20th - 22nd September 2013 at Manchester Conference Centre Welcome to the third progress report for the 24th Festival of Fantastic Films. It is always a tense time in the run up to the Festival. Guests cannot give long term commitments as the business they are in has traditionally operated on a short notice projects. That’s why we’re delighted to finally confirm the line up for the Festival. Madeline Smith and Shane Rimmer were the first to join Michael Armstrong and more recently Umberto Lenzi and Nicholas Ball have also been added, to give us what promises to be another great Festival. Madeline Smith Shane Rimmer Umberto Lenzi Nicholas Ball Obviously the programme will be packed, after 23 years we think you know what to expect. The movies are just one aspect of the Festival, albeit a significant one that occupies a lot of the different programme streams. We hope you also take time to explore the other programme items, Steve Green will be presenting the Delta Award so pop along and show some support. There are some real gems this year. Ramsey Campbell will be auctioning a host of collectables. OK, he will buy most of them himself, but he’s entertaining, so the audience don’t mind. Go and bid him up. There’s the Film Fair and few other surprises, but we know many of us just come to see old friends. We hope many of you stay around for the dead dog party quiz. George Gaddi knows how to pick the questions that’ll make Katie’s pronunciation the night’s entertainment by itself. Teams bond over the mutual lack of knowledge and much alcohol is drunk. 1 Welcome to the Festival My apologies for the late report but this is due to personal health problems in my family, however ,better late than never, please find an update of the current position. The website will be regularly updated so please make a point of looking at it. Further news will follow when available. As mentioned our confirmed guest list includes Madeline Smith, Umberto Lenzi, Shane Rimmer, Michael Armstrong & Nicholas Ball – a very eclectic list in & out of genre. Umberto Lenzi will be promoting his new Blu Ray release Nightmare City ( AKA Incubo Sulla Città Contaminata ) The basis of the story being that an airplane exposed to radiation lands, and blood drinking zombies emerge armed with knives, guns and teeth! ( Another Comedy I don't think ). Umberto’s most seen movies are Cannibal Ferox & Eaten Alive - He has also made several Sword & Sorcery movies such as Sandokan the Great & Samson and the Slave Queen Shane Rimmer is one of those most prized Canadians who have been in the Uk since the late 50's and have made a large number of British & European film & TV appearances including three appearances in James Bond movies ( You Only Live Twice (1967), Diamonds Are Forever (1971), and The Spy Who Loved Me (1977), as well as appearing in Dr Strangelove, Warlords of Atlantis, Arabian Adventure & a favourite of mine Twilights Last Gleaming a great thriller. Nicholas Ball has had a long career on both Film & TV, I know a lot of us remember him in the Terry Venables co- penned TV series Hazell of the late 70's but this was just one part of a long career which includes appearances in genre shows such as Mutant Chronicles, Hammer House of Horror, Tales of the Unexpected, and a favourite show of a friend of mine Mr Rose. Nicholas will be with us to present the upcoming BluRay presentation of Tobe Hooper's 1985 Sci Fi/Space Vampire film Lifeforce. Madeline Smith it is a great pleasure to have the return of the delightful & beautiful Maddie, who made such a hit on her last visit some years ago. Maddie's main genre claim include the Peter Cushing movie Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell which co-starred as the creature another old favourite Dave Prowse. She was also very prominent in the Hammer Vampire movie The Vampire Lovers as another of our late friend Ingrid Pitt's lovers. Maddie also appeared in the James Bond movie with Roger Moore Live & Let Die who can forget the amazing use of the magnet on her dress. This year has seen the release of the Lionel Jeffries directed movie The Amazing Mr Blunden which Maddie also appeared in. She was also in Taste the Blood of Dracula. 2 Michael Armstrong another returning face belongs to the multi-hyphenate Mr Armstrong, as an actor-director-writer-producer and all round good guy, it has been to long since his last visit. The good news is that he has begun work on a new movie again (and about time I say). Michael wrote the screenplay and directed the Anglo/German Witchfinder movie Mark of the Devil which, like Cannibal Ferox of Umberto Lenzi, had a bit of a chequered career in the eighties. He also caused a bit of a stir in the seventies with his screenplay for the movie The Black Panther about real life killer Dennis Neilson and the chase to catch him. In 1983 Pete Walker got Michael writing the script for the House of Dark Shadows the comedy horror movie which was one of the few successful times most of the horror heroes appeared in ( Christopher Lee/Peter Cushing/Vincent Price/John Carradine & Sheila Keith - most sadly no longer with us ). To prove his acting ability he was one of the stars of his self written epic Eskimo Nell. As well as the special presentations of Nightmare City & Lifeforce we are hoping to show a selection of rarely seen genre movies. I have been told that any rooms NOT booked by mid August have to be given back so if you haven't booked as yet PLEASE DO IT NOW as we have no control of the rooms or rates after the mid august deadline. (Also, we would like to know if you are coming. ) Tony, myself and the Committee hope you enjoy the Festival See you there Gil Over 20 Years of Film Fandom A Tribute to .... The Festival of Fantastic Films Book by George Houston & George Gaddi The price of the book will be £25 Please send your cheque with your name, and address to: Keith Mather 8 Farndon Road, Reddish, Only 16 Left Stockport SK5 6LY When they’re gone, Please include an email address to confirm receipt. They’re gone If you want to reserve a copy and collect it at the 24th Festival of Fantastic Films a non-refundable deposit of £10 is required. The balance will be due on collection. If you require the book to be posted then this can be arranged. (P&P extra) 3 Guest: Umberto Lenzi Legendary Italian film director Umberto Lenzi, first came to the fore with the 1961 swashbuckler Hell Below Deck, with Lisa Gastoni playing the female pirate Anne Read and ex-pat Americans Jerome Courtland and Walter Barnes providing some international support. The following year, Umberto was directing Edinburgh-born actor Don Burnett in the title role of The Triumph of Robin Hood, with the actor’s then wife, Liverpool-born Gia Scala, fresh from The Guns of Navarone, providing the love interest. Umberto Lenzi helmed some of the most entertaining international adventure movies of the sixties including Sandokan the Great and Sandokan, The Pirate of Malaysia, both starring Steve Reeves. Temple of the White Elephant, with Sean Flynn (son of Errol), followed, along with Messalina v the Son of Hercules, then war films such as Desert Commandos, spaghetti westerns like Pistol for a Hundred Coffins and many more. He notched up over 20 films in a decade, sometimes making three a year, finishing the 1960s with a real bang – the fine thriller, Orgasmo (aka Paranoia) with Carroll Baker and Lou Castel., He followed this with So Sweet So Perverse, again with Miss Baker this time teamed with French leading man Jean-Louis Trintignant. Keeping busy with thrillers and police films through the seventies, in 1980, he directed Nightmare City, a zombie movie years ahead of its time – he had the zombies running fast, driving cars and firing guns. He has directed 65 films over a period of 30 years, from sword-and-sandal epics to Eaten Alive and the notorious Cannibal Ferox, which was banned in 31 countries. 4 Guest: Madeline Smith The delectable Madeline Smith will be making a very welcome return to the Festival. Star of Taste The Blood of Dracula, The Vampire Lovers, Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell, she also appeared in The Ballad of Tam Linn. Based on an old Scottish folk ballad, it was the only film directed by Roddy McDowall. Made in England in 1970, the film starred Ava Gardner and prevented Roddy from appearing as the ape Cornelius, in Beneath The Planet of The Apes, the only one of the monkey-planet pictures in which he didn’t appear. Madeline became a TV regular in The Two Ronnies, appeared in The Persuaders, Jason King, Clochmerle, The Fenn Street Gang, Steptoe and Son, All Creatures Great and Small and many others. On the big screen, she appeared opposite Frankie Howerd in the film of Up Pompeii, in 1971and the following year was in The Amazing Mr Blunden, a marvellous ghost story directed by Lionel Jeffries. Madeleine memorably shared Roger Moore’s opening scene in his first Bond movie Live and Let Die. She played Italian secret agent Miss Caruso, whose dress the brand new Bond unzipped using his latest gadget, a super-magnetic watch.