Hammer Announces Quatermass 2 Boxset

 

Hot on the heels of announcing their 4K/Blu-ray set of The Quatermass Xperiment Hammer have released details of their forthcoming Quatermass 2 set. It is another packed set with the film presented on both Bluray and 4K discs (5 discs in total, 2 UHD and 3 bluray) presented in an embossed outer case.

The set will feature three versions of the film including the UK widescreen theatrical version, full screen version and widescreen US theatrical version. Extras will include the second part of the Toby Hadoke documentary The Legend of Nigel Kneale, Doubling Down: Uncovering Quatermass 2 - a look at the making of the film and all six episodes of the original BBC series. Further material looks at the controversial choice of Brian Donlevy; Man of Action examines his life and times whilst A Question of Character offers perspectives on Donlevy and why Nigel Kneale detested his casting. There are also an array of archive materials ranging from audio commentaries, interviews with cast and crew, trailers and image galleries. The film will come with six audio commentaries.

Also in the set is a reproduction of the Quatermass 2 comic strip that was featured in the Hammer House of Horror magazine and a booklet of new writing on the film. It promises to be another definitive edition and will be available to pre-order from 30th May. For more details please go here https://hammerfilms.com/products/quatermass-2-limited-collectors-edition

Toby Hadoke's book about The Quatermass Experiment is being reprinted

  Toby Hadoke's excellent book on Quatermass and the Pit is headed for a second print run and will be available direct from the publishers from June 9th. There are limited copies available of the first edition paperback, but these are selling fast.  If you haven't already got a copy then visit https://tenacrefilms.bigcartel.com/product/the-quatermass-experiment-the-making-of-tv-s-first-sci-fi-classic 

 

Quatermass Xperiment and Post-Screening Discussion in Manchester

 The brand new 4K restoration of The Quatermass Xperiment is to be screened at Home in Manchester on Monday, 16th June 2025. The event will mark the 70th anniversary of the movie and will be followed by a post-screening discussion between Andy Murray and Toby Hadoke. 

More details here https://homemcr.org/whats-on/393/hammer-s-original-sci-fi-classic-crash-lands-on-its-70th-anniversary/the-quatermass-xperiment-post-screening-discussion-ctba

BERGCAST is Back!

 

The podcast dedicated to all things Nigel Kneale and Quatermass has returned after a brief hiatus. Jon Dear is joined by Andy Murray as the new co-host and two new episodes are now available to hear.

Episode 36 has a very special guest in the form of Brian Cox who discusses his work on The Year of the Sex Olympics and why he would like to play Quatermass if the chance arose. Episode 37 is all about Toby Hadoke's new book on The Quatermass Experiment with Toby chatting about the writing of his excellent tome. 

Tune into Bergcast here https://bergcast.room207press.com/

Hammer Films Announce The Quatermass Experiment Boxset

 

Hammer Films have announced what may just been the definitive boxset for their 1955 adaptation of Nigel Kneale's The Quatermass Experiment. The release will be the first ever on 4K UHD and standard Blu-ray for the film in the UK and does not hold back on extras and goodies.

The limited edition will contain fives discs (two UHD and three Blu-rays) and hold three iterations of the movie: The widescreen 1.66:1 UK Theatrical Version, the fullscreen 1.37:1 As-Filmed Version and the Widescreen 1.85:1 US Theatrical Version retitled The Creeping Unknown. The films will also have brand new 5.1 audio mixes for the UK Theatrical and fullscreen versions alongside the original mono film soundtrack.

The release will come packaged in a leather-feel slipcase with debossed titling and a rigid inner box featuring new artwork by Graham Humprheys. Also included in the limited edition is a double sided poster of the original one-sheets, eight cinema lobby cards, 180 page booklet with new and archive essays and reproductions of original publicity material. Also included is a 56-page book reprinting the comic book adaptation from the The House of Hammer magazine. 

As well as containing the existing episodes of  BBC TV series of the story the discs are bursting at the seems with extras. There are four audio commentaries including a 2003 track with director Val Guest and three new commentaries: Nigel Kneale experts Toby Hadoke and Andy Murray are teamed with Wayne Kinsey on one track, film historian Stephen R. Bissette handles duties on the next and Hammer expert Constantine Nasr and Dr Steve Haberman on the third. 

Documentaries are also well served. The Legend of Nigel Kneale: The Creeping Unknown sees Toby Hadoke investigate the man and his influence in part one of a brand new two part documentary. Unstoppable: Unleashing The Quatermass Xperiment is a detailed look at the making of the film with contributions from Jon Dear, Stephen Gallagher, Toby Hadoke, Wayne Kinsey, Andy Murray and Stephen Volk. Patient Zero is hosted by actor and writer James Swanton, who played Caroon in the live 70th anniversary production of the story, who looks at the life and career of Richard Wordsworth. 

Archive retrospective material includes The Kneale Tapes, a 2003 BBC production that looks at the career of Nigel Kneale, alongside Cartier and Kneale in Conversation (2005, BBC) and Making Demons - a 2005 BBC interview with special effects designers Jack Kine and Bernard Wilkie. The extras continue with a 2003 interview with Val Guest from the original UK DVD release of the film and another Guest interview from 2000 courtesy of the Festival of Fantastic Films archive. Exhuming the Quatermass Xperiment  is a look at how the 4k restoration was made. 

Other extras include The Eric Winstone Bandshow, a Hammer musical short that played alongside the film at it's 1955 Uk premiere, and Monstrous! Stephen R. Bissette discusses make up artist Phil Leakey and the effects he deployed during the filming. 

There are also numerous trailers, photo galleries and other ephemeral materials to explore. 

This sumptuous release will be released on 9th June, 2025 and can be pre-ordered from 25th April, 2025 from Hammer
https://hammerfilms.com/products/the-quatermass-xperiment-limited-collectors-edition 

An Outside Broadcast at the End of the World: Free online talk about the work of Nigel Kneale

 On Saturday, 9th August, 2025 Bronte Schiltz will be exploring the work of Nigel Kneale in a free online talk entitled An Outside Broadcast at the End of the World. 

The event is part of Romancing the Gothic, an independent online education project run by Dr. Sam Hirst. Whilst free attendees will need to book a ticket. This can be done at
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/an-outside-broadcast-at-the-end-of-the-world-introduction-to-nigel-kneale-tickets

Nigel Kneale and Horror: Medium, Time, Culture and Genre edited by Derek Johnston

 

A new academic study of Kneale's work has been published by Liverpool University Press. The book is edited by Derek Johnston, lecturer in media at Queen’s University Belfast, and is the author of Haunted Seasons: Television Ghost Stories for Christmas and Horror for Halloween.

This collection focuses on Kneale’s horror writing, particularly in film and television. Taking a number of different academic perspectives, the chapters approach questions of medium, adaptation, genre, and style, emphasising the role that time plays in Kneale’s horror, and how he connected to wider cultural concerns. The work covered includes more famous productions, such as the Quatermass serials, The Woman in Black and Nineteen Eighty-Four, as well as some that have received less attention, including the social horror of Kneale’s film adaptations of Look Back in Anger and The Entertainer, ‘lost’ productions such as ‘The Chopper’ and Bam! Pow! Zap!, and unproduced work such as The Big, Big Giggle. Drawing on archival sources, including Kneale’s own archives, alongside the productions themselves, the collection portrays Kneale as a writer deeply concerned with society and social change, with the potential and responsibility of the media, and not as a horror writer, but a writer deeply concerned with the horrific.

At the moment the book is only available in a budget bursting hardback edition, but will hopefully come out in paperback at some point.

For more details and a look at the contents head over to https://liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/book/10.3828/9781836243519