The Strange, True Tale of the Hampstead Heath Crucifixion
London, 1968, and a strange event took place… a spectacular occurrence which only a handful of people directly witnessed, but, as the next decade arrived, its legend spread. Tales proliferated of strange happenings in the far reaches of the city and the event became a local myth, with references to it appearing in horror and exploitation films.
What had happened? A man was crucified on Hampstead Heath. Nails were driven into his hands as he hung from a large wooden cross. Who was this man, and why did he allow himself to be crucified in this way? William Fowler reveals a bizarre tale of psychic powers, revolution and London’s queer underground.
Bio:
William Fowler is curator of artists’ moving image at the BFI, where he has undertaken a number of film restoration projects, seasons and DVD releases, including GAZWRX: the films of Jeff Keen, Queer Pagan Punk: Derek Jarman and This Is Now: Film and Video After Punk. He co-conceived and co-programmed with Vic Pratt the popular monthly programme The Flipside and regularly contributes to BFI Blu Rays and DVDs. He also programmes the monthly BFI Southbank Experimenta strand and the Experimenta Mixtape. He is the author, with Vic Pratt, of The Bodies Beneath, the Flipside of British Cinema (Strange Attractor Press 2019).
