I've been making TV titles for decades now, and I'm still waiting for the day I have a hand in anything half as atmospheric and affecting as the opening credits for second tier drama anthology Shadows of Fear. Twenty seconds of pure visual poetry. open.substack.com/pub/historyo... - ThreadSky

mrphilnorman.bsky.social • 31 days ago

I've been making TV titles for decades now, and I'm still waiting for the day I have a hand in anything half as atmospheric and affecting as the opening credits for second tier drama anthology Shadows of Fear. Twenty seconds of pure visual poetry.
https://open.substack.com/pub/historyoftv/p/week-19-february-5th-11th-1971?r=4ckna1&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web

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thebuttermouse.bsky.social•31 days ago

The Season 2 titles to Shadows is unbelivably scary too, even as an adult I struggle to watch this: https://youtu.be/p1CcTZD9uwM?feature=shared

stuartkenny.bsky.social•29 days ago

It reminds me of the Eleanor Rigby bit from Yellow Submarine, also with a hint of Terry Gilliam about it. https://youtu.be/HuS5NuXRb5Y?si=pRSj6oM40L4HrcSG

braxtm.bsky.social•31 days ago

Terrifying.

realpaulputner.bsky.social•31 days ago

I think it's become my favourite ever opening titles and theme. Trunk Records released it as a single a couple of years ago.

mrdazbear.bsky.social•31 days ago

Isn't that the one that inspired Toast of Hollywood's titles?

dandalek.bsky.social•31 days ago

It's wonderful, isn't it. That spooky Roger Webb track fits it perfectly too.

amandabyne1.bsky.social•31 days ago

Oh yeah

mrphilnorman.bsky.social•31 days ago

Absurdly, the creator of these titles doesn't appear to have been credited on any of the programmes. Probably par for the course for an in-house designer, but such a shame it's so hard to put a name alongside composer Roger Webb's.

mrphilnorman.bsky.social•30 days ago

Turns out it's not that hard to put a name alongside Roger Webb's. Tony Bulley was the man responsible, according to this: https://www.vads.ac.uk/digital/collection/DIAD/id/4630
Shout his name from the photocopied concrete rooftops.

simonmclean.bsky.social•30 days ago

That's the same Tony Bulley who was the studio director on Today when the Sex Pistols met Bill Grundy - he also has a cameo in the opening titles for The Tomorrow People

niftylamarr.bsky.social•30 days ago

Did the titles for the Tomorrow People and The World at War.

jcallina.bsky.social•31 days ago

I didn't know this, but it's lovely. It immediately brought to mind The Tomorrow People, which I adored.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ei7i7RFvrUM

naikcorb.bsky.social•31 days ago

Simply the greatest TV title sequence ever!
It scared me to death when I was a kid - though I'd still run home to ensure I didn't miss a second of it, of course.
I'm sure the early Human League took significant inspiration from Dudley Simpson's terrific theme tune?

jasonhazeley.bsky.social•31 days ago

Holy shit. This is BEAUTIFUL. Never seen it before.

cooraysmith.bsky.social•31 days ago

Really good series. One episode was written by JB Priestley. And I don’t mean “adapted from one of his plays”. I mean “written for television by.”

unamccormack.bsky.social•31 days ago

Is “Shadows of Fear” different from “Shadows”? I know Priestley co-wrote an episode of that with Jacquetta Hawkes.

cooraysmith.bsky.social•31 days ago

I have foolishly conflated two great 70s series with Shadows in the title and paper animated title sequences. Yes, I was thinking of Priestley and Hawkes’ episode of Shadows. Both are worth seeing, though.

mrtrellis.bsky.social•31 days ago

You've already corrected yourself here but it's worth adding a couple of other "Shadows" recommendations: "Dark Encounter" by Susan Cooper of "The Dark Is Rising" fame, "Dutch Schlitz's Shoes" by Trevor Preston and featuring the return of Russell Hunter as Mr Stabs from "Ace of Wands."

cooraysmith.bsky.social•31 days ago

“The Future Ghost”, “The Waiting Room”. The best Shadows of Fear, or the ones that stick with me at least, are the Roger Marshall written one in the holiday villa, and the Edward Fox and the WW1 gas mask one.

mrtrellis.bsky.social•31 days ago

For me it's "White Walls and Olive Green Carpets" and "The Death Watcher."

'Tell me Professor, is this house haunted?'
'No. No, not yet.'

Urghh.

mrtrellis.bsky.social•31 days ago

Plus "Honeyann" by Fay Weldon and "Time Out of Mind" by Penelope Lively.

jasonhazeley.bsky.social•31 days ago

WOW. Must dig this out.

htw.bsky.social•31 days ago

Was there only one series made because the first is all on YouTube.

mrtrellis.bsky.social•31 days ago

Usually described as a single series, but in fact produced and broadcast over a period of four years.

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