(The impressive and Gothic Oakley Court, star of many horror pics.)
BY MARK MAWSTON
Cinema Retro’s Mark
Mawston was invited to cover a rather special event being held at the wonderful
Oakley Court near Windsor, just across the river and virtually facing Hammers old
studios at Bray. Oakley, the setting for many a Hammer and Amicus film, was
utilized for its Gothic look and proximity from Bray, starting way back in 1949
when Hammer were still under their Exclusive Films moniker. Film fans will
immediately recognize Oakley as the home of Tim Curry’s Dr. Frankenfurter in the 1975 cult classic The Rocky Horror Picture Show, so a more apt
location for a memorabilia fair would be hard to find. The timing was also
perfect as it was held just before Halloween. Collectors and dealers from
all over the country (and further afield) met to exchange stories as well as merchandise
at the event which was expertly organized by Harry Malcolm and Mark Hochman of
Vintage Movie posters.
(Organizers Harry Malcolm and Mark Hockman.)
(Mark & Harry at the Hotel entrance which featured in the movie shown later that day, Brides Of Dracula. It seemed unchanged.)
Hopefully this will be the first of many such events, as
those gathered, including legendary poster artist Graham Humphreys and Bond optical effects designer Alan Church, all agreed that this was a resounding success and
the perfect venue in which to celebrate classic film at this spookiest time of
year. The day was rounded off by a Venture Films screening of the 1960 Hammer classic Brides
Of Dracula starring Peter Cushing, just one of the many classics filmed at
Oakley, the entrance of which featured several times in the film. The spot hasn't changed since filming and the imposing towers were inspiration on the DVD releases of
the Hammer House of Horror series. All
in all, this was a wonderful day for all as the fans and indeed the fangs were
out in force. Though no one offered to recreate The Time Warp, this was a
celebration of one of UK cinema’s most creative periods when Hammer films were
as Gothic as Oakley.
(All photos copyright Mark Mawston. All rights reserved.)