Tales Of The Unexpected
MsWilder11
Posts: 13,498 Forum Member
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Any other fans out there?? Thoroughly love the first 3 series. "The Flypaper" is the most chilling one I've seen up to now.
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MsWilder11
Posts: 13,498 MsWilder11
Posts: 13,498
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Unfortunately Sky Arts 2 now seems to have moved on to a later series which features the mostly American (and mostly dull) stories as opposed to the brilliant early ones. IIRC, it was around the time of these episodes that the reviews initially started terming the show 'Tales of the Bleedin' Obvious'!
Sky Arts 2 are labelling the current crop of episodes as 'new' in their information boxes (new to the channel, of course). Beforehand they were showing the earlier series on a loop - and I hope that means that once they're through with the later series, they go back once again to the beginning. I really ought to invest in the boxed sets though.
Another thing I love about this show is seeing all the old character actors (and sometimes much more famous faces) cropping up. Everyone from Joan Collins and Stephanie Cole to Pauline Collins, John Alderton, John Mills and Brian Blessed. Marvellous stuff!
Yes, and the select few appeared more than once. I know John Mills was in 'The Umbrella Man' , 'Galloping Foxley' and I think a couple of others. Joan Collins was in 'Georgy Porgy' and 'Neck'. I loved spotting the star
Joan Collins also cropped up in 'A Girl Can't Always Have Everything' alongside Pauline Collins (after starring in 'Georgy Porgy' alongside the latter's real life husband).
I loved 'The Umbrella Man' and 'Galloping Foxley', as I like John Mills. His turn in the former was great - I half-expected his character to be something more frightening than what he turned out to be! A great little story.
I couldn't figure him out at all in 'The Umbrella Man' when he first turned up in it.There was obviously something off with him, but I just couldn't work out what it was. That's what I like about the early episodes.
Exactly, having seen 'The Flypaper' first I really just did not know what to expect. The show had really terrified me so much in that episode (and crossed such an uncomfortable line) that anything could have happened! In fact, what is so great about this show (the early episodes at least) is how wildly different the episodes were. From chilling endings like that in 'The Flypaper', 'Lamb to the Slaughter', 'The Landlady' (horrific!) or 'Skin', there were still the upbeat of humorous twists of 'The Hitch-hiker' or 'A Picture of a Place'.
:eek: 'TheLandlandy' was horrible! Seriously frightening. Think 'The Flypaper' just had the edge on that (imo) because it was a young girl involved and it threw that false sense of security at you I really didn't see that twist coming.
And you're right about the variety in episodes. It went through the entire spectrum. The dark episodes were just as well done as the light-hearted ones.
They were :eek::( Very well done though.
My general faves though I can't remember the names of them is the one where the guy opens up his own tea shops and becomes big in business having been stiched up by the church he used to work for.
The one where a stupud jealous hitman bumps off an old school mate he was and is still jealous of by way of poison.
The "stinker" one was a good one.
The one where a businessman picks up a hitchiker was very good. Loads of them are very good.
With the obligatory American actor in each episode, for US sales.
Sadly that storyline probably wouldn't get made nowadays.
Certainly wouldn't. It may be dated, but there seemed to be more creative freedom back then. How many complaints would there be about it now?! :rolleyes:
It's good to see so many comments on "The Flypaper". It certainly was one of the most disturbing stories. I really liked Alfred Burke as an actor and he was pretty creepy in this episode. He had a good innings as he only died a year ago at the age of 92.
He was. The whole 'overly-chatty' scene on the bus is really sinister.
Bought the complete boxset a couple of years ago.
Couldn't get beyond the end of the second series.
Dull and predictable sum them up perfectly.
A one line premise stretched to 25 minutes .
I don't know about later episodes but the first 2 series nearly all had predictable endings that you could spot after the first few minutes.
I was under the impression that the Dahl stories were supposed to be the strongest so I didn't wait around to see many of those that he didn't write .
Disappointing
Anthology shows like Thriller , Hammer House of Horror and most others were far superior
They should do it as a storyline on Eastenders. The national meltdown would be a sight to behold.
OfCom would probably explode!
The wife kills her husband with a frozen leg of lamb.
When the police come to investigate, she feed them with the now cooked lamb
Brian Blessed played one of the policemen
Susan George played the wife
I remember that one too it was one of my favourites. Another one was where a man was having an affair and wanting to get rid of his wife so he could make a new life with his mistress but when he leaves his wife some chocolates it all goes horribly wrong. Great theme tune as well.