Strolling through Soho the other day LJ stopped, saying 'Hold on, look at this!'. So I did. We found ourselves staring in wonder at a magnificent Art Deco doorway. Looking up, we saw it belonged to Hammer House. That's Hammer as in Hammer horror films. Along with Doctor Who, they gave us British kids our first taste of fear on TV in the 60s. Fear and the psycho-sexual terror of busty beauties being ravished by monsters, but perhaps we could not fully understand the (Freudian?) meaning of all that blood and bodice-ripping.
We chatted to the guy sitting behind what must be one of the oldest reception desks in London, the country, even. It was tiny, the original 30s desk, squatting in a nook under the stairs and in front of the lift. Part of it is visible in the reflection on the first shot, to the right of me squatting on the stairs. I would have photographed it but we were too busy listening to him tell us about the building. You read a bit about it here.
Modern film production companies run by the likes of comedian Jimmy Carr use the building, so it's still involved in horror. Unless you think those 'comedy' panel shows are good. Anyway, here's the door from inside and out.
'This coach is bound for a terrifying destination' (as the voice-over says) should be an announcement on the 259 to Tottenham...
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