A phone number was shown on the screen so that viewers could "call in" and discuss ghostly phenomena. The number was the standard BBC call-in number at the time, 081 811 8181 (also used on programmes such as Going Live!), and callers who got through were connected first to a message telling them that the show was fictional, before being given the chance to share their own ghost stories. However, the phone number was besieged by callers during the showing and many people who telephoned simply got an engaged tone. This commonly happened when phoning BBC "call in" shows and inadvertently added to the realism instead of reassuring viewers that it was fiction. Hospital Watch and Crime Watch, the latter of which seems like it might have been the UK version of something like Cops. At first, the broadcast seems harmless, but supernatural phenomena occur in the house, until Suzanne is exposed making noises, convincing Parkinson that the whole affair is a hoax. Suzanne then speaks with a demonic voice and develops scratches across her arms. The public share their ghost stories, but numerous callers mention they have seen Pipes lurking in the house, and that paranormal incidents are happening in their own homes.

An inspiration to a generation of filmmakers, and years ahead of the profusion of found footage movies that would follow, Ghostwatch is regarded as a classic of the genre and remains as relevant, as terrifying, and as inspirational today. What if Raymond Tunstall really did get into the machine – all our machines? Because he’s here now. On my screen, at home with me, where only I seem to see him. Maybe, it would be a relief if you can see him too. Not for you, dear reader. For I am no longer ever truly alone. But maybe you could join us and, like me, see one more special appearance? For, if you can spot Raymond Tunstall too, looking out from Foxhill Drive’s waste ground toward the camera, watching you… you too will one day be woken up but the sound of banging. Late one night. And the thing that held the uncanny terror altogether was Pipes, the apparition formerly known as Raymond Tunstall, the undead child molester who in death now walked the corridors of the ill-fated Early family’s residence. Pipes didn’t get much screen time, but sure made an impact with each glimpse of his partially eaten-by-cats features adding to the sense of dread and menace. “Did you see the ghost?” people asked each other the next day. Indeed, they had, but no one could really figure out how many times he had made his presence felt.Its style of " found footage" filmmaking is a predecessor for many later popular horror films such as The Blair Witch Project and Cloverfield. Ghostwatch is presented as a live broadcast, hosted by Michael Parkinson, in an attempt to present concrete evidence of paranormal phenomena. To achieve this, the programme launches an on-air investigation into a house in the fictional Foxhill Drive, Northolt, Greater London. Pamela Early ( Brid Brennan) and her daughters Suzanne (Michelle Wesson) and Kim (Cherise Wesson) are tormented by a poltergeist referred to by Kim as “Mr. Pipes”, his name originating from the noises made by the house’s plumbing. Pipes routinely possesses and harms Suzanne, and is said to dwell in the house’s basement, referred to as the “Glory Hole”. directions. Greene is the "on the scene" reporter at a home where single mother Pamela Early (Brid Brennan) and her daughters Suzanne

The new documentary is excellent though, with some welcome contributions from a lot of the main players and creative forces, as well as filmmaker fans Rob Savage and Jed Shepherd (who admit to being inspired by Ghostwatch to make Host). It nicely covers the beginnings of Ghostwatch, its production, reception and subsequent influence.Forbes, F; McClure, I (12 March 1994). "The terror of television. Made worse by family stress". British Medical Journal. 308 (6930): 714. doi: 10.1016/S0378-7206(96)01068-3. PMC 2539415. PMID 8142802. Ghostwatch was made before what we now think of as ‘reality TV’, so it was based more closely on live TV broadcasts such as Children in Need, as well as reality shows like Crimewatch, 999 and Hospital Watch, though those tended to use reconstructions rather than documentary or on-location footage. As such, I’m not sure if younger viewers who didn’t experience this style of telethon would appreciate the stylistic choices here. This seems like a fairly non-descript appearance as things go from Raymond Tunstall’s canon, so why is this No. 1 on this list?

It’s the moment that the crew, those making the show, finally get a glimpse of what we have seen. There is danger here. And we all now know Foxhill Drive is a house of horrors. The film followed a paranormal investigation presented as a live TV broadcast, a unique idea at the time, and was aired on the BBC on 31st October 1992. To say that audiences were unprepared for it is a grand understatement. general era, Doctor Who. This is one of those "historical" presentation that simply has some baked in deficits which are probably not helpedGhostwatch has never been repeated on UK television. It has been repeated internationally, on stations such as the Canadian digital channel Scream for Halloween 2004, and the Belgian channel Canvas in 2008. From 2017 to 2019, Ghostwatch was available on the American streaming video service Shudder, [3] [4] and was made available on the Internet Archive in 2017. There have been three UK home video releases. In 2002, the British Film Institute released a 10th Anniversary edition on VHS and DVD, and 101 Films issued a DVD release in 2011 and a 30th Anniversary Blu-ray release in 2022. In 2016, BBC Store made the film available as part of the Frightmares collection, marking Halloween. The concept and structure of the programme are completely plausible though. On top of possibly influencing the found footage boom of the early 2000s, that came in the wake of The Blair Witch Project, Ghostwatch likely helped spawn the ‘real’ ghost hunting reality shows that followed, such as Most Haunted. On 31 October 2011, the first official production still was uploaded to mark both Hallowe'en Night and the conclusion of National Séance 2011. The image features cast members, Sarah Greene and Mike Smith sitting with an interviewer, and two additional crew members, in an aircraft hangar. A quote beneath the picture reads, "Stay tuned for 2012, Ghostwatchers". [30]