Sherlock Holmes - Memories, my dear Watson

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Article author: Alwyn Ash
"At the right time, in the right light, everything is extraordinary"

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"It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data. Insensibly one begins to twist facts to suit theories, instead of theories to suit facts."

What does the Great Detective mean to someone who finds fascination in all things Victorian? As a child I watched "The Baker Street Boys", a British television show written by Richard Carpenter (creator of the popular "Robin of Sherwood" TV drama) and Anthony Read, and first broadcast in 1983, focusing on a gang of children who assist the legendary Sherlock Holmes in several cases, yet end up involved in many more of their own, facing the dangers of the Victorian criminal underworld. Add to this the classic adventures as experienced through the pure genius of English actor Jeremy Brett's performances as Holmes in the popular Granada television series (airing 1984-94) and you have a world of murder, intrigue, kidnapping and blackmail to relish. These types of shows left a deep impression on me to this very day, ghosts of memories that had to be relived through the eyes of an adult. In recent years I have even been fortunate enough to explore the same world via audio, with the fantastic Welsh actor Clive Merrison as the equally great man himself...

I suppose my fascination with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's character stems from the age in which it is set - a dark and deep history where legends have been born: Jack the Ripper and the Elephant Man, both utterly real and whose own stories have been told many times over. It was a pioneering era of literature, inventions and construction, and gave birth to people such as Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Edison. London was a thriving city of commerce and yet... the poorer regions ultimately bred poverty and crime, those who could not afford to live robbed and murdered, others resorted to prostitution; it was, indeed, a tale of two cities!

Though there have been newer, fresher takes on the legend of Holmes - think BBC's "Sherlock", created by Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat; or Robert Downey Jr.'s role as the fictional detective - none have captured the true spirit of the character as seen by Brett or heard by Merrison. Even veteran English actor Peter Cushing never truly encapsulated the part for me (perhaps I am too drawn to Cushing as a loveable grandfather figure after his Van Helsing and Dr Who roles): in my mind Holmes is arrogant and clever, deceitful and ruthless, opinionated and a law unto himself, though he firmly embraces truth and justice whenever possible. I guess your view of the perfect actor is reflected by experience.

If you are open to new possibilities then I am always glad to give a mention to the wonderful people at bigfinish.com, whose own vision is masterfully created in full-cast audios starring Nicholas Briggs - the great detective even takes on an infamous murderer in "Holmes and the Ripper", also featuring Richard Earl and India Fisher. It is always a treat to share this character with so many people clearly as equally passionate. Having researched a little into this subject, I was unaware of another created by Doyle, that of Professor Challenger; I have not, to my shame, ever read "The Lost World", nor any follow-up novel featuring this character.

I honestly believe that if it hadn't been for Sherlock Holmes, I would never have discovered other steps into the murky world of Victorian fiction. I am grateful for this. Another adaptation I must mention is that of "The Hound of the Baskervilles", a 2002 production starring Richard Roxburgh as Holmes, Ian Hart as fellow crime fighter Doctor Watson, Richard E Grant as Jack Stapleton, and the stunning Neve McIntosh as Beryl Stapleton - it was produced by Tiger Aspect productions and directed by David Attwood; sadly a "sequel", "Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Silk Stocking", again with Hart in the role as Watson but now casting actor Rupert Everett as Holmes, failed to be as promising...

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Follow Alwyn Ash on Twitter. Image source courtesy of wikipedia.org
(Sidney Paget Strand portrait, 1891). Article © Alwyn Ash 2015.

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Dracula AD 1972 - FilmReview

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Article author: Alwyn Ash

Taking a look at the seventh in the successful Hammer Horror Dracula film series...

It has been described by some as one of the weakest in the Hammer Horror Dracula franchise. However I disagree. "Dracula AD 1972" has always been a favourite of mine since I first discovered it at the same time that I purchased "Satanic Rights of Dracula" on video tape. It is even possible that it was "Dracula AD 1972"'s appeal that led me to sampling and enjoying further Hammer tales. So what is it that excites about this movie? Firstly the casting, with Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee reprising their roles as Van Helsing and Dracula respectively; Cushing even gets to play two generations of the Van Helsing family: Lawrence in 1872 and descendant Lorrimer in 1972. Other cast include Christopher Neame as the mysterious Jonnny Alucard, and sex bombs Stephanie Beacham as Jessica Van Helsing and Caroline Munro as Laura Bellows certainly add to the attraction.

Secondly there is a freshness about "Dracula AD 1972" that permeates throughout the film, matched by a funky soundtrack written by fellow Manfred Mann member Mike Vickers. There is even a brief appearance by American band Stoneground.

The contemporary feel of 1970s London, with the upper class being invaded by hippies strikes a workable contrast to the film's opening fight sequence set in 1872 between Lawrence Van Helsing and Dracula - of course, the opening few minutes for the prologue do raise problems in the chronology of the Dracula film series: as the original Hammer Dracula 1958 motion picture was set in 1885, and Van Helsing had not even encountered Dracula until that year, how is it that Lawrence Van Helsing has managed to feature in the 1872 opening scene battling a vampire he was yet to meet? To be fair, I didn't even realise this piece of trivia until researching both Hammer movies - it has been some years since I last watched the 1958 outing directed by Terence Fisher...

Though Hammer had been known for its contemporary productions, "Dracula AD 1972" was a considerable jump from what had gone before compared to period pieces such as "Horror of Dracula", "Dracula: Prince of Darkness" (1966) and "Taste the Blood of Dracula" (1969).

Something that should be acknowledged is that Peter Cushing's original Van Helsing does not even seem to share the same name as his 1897 novel counterpart, Abraham Van Helsing. In "The Horror of Dracula" he is simply referred to as Doctor Van Helsing; its sequel "Brides of Dracula" (1960) suggests his name to be "J. Van Helsing", though perhaps the "J" was a reference to a middle name? Still, the only explanation for "Lawrence" in "AD 1972" is that Cushing's Van Helsing in the 1958 feature had been called "Lawrence" and not "Abraham". Taking this in mind, "Doctor Lawrence J Van Helsing" makes the most sense.

And so back to director Alan Gibson's offering... The prologue gives us a battle between Count Dracula and Van Helsing, and the final death of our vampire slayer. As Lawrence is laid to rest ("Requiescat In Pace Ultima"), one of Dracula's disciples buries some of his master's ashes nearby. Cue title sequence and we are now one hundred years forward, in 1972. How nice that both the disciple and Lawrence's descendants look identical to their ancestors, allowing the same actors to play both parts. Though in a contemporary setting, Peter Cushing's character remains the same elegant and charming gentleman. As previously mentioned, among the young cast is Neame as Johnny Alucard, whose fascination with the occult is more than just a passing phase: he hopes to raise the dark lord, and serve under him.

Dracula's hatred for the Van Helsing family is so strong that he wishes to turn Jessica Van Helsing (Beacham) into a vampire, and his bride! Very surprising that he didn't keep Laura as a bride too - such a waste! Munroe did, however, feature in another Hammer film as Carla, a Gypsy girl in "Captain Kronos – Vampire Hunter", released in 1974.

Perhaps a small part now, but one of the interesting characters in "Dracula AD 1972" is Inspector Murray (played by Michael Coles - who also starred opposite Peter Cushing in the 1965 feature-length "Dr. Who and the Daleks" as a Thal, Ganatus). Though he doesn't have much to do in this production, Murray does return for the follow-up "Satanic Rites of Dracula", in which he plays a more prominent role.

For those who still believe "Dracula AD 1972" to be poor, it was surely more of a shame that the 1974 feature "The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires" featured Peter Cushing once more as Lawrence Van Helsing, in 1904 - thirty-two years after he was supposed to have perished? Perhaps "Legend of... Vampires" was trying its best to wipe away any trace of the two films that had preceded it, or am I missing something? Whatever the reason, Gibson at least managed to update a tiring film franchise with his direction, even if it divided fans in the process. At heart, this is simply a fun movie.

Purchase Dracula AD 1972 from the Store:
DVD - Running time: 92 minutes

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Genesis 1963: Peter Cushing

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Peter Cushing as Dr Who

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He was Dr Who, the man with a blue box, an inventor...

Doctor Who has been fortunate enough to entice a variety of actors, and not just for the lead role. But where else have we seen these people? Together we shall attempt to explore that question...

In the words of The Peter Cushing Association: "Peter Cushing was one of the most beloved and important actors for the genres of horror and fantasy films". Agreed. And the majority of his fans will, indeed, remember him for roles such as Baron Victor Frankenstein and Van Helsing in the very successful Hammer Films. But it is his contribution in two very special Dalek feature films that will always be cherished by Doctor Who fans: Dr. Who and the Daleks (1965) and Daleks' Invasion Earth: 2150 A.D. (1966). Movies that are seen, by most, as non-canon. Nevertheless, they remain firm favourites.

In the first instalment Dr Who is an eccentric old man, living with his granddaughters (yes, plural) Susan (Roberta Tovey) and Barbara (Jennie Linden). Susan is no more than a child (although she does possess a mind almost equal to that of her grandfather's); Barbara is dating a young gentleman named Ian (played by all round entertainer Roy Castle). It is Ian's introduction that causes events to unfold.

Dr Who has built a time machine called Tardis, and he is keen to show off his achievement. The film plays on the same aspect of the Tardis being bigger on the inside, a discovery that flabbergasts Ian. However, after accidentally knocking the instrumentation, the young man is responsible for them all being whisked off through time and space...

...where they land on a world called Skaro! The plotline follows that of its television counterpart.

The sequel, Daleks' Invasion Earth: 2150 A.D., was certainly greater in scale, though quite clearly less successful than the first. Original stars Peter Cushing and Roberta Tovey returned for this outing; actress Jill Curzon became the third member of the Tardis crew, as Dr Who's niece Louise. Joining them was actor Bernard Cribbins, portraying the part of British bobby Tom Campbell. Sadly DIE: 2150 A.D. underperformed at the box office and a possible third Dalek instalment (based on 1965 television story The Chase) was never produced.

It is easy to see why Peter Cushing was chosen out of so many actors. He was such a versatile performer, a man who had the ability to play dark roles in the Hammer series but still managing to maintain a softness that was quite needed for Dr Who. In life he was a gentle soul, a gentleman. Children could identify with him as being grandfatherly.

For horror fans, he was a legend; a creator of beasts, a vampire hunter, a man of many faces. His association, and friendship, with fellow actor Christopher Lee was legendary. They made the perfect team.

He had gone from theatre to Hollywood, returning to England where his career would be strengthened. From television work to film, he was an actor in demand. He appeared as Grand Moff Tarkin in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (1977), now one of his most famous and recognisable of parts.

Born on 26th May 1913, Peter Cushing died in August 1994.

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