The basement of the atmospheric Horse Hospital is currently showing a small but interesting exhibition to mark the 50th anniversary of the Wicker Man’s release.
Dominating half the exhibition though is The Wickerman itself – or more correctly, the model made for the very peculiar 2016 music video to accompany Radiohead’s Burn the Witch – blending the Wicker Man and the 1960s children’s show, Trumpton.
The scale model is flanked by drawings for the design of the original as well, with construction notes dotted around.
Mixed amongst a few other not-quite Wicker Man artefacts though, three cases are filled with memorabilia from the making of the movie and some of the post-release cultural influences it left.
A few script pages are here, showing how some of the movie dialogue changed during filming and a review of the scenes that were filmed and cut from the final film. There’s also a briefing note from when the film was first released. The note is the sort of thing handed to journalists heading in to see the film for a review to give them an idea of what to expect.
It’s a modest exhibition, that could have done with a few more things from the original film to fill in some of the empty space in the gallery – as the gallery feels half empty for once, but it’s certainly an exhibition that any Wicker Man fan will enjoy visiting anyway.
The exhibition, Flesh to Touch, Flesh To Burn! Don’t Keep The Wicker Man Waiting! is at the Horse Hospital until 8th July 2023.
It’s open Tues to Sat from noon to 6pm, and entry is by donation, preferably in advance, or you can pay on the day.
The Horse Hospital is a few minutes walk from Russell Square tube station.
Leave a Reply