Strange Things That Scared You (But Aren't Obviously 'Scary')

[Bad Bungle]

I was on a Movie Forum years back when some-one wanted the name of a film he'd seen the Cinema trailer for. A kid was in bed (I think) on the top floor of a building and a passing giant briefly looked in through the window. Not scary as such as it was an animation but certainly unsettling for some-one of a certain age. We decided it could only be BFG (the Big Friendly Giant 1989, not the Disney one) although I never saw the trailer.
Then I found this image, again not scary but somehow unsettling.

 

[brownmane]

Yep, I remember the wolf being sewn up with rocks ! But by that stage I had survived Grimms, Christian Andersen, Wilhelm Busch, Struwwelpeter and god knows what passed for suitable reading material by my German parents. But it wasn't the stories that were scary so much as some of the illustrations. I think it was the 'The Red Shoes' where the girl was made to dance and could only stop until she persuaded an axe-man to cut her feet off. Bottom of last page was a line-drawing of her staggering off on crutches - her spurting feet were still dancing on the top page of the next story.

I loved fairy tales once I started reading. My school library had "The Green (Red, Blue, Pink, etc) Book of Fairy Tales. Most of them were written pretty much as the original versions would have been. Eventually, I moved on to King, Barker, Stoker, Poe, you name them. I'm a great fan of horror and dark fantasy.

 

[catseye]

I'm sure I remember the wolf having the stones sewn into him, which made him so thirsty he went to the well for some water and fell in and drowned.

I remember being angry at the anti-wolf sentiments even then...

 

[Souleater]

I loved fairy tales once I started reading. My school library had "The Green (Red, Blue, Pink, etc) Book of Fairy Tales. Most of them were written pretty much as the original versions would have been. Eventually, I moved on to King, Barker, Stoker, Poe, you name them. I'm a great fan of horror and dark fantasy.

If you are still interested in fairy tales, but with a darker bent, i can highly recommend John Connollys 'The Book of List Things', i have a signed copy with beautiful wood cut printed illustrations, im not sure if more recent copies have these or not.

 

[Ghost In The Machine]

I was on a Movie Forum years back when some-one wanted the name of a film he'd seen the Cinema trailer for. A kid was in bed (I think) on the top floor of a building and a passing giant briefly looked in through the window. Not scary as such as it was an animation but certainly unsettling for some-one of a certain age. We decided it could only be BFG (the Big Friendly Giant 1989, not the Disney one) although I never saw the trailer.
Then I found this image, again not scary but somehow unsettling.

View attachment 35651

I would watch the shit out of that thing fighting Godzilla....

And talking of childhood horrors, found this, the other day:

https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/entertainment/twisted-jimmy-savile-fans-still-22895410

 

[brownmane]

If you are still interested in fairy tales, but with a darker bent, i can highly recommend John Connollys 'The Book of List Things', i have a signed copy with beautiful wood cut printed illustrations, im not sure if more recent copies have these or not.

View attachment 35677

I actually have this on "want to read" in Goodreads

 

[Souleater]

I actually have this on "want to read" in Goodreads

I think you will enjoy it
The red riding hood story is particularly humourous.

 

[Stormkhan]

And talking of childhood horrors, found this, the other day:
https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/entertainment/twisted-jimmy-savile-fans-still-22895410

Now living close to Scarborough, I can't tell of anyone actually visiting his grave/flat publicly. In fact, from what I've heard the locals would act with extreme prejudice should it be publicised.

A source told the publication: "People still drop by and leave the odd bunch of flowers."

Yeah. A "source". Because they know how popular it'd be that this was a 'thing'.
I'm actually surprised.
Firstly, the sheer stupidity of giving him "an unmarked grave" by taking away a shitty headstone but outlining it with fencing. Dig the bastard up and move him to a secret location.
Better still, shove his carcass into a landfill.
Secondly, I'm surprised no one has dug him up, robbed the gold casket and then etc. etc.

 

[catseye]

Now living close to Scarborough, I can't tell of anyone actually visiting his grave/flat publicly. In fact, from what I've heard the locals would act with extreme prejudice should it be publicised.

Yeah. A "source". Because they know how popular it'd be that this was a 'thing'.
I'm actually surprised.
Firstly, the sheer stupidity of giving him "an unmarked grave" by taking away a shitty headstone but outlining it with fencing. Dig the bastard up and move him to a secret location.
Better still, shove his carcass into a landfill.
Secondly, I'm surprised no one has dug him up, robbed the gold casket and then etc. etc.

Hello to another North Yorkshireite!

 

[Ghost In The Machine]

Now living close to Scarborough, I can't tell of anyone actually visiting his grave/flat publicly. In fact, from what I've heard the locals would act with extreme prejudice should it be publicised.

Yeah. A "source". Because they know how popular it'd be that this was a 'thing'.
I'm actually surprised.
Firstly, the sheer stupidity of giving him "an unmarked grave" by taking away a shitty headstone but outlining it with fencing. Dig the bastard up and move him to a secret location.
Better still, shove his carcass into a landfill.
Secondly, I'm surprised no one has dug him up, robbed the gold casket and then etc. etc.

I'd assumed the way it was reported at the time, that they had dug him up in the night and moved him to an unmarked grave (although that would have been, obvious if it was the only fresh grave at the time...) but from what you say, it sounds like they just grubbed up the headstone?

 

[salt-man]

I was on a Movie Forum years back when some-one wanted the name of a film he'd seen the Cinema trailer for. A kid was in bed (I think) on the top floor of a building and a passing giant briefly looked in through the window. Not scary as such as it was an animation but certainly unsettling for some-one of a certain age. We decided it could only be BFG (the Big Friendly Giant 1989, not the Disney one) although I never saw the trailer.
Then I found this image, again not scary but somehow unsettling.

View attachment 35651

Having played my fair share of building games there is not way Kaiju Jesus is not tormenting those poor office workers - poking his finger in the windows and squashing them against the back walls, blocking the doors and slowly removing the lower levels to see how much punishment the building can take before it collapses...

 

[Marshdweller]

Wolves scared me as a kid, but funnily enough it was the ones from the book of The Polar Express that really got to me (no idea why).

Also octopuses. I've been terrified/repulsed by them since I was about 7 and still am.

 

[escargot]

Also octopuses. I've been terrified/repulsed by them since I was about 7 and still am.

You won't like that photo someone posted on'ere last week then, of some bloke wearing nothing but two of them!

 

[Marshdweller]

You won't like that photo someone posted on'ere last week then, of some bloke wearing nothing but two of them!

No, I absolutely wouldn't. It would stay with me for weeks.

I put it down to a combination of "20,000 Leagues Under The Sea", "Octopussy", a book/story of my Dad's about a culture where the ritual of passing to manhood involved swimming out to sea and fighting an octopus, and a trip to Hastings Sea Life Centre. My hazy memory imagines that these happened in quick succession, but I doubt it.

 

[escargot]

My hazy memory imagines that these happened in quick succession, but I doubt it.

That would indeed be a bizarre and unfortunate coincidence.

 

[Marshdweller]

That would indeed be a bizarre and unfortunate coincidence.

I think it probably spans the ages of 7 to 10/11, but it feels like it was over a month or two.

 

[Analogue Boy]

No, I absolutely wouldn't. It would stay with me for weeks.

I put it down to a combination of "20,000 Leagues Under The Sea", "Octopussy", a book/story of my Dad's about a culture where the ritual of passing to manhood involved swimming out to sea and fighting an octopus, and a trip to Hastings Sea Life Centre. My hazy memory imagines that these happened in quick succession, but I doubt it.

I’d give Oldboy a wide berth too if I were you.

 

[escargot]

I’d give Oldboy a wide berth too if I were you.

*googles*

Yup, see what you mean.

 

[Marshdweller]

I've heard vague details about Oldboy...

 

[escargot]

Chewbacca used to scare me. I could never work out how anyone would want to hang out with a half werewolf, half sasquatch even if he was a decent bloke. He looked/looks absolutely terrifying.

It was considered witty for a while to nickname nickname tall male colleagues Chewbacca, remember that?
(Oh yeah, before you were born! )

 

[Souleater]

It was considered witty for a while to nickname nickname tall male colleagues Chewbacca, remember that?
(Oh yeah, before you were born! )

Nowadays it shrek lol

 

[escargot]

I'm sure it couldn't possibly be her singing voice...

Couple of years ago someone heard me singing and called me 'Hilda'.

 

[catseye]

No, I absolutely wouldn't. It would stay with me for weeks.

I put it down to a combination of "20,000 Leagues Under The Sea", "Octopussy", a book/story of my Dad's about a culture where the ritual of passing to manhood involved swimming out to sea and fighting an octopus, and a trip to Hastings Sea Life Centre. My hazy memory imagines that these happened in quick succession, but I doubt it.

I read this rather quickly and thought that you had to go to Hastings Sea Life Centre to fight an octopus in order to pass to manhood. That would be a most odd tourist attraction...

 

[Swifty]

It was considered witty for a while to nickname nickname tall male colleagues Chewbacca, remember that?
(Oh yeah, before you were born! )

I was born in 73, Star Wars was released in the late 70's you cheeky little scamp. .. and no, I don't remember workplace banter during that time frame .. you coffin dodger ..

 

[Marshdweller]

I read this rather quickly and thought that you had to go to Hastings Sea Life Centre to fight an octopus in order to pass to manhood. That would be a most odd tourist attraction...

It wouldn't surprise me if that was a rite of passage in Hastings.

Edit: Upon re-reading my post, it could also be inferred that part of this rite of passage was simply a visit to Hastings Sea Life Centre as a final challenge after overcoming the octopus.

 

[catseye]

"Get thee to Hastings, and come back...a man!"

 

[Marshdweller]

"Get thee to Hastings, and come back...a man!"

"... or an addict, or not at all."

 

[CarlosTheDJ]

It wouldn't surprise me if that was a rite of passage in Hastings.

Edit: Upon re-reading my post, it could also be inferred that part of this rite of passage was simply a visit to Hastings Sea Life Centre as a final challenge after overcoming the octopus.

The weirdest thing about that story is that you imagined a Sealife Centre in Hastings.

 

[escargot]

Now living close to Scarborough, I can't tell of anyone actually visiting his grave/flat publicly. In fact, from what I've heard the locals would act with extreme prejudice should it be publicised.

Yeah. A "source". Because they know how popular it'd be that this was a 'thing'.
I'm actually surprised.
Firstly, the sheer stupidity of giving him "an unmarked grave" by taking away a shitty headstone but outlining it with fencing. Dig the bastard up and move him to a secret location.
Better still, shove his carcass into a landfill.
Secondly, I'm surprised no one has dug him up, robbed the gold casket and then etc. etc.

I'd assumed the way it was reported at the time, that they had dug him up in the night and moved him to an unmarked grave (although that would have been, obvious if it was the only fresh grave at the time...) but from what you say, it sounds like they just grubbed up the headstone?

Savile is still there rotting away in his golden coffin. He had arranged to have concrete poured over it before the grave was filled. This, and the epitaph he chose 'It was good while it lasted' suggest he knew what would come out about him after his death.

He got clean away with it and all anyone could do was remove his gravestone.

 

[Bad Bungle]

Having played my fair share of building games there is not way Kaiju Jesus is not tormenting those poor office workers - poking his finger in the windows and squashing them against the back walls, blocking the doors and slowly removing the lower levels to see how much punishment the building can take before it collapses...

Don't think 'Kaiju Jesus' was the intended impression here - probably something religious at a guess.