Graeme Thomson

When family viewing was full of creeping menace

Rob Young’s survey of postwar film and TV finds Britain obsessed with dark, disruptive forces, alien invasion, magic and the supernatural

The eerie enchantment of early television [Getty Images]
  • Comments

  • The Magic Box: Viewing Britain Through the Rectangular Window

    Rob Young

    Faber, pp. 500, £20

Already a subscriber? Log in

This article is for subscribers only

Subscribe today to get 3 months' delivery of the magazine, as well as online and app access, for only £3.

  • Weekly delivery of the magazine
  • Unlimited access to our website and app
  • Enjoy Spectator newsletters and podcasts
  • Explore our online archive, going back to 1828

Read next

Because you read about doctor who

Also by Graeme Thomson

Latest

Comments

Join the debate for just $5 for 3 months

Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for $5.

Already a subscriber? Log in