In the final episode of Say Yes To VHS, Brian and Sam fast forward to the end of the series to discuss the ‘90s heyday of video sales, the eventual decline of physical media and the current wave of nostalgia for VHS.

In the 1990s, video sales became more profitable than video rentals, with films such as The Lion King, Jurassic Park and Titanic selling millions of copies. But only a few years later DVD supplanted VHS as the most popular home video format. The arrival of streaming platforms such as Netflix marked the death-knell for the remaining video shops in Northern Ireland, with the final XtraVision branch shutting its doors in 2016.

We finish the series by taking a nostalgic look at the impact and importance of VHS, asking what we have lost with the switch away from physical media.

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Written and presented by Dr Sam Manning and Brian Henry Martin
Music by Score Draw Music
https://thewondercinema.buzzsprout.com

In the fifth episode of Say Yes to VHS, recorded live from Queen's Film Theatre in Belfast, Brian and Sam press play on a discussion about the wonder of the video shop.

As home video grew in popularity in the late 1970s and early 1980s, businesses such as newsagents and electronic shops opened their own video libraries, renting VHS and Betamax tapes to meet growing consumer demand. Soon after, dedicated video shops became a viable business model, with the number of these premises in Northern Ireland increasing from 89 in 1985 to 248 in 1990.

Independent shops, such as Agnes and Sandy's Video Library or Topper's Video Shack, were joined by branches of XtraVision, the largest chain on the island of Ireland. By the late 1980s, falling video prices led customers to start buying 'sell through' copies rather than renting them.

Brian recalls his memories of the video shop in 1980s Belfast, emphasising them as community spaces that offered a wide range of films. And after everyone had watched a VHS screening of The Princess Bride, we invited the audience to share their own video shop memories.

Links

The Northern Ireland Screen Digital Film Archive, '80s Tech!' collection

Queen's Film Theatre, Belfast

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Written and presented by Dr Sam Manning and Brian Henry Martin
Music by Score Draw Music
https://thewondercinema.buzzsprout.com

In the fourth episode of Say Yes to VHS, Brian and Sam press pause to discuss how cinema owners and television broadcasters responded to the rapid rise of home video in the 1980s.

Before the arrival of the VCR, film choices were limited to the three television channels or the ever dwindling number of cinemas in Northern Ireland. Video shops offered people a wider range of choice and there were no longer any restrictions on when you could watch a film. The blank video cassette meant that people could also now record content directly from television and watch at their own leisure. A VCR timer meant you could even leave the house and not miss your favourite programme or movie.

Home video forced television broadcasters to expand and diversify their content. When Channel 4 arrived in 1982, it aimed to reach new audiences and its series of 'red triangle' films reached millions of viewers. Programmes such as BBC's Moviedrome became curators of cult cinema. Cinemas were forced to up their game by splitting into several screens and offering more choice, paving the way for the arrival of the multiplex to Northern Ireland in the 1990s.

Links

The Northern Ireland Screen Digital Film Archive, '80s Tech!' collection

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Written and presented by Dr Sam Manning and Brian Henry Martin
Music by Score Draw Music
https://thewondercinema.buzzsprout.com

In the third episode of Say Yes to VHS, Brian and Sam press eject and discuss how the popularity of uncensored horror films such asThe Driller Killer and I Spit on Your Grave led to the video nasty scare of the early 1980s.

As home video grew in popularity, the furore surrounding surrounding these films quickly spread to Northern Ireland, where the flames of moral panic were fanned by social conservatives. But it was difficult for the police to remove any videos from shelves, as Northern Ireland had different legislation to the rest of the United Kingdom. A questionable Belfast News-Letter survey claimed that over 80% of schoolchildren had watched a video nasty, the results of which were shared by Mary Whitehouse, founder of the National Viewers' and Listeners' Association. Unlike previous legislation, the 1984 Video Recordings Act applied in Northern Ireland and required all videos to receive a BBFC certificate. Though the moral panic moved elsewhere from the mid-1980s, it led some video shops to make greater efforts to show off their family friendly credentials.

Links

The Northern Ireland Screen Digital Film Archive, '80s Tech!' collection

Counterpoint: Video Pirates (includes an interview with Mary Whitehouse)

Family Viewing Video Rental Shop

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Written and presented by Dr Sam Manning and Brian Henry Martin
Music by Score Draw Music
https://thewondercinema.buzzsprout.com

In the second episode of Say Yes to VHS, Brian and Sam discuss the rise of pirate and counterfeit video and how the police and other authority figures tried to stop the illegal VHS market.

As early as 1978, copies of Saturday Night Fever were shown in hotels, pubs and clubs across Northern Ireland. But once the authorities clamped down on these screenings, pirate videos were widely consumed at home. E.T. the Extra Terrestrial was the pirate hit of 1982, with pirate copies available to buy for £5 several months before the film was released in cinemas. In the following year, the Royal Ulster Constabulary seized up to 35,000 videos in the biggest raid of its type in the United Kingdom. Fines and prison sentences followed, but did not stop the problem as these videos were highly profitable and easy to copy on an industrial scale. Piracy was common everywhere, but it took on a different hue in Northern Ireland as paramilitaries got in on the act. VHS piracy continued well into the 1990s, when pirate copies of The Lion King were widely available to purchase from illegitimate dealers.

Links

The Northern Ireland Screen Digital Film Archive, '80s Tech!' collection

Counterpoint: Video Pirates

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Written and presented by Dr Sam Manning and Brian Henry Martin
Music by Score Draw Music
https://thewondercinema.buzzsprout.com

The second series of the Wonder Cinema podcast turns its attention to the remarkable story of the rise and fall of videotape in Northern Ireland. In this first episode, Brian and Sam press rewind to discuss the format wars, the video boom and the home entertainment revolution that took place from the mid-1970s to the early ‘80s

The arrival of VHS, and to a lesser extent its rival format Betamax, came at the perfect time for cinema lovers in Northern Ireland, who were often unwilling to leave their homes due to the ongoing conflict of the Troubles. In spite of difficult economic circumstances, Northern Ireland had the highest concentration of VCRs in the United Kingdom. Video rental dealers sprang up to accommodate demand and films such as Alien, Superman, Airplane and An American Werewolf in London were all big video hits in the early 1980s. The introduction of home video forever changed our relationship with cinema and television, with people now able to record content and to play, pause or rewind at their own leisure.

Links

The Northern Ireland Screen Digital Film Archive, '80s Tech!' collection

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Written and presented by Dr Sam Manning and Brian Henry Martin
Music by Score Draw Music
https://thewondercinema.buzzsprout.com

Join filmmaker Brian Henry Martin and cinema historian Dr Sam Manning for the new series of the Wonder Cinema Podcast: ‘Say Yes to VHS’. Press play on the remarkable story of home video in Northern Ireland as Brian and Sam rewind everything from the format wars to video nasties, piracy and paramilitaries to the wonder of the video shop in a new six-part series.

The Wonder Cinema Podcast will be available wherever you get your podcasts.

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Written and presented by Dr Sam Manning and Brian Henry Martin
Music by Score Draw Music
https://thewondercinema.buzzsprout.com

In this special episode of The Wonder Cinema Podcast, recorded live from the Black Box at the 2024 Belfast Film Festival, hosts Brian Henry Martin and Dr Sam Manning celebrate the 88th birthday of the Ritz, which first opened its doors on 9 November 1936. They discuss how the cinema quickly became a landmark in Belfast city centre and hosted stars such as Gracie Field, Cary Grant and even The Beatles. The cinema later faced more turbulent times during the Troubles, including a firebombing in 1977 and a reimagining of its identity, before finally closing in 1993. Brian and Sam dive into the history of 'Ireland's Wonder Cinema', hear personal memories from those who were, and unveil Stuart Marshall's new model of this iconic cinema.

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Written and presented by Dr Sam Manning and Brian Henry Martin
Music by Score Draw Music
https://thewondercinema.buzzsprout.com