We shall see.

Greetings, Ghostwatchers!

After a very long time in the making, GHOSTWATCH: On the Night is available now from Big Cartel exclusively for the regions of Australia & New Zealand. And, for the first month of release until Hallowe'en Night 2026, will be on special offer at A$39.95 from the RRP of A$49.95, plus shipping.

This Special Edition Blu-ray has been an enormous undertaking. It has involved years of research, restoration, sourcing, editing, designing, correspondence, problem-solving and an occasionally unreasonable level of attention to detail. The aim was never simply to put Ghostwatch on a disc; it was to create a release that reflects the programme’s singular place in British television history and the remarkable devotion it still inspires.

The 2002 BFI DVD remains a high watermark for the title - a thoughtful, essential release that treated Ghostwatch with the seriousness and care it deserved. On the Night is intended to sit alongside it - a more expansive companion that returns the programme to the texture and context of its original broadcast, while opening up further corners of its history.

At its centre is Ghostwatch itself, presented unedited and professionally broadcast-converted. For the first time on home media, it is restored to its original transmission context: the BBC One Lambie-Nairn Virtual Globe ident precedes the Screen One “boulder” animation, while closing continuity follows the credits, as spoken by announcer Mark Waddington.

That may sound like a small detail, but it is fundamental to what we wanted to achieve. Ghostwatch was never merely a television drama. It was an event - an intrusion into the familiar rhythms of a Saturday-night BBC broadcast. This edition is our attempt to get as close as possible to that original flow, and to make the annual National Séance feel properly, totally, fully, comprehensively complete.

 

The release includes a substantial range of additional material...

A newly recorded discussion featuring Ruth Baumgarten, Gillian Bevan, Sarah Greene and Lesley Manning brings together key voices from the production to look back on the making of the programme, its reception, and the extraordinary legacy it has acquired.

Three original broadcast trailers featuring Sarah Greene are included, preserving the way Ghostwatch was introduced to viewers in the days before 31 October 1992.

Subtitle data has been sourced from two separate off-air recordings, kindly shared by Jim Lynn and Simon Lawden (one of whom is my father, guess which), and restored by Jason Robertson in its original Ceefax format. The timing, formatting and quirks of the original subtitles have been retained rather than smoothed away. Also included is 31/10, a Ceefax-style presentation written by Stephen Volk, extending the events of the original transmission.

There is also The Broom Cupboard, footage featuring Andi Peters and Sarah Greene shortly after the original broadcast, and one of the more unusual pieces of material associated with that night.

The long-form centrepiece is Ghostwatch: Behind the Curtains, the original retrospective exploring the production, impact and long afterlife of the programme. It is accompanied by Return to Foxhill, a more recent visit to the original filming location, where some very familiar details still remain.

On-disc navigation is handled through a bespoke GRD-1 archive-style interface. It is deliberately built as something to explore rather than simply a conventional modern Blu-ray menu, with material not always arranged in the most obvious order... Sayin' nuffin', mate.

The physical edition has received the same level of attention. The outer slipcase is based on a recovered archive-style design, while the main cover has a different character entirely, including a reversible early-1990s VHS-inspired alternative. Inside is a 32-page O.C.C. dossier packed with material connected to the programme and the release.

For the first 25 orders only, the edition will also include two special limited A5 art cards featuring artwork by artistes extraordinares Arfon Jones and Paul Draper, with further evocative pieces found in the booklet.

We also want to congratulate Marc Flackett and Ash Loydon, our competition prize winners, whose artistic contributions will receive a special token of thanks as part of the release, as will Sarah Sumeray for her very own spooky contribution.

Huge thanks are due to SFX for their support, to Mark Brindle at Maniac Films for helping bring the project to the point where it could become real, and to John Wright for his support and invaluable Antipodean input. Thank you also to Jackie Whalin for, well, everything, and every contributor who has shared knowledge, footage, material, encouragement or patience along the way. Even Willow Floyd.

There may yet be more to come. For now, though, GHOSTWATCH: On the Night is here and available from Big Cartel.

A final word on the long silence. The last two years have not always left this project the time it deserved. Life has a way of making its priorities clear, and family has rightly come first. We are grateful beyond words to everyone who stayed interested, offered help, lent their expertise, or simply waited for us to get here. All I can say is, Freddie - you have one incredibly proud dad. I truly hope that, when you're old enough, you'll finally enjoy what your old man has spent so long helping to put together. This is my life's work. Well, it was, mate. x

Both Lesley and I hope you can feel the care in every part of this release. And also that it gives you a reason to dim the lights on Hallowe'en Night, 31st October. Speaking of which, if I can stay awake, I'll try and think up an idea for National Séance this year.

Which reminds me...

Just try not to have sleepless nights...