Welcome to episode 51 of The Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we pair two movies to create something greater than the sum of their parts.

This week we are exploring the amorphous world of the science fiction horror hybrid, with two movies that pit man against gelatinous monstrosities from inner and outer space.

First up, we have X the Unknown from 1956, an early entry into the horror market from British studio Hammer, This was directed by Leslie Norman and stars Dean Jagger, Leo McKern and Edward Chapman.

Then we jump forward to 1988 for the enjoyably goofy The Blob, from director Chuck Russell and co-writer Frank Darabont, and stars Kevin Dillon, Shawnee Smith, Donovan Leitch, Jeffrey DeMunn and Candy Clark.

Along the way, we will be discussing the careers of writer-directors Jimmy Sangster and Chuck Russell, unlikely parallels with Spielberg’s Jaws, shapeless monstrosities in the horror movie, the inspiration for and the production story of the 1958 version of the Blob, and much, much more.

References

The House that Hammer Built Volume 2, 1950 – 1954 & Volume 3: 1955–1958 by Wayne Kinsey

Hammer and Beyond: The British Horror Film by Peter Hutchings,

Hammer Films: An Exhaustive Filmography by Tom Johnson and Deborah Del Vecchio

Father of the Blob: The Making of a Monster Smash and Other Hollywood Tales by Jack H Harris

https://strasbourgfestival.com/en/interview-jimmy-sangster/

https://www.hammer-graveyard.org.uk/jimmy-sangster/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimmy_Sangster

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2011/aug/21/jimmy-sangster-obituary

The Blob (1988) - Scream factory blu ray interviews, commentaries and extras

https://ia801403.us.archive.org/4/items/Fear_04_1989-01-02_no_ads/Fear_04_1989-01-02_no_ads.pdf

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0762727/

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0751080/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Blob_(1988_film)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Blob

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X_the_Unknown

Instagram: @thehorrordoublebill

email: thehorrordoublebill@gmail.com

youtube: @thehorrordoublebill

artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)