Scarred For Life

Comedian, writer and podcaster Alasdair Beckett-King joins Andy Bush and Dave Lawrence on the Scarred for Life podcast to talk about the films, books and television that left a lasting impression on him as a child.

Alasdair reveals three very different childhood scars, beginning with the unsettling 1970s animated series Murun Buchstansangur, before moving on to a disturbing playground story inspired by Iain Banks’ The Wasp Factory and, finally, one of the ultimate childhood nightmares: Return to Oz.

We get into what makes Return to Oz so genuinely creepy, from the Wheelers and Princess Mombi to its bleak atmosphere, disturbing imagery and unsettling storyline (electroshock therapy anyone?). Alasdair also discusses British sitcoms, children’s literature, The Chronicles of Narnia, his love of unsettling production design and why good children’s books never really have an age limit.

Plus, we talk about his comedy and podcasting career, including Loremen and Eleanor and Alasdair Read That, as well as his Montgomery Bonbon mystery books for children.

If Return to Oz traumatised you as a kid, this is definitely an episode for you.

Get your live show tickets now at: https://www.cheerfulearful.co.uk/lineup

To join Scarred Club and get fortnightly bonus episodes, ad-free listening and access to the members forum - sign-up here - https://scarredforlife.supportingcast.fm
Send us a voice note on WhatsApp - 07457 404 279
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Produced and edited by Nikki Druce @NikkiMacabreLondon
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You love him and we do too, so much so that we asked him to join us LIVE on stage in London. It's the monstrously funny, devilishly handsome and soon to be de-possesed - Rhys Thomas! *CROWD GOES WILD*

Come and join Dave, Andy, Producer Nikki & special guest Rhys Thomas for scars, scares and severed heads at Scarred For Life LIVE - Sunday 18th October 4pm - The Bedford - London OR, if you can't make it in person, you can buy tickets for the livestream event. https://www.tickettailor.com/events/cheerfulearful/2352831

There will be plenty of interactive fun, a chance to meet the your hosts and share your scars with us live (if you're brave enough)

Be there or be...somewhere else not having as much fun as you'd have watching the Scarred For Life Live show.
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Come and See Scarred For Life LIVE with special guest Rhys Thomas - Sunday 18th October at The Bedford - London - if you can't make it in person, buy tickets for the livestream!
Get your live show tickets now at: https://www.cheerfulearful.co.uk/lineup

This week on Scarred for Life, Andy Bush and Dave Lawrence are joined by returning guest Lisa Bowerman for a nostalgic deep dive into the classic British TV programmes and theme tunes that soundtracked our sick days, school holidays and afternoons on the sofa.
From Bod, Crown Court, The Sullivans and General Hospital to Rooms, Farmhouse Kitchen, Paint Along with Nancy and The Way We Used to Live, Lisa, Dave and Andy revisit the strange world of daytime television — the shows you watched when you were off school with a bottle of Lucozade, a flannel on your forehead and absolutely no choice about what was on the telly.
They talk about the comforting voices and gentle presentation style of classic children's television, the unsettling themes that could instantly make you feel ill again, the bizarre educational programmes that taught children about history, painting and country life, and why a few seconds of music can bring back incredibly vivid childhood memories.
Lisa also shares a particularly personal connection to The Way We Used to Live, after discovering a clip of her own brother being killed off in the historical educational drama.
Expect plenty of nostalgia, obscure British TV, bizarre theme tunes, memories of 1970s and 1980s television, and the kind of daytime programming that could only exist in a pre-streaming world.
What TV theme tune instantly takes you back to being a kid?

Get your live show tickets now at: https://www.cheerfulearful.co.uk/lineup
To join Scarred Club and get fortnightly bonus episodes, ad-free listening and access to the members forum - sign-up here - https://scarredforlife.supportingcast.fm
Send us a voice note on WhatsApp - 07457 404 279
Follow us on socials:
Scarred For Life - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ / ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
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Andy Bush - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ / ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠
Produced and edited by Nikki Druce @MacabreLondon
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What makes a film soundtrack genuinely terrifying? And why can a few notes of music stay with us for decades?
This week on Scarred for Life, we’re joined by legendary film critic Mark Kermode and writer Jenny Nelson, authors of Surround Sound: The Stories of Movie Music, to explore the strange, powerful and sometimes downright disturbing relationship between film, music and memory.

Mark and Jenny discuss how film scores can create fear, tension and atmosphere — from Bernard Herrmann’s iconic Psycho score and the unsettling theremin sounds of The Day the Earth Stood Still, to Pino Donaggio’s haunting music for Don’t Look Now and the chilling childlike vocals which wrap out The Night of the Hunter. They also get into Utopia, Twin Peaks, Rosemary’s Baby, Poltergeist and why children singing can be one of the creepiest sounds in cinema.
Mark also reveals one of his earliest cinematic scars: the wonderfully bizarre but surprisingly disturbing Dougal and the Blue Cat, while Jenny recalls the childhood trauma of Flowers in the Attic.

Plus, Mark talks about his experiences improvising live music for silent films, and the pair explain what readers can expect from Surround Sound — a book packed with first-hand stories from composers, directors and the people who actually make movie music.
If you've ever wondered why film soundtracks stick with us and how some have evolved into musical synonyms which can be sung instead of using a particular word (Psycho, JAWS), then you're really going to enjoy this episode.

CONTENT WARNING: there is brief discussion of adult themes (sexual assault) in the episode so please be advised.

Scarred for Life is the podcast about the films, television, books, music and experiences that left a lasting mark on us — The Podcast for Traumatised Nostalgics

Get your live show tickets now at: https://www.cheerfulearful.co.uk/lineup
To join Scarred Club and get fortnightly bonus episodes, ad-free listening and access to the members forum - sign-up here - https://scarredforlife.supportingcast.fm
Send us a voice note on WhatsApp - 07457 404 279
Follow us on socials:
Scarred For Life - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ / ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Production Company - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Lock It In Studio⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Andy Bush - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ / ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠
Produced and edited by Nikki Druce @MacabreLondon
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why are some places more frightening than the monsters that live inside them? This week on Scarred for Life, Andy Bush, Dave Lawrence and Nikki Druce take a deep dive into the horror of liminal spaces, unsettling buildings and locations that are more creepy than comforting.

From the eerie office corridors of Severance and the endless yellow rooms of The Backrooms, to the 1999 remake of House on Haunted Hill, La Cabina, the Psycho house and Portsmouth's infamous Tricorn Centre, we explore why mazes, empty buildings, brutalist architecture, strange corridors and familiar places that suddenly feel wrong can be so deeply unsettling.

Is it the fear of getting lost? Being trapped? The feeling that you're somewhere you shouldn't be? Or does this kind of environmental horror tap into something much more primal?

Along the way, we revisit childhood memories of school trips, 1970s interiors, nicotine stained wallpaper, Rigsby's flat in Rising Damp and the strange smells that can transport us straight back to childhood.

It's a Thursday deep dive into liminal spaces, psychological horror, creepy buildings, nostalgic horror and the places that scarred us for life.

Get your live show tickets now at: https://www.cheerfulearful.co.uk/lineup
To join Scarred Club and get fortnightly bonus episodes, ad-free listening and access to the members forum - sign-up here - https://scarredforlife.supportingcast.fm
Send us a voice note on WhatsApp - 07457 404 279
Follow us on socials:
Scarred For Life - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ / ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Production Company - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Lock It In Studio⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Andy Bush - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ / ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠
Produced and edited by Nikki Druce @MacabreLondon

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.