Promo image for 'The Life and Career of Norman J. Warren'

Once spoken of in hushed tones, in recent years British horror has gained increasing levels of interest and respectability. And yet, until now, the career of British director Norman J. Warren has gone largely unlauded.

Warren made nine feature films spanning from 1967 to 1987, along with short films, music videos and collaborations with many other notable names from the industry. Although primarily known as a horror director, he has worked in sexploitation, comedy and even the spy thriller. Suffering from polio as a child (an illness which would have serious implications on the rest of his life) Warren began his filmmaking career in the rapidly growing British sexploitation industry. After two hugely commercial films in the late 1960s, he decided to become an editor.

He then raised the finance to produce and direct his own horror film, Satan’s Slave whose success led to a string of horror and science fiction films includingTerror, Prey and Inseminoid. Warren has also a legacy of unmade projects, including a British New Wave-style film starring then-unknowns Michael Caine, Terence Stamp and Julie Christie, and a film for AIP which was to star horror icon Vincent Price.

This book is the first full-length study of Warren’s work and legacy, featuring an in-depth study of Warren’s films and his wider body of work, including many unknown projects which have never been discussed publicly before. Featuring new interviews with Warren himself, drawing upon his private diaries, and numerous cast and crew including: Stephanie Beacham, Glory Annen, Ava Caddell, Martin Potter, and David McGillivray. The book will be heavily illustrated with many previously unpublished photos from Warren’s extensive private collection.

The Life and Career of Norman J. Warren will be published by Avalard Publishing. For more information and to express interest, email orders@avalardpublishing.com with the title in the subject line.

About the authors

Both contributors to this book are active researchers in the area of British horror cinema.

Adrian Smith is currently working as an art and media lecturer at West Kent College and has spent many years immersed in cult cinema (which culminated in an MA dissertation on Norman J. Warren’s sex films!). He also writes reviews, articles and interviews for various film-based publications and websites, includingCinema Retro.

Dr. Adam Locks is Programme Co-ordinator of Media Studies at the University of Chichester and teaches on horror cinema and the body. He is a regular speaker at numerous academic conferences both in the UK and America. He recently co-edited a book entitled Critical Readings in Bodybuilding, published by Routledge (forthcoming, June 2011).