Ghostwatch

[WWFChilli]

I caught the original broadcast and bought the DVD a few years ago and still enjoyed it, not as much but I still got a kick out of the fact it was something a bit different. The post-show outrage to it was hilarious, imagine that in 2011, it was tame as fuck fro complaints.

 

Still I love the show for it's attempt to shit the country up. And trying to find all the Pipes sightings can be fun. I think Charlie Brooker pimped the fuck out of Ghostwatchon his last series somewhere.

[KFR42]

I've rewatched this a few times since the original airing and while it's not nearly as scary as it was to the me of yesteryear there is still quite a lot of creepyness to it. For instance, the "extra" appearances of pipes, like when you catch his reflexion for a moment in the kitchen or amongst the crowd out at the play area. Of course they both could have been my imagination, but thats part of the beauty of these things. I have to agree though, the kids and mother were terrible actors.

[Rule One]

My uncle still has the original broadcast somewhere at his house, I used to get chills as a child every time I seen the damn label up on the video until I was about 10. I stayed at his house the night it aired and watched it. I was 6 and it shit me right up.

 

I watched it a few years ago with some friends and it made no impact on me but it still makes one when it's brought up in discussion with my friends.

 

The general consensus from us is that it delivered in its time but everything has moved on since, rendering it just another footnote in tv history.

[IANdrewDiceClay]

I watched it when it first came out. Everyone in the country might have. I was really young when it first showed, and it scared the shit out of me. It was years later on a Halloween Countdown show that I discovered the name of it, because I only knew it as "the thing with Lister and the ghost in it". Its been on youtube countless times over the years, and it doesn't frighten me in the slightest now. I see it more as something to set of triggers in my mind to remind me of memories when I was young, rather than watching it for its artistic merit. But I'll always remember the feeling watching it. I used to love the feeling of things I was scared of as a child. The Exorcist had thing aura for years about it. It was like "imagine having the balls to watch that film!!!" Then you watch it, and it isn't really scary at all.

[Philo_Vance]

I've rewatched this a few times since the original airing and while it's not nearly as scary as it was to the me of yesteryear there is still quite a lot of creepyness to it. For instance, the "extra" appearances of pipes, like when you catch his reflexion for a moment in the kitchen or amongst the crowd out at the play area. Of course they both could have been my imagination, but thats part of the beauty of these things. I have to agree though, the kids and mother were terrible actors.

 

There's about 9 appearances of pipes, the wikipedia article lists them so you can ffwd to them- I only caught a couple when I watched it, they're pretty fleeting, just a few frames in some cases.

[rockbus]

I'm certain this was actually based on a "true" story. I remember getting a book out of the library as a teenager a few years after this was on TV which was the story from Ghostwatch, right down to the ghost being called Pipes, two young girls in the family, etc etc. It was published in the 70s so it wasn't a tie in to the series. I can't find any evidence of this book existing anywhere though. It's frustrating me.

 

It's not based on a true story, but they lifted a ton of stuff, including the family set-up, straight from the famous Enfield Poltergeist case.

 

Aha, thanks mate. Just googled Enfield Poltergeist and now it makes sense.