Beasts (TV Mini Series) During Barty's Party (1976) User Reviews

Best in the series

[Prof-Hieronymos-Grost · 8/10 · 28 September 2009]

Angie Truscott (Elizabeth Sellars) is a bored housewife, she lives in her remote country home with her husband Roger (Anthony Bate), a successful businessman. After taking an afternoon nap one day, Angie is awoken suddenly from her slumber, had she imagined the blood curdling screams that woke her? they seemed so real, Angie is shook up, matters aren't helped by the fact she is all alone and that there is a sudden scratching noise, its origins unknown, coming from below the floor or is it the walls, she resorts to turning up the music full blast to drown out the incessant noise. Roger duly returns home, he's had a hard day business wise, but its the weekend and all he wants to do is have a quiet night in, so he is a little irked to find his wife in a bit of a state. She tells him of her dream and the persistent scratching, Roger tells her its just a rat under the foundations, he calms Angie a little by telling her the rat can't get in. As for her dream Roger puts that down to her simultaneous mixing of sleeping tablets and booze. Angie overhears a phone call Roger makes to a colleague, where he is asked if the commotion out his way has ended, Roger oblivious to the news report, continues talking business. Angie however now concerned again, decides to put on the radio to hear the news report, she tunes into to the Barty Wills Party Hour, Barty is an annoying DJ, prone to funny voices, bad jokes and the occasional prank., he reports of an odd event taking place near their home, where thousands of giant rats stopped traffic for ten minutes as they crossed the nearby motorway. Roger dismisses it as a hoax and the show as intellectually below them and castigates his wife for listening to such rubbish. However Barty soon has a rodent expert on the show, he tells of a new breed of super rat, more intelligent and immune to modern poisons. Roger is now beginning to get scared, their dog is missing too and the abandoned sports car (presumably belonging to would be lovers) at the end of their road is still come nightfall. The noises however continue, there now seems to be more than one rat, Angie notices that they seem only to scratch at the floor of the rooms they are in, Roger is now the nervous wreck and Angie is left to make the decisions, she rings Barty's radio show only for the phone to inexplicably get cut off, soon the power goes too and they are left in the dark, both terrified the scratching becomes deafening, the rats are almost through the kitchen door, Angie decides to make a run for it, but as they do so, they hear their neighbours car pull up, the scratching stops, the Truscotts relieved think they are safe, all in quiet now but as they call to their neighbours, they see them attacked and over powered by thousands of gnawing rodents. In the headlights of the car outside, Angie and Roger huddle together and await their fate...

The genius of the great horror writer Nigel Kneale (Quatermass, The Stone Tape) shines through in this episode of his "Beasts" series, a series based entirely on animals and other exotic creatures. Kneale is known for his intelligent science based stories, renowned for their credibility and just that hint of "it could happen", his tension filled script is given meticulous direction by Don Leaver, a TV journeyman perhaps best known for his excellent Hammer House of Horror films, Witching Time and The Mark of Satan. The script is taut and the film is loaded with dialogue, full of important little notes that build up the characters and drive the plot on to its excruciatingly horrific finale. Of course all the horror is in the mind of the viewer, we never see the rats, we only hear them, a fact lost on modern filmmakers is that imagination is the greatest horror, you don't need to show everything to make a scary film, Kneale of course was a master of this craft. Right from the first scene, the brooding horror is evident, an abandoned car within sight of the Truscotts and in the distance we hear some laughter from the unseen lovers which are replaced almost immediately with that of blood curdling screams, this leads straight into Angie's nightmare, was it all a dream? There are only two actors in the film and both Sellars and Bate perform admirably, showing a range of emotions as their lives are slowly turned upside down. Overall the film is rather dull visually and it can't hide its TV origins, but the fear factor and psychological tension it musters along with some very inventive sound effects more than make up for this.

Superbly Structured Horror

[Theo Robertson · 8/10 · 18 October 2012]

In my previous review of BEASTS I said you had to be slightly forgiving about television production from the 1970s . Perhaps the relatively low rating of the series on this site is down to people watching it for the first time on DVD expecting graphic horror . Perhaps people watching it 35 years later have memories that have cheated them or perhaps it's a combination of both . One thing is absolutely certain and that is if something is well written and acted production values don't add anything at all

Watching During Barty's Party you'll notice how static the action is . This could have been broadcast on radio and could have made a riveting stage play since it contains an on screen cast of two and one single set and this is in no way a criticism . What we do get is a dark gloomy claustrophobic dramatic horror story featuring a couple of middle class and middle aged people who are rather unsympathetic but by the end of the episode you'll be weeping tears for . The fact that we don't see any on screen deaths or indeed on screen rats makes it more effective and shocking

If there's any criticism of the script it's that it might be slightly unoriginal . Rats were a favourite focus of horror in the 1970s such as BEN , the classic Tomorrow The Rat episode of DOOMWATCH and the horror novels of James Herbert but writer Nigel Kneale and director Don Taylor are able to structure a very effective and hard hitting horror tale where what you don't see is more terrifying than what you do see

BEASTS – Episode 6: DURING BARTY'S PARTY (TV) (Don Taylor, 1976) ***

[Bunuel1976 · 7/10 · 23 October 2008]

Slow-starting but eventually intense two-hander (including an ageing Elizabeth Sellars) about a country-house being infested by a multitude of rats (which are never actually seen – kudos, then, to the realistic and genuinely scary sound effects, lending the whole an appropriate apocalyptic feel).

The title refers to a goofy radio program which first alerts citizens to the 'plague'; at first, only one or two rats are heard scratching at the floor-boards (they're trying to get in to shelter from the cold) – so that Sellars' husband ignores her appeals of the impending danger (already evident from the mysterious presence of an abandoned car outside the couple's home, which is actually the very opening shot of the episode!) and attempts to chase them away by merely stamping his foot, or beating a club, on the ground!!

However, the situation soon deteriorates – especially since it's apparent that the rodents are impervious to all forms of poison: they have somehow evolved and, in fact, the radio presenter starts referring to them as "super-rats"! In desperation, Sellars contacts Barty to ask for help…but he's not familiar with the area in which the house is situated and, furthermore, gets the surname wrong! All of a sudden, though, the relentless (and deafening) scratching and screeching stops – the distraught couple open a window in relief, only to 'see' an arriving partying neighbor and his guests fall foul of the deadly mass of rats

Today The Rat!

[ShadeGrenade · 10/10 · 12 June 2009]

When it was announced that Nigel Kneale, creator of 'Quatermass', would be writing a new series for television entitled 'Beasts', there was much rejoicing among British horror fans. His last genre work had been the brilliant 'The Stone Tape', shown on the B.B.C. in 1972.

The first transmitted episode was 'During Barty's Party' in which a middle-aged couple - Roger Truscott ( Anthony Bate ) and his wife Angie ( Elisabeth Sellars ) - find themselves besieged in their country home by a pack of ferocious, super-intelligent rats. They cannot get out, and all attempts to get help end in failure. In desperation, they call a local radio station and are put through to D.J. Barty, but the rats bite through the phone lines. With no mobile phones nor internet around then, the Truscotts are doomed...

Unlike the 'Doomwatch' episode 'Tomorrow The Rat' six years earlier, 'Beasts' made no effort to actually show the rats ( a good thing too, especially seeing how Doomwatch's efforts were derided and later used on the Clive James show, alongside 'Endurance', to gain cheap laughs ).

'Beasts' scored highly in its imaginative use of sound effects. When one of the Truscotts moved about the house, we would hear rats squealing and scurrying about under the floor, in the attic, and behind the walls. At any moment you expected the little swines to appear in droves.

Bate and Sellars were first-rate. Today they would probably cast a pair of teenagers in the roles.

Viewers across the country were understandably petrified ( including yours truly ) when this first went out. "I was frightened out of my wits by 'Beasts'" said a letter in 'The Sunday People'. The writer then added: "Not the best way to start the weekend!". Totally unlike 'Bouquet Of Barbed Wire', of course.

The rest of 'Beasts' sadly did not live up to the excellence of the opening show. The series came out on D.V.D. a few years ago, and is worth getting just for this alone ( as well as 'Murrain' - an excellent play in which a woman suspected of being a witch is hounded by ignorant locals ).

Rat Swarm

[robert-connor · 8/10 · 1 March 2010]

A couple living in a remote part of Hampshire, England come under siege from a swarm of rats.

Extraordinarily simple and effective scenario, which runs like a stage play, containing most of the action in a couple of rooms in a fairly isolated country house. To begin we watch a woman who appears tense, even depressed, sleeping in afternoon, troubled by nightmares. Yet quickly we realise that amidst her general anxiety, something specific has disturbed her. Something outside... screams perhaps? From this point on the tension slowly mounts as she begins to hear noises - scratching from beneath the floor. Her husband arrives home, full of the events of his day, mixing drinks and making calls. At first he humours his wife, dismissing her fears, blaming sleeping pills and alcohol. Then he becomes irritated by the scratching noises, trying to rationalise. All the while his wife fears the unthinkable. What if? She calls a radio show that has mentioned strange reports of rat migrations. She speaks to the DJ, trying to break through his bantering replies. Just as he begins to take her seriously, the phone line is cut, the power goes off. All contact with outside is gone, and the scratching is increasing, noises following her steps as she moves around. Something is trying to get in through the outside door, something chewing, scratching. A small hole begins to appear...

First shown in 1976 on British TV, while a little dated perhaps, During Barty's Party is nevertheless extremely effective, creating a claustrophobic atmosphere, slowing increasing the menace without while never allowing the viewer to actually see its cause. Sellars and Bate are very good, handling the (dated) dynamic of conventional, patronising husband and neurotic wife with aplomb, and allowing a gradual shift in balance - she is at first impotent, he has all the answers - is particularly good. In the end it is her who takes charge as her husband falls apart.

Chilling indeed, and it's a surprise this story has never been developed into a longer screenplay.

Rat up a Drainpipe

[southdavid · 7/10 · 21 May 2020]

Wow. This one was, as had been suggested by the reading I'd done, a really good episode. A masterpiece of sound design being used to create an upsetting tone that builds to a crescendo.

Having woken from a disturbing dream, Angie Truscott (Elizabeth Sellars) is perturbed by scratching coming from within the walls and under the floorboards. Her husband Roger (Anthony Bate) arrives home and offers a rational explanation for the noises. With the radio on to hide they noise, they hear Barty's Party, an early evening drivetime type show which starts to take reports about large numbers of rats on the move.

This is essentially a two hander theatre piece, although with a few voices added such as the radio presenters and a telephone call, so it's vital that the two actors get it right and indeed they do. Elizabeth Sellars is particularly good, as you might imagine given her pedigree and she carries more of the piece than Bate. It's nice though, after the male leads in "Baby" and "Special Offer" being such nasty pieces of work, that despite occasionally looking like Roger would join them, he usually prefers to comfort his wife rather than dismiss her.

As I said in the opening paragraph it's the sound design that really does the best job of the episode. From individual scratching, building across the run time to sound like a hoard of scratching screeching creatures, it really helps your brain fill out what you can't see happening.

It's a great episode of television in any era.

Best of the series.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 9/10 · 10 May 2018]

I saved this for last as I was told I'd enjoy it, oh what beautiful eyes you have had previously been my favourite, somewhat of a step up on most, but this one without a doubt is the best on the series. Forty five minutes of intense, intelligent, quality horror. The pace increases as the episode progresses, the tension and fear increase rapidly. No visible threat, so no plastic masks or rubber suits, the terror is cleverly crafted with sound effects, to great effect. I'm a massive fan of Anthony Bate, an actor of true quality, but it's Elizabeth Sellars that impressed me most.

Very professional, full of scares, an episode of real quality 9/10

A dramatic Horror with a subtle build up.

[paulalanoliver · 9/10 · 5 February 2021]

Fantastic. Such a subtle build up after the initial (less subtle) screams at the car...the alcohol, the neurotic and lonely lady, the dog that sensed danger. It then builds up wonderfully. You know you are engaged in the drama when you "will" the characters to take a course of action, and feel frustration when they do not. Elizabeth Sellars is excellent. Anthony Bate plays Anthony Bate again, but it is a good foil to Sellars.