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[Katana_Strikes]

Scarred me through my whole childhood this did. I couldn't sleep and had nightmares for a good while after. Thought it was real when it aired as a kid.

Would be interesting to watch again but my gosh I bet it's aged horrribly but knowing it's fake it could possibly be very funny these days.

 

[DJMicLuv]

So what am I supposed to be seeing in the gif in the OP?

Yer boy Pipes.

 

[MagnaderAlpha]

I wind up looking this up years ago online. I like "it's really happening... but it's not" TV special feel. There's another movie released more recently called the WNUF Halloween Special, which isn't AS good, but still keep spirit of when new programs used to have that sorta "Special" where they'd do stuff like that. WNUF is set in the 80s where a reporter and an Ed and Lorraine Warren-knockoff are supposed to contact the spirits in a local haunted house (which has a murderous past), with part of the actual "news" stories in the beginning and inter-cut with 80s-styled commercials through the breaks.

 

[GeeTeeCee]

It would be great if they tried a new version without telling anyone.

Imagine the British public tuning into an episode of The One Show on Monday, only to watch a light segment about Gyles Brandreth visiting a team of coastal cave spelunkers who accidentally unearth an eldritch horror. It ramps up slowly over the course of the week until the entire One Show team are full-on Cthulu advocates by Friday.

I'd watch that. Come on, Beeb.

 

[wenis]

It would be great if they tried a new version without telling anyone.

Imagine the British public tuning into an episode of The One Show on Monday, only to watch a light segment about Gyles Brandreth visiting a team of coastal cave spelunkers who accidentally unearth an eldritch horror. It ramps up slowly over the course of the week until the entire One Show team are full-on Cthulu advocates by Friday.

I'd watch that. Come on, Beeb.

You think advertisers wouldn't love to get a few hashtags in there? maybe a coke product placement?

 

[IdreamofHIME]

It was fantastic when it was first shown.

Also RIP Mike Smith.

It would be great if they tried a new version without telling anyone.
.

But the BBC did tell people this was a drama. It wasnt presented or advertised as being "real". The viewers were just dumbfucks

 

[Cosmonaut X]

But the BBC did tell people this was a drama. It wasnt presented or advertised as being "real". The viewers were just dumbfucks

IIRC, it was under a drama brand (Screen One?) and there were writing credits at the beginning, but those were easy enough to miss. Between that and the presentation and familiar presenters and lack of recognisable actors I'm not surprised people fell for it.

 

[keltickennedy]

I watched the original this past Halloween. It was cool. Now of course you can pick up how fake it seems. Freaked a ton of people out back when it was shown though.

 

[Hex]

Didn't they try to sell this as real until people leaked behind the scenes happenings?
I seem to remember some stink about that, as this was in the heyday of Ghost Hunters and all of that.

Edit: Even docs and whatnot have writing credits because there is usually announcers or some kind of host.

 

[SirMossyBloke]

Didn't they try to sell this as real until people leaked behind the scenes happenings?
I seem to remember some stink about that, as this was in the heyday of Ghost Hunters and all of that.

At the beginning it actually stated it wasn't real, but 10 year old me missed that. I was also home alone.

 

[plagiarize]

Scarred me through my whole childhood this did. I couldn't sleep and had nightmares for a good while after. Thought it was real when it aired as a kid.

Would be interesting to watch again but my gosh I bet it's aged horrribly but knowing it's fake it could possibly be very funny these days.

Me too. People will never know how goddamn scary this was to see in situ as a kid who had grown up with Mike Smith and Sarah Greene.

I know a fair few people over here in the states that have seen it, and found it scary even though they knew it was 100% fictional.

 

[Surface of Me]

Story around it reminds me of Crybaby Lane.

 

[plagiarize]

IIRC, it was under a drama brand (Screen One?) and there were writing credits at the beginning, but those were easy enough to miss. Between that and the presentation and familiar presenters and lack of recognisable actors I'm not surprised people fell for it.

Yes, if you tuned in right before it started you'd have seen that it was a drama. But if you tuned in a couple of minutes after it started (as I did) you had no way of knowing. I got sent to bed right around when Sarah Greene got trapped in the basement because I was so scared... so I also missed the end which also makes it very obvious that it isn't real.

I remember lying in bed terrified as to what might be happening to Sarah Greene in that basement at that very moment.

Thanks Mum and Dad!

 

[bosseye]

Yer boy Pipes.

That's Mr Pipes to you my lad!

 

[kiri]

Apologies for the bump, but wanted to let UK-gaffers know that tickets go on sale tomorrow for a 25th anniversary showing in London on the big screen with a Q&A afterwards - I'll be buying mine!