Ghostwatch: Behind the Curtains

It is with great sadness that we report the passing away of Ghostwatch Executive Producer, Richard Broke. He was 70. A true legend in his field, with a plethora of credits to his name, Richard was responsible for heading some of the most innovative and highest-rated television productions of all time, including the acclaimed, The Monocled Mutineer (1986), and multi-award winning, Tumbledown (1988). He was both nominated for, and won several BAFTA and RTS Television awards, alongside many other accolades, and considerable high praise. A greatly-respected figure in the TV and Film Industry, in the late 1980s, he (in)famously helped develop a six-part supernatural serial by Stephen Volk entitled, ' Ghost Watch ', into a radical, single drama, with Ruth Baumgarten and Lesley Manning, for the successful Screen One drama strand, which he also Executive Produced for BBC1. Following transmission, he staunchly defended the show when it came under fire, even going so far as to ma...

Greetings Ghostwatchers! Sorry to drop this on you at almost the last minute, but... how does a Behind the Curtains screening in Scarborough sound? Well, if your reply was even just a momentary, intrigued-sounding murmur, then you might be interested to hear that perhaps as many as two shall be taking place, next weekend... Final schedule is still TBC, but at last, we can finally reveal that the inaugural Sci-Fi Scarborough event shall be holding a live showing of the doc on 5-6 April at the Spa Complex. Director, Rich Lawden will be in attendance, not only heading a Q&A at some point, but also signing some DVDs, and even a few increasingly-limited copies of the companion book of the same name. If that wasn't enough, fellow GW/BtC alumnus Craig Charles is set to funk things up on the Saturday night with his inimitable DJ set. In addition to a Trading Hall, there shall be an Artists' Alley, a Jedi Fight Academy for all you wannabe Skywalkers out there, and the chanc...

Yesterday, we learned the very sad news that Lewis, the young son of Ghostwatch.info creator, Stephen Freestone, had passed away. Let's keep this simple. There are two organisations dedicated to helping kids, parents and carers of children like Lewis, affected by rare genetic disorders, and they need our help: JSUK.org Dandy-Walker.org All donations would be gratefully received in memory of this amazing, and inspirational young man, and we wish Stephen and his family all the very best during this difficult time. Come on guys, let's make a difference!

It's a rare and precious thing to feel such a degree of sadness and sorrow following the passing of somebody you hadn't yet had the good fortune to bump into someplace and share a smile, but even so, the recent passing of Harold Ramis still hit me as if somehow losing an old friend. I shall try not to ramble, particularly as I don't need to convince fans of anything they already know. I just felt compelled to mark this truly sad event in some small way. The legacy and influence of arguably, his most beloved character, Dr. Egon Spengler (so named after historian and philosopher, Oswald Spengler, and Hungarian refugee/classmate, Egon Donsbach), is as globe-spanning, as it is undeniable. I wonder just how many positive vibes have stemmed from us watching the adventures of this renowned, bespectacled, spores-moulds-and-fungus collector. Enough to bring the Statue of Liberty to life, and take her for a stroll down Fifth Avenue, at least. I vividly recall my mother first br...

Greetings, Ghostwatchers! There's a curious, repeating phenomenon that is often reported during screenings of the doc (which began during our very first event, no less). It seems to occur around the same time the end credits roll, with members of the audience nodding their heads and tapping their feet in tune to Ian Evans' inspired closing number, 'Ghost Watch' . Then, the compliments/questions start pouring in. "This sounds great." "What's this music?", "How did you get hold of that?", "Who wrote this, then?", "When's this from?", and so on. It even marks the first topic to grace the film's IMDb message board . So, you can imagine our building anticipation on catching the news that musician, Ian Evans is currently gearing up to release his follow up E.P. to 'Ghost Watch'. Entitled, "Everything is The Same Subject", the new Extended Play is due to hit, February 14th. To check out ...

Conventions. They're a big deal, these days. I remember going to one of the early Memorabilia fairs at the NEC in the late nineties, and it was actually... cosy. Now, many of the present-day events have room for a plethora of dealer tables, celebrity signings, imaginative costumers, and even... wait for it... Us! Yes, this summer, Behind the Curtains shall be descending upon Earls Court for the gigantic London Film and Comic Con 2014 from Friday 11th to Sunday 13th of July. Rich Lawden'll be there, Stephen Volk'll be there, and Lesley Manning'll be there (commitments permitting, and each likely appearing on alternating days) to sign all your wonderful Ghostwatch stuff, and chat about how great both the show and doc are, on a strictly-wound stopwatch, in exchange for your cold, hard cash . Nah, only joking. We're planning on using a clock, not a stopwatch. Currently, we've a banner printed, and a few DVDs, books and posters set aside. Recently, a ...

Despite on face value, Ghostwatch and Living TV's Most Haunted bearing more than a few striking resemblances, they are in fact, very different programmes at heart. One of the many long-running rumours connecting the two shows is that fellow Blue Peter host Yvette Fielding was once considered for Sarah Greene's 'Reporter' role (not true). A familiar face, particularly to fans of the cult, investigative series (which ran for eight years, and now continues to air online), and also kids' TV classic, Knightmare (his team being one of only a handful of winners in the show's history, no less) we recently spoke to presenter and self-confessed Ghostwatcher, host Jason Karl concerning his appreciation of Ghostwatch , and own experiences with the Paranormal...   Hi Jason, so how, where, why and when did you first check out Ghostwatch , and do you recall your initial reaction to the show?   I remember clearly the day when Ghostwatch was broadcast – I was ...