The Stone Tape

The Stone Tape is a television play written by Nigel Kneale, directed by Peter Sasdy and starring Jane Asher. It was broadcast by the BBC as a Christmas ghost story in 1972.

Related Topics:
Television - Play - Nigel Kneale - Peter Sasdy - Jane Asher - BBC - Ghost story - 1972

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Like Kneale's earlier serial, Quatermass and the Pit, The Stone Tape combines science fiction and supernatural plot devices to highly original effect. The story concerns a group of electronics scientists who become intrigued by the supposed haunting of the house where they are searching for a new recording medium. The film's title refers to the stone from which house was built, which apparently preserves psychic impressions much as magnetic tape can preserve sounds or images. Eventually the ghost is erased from the "stone tape", but, as in Quatermass and the Pit, it quickly transpires that solving the mystery doesn't necessarily mean an end to the horror.

Related Topics:
Quatermass and the Pit - Science fiction - Supernatural

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The Stone Tape was a significant influence on John Carpenter's 1987 film Prince of Darkness. Besides directing the film, Carpenter wrote the screenplay under the pseudonym "Martin Quatermass", and included a reference to 'Kneale University'.

Related Topics:
John Carpenter - 1987 - Film - Prince of Darkness - Pseudonym - Quatermass

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