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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

The Thriller Cabinet Podcast returns next month! Here are a few teaser images for the first few episodes - how many of these faces do you recognise from the depths of your darkest dreams? Previous episodes can be found here (or wherever else you get your podcasts): thethrillercabinet.libsyn.com

A girl sits at a cracked mirror, putting on lipstick. A figure looms in the right foreground, watching her.

A black and white picture of a middle-aged man looking disconsolately down a street in Berlin; his expression world-weary but watchful.

It's Santa Claus! But he looks a bit grimy, and like he might just be going to get you...

A close-up image of a man's face, which is eyebrowless and painted white. His expression seems to express a mocking disbelief, his stare fixed and baleful.

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Twins of Doom @twinsofdoom.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Had a brilliant time at Abyssal festival yesterday. All 10 bands were great - my highlights were Witchsorrow, Five the Hierophant, Mountainscape and the mighty AHAB! 🤘

Three members of the doom metal band Ahab stand bathed in purple light in front of a slowly moshing crowd. Above them, a mirror ball hangs.

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 02/08/2026

IT LIVES! The Thriller Cabinet podcast is rising from its tomb, returning to excite your ears with a whole new season of dark cinematic delights! Covering all kinds of classic thrillers from the world of film! Coming soon...

An inky black and white illustration of a woman's face, turning towards the viewer as if in alarm. Her face is partly in heavy shadow, her dark hair flowing out around her like a shroud. At the bottom of the picture, it says The Thriller Cabinet in stylised orange font.

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archivetvmusings @archivetvmusings.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

The first episode of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy was originally broadcast on this day in 1979. This BBC2 screening was swiftly followed by a two part omnibus repeat on BBC1 during Christmas 1979.

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

This is today! If you're in the Daventry area, you should come down as a) Steve's books are excellent and b) he's an absolutely lovely man.

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On This Day - Scala Cinema @otdscalacinema.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

On this day (5th September) in 1980, the Scala Cinema was showing The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975) and Phantom Of The Paradise (1974) as a double bill.

Film posters for The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975) and Phantom Of The Paradise (1974) on a background of a Scala Cinema programme.

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Coffin Boffin @coffinboffin.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

JAPANESE UMBRELLA BATS associated with happiness and good fortune. Here their wings are seen to resemble the unfolding of the umbrella they are holding! 蝙蝠 #baturday #InternationalBatNight Image: Yoshitoshi

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On This Day - Scala Cinema @otdscalacinema.bsky.social · 09/08/2026

On this day (9th August) in 1984, the Scala Cinema was showing The Right Stuff (1983). On its own. No other films required.

Film poster for The Right Stuff (1983) on a background of a Scala Cinema programme.

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Steve Hunt @mrstevehunt.bsky.social · 08/08/2026

I'm doing my first ever book signing! #boxing #booksky

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Clay Pipe Music @claypipemusic.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

Here is a big clue as to what is coming up next on Clay Pipe Music. @andrewwasylyk.bsky.social and @surfacepressure.bsky.social have written a soundtrack to the 1925 horror Phantom of the Opera and will be taking it across the country to these cinemas. All the info: ▶️ awtp.surfacepressure.net

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 02/08/2026

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Rob Tyers @thexclaim6.bsky.social · 30/07/2026

JG Ballard on Graham Greene “His fiction is generated by his experience of the world outside England. He couldn't be further apart from someone like Kingsley Amis or Anthony Powell, whose fiction is entirely generated by the closed world not just of England but of a very small part of” #booksky

PRINGLE: I think it was Graham Greene who compared The Crystal World with Heart of Darkness.
Was there any influence there?
BALLARD: I don't know whether I'd read Heart of Darkness at the time I wrote The Crystal World. I honestly don't think I was influenced by Conrad. I don't mind being influenced - after all, we're all influenced to some extent - but if you're talking about conscious imitation: certainly not.
PRINGLE: Were you influenced by Graham Greene - because he was influenced by Conrad?
BALLARD: Probably, yes. There's something about Greene's handling of solitary characters, externalizing the character's mind in terms of the situation in which he finds himself, the particular landscape. He does this so brilliantly. He can have a solitary figure standing by a jetty in the Far East, looking at some sanpans, and he brings in a few things like the local police chief scratching his neck and so on, and within a paragraph one has a marvellous evocation of the psychology of the hero, and of what the hero and of what the book is about. Yes, I probably was influenced by Greene, but I never consciously imitated him.
PRINGLE: Were you attracted to Greene because of your Far East background?
BALLARD: What I liked about Greene, and still do, is that although he's snared by the English literary 'thing', he's very much a twentieth century man, and his fiction is generated by his experience of the world outside England. He couldn't be further apart from someone like Kingsley Amis or Anthony Powell, whose fiction is entirely generated by the closed world not just of England but of a very small part of England. In Greene's fiction one can breathe the smells, see the sights and hear the sounds of the whole world. Not having spent my childhood and adolescence in England, I received a very big shock when I got here in 1946 and found it was a closed little island, containing a whole lot of lesser islands - the world of English professional life. Professional middle-class life of …

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Rue Morgue Magazine @ruemorguemag.bsky.social · 22/07/2026

Born on this day in 1889 (d. 1957), Happy Birthday, JAMES WHALE! 🎉

Black and white portrait of a middle-aged man with neatly combed hair wearing a suit and tie, looking confidently at the camera.

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

Just Published! The mighty @mrstevehunt.bsky.social has compiled a book about boxing films: Knockout Movies! Buy it from Steve himself, or if you prefer evil corporations it's on Amazon: www.amazon.co.uk/dp/818440005... (Disclosure: I contributed but lots of other exciting people are in it too.)

Cover of the book Knockout Movies by Steve Hunt. A colour illustration of a boxer, slumping to his knees against the ropes, his eye bleeding and his faraway expression filled with exhausted resolve. In the foreground at the top right, an ungloved hand hovers over him, counting down the remaining seconds before he must concede.

Colour posters for the film covered in the book Knockout Movies!, including Rocky I and II, Body & Soul, The Set-Up and Killer's Kiss.

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Steve Hunt @mrstevehunt.bsky.social · 12/07/2026

My new book, Knockout Movies! A History of Cinematic Boxing, is out now. I have some available to sell for £15 + postage. All proceeds go to the Ricky Hatton Foundation. #booksky #boxing

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

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The Finnvisible Man™ @feeblecretin.bsky.social · 05/07/2026

Excellent film. So haunting and eerie. Angela Pleasence is a revelation. It's often overshadowed by the other, more well-known horrors of the era, but I honestly think it's among the best and should be talked about more I highly recommend it if you're looking for a slow burn with truly evil vibes!

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

I've just come back from a trip to beautiful Orkney, so it seems a good time to share a song I wrote many years ago about Scapa Flow, in my former life as a musician (under the alias God's Little Eskimo). Have a listen here: godslittleeskimo.bandcamp.com/track/scapa-...

godslittleeskimo.bandcamp.com

Scapa Flow, by God's Little Eskimo

from the album Dives Of Lazarus

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

godslittleeskimo.bandcamp.com

Scapa Flow, by God's Little Eskimo

from the album Dives Of Lazarus

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 05/06/2026

THE OMEN turns 50 this month! Why not celebrate little Damien's birthday by listening to @grumpyandrew.bsky.social and myself discuss the film in depth on The Thriller Cabinet podcast? Available on Spotify, Apple, and on Libsyn here: thethrillercabinet.libsyn.com/the-thriller...

Gnarly teaser poster for The Omen (1976). In the top right, a small, smartly dressed boy stands, staring at the viewer. An ominous red halo seems to surround him, illuminating his figure against the black background. This sinister light behind him makes him cast a shadow - but rather than it being human, the shadow is an inverted cross. At the bottom, the poster states: "You are one day closer to the end of the world" before giving the title and the legend "Coming this Summer from Twentieth Century Fox." In conclusion, it's a great poster.

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Mondo Mascots @mondomascots.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

Hoo-chan, the mascot for Yamano musical instruments, is a musical fairy who dresses in a bird costume because both music and birds can fly freely across borders.

A mascot hiding in the dark inside a white bird costume stands in front of some benches.

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Steve Hunt @mrstevehunt.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

I am extremely proud to say that have been involved in curating the boxing noir strand for this year's #FilmNoirFest. I basically got to pick my favourite #boxing noir movies and now will get to see them on the big screen! Get your tickets and come and join me! #moviesky #filmsky #filmnoir

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Jamie @vanjpes.bsky.social · 26/05/2026

On this World Dracula Day, let us remember Jeremy Brett and Raúl Juliá in their stage Count costumes, with Edward Gorey-designed scenery

Jeremy Brett in full seventies/thirties crossover costume as Dracula in front of an Edward Gorey painted library and fireplace set

Raúl Juliá in a similar costume, arms spread wide making his cape look like bat wings, on another Gorey stage, this one an old Gothic building

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ǝoɔsoᴚ ǝʇɐN @nateroscoe.bsky.social · 20/05/2026

‘Mary Poppins’ (1964) / ‘Exorcist II: The Heretic’ (1977) #SideBySide

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Tipping My Fedora @tippingmyfedora.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

Dario Argento made his bones with his "animal trilogy" of thrilling whodunits. I'm joined by the great Mr Steve Hunt @mrstevehunt.bsky.social to discuss their visual panache and bizarro science. Apple buff.ly/wDl4xnB Podbean buff.ly/wk2LnPK Spotify buff.ly/34bRrLu YouTube shorturl.at/Cj5rC

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 02/05/2026

If you'd like to read a bit more about Hammer's final Frankenstein, which turns 52 today, you can find my old piece for Rue Morgue here: rue-morgue.com/retrospectiv...

Vintage poster for 'Frankenstein and the Monster From Hell.' The image is beautifully drawn in sepia but for the title, which is in red and yellow. In. the centre of the drawing, the monster stands reaching out his hand towards the viewer, as though he was going to grab you. To the right, Peter Cushing's Frankenstein looks on imperiously in a large top hat, near a grated prison window. To the left, a young man and woman stand looking aghast, the lady screaming. In the background, there's a cemetery. Why don't film get posters like this anymore? It's great.

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 18/04/2026

As this (hopefully) means new Boards Of Canada material is on the way, here's my article from a few years back in which I try (and generally fail) to adequately explain the sinister brilliance of their 2002 masterpiece 'Geogaddi': diaboliquemagazine.com/into-the-inf...

Cover of Boards of Canada's album 'Geogaddi.' Image shows a repeating, overlapping image of an indistinct figure standing with arms outstretched in a sinister embrace, with trees in the background. The image repeats six times around a hexagram, a deep infernal red overlaid onto a fiery yellow/orange background.

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

Very highly recommend this video from the excellent @thebookubus.bsky.social celebrating Ken Greenhall - a subtle, elegant and often overlooked writer of genuinely unsettling and quietly unique horror fiction. www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6H4...

youtube.com

Ken Greenhall - Author Spotlight - Quiet Horror

YouTube video by The Bookubus

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

I recently made a guest appearance on the Modern Horror Podcast to discuss Prano Bailey-Bond's excellent 2021 film CENSOR (with a bit of general Video Nasty chat too). You can find it here, and probably wherever else you like to get your podcasts from, too: open.spotify.com/episode/1nUg...

Poster for the film 2021 Censor. The image shows a troubled-looking youngish woman standing looking out into the distance past the viewer. Her appearance is quite severe, with hair pulled back, drably respectable clothing, and old-fashioned glasses on a chain. However, halfway down the poster a line of video interference seems to infect the picture, discolouring the lower section of the image and revealing that she is carrying a large axe in a distinctly menacing way...

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 06/04/2026

ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN is 50 this month, remaining both brilliant and crushingly relevant. My old piece for its 45th anniversary is here: film-cred.com/all-the-pres... Or just bask in the understated one-take genius of the Dahlberg call here (from 03:17 onwards): www.youtube.com/watch?v=UmLN...

youtube.com

All the President's Men | Dahlberg's Check | Robert Redford's One Shot | Warner Classics

YouTube video by Warner Bros. Classics

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ǝoɔsoᴚ ǝʇɐN @nateroscoe.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

Side by Side: ‘Inferno’ (1980, Dario Argento) / ‘The Great Muppet Caper’ (1981, Jim Henson)

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Movies from HELL @26mfhpod.bsky.social · 28/03/2026

john waters at a No Kings rally in Provincetown (not my pic, Peter Toto, x)

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 18/03/2026

50 years ago today, Nicolas Roeg's remarkable, haunting film of 'The Man Who Fell To Earth' was released in the UK. While Bowie inevitably gains the most attention with an iconic performance, he has absolutely terrific support from Rip Torn, Buck Henry, and a fantastic Candy Clark.

Illustrated poster for The Man Who Fell To Earth (1976). Against a deep blue background, a white illustration shows an enlarged drawing of David Bowie's face, looking grave and dapper in an old-fashioned hat. He seems to be fading into a view of mountains and a lake, his head at the top of an inverted triangle, the point of which leads to a small, tottering figure at the bottom of the image. Bowie's name and the film title are in yellow, with the rest of the cast and crew listed in white.

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 18/03/2026

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 14/03/2026

Incredible work from the Prince Charles Cinema - extremely strongly seconding that these are among the best thrillers ever made. They really reward attentive viewings and are endlessly brilliant.

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Steve Hunt @mrstevehunt.bsky.social · 13/03/2026

For a bonus episode of the Boxing Movie Podcast I spoke to Dr Clive Chijioke Nwonka about the upcoming season of #boxing films being screened at the BFI Southbank across the month of April. You can listen to our conversation now, on the all the major podcast platforms. #moviesky #filmsky

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 31/01/2026

I've done a bit of spring cleaning on my LinkTree. There's a whole archive of articles & episodes on Thrillers, Horrors and Cult Films for your enjoyment, if you fancy a look: linktr.ee/JohnnyRestall A few teasers in the pictures below, with much much more available...

A close-up shot of a small boy and a burly man, crouching behind an armoured pram and staring intently into the distance with looks of furious concentration on their faces.

A beautiful dark-haired woman lies across a sofa or bed (not sure which), an enigmatic expression on her face. Her hands appear to have sharp claws and fur, which is tearing the fabric she lies on.

An illustration of a striking face staring directly at the viewer. Although the features are roughly humanoid, the skin is blue, the large eyes are red, the ear are like crinkled fins, and they are quite bald.

A woman stands to the left of the black and white picture, an expression of calculating triumph on her face as she towers over a television screen showing a middle-aged male politician. In the background behind her are television cameras and reporters.

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 27/01/2026

A genuinely peculiar and unique film that doesn't get talked about enough - highly recommended if fancy a wild mashup of Eating Raoul, David Lynch and Matinee. (Why wouldn't you?)

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 13/01/2026

Does anyone have suggestions for a good platform to self-publish articles (without building your own website from scratch)? I'm aware of Substack, Blogger etc., just wondered if there were any others you might recommend...

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Scarred For Life Books @scarredforlife.bsky.social · 17/01/2026

ALICE (1988): Czech genius Jan Švankmajer's stop-motion adaptation takes Lewis Carroll's already nightmarish book and transforms it into a surreal masterpiece. Don't have nightmares!

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 11/01/2026

Top 10 Bowie (today, in no order): Station to Station Can You Hear Me Life on Mars Tis a Pity She's a Whore Ashes to Ashes The Bewlay Brothers Cracked Actor Sound and Vision I'm Deranged Always Crashing in the Same Car

media.tenor.com

a man in a suit and tie is playing a drum

ALT: a man in a suit and tie is playing a drum

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The Top 100 Greatest Films Of All Time @top100pod.bsky.social · 30/12/2025

Another film covered on the pod, Carol Reed's THE THIRD MAN is also on iPlayer right now. Dive deep into the dark heart of post-war Europe then check out our spoilerific episode with @johnnyrestall.bsky.social

media.tenor.com

a black and white photo of a man wearing a hat and a scarf

ALT: a black and white photo of a man wearing a hat and a scarf

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 15/12/2025

With Andrzej Zulawski's astonishing POSSESSION (1981) getting a 4K re-release in the UK, now seems a good time to reshare my article from a few years ago, celebrating the film's 40th anniversary and trying to unravel its strange, scalding mysteries: wearecult.rocks/finding-mean...

Illustrated poster for 'Possession' (1981), cut off just above the chest so that BlueSky doesn't restrict it. Against a chalky blue background, a pale stylised female figure writhes, head back, somewhere between wrenching agony and deranged bliss. Her hair appears to be made of thick silvery tentacles.

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EC Comics @eccomics.bsky.social · 24/12/2025

Santa Claus is coming to town! 🪓💀 Art by Johnny Craig

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Maria J Pérez Cuervo @mjpcuervo.com · 19/12/2025

Krampus is overrated, my favourite Christmas characters are the mob of bird cultists and the Christmas Baphomet.

Victorian Christmas card with a procession of birds carrying torches and the legend

May
all jollity
"LiGHTEN"
your CHRISTMAS hours

Victorian Christmas card showing a child startled by the disembodied head of an enormous white goat saying I have come to greet you

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Johnny Restall @johnnyrestall.bsky.social · 15/12/2025

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