Prince of Darkness, The Plague of the Zombies and The Mummy (‘Premium’ titles) plus Quatermass 2, X The Unknown and The Reptile (‘Standard’ titles).

The app has been developed by London-based digital agency Substance.

• The Hammer ‘ScreamBoard’ app can be found online here: http://screamapp.hammerfilms.com/

Hammer Films launches 'Print on Demand' site

Hammer Films has launched an official print-on-demand online store today, featuring iconic UK quad artwork from legendary horror titles including The Mummy, One Million Years B.C. and The Devil Rides Out.

The store features high-quality reproductions of UK quads from the extensive Hammer library including the latest titles Let Me In and Wake Wood,  along with newly-restored posters for such beloved horror classics as X The Unknown, The Abominable Snowman and Frankenstein And The Monster From Hell, all of which are reproduced for the first time and exclusively available.

Each classic poster featured on the site will be available in two styles; "restored", appearing as new, and "aged", subtly weathered to create a retro aesthetic.

Designed by renowned film poster artists Bill Wiggins, Mike Vaughan, Vic Fair and the legendary Tom Chantrell, and curated by Marcus Hearn, Hammer's official historian, the artwork will be available as posters (paper or canvas; framed or unframed), prints, greeting cards and postcards.

To celebrate the launch, Hammer will be giving 15% off all orders through 10th December 2011 at http://art.hammerfilms.com

Additionally, to coincide with the release of Marcus Hearn’s new official book The Hammer Vault which hits stores on 2nd December 2011, Hammer is releasing online exclusive content from The Woman in Black at www.hammerfilms.com at Noon on the same day.

The Hammer Vault, published by Titan Books, features double-page spreads of classic Hammer titles in addition to recent releases Wake Wood, Let Me In and The Resident.

Hammer will publish online exclusive content from The Woman in Black in the “Hammer Vault” style, as part of a three-way promotional tie in for the Hammer website, the book launch and the upcoming film release.

The exclusive “Hammer Vault” content, available via a password gate only to those who buy or browse “The Hammer Vault”, will feature interviews with director James Watkins and production designer Kave Quinn, along with exclusive stills, storyboards and photography of production assets and props.

The Woman in Black will be released theatrically in the US on 3rd February 2012 through CBS Films and in the UK on 10th February through Momentum Pictures.

In Review: Memorabilia NEC 2011

Comics and sci-fi merchandise aplenty were on sale at the Memorabilia event at the NEC Birmingham over the weekend of 19th and 20th November.

An impressive range of guests from sci-fi and other classic programmes and films included Arthur Darvill from Doctor Who, Kai Owen from Torchwood and Bruce Boxleitner from Tron and Babylon 5.

Classic Doctor Who guests included former companions Katy Manning from the third Doctor's era, Sarah Sutton from the fourth and fifth Doctors' era and Sophie Aldred from the seventh Doctor's era plus, for comedy fans, the cast of Hi-de-Hi! was re-united.

A range of interesting panels took place over the weekend which included reunions of the casts of classic movies such as Village of the Damned and Hammer's Captain Kronos - Vampire Hunter.

There was a strong cosplay element with Darth Vader, Stormtroopers, Daleks and Doctors on hand to entertain the crowds.

Sci-fi fans attended in their thousands and there was absolutely no evidence of the fragile economy at this event with everyone out to enjoy themselves and have a great time.

There are more details of the Memorabilia at the NEC,Birmingham on the Memorabilia website.

Now it's Time for Hammer... beer?!?!

Hammer Films have promoted themselves in some pretty inventive ways over the years with DVDs, a board game, T-shirts, mugs and poster based on the famous horror films.

Now we can look forward to three new Hammer Beers which look set to go down a storm in the bar at horror conventions!

The Buxton Brewery Company Ltd is to produce three Hammer-themed beers - Coffin Ale, Dracula's Desire and Curse of Frankenstein which will be available as bottles and on draft from September. The bottle labels and beer pump clips will be illustrated with classic poster images from the Hammer archives.

If you can't find them in pubs or shops, you'll be able to order them online. Check out the official website for details.

Talking of Hammer, Titan Books are releasing The Art of Hammer, the first ever collection of the company's iconic film posters in book form, compiled by Marcus Hearn, in October.

Hammer Films were almost as well known for the way in which they sold their films, as for the films themselves. The Art of Hammer is a celebration of movie art at its best - a large format, lavish hardback bringing together hundreds of rare posters from around the world, and features Hammer's greatest films.

Hammer Films Bray Studios Faces Demolition

Bray Studios - considered the spiritual home of cult British films and the home of Hammer Film Productions for years - could be turned flattened and turned into homes, unless a new campaign to save it succeeds.

Earlier this month, the Maidenhead Advertiser reported that current owners the Bray Management Company says the the operation - set to celebrate its 60th anniversary this year - is struggling to keep up with technological advancements.

Once the home for Hammer Film Productions, a planning application was recently submitted to the Royal Borough for repairs to Grade II listed Down Place, the site’s central building. The application notes that the studios, formerly used to provide offices and facilities in connection with the film business, have been hit hard by the economic downturn and are no longer a viable business - and hinted at plans to turn the historic site into housing.

Down Place was originally bought by Hammer Film Productions for use in their horror films, and then was gradually enlarged to become the studios that exist now. Films shot there include The Mummy, The Curse of Frankenstein, the Dracula film series and many more.

Other films and television shows have used the studios down the years, including a number of shows produced by Gerry Anderson such as Space:1999 and for effects work on various Doctor Who stories such as Frontier in Space and The Invisible Enemy.

The studios were sold in November 1970, but are still in use for recording, but, as a result of the current recession, faces stiff competition for business from nearby Pinewood Studios and elsewhere.

The plans to level the site for housing came to light in an application to replace the roof and windows of Down Place which were discussed and approved at a Bray Parish Council meeting earlier this month. The documents discussed revealed a further application is likely for extensive work to convert the site into housing.

Fans of Hammer Films and British film history have moved swiftly to highlight the threat, starting a Facebook campaign group, blog and Twitterfeed to raise awareness about the studios' plight,

"We quickly must look at the question of what can be done to help save the Studio," urges campaign organiser and Hammer Films expert Robert Simpson.

"In the first instance we have to assume that a huge volume of cash is needed - Down Place itself is in an unhealthy state of repair. It needs a large amount of work done if the Grade II listed building is to be preserved.

"...According to the information released Bray Studios is no longer viable as a business model - though we would suggest that the Studios need new capital investment to upgrade the equipment and allow it to compete once again," he continues. "The present owners clearly have no intention or desire to do that. Instead they see the chance for a quick profit in residential accommodation that will unburden them of their responsibility. Bray Management Ltd looks at the studios as property rather than a cultural landmark and facility.

"We are open to ideas and suggestions, and ways of raising funds to keep the studios alive and within the film industry," he says, appealing to Hammer Films fans and the wider British film community for support. "We want to maintain its historic integrity, and allow it to flourish. We want it to remain distinctive.

"Perhaps investors can be found with millions to spare on developing, upgrading and protecting the site? Perhaps there is a way we can find for a stay of execution allowing a campaign to build and find the resources before the site is compromised.

"...Bray Studios is a true independent studio space, and some fine examples of British film and television have been made here. Don't let that be destroyed."

Save Bray Studios Campaign

• Save Bray Studios Facebook Campaign Group

• Campaign Blog: braystudios.blogspot.com

• TwitterFeed: http://www.twitter.com/braystudios

Bray Studios Web Links

• Bray Studios: The Studio Tour
Unofficial guide to Bray Studios and its history

• David Rattigan's Bray Studio Guide

Hammer Films Update

The official Hammer Films website has today launched a new online shop selling items associated with the vintage British film studio. Items for sale include DVDs, books and T-shirts, along with some new reproduction film posters.

But that's not the only news from the House of Horror because there's quite a lot happening in the world of Hammer at the moment, including a Hammer exhibition at the Opus Gallery in Newcastle, which runs until 21st February.

The 1967 Hammer film The Lost Continent has also just been released on DVD in the UK for the first time and the recent Hammer production Beyond the Rave, which premiered online in 2008, is also available, as a limited edition.

Meanwhile, there are new Hammer films in production. Let Me In, a co-production between Hammer and Overture Films, will be released in the US in October. The Resident, starring Christopher Lee, should also debut this year and the company has also acquired rights to the Susan Hill ghost story The Woman in Black.

Now, if only someone would collect all those classic House of Hammer comic strips...

Salmon's Spot on the Net

(via Kasterborous): Comics artist Adrian Salmon, whose credits include work for Judge Dredd: The Megazine, Doctor Who Magazine and the graphic novel The Faceless: A Terry Sharp Story has recently begun a blog, which includes many samples of his recent work and background on how he created them.

Included are Doctor Who illustrations and samples of his work on the Hammer Horror tribute publication Little Shoppe of Horrors like this one of Doctor Jekyll. (Megazine readers may recall one of Ade's characters for a Judge Karyn story I wrote bore an uncanny resemblance to Peter Cushing...)

Thos of you reading this that live in Manchester may also like to know that the Lass O'Gowry has a room dedicated to Ade's work. If that isn't an excuse to nip there for a pint...

Adrian's blog is at: adriansalmonart.blogspot.com

New Hammer and Carry On stamps from Royal Mail

2008 is the fiftieth anniversay of both Hammer's classic Dracula movie and the Carry On films (although in the case of the latter you'd be forgiven for not knowing that giving the lack of fanfare over such a milestone!).

To celebrate these landmark anniversaries, on 10 June the Royal Mail are releasing a scrumptious set of stamps featuring poster art from Carry On Sergeant (which featured Doctor Who actor William Hartnell), Carry On Cleo and Carry On Screaming (which both included Jon Pertwee in the cast), The Curse of Frankenstein, Dracula and The Mummy.

These three Hammer films all starred another Doctor Who in the form of Peter Cushing. The presentation pack includes notes from sci-fi/movie expert Kim Newman.

• See the stamps and order them at www.royalmail.com

HammerWeb Revamped

It's been a long time coming, but the Hammer Films official web site (www.hammerfilms.com) has just been updated to fully reflect its new productions, while still celebrating its groundbreaking history as Britain's favourite horror film company.

The site has had a comprehensive makeover in the same week that the first new production from Hammer in over 25 years, Beyond the Rave, is released online.

The new site, replacing the one designed by downthetubes John Freeman and designer Pete Chamberlain some years ago now, has been designed and coded by Altogether Digital, and will be keeping Hammer fans up to date with the latest news about Hammer and its new productions, including Beyond the Rave.

The popular Hammer Films filmography section has been overhauled, and will continue to be expanded as the rest of the site develops.

Across almost sixty years, Hammer has saved the world from alien invasion, revelled in Sapphic bloodlust, pitted Hollywood legends against English schoolboys, summoned the Devil, played with evil twins, been driven mad by the abominable snowman and fought-off Chinese vampires. It has created monsters, resurrected aristocrats, exhumed the undead and run away with a blood-sucking circus. With Beyond the Rave, which is being releaased episodically on MySpace, Hammer hopes to combine its genre heritage with contemporary themes and kick-ass tunes, delivering the heady mix as immersive entertainment for long-time fans and Hammer virgins alike. Episode One is live on MySpaceTV now (Over 18s only)

Produced in association with MySpace, the film is a vampire story set in England’s underground party scene, and a combination of traditional horror themes and contemporary setting and characters. The movie, which will also be released on DVD later this year, follows the last hours of freedom of local soldier Ed, who is flying out to Iraq the following morning. With the help of his best friend Necro, he spends his last night in the UK tracking down his missing girlfriend Jen, last seen partying with a bizarre group of hardcore night-time ravers led by the mysterious Melech.

But as he catches up with Jen at a party in a remote forest, Ed discovers that Melech’s crowd, who are hosting the event, are looking for more than a night of fun, and that not everyone will make it through to dawn…

Links
• Official Hammer Films web site
• Beyond the Rave Official Site
• Beyond the Rave on MySpaceTV

Actor Brian Wilde dies

Brian Wilde, best known for his roles of Foggy in some 100 episodes of BBC comedy Last of the Summer Wine and Barrowclough in Porridge, but whose credits included several cult TV appearances, has died aged 80.

Brian last appeared in Last of the Summer Wine in 1997. "Since then, he has been invited to return many times, but says he feels he has 'done it now' and doesn't want to go back," the show's producer Alan JW Bell once said. "I am sure that one day he will make an appearance - we still have his costume standing by." Sadly, this was never to happen.

Cult TV appearances for Brian included Ace of Wands (as a magician in the episode Peacock Pie, pictured above), Out of the Unknown (The Uninvited), Doomwatch (in the untransmitted third season episode Sex and Violence), Catweazle (as the vicar, Potts, in The Telling Bone), The Avengers (The Fear Merchants), and The Ghosts of Motley Hall. He also appeared in the Hammer film To the Devil a Daughter.

Links
• Daily Telegraph Obituary

Captain Kronos Reunion

Next weekend sees a special reunion of the team involved in the Hammer Films feature Captain Kronos Vampire Hunter in London (29 March 2008). There are still a few tickets left, and anyone interested should contact organiser Don Fearney immediately. All money is due in by March 20th!

Made in 1974, the cast and crew of Hammer classic are reunited for this special one day event, which will take place at the Cine Lumiere in Queensberry Place, London SW7, on 29 March, from 10am til 6pm-ish.

The event will include cinema screenings of Captain Kronos Vampire Hunter, Vampire Circus, and the final cut of Don Fearney's documentary on Hammer Vampires.

Captain Kronos himself, Horst Jansen, is guest of honour, making a rare UK appearance.

Other confirmed guests include writer/director Brian Clemens, and actors Caroline Munro, John Cater, Lois Daine, Paul Greenwood, William Hobbs, and Stafford Gordon.

• Tickets for the event cost £30. Details for purhcase will be announced shortly through unofficialhammerfilms.com. To reserve your ticket, send a cheque for £30, made payable to event organiser "Donald Fearney" and send to: Don Fearney, 25 High Hill Ferry, Bakers Hill, London, E5 9HG

Links
• Captain Kronos review on British Horror Films UK

Hammer Stills Exhbition at BFI

Hammer Films, now in revival with plans to launch a 20 episode version of Beyond the Rave on its MySpace site, became synnonymous with horror. Yet the company produced a wide range of films including comedies, period costume adventures, psychological thrillers and war pictures. These were frequently frowned upon by critics who viewed the company as the purveyor of inconsequential exploitation pictures-an unfair representation of a brand that was one of the biggest success stories of the British film industry.

Many of Britain's most celebrated actors and technicians worked for Hammer - Joseph Losey, Freddie Francis, Val Guest, Robert Aldrich, Terrence Fisher all directed Hammer films.

Now, a selection of stills from the national collection are described by Wayne Kinsey and on display daily on the Mezzanine Level of the BFI on the South Bank, London from 11.00am until 10.30pm daily until 6 January 2008. Admission is free. (Nearest tube Waterloo. London SE1 8XT). For more news check out www.hammerfilms.com.

Beyond the Rave (pictured above), Hammer's first new production, will be broadcast in episodes on MySpace next spring before being released on DVD. Featuring Sadie Frost, the film is a UK co-production with the social networking website. The Guardian reports that Hammer says said Beyond the Rave would contain "all the ingredients of a Hammer classic made for a 21st Century audience: vampires, blood, death and suspense throughout".

Website bloody disgusting reported back in October that the film is a vampire story set in England’s underground party scene, and a combination of traditional horror themes and contemporary setting and characters. The movie follows the last hours of freedom of local soldier Ed, who is flying out to Iraq the following morning. With the help of his best friend Necro, he spends his last night in the UK tracking down his missing girlfriend Jen, last seen partying with a bizarre group of hardcore night-time ravers led by the mysterious Melech.

But as he catches up with Jen at a party in a remote forest, Ed discovers that Melech’s crowd, who are hosting the event, are looking for more than a night of fun, and that not everyone will make it through to dawn…

Hammer Time at Memorabilia

The winter Memorabilia collectables fair (www.memorabilia.co.uk) takes place at the NEC in Birmingham (UK) next weekend (24-25th November) and among the attractions, including guest appearances by Heroes' Greg Grunberg and a number of Hammer veterans, including Barrie Ingham, Caroline Munro, Dave Prowse, Leslie Phillips, Madeline Smith, Geoffrey Bayldon and Georgina Hale.

Also attending are key members of the Beyond the Rave team (Hammer Films' new production), who will be doing a signing at the Gorezone magazine stand, including stars Matthew Forest and Leslie Simpson, production manager James Harris, and director Matthias Hoene.

Bridging the two is actress Ingrid Pitt, who will be on her Pitt of Horror stand, next to the HammerShop (www.hammerfilms.com/shop).

Memorabilia is the collector's fair of the year, bringing hundreds of stalls under one roof dedicated to film and television collectables, alongside a large number of special guests at star table signings.

Hammer Horror Exhibition

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 on
the 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.

The Hammer Story book launch

The launch of the new edition of Titan Books' The Hammer Story is being celebrated with a special one-day event at the Cine Lumiere in Queensberry Place, London SW7, this coming Saturday, 27th October. The event will include cinema screenings of Never Take Sweets From a Stranger and The Two Faces of Dr Jekyll, along with one other as yet unconfirmed film.

Guests will include actors Geoffrey Bayldon, Kenneth Cope, Brian Croucher, Janina Faye and others, all of who will be signing copies of the new book with authors Marcus Hearn and Alan Barnes.

The event will also present a rare opportunity to purchase copies of a strictly limited leatherbound edition of The Hammer Story, which will not be otherwise available in stores.

This new edition of The Hammer Story, packed with new pictures and more provides a film-by-film dissection of the history of Hammer Films, dripping with rare promotional material and previously unpublished photographs.

Most tickets for the event have already been sold, but a few are still available. Tickets for the event cost £25 and can be purchased by
calling organiser Don Fearney on 020 8806 6915.

Time: 27 October 2007, 10am til 6pm-ish. Coffee and teas available in cinema cafe.

Address: Ciné Lumiere 17 Queensberry Place, South Kensington, SW7 2DT

Dracula - back from the dead!

This Hallowe'en, a stunning new restoration of Hammer's classic Dracula will thrill audiences at over 70 cinemas across the UK thanks to the British Film Institute.

The Hammer studio's most celebrated film, Dracula stars Christopher Lee in his first ever outing as the vampire Count. This was also the first version of Bram Stoker's famous novel to be filmed in colour, lending greater emphasis than ever before to the physical aspects of horror.

"Of all Draculas," says horror aficionado Kevin Jackson, "Christopher Lee is the most truly frightening." But he is also suave, debonair and an accomplished seducer who awakens his female prey's desire before they offer themselves as victims.

With its skilful blend of the erotic and the horrific, Dracula offers a richly satisfying big-screen experience - from the first appearance of the black-cloaked Count at the top of a flight of stairs, to the film's breathtakingly choreographed finale.

• Watch the trailer: www.bfi.org.uk/dracula/trailer

BOOK NOW

31 October Hallowe'en Previews

• Cineworld Cinema - For list of venues nationwide visit www.cineworld.co.uk
• IMAX, London - This screening will be introduced by Dracula screenwriter Jimmy Sangster
• National Media Museum Bradford
• Derby Quad
• Watershed Bristol
• Screen on the Green
• Screen Reigate
• Screen Oxted
• Screen Winchester

Opens 2 November

• BFI Southbank
• Cineworld Cinema See full list of venues at www.cineworld.co.uk
• Irish Film Institute

Classic Hammer Films on DVD

15 October 2007 sees the long awaited UK release of The Brides of Dracula and The Evil of Frankenstein on DVD, courtesy of Showbox Entertainment.

The Brides of Dracula is Peter Cushing's second outing as Van Helsing and David Peel's only vampire role. Described as one of the most beautifully photographed movies ever, even if the effects are dated (crappy bat alert!), but the film's redeeemed by great performances from Cushing and Peel plus sterling work from vetrans Freda Jackson and Martita Hunt

Cushing's authoratative Van Helsing carries the movie and David Peel's Baron Meinster, who is causing havoc in a girl's school, is an excellent vampire foe.

Cushing also features in The Evil of Frankenstein, as Baron Frankenstein who, not content with once creating one monstrous creature, returns to his ancestral home in Karlstaad, determined to continue his experiments into the creation of life. This isn't the best of the Frankenstein films, but Cushing is always good value in my book.

Hammer launches repro quad posters

HammerWeb, the official Hammer Films web site, has been updated today with information about the new range of official reproduction Quad posters which were launched last week. These comprise a set of 12 posters, released one a month, featuring digitally restored original UK quad poster artwork.

The Curse of Frankenstein is the first in the series in this, its 50th anniversary year. The posters are available from www.postersandstuff.co.uk for £19.99 each with free global postage. The official Hammer Shop will also be stocking them.

Full details are available through the Hammer site (the old website, which I helped design, continues to be updated ahead of a relaunch in the coming months).

For fans who are on the various social networking sites, Hammer now has launched profiles and discussion groups on Bebo (www.bebo.com/hammerhorrorfans) and Facebook (search for "Official Hammer Films") to accompany the myspace profile which has been operating for the last year.

Titan Re-Releases "Hammer Story"

Fifty years ago, Hammer Films released their first ‘gothic’ horror movie, The Curse of Frankenstein, beginning a series of films that changed the face of horror cinema. ‘Hammer Horror’ made international stars of Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee, and inspired a generation of Hollywood filmmakers, including George Lucas, Martin Scorsese and Tim Burton, earning the company an esteemed place in cinematic history.

Over the decades, Hammer Films (now under new ownership) has been the subject of dozens of books, essays and documentaries; now, Hammer has given active backing to a fully-authorised history of the company. Compiled with unlimited access to the Hammer archives this new edition of The Hammer Story from Titan Books, due for release 26 October 2007, provides a film-by-film dissection of the history of Hammer Films, dripping with rare promotional material and previously unpublished photographs.

Co-author Marcus Hearn is a highly acclaimed expert on Hammer Films (and he did some brilliant work for me when I edited Doctor Who Magazine) and was the editor of the short-lived Hammer Horror magazine, for which Alan Barnes wrote features.

The first edition was excellent and Marcus tells me this second revised edition is packed with new pictures and considerably improved versions of the old ones. Titan are also doing a limited edition with a leather cover, which sounds very fancy.

The Hammer Story is, frankly, one of the best books on Hammer Films ever written, in my opinion, and well worth grabbing if you're a fan.

• Buy The Hammer Story from amazon.co.uk
• Buy The Hammer Story from amazon.com

Top Ten Hammer Facts

• 2007 is the 50th anniversary of the release of Hammer’s first gothic horror movie, The Curse of Frankenstein.

• Hammer films influenced a whole generation of film directors, including Martin Scorsese, Tim Burton and George Lucas.

• Though best known for their horror films, Hammer also made thrillers, swashbucklers, war movies, and comedies. In fact their comedy On the Buses was the British box office champion of 1971!

• Hammer were also responsible for the indelible image of Raquel Welch in a fur bikini, in their historically inaccurate but hugely entertaining dinosaurs vs. humans epic One Million Years B.C.

• Hammer’s films were exported around the world, and benefited the British economy to such an extent that the company was presented with The Queen’s Award to Industry in 1968.

• The ‘vampire bats’ which menaced the cast in Kiss of the Vampire were actually toys bought from Woolworths.

• Hammer were masters of the poster tagline. One of their best was for The Mummy’s Shroud: ‘Beware the beat of the cloth-wrapped feet!’

• The legendary Bette Davis starred in two Hammer films, The Nanny and The Anniversary.

• The even more legendary Oliver Reed scored his first leading role in Hammer’s Curse of the Werewolf.

• Hammer Films Limited was recently bought by a company owned by John de Mol (the Dutch media giant behind Big Brother). With several new films in development, Hammer is set to rise from the grave!