Watch The Ghosts

Craig Charles' spooky drama manifests at last on DVD and video.

15 November, 2002

It was Halloween night, 1992, and Red Dwarf fans settled down to a quiet evening watching our Listy co-host a show about ghosts. Little did we know then that we wouldn't be sleeping for a week.

Ghostwatch - released on November 25th on video and DVD - was the cause of much controversy in its day. Scaring the public silly with its pre-Blair Witch realism, there was an uproar in the press unseen since the famous 'news broadcasts' of Orson Welles' radio version of War of the Worlds.

Michael Parkinson, Mike Smith, Sarah Greene and Craig Charles hosted this scripted Screen One drama that was designed to look like a live studio show - complete with outside broadcasts, failing technology and phone-in contributors. The scares are the best bits, as a scarcely-seen spirit takes control of proceedings - but spare a laugh for Craig as, 'unwittingly' on camera, he bemoans how this level of disorganisation could only happen at the BBC!

The DVD, released by the BFI, features a commentary by writer Stephen Volk, director Lesley Manning and producer Ruth Baumgarten, as well as an insightful look at how the script became reality. Those with DVD-ROM will also be able to access the script, original treatment and short story.