Making The Horror of Frankenstein (1970)

Found on Facebook (with thanks to Tim Lucas) and originally posted by Paul Gallagher on the Dangerous Minds blog, here’s a short, lighthearted BBC report from April 28, 1970, on the making of Hammer Film’s The Horror of Frankenstein. The film, written and directed by Jimmy Sangster, was an attempt at rebooting the Frankenstein series with a younger cast, Ralph Bates stepping up as the cruel Baron.

Running just short of six minutes, the black and white BBC film goes on set with Bates and Dennis Price shooting a scene, and into the makeup room where Tom Smith prepares David Prowse — in spectacular bodybuilding form — for his part as The Monster. Best of all, the generous and ever-affable Peter Cushing appears with Bates for a short interview, effectively passing the baton to his replacement.

The much-maligned Horror would ultimately fail at the box office and Cushing would return to his signature part to wrap up the series with Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell (1974). David Prowse would also appear as a different and much shaggier Monster, and both Cushing and Prowse would share the screen again in Star Wars (1977) as, respectively, Grand Moff Tarkin and Darth Vader.