Cast your minds back to the 1980s when to own a VHS player was considered posh and the thrill of rushing to your local Video Shop which had sprung up overnight and actually renting a film out for a whole week for a couple of quid. I heard whispers around Eccles that a film called G.B.H, (Grievous Bodily Harm) had been filmed in various locations including, Eccles and Manchester and was a no holds barred, violent, gangster movie with blood and guts galore, so after a few week wait we sat and watched the film, open mouthed and watched it over and over again....until it finally got banned for being a so called "video nasty"... The writer of the film and starring role was Cliff Twemlow, a well known character around Eccles and the more I read about him, the more intrigued I became, Cliff was an extraordinary man, a man of many talents, body builder, author,composer, musician, film maker and incredibly all self taught. He went onto make several more films, films of all genres including Target Eve Island, Ibiza Connection, Mason’s War, The Blindside Of God, Tokyo Sunrise, Moon Stalker. The Eye Of Satan, Firestar, G.B.H. 2: ,Lethal Impact, Bad Weekend all shot on low budgets, some never finished and others shrouded in mystery. Cliff died in 1993 without ever fulfilling his dream of Hollywood stardom, yet he remained an enigmatic figure, C.P. Lee and Andy Willis wrote what I would call the definitive book on him, The Lost World Of Cliff Twemlow: The King Of Manchester Exploitation Movies, a must read for any fan of "B movies" and a fascinating insight into the man. As a fan of his work, I was delighted to read that his unbelievable, but totally true story has been brought to life by director Jake West (Video Nasties: Moral Panic, Censorship & Videotape, Razor Blade Smile and Doghouse) and Severin Films, in a documentary film, ‘Mancunian Man: The Legendary Life of Cliff Twemlow’. It premiered recently in America and also at Frightfest in London but the good news is that the film is now returning to it's rightful home with a glamour filled Manchester Premiere on 12 November 2023 at Cultplex, 50 Red Bank, Cheetham Hill,Manchester,M4 4HF.. I for one will be there to see what promises to be a fascinating documentary with exclusive new interviews, insane film clips and rare behind-the-scenes footage, pleased to see Cliff getting the recognition he so fully deserves and check out these rave reviews already in for it. An underrated northern artist whose impact could have been greater given the right breaks. Cliff Twemlow’s story should provide encouragement to the current crop of British indie filmmakers. One can only imagine what wonders Cliff would have created with modern equipment. An essential watch’ Starburst ‘Fantastic… Will easily be in my top 5 documentaries of 2023…’ 60 Minutes With ‘Hugely entertaining documentary about a truly unique character, Through contemporary interviews, archive footage and clips from Cliff’s bonkers back-catalogue, Jake West paints an affectionate portrait of a genuine one-off, whose work you’ll want to dive into once credits roll’ Dexerto Cliff absolutely deserves a place in the pantheon of low-budget, guerrilla style filmmakers and hopefully this documentary will introduce him to an entirely new audience’ Set the Tape Tickets available here: Link
