FOLLOWING ON our discussion of Circle of Fear, I confessed to A.I.: I recall Evil Touch better than Circle of Fear. It must be Anthony Quayle and the Smoke. But the two Seventies Horror Shows seem dopplegangers to me. Let's do a blog post on Evil Touch.
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| Wikipedia Fair Use Image |
"🌑 Introduction: A Broadcast From the Other Side of the World
"If Ghost Story/Circle of Fear feels like a séance conducted in a haunted hotel, The Evil Touch feels like a transmission intercepted from a parallel Earth — familiar in structure, uncanny in tone, and unmistakably shaped by its Antipodean origins. Broadcast on Australia’s Nine Network from 1973 to 1974, the series ran for 26 episodes, each a self‑contained tale of horror, suspense, or supernatural disturbance."
"Hosted by the impeccably grave Anthony Quayle, the show occupies a liminal space in horror television: too strange for mainstream memory, too atmospheric to disappear entirely. It is a ghost of a series — and one that still whispers."
"🕯️ The Format: A Ritual of Introductions
"Quayle’s presence is the show’s signature. Standing in dimly lit spaces, speaking with Shakespearean gravitas, he frames each episode as a moral fable, a cautionary tale, or a descent into the uncanny. His tone is less Serling and more oracle — a man who has seen too much and expects you soon will too."
"Each episode is:
- 30 minutes long
- Self‑contained with a new cast
- Shot in Australia but featuring many American guest stars
- Structured around a twist or moral reversal"
"This format gives the series the feel of a pocket‑sized nightmare — compact, intense, and often unsettling."
"🌒 The Stories: Occult, Psychological, and Uncannily Modern
"According to archival and database sources, The Evil Touch ranges widely across horror subgenres:
- Occult visitations
- Supernatural hauntings
- Science‑fiction horror
- Murder mysteries and whodunits
- Psychological breakdowns"
"Many episodes end with a sting — a final, destabilizing twist that reframes everything that came before. This is the show’s true lineage: not just horror, but the uncanny moral parable."
"A few standout examples from documented episode guides:
- 'Dr. McDermitt’s New Patients' — A doctor and his sister resort to grave‑robbing to keep their practice alive.
- 'Seeing Is Believing' — An actor accidentally summons a real monster while filming a horror movie."
"These are stories that feel like urban legends told around a campfire — simple, eerie, and sticky."
"🌘 The Guest Stars: A Trans‑Pacific Ensemble
"One of the show’s most fascinating qualities is its cast. Because it was produced in Australia but aimed partly at U.S. syndication, it features a mix of:
- American genre actors (Darren McGavin, Leslie Nielsen, Carol Lynley, Kim Hunter, Robert Lansing)
- Australian talent (Jack Thompson, Mark Lee)"
"This blend gives the series a dreamlike quality: familiar faces in unfamiliar landscapes, American accents in Australian streets, a sense of displacement that enhances the uncanny."
"🌑 Production DNA: A Strange Hybrid
"The Evil Touch was created and produced by Mende Brown, with Everett Rosenthal as executive producer. It was shot by Amalgamated Pictures Australasia in association with Olola Productions, and scored by composer Laurie Lewis."
"The production values are modest but atmospheric:
- stark lighting
- sparse sets
- eerie sound design
- a sense of isolation that feels uniquely Australian"
"This is not glossy horror — it’s raw, uncanny, and often more effective for its limitations."
"🌑 Why It Feels Like a Doppelgänger to Ghost Story/Circle of Fear
"Your instinct is dead‑on: the two series mirror each other across hemispheres.
| Element | Ghost Story / Circle of Fear | The Evil Touch |
|---|---|---|
| Host | Sebastian Cabot (urbane, literary) | Anthony Quayle (grave, oracular) |
| Tone | Gothic → psychological | Occult → psychological |
| Episode Length | 60 minutes | 30 minutes |
| Production Origin | U.S. (Screen Gems) | Australia (Amalgamated Pictures) |
| Writer Lineage | Matheson, Bloch, Ellison, Fontana, Sangster | No marquee writers, but strong pulp DNA |
| Aesthetic | Lush, theatrical | Stark, uncanny, minimalist |
| Cultural Feel | American haunted-house tradition | Antipodean isolation and dread" |
"Both series:
- are early‑70s adult horror anthologies
- rely on twist endings
- blend supernatural and psychological terror
- feel like transitional artifacts between gothic TV and modern horror"
"They are, in effect, mirror‑world siblings."
"🌑 Why the Series Matters Today
"The Evil Touch is a treasure for anyone interested in:
- the evolution of horror anthologies
- transnational genre television
- the aesthetics of early‑70s dread
- lost or under‑preserved media"
"It is also a reminder that horror television was never solely an American or British phenomenon — Australia contributed something uniquely eerie, morally charged, and atmospherically strange."
"The series remains difficult to access (as Rue Morgue notes, no proper DVD release exists), but its surviving episodes reveal a show that deserves rediscovery."
"🌑 Conclusion: A Broadcast Worth Resurrecting
"The Evil Touch feels like a message in a bottle — a half‑remembered nightmare from a parallel 1970s. Its compact stories, stark visuals, and Quayle’s solemn introductions create a ritualistic experience that lingers long after the screen goes dark."
"If Ghost Story/Circle of Fear is the séance, The Evil Touch is the echo."
An Evil Touch Triple Bill:
The Evil Touch: Death by Dreaming
The Evil Touch: Dear Cora I'm Going to Kill You
The Evil Touch: Campaign '20
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0069580/
https://www.themoviedb.org/tv/4322-the-evil-touch
https://rue-morgue.com/retrospective-an-antipodean-anthology-series-the-evil-touch-1973-1974/
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