The BBC's Most Controversial TV Show - Inside A Mind

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Reality and Fiction have blurred together many times on TV and media. This is one of the very first cases that gained mainstream attention before the BBC made attempts to cover it up.
Ghostwatch was a TV Programme that aired on 31st October 1992, appearing to be a live broadcast going horribly wrong. Gaining 20 - 30,000 phone calls all at once while it was live
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Thank you all for watching!

[@jamesflames6987]

"After watching your show my child was too scared to sleep until we removed the replica of a dead body we leave standing over his bed"

[@bluefairy4964]

This made me laugh!

[@darksideofthemoon2348]

😂😂

[@swissstockli3754]

😄

[@marieatherton2073]

😂😂😂😂😂

[@danielle5360]

😂😂😂😂😂 HAHAHAH 👌🏻👌🏻👌🏻🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@knightboulegard5483]

BBC: Has warnings and advertises it as fake, also has credits at the end further making the audience know that it’s fiction. Parents: MAH HUSBUND SOYLED HIZ PANTS

[@OEDODRAGON]

Not many people that that much attention to credits. Also, by then, it's already too late. The pants are already soiled.

[@KyrieFortune]

@@OEDODRAGON yeah but advertisement for the show BEFORE the show itself aired said it was fake. How did all of these people miss that?

[@theacematt2]

War of the Worlds was impressive, too.

[@theacematt2]

@@KyrieFortune look up radio history sometime. War of the worlds specifically

[@KyrieFortune]

@@theacematt2 it's actually a myth that people truly believed the radio reading was a real live of an alien invasion - some of course probably did, but the vast majority knew it was basically an audiobook, and there was no mass panic the day after

[@MsGothmum]

Ghostwatch was really, genuinely scary but it was on quite late in the evening which should have been a clue that it wasn't suitable for children.

[@Sensiav703]

Welcome to parenting in the modern era, where "parental responsibility" is a buzz-word to score political points to then be ignored when it personally inconveniences you.

[@paulawolanski3237]

The "child" was 19, was he not?

[@angelhernandez3077]

@@paulawolanski3237 yea but he was slow, he had the mental age of 13

[@paulawolanski3237]

@@angelhernandez3077 13 is still kind of pushing it though. Many kids start watching scary movies younger than that. Maybe there was something wrong with him already, like he was depressed perhaps, and the show shouldn't be blamed.

[@jessicataylor7174]

It was broadcast after the watershed (9pm). This was back in the day of 4 TV channels (BBC1, BBC2, ITV and Channel 4). There was no 'on demand' and it was well known that ANYTHING broadcast after 9pm could be unsuitable for children. There was also no pausing or rewinding or google to check stuff...if anyone missed the warnings, unless they had a Radio Times handy there was no way to check. I thought (and still think) they did a marvelous job! My mother was freaking out about the devil haha. As for those 'traumatised' by it - PTSD, and also the young lad who commit suicide etc - these are awful and tragic cases of mental health illness. It was not caused by the programme...just as the suicide/s after Avatar were not caused by Avatar. Apparently the Avatar world was so beautiful and perfect the real world was no longer enough. These are incidents of pre-existing mental health issues.

[@raining_trees]

Moral of the story: Parents need to hold themselves responsible for what their children watch. I mean, really! Your kid got PTSD because YOU let them watch a horror show that stated it wasn't for kids? Sounds to me like you made a bad parenting decision. Lazy parents never seem to stop traumatizing their children by exposing them to adult content.

[@joywebster2678]

Includes supervising what they watch on internet!

[@taurus6392]

@@joywebster2678 It is legitimately DISGUSTING that an entire generation of parents plonked their kids in front of an IPad and expected them to watch responsible content. You can see the effects in kids being way over-sexualized for their age. The amount of high-schoolers who reported seriously considering suicide has been raised 25% since 2009.

[@javierwolfle3593]

I don't know if this happens elsewhere, but in my country you'll find find parents who LOVE exposing their kids to these contents. A friend made his three year old watch the "Chucky" movies, the poor girl I could tell was traumatised by that, and kept repeating at every chance she had of talking to me "we watched the bad dolly, but we're not cowards, we know it doesn't exist". There was something her voice that told off she was really scared.

[@andreamallon3062]

The snowflake society was, unlike the ghosts, alive and well in the 90s 😂

[@OEDODRAGON]

@@joywebster2678 What internet?! It was 1992! Most people started getting PCs roughly around 1999. Yeah, they existed before that, but not many people had one.

[@noahalien4665]

That teen who killed himself probably didnt do it because of a scary ghost show. He was probably already struggling with stuff and his parents twisted it to shame BBC

[@aestheticgarbage6671]

its likely the show may have triggered him though. obviously the show didn't give him any illnesses, it's just a tragic case all round.

[@noahalien4665]

@@aestheticgarbage6671 oh absolutely! TV shows can lead to symptoms worsening, but equating his entire suicide to a spooky show is insulting

[@Ungantor]

I always feel extra sorry for kids in this situation. Having parents who so utterly misunderstand your problems and drag it all out into the public eye, really just makes everything worse. Lived in a lot of places in my life, and I swear England in particular has a thing for arrogant yet clueless parenting styles. 'I go to work, so my problems are automatically a billion times worse than yours!', e.t.c. These kinds of people are so utterly dedicated to their own little headcannon that they'll fight tooth and nail to avoid admitting the slightest personal fault.

[@Luna-lm4el]

Shit like that disgust me

[@marciaosullivan3200]

@@Ungantor adult problems are worse

[@elton1981]

I remember seeing Ghostwatch when I was 10. I had no idea about all the controversy about it. I was staying at my mum's friends house. My Mum and Dad had gone out for the night. I watched it with my mums friend. She was saying "This can't be real, it's too ridiculous", I believed it was real - Until I saw the credits roll and she said "See I told you it wasn't real, there's a writer, it's all made-up." So I went to bed.

[@septicaemia5699]

Ima child, and i think this show would be interesting. Its the type of thing im into, though my parents wouldn't allow me to.

[@amberbante8605]

When I was thirteen I watched some TV movie of aliens abducting a family, and here I just found it as fake as F though they made it look realistic like one of the family members filming the alien invasion of their home.

[@alegria1813]

"So I went to bed" IDKY it made me laugh

[@Krista2882]

"so I went to bed" cracked me up

[@seveneyes77]

@Azzie wtf is ghost face, sounds cool and scary as shit at the same time.

[@fakecore9811]

This has the same energy as parents taking their kids to see Joker or other R rated films and then blaming the employees at the theatre for not warning them about the violence

[@MB-ev9ix]

is that cALIBORN

[@fakecore9811]

@@MB-ev9ix I think his name is spelled "Bastard"

[@OwnYourDance]

In my movietheater you had to be sixteen or older to see Joker, they checked IDs.

[@fakecore9811]

@@OwnYourDance I guess that's pretty good? Like obviously people who go to see it have to know what they're in for, so if they go see it and don't like it because of the violent content, that's on them, but at least if you have to show proof of age, the employees don't get shit on

[@sophiaarias9341]

LoVaKo My 13 year old sister literally went without an adult with her other 13 year old friends to see the movie so that’s not exactly true.

[@thatoneannoyingtornadosire8755]

if you, as a parent, thought this show was real and depicting real horrifying events... why would you- let alone let your kid continue watching the show until it gave them PTSD? if anything, this show provides more insight into how little parents actually care about the environment they place their children in and how large that problem is.

[@SamuelBlack84]

Why would anyone believe it was real at all?

[@acidmack1041]

@@SamuelBlack84 Because it was 1992 and there had been nothing like it on TV before and was hosted by trusted TV presenters all in on the hoax/drama (which was all explained in this video)

[@SamuelBlack84]

@@acidmack1041 I never believed it was real if memory serves

[@georgeofakind1710]

The kid killing himself reminds me of something that happened around the time the game Doki Doki Literature Club came out, where a young man also committed suicide, and mother found the game on his laptop. Despite the fact the kid had been struggling with mental health issues, his mother saw the game's dark content and immediately blamed that, and threatened to sue the developers.

[@samsungtelevision695]

GeorgeOfAKind could you say that when she saw his computer she “Doki Doki Panic”-ed?

[@nikolajevtic2969]

@@samsungtelevision695 that joke was awful please delete this cringe

[@fixedkarm8348]

Raggy123 Wow! I didn't know someone could be that dense! What an amazing scientific discovery, a bad joke can create a blackhole in an environment where it's all by itself!

[@farkler4785]

Also reminds me of the girls who stabbed their friend like 30 times as a sacrifice to slenderman

[@agoodwasteoftime]

I heard that it wasn't even doki doki that made him do it. I think it was something like mystic messenger or something i don't know i can't remember exactly I may be wrong but yeah.

[@21Cayque12]

"Viewer discretion is advised, this may not be suitable for every audience" Well, gotta let my disparaged son watch this, sure he will take it lightly

[@League_Femboy]

Especially because of our pipes! He'll be fine!

[@markuskuhn9006]

Most people don't actually listen to television warnings

[@21Cayque12]

@@markuskuhn9006 Then they go on to blame the television when shit like that happens

[@zaingamingtv2242]

​@@21Cayque124 yrs late but in all fairness the warning was played at the very start of the show and most people tuned in after it started so they never saw the warning. Doesn't help that BBC comes off as a generally factual newschannel that doesn't bother with fiction. So a load of people genuinely thought they witnessed demonic possession. Then again people also believed BBC when they claimed spaghetti trees were a thing so idk what that says about the intelligence of the public.

[@javidhussainzade4481]

This is like buying your young child a game like GTA when you know they are not old enough and being mad at the creators of the game when you see how inappropriate it is for your child.

[@TrickyRover]

The funny thing is this actually happened.

[@charlieblank3393]

Sadly that is what happens.

[@gaminggladiator06]

Truely, there are parents out there that should not be allowed to have children, like those people who bought their kids vapes because it cotten candy flavored.

[@gaminggladiator06]

Toyota Supra 1. That’s not really the point i was making, and 2. They stopped making them on account of the problem i said before. It’s actually illegal for any store or shop that sells vapes to have them, so you won’t be finding them anywhere, at least not legally.

[@zeppelin6125]

666 like lol

[@Artcat932]

I like how they literally had a disclaimer that was basically “This show is fiction, and is horror unsuitable for children, do not watch if you are uncomfortable.” and yet people still were offended when it was horror, and thought it was real.

[@happyvocal]

Okay but they said the problem is that a lot of people were tuning in to the television _after_ this warning, and the BBC didn't repeat the warning throughout the broadcast/during breaks. Keep in mind that on-demand tv was just getting into mainstream, most people couldn't rewind or pre-record. Not only that, people used to trust TV like you'd trust your local small-town newspaper, and they ALWAYS had this distinction between fiction and non-fiction that was clear to viewers. Without internet... that was simply the power televised media had over audiences back then. We might think now "well that was f*cking dumb of them" but like... hindsight is 20/20, it was simply a different time. And thinking about the way people responded to COVID in 2020 from the media (buying out toilet paper like gold), people are still dumb as f*ck, just in a different way now.

[@ps5andstuffhere]

Ghostwatch was a put on TV and people did not realise it was a tv show. Not many saw the warning

[@auggiemain]

BBC: This show is scary Show: *is scary* Parents: I've been bamboozled

[@natayapenzellna]

Sketchy Artist 😂

[@Danster547]

😂😂

[@Uniquaization]

lol

[@revimfadli4666]

Pre-show warnings: we did it boys, inappropriate viewership is no more Viewers: *tuning in after the warning*

[@raccoonsarecool1870]

Sketchy Artist you aren’t wrong

[@itsbunnz5295]

“My son was so scared he couldn’t sleep!” D-do these people know how horror films work?

[@qaz3057]

If he couldn't sleep it just means it was a good horror film

[@garfieldsenpai]

@@qaz3057 Exactly! How dumb do you have to be to blame the people warning you the show they made is scary for having a scary show?

[@hobboskins8591]

Ami Draws 9pm is the UK watershed, the show was broadcast at 9:25. They should have put their kids to bed or had a nice calm game of scrabble. Instead, they let their kids watch a show intended for adults. Clever.

[@darrylmihalko2838]

Makes sence

[@givemeyourtoast5381]

Answer: N O

[@marist1079]

“mY sOn WaS sCaReD” Well maybe the program wasn’t MADE FOR CHILDREN, JANET

[@junespookers9361]

Yeah, JANET lil idiot, your child is not suicidal because of the spoopy show your child is suicidal because you abuse him-

[@dqpfjggisjgIdksorp]

yeah Karen! lol

[@junespookers9361]

@@dqpfjggisjgIdksorp hEr NaMe Is JaNeT nAncY!

[@poopilongleg5790]

KAREN

[@marxmarxmarxmarxmarx]

Shirley Jackson

[@sunoolys7201]

The show discussed suicide, the son was probably going through depression and suicidal thoughts. His parents just accused the TV show because they can’t accept the fact that their son committed suicide because of other problems, that they didn’t care enough ( I’m not saying that all parents who lose their child to suicide are at fault, but if you’re a parent who blames your child’s suicide on a tv show it kinda hints at your incapability of acting out your role as a parental figure ) they should have looked for other clues and reasons such as bullying.

[@ambientgamer4838]

Absolutely. In the media parents seem to do this a lot.

[@gandalf_thegrey]

"I’m not saying that all parents who lose their child to suicide are at fault, but if you’re a parent who blames your child’s suicide on a tv show it kinda hints at your incapability of acting out your role as a parental figure" Truer words have never been spoken my friend.

[@Hoganply]

Well, if you have a kid who has learning difficulties, I can imagine your emotional baseline isn't exactly as close to the happy end of the scale as others'.

[@PutinsMommyNeverHuggedHim]

@@Hoganply what does the emotional baseline of a parent have to do with blaming a random piece of spooky, silly footage as causative of svicide??

[@alternato3115]

@@PutinsMommyNeverHuggedHim i think they meant the emotional baseline of the son at least i would hope so anyways

[@rlinders9972]

BBC: This show is not for children. Karen: *It’s free real estate.*

[@c.hunter9069]

HAHAHAHAHAGAHAHA

[@yardstick1851]

Well, her kids beat GTA 5. What else was she supposed to show her kids?

[@rjrulz327]

@@yardstick1851 Haha this one got me good!

[@SGKatUwU]

Same thing happened to ddlc 😔😔😔

[@GawrGurasBathTubPizza]

*copy paste unoriginal jokes, profit*

[@tiredcerulean]

Oh no, a Halloween horror show advertised and warned as being scary was actually scary! How could the BBC do like this to me!

[@aleczanny1797]

_shakes head_

[@alize0623]

“This is scary guys. If you don’t like scary things, don’t watch.” “Mama ain’t raise no pussy” *show is actually scary* [insert surprise Pikachu]

[@cyann6445]

"We were prepared for winter but we didn't expect the snow"

[@suolasfilms]

Or just admit that you weren't there to see it. People were expecting a horror show, they were excellently duped (myself included) into believing it was a live broadcast by the way it was produced, live studio (Mike Smith & Michael Parkinson) with guests and Outside Broadcast segments with Criag Charles, Sarah Greene & a "haunted family" As productions go, the BBC outdid themselves and by proxy the majority of Hollywood by presenting a "horror production" and still managing to scare the shit out of half the country. But no, you go on making moronic statements about your absence.

[@battledroidofficercode.3525]

It’s the UK plus Ireland and scotch-land.

[@diegoandrade467]

“My son was scared” That’s like complaining about the spicy in a Chili pepper.

[@pierzethevzil]

xD

[@FemboyCommie]

@@pierzethevzil DX

[@bakatoaster6000-yt]

Basically

[@mrmichael7284]

That's actually true

[@atreyanixx2024]

Yup, if I woke up with nightmares at 3am from watching scary things as a very small child, my mom would say: "Clever me, I was the fool that let you watch it!" Because parents always have the power to switch off or switch channels. TV's are not babysitters.

[@hopkinsmiler]

I watched this live. I accidently tuned in after it had started and I attempted to call the number. It really worked to scare a 12 year old me. But even the 12 year old me figured out it was fiction when the credits rolled. This is one of my best memories of watching television.

[@Betty_Virago]

I watched ghostwatch as a kid, scared the bejeebuz out of me. My dad just shrugged and said “why did you watch it then?” Hahaha

[@bittercaramel7652]

Your dad such a mood lol

[@jtoland2333]

Dads....

[@dienstaghd5815]

Ah yes D A D S

[@mykerotch3053]

My sister in my case used to tell me that.

[@whatsername9195]

That is insanely like something my father would've said!

[@blankblank1949]

Asking compensation because of her husband soiled himself. B R U H

[@Jixsurez]

Certified bruh moment

[@astrangeone]

Lol. That was the one that got me to giggle. Seriously!

[@evangeline77x]

I'm hoping that was just a troll..

[@21Cayque12]

An Avengers level bruh moment

[@janetmissjacksonifyourenas2904]

👁👄👁

[@highoninfinity]

the people complaining that a horror special scared their children are the same people who'd bring their kids to see deadpool and get mad at marvel for the inappropriate jokes

[@skipptk9086]

Just like those parents who are upset that the joker movie thats rated r isnt family friendly

[@noniakamai2458]

We tried to warn a family that came in with small kids (ages 7-10) that it was going to be inappropriate. They left about 20 minutes in, probably complaining too! I took my daughters, but my youngest is 13 so...

[@flines]

Exactly

[@Angel-xe2tl]

When it first came out, i knew someone who was a few years younger and he was 13/14 and he wasnt allowed to watch it. funny thing is, he would of liked it since he has a dark sense of humour.

[@itz_me_2085]

Cassandra Darby I mean my 13 year old brother loved the movie so I think that is a decently appropriate age

[@rosewaters2533]

That was so clever. Real time interaction with the audience and having them give input on what they saw from the footage and putting the pieces together. It was a show ahead of its time.

[@amityislandchum]

It was clever indeed, but I think you misunderstood the "audience interaction." This whole thing -- including the phone calls -- was filmed ahead of time. People could call the phone number, believing that they might have the chance to speak to the hosts on-air, but in reality there was no possibility of that happening.

[@ShadowMudkip123]

@@amityislandchum I think they meant the faking of the audience interaction in a show like this was ahead of its time in making it more convincing

[@jackkseptictank]

Movie: I’m Rated R Parents: *Lets their kids watch it* Kids: *Gets PTSD* Parents: THIS MOVIE IS SCARY IT HORRIFIED MY CHILDREN HOW SHAMEFUL!

[@thull21]

Reminds me of when my wife and I went to watch the Deadpool movie. This lady brought something like five kids all south of twelve. As soon as wade started to get lucky she stood up with her kids in tow marched out of the theater.

[@tuna2724]

@blah blah blah you're trick questioning yourself pal

[@thull21]

@blah blah blah You know I have heard that that was the case in a lot of places but where i live it might be just more relaxed. I mean South central texas and all

[@dhuill8900]

iT nEeD's a bEtTeR rAtInG

[@TimothyMetcalfe]

I used to work at a local theater when I was a kid. The law at the time was that you had to sit through a movie that was rated R with your children for that exact reason. Not that it stops people, but at least the parent couldn't play absolutely dumb.

[@theblueclue3843]

they literally told people it was fake before AND after. like literally what else do they want. movies don’t pause every 15 minutes to tell you it’s all fiction

[@ScrewdriverGaming]

well, what if someone joined late, and turned it off early?

[@michaelg8841]

@@ScrewdriverGaming alright then. I’ll boycott this channel till every 5 seconds it says this is fiction

[@man-a-head]

@@michaelg8841 lol 👌🏾

[@SD-oi9gr]

Same thing that happened during the war of the worlds radio broadcast. They literally said it was fake before it started but people love to panic lmao.

[@BaddaBigBoom]

@@ScrewdriverGaming If someone turned it on late then off early, I think it's unlikely that they were particularly gripped by it.

[@likira111]

"So the automated message telling people it was fake no longer played" Oh that's just... delicious.

[@princessjuleit]

likira111 delightfully devilish seymor

[@smallbrainallthetime6965]

@@princessjuleit hah! That is relatable

[@likira111]

@Daniel Hertzler I was about to type out "deliciously... something" but i couldn't find the right words, i think i got lazy or my ass handed to me in ARK while listening to this.

[@YouTubecanfuckagoat]

likira111 Yeah, you could taste the irony, it was so strong.

[@asterisque9252]

This is art! They were way ahead of their times. It is beautiful. It was literally announced it was fake. Why did parents have to do that? I love this. I just hope the actors, directors and writers did well after this...

[@justme-hh4vp]

lol, completely forgot Craig Charles was in that!

[@danielclark-hughes692]

They didn't need a disclaimer about it being fake, the Mother's acting was proof enough.

[@gra-emed3617]

Daniel Clark-hughes 🤣

[@rolandshark2741]

I watched it recently and noticed that too...at 8 years old i was too busy crapping my pants to notice that when it aired though 🤣🤣

[@kine9osis956]

damnnnnn dude

[@aldenfriend200]

Right?

[@jennah3862]

What I've noticed from older entertainment is that people acted differently in real life, and that reflected on how they acted in movies and stuff. That's part of the reason why they seem like horrible actors to us

[@scottdixon2505]

The promos before the show: IT'S FAKE. IT'S FAKE. REMEMBER IT'S FAKE! Parents: how could you not tell us it's fake!? 😭

[@Sundjer_Bob_Kockalone]

It’s not every parent. Is a Karen parent

[@tiffprendergast]

Yup like China virus 🦠

[@rama7731]

Lol do yall even watch pv and trailers for every movie you're going to watch

[@Scie]

Yeah it’s not like some people are not obsessed with movies and look at every preview. It’s not like some people flip through channels and miss a warning that was only in the beginning

[@LuckyBadger]

"Craig Charles" should have been the tipoff. He's a pretty popular actor and comedian. I guess people who live under rocks are fairly easy to trick.

[@NoName-lh9xo]

“It contains material that some may find disturbing...” British parent: sUrE LiTtLe jOhNnY yOu CaN wAtCh iT

[@spacemarinechaplain9367]

Yeah, and then they get pissed off when the kid has nightmares or something.

[@justheretocommentforyoutob4387]

Pretty sure they didn't see that part but little johhny said "I'm not a baby! I can still watch it!" then little johhny soiled himself and got ptsd.

[@zizi6538]

Ikr so dumb its their fault for them letting them watch it

[@isaacmcmanus3666]

TBF, if you tuned in midway through you wouldn't know. Best thing would be to have a brief message at the end of the broadcast saying it was fictional.

[@bigboy7482]

Can I get a dab dab.

[@ScarletImp]

So a kid basically watches a horror TV show, kills himself, and the parents blame the producers of the show for this? Sounds like a classic tale ot poor parenting and blame-shifting.

[@adriennedobrzynski5844]

People didn't learn from War of yhe World's did they? Dumb people then, dumber now.

[@Bopperann]

"Some viewers may find this disturbing." Parents: Sounds like the perfect program fer my youngins!

[@Bopperann]

@Snoi Med "THINK OF THE CHILDREN" we did, that's why it's rated R. That's why the ratings tell you what content is unsuitable. Same crazy parents that complain about rated R games.

[@khalilbarkallah9998]

@@arianamarie8442 lmao how old are you, 10?

[@evilyoufromthefuture6659]

Children are gullible to horror, why do you think "Scary stories to tell in the dark" Was a success? Students increased Stephen King book sales ten fold when IT was released.

[@normahmansoor2888]

"i didn't think it would be _that_ scarring" Uh you did karen, your intuition was wrong. Dont make things more complicated since your own cantaloupe of a brain might have troubles keeping up

[@My_Old_YT_Account]

Snoi Med deadpool’s fine for older kids/early teenagers and up, dunno about Joker because I haven’t seen it yet tho

[@classicality4747]

Me initially going into this: omg... a tv show was so horrifying that children were suicidal? Who could have possibly done this? Me after: so they advertised it as scary and YALL STILL LET YOUR KIDS WA-

[@jr.l1270]

I wish they still did specials like this for Halloween. It’d actually make the holiday interesting and different than the normal things going on. And would be fun for people that don’t want to go out

[@BrennaDraws]

BBC actually did something similar last year with Number 9 :D A live broadcast that went horribly wrong and got hijacked by a 'real' spirit. It gave me vibes of Ghost Watch. I've never seen Ghost watch fully, just clips but my mum always talks fondly of it.

[@jr.l1270]

KangahRoh Creations yeah I remember now. I did see clips of that and I loved it. It was so cool

[@mj-cd9fr]

@@BrennaDraws Inside a mind made a video about that too

[@amazingpurplegirl0903]

Inside Number 9 last year was genius! I even replied to Reece's tweet

[@dadeee7776]

JR. Laren don’t make fun of me

[@GabeNode21]

Having Michael Parkinson present this was a stroke of pure genius and it's so good they got him on board with it. Hard to think of a TV figure at the time who was considered as trustworthy, wholesome and upstanding.

[@galedribble9535]

Did it damage his reputation afterwards?

[@GabeNode21]

@galedribble9535 as far as I know, not even a little!

[@Rai_S82]

​@galedribble9535 no, he still had a prime time tv talk show for years after this 😊

[@alfredlivingstone5666]

@@galedribble9535 Not even trout-pout Meg Ryan was able to destroy Parky's reputation.

[@sicks6six]

he sounds really dumb now, he didn't back then though, strange how he hasn't aged well,

[@mmushypushy]

This is absolutely genius horror storytelling for the time. Wow. Sucks someone took their life after it though.

[@twister1154]

Eh, we don't know that for sure, when people grieve in these sort of situations they'll start to look anywhere for reasons why. For example, there was a game called "Doki Doki Literature Club" that a parents said caused the death of his son, but when asked to decribe it, nothing of what he said actually appeared with the game. His son just happened to die around the time it was popular. He just wanted a reason to blame for the death of his son.

[@mmushypushy]

Twister that is true!

[@lakamokolaka]

@@twister1154 The game that the kid was actually playing wasnt even doki doki but a mobile app

[@mjcaboose3479]

Often it’s problems that the child experiences from family and environment not the fault of the media like when a child killed him self after seeing the death of his favorite character in JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure where it’s often believed his attachment to the character was from his family’s emotional isolation

[@EmillyOrr]

It does. But keep in mind Ghost Watch was hardly the first to inspire that suppsed reaction. Orson Welles' immortal radio drama, War of the Worlds, sent a lot of people screaming to the psych wards and with attempted--or successful--tries at suicide. One of my great aunts, in fact, slit her wrists listening to the broadcast, and the only suicide note they found was a hasty scribble of "They're here" on the counter. In short, media has power, but if a person is already troubled, whatever they hear or watch is just the snapping point--the pain was building for years. Lots of people have killed others, or themselves, over Stephen King novels, too--he covers that in a chapter of Danse Macabre.

[@jimmyl27]

“Parents were better in my day” Parenting in their day:

[@toboh8840]

I literally screamed

[@jenneacoleman-cubero2365]

Jimmy L The Soccer Mom Syndrome: A tale as old as time.

[@OdaKa]

Lol

[@toboh8840]

@@DAMWOKE shut up Kyle I know what I did

[@darkmanstudios3828]

@@jenneacoleman-cubero2365 True as it can be

[@KingOfGaymes]

BBC: This is real and it’s spooky Parents: Well that warning can’t stop me because I can’t read

[@jaffajack101]

Nameless Pharaoh Wasn’t even real though, that’s the funny part. 😂😂😂

[@fabulousbaticorn9991]

i think you meant *isn't

[@ZEDACTED]

That’s why this video is sponsored by audible

[@theworldisavampire3346]

Lol

[@deadchannelorsmthlmao2671]

Hey Yami EDIT: cringe but idc

[@peterlarkin5965]

I remember watching this as an 11 year old boy. I had recorded it, being already a little fascinated by the paranormal. I watched it the next day while alone in my Dad's house while he was at work and by the end of the program I was on the phone to him screaming hysterically because I could hear noises coming from upstairs! I can totally see why some children ended with PTSD, thankfully I didn't. In many ways, this program gave me my strength; I have had a few ghostly experiences in my life and never allowed the fear to take over.

[@Sam-kj9ui]

Rare case of a horror movie that actually does what its supposed to do. Scare the audience.

[@9ower]

Lol

[@movedtonewyoutube2393]

A bit too well

[@rayzarkk7540]

@Oliver Litchfield wut?

[@syrongaluyo3684]

@@rayzarkk7540 u weren't??

[@masterchief4150]

@Oliver Litchfield chief is scared

[@casper2166]

*bbc:* this show? not for kids. it's fake but scary, literally don't show it to your kids? *parents:* suddenly i'm jared, 19

[@MYSTERIOUSORBS]

and i never fuckin learnt how to read

[@Frydaddy_69]

Hi my name is Jarad I'm 19 and I never learned how to fucking read. *cool guitar music starts playing*

[@PossumOnAVacuum]

An oldie but a goodie

[@MYSTERIOUSORBS]

ive found my people

[@uyyyy7059]

YOUR GRAMMAR HURTS MY MIND

[@Keegan8r]

It's sad that a unique artistic expression could be ruined like this by stupid people who don't listen to warnings

[@thisaccountsucks3225]

Petrolhead Gaming kinda the parents fault, like why would you let a child with mental disabilities watch this?

[@jeungrioppa5937]

Darkeffn * are children with mental disabilities not allowed to watch horror films?

[@PapaRoadie]

@@jeungrioppa5937 well If there's possiblity of the film being detrimental then NO.

[@diamandis07]

Agreed-- Compensation bc your husband pissed himself? what a load of horse shit

[@CJ-df7gf]

@Old Channel they said at some point in the video that 20 to 30 000 people have been calling at once which distorted the calling-system-thing and made that the message saying that the show is fictional didn't show up anymore.

[@bungleification]

I remember this airing back in 1992 and everyone even the teachers at school talking about it the next day. Hats off to the BBC for having the balls back then to air this. Things are so sanitised now. This would never happen again. Even though it terrified me at the time, I'm glad I lived at a time when television was this creative and daring.

[@ryansmith5274]

It kinda irritates me that people are so protective of children. I understand you don’t want to expose children to shit like this, but then don’t show them. The fact that people got so pissed about the fact that a child was included in this just angers me. They refuse to see anything but the children. There is such a beauty in a show like this, but it will remain unseen because people are so sheltering of their children.

[@rinelenny4946]

ok andrew

[@pugassassin5591]

I feel like kids love horror so much more nowadays.

[@monkeyscientist9913]

Parents are dumb that way, or at least a lot of them are. They would rather shelter their kids from interesting shows rather than have them about nightmares for a day or two. As a kid, I curated what I watched on my own. If a show scared me, I turned it off and switched to something else. That's the thing, a smart kid knows when something is too much for them or not. If a kid is forcing themselves to watch an hour long special DESIGNED to scare them, then it's clearly the fault of both the parents and child and not the people who made it.

[@starandfox601]

the most dangerous thing for a kid isn't a scary show. it's parents that never let them learn their limits and try to shelter them all their life. cause when reality finally hits them they have no idea what to do.

[@ReidTheRoomTV]

@@rinelenny4946 his name is ryan idiot

[@chemical2romance]

This is kind of similar to the panic that occurred with the War of the Worlds radio broadcast in New York in 1938. Even though the audience was told it was fake, some missed the memo and there was a huge panic.

[@user-jn1wm3tb8v]

I was just thinking about that! My grandad told me about it dozens of times. My great gran hid in the larder for days afterward.

[@shmeller5900]

0 0 No www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2013/10/30/241797346/75-years-ago-war-of-the-worlds-started-a-panic-or-did-it

[@fluffyplayery3017]

Yeah this channel has a video on it

[@remingtongagnard4442]

Thought the same thing! When the audience buys it for reality you know you made something truly compelling!

[@saoirse3187]

Isn’t it about aliens taking over?

[@liavidal3610]

I'm sorry, but this entire special sounds like genius...

[@manz848]

I know this was an incredible idea it’s sad that parents let young kids watched it then blamed the show

[@iminvisible873]

I was 10 and loved it but couldn’t sleep for days

[@melodyrose2912]

honestly it was such a bold move. it's incredible

[@elainestrachan3965]

It was amazing! Scary at 12 years old but I loved it xx

[@weaselweaselweaselweasel3360]

People are just pussys now

[@andrewfallon3998]

I watched this LIVE at the time. About 12. Scared the living SHIT out of me. Even after my patents pointed out "written by" in the credits. I now photograph abandoned buildings and I wouldn't have had the courage without this programme. ❤️✌️❤️

[@everythingpony]

Are you ok? What's wrong?

[@TheOnlyLadyBella]

I love old buildings ❤

[@Charlie-pu9bx]

That's awesome! Is there anywhere I can see your photos? I love abandoned buildings

[@aurorawolfe6060]

The people who got offended, deliberately watched the show to get scared, and then got mad because they got scared... if y'all don't want your kids getting scared then don't let them watch a scary tv show/movie.

[@LacedWithOreos]

Seriously. Or watch it first, monitor, tell the kids to leave the room, turn the t.v off, it's that simple.

[@Catmeat106]

Boomers are just stupid

[@aespabetter]

“my child hasn’t been able to sleep because of that show that wasn’t supposed to be shown to kids anyways, that’s your fault 😤”

[@mwildthing5525]

It’s out pussified generation .. thanks liberals lol

[@midnachuu_8431]

It aired 9.25pm thats late enough for swearing so kids shouldn’t be watching tv at that time

[@Hutch2Much]

this is kinda stupid. people need to take better care of their kids. TVs are not babysitters. don’t leave them unattended

[@augustchristianlangager6862]

Liloh Loves Subtitles ah the German cannibal messed up stuff

[@t_ylr]

For real this would've scared the shit out of me as a kid

[@augustchristianlangager6862]

Liloh Loves Subtitles it’s actually said that the victim was still alive when he cut him up. You could see his eyes moving. Curious what channel is it?

[@augustchristianlangager6862]

Liloh Loves Subtitles thanks I heard about on a podcast (mørkeland, it’s danish) it’s two amateur true crime lovers

[@augustchristianlangager6862]

Liloh Loves Subtitles you don’t enjoy watching someone doing their nails while they talk about getting penises cut off? Huh, guess it’s just me. No, but thanks I will check her out.

[@emmapetzke5704]

It seems like the BBC did a lot of prep work with telling people/the media that “hey there’s this fake scary thing that’s going to happen, it’s a fake movie that looks real. Here’s a magazine article about how it’s fake before it airs, here’s promos saying it’s fake, here’s a disclaimer beforehand saying it’s fake and made to look real, etc. etc. People are mad because a scary movie/experience is scary

[@Pitts_not_Pitty]

I believe Orson Welles could have told the BBC what could possibly go wrong

[@sumthingwikked4257]

Hah!

[@thegreatchickenoverlord5976]

> this show has material that may be disturbing to some viewers "How could you scare my kid!" Sounds like theres a lot of crappy parenting involved here

[@lakamokolaka]

It easier to blame the tv for not being a babysitter than it is to take responsabiliy for the kid drinking the draino from under the sink

[@madlysoldier5143]

The Great Chicken Overlord There is some possible excuse that is acceptable such as they started watching mid program

[@williamwebb580]

vorapol ueranant but the promos advertised it as a drama

[@lunabruce1804]

Ikr

[@madlysoldier5143]

William Webb Just at least excusable still Why would any normal brain parents let their children who they know aren’t good with horror watch The HORROR SHOW at first

[@rovenemesis]

‘Skull-shaped head’ Ah yes this floor is made out of floor

[@thebelligerentmisnomer2201]

I'm sure your head is not shaped like a skull.

[@user-cp1ce5mu2v]

@@thebelligerentmisnomer2201 bruh

[@attackbrains2095]

MeeAwsum hurb

[@1exycon]

would a skull shaped head be a head inside of a skull insted of the skull inside of the head

[@dwaynethewokjohnson6646]

@@user-cp1ce5mu2v Hes talking about the skin. Imagine your skull, but instead of bone it was flesh

[@Lexie_Tyler05]

All this controversy because people were too stupid to consider the fact that it might ACTUALLY be quite scary, some people just don't have the force with them

[@jordy9067]

Mmmmmm Lack the force,they do

[@phaetonxi344]

Obi Wan Kenobi yoooo

[@wonderpup114]

General Kenobi!

[@myronfrmADO]

Thank You Obi Wan, very cool!

[@benjaminwade7489]

By the way don't trust Anakin, he's a bit of dickhead.

[@xeviphract5894]

I watched this live as a kid and the girl banging on the pipes has stuck with me to this day. I thought they did a terrific job. I was genuinely scared and genuinely fascinated and, after the finale, a genuine sceptic too.

[@Romanticoutlaw]

show: don't show this to ya kids parents, while showing it to their kids: bUt tHiNk oF tHe cHiLdReN!!!!

[@KingOfGaymes]

Himalayan Duck Them: This isn’t real Parents: BUT THE G H O S TS

[@jomartinkelly1]

I'll never forget the day after, in school, and the ones that caught "Written By" at the end reassuring those who hadn't.

[@liyre4189]

Jo Martin-Kelly It’s so cool that you lived through that time! I’m a teenager but I just love stories about weird things that happened in the past

[@declanboll314]

R

[@declanboll314]

retro shropshire drifts t

[@declanboll314]

Ped

[@aimeeredacted9439]

@@declanboll314 ...are you okay?

[@-chippedstars-2889]

This show was clearly not meant for children, and it surprises me that so many parents let their young kids watch it.

[@anatunde]

This platform is clearly not for furries. BEGONE

[@-chippedstars-2889]

@@anatunde considering I haven't associated with furries in about a year, I think I'll stay

[@worldwidedrill7711]

Ok well let you off then

[@thunderclashprime5454]

I asked my Dad about this and he says he does remember watching it live. Though he believes in ghosts he said that he thought it was fake and wasn't scared. However he did say that it was very well made. I myself think the same thing. It's quite like the Blair Witch project in my opinion. I do wish the BBC would either re-run it or put it on DVD.

[@michellllllllllle]

It is on dvd, it came out 3 or so years ago. I have it

[@theunbearablejuan]

101 Films released a Blu-Ray of it. It is full of extras and the limited edition includes the script and a booklet with essays on it. So good!

[@zarindrake]

It's crazy how despite there being literal specific rating systems, parents still find a way to blame their bad parenting on writers.

[@your_dad_on_vacation]

I can't believe that it happens so much, then the writer's careers are ruined

[@leighatkins22]

Interesting pizza shaped icon you have there...

[@leighatkins22]

@Tim M Yes!!! Hell yes!!! And when my son is a loser at 40 living in my basement, can't get a job or a gf, i can blame you for doing such a bad job of raising him...

[@bostonblackie9503]

There was a rating system in 1992...in the UK? Did you watch this video? This was aimed at children since the presenters in the show were presenters in real life in kids shows, meant to encourage kids. Mike Smith who was in the show had met with the BBC a week before broadcast and said they should do something to warn people. The BBC said it is listed in Radio Guide as drama that is enough. So just like Orson Welles and the night that terrorised America the British public trusted who trusted the BBC caused chaos and 3 years later was found guilty of doing so.

[@KaydeyRai]

I’m pretty sure we don’t have ‘TV rating systems’ in the uk, not everywhere is exactly like the US

[@jtotheroc]

I absolutely love the fact that the audience jammed the 081 call in line to the point where it would refuse to play the pre recorded message telling everyone that they were watching a work of fiction. So basically, in the end, the party responsible for everything wasn't the BBC, or the producer, but rather the audience. They trolled themselves.

[@reksub10]

the phone number was fake ,it never worked in the 1st place ,the callers where actors too.the "jamming" of the switchboard was part of the story.

[@reksub10]

@@sethboeh6278 ofc course it stated that ,all live t.v.shows have to by law in the U.K. put up call charges,they didnt have any ,plus no number in the U.K. starts 081,all numbers start 01---- except emergency numbers which is 999 and mobiles which are 07.so yes i did watch i watched when it was aired all those years to...the number was fake,plus it would have been illegal in the U.K. to to charge for a the public for a number to a fake t.v. show.

[@smashthegas2877]

@@reksub10 081 was, from 1990 until 1995, the area code for outer London - the number was genuine. 071 was the code for inner London for the same timeframe. It wasn't until April 1995 that all national numbers had the "1" added to the dialling code, meaning inner London became 0171 and outer London 0181. The OP was telling the truth when they stated the number was real and that 20-30,000 real people called it, causing the pre-recorded message to fail. Additionally, mobile numbers back then did not begin with the 07 prefix - they had wide-ranging codes similar to geographical codes, and could range from 0370 to 0979 as their prefix. It wasn't until 1998/1999 that mobile numbers were given exclusive prefixes of 077, 078 and 079, thus becoming ten digits long instead of nine. Finally, regarding the legality of charging people to call a "fake" TV show - it wasn't fake in the sense that people were invited to call and share stories of their experiences of supernatural phenomena and potentially be featured in the studio segments. Even though the show was obviously staged, a court would throw out any claim of fraud as the BBC did not claim to be offering a specific service or benefit or competition element that would induce people to call the number, and any attempt to claim that the BBC were trying to profit would also fail - the number wasn't premium rate, nor was it a profit-share number.

[@gamegladi8or669]

@@reksub10 you’re really special

[@KeplersDream]

081 811 8181 was the standard BBC call-in number from 1990 to 1995, replacing the iconic 01 811 8055. It was used in several Saturday morning shows including Going Live! and Live And Kicking. While the GW callers were inded actors, and the switchboard jamming scripted, the real life switchboard actually was prone to jamming and did so on this occasion.

[@AlisonBryen]

This was groundbreaking television and should be celebrated. I was 8 when this aired and I wasn't allowed to watch it live, (I've watched it online since), given that it discussed suicide and molestation that was probably a good call by my mom and dad. Responsibility lies solely with the parents, I'm afraid. There's a watershed for a reason.

[@cresbalundo8845]

Your parents are one of the best people to ever exist

[@chickencottage9449]

Where did you watch it

[@valerieguzman6645]

Do you have a link I'm interested in watching?

[@adriantucker5532]

@@cresbalundo8845 uhm.i think most parents would react like this guys did lol. I would hope Yours would too? Here in America, our parents are generally of this type, they just sometimes tend to go overboard like my mom and categorize things like _Saw_ _"The Real World"_ and _Harry Potter_ together. She basically banned anything that she hadn't watched first herself. And i do the same with mine (I allow Harry Potter tho lol)

[@areyoulostbabygorl231]

@@adriantucker5532 It’s like that now, but as we can see in the video, the way people reacted to things were slightly different in 1992

[@telogrupo7531]

The people who created this should be proud of themselves. They managed to do what a suspense/horror genre should be doing and that's to scare people.

[@noblespades8781]

BBC: Let's pretend Ghost Watch didn't exist. Internet: Let me introduce myself.

[@stuartday1876]

The BBC tried to pretend lots of things didn't exist. That didn't work out well for them.

[@firesonic23]

Also BBC: Inside No.9 Live

[@patriciaroysdon9540]

And...the ghost of Ghost Watch rises again! Bwaa haaa haaa!

[@andrewspeers4018]

Oooh shut up ya not funny

[@doubleslashkarma]

*Allow me to introduce myself, I'm a man, of wealth and taste-*

[@mthsdcs]

Inside a Mind: "something like this has never really been attempted before" Orson Welles' War of the Worlds radio broadcast: am I a joke to you?

[@kate2late91]

I thought of this too. But I'm guessing that playing it on the UK radio looses something in the retelling. Still, it's way more traumatising to literally think aliens are invading!

[@gerardomunoz6725]

Actually there's a good chance that the panic caused by "War of the Worlds" radio broadcast was most likely a hoax by the newspaper industry.

[@benjamindminor7552]

That was a fake story as well nobody panicked because of the Orson Welles broadcast in fact many people didn’t know anything about it.

[@ai_sight]

@@gerardomunoz6725 Do you think maybe the reaction to this show was also a possible hoax too? In the Orson Welles case, it was the newspaper industry against the radio broadcasting medium. Could this have been the newspaper industry trying to fight against TV broadcasting using similarly sensational headlines to push a certain narrative? Aside from the article on the suicide, the other articles seemed not newsworthy enough to print as a headline. Some of those reactions sounded banal and made up for jokes.

[@brianmarini1888]

@@ai_sight IIRC, the difference is in the scale and delivery... War of the Worlds was about aliens invading earth, so if you were listening and suddenly thought it might be real, you could just switch to a different station and see if they were talking about it there too. Since no other stations were acting as if aliens were invading, it was no longer reasonable to assume it was real. Everyone would be talking about aliens. This was a small scale "investigation gone wrong" kind of thing. You couldn't just switch to a different news channel and expect them to be talking about it. The scope was narrow, and the scale was small. There was no way to independently verify that it was real or not.

[@TheRealSuperRabbid]

And this is when parents started to think TVs were killers (Edited: It was suppost to be a joke but now am getting history class.)

[@cynicya3604]

close to the entire plot of Persona 4

[@MrOuija-rr8kq]

In the 50s , the US passed legislation to ban certain comic books because they may “Corrupt the youth” The “THINK OF THE CHILDREN” mindset has been around a long time

[@TimothyMetcalfe]

Not just TV either. To bring it back a bit, a little over 50 years prior, a radio broadcast of The War of the Worlds led to an even more ridiculous outcome.

[@RykerJones28]

In the 80s the UK had the moral panic and the whole video nasties fiasco led by Mary Whitehouse and the Conservative party. It was reminiscent of book burnings.

[@tonypeppermint5329]

I know on Twitter, there was a Twitter Moment that was about police officers in Chicago, I believe it was Chicago, on how to identify what was considered satanic.

[@robertwaguespack9414]

This sounds like America's War of the Worlds.

[@fayetian8698]

BBC: This content may be disturbing to certain viewers. Parents: Hi I'm Jared, 19.

[@cringebinge1579]

And I never learned how to FUCKIN read

[@lavandertown1257]

Ahh some good vine references

[@yarsivad000.5]

Camilla S. The good news is maybe it helped the poor parents deal with their horrible grief and guilt to be able to blame the show. So what if it wasn't really the shows fault. They never saw their son alive again and probably discovered his bloody end if he used a knife, not a lot of guns over there, sad and traumatic. Nothing can change it. Dead son and that's that.

[@JosephKulik2016]

This clearly shows how naive and gullible the average person is about mass media. "If it's on TV then it MUST Be true." That being the case, who can say what other past news events have been no more real than Ghost Watch, with the exception that the public has never been told that they were merely fabricated ? How much of the daily news is no more real than Ghost Watch ? ... [e-mail]

[@dylanshandley1246]

Joe Kulik uhhh, no. It shows, in 1993, how gullible the general public was, these days it’s not the same.

[@SebastianLundh1988]

"Levitating in the air" *Shows picture of a kid, clearly jumping*

[@mightymobtv478]

Sebastian Lundh CLEARLY lmao

[@greyeyed123]

Decades ago, Geraldo had some kind of guru on his show. They built it up with promos for quite some time, saying that this guy could levitate. Apparently Geraldo believed it also because he really built up the suspense. When they guy finally appeared on the show, he sat with his legs crossed underneath him...and then started hopping with his knees. Every time he hopped, he looked at Geraldo and said, "See that? See that?", as if something incredible was happening. (To be clear, he was just hopping in place with his knees.) The look on Geraldo's face was priceless. I've never been able to find it on youtube. I think it was in the mid or late '80s.

[@marygarrison9882]

@@greyeyed123 Is this the guy you are talking about? For some reason they pause it just as he "levitates" but it's the only thing I could find that was similiar kzbin.info/www/bejne/iGTXknSfm7mrn80

[@greyeyed123]

@Mary Garrison That's it. If my memory is correct, he started hopping on his knees, and every time he hopped, he said, "See that? See that?" There was nothing to see. (Thanks for the link. For years I considered that maybe it was so long ago that I misremembered.)

[@301eskimo]

and they made a fucking movie about it that was box office success, Conjuring 2

[@spicybiscuit5530]

"Why did you have to bring the story of the children into it?" Have you seen a paranormal horror film? There's nearly always kids involved.

[@evaahh9584]

Spicy Biscuit “why did you have to bring the scary things into a horror movie?” Honestly I have no sympathy for parents that don’t filter what their children watch.

[@koenmetekohy1296]

Colobrinus With a side of cube Those parents probably let their child play Mortal Kombat

[@khalilbarkallah9998]

@@evaahh9584 nah I like those parents

[@arteifey]

Well, it was Britain in the 80s so maybe they hadn’t seen a paranormal film like this before .

[@arteifey]

S L I agree that it was pointless for the parents to complain, but gotta remember that back then what was on BBC was your main entertainment for the night. You couldn’t afford to miss a show like that and I’m sure they didn’t know what they were getting themselves into. The outrage the show received kinda adds to its mystic, the fact that it ruffled so many feathers just shows how good of a horror it was for it’s time 😍

[@brittcee9229]

"As there were no known examples at the time of what they were trying to do." 1938s War of the Worlds: Am I joke to you?

[@aurora6849]

I'm 18 and I'm still hesitant whenever something that "some viewers may find disturbing" is airing and these kids and parents are like "yeah sure no prob"

[@toothfairy10133]

im 17 and ill still hesitate at watching a 15, age warnings exist for a reason and you cant blame a piece of content for the crime of not being kid-friendly.

[@ZelenskyPlane]

@@toothfairy10133 as a fellow 13 year old, people need to toughen up their kids.

[@falcoperegrinus3712]

Disappointing how this happens.. me and my sister stopped my mom from letting my little brother watch squid game.... She thought it wasnt violent cause it was famous although she knows the plot

[@MoBahar687]

18 is still a kid. Im 29 and thought i knew everything at my early days. Hey im still considered young!

[@slushpuppie19]

When I was 14 The Exorcist was shown on TV for the first time ever and this guy from Channel 4 gave like a solemn introduction talking about how the film was allegedly based on real events and many of the cast members later had horrible accidents and died due to a possible 'curse'. Well I had to sleep with the light on for a good week after that lol. You guys probably think it looks old and dated now but it scared the hell out me thinking that people could really get possessed!

[@emaleigh7812]

If your kid was getting scared why would you let them sit through the entire movie

[@brunobucciarati4652]

Because of common sense, witch they clearly didnt have

[@Barec76]

MrSk1llz 🧙🏻‍♀️witch

[@DeKosta]

People have always had the urge to complain and put blame on anything else but themselves. They are weak minded.

[@nixtheclause9984]

because when you start something terrifying, it sometimes feels scarier to not finish it than stay there with the scary tale

[@jessicataylor7174]

@@brunobucciarati4652 Wow, I was innocently reading your comment and you sneaked a WITCH into it! I'm so scared I probably have PTSD now 😁😉😊

[@carsonist1]

BBC: This show is not for children. Karen: I see BBC has made a decision, and I have chosen to ignore that decision.

[@quinngobrr]

"They told them not to watch, and I made them watch, so it's BBC's fault for it!"

[@karenlawton2549]

Lol exactly

[@iAmNothingness]

the decision is made by men so ignoring is a common reaction of this species

[@attackbrains2095]

Karen Lamb oof i hope that isn’t your real name because then, well, yeah.

[@CodGodess]

lazer bloody Karen’s 🤪🤪🤪🤪

[@lenasowinska3720]

my nat 5 media teacher showed us this and wouldn’t tell us whether it was real. practically all of us thought it was real up until 3/4 of the programme. after that, he explained what it was. absolutely insane regarding the outcome of the situation !

[@firstnamelastname9534]

How do they know that the show caused those kids PTSD? Better look into those parents.

[@LambentLight00]

Right? This seems more like a case of child neglect... Not just a scary movie. LOL

[@darkashtar]

Hell when I was a little kid I saw the movie Alien and my dad told me it was based off true story, I believed him. I'm talking 4 or 5 years old. And I mean that didn't bother me.

[@theginjaninja132]

Yeah some people are definitely more fragile than others but abuse or bullying seem more likely to be the cause than this show.

[@amandak8150]

this has nothing to do with this video but i like your profile pic lol

[@user-sf9gs2pg1b]

Gerald Yap ummmm You’re an alien, aren’t you?

[@deeluu731]

Literally, the parents are responsible for their children, not the BBC!!

[@lockandloadlikehell]

And guns don't press their own triggers Exactly

[@idontknowwhattonamemyselfonyt]

@@lockandloadlikehell no no you got a point

[@bloogibloo9901]

@@lockandloadlikehell your username

[@YoMonaaa]

I agree the big black cock has nothing to do with this

[@kiyah8093]

Its Monaa lmfao

[@yvni.b3241]

“Some viewers may find disturbing” Parents: Ah yes, a perfect show to show my children

[@thatshitcrayz4987]

More like “Ah, a perfect show to let my already mentally unstable children watch.” but yeah.

[@halizaabdulrahman1042]

Ging ging would use probably. If you know what im saying right?😎

[@fortressonahill5860]

Kids in the Middle East: Live through multiple wars Kids in Britain: Get PTSD from a TV show

[@Randomuser231]

middle east doesn't have that many countries in war

[@Shavenhamster]

Kids in middle east get ptsd from parents ideas of discipline and scary stories about jin. I was 9 when I saw this scared me for a long time.

[@reglook1]

Kids have a hard time distinguishing between real and pretend.

[@Marc-rx5xg]

BBC: This is not real. Absolute fiction. We made the whole thing up. Nothing in here actually happened. This is so extremely unreal, it's almost hilarious how fictional this is. Kids: OMG this is real

[@isaacs8783]

kids are dumb though

[@sweed6487]

Isaac Shoffren not really, they are just pandered to to the point where they act like how others think they act

[@k1tz3n50]

Isaac Shoffren *only* *the* *young* *ones*

[@xxkittyxx2599]

Literally says in the beginning that the message saying it isnt real didn't play

[@k1tz3n50]

xXA Kitty taking a shitty on ur cityXx r/woooosh

[@petetube99]

So the guy who soiled himself thought: "Fine, I'll let my wife write to the state broadcaster so the whole country knows i shit my pants watching a TV programme".

[@jamesflames6987]

A troll I think.

[@Charles-A]

He probably wasn't the one who had to wash them

[@ladyshep]

😅😅😅😅😅

[@filipportman5981]

Maybe it was the woman herself who made a ridiculous lie to avoid the embarrassment

[@Kitty-mb4hy]

@@Charles-A washing machine did! 🤣

[@Simonthegoner]

Imagine being like, 30 years old and literally shitting your pants because you think a Halloween ghost show is real lol

[@widiwoqm1544]

🤭🤭🤣🤣

[@Frydaddy_69]

Imagine lmao

[@beepboop8048]

Not only that but having your wife call in to buy you new pants because of it

[@zarabatanaproductions9240]

Back then things were really different and i think we shouldnt joke about people with ptsd

[@Adam-hp2xg]

Imagine believing that that actually happened.

[@Keyser666]

It was exciting (and scary). I do recall trying to call the number to report a "Pipes" sighting. We were kids and knew no better. "Round and round the garden, like a teddy bear?..."

[@sumthingwikked4257]

... What big eyes you have... ... What big ears... You have... ... Fe... Fi... Fo... Fum...

[@Lisabobisa]

Then: 4:17 reality and fiction were always seperated. They needed 20 disclaimers, that the show was fiction. Every horror movie today: "based on true events"

[@CleoPhoenixRT]

Lol Like Paranormal Activity : There indeed was a couple living in a house before, still happens....there ya go.

[@breadonyourbed3761]

*”barely based on true events”

[@G50016]

I hate that "based on true blah blah" oh? You filmed in the same location, so its the same story? Only the names, dates and events are different? Cool. Oh the location also actually. But they wore the same jacket. Yay!

[@RelativelyBest]

Basically, they did their jobs _too well._

[@Ladywizard]

Well reminds me of the Orson Wells War of the Worlds broadcast... people commited suicide from that too

[@hiddenqu5238]

* dj khaled suffering from success*

[@barackobama1381]

Ladywizard yeah I’m pretty sure that this channel did a documentary about that as well, if I’m not mistaken

[@MiguelLopez-zx9kk]

@@hiddenqu5238 r/beatmetoit

[@nolangray3772]

Fervidor I’m 666th like

[@anarchicpancake2840]

everybody gangsta till the automatic phone answering system broke

[@theultimatereductionist7592]

LOL!

[@MondySpartan]

“Understandable, have a nice day.”

[@SPFLDAngler]

Why do kids latch in to these memes? Like this one has no effort at all. It isn't funny. It doesn't even really convey a "joke". Someone should be able to read a joke and get it and find it funny. This you have to have context and if you didn't get to the point in the video or you just didn't pay attention then the joke fails and people don't get the point. But still dumbass little kids see a comment in the layout of a meme and they are just mentally conditioned to laugh regardless of what it says and click like because all the sellout KZbinrs still into their heads to smash like buttons when they see a meme...

[@seungkwanbot3203]

@@SPFLDAngler rhubartu the CEO of comedy

[@fusrosandvich3738]

Well, rhubartu, as an adult I can say what makes it funny is usually the visual imagry accompanying it. For example, the famous cursed image of the road sign that's legs make it seem like it's sprinting towards the camera somehow. "Everybody gangsta till the signs start walkin'" accompinied by a group of people sitting in a car before a sign suddenly uproots itself, sprints at them, and the video cuts. The joke is the mental image it provides. My guess is you take things very literally, not thinking much past exactlt what you see, not pondering at all on what you see. Then again, you say "dumbass little kids" in your comment, so matbe you're just a boomer who's angry people are having fun.

[@wobblybobengland]

The acting, oh the acting, if it wasn't enough to make you believe it was completely real.

[@kawaiisakura7245]

This is a sign of fail parenting. You allowed your child to watch it, so faced the consequences. It is easier to blame others rather than yourself.

[@DriscolDevil]

The parents are to blame for his suicide because they let him watch a scary movie? Did you never see scary movies as a kid? How can this fanbase really be this ignorant?

[@bleedthebeat]

@@DriscolDevil yes but im not slow and dont have mental problems. no one in the right minds would kill themselves from a movie but a mentaly ill person would. if the parents new he was off then they shouldnt let him see it

[@kingchicken8232]

@@DriscolDevil The kid clearly wasn't in a stable mental condition. Letting him watch a scary movie while knowing he wasn't fit to do so is bad parenting and entirely the parents fault. This isn't the fanbase being ignorant, it's basic common sense that seems to elude you.

[@DriscolDevil]

@@kingchicken8232 Basic common sense? So how can you tell when an adult is "stable" enough to handle a show about ghosts? Also, do you honestly think the show is what lead him to suicide?

[@kingchicken8232]

@@DriscolDevil Nobody just commits suicide because they watched something scary. He clearly had other problems with life. His parents should have been able to tell he was mentally ill, which means they should have the _common sense_ to not just let him consume any media he wants. About if the show led to his suicide, who really knows. Maybe he watched and it was the last straw for his sanity. Maybe his mother lied and it had nothing to do with the show.

[@annadengler2177]

Oh my goodness. ...... they have a skull shaped head

[@staceykersting705]

OMG! So do I!

[@dryxeyes]

Hahahahahaha

[@Jaggerto]

Hahaha

[@strebicux6174]

No way

[@Matthewgb204]

Oh no! No no no! I just looked in the mirror and so do I 😱😱😱

[@goldenace8847]

You know the show is great when there’s a aftermath like this. The show was way ahead of its time.

[@eggycarrot]

Yea the way they set it was ,was really believable

[@___LC___]

It’s very War of the Worlds...but with tons of warnings that it was fiction.

[@markbaker5599]

Nah, i watched it at the time. It was like pantomime. Dont judge an era by a couple of simpletons

[@markbaker5599]

@@___LC___ war of the worlds might not have had a warning, but it did have a soundtrack. I imagine when aliens do invade, the orchestra wont fill in the gaps between the newsreader's monologues

[@Jexx5000]

"Do it like episode six" sounds like an excellent catchphrase

[@alansmithee419]

The thing is, blaming a suicide on this show is far less of an insult to the BBC than it is to the teen. His own parents too.

[@SirEriol]

The parents were the ones who blamed the BBC. Read the newspaper clip shown in this video. Martin staid put for a while after the show, they told him that it was fake, he said "ok" and they believed that for days. He didn't sleep that night, he didn't eat his lunch the next day (and the mom makes a point to notice that this was unusual for Martin, _yet she did nothing)._ They mention how he stopped friends on the street to ask about the show, that when he went to his work in a factory his coworkers were talking about it and it made him so upset that he left early. That the pipes in his house were faulty and made the same noise as in the show, and therefore, that he noticed it. And even after _all that_ the mom thought that it was okay to joke "where are all the buiscuits? There must be ghost in this house!" and was surprised that her teenage son who was obviously nervous about it got scared of it. Martin then gave a cross necklace dear to him to a friend "as a keepsake" and they did not piece anything until they found him dead next morning. I'm sure that they must have tried to console him, but given that they took notice of all the things Martin had been doing they still believed that they did enough, and after their son _hanged himself in their garden_ they blamed the tv show because it was far more easy than to recognize that they didn't pay enough attention to the boy, and that the BBC should have done something about it.

[@alansmithee419]

@@SirEriol I did mean that it was the parents who blamed the BBC, not that it was an insult to the parents. That sentence is to be read in a disappointed or disbelieving tone. I didn't understand how the parents could do this to their own deceased son. I get that people have different and sometimes odd ways of coping, but still. Sorry for being ambiguous.

[@3122tan]

@@alansmithee419 you weren't really ambiguous; it's just that people on the internet see what they want to see and will always find something to pick at. I agree with you. Goes to show how little they understood their own child. It's hard to believe he didn't show signs of bad depression before this. I guess though it is understandable to look for any explanation you can in order to avoid the sad truth that they didn't/couldn't/wouldn't help their son. However by going as far as they did they crossed a line and went into personal blaming of innocent strangers. Many of which I imagine felt absolutely dreadful no matter how obvious it is that the suicide wasn't their fault. It is amazing how times have changed and how little of a fuss this show would make today compared to then. I guess the attitude at the time enabled them in a way and allowed them to come forward and press their ludicrous theory onto the show. I just know if i worked on the show I would be horrified on being told I was a player in influencing someone's suicide. I also imagine that back then the tide was with the parents because I know people in general held those attitudes until fairly recently. The people involved with the show might have had people abuse them over their involvement because of these parents.

[@3122tan]

@@SirEriol to be fair if those were the only signs, most people would have no idea it was so serious. He was old enough to have a job so hardly a small child. Yeah, good parents would definitely do more and console their child and try to explain it. But hindsight is 20/20 as we know. However, I don't believe that story a bit. As in, it's only a tiny part of the true story. Healthy teenagers don't kill themselves because they think ghosts are real and in their own house. If I had to throw a theory out there it would be that this was a very disturbed young man who had been thinking about taking his own life for some time. Had received no direct help for his depression and problems and was spending a lot of time weighing up the meaning of life, the possibility of an after life. The show convinced him that there IS an afterlife and it shocked but comforted him. He could go to better place when he died, with no pressures or pain. It tipped him over the edge from contemplation to putting it into action. That would be my guess from afar. A tragedy all round. But most definitely not the fault of the show. My god, they even put a warning on the show that it was fake at the beginning! And had cast lists at the end. And in the end, it's an art form. Art always pushes the boundaries. It needs to. Now this sort of thing is run of the mill, due to trail blazers like these guys who came up with it and made it happen.

[@paulawolanski3237]

It wasn't the show's fault. Even if he hadn't seen it, some other minor thing would have gotten to him in only a matter of time.

[@sinner9192]

I think Jamie could be talking about a literal garbage can and still somehow make it interesting

[@seraslain962]

"By investigating the small marks of a Trash Can, you can see that everything even if it's dull and boring can have a detailed and interesting story behind it."

[@toceeno874]

"Look at this garbage can. It has a dent on it's side, it must have been hit by a vehicle."

[@waltitz316]

People: watches paranormal shows knowing there would be scary stuff Tv show: shows scary stuff People: (shocked pikachu face)

[@The-zc4yt]

666 likes hmmm?

[@kevinrussell2718]

I watched it when it was aired, and I loved the fact that it used proper well-known presenters rather than actors pretending to be presenters. I quickly understood that it was a fictional drama rather than a live documentary due to the acting of the supporting cast: they didn't actually speak like real people would speak - you can always tell, especially in TV commercials!

[@scout-0853]

BBC: we’ve redacted every mention of ghost watch from the general public Online Forums: allow us to introduce ourselves

[@luckydal2059]

yuwo *_* Drop those forums though 😶

[@nefos8531]

@@luckydal2059 dude yes please do

[@monmin1068]

This guy literally pulled off the first livestream troll

[@christinemccrea8110]

After Orson Welles maybe!

[@tab8k]

Christine McCrea Yes, War of the Worlds was the first one!

[@tab8k]

Miguel Vieira It was LIVE radio, how does it not count as livestream?

[@vertyisprobablydead]

>first Ok zoomer.

[@hamburger2726]

Poggers

[@doyoungsrighthand6529]

I hate it when parents blame irrelevant things on things their child enjoyed. Like the other day I read this kid chewed on a toy not made for him, swallowing the magnets inside. The toy was made for 8+ and they kid was almost four. It’s sad he had to get surgery to save his life but it wasn’t the toys fault. It had regulations and the parents ignored it

[@neoxpro12]

The poltergiest Did monumental amount of trolling

[@sloth9093]

Lol this happens to me

[@geordi5054]

You're one to talk about parenting with that profile picture.

[@hidinginyourcloset]

Exactly lmao. Parents need more accountability.

[@wafflesthearttoad6916]

“My child ate 16 1x1 Lego pieces that I left out on the counter, I’m suing LEGO!”

[@leenedes]

What i love about this, is that they said at the beggining that it was a drama, and people had the control to turn it off, yet they continue watching and decided to complain about it.