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Festival of Fantastic Films Manchester

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Fri 23 - Sun 25 October 2026, Pendulum Hotel. Bringing fans and filmmakers together since 1990!

15/10/2026

TOBY HADOKE DROPS IN

We're always delighted when actor, writer, and comedian, Toby Hadoke can join us for the weekend and this time he poses a triple threat.

Not only is he our guest interviewer for Louise Jameson on Saturday evening, but he's popping in on Sunday to talk about his forthcoming book on the QUATERMASS II TV serial and will be part of our panel discussing the relationship between horror and comedy.

Following the panel we'll be showing a surprise British horror comedy, which will hopefully keep you tittering until the closing ceremony.

Of course, both our surprise film and Quatermass II have connections with 70's and 80's Doctor Who. It's a small world.

Day and weekend tickets still available. Link in bio.

14/10/2026

RETROSPECTIVE RUMBLINGS

As usual, Stuart Scott has mined the archives to dig up twelve cinematic gems for your delectation and delight. We'll keep most of them a secret for now but here's a sneak preview of the delights to be found in the retro room. Can you name the films? No cheating please or you'll bring down the wrath of the goddess Sheetar.

Day and weekend tickets still available. Link in bio.

11/10/2026

JAMES SWANTON RETURNS

We are pleased to announce the welcome return of James Swanton to the festival with a preview of his new show, 'The Raven and Other Gothic Poetry'.

Edgar Allan Poe made his name with 'The Raven' (1845) and it remains the most celebrated of all horror poems, a fiendishly contorting meditation on grief. It is paired here with two forgotten classics. Robert Southey's 'The Old Woman of Berkeley' (1798) gives us the deathbed confession of a witch and her attempts to escape the Devil's clutches. Meanwhile, Thomas Hood's 'The Dream of Eugene Aram' (1831) unfolds the ghastly crimes of the real-life Knaresborough schoolteacher, and had a life-changing impact on Bram Stoker when he saw it acted by Henry Irving.

James' performance will take place on the Saturday afternoon (24th October). Weekend and day tickets still available. Link in comments under the pinned post at the top of the page. Come and join us!

10/10/2026

CZECH SF/FANTASY TRIPLE BILL

On Saturday afternoon immerse yourself in three of the strangest sci-fi and fantasy films of the 1960's and 70's. Thanks to Second Run for their help in securing these titles.

IKARIE XB-1 (1963)

IKARIE XB-1 is set in 2163 and follows a mission deep into space in search of alien life. During their perilous journey the crew confront the effects of a malignant dark star, the destructive legacy of the 20th century and, ultimately, the limits of their own sanity. There's also a cute robot.

TOMORROW I'LL WAKE UP AND SCALD MYSELF WITH TEA (1977)

Sometime in the near future, time travel is a reality, and a group of neo-Nazi’s hijack a rocket to return to 1944. They plan to deliver a hydrogen bomb to Hi**er, ensuring a victorious outcome to WWII, but their meticulous plans are fatally derailed by a stale bread roll.

WHO WANTS TO KILL JESSIE (1966)

Jessie, a comic book heroine, springs into real life after a scientist invents a serum to banish bad dreams. This inadvertent experiment unleashes chaos as Jessie and her comic book compatriots demand - in speech-bubbles - “Freedom for dreams!”.

Festival weekend and day tickets still available, check pinned post for further information.

09/10/2026

With just two weeks to go until we meet under the Pendulum, it's time to unveil some of the treats we have in store for you. Our first announcement is a biggie, in all senses of the word. On the Saturday evening we are proud to present, THE MOVIE O**Y.

THE MOVIE O**Y is a legendary found footage triumph from Joe Dante. In 1968, the future director of GREMLINS took an apartment’s worth of 16mm prints and, with the help of producer Jon Davison (ROBOCOP), meticulously created what is quite possibly the world's first found footage megamix. Comprised of commercials, news reels, feature film clips, TV bloopers, and much more. The original cut was over seven hours long, but over the years Dante has recut it and the version we're showing runs a mere 4 hours 42 minutes.

Feel free to come and go during this audio-visual extravaganza and be thankful that BST ends at 2am on the Sunday morning.

08/10/2026

GUEST NEWS - AXELLE CAROLYN

Sadly, Axelle has had to cancel her visit to this year's festival due to an obligation that has come up. She's sorry that she can no longer come to Manchester and she sends us her best wishes. Alas, these things do happen as working actors have busy lives.

Although it's only two weeks to the festival, we are working on getting a special guest who will, hopefully, treat us to something suitably spooky for Hallowe'en.

07/10/2026

DELTA INTERNATIONAL FILM COMPETITION FINALISTS 2026
FANTASY CATEGORY

Here our four fantastical finalists. They will be shown at 11.15am on Saturday 24th October.

The Apple Never Falls (Baowei Guo, China. 12')
A boy grows up in a rural village under his father’s suffocating control, where brief escapes offer distance but never release him from the present.

Bed Bugs (Ana Sofia Rojas, UK. 12')
A young girl infatuated with fairy tales discovers the Bug King creeping into her bed at night. When her parents dismiss her fears as imagination, she sets out to uncover the truth herself, only to discover the painful truth of his identity.

Exuvia (Arthur Henning, Austria. 8')
In the heavy heat of an old tailor’s workshop, a theatre of flesh and craft unfolds as a young man submits himself to a meticulous ritual.

The Lost Thing (Simon Jenner, UK. 13')
Moored to her neglectful partner, a young woman's life is upended by an encounter with a mystical entity.

06/10/2026

DELTA INTERNATIONAL FILM COMPETITION FINALISTS 2026
HORROR CATEGORY

Our unholy quartet of finalists. They will be shown on Sunday October 25th at midday.

Carne (Laura Plebani, Italy/UK. 15')
Claudia is the mother of a beautiful baby who is now entering the delicate phase of weaning. Worried about her inability to properly nourish her child, Claudia seeks support from a lactation consultant, who reassures her: she already is everything her baby needs...

Il Giorno Della Bestia (Martina Girlanda, Italy. 20')
In 1946, a couple embarks on a treacherous climb up a rugged mountain, seeking a better future beyond the border. But a mysterious guide and a bloodthirsty Beast will put their survival to the ultimate test.

Glory Hole (Andoni Fernandez, Spain, 15')
Borja finds a glory hole in a nightclub bathroom. He hesitates, but ultimately decides to try it. Borja will have to face his destiny in the most unusual place, a destiny that seems already written.

Tele ### (Johnny Massahi, UK. 9')
A middle-aged recluse (Laurence R. Harvey) spirals into sexual mania when he is seduced by his television.

05/10/2026

DELTA INTERNATIONAL FILM COMPETITION FINALISTS 2026

SCIENCE-FICTION CATEGORY

Our four futuristic finalists. They will be shown on Friday 23rd October at 5pm.

Aurora (Angad Aulakh, USA. 16')
Stranded in the farthest reaches of space, the sole survivor of a catastrophic accident faces a divine reckoning he never imagined.

Countenance (Pete Key, UK. 17')
Asha is a young man with the ability to feel and resonate other people's emotions through physical contact. Turned into a recluse by the burden of his abilities, he is constantly plagued with the predicament of whether he should strip people of their negative emotions but consequently bare the burden himself or does he turn a blind eye, and leave people to their suffering?

Matchmaker (Gina Hutchinson, Angus Woodward, UK. 10')
A woman desperately searching for love goes on a date with her AI device.

The Second Contact (Carlos Godoy, Spain. 13')
In 1980, a mysterious UFO sighting was recorded in the Bardenas Reales. Forty years later, Álvaro is convinced that the phenomenon will happen again and drags his best friend Marcos along to document it. The trip takes an unexpected turn when Lucía, Marcos’s ex-girlfriend, crosses their path.

The winners will be announced at 8pm on Sunday 25th October during our closing ceremony.

26/06/2026

GUEST ANNOUNCEMENT - AXELLE CAROLYN

Axelle has been a horror fan for as long as she can remember.

She has written and directed several features, including The Manor (2021) for Blumhouse starring Barbara Hershey, and Wales-set ghost story Soulmate (2014), but is perhaps better known for her work in television with writing and/or directing credits on episodes of The Haunting of Bly Manor (2020) and The Midnight Club (2022) for Mike Flanagan, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (2018), American Horror Story (2021), Something Very Bad Is Going To Happen (2026), and two episodes of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (2026).

She lives in Los Angeles in a house filled with oddities and horror props.

We look forward to welcoming Axelle in October.

Festival tickets are available in Eventbrite. Link in comments below.

23 - 25 October 2026. Pendulum Hotel, Sackville Street, Manchester. M1 3BB

Address

Pendulum Hotel, Sackville Street
Manchester
M13BB

Opening Hours

Monday	9am - 5pm
Tuesday	9am - 5pm
Wednesday	9am - 5pm
Thursday	9am - 5pm
Friday	9am - 5pm

Telephone

0161 929 1423

Website

http://fantastic-films.uk/

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