WONDERFUL WANDA : INTERVIEW : BLOOD BEAST : DOCTOR WHO : UFO AND MORE!

#WATCHWITHCUSHING! POSTING AND SHARING  a great INTERVIEW with actress WANDA VENTHAM today here and at the FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE certainly has taken off! It's a pretty neat interview with a very relaxed and most informative #WandaVentham! LOTS to learn here about the making of her and Peter Cushing's 'The Blood Beast Terror', on working with Cushing, the director Vernon Sewell, others in the cast, #DoctorWho, #PatrickTroughton, #Hammerfilms and the tv series #UFO! Mr H does well with the questions and some answers are quite surprising! Wanda has a great fan club site too RIGHT HERE!: Enjoy! Keep safe, stay well and look after each other 😀😊😉- Marcus

ABOVE :  A #MONSTER MONDAY BANNER from a whole ago, when Wanda's MOTH went through our weekly MONDAY trial! 

ABOVE : PETER CUSHING AND WANDA VENTHAM'S 'THE BLOOD BEAST TERROR' is also part of our #WATCHWITHCUSHING! 2020 #LockedDown season of posts at the Facebook PCASUK Fan Page. YOU can still watch it! RIGHT HERE! 

ABOVE : PETER CUSHING  chats with producer Tony Tenser on location shooting 'THE BLOOD BEAST TERROR' 

WHY THIS DR WHO DESERVES TO REMAIN SEPARATE AND NOT PART OF ANY CANON . .

SO. STEVEN MOFFAT in his new novelisation of Doctor Who's 50th anniversary special 'The Day of the Doctor', reveals that the PETER CUSHING DR WHO FILMS, exist in the Whoniverse as actual movies, with Cushing starring in big-screen adventures adapted from the Doctor's "real" exploits . . . .

ANY CUSHING FAN WHO READS THIS SITE, would have seen the post we made about Moffat's attempts at making Cushing's-Dr Who, part of the party a while ago, from The Doctor Who Magazine. Moffat had previously wanted to incorporate this idea into the TV version of 'The Day of the Doctor', with plans for UNIT's Black Archive to include ACTUAL CINEMA POSTERS from the two Cushing films, DR WHO AND THE DALEKS (1965) and DALEKS INVASION EARTH 2150 AD (1966).

TWO EXAMPLES of the CINEMA POSTER art for BOTH of Cushing's DR WHO films that Moffat tried to obtain permission to use in the BBC episode, 'DAY OF THE DOCTOR' . . but failed.

"IN MY HEAD, in the Doctor's universe, those films exist as distorted accounts of his adventures," Moffat told Doctor Who Magazine. "Sadly, we couldn't afford the rights to the posters."

FOR SOME CUSHING ADMIRERS it has been a matter of debate and often irritation for years, that the MOVIES and CUSHING's 'DR', aren't considered to be canon, worth it and / or wasn't 'serious entertainment for families and children' now or even back then. . .! Really....?

WELL, personally I think many might have much respect for Mr Moffat, for trying what sounded to be quite an interesting angle. It's certainly very kind and generous, to include Peter Cushing in the novel though. But, it wont change anything and to be honest, I am relieved, the inclusion of Cushing's playing a character called Dr Who, didn't come to fruition.  THIS Doctor is Peter Cushing's Doctor and as he said many times, QUITE different from a Doctor Who excellently played by William Hartnell in the TV series. It's Cushing's creation, not unlike his ABER PERRY from his AT THE EARTH"S CORE film of 1976. THIS creation, just doesn't fit anything that the tv series has grown and developed since the TOM BAKER years. 

THE FILMS were made for what was seen as the young audience who were watching the TV series...and cash in on that popularity. It was as I remember, kids floating up and down the school playground and streets, with the hood from their anorak up, one arm extended, screeching EXTERMINATE, not grown ups?  Over the years, I have met all kinds of exciting, warm, wonderfully friendly and open minded Cushing admirers, who love to explore and chat about his life, career and even the maybe expanded background, to some of his characters. 

ALSO MANY PEOPLE who worked at producing the BBC's Doctor Who series and Doctor Who dvd / blu ray extras, magazines and merchandise. Really friendly and helpful folk. Sadly, I can't say my experience of meeting and chatting with some of the Doctor Who fans has ever been that enjoyable, particularly if the subject of the two movies come up!! Which is a bit like a fan of Cushing's Sherlock Holmes movies and tv work, getting a little weird about someone mentioning .. BASIL RATHBONE and his unique and wonderful performances also as that great detective! 

IT'S NO SECRET, that Peter Cushing himself was not personally a fan of the tv programme, and found little to say about the movies, except he enjoyed working with the cast and the talent of Roberta Tovey. Typically generous, he made the condition that he would only agree to appear in the second DALEK film, if Tovey would be included too. 

ABOVE: PETER CUSHING talks on PLAYING DR WHO in

 TWO movies in the MID 1960'S 

NOPE. Peter Cushing wasn't a fan and only ever made one comment about his Dr's prime enemy, the DALEKS . . he found them, 'Not my cup of tea. Daleks did rather get on my nerves'  So, there you go. If Peter were still with us, I am sure he would tell us he is flattered, to be mentioned in the novelisation of 'The Day of The Doctor'  . . . and then probably ask if we had ever seen that amazing, universally popular blockbuster film, that he once appeared in during the 1970's, called STAR WARS. . 

WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT CUSHING'S DR WHO MOVIES? HERE IS CALLUM MCKEVIE'S SUNDAY FEATURES, WITH GALLERIES OF RARE STILLS:  PART ONE ON DR WHO AND THE DALEKS HERE! AND PART TWO HERE!

CUSHING was talented and popular enough to have had  three careers. In theatre for many years, when he first began, in television drama and receiving several awards during the 1950's and 60's and to a huge success in film on the big screen. He carved out quite a reputation for his appearances in adult supernatural movies. 

WHENEVER HE WAS APPROACHED by his agent, John Redway, about a appearing in something that wasn't a horror film, he had a simple rule and method he used before, signing on the line. 'Would children like to see me in this?' He agreed to appearing in At The Earth's Core and Star Wars, using this very technique, and mentioned doing so in many interviews. I am pretty sure, he applied it to the 'Yea and Nay' of making the Dr Who films too. 'I am making them for children, because it's pretty obvious, they are intended for a young audience!' Children. . .  In the words of Cushing's Dr Who, 'Fascinating!' . . .

FINALLY for those of you back home in the UK,  I would love to bring to your attention , what sounds like a real TREAT.  I personally greatly admirer the work of the actor LON CHANEY jr and I am  more than a bit annoyed I am missing 'Cursed Horror: 'Son of Dracula' Talk and Film Screening presented by Mark Iveson at the NEWCASTLE CASTLE THIS SATURDAY, April 14th starting 6pm until 8pm. Here is the FACEBOOK LINK to an evening that sounds like it's going to be a lot of fun.

. . . Join author and horror expert Mark Iveson to find out more about the screen legend ahead of a film screening. The definitive Wolf Man who scared many a young woman during his horror reign during the forties, Lon Chaney’s greatest fear stemmed from the shadow of his famous father, and whose own insecurities were hidden behind an abrasive personality and a dependence on alcohol, the latter of which would eventually destroy him. Our talk centres on the rise and fall of this horror great . . . .

 
AS WELL AS producing a fine book entitled, CURSED HORROR STARS on the lives of Bela Lugosi, Peter Lorre, Robert Quarry and Basil Rathbone, he has also written some excellent features for this website, called THE GREATEST PETER CUSHING FILMS NEVER MADE!, full of facts, stories and 'what it could have looked like' images of blu ray box and cinema stills and posters, had those films ever seen the light of day! Mark certainly knows his stuff, writes and presents well researched detail and  backgrounds on his subjects, and isn't in the business of character assassinations, of the people his is presenting, even if it is warts and all. If you are looking for a fine night out, in the company of Chaney and one of his all time BEST movies, go grab your ticket NOW! 

#CHRISTOPHERLEESATURDAY! THE MANY FACES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES

#CHRISTOPHERLEESATURDAY: Here is a great documentary with Christopher Lee hosting, an overview of Sherlock Holmes from the SHERLOCK from Arthur Conan Doyle pen, as portrayed on stage, on radio, television, and in motion pictures, by dozens of actors from, 1900 to 1985 . . 

IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us . . Keep The Memory Alive!. The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society website, facebook fan page and youtube channel are managed, edited and written by Marcus Brooks, PCAS coordinator since 1979. PCAS is based in the UK and USA  

#FRANKENSTEINFRIDAY: THE MAN WHO WOULD BE FRANKENSTEIN

#FRANKENSTEINFRIDAY: NEXT WEEK, a NEW feature! If you love Cushing's Hammer film Frankenstein series.. you will love this 🙂 After SIX adventures from Cushing's Baron...and a open end to the last film, Frankenstein and the Monster From Hell... how do you think Cushing's Baron would have ended his days???? I'd like your opinion for the feature next week? 😉 BTW...we are hitting the weekend, and it's the return of the PCAS COMPETITIONS. Just wait and see what I have for YOU 😉 Have fun today! - Marcus-pcas

 

IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us . . Keep The Memory Alive!. The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society website, facebook fan page and youtube channel are managed, edited and written by Marcus Brooks, PCAS coordinator since 1979. PCAS is based in the UK and USA

WHEN KARLOFF AND CUSHING PLAYED CRICKET.