Once Upon A VHS - 80s and 90s Fantasy

Welcome to the inaugural meeting of the Lucy Westenra fan club! To discuss Francis Ford Coppola's sumptuous and spectacular take on Dracula starring Gary Oldman, Winona Ryder and Anthony Hopkins, we have called upon the forces of darkness in the form of cabaret singer, musician, artist and star of stage and screen Joe Black!

As part of this Halloween special, we also touch on the variations on the character as portrayed by Max Shreck, Bela Lugosi, Frank Langella, Bill Skarsgard and Cynthia Erivo. After all, Dracula has crossed oceans of time to find you...

Eiko Ishioka's incredible costumes, Whitby tourism, the questionable accent work of Keanu Reeves, shadow puppets, Tom Waits giving steampunk, Penny Dreadful, Mina Harker in The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and a sphynx cat with a possible aversion to Monica Bellucci await.

We share our thoughts on the movie and its themes, some behind the scenes gossip, delve into the nightmarish moments and dream up some ridiculous merch.

Do we have good... taste? Listen and find out!

Art by Ashleigh Jane Cosgrove. Music by Karl Casey at White Bat Audio.

https://linktr.ee/onceuponavhs

Join our Clamshell Club on Patreon to support the show and gain access to exclusive Once Upon A VHS bonus episodes updated monthly:

Boxset - reviewing 80s and 90s fantasy TV (including Jim Henson's The Storyteller)
Rewind - looking back at fantasy films from before 1980 (including Star Wars)
Fast Forward - our thoughts on fantasy movies from 2000 onwards (including The Lord of the Rings)

https://patreon.com/onceuponavhs
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Long before the hit TV show, Neil Jordan's opulent adaptation of the bestselling novel by Anne Rice gave the world a big gay gothic vampire blockbuster with Hollywood superstars Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt, not to mention the electrifying breakthrough performance of Kirsten Dunst.

Our pal Claire Biddles - music, film and arts writer, Overinvested podcaster and Lestat superfan - joins us to break down this very peculiar pop culture phenomenon, with plenty of discussion about all the various iterations of The Vampire Chronicles.

Bisexual maximalist divas, unfilmable head transplants, complex relationships with religion, bad wigs, Anne's gender, camp poodles and the questionable decisions of Queen of the Damned await.

We share our thoughts on the movie and its themes, some behind the scenes gossip, delve into the nightmarish moments and dream up some ridiculous merch.

How many different ways can we pronounce Théâtre des Vampires? Listen and find out!

Art by Ashleigh Jane Cosgrove. Music by Karl Casey at White Bat Audio.

https://linktr.ee/onceuponavhs

Join our Clamshell Club on Patreon to support the show and gain access to exclusive Once Upon A VHS bonus episodes updated monthly:

Boxset - reviewing 80s and 90s fantasy TV (including Jim Henson's The Storyteller)
Rewind - looking back at fantasy films from before 1980 (including Star Wars)
Fast Forward - our thoughts on fantasy movies from 2000 onwards (including The Lord of the Rings)

https://patreon.com/onceuponavhs
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"Beware the moon, lads."

We're serving up an all-time classic comedy horror banger for Halloween with returning guest Rob Berg!

Rick Baker's groundbreaking special effects makeup, sex and regret, werewolf mythology, David Naughton's nudity, an unlikely journey around London's geography, Griffin Dunne's family connections, surprise Muppets, taking Jenny Agutter out for a pub lunch, queer and Jewish readings of this movie and The Wolf Man from Universal Studios await.

We share our thoughts on the movie and its themes, some behind the scenes gossip, delve into the nightmarish moments and dream up some ridiculous merch.

Why is Doctor Hirsch an unexpected for both the Nightmare Nail and the Treasures segments? Listen and find out!

Art by Ashleigh Jane Cosgrove. Music by Karl Casey at White Bat Audio.

https://linktr.ee/onceuponavhs

Join our Clamshell Club on Patreon to support the show and gain access to exclusive Once Upon A VHS bonus episodes updated monthly:

Boxset - reviewing 80s and 90s fantasy TV (including Jim Henson's The Storyteller)
Rewind - looking back at fantasy films from before 1980 (including Star Wars)
Fast Forward - our thoughts on fantasy movies from 2000 onwards (including The Lord of the Rings)

https://patreon.com/onceuponavhs
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"If I want your opinion I'll beat it out of you!"

We're slinking into October with the Queen of Halloween herself, Elvira! From Vegas showgirl to horror hostess with the mostess, we discuss the big screen debut of this bonafide gay icon in a loving tribute to the brilliant Cassandra Peterson.

Nipple tassels, Knott's Berry Farm, a monster casserole, corny jokes, Bob's big himbo energy, a poodle with an attitude, Edie McClurg sitting on a man's face and edrazeeba await.

We share our thoughts on the movie and its themes, some behind the scenes gossip, delve into the nightmarish moments and dream up some ridiculous merch.

Does Elvira smoke? Guess we'll find out soon enough!

Art by Ashleigh Jane Cosgrove. Music by Karl Casey at White Bat Audio.

https://linktr.ee/onceuponavhs

Join our Clamshell Club on Patreon to support the show and gain access to exclusive Once Upon A VHS bonus episodes updated monthly:

Boxset - reviewing 80s and 90s fantasy TV (including Jim Henson's The Storyteller)
Rewind - looking back at fantasy films from before 1980 (including Star Wars)
Fast Forward - our thoughts on fantasy movies from 2000 onwards (including The Lord of the Rings)

https://patreon.com/onceuponavhs
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"Be sure and tell 'em Large Marge sent ya!"

Joined by our super-talented friend, illustrator and comics artist Jules Scheele, we chart the rise, fall and comeback of Pee-wee Herman - the pop culture phenomenon and alter ego of Paul Reubens - focusing in on this wild road trip movie which was also Tim Burton's feature debut.

Getting goofy with the Groundlings, Saturday Night Live disappointment, Frankenweenie, fruit salad marriage, THAT stop motion jump scare, the utopian chaos of Pee-wee's Playhouse, going in and out of the closet, mythologised Americana, E.G. Daily's pop career, clown surgeons and beautiful dinosaurs await.

We share our thoughts on the movie and its themes, some behind the scenes gossip, delve into the nightmarish moments and dream up some ridiculous merch.

Is this something you'd like to share with the rest of us, Amazing Larry? Listen and find out!

Art by Ashleigh Jane Cosgrove. Music by Karl Casey at White Bat Audio.

https://linktr.ee/onceuponavhs

Join our Clamshell Club on Patreon to support the show and gain access to exclusive Once Upon A VHS bonus episodes updated monthly:

Boxset - reviewing 80s and 90s fantasy TV (including Jim Henson's The Storyteller)
Rewind - looking back at fantasy films from before 1980 (including Star Wars)
Fast Forward - our thoughts on fantasy movies from 2000 onwards (including The Lord of the Rings)

https://patreon.com/onceuponavhs
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.