“An evening of suspense and drama, Hitchcock style”

Step back into the 1920s with Brief Encounter Duo’s newest show and experience the magic of cinema as it used to be!  

We present Alfred Hitchcock’s last silent film ‘Blackmail’ accompanied with live music from the era played on a variety of instruments. 

Also known as ‘A Scotland Yard Romance’, the film was released in 1929. Hitchcock displays all his usual trademarks of deceit, suspense and thrills. Keep an eye out for his very short cameo appearance!  

The silent version of Blackmail was released shortly after the Talkie version hit theatres. The silent version of Blackmail ran longer here and proved more popular largely because most theatres in Britain were not yet equipped for sound.  

In September 1929, British International Pictures screened both versions of the film to a large trade audience in Berlin, Germany, who then voted for their preferred version. The silent version was the winner, receiving 685 votes compared to 439 votes for the sound version.  

THE STORY OF BLACKMAIL 

After a fallout between the disappointed Alice White and her handsome boyfriend, Scotland Yard detective, Frank Webber, she meets up with the sleazy artist, Mr Crewe. A happy visit to Crewe’s studio turns sour as Alice realises that she is in big trouble. Crewe’s advances lead her to defend her honour in any way possible. As Alice flees the scene of the crime in a numb haze, Frank investigates the murder. All along, there has been an eyewitness who takes advantage of the situation and turns from a thief to a ruthless blackmailer. How will the police deal with him? How does Alice deal with her guilt?