Doctor Who Vs. Dr. Terror’s House of Horrors

Shown on Legend last night, this British

thriller was the first of seven anthology features from Amicus Productions. Released by Regal in 1965, the movie was produced

by the American studio founders Milton

Subotsky and Max Rosenberg, and

directed by Oscar-winning cinematographer

Freddie Francis. Subtsky originally wrote all

five portmanteau tales in 1948, and utilised gothic staples here (entitled Werewolf,

Creeping Vine, Voodoo, Disembodied Hand

and Vampire) within a framing story.

The production featured Peter Cushing,

Roy Castle, Christopher Lee, Donald

Sutherland, and eighteen Doctor Who cast

and crew connections:

• [Francis] Michael Gough (Landor) played the titular role of The Celestial Toymaker, then Councillor Hedin in Arc of Infinity
• Max Adrian [born Bor] (Dr. Blake) was King Priam in The Myth Makers
• Faith Kent [born Heaslip] voiced Maven for Big Finish's Omega (2003)
• Ann [Forrest] Bell (Ann) voiced Sylvia O'Donnell for A Thousand Tiny Wings (2010), Professor Gesima Cazalet for Night of the Stormcrow (2013), and Lisa Burrows for Five Twenty-Nine (2016)
• [Charles] Edward Underdown (Tod) was Zastor in Meglos
• Judy [Valerie] Cornwell (Nurse) was Maddy in Paradise Towers
• Isla Blair (Girl) was Lady Isabella in The King's Demons, then voiced Paula Taylor for Exotron (2007), Margerie Hopshaw for Out of This World, Charn for Palindrome (both 2020), Old Mary Mortimer for Friend of the Family (2023), and Pars for Unknown Soldiers (2024)
• Rodney Cardiff (Patron) and John [Ernest Clotworthy] Moore (Man) both appeared in Frontier in Space, as Draconian Emperor/Prisoner - Cardiff was also Guard in The Androids of Tara and The Mysterious Planet, and Gendarme in City of Death
• Paul [Alfred] Phillips (Patron) was Egyptian in The Daleks' Master Plan, Extra in The Highlanders, Scientist in The Macra Terror and The Time Warrior, Sentry in The War Games, and Miner in The Monster of Peladon
• Bill Constable (art director), Buster Ambler (sound recordist) and Roy Hyde (sound editor) all worked on Dr. Who and the Daleks
• Ted Wallis was production manager on Daleks' Invasion Earth 2150 AD
• Joe Vegoda (executive producer), John Cox (sound director), Ted Samuels (SFX) and Maurice Gillett (electrician) all worked on both Dalek films