Welcome back to our “Beasts” Double Bill! Last time, we watched "The Dummy" from the infamous anthology series by General Witchfinders hero Nigel Kneale.

We now leave the smashed-up movie set of "The Dummy" with its snarling Y-fronts-wearing jilted actor and join Angie and Roger Truscott in their secluded Hampshire home for "During Barty's Party." This episode features the only actual 'beasts' as the main threat: in this case, large, super-evolved, intelligent rats.

Elizabeth Sellars plays Angie Truscott, known for "The Mummy's Shroud," and Anthony Bate plays Roger Truscott, heavily channeling Michael Bryant's Peter Brock character from "The Stone Tape." Bate was cast as Doctor Fendehman in "Image of the Fendahl" but dropped out, with Denis Lill taking the role.

Colin Bell plays Barty Wills, the local DJ hosting the titular "Barty's Party," his regular rock and roll radio show. Like the rest of the cast, Bell is only heard, not seen. He is seen, however, in "The Sea Devils" and "Invasion of the Dinosaurs," both Jon Pertwee stories.

Norman Mitchell plays the Police Sergeant. Supposedly, at 18, Mitchell walked from Sheffield to London to become an actor, leading to nearly 200 film appearances, 500 radio broadcasts, and an estimated 2,000 television appearances. He developed a niche of playing policemen, appearing as such in 12 episodes of "Worzel Gummidge," "Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell" (more on this very soon), "And Now the Screaming Starts!", "Oliver!" and the first Doctor Who Christmas episode, "The Feast of Steven."

John Rhys-Davies plays Peter Newell. Famous for his parts in Lord of the Rings and Raiders of the Lost Ark. Rhys-Daviesis a supporter of the British Conservative Party, Rhys-Davies was a radical leftist in the '60s, who tried to heckle a young Tory MP. But the parliamentarian "shot down the first two hecklers in such brilliant fashion that I decided I ought for once to shut up and listen". The MP was Margaret Thatcher. He is a supporter of Brexit. On 25 April 2019, he appeared as a panellist on the BBC's Question Time. His conduct on the programme towards politician Caroline Lucas was later described as "thuggish and sexist" by some viewers.

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We continue where we left off in episode 27 with our exploration of the 1976 British anthology series "Beasts," written by the legendary Nigel Kneale (who now has his own dedicated page on our website!), tonight we watch the first of two episodes "The Dummy." Directed by Don Leaver (not Cleaver), a veteran of many shows from our youth and boasts credits on two episodes of "Hammer House of Horror": "Witching Time" and "The Mark of Satan"

Bernard Horsfal as Clyde Boydl: He appeared in classic TV series like the very first episode of "The Avengers" and a four "Doctor Who" serials: "The Mind Robber," "The War Games," "The Planet of the Daleks," and "The Deadly Assassin."

Glyn Houston as Sidney Stewart: another "Doctor Who" alumnus, having featured in "The Hand of Fear" and "The Awakening."

The fantastically named Thorley Walters as Sir Ramsey: bringing a wealth of genre experience to the table, playing the Burgermeister in "Vampire Circus, "Dr. Hertz in "Frankenstein Created Woman" and Inspector Frisch in "Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed,". Notably,

Michael Sheard as the Sergeant, who gained fame for his portrayal of the tyrannical schoolteacher Mr. Bronson in Grange Hill during the mid-1980s. He also developed a niche for playing Adolf Hitler, appearing in four films: "Rogue Male," "The Dirty Dozen: Next Mission," "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade," an uncredited role in "Hitler of the Andes." and in the TV series "The Tomorrow People." Sheard also made appearances in Doctor Who: "The Ark," "Mind of Evil," "Pyramid of Mars," "The Invisible Enemy," "Castrovalva," and "Remembrance of the Daleks.

We also see Lillias Walker as Joan Eastgate - her obligatory Doctor Who appearance being "Terror of the Zygons", was married to Peter Vaughan, who starred in "Warning to the Curious." (episode 21)

Patricia Haines as Sheila Boy - She also starred in "Virgin Witch" with first-time actor Vicky Michelle. Haines was married to Michael Caine with whom she had a daughter; sadly, this was her final screen role.

And finally, of course, one of our most featured actors, Clive Swift (or as the Apple Podcasts AI transcript generator calls him, Kloof Swift). We've covered his career several times now, and I highly recommend Andrew Screens ‘Book of Beasts’ blog for a fantastic, exhaustive biography.

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28 Days Later is a 2002 British post-apocalyptic horror film, our first film from the 21st Century.

Ewan McGregor was the original choice to play the protagonist, ‘Jim’, but he and director Danny Boyle had a falling-out at the time over The Beach, in which McGregor was to play the lead but was replaced by Leonardo DiCaprio (McGregor and Boyle have since reconciled). After McGregor, the role was offered to Ryan Gosling, who passed, having a scheduling conflict, leading to the film being offered to the relatively unknown Cillian Murphy.

Danny Boyle films include: Shallow Grave, Trainspotting, A Life Less Ordinary, The Beach, Sunshine and 127 Hours. He was the artistic director for the opening ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics, which he was offered a knighthood but declined. 

In 2011 he directed Frankenstein on stage for the National Theatre, with dual Holmes’s: Cumberbatch and Miller, (that James was lucky enough to see live).

Regular collaborator with Boyle, writer and director Alex Garland (who wrote this film) has a filmography that includes: Never Let Me Go, Dredd, Ex Machina, (for which he received an Oscar nomination), Annihilation and the fantastically bonkers ‘Men’.

Garland has said he took inspiration for 28 days later from George A. Romero's Living Dead film series and John Wyndham's 1951 novel The Day of the Triffids.

The crew filmed during early mornings and temporarily closed streets to capture recognisable and typically busy areas when they were deserted. For the scene in which Jim walks by the overturned double-decker bus, the crew placed the bus on its side and removed it when the shot was finished, all within 20 minutes. They had asked permission to place the bus outside Downing Street, but Westminster City Council refused. When they arrived at 4am and nobody from the council was present, they placed it there anyway.

One of the first mainstream films to be shot entirely digitally, it was a financial success., grossing more than $82.7 million worldwide on its modest budget of $8 million, it became one of the most profitable horror films of 2002.

Producer Andrew Macdonald had access to funding from the National Lottery, and pitched it to Universal Pictures, who declined to support it. Budget constraints proved to be an issue, with Christopher Eccleston having to take an emergency pay cut during filming. Macdonald announced to the crew that the production had run out of money, and filming ceased without a closing sequence being shot. After pitching several endings, the original, which featured Jim's death, tested badly with audiences, the studio granted more funding to film the ending scene that was eventually used. The crew organised for a real jet to fly overhead for them to film, as this was cheaper than approximately £70,000 for a computer-generated one.

Despite Boyle not considering it a zombie film, 28 Days Later is credited with reinvigorating the zombie genre and influencing a revival in the decade after its release, with its fast-running monsters and character-driven drama.

The film was followed by the 2007 sequel 28 Weeks Later and Boyle and Garland have been reportedly working on a 3rd part entitled “28 Years Later” (which may or may not be being released in 3 parts - depending on what rumours you read).

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