Spooky season is upon us, and the BBC has you covered on iPlayer and Sounds. From scary films to Scooby-Doo adventures and paranormal podcasts, there’s plenty to enjoy this Halloween.
Fancy a frightening film night with the lights turned low? From classic chillers to new thrillers, BBC iPlayer is stuffed with unmissable horror movies. The Mist (2007), based on a story by Stephen King, sees a deadly mist descend upon a small Maine town after a huge storm. Seeking refuge in a supermarket, the trapped townsfolk face not only monsters in the mist but the fear and wrath of the other survivors.
Also playing on fears of entrapment, but this time through a social horror lens, is Jordan Peele’s outstanding Get Out (2017). Chris and his girlfriend Rose head to upstate New York to meet her parents for the first time. When they arrive, Rose’s parents are genial and welcoming, but the more time Chris spends with them and their quiet, obedient servants, the more he feels something is very, very wrong.
Another classic that shows how important it is to be wary of an initially warm welcome is Robin Hardy’s chilling, unforgettable folk horror film The Wicker Man (1973). As a police sergeant arrives on a Scottish island in search of a missing girl, the locals claim she never existed. This community hides deep, dark secrets that Edward Woodward’s police sergeant uncovers as he meets Christopher Lee’s enigmatic Lord Summerisle.
One of only three films in history to sweep the Big Five Academy Awards (Best Picture, Director, Actor, Actress, and Screenplay), Jonathan Demme’s Silence of the Lambs remains a nerve-shredding watch to this day. In 1991, it single-handedly reinvented the psychological thriller for a new age, terrifying audiences worldwide as Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster), an FBI trainee, is assigned to interview the notorious psychiatrist and cannibal Dr Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins) in the hope that he can help solve a wave of murders. But as Lecter sits behind reinforced glass in a high-security facility and plays psychological games, Starling fears time is running out to find Buffalo Bill (Ted Levine).
Silence of the Lambs isn’t the only masterpiece on BBC iPlayer this Halloween: a grieving couple, Laura and John Baxter, visit Venice, where John is restoring a church, in Nicolas Roeg’s outstanding Don’t Look Now (1973). As Donald Sutherland’s John works, Julie Christie’s Laura befriends two sisters, one of whom claims to have seen their dead daughter in a film rooted in the psychology and horror of grief, set against the backdrop of a wintry and haunting Venice.
And that’s not all: from the underrated slasher Tormented to the body horror in The Substance, a cannibal road trip in Bones and All and John Carpenter’s Halloween, there is a movie to suit every taste available to stream now.
BBC iPlayer also has a bucketful of sweet TV treats for all ages. Based on the books by the late great Eric Morecambe and starring Lenny Rush, The Reluctant Vampire is a family-oriented Halloween treat. As vampire heir to the throne, Val is expected to follow in his father’s traditional footsteps despite never really getting to grips with the usual bloodthirsty rites of passage until his mum reveals he’s not actually a full vampire at all! Caught between two worlds, he tries to hide his secret and protect his family while grappling with his own identity and the pull of human life.
Also exploring an alternative view of vampire life is the critically acclaimed mockumentary series What We Do in the Shadows, starring Matt Berry, Kayvan Novak and Natasia Demetriou. These bickering undead housemates, who live on Staten Island, may seek out blood at every opportunity, but they also argue over chores in this truly unique slice of comedy horror.
Also bringing the laughs this Halloween are Alison and Mike, a cash-strapped young couple struggling to buy their first home, who think their prayers are answered when a distant relative bequeaths them a sprawling country estate. The catch? The old house is haunted by its former inhabitants in Ghosts, a grown-up comedy from the team behind Horrible Histories.
Speaking of ghosts, are you team believer or team sceptic? Danny Robins brings his hit podcast to the screen, investigating paranormal stories in Uncanny, and trust me, things are about to get weird! And if you want something even more freaky, how about Loch nam Madadh (Wolf Bay)?
The short-form Gaelic horror series follows Angus, who is reluctantly returning to North Uist for his grandfather’s funeral. Hoping to slip back unnoticed, he instead finds himself stuck on a ferry with his ex-girlfriend, Màiri, her fiancé Colin, and her formidable mother, Margaret. As the ship enters the treacherous waters of Wolf Bay, Angus is forced to confront his own past and the mysterious evil prowling the decks. Will he survive the night, save the passengers, and make peace with Màiri?
Wolf Bay isn’t the only seafaring horror to binge-watch over the spooky season. Decks are awash with blood on the luxury mega-cruise ship MS Sacramentum in Ryan J. Brown’s queer comedy horror Wreck. Taking us from a deadly cruise to an insidious wellness camp in series two, Wreck is a delight from the first episode to the last.
There’s plenty for younger viewers too, from Shaun the Sheep: Farmageddon, where an alien with amazing powers crash-lands near Mossy Bottom Farm, to classic cartoon capers with the cowardly canine and his human companions in Scooby-Doo. Plus, it’s the spookiest night of the year in the Strictly Come Dancing ballroom as our celebrities and their professional partners crack out some spine-tingling routines on Halloween Night.
Meanwhile, over on BBC Sounds, Joseph Fiennes and Alexandra Roach star in a new audio paranormal cold case from Danny Robins, The Witch Farm, while the podcast After Dark: Myths, Misdeeds & the Paranormal unpicks history’s spookiest, strangest, and most sinister stories.
Whether you are in the mood for a must-see movie, a tantalising TV show, a paranormal podcast or an alarming audio drama, BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds have you covered.
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