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Post by shonokin on Nov 24, 2009 23:01:13 GMT
I don't know if this has been available in the UK forever or not, but this is very new in the US as a Region 1 collection. The primary reason I mention this series is because one of the "Rivals" filmed for the series is William Hope Hodgson's supernatural sleuth Carnacki in the story "The Horse of the Invisible". Very little of Hodgson has been adapted to other media and so find this worth while to point out.
"The Voice in the Night" has been adapted twice, once in Alfred Hitchcock's anthology series Suspicion, and as the Japanese monster movie MATANGO (aka Attack of the Mushroom People).
There are a few audiodramas and the Richard Corben comic adaptation of The House on the Borderland.
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Post by Dr Strange on Nov 25, 2009 11:30:57 GMT
I was very young when this was shown on TV and remember nothing of the series - except the Carnacki story, which even now I think I remember quite vividly (at least certain isolated images). It was many years later that I read the short story. I'd love to see the TV episode again... can it really have been as good as I remember?
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Post by ripper on Nov 25, 2009 15:05:28 GMT
I, too, only remember the "Horse of the Invisible" episode from the series. I was maybe 9 or 10 at the time and it scared the life out of me and I should love to see it again after all these years. I have always thought that a good TV series could be made from the stories of William Hope Hodgson, but I doubt that we will ever see one.
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Post by williemeikle on Nov 27, 2009 15:29:17 GMT
Very little of Hodgson has been adapted to other media and so find this worth while to point out. Stephen Volk was saying recently that he's been trying to interest the BBC for a while with a Carnacki series.
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Post by Michael Connolly on Jun 3, 2019 12:39:52 GMT
From the latest District Messenger from Jean Upton (Roger Johnson's wife): Talking Pictures TV (Freeview Channel 81) will be broadcasting the 1970s series The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes. The first episode, A Message from the Deep, featuring John Neville as R Austin Freeman's famous Doctor Thorndyke, will air on Sunday 9th June at 9:00pm. The series will continue throughout the month of June.
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Post by Michael Connolly on Jun 5, 2019 13:04:35 GMT
From the latest District Messenger from Jean Upton (Roger Johnson's wife): Talking Pictures TV (Freeview Channel 81) will be broadcasting the 1970s series The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes. The first episode, A Message from the Deep Sea, featuring John Neville as R Austin Freeman's famous Doctor Thorndyke, will air on Sunday 9th June at 9:00pm. The series will continue throughout the month of June. If this series follows the original's running order, "The Horse of the Invisible" with Donald Pleasence as Carnacki the Ghost-Finder will be the fifth episode shown. It's the only episode that I remember seeing, as an afternoon repeat! As most of the actors who played the other rivals of Sherlock Holmes don't seem to have been particularly well cast (from what I know of the original stories), if Pleasence is any good as Carnacki (who isn't described in the original stories), it's just good luck.
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Post by helrunar on Jun 5, 2019 15:31:13 GMT
To each his own--I have become quite fond of The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes in recent years, as an artifact of a certain type of theatrical television drama on videotape that reached its peak in the decade of the 1970s. It's very florid and very British (says the American in the room). A friend of mine who normally loves all things UK was unable to appreciate Rivals as it was simply too theatrical and "stagey" for him. Those are precisely the qualities I revel in with this series.
I had very fond memories of Rivals from its US syndication. It was on intermittently from about '73 onwards. When it finally became available again some years back (initially through grey market recordings), I was surprised to learn that I'd only seen a few of the episodes that were produced. There were a couple that I had viewed twice. (The same thing happened with the Karloff Thriller series which I was never able to view except in odd screenings that would pop up in 70s syndication broadcasts--I was a 2 year old when that series was originally shown.)
Having read a few of the original stories, I would advise that the versions that were adapted on Rivals seem to have ranged from moderately shifted around adaptations to nearly complete re-writings, to the point where only the names of a couple of the important characters survived in some cases. I leave it to the viewer whether you think the Rivals versions represented an adulteration, an improvement, or simply a new telling of the source material; I generally opt for the third of these opinions.
Some of my favorites include "Madame Sara" which is adapted from the first chapter of a very entertaining serial about a female mastermind (in some ways anticipating Sax Rohmer's Fu Manchu yarns) by L. T. Meade and Robert Eustace; the two Thinking Machine stories with Douglas Wilmer in the role of Professor van Dusen; Peter Vaughan's wonderful performance as Dorrington in two stories from the tales by Arthur Morrison; a very arch, amusing adaptation of the society jewel theft tale "The Ripening Rubies"; Sara Kestelman's salty turn as Hagar of the Pawn-shops in "The Mystery of the Amber Beads" (with a believably unpleasant Philip Locke as Sara's nemesis); and Derek Jacobi as the improbably named Duckworth Drew of the Secret Service in the "Secret of the Fox Hunter," very loosely based on a story by William le Queux, who is otherwise unknown to me.
I thought Pleasence was very good in the Carnacki story and it's fun to see the electric pentagram in action, but I do think this is one of the stories where "technical difficulties" with the theatrical "special" effects, and some of the acting styles by the supporting players, may be too distracting for 21st century viewers. I always enjoy it but then, I love this kind of thing.
H.
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elricc
Devils Coach Horse
Posts: 100
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Post by elricc on Jun 5, 2019 17:40:16 GMT
I have an abiding obsession with Romney Pringle,it started with the wonderful name, reading it in a list of hard to obtain early detective stories, then I saw Donald Sinden in the Assyrian rejuvenator, then managed to get the reprints, and went on to read many other Austin Freeman short stories. I do agree they are very "lovey" theatrical performance, but they are of a certain time on british television that was very stagey, even the type of film used etc evokes a 70's feel. I also liked Peter Vaughan as Dorrington. Super lovey Robert Stephens as Max Carrados, also have his voice imprinted in my head as Aragorn from the BBC Radio Lord of the Rings adaption.. Some excellent classy actors, cracking stuff, but an acquired taste
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Post by helrunar on Jun 5, 2019 18:33:46 GMT
Elric, I almost mentioned Donald Sinden's Romney Pringle and Robert Stephens' Max--both beautifully played and the stories were so engaging. I got to a point in my post where I was tempted to write about every episode as a "highlight."
My memory of the one with Charles Grey is really vague--I need to see that one again. I remember that food was involved.
I "acquired" this taste as a youngster. My favorite of all the 70s BBC serials growing up was Notorious Woman starring the luminous Rosemary Harris. Alas Beeb seems to have no interest in releasing that one. There's one long clip on you tube, which some brave, spirited soul recorded with their phone, I think, while viewing it at the BFI or someplace like that in London. It was such a brilliant series.
At least we have our memories.
H.
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elricc
Devils Coach Horse
Posts: 100
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Post by elricc on Jun 5, 2019 19:15:30 GMT
I've got both series on DVD, so think a re-watch may be due
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Post by Michael Connolly on Jun 7, 2019 12:40:14 GMT
As the only episode I remember at all is "The Horse of the Invisible", the rest of the series will be new to me. However, I still think that the series was very randomly cast. Dr. Thorndyke appears in two stories, portrayed by a different actor in each.
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Post by Michael Connolly on Jun 12, 2019 12:33:42 GMT
"A Message from the Deep Sea", shot live on video on what seemed to be the smallest possible studio sets, was very badly dated. It has made me more curious to see "The Horse of the Invisible" again as it uses what must now inevitably look to be very cheap special effects. As for the original collections, I only held onto two of them in these editions. Both contain stories that are mostly worth reading.
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Post by ripper on Jun 12, 2019 15:12:11 GMT
I saw the episodes when they were originally broadcast, though The Horse of the Invisible is the one that I remember best. It really scared me as a 9 or 10 year old. At the time I doubt if I knew who DP was. I managed to see many of the episodes again a few years ago, and I agree that they might be considered to be a bit stagey by modern standards, though that didn't affect my enjoyment at all. I stand to be corrected, but I believe the episodes had that familiar mix of video interiors and filmed locations that was common in UK TV from the 60s and 70s. Nice to see that Talking Pictures is repeating the series.
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Post by helrunar on Jun 12, 2019 17:04:07 GMT
I loved "A Message from the Deep Sea." I watched it again about a year ago.
Let's face it--I'm pretty dated myself.
cheers, H.
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Post by Michael Connolly on Jul 8, 2019 11:25:05 GMT
From the latest District Messenger from Jean Upton (Roger Johnson's wife): Talking Pictures TV (Freeview Channel 81) will be broadcasting the 1970s series The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes. The first episode, A Message from the Deep Sea, featuring John Neville as R Austin Freeman's famous Doctor Thorndyke, will air on Sunday 9th June at 9:00pm. The series will continue throughout the month of June. If this series follows the original's running order, "The Horse of the Invisible" with Donald Pleasence as Carnacki the Ghost-Finder will be the fifth episode shown. It's the only episode that I remember seeing, as an afternoon repeat! As most of the actors who played the other rivals of Sherlock Holmes don't seem to have been particularly well cast (from what I know of the original stories), if Pleasence is any good as Carnacki (who isn't described in the original stories), it's just good luck. Due to the plot holes carried over from the original story, I don't think that higher production values would have made "The Horse of the Invisible" on tv last night any more convincing. The character played by Michele Dotrice quoted someone else saying "it's all absolute swank". I think that's what she said.
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