Dave Pattern

All posts by Dave Pattern

Vertigo – the stage play

I’m sure most people are aware that “The 39 Steps” was recently turned into a highly successful stage play by playwright Patrick Barlow. Well, it looks like the same has now been done for “Vertigo“. The Derby Evening Telegraph has a write up of the adaptation by Jonathan Holloway: Holloway returns the psychological thriller to wartime Paris and, in supremely theatrical style, frames the tale of the tortured hero as a public demonstration of hypnosis…. (read more)

free Hitchcock DVDs with The Times

The UK Times newspaper is giving away 7 Hitchcock DVDs, starting on Sunday September 7th: The 39 Steps (Sunday) The Man Who Knew Too Much (Monday) Sabotage (Tuesday) Secret Agent (Wednesday) Young and Innocent (Thursday) Jamaica Inn (Friday) The Lady Vanishes (Saturday) Presumably these will be licensed transfers from Granada International?

Hugh Hefner and Hitchcock

Not too sure how much truth there is in this story, as the Daily Mail seems to be the only source, but… Playboy boss Hugh Hefner, 82, has donated $120 million towards a new School of Cinematic Art, to be built in Hollywood in memory of Alfred Hitchcock. Why? Hef declares that he wished to honour Hitchcock as “he managed to work with the three women I most wanted to pose nude for me, and… (read more)

Upcoming DVDs

Whilst we still wait for news the first official Bluray releases (my guess is that “North by Northwest” will be announced soon), standard DVDs just keep on coming! In the next few months, we have a new DVD of “Suspicion” (Kinowelt, Germany) as well as a bundling of Hitchcock’s two wartime propaganda films “Hitchcock French Resistance” (Network, UK). In France, Universal are bundling together all of their previous DVD releases (including both their US films… (read more)

Hitchcock on UK TV and Radio

Here’s your weekly dose of Hitchcock! Title: Aventure Malgache Broadcast Info: Friday 22 Aug 08, 23:25 (35 mins) Broadcast Info: Monday 25 Aug 08, 08:30 (30 mins) Channels: Artsworld Title: Topaz Broadcast Info: Wednesday 20 Aug 08, 16:20 (145 mins) Channels: Sky Movies Premier 3 Title: Frenzy Broadcast Info: Wednesday 20 Aug 08, 02:50 (130 mins) Channels: Sky Movies Max 2 Title: Rear Window Broadcast Info: Sunday 17 Aug 08, 14:20 (100 mins) Channels: Five… (read more)

Alfred Hitchcock: the Knife Czar

Knife related crime seems to be on the rise in the UK, with over 20 people killed in London this year. To try and help combat this, the government has enlisted Alfred Hitchcock to come up with a solution. Yep — I did a double-take too, but this is Manchester born policeman, 49 year old Alf(red) Hitchcock. I’m sure Hitch, who filmed some of his most memorable murders with knives, would have raised an eyebrow.

Hitchcock graffiti

Every now and then, I add some of the Hitchcock related images on Flickr (that have been uploaded with a Creative Commons License) to the Hitchcock Gallery. One of the things that took me slightly by surprise was just how much Hitchcock graffiti there is out there… (Hitchcock says “Nude coloured clothing party”) If you’d like to see what a “Nude Coloured Clothing Party” looks like, then again, head over to Flickr! I guess I… (read more)

new US sets from Universal in October

The DVD Times site is reporting that the long awaited Universal releases of “Psycho” and “Vertigo” will be released in October, along with “Rear Window“… Universal Studios Home Video have announced the Region 1 DVD release of new Two-Disc Special Editions of Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho, Rear Window and Vertigo on 7th October 2008. Priced at $26.98 SRP each, these two-disc sets are released under the Universal Legacy Series banner and offer the following features… Psycho… (read more)