Virgin Witch
| Virgin Witch | |
|---|---|
 Promotional film poster |
|
| Directed by | Ray Austin |
| Produced by | Ralph Solomons |
| Written by | Klaus Vogel (novel) |
| Starring | Ann Michelle Vicki Michelle |
| Music by | Ted Dicks |
| Cinematography | Gerald Moss |
| Editing by | Phillip Barnikel |
| Distributed by | Tigon Film Distributors Ltd. |
| Release date(s) | June 8, 1972 (Bismarck, North Dakota) October 19, 1973 (Finland) |
| Running time | 88 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
Virgin Witch is a 1971 British horror exploitation film about a prospective model who ends up joining a coven of witches. The film was directed by Ray Austin, and stars Ann Michelle and Vicki Michelle.
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[edit] Plot
Betty (Vicki Michelle) and her sister Christine (Ann Michelle) are two young models who are lured by a lecherous lesbian to spend a weekend at a country house being photographed by a trendy photographer. In reality, Ann is being set up for a virgin sacrifice and induction into a witch's coven
[edit] Production
The producer “Ralph Solomans” was actually a joint pseudonym for the wrestling commentator Kent Walton and Hazel Adair, creator of Crossroads. While Adair’s name appears on the credits (as co-writer of the song “You Go Your Way”), she and Walton did not admit to producing the film until 1975, when they featured in an episode of the BBC's Man Alive concerning sex films. The revelation that prompted Cinema X magazine (Vol 4. No. 4) to remark that the pair's films “are far removed from Miss Adair’s more cozy world of Crossroads, but not in fact so far from Walton’s world of the wrestling mat!”. Hazel Adair’s other films include Clinic Exclusive (1971), Can You Keep It Up For a Week? (1974), Keep it Up Downstairs (1976), and the more mainstream Game for Vultures (1979).
“Klaus Vogel”, who wrote the script and the film's tie-in novelisation, was in fact Crossroads producer Beryl Vertue.[citation needed]
Virgin Witch was filmed in Surrey during 1970 and previewed in the December editions of Mayfair and Continental Film Review (in which the title was referred to as "The Virgin Witch"). However, the film is copyrighted as a 1971 production, and censorship problems would mean it was not widely seen until 1972. The country house location, Pirbright, Admiral's Walk[1] would be later used in Satan's Slave (1976) and Terror (1978), which were both directed by Norman J. Warren.
[edit] Censorship history
Virgin Witch was rejected by the British Censor in April 1971, but was passed with an X rating by the Greater London Council for a limited release in the capital. The British Censor eventually relented and passed a cut version for general release in January 1972.
The film has been disowned by its sibling stars Ann and Vicki Michelle. Vicki's website [2] makes no reference to the film, while Ann's refers to it as "not an experience Ann cares to remember".[3]
The 1990s video release(s) on the Redemption/Salvation labels are uncut, as are the current UK and US DVD releases.
[edit] References
[edit] External links
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