Tyburn Films

Often mentioned in the same breath as Hammer, Amicus and Tigon, Tyburn Films were the least successful of Hammer’s rival film makers.

Tyburn was formed by Kevin Francis (son of six time Hammer director Freddie Francis), who was working as a freelance production manager. His ambition, it seemed, was to be the new Hammer. There was only one problem – by 1973, the market for traditional Hammer Horror had rapidly dwindled.

The first horror film to emerge from Francis didn’t have the Tyburn name attached. Tales That Witness Madness (1973) was an imitation of the Amicus portmanteau films, made under the World Film Services banner, and was directed by Freddie Francis, who would also direct the later Tyburn horrors.