BBC Radio Four Series
Update June 2002
Appointment With Fear Page
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Introduction
January 1988 saw the return of The Man In Black to the airwaves as the narrator/story-teller of Fear On 4. While the BBC had produced 100s of suspense, mystery & horror stories since the days of Appointment With Fear, other than Vincent Price's series The Price Of Fear, they tended to be unrelated "one offs". The new series featured Edward de Souza as the Man In Black in each episode and was a blend of original stories and adapted classics. Many of the episodes were also broadcast on BBC World Service under the title of The Man In Black.
| The Snowman Killing by J.C.W. Brook. A Young mother's fear is intensified by her children's fascination with an eyeless snowman. With Imelda Staunton as Anne Makepiece | Snipe 3909 by Graeme Fife. The telephone can be a vital lifeline in our lives. A lifeline, however, that can become horribly tangled. With Hannah Gordon as Mary. |
| William and Mary by Roald Dahl dramatised by Jill Brooke. William is made an offer he can't refuse, then wishes with all his heart that he had. Except, of course, he has no heart. | The Beast With Five Fingers by W.F. Harvey dramatised by John Keir Cross. Horror arrives in a small box left to a distinguished scientist in a will. |
| Every Detail But One by Bert Coules. A strange voice bursts into Jenny's life. A voice making demands that can set Jenny on a journey to terror - and beyond. | By the River, Fontainbleau by Stephen Gallagher. A young painter's obsession with a potential model leads him into a world of degradation and self-disgust. |
| The Face by E.F. Benson, dramatised by Michael Bakewell. In a lonely hotel a woman, terrified and praying for release from mounting fear, is told all will be well - but it isn't and she stands the prospect of coming face to face with the final terror. | Mind Well the Tree by William Ingram. Aunt Hestor's bequest of an old border mansion worries David Hollis, but his wife is captivated by the spirit of their new home. Literally. |
| Fat Andy by Stephen Dunstone. Many years ago, Fat Andy was involved in a certain crime, a crime that now comes back to haunt him. Andy prays to God to save him from a mounting horror - but are prayers enough and is God listening? | A Day at the Dentist's by James Saunders based on an idea by Arch Oboler. A Man gradually relaxes in a dentist's chair unaware that the dentist is bent on a dreadful revenge. |
"No one is going to make you build a snowman, darling... it was only a silly dream... and dreams don't mean anything and they can't hurt you." Radio 4, 6:30pm Fear On 4: The Snowman Killing. |
11:30 The woman in The Yellow Wallpaper is obsessed by the strange patterns on her wall which seem to change form - and even too smell... |
Titles such as The Monkey's Paw, The Yellow Wallpaper & The Beast With Five Fingers, had all featured on either Appointment With Fear or The Man In Black. In a couple of cases it may be that John Keir Cross's 40s adaptations were used? The Man In Black lasted for four series, though when Fear On 4 returned in 1997 in a new series, it was narrator less. Fear On 4 as a series seems to have ended at this point, though at least one play - The Blood of Eva Bergen went out under this title.
| The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Parkins-Gilman. A sick woman spends hours alone in her room. The patterns on the wallpaper disturb her - but is her fear merely the product of a fevered imagination. | Green And Pleasant by Bert Coules. A man rings a phone-in programme and claims he has kidnapped the rock star Sarah Lovecraft, to teach her a lesson about environmental issues. |
| Dead Man's Boots by William Ingram. An estate agent persuades Richard and Myra Duncan that a 19th century terraced house in south London is a bargain. The Duncans buy it - and get more than they expected. | Invitation To The Vaults by Basil Copper. An unscrupulous literary agent robs a widow of her husband's letters, the publication of which will make his fortune - and ruin her life. She plans her revenge. |
| The Monkey's Revenge by Guy Jenkin. A scientist thinks he has made a major breakthrough in his work on human mortality. If he is right, Man could live for ever. Unfortunately his research requires a number of dead monkeys... | Dance In The Underworld by Stuart Kerr. Victor has to make an agonising decision - whether or not to give permission for the life-support machine that keeps his son alive to be switched off. Five years later the decision still haunts the family. |
Episode Log.
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Martin Jenkins Gerry Jones Jeremy Howe Adrian Mourby |
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Gerry Jones Martin Jenkins Adrian Mourby Peter Fozzard |
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Gerry Jones Martin Jenkins |
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Gregor Grice |
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Martin Jenkins |
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David Blount Marion Nancarrow Adrian Bean |
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Marilyn Imrie |
REFERENCE:
'BBC
Worldwide Magazine" March & April 1993.
'Radio
Times" January 1988 & January 1989.