''House of Mystery'' is a 1961 British supernatural mystery film. It was based on a play director Vernon Sewell had filmed three times before.John Hamilton, ''The British Independent Horror Film 1951-70'' Hemlock Books 2013 p 96-98 It was known in Germany as Das Landhaus des Dr. Lemming ("The Country House of Dr. Lemming"), and because of its compact running time, aired in the U.S. as an episode of the TV series "

Kraft Mystery Theatre ''Kraft Television Theatre'' is an American anthology drama television series running from 1947 to 1958. It began May 7, 1947 on NBC, airing at 7:30pm on Wednesday evenings until December of that year. It first promoted MacLaren's Imperial Chees ...

Plot

A pair of newlyweds visit an old cottage for sale in the country, and hear the housekeeper's account of its macabre history. The previous owners had been disturbed by paranormal activity, and on calling in a medium, the ghost was identified as an eccentric and vengeful scientist, once resident in the cottage. The scientist was obsessed with electricity, and when his unfaithful wife and her lover attempted to murder him, he responded by electrifying the living room floor and fixtures, and challenging the couple to escape.

Cast

*Stella Lemming -

Jane Hylton Jane Hylton (16 July 1926 – 28 February 1979, born as Audrey Gwendolene Clark) was an English actress who accumulated 30 film credits, mostly in the 1940s and 1950s, before moving into television work in the latter half of her career in the ...

*Mark Lemming -

Peter Dyneley Peter Dyneley (13 April 1921 – 19 August 1977) was a British actor. Although he appeared in many smaller roles in both film and television, he is best remembered for supplying the voice of Jeff Tracy for the 1960s " Supermarionation" TV serie ...

*Joan Trevor -

Nanette Newman Nanette Newman (born 29 May 1934) is an English actress and author. She appeared in nine films directed by her husband Bryan Forbes, including ''Séance on a Wet Afternoon'' (1964), ''The Whisperers'' (1967), '' Deadfall'' (1968), ''The Stepfor ...

*Henry Trevor -

Maurice Kaufmann Maurice Harington Kaufmann (29 June 1927 – 21 September 1997) was a British actor of stage, film and television, who specialised in whodunits and horror films, from 1954 to 1981, when he retired. Personal life He was married to Honor Blackm ...

*Burdon -

Colin Gordon Colin Gordon (27 April 1911 – 4 October 1972) was a British actor born in Ceylon. Biography He was educated at Marlborough College and Christ Church, Oxford. He made his first West End appearance in 1934 as the hind legs of a horse in a ...

*Clive -

John Merivale John Herman Merivale (1 December 1917 – 6 February 1990) was a Canadian-born British theatre actor, and occasional supporting player in British films. Born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, John Merivale was the son of English actors Philip M ...

*Young Husband -

Ronald Hines Ronald Charles Andrew Hines (20 June 1929 – 28 March 2017) was a British television actor. He had a lengthy career, but possibly his most prominent roles were as Henry Corner in three of the four series of ''Not in Front of the Children'', ...

*His Wife - Colette Wilde *Mrs Bucknall -

Molly Urquhart Molly Sinclair Urquhart (6 January 1906 – 6 October 1977) was a Scottish actress and theater director. Early life Urquhart was born in Glasgow as Mary Sinclair Urquhart. She was the daughter of post office clerk Ann McCallum and sea-going e ...

*Constable -

George Selway George Selway (21 February 1924 – May 1994) was an English actor who had a lengthy career in film and television. He was married to and later separated from English actress Patricia Greene, of ''The Archers'' radio serial fame. Coincidental ...

*Milkman -

John Abineri John Abineri (18 May 1928 – 29 June 2000) was an English actor. Born in London, he attended the Old Vic drama school and described himself as "Well educated from the age of five to eighteen". He spoke a number of languages (including Ger ...

Critical reception

* The ''

Radio Times ''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in May 1923 by J ...

'' gave the film three out of five stars, saying, "this is a neat little spine-tingler from writer/director

Vernon Sewell Vernon Campbell Sewell (4 July 1903 – 21 June 2001) was a British film director, writer, producer and, briefly, an actor. Sewell was born in London, England, and was educated at Marlborough College. He directed more than 30 films during his c ...

, who was something of a dab hand at summoning up demons from beyond, whether benign as in

The Ghosts of Berkeley Square ''The Ghosts of Berkeley Square'' is a 1947 British comedy film, directed by Vernon Sewell and starring Robert Morley and Felix Aylmer. The film is an adaptation of the 1944 novel '' No Nightingales'' by Caryl Brahms and S. J. Simon, inspired b ...

or downright menacing as in

The Blood Beast Terror ''The Blood Beast Terror'' is a 1968 British horror film directed by Vernon Sewell and starring Peter Cushing, Robert Flemyng and Wanda Ventham, released by Tigon in February 1968.John Hamilton, ''Beasts in the Cellar: The Exploitation Film Care ...

. Some aficionados would insist that if it ain't Hammer it ain't horror, but there are plenty of uneasy moments in this haunting story, in which a couple of newlyweds learn the grim secret of their dream house." * ''The Bloody Pit of Horror'' wrote, "though modest, ultimately predictable and nothing spectacular, it's well-acted and at least manages to maintain interest." * ''Britmovie'' called the film an "effectively macabre little b-movie narrated in several multi-layered flashbacks."

References

External links

* 1961 films 1961 horror films British supernatural horror films British haunted house films British black-and-white films Supernatural thriller films Films set in country houses British horror films 1960s English-language films British independent films 1960s British films {{1960s-horror-film-stub