Let Sleeping Corpses Lie, a 1974 zombie horror filmed on location in Manchester and Derbyshire, was among the films banned under the UK's 'video nasties' crackdown and remains the only UK-set film on the government's list.
The film, also known as The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue, was directed by Spanish filmmaker Jorge Grau and follows a man riding his motorbike through Manchester to the Lake District. It captures the city as it was more than five decades ago, including Portland Street, Bridge Street, Tib Street, the Corn Exchange and Piccadilly Bus Station.
What were the 'video nasties'?
During the 1980s, a wave of low-budget horror films distributed on VHS tapes sparked public concern over their gore and violence. These releases were not monitored by the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) due to a loophole in film classification laws, allowing uncensored videos to circulate in households across the country.
Campaigners, including moral campaigner Mary Whitehouse, argued the films could expose children to violent scenes that might encourage crime. Prosecutions were eventually brought against people trading in allegedly obscene videos, and the Director of Public Prosecutions drew up an initial list of 72 films believed to violate the Obscene Publications Act 1959.
The plot and Manchester locations
The story centres on a new batch of experimental pesticides that bring the dead back to life to feast on human flesh, with police initially blaming the murders on two hippies. A large section of the film was shot at the old Barnes Hospital in Cheadle, a Victorian Gothic-Revival building dating back to 1875.
The film received more than 15 different titles around the world, including Breakfast at the Manchester Morgue in the United States and Zombi 3: Da dove vieni in Italy, where it was unofficially presented as a sequel to George A. Romero's Dawn of the Dead.
Cuts, release and legacy
When released by UK Network in 1987, one minute and 27 seconds was cut before a further 26 seconds was removed by the BBFC. Shots of a policeman's mutilated body, a man pulling a stake from his throat, zombies feasting on flesh and a nurse being disembowelled were deemed unfit for release. The full uncut version reached homes in 2003 via UK Anchor Bay, and a limited edition Blu-ray with a new 4K scan of the original 35mm negatives came out from Synapse Films in 2020.
The film holds an 86% score from reviewers on Rotten Tomatoes and has gained a cult following, with users on Letterboxd praising its style and atmosphere. The only legal way to watch it currently is by buying a physical copy online.
