FILM · 1981 · UK
The Monster Club
24 archived facts 4 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026
All facts (24)
- #001
Artist John Bolton drew the picture of the Shadmock used in the film before the role had been cast. The film's producers were genuinely surprised when they found an actor named James Laurenson who physically resembled the figure in the painting.
- #002
This is the only film in which Vincent Price played a vampire over the course of his long career in horror and other roles.
- #003
The film was released in cinemas on Vincent Price's 70th birthday.
- #004
Merchandise tied to the film is very rare and highly sought after by its fans. Dez Skinn, John Bolton and David Lloyd produced a comic-book adaptation of it, which was distributed at the Cannes Film Festival; only 1,000 copies were printed. The film's LP record, released by Chips Records, is rarely seen and tends to sell in the three figures when it surfaces. The paperback edition of R. Chetwynd-Hayes's source novel, including the artwork contained within it, was published in 1981 and reissued in 2013.
- #005
Christopher Lee was offered the role of R. Chetwynd-Hayes in the film, which was ultimately played by John Carradine.
- #006
Milton Subotsky claimed he planned for six of the top horror stars of the time (Vincent Price, Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee, Klaus Kinski, Donald Pleasence and John Carradine) to all appear in starring roles in the film. Cushing, Lee and Kinski turned the offer down, but Price, Pleasence and Carradine appeared in the film.
- #007
Body count: three humans, one half-human, one cat and one bird.
- #008
The film was shot in 24 days.
- #009
The name of the "vampire film producer" is Lintom Busotsky, a jokey anagram of the name of the film's producer, Milton Subotsky.
- #010
The film's theatrical trailer reveals the fates of both characters played by Simon Ward and Donald Pleasence.
- #011
In the final segment of "Humgoo Story," the village is named "Loughville," an anagram of "Ghoul ville."
- #012
It was claimed that the monster masks used in the film were made by Milton Subotsky's milkman. The story arose because the masks were ordered at short notice from Vic Door, who was then a freelancer also working at a milk processing plant. He was not, however, a milkman.
- #013
The rock band UB40 is prominently featured in the film's credits. At the time the film was released, they had been together for only a little over two years and had a hit album behind them containing thirteen of the UK's top singles. By the mid-1980s they had become a major international act with a worldwide following.
- #014
Budget: $1.7 million.
- #015
"Sucker for Your Love," performed by B. A. Robertson, premiered in the UK as a flexi-disc giveaway with a magazine to help promote the film.
- #016
It was director Roy Ward Baker's last theatrical film.
- #017
Vincent Price was the second choice for the role of Erasmus in the film.
- #018
The film was only a moderate success in cinemas, but it performed well when it was released in 1982 on VHS, Betamax (and V2000 in Europe) in the emerging video rental market.
- #019
Patrick Magee has only eight lines of dialogue in the entire film.
- #020
Klaus Kinski was offered a major role in the film but turned it down. Richard Johnson was then brought in to take the role in his place.
- #021
John Carradine was the second choice for the role of R. Chetwynd-Hayes in the film.
- #022
While Sam is checking the map, the town of "Banting" appears, but it is actually the town of Saint Albans, and "A4140" is actually the A4147. The "M100" south of Hemel Hempstead Road is actually the A414; the road north of Hemel Hempstead Road is actually the M1 motorway; and "Hemell Thempstead Road" is actually Hemel Hempstead Road. Also, when Sam holds his finger on the map, the left and right roads heading northwest and southeast are fictional. All the alterations on the map are written in bold type and in bold lettering.
- #023
During filming at Elstree Studios in 1980, in an interview about the film set, Richard Johnson joked about the film: "One day you're acting with Charlton Heston in a blockbuster like Khartoum, blink, and you're in Borehamwood with a stake through your heart."
- #024
Vincent Price and John Carradine shot their scenes in one week.
Continue through the archive
Sources & editorial notes
Reference databases
Sources for the entries on this page
- IMDb IMDb kaydı
Information from external sources is independently selected, consolidated and edited by Arka Evren. Sources are listed for verification and further reading. Encyclopedia text is used under its licence (CC BY-SA). How we work