Welcome to The Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we pair classic and modern horror films to create something greater than the sum of its parts. Inspired by the legendary BBC2 horror double bills of the 1970s and 1980s, each week we discuss two films that share twisted themes, unsettling atmospheres, or strange connections
From the shadowy corridors of black and white classics to the paranoia-fueled chaos of the 21st-century, we take a deep dive into what makes these films memorable and the social context in which they were made. Expect discussions on film history, censorship, director profiles, folklore, and cultural anxieties.
Subscribe for unexpected pairings, and a celebration of horror as a feeling not just a genre.
New episodes every Sunday.
📸 @thehorrordoublebill
📧 thehorrordoublebill@gmail.com
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Episode One: La Cabina (1974) and El Bar (2017) - claustrophobia and paranoia in Madrid
Welcome to the debut episode of The Horror Double Bill, a podcast that celebrates horror in all its unsettling, uncanny, and occasionally absurd forms. Inspired by the BBC2 double bills of the 1970s and early ’80s, each week we pair two films that share themes, tones, or a peculiar sense of dread that lingers long after the credits roll.
This week, we descend into the claustrophobic madness of Spanish horror with Antonio Mercero’s eerie TV classic La Cabina and Álex de la Iglesia’s explosive ensemble thriller El Bar. We talk BBC horror double bills, the Spanish civil war, Franco-era censorship, the golden age of spanish horror, urban paranoia, and why no respectable Spanish man would eve let himself become a werewolf.
New episodes every Sunday.
you can watch La Cabina here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1H1_p6B4Ugo
main sources used for this episode
The Spanish Fantastic: Contemporary Filmmaking in Horror, Fantasy and Sci-fi by Shelagh Rowan Legg The Spanish Horror Film By Antonio Lazaro-Reboll Sex, Sadism, Spain and Cinema by Nicholas G Schlegel
La Cabina resources: La Cabina Creating Horror from the absurd by Amyus: https://the-artifice.com/la-cabina/
El Bar resources: https://anthemmagazine.com/living-legends-alex-de-la-iglesia/ https://cineuropa.org/en/interview/322757/ https://variety.com/2014/film/festivals/alex-de-la-iglesia-preps-my-big-night-and-the-bar-for-2015-1201374693/ https://youtu.be/EHNCNth6jxw?si=oJGPvoDd7zjNRh-7 https://youtu.be/EzwlBGDsffw?si=eusjzlk-VyfE2EYg
artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)
Episode 3: Frightmare (1974) & Possum (2018)
Season 1 · Episode 3
Sunday, June 1, 2025 • Duration 01:01:16
The Horror Double Bill Episode Three: Frightmare (1974) & Possum (2018) British suburban gothic, moral outrage, and the horror of family values.
This week on The Horror Double Bill, we’re digging into the unsettling world of British horror with a pairing that’s as psychologically disturbing as it is politically charged: Frightmare (1974), directed by Pete Walker, and Possum (2018), the bleakly brilliant debut from Matthew Holness.
Join us as we chew over themes of madness, repression, and inherited trauma, exploring how these two films capture a peculiarly British horror – one rooted in decaying institutions, Victorian legacies, and a deep distrust of the family unit. We also cast a critical eye on 1970s Britain, from Mary Whitehouse and the Festival of Light to the eerie legacy of public information films and the uncanny weirdness of kids’ TV.
Subscribe for more deep-dive horror analysis each week.
A Gun for George by Matthew Holness: https://youtu.be/Fq0xt_gbVH0?si=EV_TxxWEVeUf-GB2
Sources used for this episode:
Frightmare:
• Making Mischief: The Cult Films of Pete Walker by Steve Chibnall • English Gothic: Classic Horror Cinema 1897–2015 by Jonathan Rigby • Nightmare Movies by Kim Newman https://youtu.be/nrJNpitX-Fc?si=5PNxx36KdpSNFpGQ https://youtu.be/1Rn3t0CsIiU?si=dUCwoXYBdwo7LRRX https://youtu.be/L2nGhSZRXRE?si=-ppxESgGEmOsi87g https://youtu.be/O2piqstEaTI?si=H-XOt-pnyZ-KwL2j https://youtu.be/oswUssXzFlY?si=xR4owVtVEO5TyUTL
Possum:
• Film4 (2018) Interview with Matthew Holness • Essay: “Waking up, is it?”: Childhood Trauma, Repression, and Freud’s Uncanny in POSSUM (Father, Son, and Holy Gore, by C. H. Newell) : fathersonholygore.com/2019/04/10/essay-waking-up-is-it-childhood-trauma-repression-and-freuds-uncanny-in-possum/#:~:text=He%20uses%20the%20Uncanny%20to,if%20that's%20at%20all%20possible. https://youtu.be/c8Hkh1yYX7g?si=J4aSRI2hC-64FUtMhttps://youtu.be/_BskDyQra1o?si=RzXkltifcbv8x7Ad#cultcinema #britishhorror #1970shorror #petewalker #possum #frightmare #exploitationmovies #horror #podcast
Episode 2: The Leopard Man (1943) & Four Flies on Grey Velvet (1971)
Season 1 · Episode 2
Sunday, May 25, 2025 • Duration 01:06:07
The Horror Double Bill Episode 2: The Leopard Man (1943) & Four Flies on Grey Velvet (1971) Guilt, madness and the Italian Giallo
Welcome to The Horror Double Bill, where horror is a feeling, not just a genre.
In this episode, we delve into The Leopard Man (1943), a moody psychological thriller from producer Val Lewton. Then we leap into the stylised paranoia of Dario Argento’s Four Flies on Grey Velvet (1971)
We explore the legacy of Val Lewton’s “suggestive horror,” the evolution of giallo cinema, and how both films capture dread through style, sound, and suggestion.
Subscribe for more horror pairings, cult film deep dives, and a bit of film history
Sources used for this episode:
The Leopard Man:
Dreams of Darkness by J.P. Telotte Val Lewton: The Reality of Terror by Joel E. Siegel Icons of Grief: Val Lewton’s Home Front Pictures by Alexander Nemerov. Fear: The Autobiography of Dario Argento
Four Flies on Grey Velvet
Four Flies on Grey Velvet by Luigi Cozzi Broken Mirrors, Broken Minds by Maitland McDonagh Dario Argento: The Man, the Myths & the Magic by Alan Jones.
artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)
Episode 6: Night of the Eagle (1962) & The Devil Rides Out (1968)
Season 1 · Episode 6
Sunday, June 22, 2025 • Duration 01:09:23
Episode Six: Night of the Eagle (1962) & The Devil Rides Out (1968). Must be the season of the witch......
Welcome to The Horror Double Bill, the podcast where we combine two films, and fall down several rabbit holes, to create something greater than the sum of its parts.
First up is Night of the Eagle, from 1962, released in the US as Burn Witch Burn, in which professional rivalries on a college campus spill over into something far more primal and far more ancient. We follow that with my favourite hammer movie, The Devil Rides Out from 1968, which was released in the US as The Devil’s Bride, in which Christopher Lee, rather unusually representing the forces of good, battles for the soul of a young friend against the power of darkness.
Along the way we will be discussing the rise of interest in the occult in the 1960s, changing attitudes in British censorship, the career and work of Richard Matheson, the life of notorious occultist and the ‘wickedest man in the world’ Alistair Crowley, and more.
Sources:
Background:
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/jun/25/richard-matheson https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/richard-matheson-dead/2013/06/24/7c1bc0f6-dd38-11e2-9844-8979d66cdd71_story.html https://variety.com/2013/film/news/richard-matheson-dies-at-87-1200505071/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Matheson https://www.mopop.org/science-fiction-fantasy-hall-of-fame/inductees/richard-matheson/ English gothic classic horror cinema 1897 to 2015 by Jonathan Rigby
Night of the Eagle:
Audio commentary and special features on the special edition Blu-ray release of Night of the Eagle from Imprint films https://www.bostonmovienews.com/burn-witch-burn-revival https://www.blackgate.com/2014/02/15/lust-women-and-the-devil-seven-decades-of-conjure-wife PeterWyngard.uk
The Devil Rides Out:
Various features from the Criterion Blu Ray release of The Devil Rides Out, including cast commentaries and the documentary “Black Magic The Making of the Devil Rides Out’ Devil is a Gentleman: The Life and Times of Dennis Wheatley by Phil BakerHammer Complete: The Films, the Personnel, the Company by Howard MaxfordThe Hammer Story: The Authorised History of Hammer Films by Marcus Hearn and Alan BarnesHammer And Beyond: The British Horror Film by Peter HutchingsA History of Magic – Richard CavendishAleister Crowley: The Biography – Tobias Churton“The Neverendingly Occulted Aleister Crowley” – Marco Pasi, Numenhttps://www.bl.uk/people/aleister-crowleyhttps://www.bbc.co.uk/archive/aleister-crowley/zvjvscw
Episode 5: The House With Laughing Windows (1976) & Don't Torture a Duckling (1972)
Season 1 · Episode 5
Sunday, June 15, 2025 • Duration 01:08:45
Episode 5: The House with Laughing Windows (1976) and Don't Torture a Duckling (1972) : Rural Giallo, Postwar Italy, and the Haunted Landscape
In this episode of The Horror Double Bill, we journey deep into the unsettling beauty of the Italian countryside to explore The House with Laughing Windows (1976) and Don’t Torture a Duckling (1972). These two standout examples of rural gialli capture a nation in flux—reflecting the tension, suspicion, and isolation brought about by post-war migration from the south to the north of Italy.
We unpack the social, cultural, and historical upheaval that followed World War II, as Italy’s rural communities were transformed by internal migration, superstition, and deepening class divides.
Expect thematic analysis, behind-the-scenes details, historical research, and a deep dive into how horror can expose the fractures in national identity.
References & Sources used for this episode:
Books
So Deadly, So Perverse by Troy Howarth La Dolce Morte : Vernacular Cinema and the Italian Giallo by Mikel J Koven Italian Gothic Horror Films, 1970–1979 by Roberto Curti Beyond Terror: The Films of Lucio Fulci by Stephen Thrower Milking the Moon by Eugene Walter The Palgrave Handbook of Contemporary Gothic edited by Clive Bloom
Don't Torture a Duckling Arrow video special edition blu ray - interviews and commentary The House with Laughing Windows Shamless Entertainment special edition DVD - interview with Pupi Avati
🔗 Subscribe for new episodes every Sunday, and follow us on social media for more horror history, film theory, and obscure recommendations.
📸 thehorrordoublebill
📍 Available wherever you get your podcasts
Episode 4: And Soon The Darkness (1970) & The Hitcher (1986)
Season 1 · Episode 4
Sunday, June 8, 2025 • Duration 01:04:31
Episode 4 – The Horror Double Bill: And Soon the Darkness (1970) & The Hitcher (1986)
In this episode of The Horror Double Bill, we explore two chilling roadbound nightmares that turn travel into terror. First, we examine And Soon the Darkness (1970), a sun-drenched British thriller where isolation in the French countryside gives way to dread. Then, we dive into The Hitcher (1986), a haunting, nihilistic American horror-thriller in which a lone driver picks up far more than he bargained for on the open road.
Both films use beautiful yet empty landscapes to generate feelings of isolation, and in this episode we discuss the use of space, cinematography, casting, and production stories, as well as the original critical reception and later re-evaluation of both films.
sources used for this episode:
And Soon the Darkness
StudioCanal Blu-ray (2021 edition): https://www.studiocanal.com/
British Film Institute (BFI): https://www.bfi.org.uk/features/and-soon-darkness-daylight-thriller
Little White Lies retrospective: https://lwlies.com/articles/and-soon-the-darkness-1970-retrospective/
Film Stories article: https://filmstories.co.uk/features/and-soon-the-darkness-1970-british-thriller/
Hammer and Beyond blog: https://hammerandbeyond.blogspot.com/2012/06/and-soon-darkness-1970.html
Newspaper archives: The Guardian, The Times, The New York Times,
The Hitcher
The Hitcher (1986) – Second Sight Films 4K UHD Blu-ray Special Features (2024) : Interviews with Robert Harmon, Eric Red, C. Thomas Howell, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Mark Isham, and John Seale:
https://secondsightfilms.co.uk/
"The Hitcher - How do these films get made" - feature included in the Momentum special edition DVD release.
Chris Broughton, “How we made chiller classic The Hitcher,” The Guardian, Oct 7, 2024: https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2024/oct/07/rutger-hauer-chiller-classic-the-hitcher-thomas-howellRoger Ebert, “The Hitcher,” Chicago Sun-Times review, 1986https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-hitcher-1986#:~:text=%E2%80%9CThe%20Hitcher%E2%80%9D%20grants%20the%20Hauer,movie%20is%20diseased%20and%20corrupt.Newsweek review by Jack Kroll (quoted in Los Angeles Times, 1986)Daily Variety & The Hollywood Reporter reviews (1986), quoted in Los Angeles Timeshttps://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-02-23-ca-10847-story.html
Episode 12: The Cat and The Canary (1939) & The Corruption of Chris Miller (1973)
Season 1 · Episode 12
Sunday, August 3, 2025 • Duration 01:12:22
Welcome to episode 12 of the horror double bill the podcast where each week we combine 2 films to create something far greater than the sum of their parts.
This week we are exploring the horrors of the old dark house, and the enduring influence of its many tropes on horror cinema.
First up is The Cat and the Canary from 1939 — a horror comedy starring Bob Hope, Paulette Goddard, George Zucco, and Gail Sondergaard. Then we head back to Spain for The Corruption of Chris Miller a twisted psychological thriller from 1973 starring Jean Seberg, Marisol, and Barry Stokes.
Both films explore the familiar tropes of the quintessential Old Dark House movie — isolated settings, threatened heroines, power outages, and deranged killers. But while the first takes a lighter, meta commentary and comedic approach, the second leans into something far darker and psychosexual. Along the way we’ll be discussing the origins of the subgenre, the career of Juan Antonio Bardem, and also taking a closer look at the lives and careers of, Gale Sondergaard, Paulette Goddard, Marisol, and Jean Seberg, four actresses whose lives were shaped in very different ways by state surveillance, government oppression, and the systemic abuse of power.
Socials
IG: @thehorrordoublebill
email: thehorrordoublebill@gmail.com
Artwork by Justin Parker:
instagram: @jpkr_illustration
Sources: Introduction & The Cat and the Canary
Silentfilm.org,
American Gothic six decades of classic horror cinema by Jonathon Rigby
Episode Eleven: The Ghoul (2016) & Triangle (2009) : Time loops, mobius strips and the nature of reality
Welcome to episode 11 of The Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we combine two films to create something far greater than the sum of their parts.
This week are exploring two movies that play with our perceptions of reality, with the Ghoul from 2016, a low budget British psychological thriller that has its roots in the stand up comedy scene of the early 2000s, and Triangle from 2009, a surreal and nightmarish horror from British director Christopher Smith.
Socials
Instagram: thehorrordoublebill
email: thehorrordoublebill@gmail.com
Artwork
instagram: jpkr_illustration
Little Shoppe of Horrors Magazine
https://www.littleshoppeofhorrors.com/
Sources and References
The Ghoul
In The Loop - making of The Ghoul from the Arrow Films DVD release 2018
Episode 10: We Are What We Are (2010) & Raw (2016)
Season 1 · Episode 10
Sunday, July 20, 2025 • Duration 01:14:02
Welcome to episode 10 of The Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we combine two films to create something far greater than the sum of their parts.
This week we are exploring the horrors of cannibalism – a subject that was once regarded as one of the ultimate cinematic taboos but which has now become a strangely prevalent sub-genre , and one that is used as a metaphor for anything from class and social division to sexual awakening.
First up we have our inaugural Mexican film of the series, with Jorge Michel Grau’s We Are What We Are from 2010. Set in an impoverished barrio of Mexico City, the film follows a family of cannibals adapting to a new way of life after the death of their patriarch
And after that we head over to France for Raw from 2016, the feature debut from multi award winning director Julia Ducornau, which follows the cannibalistic awakenings of a young girl in her first week at University
Both of this weeks films have much to say about the nature of humanity, family relationships, sexuality, transgression and metamorphosis, and along the journey we will also be falling down a few rabbit holes and discussing cannibalism in history, literature and cinema, so you may not want to be eating as you listen to this one.
Socials
IG: thehorrordoublebill
email: thehorrordoublebill@gmail.com
Artwork by Justin Parker:
IG: jpkr_illustration
Katie of the Night YouTube Channel:
https://www.youtube.com/@KatieoftheNight
References
This was a very heavily researched episode and I ran out of room to list them all in the podcast description, so for a full list of references used please refer to the video notes on the YouTube video, which can be found here:
https://youtu.be/TTTRxdf_ILE
Episode 9: They Look Like People (2015) & The Invitation (2015)
Season 1 · Episode 9
Sunday, July 13, 2025 • Duration 01:00:02
Episode Nine: The Look Like People (2015) & The Invitation (2015). Urban paranoia, independent cinema and the horrors of friendship
Welcome to episode 9 of the Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we put two films together to create something far greater than the sum of its parts.
This week we are unwrapping the horrors of friendship, with two films from 2015 that ask the questions, what do you do when people you once thought you knew are no longer the people you remember, and how long should you stick around to find out exactly who they have become?
First up is They Look Like People, the debut from director Perry Blackshear, a film which explores the bonds of male friendship and the impacts of male insecurity as two friends reunite in New York for the first time since college.
Then we head over to the west coast for another reunion, this time in LA, with The Invitation from director by Karyn Kusama, a study of paranoia and the impact of grief, depicting a group of old friends meeting for a dinner party where everything rapidly falls apart.
Both of this week’s films are shining examples of American Independent Cinema, and draw, to a greater or lesser degree, from the notion of replacement horror – the idea that someone close to you has been substituted by someone or something else, creating a heightened sense of paranoia and raising questions as to whether perceptions are reality or indeed reliable.
Instagram: thehorrordoublebill
email: thehorrodoublebill@gmail.com
Sources used for this weeks episode:
Replacement Horror:
Invasion of the Body Snatchers: A Tribute edited by Kevin McCarthy and Ed Gorman
Don Siegel Director by Stuart M Kaminsky
They Look Like People:
interviews with the cast and crew on the 2022 Yellow Veil Pictures Blu Ray release as well as the director and cast commentaries
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Instagram: @thehorrordoublebill
email: thehorrordoublebill@gmail.com
youtube: @thehorrordoublebill
artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)
Instagram: @thehorrordoublebill
email: thehorrordoublebill@gmail.com
youtube: @thehorrordoublebill
artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)
Instagram: @thehorrordoublebill
email: thehorrordoublebill@gmail.com
youtube: @thehorrordoublebill
artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)
The Guardian:https://support.theguardian.com/uk/guardian-ad-lite?returnAddress=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Ffilm%2F2016%2Fapr%2F05%2Fthe-invitation-film-review-karyn-kusama-suspense
Instagram: @thehorrordoublebill
email: thehorrordoublebill@gmail.com
youtube: @thehorrordoublebill
artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)
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