Alex Westthorp Oct 1, 2019
Witches, demons and ancient pagan rituals: Alex explores the use of folk horror in the Doctor's adventures...
This article originally ran on Den of Geek UK.
Thought to be a relatively recent term, coined by director Piers Haggard and popularised by Doctor Who's own Mark Gatiss, "folk horror" is essentially horror based on old countryside folklore. It is a sub-genre of occult fiction, which encompasses paganism, witchcraft, superstition, legends and the traditions of the countryside. Often texts will refer to "Green man" rituals, stone circles, Devil worship, disfigurement and the "memories" of the earth.
In the cinema, folk horror is at the fore in films like the 1967 Hammer classic The Devil Rides Out, Terence Fisher's vision of the 1934 novel by Denis Wheatley, Piers Haggard's own 1974 film Blood On Satan's Claw (which incidentally features a terrific cast including a pre-Who Anthony Ainley and a post-Who Wendy Padbury...
Witches, demons and ancient pagan rituals: Alex explores the use of folk horror in the Doctor's adventures...
This article originally ran on Den of Geek UK.
Thought to be a relatively recent term, coined by director Piers Haggard and popularised by Doctor Who's own Mark Gatiss, "folk horror" is essentially horror based on old countryside folklore. It is a sub-genre of occult fiction, which encompasses paganism, witchcraft, superstition, legends and the traditions of the countryside. Often texts will refer to "Green man" rituals, stone circles, Devil worship, disfigurement and the "memories" of the earth.
In the cinema, folk horror is at the fore in films like the 1967 Hammer classic The Devil Rides Out, Terence Fisher's vision of the 1934 novel by Denis Wheatley, Piers Haggard's own 1974 film Blood On Satan's Claw (which incidentally features a terrific cast including a pre-Who Anthony Ainley and a post-Who Wendy Padbury...
- 10/1/2019
- Den of Geek
Throw away your buckets and spades people, it’s Key To Time time!
In the days when an arc would probably refer to a floating cryogenic repository, Doctor Who committed itself to a lengthy 26-episode run of intertwined stories. The Key To Time ties Season 16 together very simply with the concept of a quest. Basically, the Doctor has to hunt through time and space for six separate parts of a key (not an actual key you understand, it’s a floating plastic cube) that when linked, will put the universe in balance and end the threat of eternal chaos.
As tasks go, this is something pretty daunting – this isn’t your archetypal Apprentice task in which SirLordWhateverHisBleedinTitleIsAlanSugar sends a horde of sweaty wannabes to hawk for business at a local art gallery. No, this is huge. For such an important mission, the Doctor gets an oddly low-key briefing by the awesome White Guardian.
In the days when an arc would probably refer to a floating cryogenic repository, Doctor Who committed itself to a lengthy 26-episode run of intertwined stories. The Key To Time ties Season 16 together very simply with the concept of a quest. Basically, the Doctor has to hunt through time and space for six separate parts of a key (not an actual key you understand, it’s a floating plastic cube) that when linked, will put the universe in balance and end the threat of eternal chaos.
As tasks go, this is something pretty daunting – this isn’t your archetypal Apprentice task in which SirLordWhateverHisBleedinTitleIsAlanSugar sends a horde of sweaty wannabes to hawk for business at a local art gallery. No, this is huge. For such an important mission, the Doctor gets an oddly low-key briefing by the awesome White Guardian.
- 11/3/2010
- Shadowlocked
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