Beasts

I agree with zoothorn's review to the extent that 'Baby' is, by some distance, the scariest and most disturbing of the six and 'Murrain'– kind of a Straw Dogs/Wicker Man hybrid with Jarvis Cocker as a grumpy James Herriott – is the most satisfying dramatically. Probably not uncoincidentally, these episodes also have the most location filming.

However, I don't believe this is grounds to entirely dismiss the other episodes in the series. 'The Dummy' is, I think, a successful blend of satire and horror (although with Hammer and the rest of the British film industry on its last legs in 1976 it must have seemed a bit belated). Special Offer has the great premise of Carrie transferred to a tacky British supermarket. Also a fine central performance from an unfeasibly young Pauline Quirke and, despite ATV's limited budgets, very effective FX – no shoestring in evidence anywhere in fact.

On the other hand, 'What Big Eyes' ends up rather short changing the viewer and, despite its skillful escalation of tension,'Barty's Party' has been, I agree, somewhat overrated. The concept is too derivative of Hitchcock and James Herbert and doesn't really evoke any wider significance for the unfolding horrors.

Finally, I can see why 'Buddyboy' is so well-remembered as it must be one of the weirdest pieces of drama I've ever seen on British TV. I can only assume Kneale's remit to make each episode as distinct as possible eventually propelled him down this bizarre blind alley, but trying to extract chills out of a storyline involving a telepathic dolphin (which we never actually see) was always going to be tricky. The most disturbing thing here is the close-up of Martin Shaw's sleazy porn cinema manager 'on the job' – you may never see Judge John Deed in the same light again.

So, yes, by modern standards, these episodes are slowly paced, wordy and cheap. They were made at a time when TV drama was still largely derived from theatrical models and, at their worst, they are marred by OTT acting, lengthy expository dialogue and the constrictions of the set-bound productions. At their best, however, the acting is tremendous, character's and plot lines are given room to breathe, suspense is built gradually and the sheer ordinariness of the videotaped, studio-lit environments (and almost complete lack of a musical soundtrack) actually increases their creepy power.

I think it is salutary to remind ourselves that there was a time when TV producers had faith in audiences to sit down and engage with an hour's worth of challenging, original drama broken by only one ad break. In these hyper-stimulated, mayfly attention span times, that makes this series a strange and oddly compelling beast indeed and, IMHO, this DVD release should not be dismissed as a mere footnote to Kneale's better known work.

The only reason I don't give "Beasts" a top 10 is that there aren't many episodes. There should have been a second series - I reckon they would have been just as good.

Each episode from this series has a self- contained plot and they range from witchcraft to possession.

The production values are a bit modest but the beauty lays in the acting and the writing. For sheer storytelling, this kind of television is sorely missed.

There have been many moments on television considered the scariest but i remember vividly an episode from this series entitled BABY. Like many other reviewers here it scared me half to death as a boy, so it was with much trepidation that and interest i began watching a copy of the series ....believe me that episode has lost non of its power. Obvious;y some of the effects have dated but its such a frightening story and so well told that it still sends a shiver down the spine. I never watched any other episodes so cannot comment on how they came across at the time but having watched them now they stand up very well indeed.

They are a little on the 'wordy' side and are very studio bound, the lack of budget allows the stories to breath (sometimes a bit too much on BUDDY BOY), relying more on actors than flashy MTV editing styles. Stand outs be During Barty's Party (relying on 2 actors and a sound effect) and Baby (that thing!!!).

I vaguely remember the "Baby" episode of Beasts, which someone describes really above. But it is the opening "Special Offer" episode that stuck in my mind more, mostly because the setting was so mundane.

Like most throwaway 70s telly, I only saw it once, but I vividly remember Pauline Quirke playing a checkout girl in a supermarket who became obsessed with the store's cartoon mascot (a rabbit, I think) called Brightway Billy. She started hallucinating about seeing the rabbit in the shop. I was 12 when it was shown and it totally creeped me out, and created an atmosphere of insanity and hysteria in a very bland setting. At school the next day, every was imitating Pauline Quirke's moon face calling out for "Billy!".

My abiding memory is of some chap incarcerated in his living room, ringing into some radio show and having something nasty getting nearer and nearer...and nearer. You never saw anything, but then again you never had to.

Even the word 'beasts' takes us all back there doesn't it? I try and be objective. I saw this in late 1976, and never since. I was 9 years old, hardly capable of critical reasoning. Yet, across the gulf of time, images and thought processes immeasurably superior to adulthood come back to you.

I'd like to watch it now, provided it don't ruin it.