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The Witches (1966 Film)
''The Witches'' (U.S. title: ''The Devil's Own'') is a 1966 British horror film directed by Cyril Frankel and starring Joan Fontaine, Alec McCowen, Kay Walsh, Ann Bell, Ingrid Boulting and Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies. Made by Hammer Film Productions, Hammer Films, it was adapted by Nigel Kneale from the 1960 novel ''The Devil's Own'' by Norah Lofts (as Peter Curtis). Plot Schoolteacher Gwen Mayfield comes back to England after suffering a nervous breakdown caused by an attack by witch doctor, witch-doctors while working in a mission in Africa. She's hired by the wealthy Reverend Alan Bax, who runs a school in the remote village of Heddaby. Once there, Gwen finds out Alan is not actually a minister, and only wears a clerical collar out of "a sense of security"; the only church in the village is in ruins. Meanwhile, she befriends Alan's sister, an esteemed journalist. The romance between two of Gwen's pupils, Ronnie Dowsett and Linda Rigg, is sternly opposed by adults in the village f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cyril Frankel
Cyril Solomon Israel Frankel (28 December 19217 June 2017) was a British film and television director. His career in television began in 1953 and he directed for over 30 TV programmes until 1990. He directed many episodes of popular British TV shows, such as ''The Avengers (TV series), The Avengers'', and the Television pilot, pilot episodes of the ITC Entertainment shows ''Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased)'' and ''Department S (TV series), Department S'' in 1969. In 1970, he directed "Timelash (UFO), Timelash", an episode of ''UFO (British TV series), UFO'', which he described as a very interesting script and one of his personal favourites. Frankel also directed many documentaries and feature films, including ''Never Take Sweets from a Stranger'' (1960) and ''School for Scoundrels (1960 film), School for Scoundrels'' (1960; taking over from Robert Hamer, who was credited as sole director). One of his films, ''Man of Africa'' (1953) - the first film to feature a cast made up of rela ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Witch Doctor
A witch doctor (also spelled witch-doctor), or witchcraft doctor, is a kind of magical healer who treats ailments believed to be caused by witchcraft. The term is often misunderstood, and they could more accurately be called "anti-witch doctors". The term is now more commonly used to refer to healers, particularly in regions which use traditional healing rather than contemporary medicine. Original meaning of the term In its original meaning, witch doctors were not exactly witches themselves, but rather people who had remedies to protect others against witchcraft. Witchcraft-induced conditions were their area of expertise, as described in this 1858 news report from England: Recourse was had by the girl's parents to a cunning man, named Burrell, residing at Copford, who has long borne the name of "The Wizard of the North:" but her case was of so peculiar a character as to baffle his skill to dissolve the spell, Application was next made to a witch doctor named Murrell, residi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshire to the east, Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, and Oxfordshire to the west. The largest settlement is the city of Milton Keynes, and the county town is Aylesbury. The county has an area of and had a population of 840,138 at the 2021 census. ''plus'' Besides Milton Keynes, which is in the north-east, the largest settlements are in the southern half of the county and include Aylesbury, High Wycombe, and Chesham. For Local government in England, local government purposes Buckinghamshire comprises two Unitary authorities of England, unitary authorities, Buckinghamshire Council and Milton Keynes City Council. The Historic counties of England, historic county had slightly different borders, and included the towns of S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hambleden
Hambleden is a small village and civil parish in southwest Buckinghamshire, England. The village is around west of Marlow, Buckinghamshire, Marlow, and around northeast of Henley-on-Thames in Oxfordshire. The civil parish also includes the villages of Fingest and Frieth, and the Hamlet (place)#United Kingdom, hamlets of Colstrope, Mill End, Parmoor, Pheasant's Hill and Skirmett. At the 2011 United Kingdom census, 2011 Census, the population of the parish was 1,445. History The village name is Old English, Anglo-Saxon in origin, and means 'crooked or irregularly-shaped hill'. It was recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as ''Hanbledene'', though previously in 1015 it was known as ''Hamelan dene''. St Thomas Cantilupe, the Lord Chancellor and Bishop of Hereford, was born in Hambleden in 1218. In 1315 a Royal charter was granted to hold a market (place), market in the village, and a fair on Bartholomew, St Bartholomew's Day (24 August) every year. The charter was reconfirmed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bryan Marshall
Bryan Marshall (19 May 1938 – 25 June 2019) was a British actor, with a number of major credits in film and television to his name, in both Britain and Australia. Early life Marshall was born in Battersea, south London. He was educated at the Salesian College, Battersea, and trained as an actor at RADA, graduating in 1963, before appearing at the Bristol Old Vic and in repertory theatre and in the 1986 first national tour of ''The Sound of Music'' as Captain von Trapp. Film Marshall's best-remembered film role is that of Councillor Harris in '' The Long Good Friday'' (1980). His other film credits include '' Rasputin the Mad Monk'' (1966), '' Alfie'' (1966), '' The Witches'' (1966), '' The Viking Queen'' (1967), '' Quatermass and the Pit'' (1967), '' Mosquito Squadron'' (1969), '' I Start Counting'' (1970), '' Man in the Wilderness'' (1971), '' Because of the Cats'' (1973), '' The Tamarind Seed'' (1974) and '' The Spy Who Loved Me'' (1977). His later film career included ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shelagh Fraser
Sheila Mary Fraser (25 November 1920 – 29 August 2000) was an English actress. She is best known for her roles in the television serial ''A Family at War'' (1970–1971) and as Luke Skywalker's Aunt Beru in ''Star Wars'' (1977). Early life Shelagh Fraser was born in Purley, Surrey, on 25 November 1920. Her parents were John Newton Mappin Fraser and Vera Eleanor (née Beardshaw). Her father was a director of the jewellery company Mappin & Webb, and the family was sent to Australia to establish a branch of the family business there. They returned to the United Kingdom in 1924. As a child, Shelagh suffered from spinal tuberculosis, but overcame the debilitating effects of the illness. She was educated at St Christopher's School in Kingswood and won a scholarship to train as an actor at Croydon Repertory Theatre Drama School. It was there that Fraser made her first stage appearance in 1938. Career Fraser had a wide range of roles on the stage. She made her West End theatre de ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Viola Keats
Viola Keats (1911–1998) was a British stage, film and television actress. ''The Independent'' called her "an actress of vigour and conviction." After training at RADA, her first appearance on the London Stage was at the Apollo Theatre in 1933, in ''The Distaff Side'', and the following year she made her Broadway debut in the same play. Her first screen appearance was in 1933 in '' Too Many Wives'', and she went on to have starring roles in films such as '' A Woman Alone''. From the 1950s, her screen work was largely in television, but she continued to work throughout in the theatre, including an Australian tour of ''A Streetcar Named Desire'' as Blanche, and in the 1958 Agatha Christie play ''Verdict'' at the Strand Theatre. She spent her retirement living in Brighton. Filmography * '' Double Wedding'' (1933) * '' Too Many Wives'' (1933) * '' Matinee Idol'' (1933) * '' Enemy of the Police'' (1933) * '' His Grace Gives Notice'' (1933) * '' The Pointing Finger'' (1933) * '' T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carmel McSharry
Carmel Evelyn McSharry (18 August 1926 – 4 March 2018) was an Irish character actress, best known for her roles as Beryl Humphries in '' Beryl's Lot'' (1973–77), and as Mrs. Hollingbery in '' In Sickness and in Health''. She also played bit parts in ''The Day the Earth Caught Fire'' (1961), '' 80,000 Suspects'' (1963) and '' The Leather Boys'' (1964). Other television work includes roles in '' The Liver Birds'', ''Casualty'' and ''Z-Cars''. She also appeared in the BBC play ''Home from Home'' in 1973, which also featured Yootha Joyce and Michael Robbins. Personal life Carmel McSharry's parents, John McSharry and Christina Harvey were Irish. Her mother travelled back to Dublin for the birth of Carmel so that she would be born in the Irish Free State. McSharry married Derek Briggs in 1949. They had three children, Desna, Theresa (the actress Tessa Bell Briggs) and Sean. The marriage ended in divorce. Retirement and death McSharry retired in 1997. She died on 4 March 2018 in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Martin Stephens (actor)
Martin Stephens (born 19 July 1949) is a former child actor and architect from England, best known for his performances in the films '' Village of the Damned'' and '' The Innocents''. Stephens appeared in 14 films between 1954 and 1966, then chose to drop out of acting and made his adult career outside the profession. Career Stephens was born in Southgate, Middlesex on 19 July 1949 and made his first film appearance aged 5 in the 1954 tug-of-love drama '' The Divided Heart''. In 1958 he featured as the young David Copperfield in three episodes of the TV series ''Tales from Dickens''. The same year he returned to the screen in '' Another Time, Another Place'', a sudsy melodrama in which he was cast as the child of Sean Connery and Glynis Johns. Several more film appearances followed in the next two years before Stephens landed the role which would make him famous. '' Village of the Damned'' was a screen adaptation of John Wyndham's science fiction novel '' The Midwich Cuckoos'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leonard Rossiter
Leonard Rossiter (21 October 1926 – 5 October 1984) was an English actor. He had a long career in the theatre but achieved his highest profile for his television comedy roles starring as Rupert Rigsby in the ITV series '' Rising Damp'' from 1974 to 1978, and Reginald Perrin in the BBC's '' The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin'' from 1976 to 1979. Early life Rossiter was born on 21 October 1926 in Wavertree, Liverpool, the second son of John and Elizabeth (née Howell) Rossiter. The family lived over the barber's shop owned by his father. He was educated at the Liverpool Collegiate School (1939–46). In September 1939, when the Second World War began, Rossiter was an evacuee, along with his schoolmates, and went to Bangor in north Wales, where he stayed for 18 months. While at school, his ambition was to go to university to read modern languages and become a teacher; however, his father, who served as a voluntary ambulanceman during the war, was killed in the May Blitz air ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Duncan Lamont
Duncan William Ferguson Lamont (17 June 1918 – 19 December 1978) was a British actor.Brian McFarlane (Ed): ''The Encyclopedia of British Film'' (BFI/Methuen • London • 2000) p397''Picture Show Who's Who on the Screen'' (Amalgamated Press • London) 956p87 Born in Lisbon, Portugal, and brought up in Scotland, he had a long and successful career in film and television, appearing in a variety of high-profile productions. Career He trained as an actor at RADA in London, and had a considerable amount of stage experience before the Second World War. He acted in repertory, and at the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon. During the War he served as a sergeant pilot in the Glider Pilot Regiment of the British airborne forces. He resumed acting after the War, and entered films in the early 1950s. On film, he appeared in ''The Man in the White Suit'' (1951, as Harry), '' The Adventures of Quentin Durward'' (1955, as the villain De La Marck), '' The 39 Steps'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Michele Dotrice
Michele Dotrice (born 27 September 1948) is an English actress. She played Betty Spencer, the long-suffering wife of Frank Spencer (Michael Crawford), Frank Spencer, portrayed by Michael Crawford, in the BBC sitcom ''Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em'', which ran from 1973 to 1978, and returned in 2016 for a special. Career Her first significant role was in the 1962 13-part BBC TV adaptation of ''The Old Curiosity Shop'' in which she played Nell, and she appeared in ''The Witches (1966 film), The Witches'' for Hammer Films in 1966. In 1970, she had starring roles in the horror thrillers ''And Soon the Darkness (1970 film), And Soon the Darkness'' and ''The Blood on Satan's Claw''. Her other film appearances include ''Jane Eyre (1970 film), Jane Eyre'' (1970) with George C. Scott and the 1976 comedy ''Not Now, Comrade''. It was her appearance in ''Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em'' that made her a household name, and she played the role for five years from 1973. In 2016, she reprised the role in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
