Horror festival returns to South West

Hell-Tor Organiser Sue Thorpe and filmmaker Ashley Thorpe

A festival celebrating Devon’s heritage of horrors returns to Exeter this week after a four-year absence.

The Hell-Tor Festival started in 2019 but was cancelled for the following years due to the Covid pandemic.

Organisers Sue and Ashley Thorpe want to bring together actors, filmmakers and fans who love the horror genre.

The event will include screenings, workshops and talks by horror actress Caroline Munro and League of Gentleman star Reece Shearsmith.

Hell-Tor Festival organiser Sue Thorpe

Ms Thorpe said horror appeals to many people: “How many times when you have met up with a group of people, somebody starts telling ghost stories or something that has affected them in their family?"

She added: “I think it is a thing that people keep going back to over and over and over again, and it is something that is reinvented every time so it never becomes dull.”

Filmmaker and event organiser Ashley Thorpe

Mr Thorpe, who is also a film-maker, said he hopes the festival will "bring together not only the people who are in the horror genre and work within it, but also fans... and try to bring them together and create and celebrate that community.”

The Hell-Tor Festival is at the Exeter Phoenix from Friday until Sunday.