Dark Natter

MASSIVE SPOILER ALERT for The Prestige!!!Seriously, if you haven't seen the movie yet, do not listen to this. In fact, do not listen to this at all. It's our notorious, infamous, legendary LOST EPISODE, considered too shambolic even for Dark Natter. But as the show's on hiatus, and it's Yuletide after all, we decided to finally release it as a bit of a festive treat.Listen at your peril… and merry Christmas!!

It's the end of another sinister series of Dark Natter! And it's also Halloween... so what better way for us to bow out with a bang than by celebrating the Springwood Slasher himself, Freddy Krueger and his Nightmare On Elm Street movies??

It's Jon's turn to pitch to Liam, and you know how Jon gets when he's 'into' something... his recent addiction to revolutionary 90s first person shooter Quake has led him to rediscover genre granddaddy Doom, as well as the host of other 'retro FPS' games now available as other 90s gamers get their nostalgic kicks (and shotgun blasts, and rocket-propelled grenade explosions)! But will these venerable games and their disturbing imagery still hold up well enough to earn a place in the Hall Of Pain, or are they doomed to rot in Hell...?

We're delighted to be joined by cyberpunk writer extraordinaire Nik Whittaker (just look at the beautiful covers of his books... immense author envy!!) to discuss Clive Barker's dark fantasy horror flop, Nightbreed (based on his 1988 novel Cabal).  Find out why this bonkers movie has amassed a cult following, learn about David Cronenberg's acting career, and encounter a mask that's creepier than any slasher villain's...

For Dark Natter's 50th anniversary (thankfully in episodes, not years) we thought we'd attempt an unprecedented four-person discussion about a never-before-touched subject: professional wrestling, and specifically the incredible career and storytelling of legendary grappler The Undertaker!!  Liam and Jon are joined by the Brothers Of Destruction, Haydn Kilyan and podcast debutant Jack Kilyan, for an episode as chaotic as you'd expect when Haydn's had a few cans before recording starts.  Expect heated discussion, childish humour, enthusiastic nostalgia and Liam inexplicably challenging the Undertaker to a fight.

Join us and guest Rob Yates, long-time pal of Jon Richter and walking horror library, to discuss one of the greatest movies of all time: Jaws.  Will the first film's brilliance secure it a place in our illustrious Hall Of Pain, or will the abject crapness of the sequels prove too much to overcome??  Join us for fun, fins and fishfood... we're gonna need a bigger podcast.

After a couple of glowing recommendations, including from today's guest Mr James, host of the Right In The Schoolies Podcast and fellow dark fiction enthusiast, Jon embarked on a quest to get hold of this elusive movie...  When he finally did, he found that its reputation and mysterious aura were thoroughly deserved, and that its ending was even darker than he expected.  Tune in to find out why Lake Mungo is almost certainly the best horror movie you've never seen.

Liam's back to pitch a classic British TV series, which started as a vehicle for Roald Dahl's sinister short stories... but are these tales twisted enough to secure a place in the Hall Of Pain?

In this episode, Jon is joined by science fiction author, comic genius and movie encyclopaedia Matt Adcock, author of the brilliant novel Complete Darkness!  Matt is pitching Hardware, a brilliant and underrated gem which Jon hadn't even heard of before Matt's recommendation... but will its robotic techno-horror be enough to secure it a place in the Hall Of Pain?

Listen to an extract from Jon's latest book, psychological techno-thriller The Warden... if it's up your (dark) alley, head to www.jon-richter.com for more information, or to Amazon to get your claws on a copy at https://amzn.to/3pClPqF

Long-time friend of the show (and even longer-time friend of Jon and Liam!) Haydn Kilyan is back to explore another subject close to his black, shrivelled heart: the disturbing, sinister fiction of Disney Studios!  Join us for a whistle-stop tour of the darkest depths of Disney's output over the years, including Pleasure Island, the pink elephant parade and the brutal murder of a harmless firefly.

In this episode Jon is joined for the first time ever by an EXISTING resident of the Hall Of Pain, namely fantastic dark fiction writer Mark Tilbury!  Tune in for a wide-ranging chat encompassing writing, the ills of capitalism, the paranormal, and the brilliant occult fiction of S.E. England.

Originally scripted as a western (!?), that's about the only genre that isn't encompassed in John Carpenter's bonkers action adventure/martial arts/horror/comedy masterpiece - so when the lightning's crashing and the thunder's rolling and the rain's comin' down in sheets thick as lead, you just listen to the old Porkchop Express and do what Jack Burton always says: listen to Dark Natter, particularly this episode where Jon and Liam chat about Jon's favourite movie of all time!

Jon is honoured to be joined by ace horror writer Brian O'Gorman, whose works include the fantastically creepy (in every sense) Dawn Of The Spiders, to talk about George A. Romero and his Living Dead movies.  Zombies are such a staple of modern culture that it's incredible to remember a time before they existed in their current shambling, flesh-munching form, so the impact and influence of these films is impossible to overstate... tune in to find out if they're shuffling and groaning their way into the Hall Of Pain!

It's a video gaming double-header as we probe the darkness lurking inside Playdead's brilliant pair of eerie puzzle platformers, Limbo and Inside... but listeners beware, Liam is in a FOUL mood.

In this episode Jon welcomes bestselling cyberpunk writer (and jolly nice chap) Matthew A Goodwin to the show, where they'll be delving into the disturbing mind of none other than Doctor Hannibal Lecter (or is it Lecktor?)...  Tune in to see if the psychotic psychiatrist can help them catch Buffalo Bill (if they even remember to mention him) and, more importantly, whether he earns a place in the Hall Of Pain... 

Following the recent episodes covering Berserk and Preacher, Liam and Jon thought they'd go for a hat-trick of depraved, disgusting works by trawling through the blood, guts and poo-infested subterranean depths of The Binding Of Isaac!  This is a video game that features a sobbing child fighting the demons in his own mind by firing his tears at them; the fact that Jon has sunk over 200 hours into playing it probably says a lot about him...

In today's episode, Jon welcomes book influencer, terrifying superfan and all-round ace human, Donna Morfett!  In true Annie Wilkes style, Donna is pitching the books of the brilliant Mark Tilbury for a place in the hallowed halls of the Hall Of Pain, although she assures us this isn't purely because she wants to lock Mark in an inescapable dungeon forever...

In this week's episode, Liam and Jon plumb previously un-sunk-to depths of depravity as they accompany Preacher on his quest to confront God himself!!  Avoid if you're easily offended, as Jesse Custer's misadventures are soaked in the darkest of dark humour...

In this episode, Jon discusses the wealth of brilliant children's dark fiction that's lurking out there (both nostalgic favourites and some more contemporary stuff) with special guest and extremely talented author of Peter Green and the Unliving Academy, Angelina Allsop!

Jon and Liam's love of the Dark Souls games has led them to explore some of the franchise's biggest influences... thus they embarked down the blood-smeared, corpse-strewn path towards Berserk. Having gorged themselves on the 1997 anime as well as more recent offerings and a bit of the iconic manga, the boys are now fully-fledged fans of Guts, Griffith and their band of mercenary miscreants... but is it enough to secure them a place in the Hall of Pain?

In this episode, Jon welcomes the immensely talented, genre-hopping, award-winning writer Isobel Blackthorn to talk about her own dark fiction, as well as her love of the celebrated and sadly-missed author Iain Banks. Fans of his incredible work, from the harrowing Wasp Factory to his universe-spanning Culture novels, should find plenty to gorge themselves upon!

Jon and Liam rekindle their love affair with From Software's 'Souls' games, this time celebrating Bluepoint's inspired remake of the game that started it all, Demon's Souls. Join the lads for a light-hearted romp through crumbling castles, mouldy mineshafts and stinking swamps... just do yourself a favour and DON'T TRUST PATCHES.

In our first show of 2021, Jon is joined by awesome and intimidatingly cool cyberpunk author Anna Mocikat to discuss the anime masterpiece Ghost In The Shell, as well as its sequel (but not so much the rubbish live action version...) as well as Anna's own brilliant novels. The discussion will lead us deep into the perils of AI and human augmentation, the nature of consciousness, and encompass a tentative prod of the real-life Skynet...Don't forget to check out the following websites for book news as well as updates on Neo Cyberpunk, an upcoming cyberpunk fiction anthology!www.jon-richter.comwww.annamocikat.com

Liam's back for this year's festive, err, festivities, joining Jon for a special episode about one of our favourite Christmas movies: Gremlins!! Tune in to hear us discuss this comedy horror classic and its utterly mad sequel, as well as revealing Liam's favourite Christmas tune. Ho ho ho!!

With Liam's stint in vampire rehab showing no sign of ending, Jon has roped in another guest for this show... Dark Natter is honoured to welcome returning visitor Ryan Hamann for another in-depth dissection, this time of Naughty Dog's wildly successful, heart-wrenchingly moving and brutally violent PlayStation exclusive fungal zombie franchise, The Last Of Us. But can the controversial sequel live up to the quality of the first game? There's mushroom for debate... (sorry)

Liam's taking a well-earned break to recover from his addiction to human blood, so in this episode Jon is joined by unreasonably talented fellow dark fiction writer Jacob Steven Mohr to talk about John Carpenter's iconic, gore-splattered masterpiece The Thing!

A year on from the show's 2019 Halloween extravaganza, where Jon and Liam sat through all eleven movies featuring the hulking, invincible slasher Michael Myers, they thought this time they'd go one better!So, to celebrate Friday 13th, the disturbing duo have ploughed through all TWELVE of the Jason movies, and are ready to share their findings with you... expect laughs, surprises, gore, and another horror icon popping in to steal the show!

The Hall Of Pain has lain (lay? Lied? Layeth?) dormant for months... its denizens have been quietly plotting their escape and subsequent world domination while Jon and Liam have been in hibernation... and things might be about to boil over with the necks entry into the sinister sanctuary!Join us for the unlikely return of Dark Natter where the stakes are higher and Liam can't stop coffin.(Oh yeah: we're talking about Dracula.)

After a foray into Silent Hill in the podcast's early days, Jon and Liam return to the town with a renewed thirst to unearth its secrets... and a less knackered microphone.

In this season finale extravaganza, Jon and Liam return to the world of classic horror literature to examine the works (and controversy) of H.P. Lovecraft.

Bonus upload! Jon's got another book out (he promises it's the last one for a while) so here's an audio extract, featuring the voice talents of Briohny Williams. Give it a listen and then grab yerself a copy at https://amzn.to/2YIz3W6 if twisty, creepy dark crime thrillers are your cup of tea...

Jon and Liam visit the town of Twin Peaks to try to figure out who killed Laura Palmer... oh no, wait, they already did that. We're visiting to see if it deserves a place in the Hall Of Pain instead (and because we like good coffee and cherry pie...)

Liam and Jon journey to Royston Vasey to establish whether this sinister British sitcom is worthy of a place in the Hall Of Pain... but did they survive the cannibals, gun-toting lunatics, evil children and escaped zoo animals?

Jon and Liam venture to a submerged city in the depths of the darkest ocean... but is the famed Bioshock series worthy of a place in the Hall Of Pain, or is it looking a little rusty?

In today's episode Liam and Jon are subjecting the soulless husks they call bodies to the Voigt-Kampff test - find out which one is a replicant as they talk cyberpunk and dissect the Blade Runner movies!

Join Liam and Jon as they examine this deeply disturbing 'children's' movie from the 80s, and find out how a talking chicken and the severed head of a moose helped Dorothy to survive a slightly less well-known visit to the kingdom of Oz...

A bonus upload this week! Jon's new cyberpunk thriller, London 2039: Auxiliary, is released on 1st May 2020, so here's a short extract from the novel read by the sinister storysmith himself... is there an untapped market for dystopian science fiction read in a Wigan accent? YOU DECIDE...

The Hall Of Pain already contains writers, artists, movies, TV shows, video games, internet celebrities and even a Disneyland ride... but this episode might just welcome its first ever musical spectacular! Join Jon and Liam as they analyse the Jeff Wayne retelling of HG Wells' classic novel.

Resident Evil is to Liam as Silent Hill is to Jon, so expect a lot of enthusiasm for today's subject! We scrutinise every aspect of the long-running franchise, including zombies, grotesque eyeball-arms, dodgy voice acting and Mr X's fedora.

Today's Hall Of Pain wannabe is the Fighting Fantasy gamebooks... to help them make their decision, Jon and Liam are playing through Jon's favourite childhood adventure, Master Of Chaos. Expect mutants, mercenaries, mongooses (mongeese?) and some decidedly dodgy dice rolls.

In today's show, Liam and Jon meet a particularly unpleasant individual... but will the brilliant performance of Mark Duplass in this underrated Netflix psychological horror movie gem be enough to secure him a place in the (ahem) world-renowned Hall Of Pain?

Liam and Jon are happy to welcome this delightful, friendly little fellow to the show... wait, what's he doing with those stinging nettles!?Tune in to find out whether David Firth's most famous creation is worthy of a place in the Hall Of Pain... after we've hidden all the rusty spoons.Just don't expect us to explain what the hell is going on...

It's the episode we were born to record! Liam's been a fan of this series since its first entry, while Jon has more recently climbed about the cursed, rot-infested bandwagon... tune in to find out why we both love From Software's masterpiece and its sequels so much!Link to Jon (aka Dave)'s Justgiving page for London Marathon charity run for St John Ambulance: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/david-darbyshire-london-2020

In today's episode, Jon and Liam are drenching themselves in the horrifying works of visionary manga artist and writer, Junji Ito. Ito-san was famously scheduled to be involved in creating the art assets for the cancelled Silent Hills project, but perhaps his most beloved work is the deeply disturbing and utterly unique horror epic Uzumaki... find out if our intrepid hosts enjoyed spiralling into this gruesome creation enough to grant him a place in the (ahem) illustrious Hall Of Pain!

Liam's been in hibernation over Christmas, so for today's episode Jon is joined by pal Haydn Kilyan, who brings a wealth of Mortal Kombat knowledge to this in-depth discussion! Will the long-running franchise's uppercuts, roundhouse kicks, fatalities, babalities, multi-coloured ninjas and kommendable kommitment to putting the letter 'K' at the start of everything be enough to secure its place in the Hall of Pain?

In today's fear-stive special, Jon and Liam tackle the 1974 movie sometimes described as the grandfather of the slasher genre... and its surprising 2019 remake!

Jon and Liam are delighted to welcome Ryan Hamann of the Cane & Rinse podcast stable as the show's first ever special guest! Together we investigate his favourite theme park ride, as well as learning the inspiration for his Halloween alter-ego 'ghost host'... find out whether his enthusiasm, wit, celebrity status, and generous bribes are enough to secure the alarming attraction a place in the Hall Of Pain...Huge thanks as always to Ross Budgen for our deliciously dark theme music, and now some links for you!Experience the ride itself if you're too scared to visit in person... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7VIn1EAS80Sound Of Play is the weekly video game music podcast, hosted by Ryan every alternate week. I've listened to every single episode, because it's ace, but the Halloween specials come particularly highly recommended...2019: https://caneandrinse.com/sound-of-play-222/2018: https://caneandrinse.com/sound-of-play-170/2017: https://caneandrinse.com/sound-of-play-118/2016: https://caneandrinse.com/sop-65/2015: https://caneandrinse.com/sound-of-play-27-the-videogame-music-podcast/

In today's episode Jon and Liam are putting the controversial one-off BBC Halloween special Ghostwatch through its paces... tune in to find out whether it packs enough punch to secure a place in the Hall Of Pain! Highlights include Jon reliving at least two childhood experiences that possibly explain why he's ended up this way.Huge thanks as always to Ross Budgen for our opening theme music, and also to The Real Cheesemakers, whose cataclysmic homage to Mr Pipes closes out the show!

Jon and Liam travel back (and forward, and back again) in time to do battle with the Terminator franchise, which seemingly will not stop... ever... until we are dead.Tune in to find out whether Arnie's blockbusting robot thrillers have what it takes to make it into the Hall Of Pain, or whether this series is getting rusty...

Jon and Liam are bringing you a Halloween special episode about... the Halloween franchise! They've ploughed through all ELEVEN Halloween movies (so you don't have to), and will slash, hack and carve them up to find out whether Michael Myers' long career of carnage is enough to cement his place in the Hall Of Pain... or whether he's just a mouldy old pumpkin.Jon is also shamelessly plugging his new book release, so follow this link if you like collections of short horror stories with shocking twists... https://amzn.to/2PB9yTA