The Definitive Text on the Godfather of Folk Horror
LIMITED EDITION INCLUDES TONY TENSER SIGNATURE PLATE
Back in print at last!
First published in 2005, this is the 20th Anniversary re-issue of Beasts in the Cellar, the definitive study of Britain's Greatest Exploitation Film Producer!
PRE-ORDER: Expected to ship July 2025
HARDCOVER LIMITED EDITION WITH TONY TENSER AUTOGRAPH
Tony Tenser sadly passed away in December 2007. However he was with us when the original edition of Beasts in the Cellar was published, and was very generous in signing many copies of the book itself, and also a handful of signature plates. These precious artefacts have been kept safely stored for the past two decades, and we will now be able to attach them to the title pages of a limited number of copies of this 20th Anniversary re-issue. There are fewer than 100 available in all, so claim your copy while you can!
Please Note: This is the Limited Collector's Edition Hardcover, only available direct from FAB Press; there will be a paperback issued later in the year for people on a tight budget
"It may very well be that with Beasts In The Cellar John Hamilton and FAB Press have produced the best ever single subject book in the field of British horror cinema."
- MJ Simpson, SFX magazine.
"I'd rather be ashamed of a film that was making money than proud of a film that was losing it"
- Tony Tenser
Tony Tenserhas earned an unrivalled position as the godfather of low-budget British films. Amongst his many movies are the notorious ‘nudie’ Naked – As Nature Intended and Roman Polanski’s ground-breaking Repulsion. Most notably it was Tony Tenser whose entrepreneurial wit and creative spark fanned the flames of the entire Folk Horror genre with his seminal classics Witchfinder General and Blood on Satan’s Claw.
Tenser made movies in every genre, working with household names such as Christopher Lee, Vincent Price, Raquel Welch and Norman Wisdom, and his early career highlights include using strippers to picket central London cinemas and converting a Soho basement into Britain’s most successful private cinema club. By the time he started producing films such as The Black Torment and The Pleasure Girls, Tenser’s name was a byword for colourful titles, controversial themes and outrageous publicity stunts. He would enjoy mainstream success with the likes of Cul-de-Sac and Hannie Caulder but his company, Tigon, is not only synonymous with the Folk Horror genre, but also with a great many other spectacular horror hits including The Sorcerers, Curse of the Crimson Altar, Frightmare and The Creeping Flesh.
By drawing on exclusive interviews, original production files and private correspondence, John Hamilton pieces together the stories behind the movies that made Tenser the most admired and successful exploitation producer in British cinema. From battles with the censor to studio in-fighting, and from tantrums on set to post-production interference, the cut and thrust of British filmmaking on a budget is revived in glorious detail.
Featuring:
- Detailed analysis of all of Tenser's films complete with the inside story behind the making of the movies, full production details, contemporary reviews and box-office statistics.
- Rare and unpublished photographs, many from Tenser's private collection
- A foreword and extensive interview with Tony Tenser, as well as contributions from many of the film-makers and stars of his movies.
- An exhaustively researched filmography covering all of the films produced or distributed by Tenser as well as a wealth of detail on unfilmed projects.
"The analysis is clear-sighted and intelligent, while the well-chosen photographs perfectly illuminate the text. If you're at all interested in the darker corners of the British film industry, here's a helpful searchlight."
- Barry Forshaw, Crime Time magazine
below: Beasts in the Cellar author John Hamilton (left) with Tony Tenser (right) signing copies of the original edition of the book in Manchester at the 2005 Festival of Fantastic Films.
About the Author
Author and film critic John Hamilton has been writing about British cinema for nearly 30 years. His articles and interviews have appeared in magazines like Flesh & Blood, The Dark Side, Little Shoppe of Horrors and Cinema Retro, and cover subjects as diverse as Roman Polanski and Diana Dors, Alfred Hitchcock and Robin Askwith. Away from physical media, he has worked with the BBC, written and appeared in several documentaries and contributed commentaries to a number of Blu-ray releases. The original edition of Beasts in the Cellar, published in 2005, was the first of his eight books to date.
Technical Details
Size: 277mm x 198mm
Binding: Hardcover
Extent: 304 pages
ISBN: 978-1-913051-42-6
Publication Date: July 2025
Market: Cinema / Biography
Packed Weight: 1460g
Edition: 20th Anniversary Edition
