''The Nightmare Man'' is a

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

drama serial transmitted by

BBC Television BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1927. It produced television programmes from its own studios from 193 ...

in 1981. The four-part serial was adapted for television by Robert Holmes from the 1978 novel ''Child of Vodyanoi'' by David Wiltshire. It was produced by Ron Craddock (a former producer of ''

Z-Cars ''Z-Cars'' or ''Z Cars'' (pronounced "zed cars") is a British television police procedural series centred on the work of mobile uniformed police in the fictional town of Newtown, based on Kirkby, near Liverpool. Produced by the BBC, it debuted ...

'') and directed by

Douglas Camfield Douglas Gaston Sydney Camfield (8 May 1931 – 27 January 1984) was a British television director, active from the 1960s to the 1980s. Early life Camfield studied at the York School of Art and aimed to work for The Walt Disney Company. He was ...

. Both Holmes and Camfield had worked extensively on ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

''. The serial is set on a small Scottish island, where the population is gripped by fear following a series of savage murders and the discovery of a strange craft on the local beach.

Cast

*Michael Gaffikin ( James Warwick) Described as a sassenach, being English, dentist Michael Gaffikin is a former Officer of the British Army's Parachute Regiment. He is a keen golfer and in love with the island's pharmacist. *Fiona Patterson (

Celia Imrie Celia Diana Savile Imrie (born 15 July 1952) is an English actress and author. She was described in 2003 as one of the most successful British actresses of recent decades. She is best known for her film roles, including the '' Bridget Jones'' f ...

) Patterson is a pharmacist and also an illustrator and

cartographer Cartography (; from grc, χάρτης , "papyrus, sheet of paper, map"; and , "write") is the study and practice of making and using maps. Combining science, aesthetics and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality (or an im ...

. *Dr Symonds (Tony Sibbald) A Canadian bird-watcher visiting the island. *Inspector Inskip (

Maurice Roëves John Maurice Roëves (; 19 March 1937 – 14 July 2020) was a British actor. He appeared in over 120 film and television roles, in both the United Kingdom and the United States. His breakthrough performance was as Stephen Dedalus in the 1967 ...

) A policeman from Glasgow, recently settled on the island . *Colonel Howard (

Jonathan Newth Jonathan Newth (born 6 March 1939) is an English actor. Early life Newth trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama. Career Newth's theatre work includes appearances with the RSC, in the West End and on Broadway. His television cre ...

) A somewhat mysterious character, Colonel Howard arrives on the island at the start of the story.

Production

The serial was shot in and around the Cornish village of

Port Isaac Port Isaac ( kw, Porthysek) is a small fishing village on the Atlantic coast of north Cornwall, England, in the United Kingdom. The nearest towns are Wadebridge and Camelford, each ten miles (16 km) away. A nearby hamlet, Port Gaverne, is ...

. It was made entirely using

outside broadcasting Outside broadcasting (OB) is the electronic field production (EFP) of television or radio programmes (typically to cover television news and sports television events) from a mobile remote broadcast television studio. Professional video camera ...

video facilities.

Release

The serial has been released on

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...

(Region 2, UK) by BBC Worldwide as part of their ''Cult TV'' range. The DVD included a booklet detailing the serial's background and production.

External links

* * BBC television dramas British science fiction television shows Television shows based on British novels 1980s British drama television series 1981 British television series debuts 1981 British television series endings English-language television shows 1980s British science fiction television series {{BBC-tv-prog-stub