Showing posts with label robin hood. Show all posts
Showing posts with label robin hood. Show all posts

Thursday 17 October 2019

RARE SCHOOL FOR SCANDAL CUSHING PHOTOGRAPH PLUS ACTORS NIGEL GREEN AND ROBERT URQUHART REMEMBERED


A VERY RARE PHOTOGRAPH OF PETER CUSHING in 1948 FEB until OCT!! Now That is a LONG tour! Granted 'Richard III was also part of the tour, but knowing how Cushing found the repetitive nature of eight or nine performances a week, extremely difficult... I don't know how he did it. But here is where he learnt his trade, skills and attitude, that would prepare him for tv work in the 1950's and days that could be long and draining on the set of film work . . come November 1952 and one of his first roles on LIVE BBC tv in 'If This Be Error' .. HE certainly, would not be making errors


TODAY we are marking the birthday of that fine English character actor NIGEL GREEN . . . Green left us at only 47 years of age, with a very impressive career already at that point. In our banner can be seen on the far right, in a little get together on the set of the cast of Amicus films THE SKULL (1965) with Peter, Patrick Wymark far left, Patrick Magee sat down on the right. Green had a small role of Inspector Wilson, in the film.






ABOVE: PCAS FULL REVIEW AND LOBBY STILLS GALLERY OF 'THE SKULL'  Just CLICK HERE!


ABOVE: FULL REVIEW FEATURE OF TWILIGHT TIME REMASTERED BLU RAY RELEASE AND GALLERY! 'Sword of Sherwood Forest' tarring Peter Cushing, Richard Green, Nigel Green and Oliver Reed : JUST CLICK HERE! 



BECAUSE OF HIS STRAPPING build and commanding height, (6 feet, 1 inch) & regimental demeanour he would often be found playing military types and men of action, in films such as Jason and the Argonauts, Zulu, Tobruk and The Ipcress File. His large physique also led to his being cast as Little John in Hammer films THE SWORD OF SHERWOOD FOREST (1960), with Peter Cushing.Green also appeared in a number of horror films including Corridors of Blood (1958), The Masque of the Red Death (1964), as the father of Jane Asher's character, The Skull (1965) also with Cushing, Let's Kill Uncle (1966) and Hammer's COUNTESS DRACULA with Ingrid Pitt(1971)
 

REMEMBERING Robert Urquhart. 'Quiet, well-read and a lover of classical music, Robert Urquhart was an actor who grew frustrated with his career as he grew older. It was, he bemoaned, an honourable profession but so much of the material he was offered did not deserve any respect...' Robert Urquhart Obituary. 'The Independent' newspaper, 24th March 1995. In the early 1950's Urquhart was building himself quite a reputation for his theatre work. A reputation that would eventually bring him to the attention of studio casting agents and land him supporting roles on the big screen. But it was in the medium of film, that Urquhart was not such a happy chap...


THAT ONE FILM WAS 'The Curse of Frankenstein' with Peter Cushing in 1957 for Hammer film. He detested it. It is said he left the premier screening, refused to make appearances to promote it and only in the last years of his revived career on television, could he find the stomach to even mention it, if it was brought up in interviews. By 1980, Urquhart had cooled off a little..and appeared in another Hammer production, the Hammer House of Horror' television series, in an episode entitled, - Children of the Full Moon. However, we remember him today for his sterling performance in The Curse of Frankenstein'!

Monday 17 December 2018

REVIEW : TWILIGHT TIMES THE SWORD OF SHERWOOD FOREST BLU RAY




THE CHARACTER of ROBIN HOOD as far as film production is concerned, seems to have revived and arrived as frequently as the BLOKE in the Cloak, Count Dracula. Since 1938, when actor Errol Flynn donned the tights and bow in 'The Adventures of Robin Hood', which hit loads of lolly for the rich and entertainment for the thrill hungry public, Robin and his Merry Men have nearly always been a winner. There have been many remakes and story direction retakes  that not only revived the tale, but such was the power of the story of Mr Hood, you can spot it like a well aimed arrow, providing themes, influences in everything from extended ideas for spin offs, Mel Brooks epics and even down to a Tom and Jerry or Bugs Bunny cartoon! The world of Robin Hood is one of Olde Worlde very rich, but usless kings, lords and ladies, fat monks and pious priest, where every town has men with swords and maidens who are lit and presented in soft focus, having been crafted by a Westmore brother, who  struggle with the caddish-fiend advances of tash tweaking, baddie barons. But I LOVE it!  



HAMMER FILMS 'SWORD OF SHERWOOD FOREST'  couldn't be and isn't the DISNEY or Errol version. This Hammer film budget, but BUT it is enormously entertaining. Hammer set design guru, Bernard Robinson was and had been tied up with The Mummy, The Brides of Dracula and the Two Faces of Doctor Jekyll, so John Stoll, did the duties. The reason WHY SWORD does so well is because of its excellent cas. which headlines with Peter Cushing as the Sheriff of Nottingham.. in THREE splendid costume changes. Knowing PC he probably pooted along to Berman's and chose them, as he would say 'Mu-self!'...  and Richard Greene as the lead, and for many THE Robin! Others include Hammer's Richard Pascoe, almost 'out stepping' Cushing as a beauty of a bounder and baddie! Oliver Reed gets the better of Cushing's Sheriff, Niall McGinnis makes a very good Friar Tuck and Richard Greene IS Little John! For a tale, almost exclusively set in woodlands and forest, that also has the FOREST word in its title, one wonders if actress Sarah BRANCH was cast and chosen, only for the potentially endless publicity and press office premier inches that could be pushed and published using her surname as an endless pun? BRANCH is very good in the feature, but held a held a carear that only lasted just over four years!? Did Hammer and Chairman Sir James only spot the BRANCH potential as the main and valid reason to another money spinner and quickly slapped together another fim poster to collect the backers cash? Nope. Truth is, the business  and Hollywood has been churning out  Robin Hood films for actually MORE than a century. And Sword of Sherwood Forest, is certainly one of my personal favorites!



SWORD OF SHERWOOD FOREST is a film from an era, where movies where 'crafted' for the family. No gallons of gore or huge and cavernous miles deep cleavage, to fall into here! You would think, the attraction of such a film of such qualities, would be well passed. BUT just two weeks ago, PCAS offered up SEVEN copies of the Twilight Time remastered blu ray as sponsored prizes in a VERY well supported competition. This gives a fair indication, that Robin and his Merry Men are still very popular. And in THIS EXCELLENT transfer of the feature film, which is typical of the standard of quality we have come to expect from Twilight Time and Sony, the release looks very good indeed! 


SWORD OF SHERWOOD FOREST was directed by Hammer film icon Terence Fisher, who was well prepared and knew exactly how best to present all the 'key Hood' moments, having also directed many of the television series episode, that also starred Richrad Greene as Robin. It looks delicious, having been shot in Technicolor and makes the most of the luscious green forests, fern, flora and fauna of the Irish location, having been shot in beautiful Enniskery, County Wicklow. 


VISION
FOR ALL THOSE who mull of the technical pickings of screen size and frames, this 2.35:1 Megascope production is bang on, properly framed. The visuals in that frame, well meet the standards we have come to expect from Twilight Time, who in the past have brought us other Peter Cushing classics like Hammer films 'The Hound Of The Baskervilles' (1959)  and Amicus films 'THE SKULL' (1965) this transfer is immaculate! The colours are VIBRANT and do justice to the magnificent scenery, that both Fisher and cinematographer Ken Hodges were working to capture on the big screen. Hodges also worked with Fisher on the TV series. 


ABOVE: SEVEN LUCKY WINNERS of our TWILIGHT TIME PCAS competition last month!


SOUND
THE SOUNDTRACK on the disc comes as a  DTS HD-MA mono track, which presents dialogue clearly, with no drop out, hiss or bassey muffle. Even though in mono, the music composed by Alun Hoddinott, as in ALL Hood films and particulary the UK tv series, sounds terific. is as good as it could be, with clear dialogue throughout, supporting the clanking and thrashing of duels and sword fights very well. All of this drama, sometimes takes a break and presents Alan-a-Dale played by Denis Lotis singing and yodeling, medieval melodies with harp, flute and his mandolin! Charming! English SDH subtitles are available. 


EXTRAS
IN THE PAST, Twilight Time extras have included, documentaries, galleries, trailers and posters. This release offers a very nice isolated music and effects track. Which personally, would always get my vote, over endless talking heads of types who weren't even breathing when the film was released, let alone a twinkle in some daddy's eye! Also included is the theatrical for the film and the very nice thought of a short but appreciative glossy brochure / booklet on the film.

FOLLOWERS who are interested in purchasing it can skip along to the Twilight Time website or the Screen Archives website to order their copy. A GREAT watch for the family at Christmas.
 

Sunday 9 December 2018

UPDATED! THE SEVEN WINNERS WHO HAVE WON TWILIGHT TIME REMASTERED ;SWORD OF SHERWOOD FOREST' BLU RAY PRIZES TODAY!


THIS COMPETITITON IS NOW CLOSED AND THE WINNERS HAVE BEEN DRAWN! MANY CONGRATULATIONS TO DOUGLAS, LINDSAY, SANDRA, PAUL, ALEX, JIM AND BARBARA! YOU are ALL Winners Many thanks to everyone who entered this competition and to our sponsors Twilight Time for our prizes! Can the winners please contact me within 24 hours, with details of where you would like your prize to be despatched! The CORRECT ANSWER was of course, MAID MARIAN or Marianne! So many of you got THAT one! There is ANOTHER PCASUK COMPETITION getting set on the starting blocks for early next week! Please check the VERY BOTTOM of this post below Thanks Everyone! - Marcus


IF YOU HAVEN'T HAVE TIME to ENTER our PCAS 'Sword of Sherwood Forest 'COMPETITION or have missed our posts... SEVEN prizes of TWILIGHT TIME'S remastered blu ray, starring Peter Cushing... HERE is YOUR CHANCE! YOU have just over FIVE HOURS to enter! Below are the details of our competititon NOW being held at the FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE, the competition question and HOW TO ENTER! I'll be annoucing the lucky winners at 6pm GMT tonight. So, time is ticking, get you ENTER in NOW! This competititon like ALL PCAS competitions, is open to EVERYONE, who ever, where ever YOU are 😉. YOU CA ALSO ORDER YOUR COPY, DIRECT FROM TWILIGHT TIME RIGHT HERE!



THE TWILIGHT TIME SPECIAL EDITION release of the remastered blu ray of Hammer films 1960 'Sword of Sherwood Forest; is a pretty neat package and a great addition to anyone's Hammer or Peter Cushing collection. Twilight has done grand job on the remastering, and Cushing looks every bit the villain of the piece, as the Sheriff of Nottingham, very sharp images and good enough to eat in glorious Eastman colour. It's a great job, on a not so well known Hammer film, that makes you wish the studio, director Terence Fisher and Peter Cushing had produced more adventures, with this same cast.


WE ARE VERY PLEASED to have SEVEN COPIES of the REMASTERED 'Sword Of Sherwood Forest; Blu Ray... courtesy of TWILIGHT TIME.... as prizes in the PCAS Competition! All you have to do is GO TO OUR FACEBOOK PCASUK FACEBOOK FAN PAGE FOLLOW the directions on the Competition Banner and ANSWER THE QUESTION BELOW, ONLY USING THE FACEBOOK MESSAGE CONTACT BUTTON! BEWARE! ANY answers posted on Facebook PCAS FAN Page, will be deleted and deemed void... plus you can expect a visit from a bunch of medieval rough-types with clubs and pointed sticks..! So, HERE GOES:

COMPETITION QUESTION:
In Hammer films, 'Sword of Sherwood Forest' and many other Robin Hood stories, Robin has a long time romantic interest . .. what is HER NAME?

Please chose ONE of the following:
a) Maid Melanie b) Maid In Hong Kong c) Maid Yesterday d) Maid Marian e) Maid Outofwood f) Maid Justintime

NOW GO TO THE FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE  AND SEND US YOUR ANSWER!

A REVIEW of the blu ray appears here at the PCAS website shortly, Good Luck Everyone!


BELOW FULL RELEASE SPEC: 'Sword of Sherwood Forest' Starring: Richard Greene, Peter Cushing, Niall MacGinnis, Richard Pasco, Jack Gwillim, Sarah Branch, Oliver Reed Video: 1080p High Definition / 2.35:1 / Color Audio: English 1.0 DTS-HD MA. Subtitles: English SDH Theatrical Release: 1960 Runtime: 80 Minutes Rating: NR (Not Rated) Region Code: Region Free (A/B/C)

Special Features: Isolated Music & Effects Track / Original Theatrical Trailer



Saturday 8 December 2018

A VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO JENNIE LINDEN AND STILL TIME TO BAG YOUR ROBIN HOOD BLU RAY!


TODAY IT'S A VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY to actress JENNIE LINDEN who fought the good fight against the Daleks with Peter Cushing as Dr Who in 'Dr Who and the Daleks' in 1965.. Jennie had a VERY full and quite accomplished carear where she appeared in several notable feature films and television series. One feature 'Women In Love' directed by Ken Russell in  1969 with its  infamous fireplace scene of two men wrestling naked, was in its day one of the most controversial films ever made in Britain! Audiences flocked to cinemas to be shocked and scandalised.  




BUT BEFORE ALL THIS DRAMA and promise of super-stardom, back in 1965 Jennie played Barbara, niece to Peter Cushing's Dr Who in the first of AARU's big screen adaptions of the BBC television series Dr Who. The programme and it's most popular aliens. THE DALEKS were taking the country by storm, and DALEKMANIA had started. Sadly, when the producers decided to make another Dr Who Dalek film, Jenny's role was taken by another actress, Jill Curzon . . . Jennie also appeared opposite Lee Remick and Ian Holm in the film version of Iris Murdoch's novel 'A Severed Head' (1970). Her later film appearances included 'Vampira' (1974), 'Hedda' (1975), 'Valentino' (1977), and 'Charlie Muffin' (1979). Happy Birthday Jennie!



JENNIE WITH Veronica Carlson in VAMPIRA in 1977




JENNIE LINDEN is ALSO one of our FEATURED actresses in our FEMME FATALE series. You can find out more about Jennie's carear and her work with Peter Cushing HERE! This feature also has an extended gallery of images featuring Jennie in several productions and TV shows . . .


THE HOURS ARE TICKING but there is still time to ENTER our PCASUK COMPETITION and win yourself a copy of Peter Cushing's SWORD OF SHERWOOD FOREST remastered LIMITED edition BLU RAY from TWILIGHT TIME!  There are SEVEN copies to win and just ONE question! Go to OUR COMPETITION  HERE!

Tuesday 4 December 2018

WHEN THE BARONESS DID YOGA IN THE NUDE AND THIS WEEK'S TUESDAY TOUGHY!


THIS WEEK'S Cushing Tuesday Toughy! . . Can you identify the TITLE of that film in our QUESTION this week?😕 I'll be giving you the ANSWER on Friday! Meanwhile . . as this one beat you? Feel free to join in on the suggestions of ANSWERS in the THREAD at the FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE! Good luck!


ABOVE: HERE is ANSWER to last week's TUESDAY TOUGHY! Some of you got this one spot on! Well done 😃 I am happy to tell you, Hugh Harlow is still with us, Martita who was 59 at the time, sadly is not. Thankfully, this happening, was something she never did find out about . . ! PLEASE remember the PCAS Cushing Tuesday Toughies are just for fun. BUT if you want to try and bag yourself a PRIZE the PCAS SWORD OF SHERWOOD FOREST COMPETITION is STILL OPEN, here you can win yourself a copy of the FAB remastered TWILIGHT TIME REGION FREE BLU RAY until SUNDAY 9th of December 2018! Have a GO! 

Sunday 2 December 2018

COMPETITION! WIN COPIES OF LIMITED EDITION OF HAMMER FILMS 'SWORD OF SHERWOOD FOREST' REMASTERED BLU RAY : SEVEN COPIES UP FOR GRABS


THE TWILIGHT TIME SPECIAL EDITION RELEASE of the remastered blu ray of Hammer films 1960 'Sword of Sherwood Forest, is a pretty neat package and a great addition to anyone's Hammer or Peter Cushing collection. Twilight has done grand job on the remastering, and Cushing looks every bit the villain of the piece, as the Sheriff of Nottingham, very sharp images and good enough to eat in glorious Eastman colour. It's a great job, on a not so well known Hammer film, that makes you wish the studio, director Terence Fisher and Peter Cushing had produced more adventures, with this same cast. We are VERY please to have SEVEN COPIES... courtesy of TWILIGHT TIME.... as prizes in the PCAS Competition, which is NOW LIVE at the  FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE!



ALL YOU HAVE TO DO is go along to the CLICK HERE  and go along to the Facebookbook PCASUK Fan Page and FOLLOW the directions on the Competition Banner...simple! There you will find the Competition Question and how to enter. As with all PCASUK Competititons, it's FREE and open to everyone, where ever YOU are! A FULL REVIEW of Twilight Times 'Sword of Sherwood Forest' will appear here on the website, TOMORROW! GOOD LUCK! YOU CAN ORDER YOUR COPY FROM TWILIGHT TIME : HERE!

 

Saturday 1 December 2018

CONGRATULATIONS TO WINNER OF THE FIVE QUESTIONS SIGNED LEE DRACULA COMPETITION PLUS ANSWERS!


AND SO, HERE WE ARE AT LAST!  I am very happy to congratulate... SAMANTHA PEREZ whose name was pulled out of HUGE pile of correct entries in our PCAS Five Question Competition! Samantha has bagged the signed Christopher Lee framed colour photograph portrait from Dracula AD 1972. THis competition was, if you remember, part of our celebration of Dracula AD 1972, being released on remastered blu ray, by Warner Brothers. I would like to thank everyone who not only took part in this competition, but also the two other opportunites to win copies of AD and Satanic Rites . .  both fine Hammer Dracula outings starring Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing and available from Warner Bros now! You'll find all the answers to the FIVE questions below Question five was a little bit of an issue for some, but in really wanting everyone to have an opportunity to win, we found a solution! Again, well done to Samantha and here's to our next PCAS Competition....Tomorrow...! - Marcus







COMPETITION NEXT WEEK!


COMPETITION TOMORROW!


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