Dead of Night (TV series)
A 1972 BBC supernatural anthology series.
Dead of Night, a British television anthology series focusing on supernatural fiction, was produced by the BBC and aired on BBC2 in 1972. The series consisted of seven episodes, each running 50 minutes. It is regarded by some as a spiritual successor to the BBC’s earlier horror anthology, Late Night Horror, and, like that series, Dead of Night lasted only a single season, broadcast in the autumn of 1972.
Of the seven episodes, only three survive in the BBC Archives on their original 625-line PAL colour videotapes: "The Exorcism" (the first episode), "Return Flight" (the second), and "A Woman Sobbing" (the seventh). The videotapes for the remaining four episodes—"Bedtime", "Death Cancels All Debts", "Smith", and "Two in the Morning"—were either erased for reuse or discarded during the mid-1970s. No 16mm black-and-white film telerecordings, which were made for overseas sales to countries not yet broadcasting in colour, are known to exist for these lost episodes.
Another programme, *The Stone Tape*, was produced by the same Dead of Night production team under Innes Lloyd. Running 90 minutes, it was intended to be the eighth episode of the series. It survives in the BBC Archives but was broadcast as a standalone story, not under the Dead of Night banner.
BBC Four rebroadcast "The Exorcism" on 22 December 2007. The three surviving episodes were released on DVD by the BFI in October 2013. The DVD includes extras such as a gallery of stills from the four missing episodes, downloadable scripts for all episodes (both surviving and missing), and a booklet featuring essays and biographies by Lisa Kerrigan, Oliver Wake, Derek Johnston, and Alex Davidson.
- Type
- Television anthology series
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Network
- BBC2
- Broadcast year
- 1972
- Episodes
- 7
- Episode length
- 50 minutes
- Surviving episodes
- 3
Lore & Background
Dead of Night was produced by the BBC and broadcast on BBC2 in 1972, consisting of seven 50-minute episodes of supernatural fiction. Only three episodes survive in the BBC Archives on their original 625-line PAL colour videotapes: 'The Exorcism', 'Return Flight', and 'A Woman Sobbing'. The videotapes of the other four episodes—'Bedtime', 'Death Cancels All Debts', 'Smith', and 'Two in the Morning'—were either erased for reuse or junked during the mid 1970s, with no known 16mm black-and-white film telerecordings surviving.
A 90-minute programme made by the same production team under Innes Lloyd, titled The Stone Tape, was intended to be the eighth episode but was broadcast as a stand-alone story and not under the Dead of Night banner. It also survives in the BBC Archives. BBC Four rebroadcast 'The Exorcism' on 22 December 2007.
Reader's Guide
Dead of Night holds significance as a rare example of early 1970s BBC supernatural anthology television, with its legacy largely defined by the loss of most of its episodes. The survival of only three episodes—'The Exorcism', 'Return Flight', and 'A Woman Sobbing'—makes it a notable case in the history of television preservation, as the other four were erased or junked during the mid 1970s. The series is considered a spiritual successor to Late Night Horror, another BBC anthology that also ran for a single series in autumn 1972. Its production team, led by Innes Lloyd, later created The Stone Tape, a 90-minute programme originally intended as the eighth episode but broadcast separately. The three surviving episodes were released on DVD by the BFI in October 2013, accompanied by extras including a gallery of stills from the missing episodes, downloadable scripts for all episodes, and a booklet with essays and biographies. This release has helped maintain interest in the series and its place in British television history.
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