Ghostwatch [1992] [DVD]: Amazon.co.uk: Michael Parkinson, Sarah Greene, Mike Smith, Craig Charles, Gillian Bevan, Brid Brennan, Michelle Wesson, Cherise Wesson, Chris Miller, Mike Aiton, Mark Lewis, Linda Broughton, Lesley Manning, Chris Swanton, Derek Nelson, Richard Broke, Ruth Baumgarten, Stephen Volk: DVD

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Special Features

English
Region 2
Commentary By The Writer Director And Producer

Synopsis

On October 31st, 1992, thousands of British households were terrified out of their wits by GHOSTWATCH. A supposedly live transmission, this BBC Halloween special features presenters exploring a haunted house in London--and finding more than they bargained for. The film created a genuine sense of dread, and many viewers believed the programme to be real...leading to it being banned for years. Keep an eye out for Mr. Pipes...

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Customer Reviews

33 Reviews

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

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4.3 out of 5 stars (33 customer reviews)

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31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's in the machine!, 16 Feb 2003

By	"adrok-" - See all my reviews

Beginning in the cosy style of a BBC live broadcast for all the family, Ghostwatch purports to be a light-hearted Halloween ghost hunt but steadily becomes classic horror.

This documentary style drama lulls its audience into a false sense of security from the outset. Familiar faces in Michael Parkinson and Sarah Green (he the cynical uncle-figure, she all cups of tea with the be-spooked family)strengthen the atmosphere of cosiness, and the production itself takes seriously the viewers' disbelief about the paranormal - sceptical characters are strong in number, hoax calls are made to the studio and even the presenters have their tongues firmly in cheek.

As the story of the house cleverly and subtly unravels, the atmosphere turns increasingly disturbing and features some genuinely horrific moments. Viewers will have to be eagle-eyed to catch all the 'sightings' of the house ghost, and the intricacies of the plot and what is seen on screen reward repeat viewings.

Although the unbelievable ending is widely criticised, this surely is the re-establishment of the norm in terms of restoring the audience's cynicism after they have been taken in by the authentic horror of what has gone before.

Terrifying stuff.

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19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Ghostwatch - Finally IT is released, and about time!!!!!!!!, 7 Dec 2002

By	"johnwalanp" - See all my reviews

Ghostwatch, first broadcast on halloween in 1992, was set up to make the public believe it was a live broadcast from an english council estate, the purpose being to have a live broadcast from a haunted house. A poltergeist was supposedly haunting a single mother and her two daughters inside this council house, so the BBC had sent presenter Sarah Greene in with a film crew to investigate, with a live feedback to a studio with host (and TV veteran) Michael Parkinson.
Things start out plain and ordinary enough, giving you some time to ease into what you think will be an uneventful waste of time, then slowly but surely, things get more strange. The tension is cranked up to such a degree that it does disturb you in a 'watching the exorcist and blair witch project for the first time' kinda way.
The controversy this drama (yes, a drama) caused was unprecedented in british TV history, with the show even being linked to a suicide!The truth is that this piece of genius was way before its time, before it could really be appreciated. The only bad thing about this DVD is the lack of extras, a making of documentary, or retrospective or aftermath coverage would have been a welcome addition.

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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ghostwatch !!!, 18 Jan 2003

By	shirley cook (Grantham, Lincolnshire United Kingdom) - See all my reviews

This is the day the beeb went too far.Having not seen it for 10 years my wife and i sat down to view a piece of television history and found ourselves shocked by just how far the bbc were prepared to take this story. It still scares and sends tingles down your spine , the script is wonderful and the use of famous faces to suck you in and lower your defences is used to great ends. Find some one who hasn't seen it or doesn't know about it and tell them you have a copy of the documentary the bbc banned. Then sit back and watch their faces. Brilliant television , worth the money

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Subtlety and Unsubtlety
One of the aspects of this film that made it so genuinely, insidiously creepy was the way it blended good old-fashioned shocks (like the sudden appearance and disappearance of... Read more

Published 8 months ago by Ms. Jennifer C. Fieldsend

4.0 out of 5 stars Chope the last 15 mins off and its 5 stars
Superb all the way though. Still scary even in 2008 however the end is just plain silly!! Goes from believable to damn right ridiculous!! Read more

Published 13 months ago by M. Tulloch

4.0 out of 5 stars Chilling blast from the past.
I remember watching this "live" broadcast on it's first and,to date,only screening way back on halloween night 1992. Read more

Published 14 months ago by Mr. C. Bloomer

5.0 out of 5 stars 'Don't go up there, Sarah!'
15 years after being flabbergasted by this programme as a 14 year old, I'm pleased to say this is still every bit as entertaining (and scary!)now as it was then. Read more

Published 22 months ago by Mr. C. M. Humphries

4.0 out of 5 stars The past is a foreign country; they do things differently there
They say you should never return to old stamping grounds and sadly Ghostwatch is a fine example of this. Read more

Published on 17 Oct 2007 by J. H. Woods

3.0 out of 5 stars Do YOU believe in ghosts?
Having seen two different ghosts on separate occasions in my life, then my answer is, most definitely, yes. And no, I wasn't dreaming. Read more

Published on 4 Aug 2007 by Shawn Watson

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent entertainment.
I found this a very clever and well made programme. I didnt watch it when it was on the bbc as I suspect my parents thought I would be too scared by it and I'm glad they did... Read more

Published on 3 Nov 2006 by Oliver Sampson

5.0 out of 5 stars A very spooky tale not for the faint hearted !! 'Beware Pipes'
This show caught me off guard like many millions of others back on halloween in 1992. I missed them BBC1 trailer and thought until near the end that it was a real live... Read more

Published on 20 Jul 2006 by NEO

5.0 out of 5 stars Very important moment in British television...
After GHOSTWATCH, too many producers and directers decided to back-pedal and play it safe - This play really does mark the end of a period when televsion dared to be different... Read more

Published on 17 April 2006 by Mr P. D. Kinnear

4.0 out of 5 stars Spooky nostalgia
I hadn't seen Ghostwatch since I was a teen in 1992 and one thing my latest viewing of the programme has taught me is that false memories play a great deal of tricks. Read more

Published on 9 April 2006 by Bianca White

› See all 33 customer reviews...

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Ghostwatch [1992] [DVD]

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