A painting of Knightmare castle on a hill

Events in 2020

Developments in the world of Knightmare in 2020

January

20th January 2020: Knightmare contestant and Tiny Phil

Katharine Bennett-Fox, an adviser in Series 4 (1990), has appeared in several TV adverts from Compare The Market to Barclays. Here's her latest: one of the We Buy Any Car adverts in which a tiny Phillip Schofield advises on vehicle-based transactions.

February

25th February 2020: Joanne Heywood: Tesco Advert

There's a new advertising campaign featuring Joanne Heywood (Stiletta, Series 8).

It's part of the Tesco Food Love Stories series. Joanne is Rita, making her four children "Rita's 'Rowdy' Enchiladas".

Hopefully Joanne's experience of Knightmare's quartets of youngsters stood her in good stead for this role.

A familiar face in TV adverts, you may also have seen Joanne advertising Heinz soup, Activia and Maltesers. Now that she's added a main course to the list, we eagerly await the launch of the Joanne Heywood diet.

April

3rd April 2020: Knightmare Live in 2020

Knightmare Live's stage shows have been forced into temporal disruption, so they're trying some different live entertainment.

Knightmare Live had a series of dates lined up for March-May 2020...

...But sadly these have been cancelled because of coronavirus.

When temporal disruption is over, we look forward to bringing you news of new, confirmed Knightmare Live shows, to give us a fine way to celebrate Knightmare in its fifth decade.

In the meantime, Paul Flannery (Knightmare Live's Treguard) has begun a series of Knightmare gamebook playthroughs, with watchers voting on the action at each choice point.

The good news is that Paul is planning on doing it again next Friday afternoon from 4:30-5:00pm (around the same time Series 3 to 8 were shown when originally broadcast) - will it be third time lucky when the playthrough starts again?

It was great fun and I highly recommend joining in (even if I did get reprimanded by Paul for quoting The Dark Room on one occasion :D) If you want to take part, head over to Knightmare Live's Facebook Page and get involved!'

We can trust a dungeonmaster to keep our spirits up during a lockdown, so tune in on Fridays for more cheerful adventuring. And just keep telling yourself: it's only a gamebook... isn't it?

5th April 2020: Hugo Myatt in Charity Video

Hugo Myatt is among the kids' TV stars in a newly released video in aid of the food charity FareShare Sussex.

The Food Fighters' video celebrates:

You may have guessed that the video, while newly released, isn't newly filmed. As The Food Fighters explained on Facebook:

'Back In 2016 we hatched a plan to bring together some of our heroes from 80s and 90s children's TV for a charity music video. A bit like the Expendables film… but if the stars came from CITV and CBBC instead of action movies.

Many, many emails were sent and three wonderful individuals replied. Their names are Dave Benson Phillips, Hugo Myatt aka Knightmare's Tregard and Andy Cunningham aka Bodger And Badger. These people didn't have to respond or give us their time, but they did, they all agreed to be in our silly video and were an absolute pleasure to meet.

Our friend Dave Neale from Wild Stag Studio shot the video but we didn't quite get around to finishing it. Then in 2017 Andy Cunningham sadly passed away and for one reason or another, it never felt like the right time to release it.

The charity we wanted to support was FareShare Sussex; they are a local organisation who deliver surplus food to around 100 local charities and community projects across Sussex, getting it to the people who need it most. At the moment lots of us are struggling and facing hardships that we never thought we'd have to face, but for many of the people that rely on Fareshare, these struggles precede the Covid-19 pandemic and will likely become much worse in its wake due to job insecurity and food stockpiling.

In the face of our current crisis, it feels like a good time to put the video out. It was made in the spirit of bringing people together, making people smile and to draw attention to the fact that in hard times, we need to respond with kindness and love to our fellow humans.

If you watch the video and are entertained by Dave, Hugo and Andy, who generously gave up their time to two idiots dressed as cowboys, perhaps think about following the link, passing on the goodwill and making a donation. Just £5 enables Fareshare to deliver enough food for 25 meals and prevents 10.5 kg of food from going to waste and we think that's pretty awesome!

Peace & love in tough times,

The Food Fighters x

P.S Thanks Sally Ann Oakenfold for the excellent lyrics and Simon Zarych for the excellent recording!'

We're very much in the real world at the moment, where not everyone can get the supplies they need from strategically placed tables and life has become especially challenging for many of our fellow human beings. Please consider making a donation if you enjoyed the video.

16th April 2020: Treguard on CITV in 1992

On Friday 4th September 1992, CITV launched its autumn lineup. Tommy Boyd was joined in the studio by an array of guests from these programmes. They included Hugo Myatt in character as Treguard, ahead of Knightmare Series 6 starting a week later.

Clips of this forgotten event have emerged on a familiar video sharing site, uploaded by Applemask.

Once you've found these these videos, you may want to get on the floor before watching them, to save yourself the hassle of falling off your chair.

You can find more about this televisual golden age on our CITV in 1992 page.

18th April 2020: Rayner Bourton and Top of the Pops

Top of the Pops from 20th July 1989, repeated on BBC Four last night, featured a clip of the video for Cha Cha Heels by Bronski Beat & Eartha Kitt. Eartha, performing the song in her club, beckons a man in white tie to dance with her. That man was played by Rayner Bourton, familiar to us two years later as Julius Scaramonger and Skarkill.

Rayner's appearance in the video doesn't appear to have been mentioned anywhere online.

22nd April 2020: Comedy: Self Isolation Knightmare

Dungeoneering meets lockdown in this literally home-made sketch from comic duo Short and Curly.

28th April 2020: Joanne Heywood, Érin Geraghty: Sequins

Two Knightmare alumnae, Érin Geraghty (Mistress Goody in Series 4) and Joanne Heywood (Stiletta in Series 8) are in the 2019 short film Sequins, now available to watch free online.

SEQUINS // SHORT FILM from Michael Beddoes on Vimeo.

Sequins is set in 1997 and tells the story of Paul, a Blackpool teenager with an ambition to perform as a drag queen.

May

28th May 2020: Knightmare in 2000AD Magazine

Via JamesA on our forum.

Knightmare was referenced in issues 2178 and 2179 of 2000AD magazine, in a story entitled Survival Geeks - Crisis Of Infinite Nerds. As well as Knightmare, it references a few other cult UK TV shows!

Sample page from 2000AD Prog 2179 Crisis of Infinite Nerds 5

To find out more, head on over to the 2000AD website.

June

27th June 2020: Isy Suttie on Lockdown Parenting Hell

Knightmare fan turned Knightmare cast member Isy Suttie was a guest on Episode 10 of Rob Beckett and Josh Widdicombe's Lockdown Parenting Hell podcast. You can listen to the podcast here and via other podcast websites. Isy comes in at the 10-minute mark and very quickly makes this relevant listening for Knightmare fans.

July

6th July 2020: Blog post - Condition: Red

In a personal and well researched post for his Dirty Feed blog, John Hoare write about Knightmare's original life force clock and explores its personal influence on him. You can read the blog post here.

10th July 2020: Knightmare Live: The Online Quest

Via JamesA on our forum.

The latest concept from the minds behind Knightmare Live invite you and and a group of others to come together online and play a game of Knightmare in an attempt to defeat Lord Fear.

If you are interested in finding out more, you can go to the Chronyko website to learn further information as well as view the promo trailer to get an idea of what it's all about.

Looks fun. I hope it goes well for Mr Flannery and co (as well as any teams who decide to take part!)

13th July 2020: Theme tune cover with four guitars

He may call himself The Unremarkable Guitarist, but his cover version of the Knightmare theme is far from unremarkable.

This team of 4 (OK, 1x4) even had its own Adventurers' Code:

'I only had a limited amount of time to learn (mostly by ear) and record the songs (as I was a key worker) so they were usually recorded in one or two takes so they are certainly not flawless recordings.

I played all the instruments (including programming the drums from scratch).

As the videos started to get more elaborate I could only film them within the confines of my house and garden in keeping with the lockdown rules.'

26th July 2020: Mary Miller (1929-2020)

We were sad to learn that Mary Miller, one of Knightmare's earliest cast members, died earlier this month. Mary played Lillith in Knightmare Series 1 and 2 and Mildread in Series 2.

Lillith, the Sorceress. Played by Mary Miller.
Mary Miller as Lillith

Our obituary for Mary Miller is here. We offer our condolences to Mary's family, friends and colleagues.

August

6th August 2020: Jedi Temple Challenge

Have you seen the new gameshow Jedi Temple Challenge? It may be made in the US and Star Wars themed but co-creator Scott Bromley has listed British gameshows among its inspirations, including Knightmare.

From Scott's tweets (@Scott_Bromley):

'The British shows Knightmare and Raven were huge inspirations when we were developing this, aside from the usual Nickelodeon suspects.'

'We referenced Raven numerous times during the development of the series.'

'Crystal Maze, and Double Dare, and Jungle Run, and Knightmare, and Raven, and GUTS, and Fun House, and...its basically a love letter to my youth.'

'I loved how invested the kids were in the fantasy of Raven. They were warriors, not kids from Essex. It's why we made sure all the kids were Padawans, not contestants. It was exciting when kids would say, "use the Force" unprompted because they were invested in the fantasy.'

It's pleasing to hear that one format and fictional universe can inspire another like this, despite the gap in culture and decades.

Season 1 of Jedi Temple Challenge has 10 episodes, available on the Star Wars Kids YouTube channel in this playlist.

20th August 2020: Biography of Guy Standeven

There's a new book out called Who's that Guy? The Sometimes 'Knightmare' Life of an Unknown Actor by Marcus Heslop. It's a biography of Guy Standeven, who is best known for being in Knightmare Series 1 and 2 but also had a great many other acting roles (albeit more minor ones).

Marcus contacted Knightmare.com while writing the book and we were pleased to help him out.

The book is available here from Amazon for £14.99. If you read it, let us know what you think and feel free to leave an Amazon review too.

30th August 2020: Knightmare on Absolute Radio

Last week, The Dave Berry Breakfast Show on Absolute Radio ran a competition to win a "90s tech bundle". As part of this, on 27th August they played the Knightmare theme (which they also played on other days), read from Ben Child's 2013 article for The Guardian (How We Made Knightmare) and played the audio for a clip from Series 4.

You can listen to a podcast version of that show here.

Dave Berry is already connected to Knightmare, having talked about it on his XFM radio show in 2010 and on Richard Bacon's Beer and Pizza Club on ITV4 later that year.

September

3rd September 2020: Mark Knight: Knightmare Live interview

Via JamesA on our forum.

Mark Knight (aka Lord Fear) will be joining Paul Flannery on Knightmare Live on Friday 4th September for some games and discussion.

This will be on Mr Flannery's recently started channel on Twitch, so be sure to tune in if you are able to!

While you can still watch recordings of the Facebook Live sessions mentioned above, the Twitch channel is now the virtual home of Knightmare Live's sessions, including game playthroughs, interviews and chat.

12th September 2020: Edmund Dehn in Death of a Hunter

In 2018, Edmund Dehn (Gumboil, the Giant, Igneous, Automatum, Knightmare Series 1-2) starred in Death of a Hunter, a one-man play about Ernest Hemingway, at the Finborough Theatre in London. The play was filmed and is available to watch until 7 October, as part of the theatre's #FinboroughForFree season.

Death of a Hunter on the Finborough Theatre YouTube channel

19th September 2020: Theme tune remix by Anders Jensen

A fresh take on the Knightmare theme courtesy of Anders Enger Jensen a.k.a. EOX Studios.

20th September 2020: Alec Westwood: Darkside of the Deen

In the Darkside of the Deen podcasts, Alec Westwood (Folly in Series 1 and 2, Gibbet in Series 1) delves into 'Aberdeen’s intriguing history of murder, mystery and death. From bubonic plagues, to bodysnatchers all the way to modern day unsolved crimes.' Episodes are available on the Darkside of the Deen YouTube channel.

Alec Westwood is set to be interviewed by Knightmare Live's Paul Flannery on Twitch.

October

7th October 2020: Edmund Dehn in The Covid-19 Monologues

Edmund Dehn, whose roles included Gumboil in Knightmare Series 1-2, stars in Sugar, the fourth of The Covid-19 Monologues from Elysium Theatre.

9th October 2020: Podcast series: Temporal Discussion

Temporal Discussion is a new episode-by-episode retrospective of Knightmare.

'Phase across time to the late 80s and join Martin Harder and Martin Odoni ... for humorous observations, behind-the-scenes talk and a breakdown of the series done in a way that only those with true love of the source material can manage.'

The first episode of Temporal Discussion has now been released and is available at https://anchor.fm/knightmarepod

12th October 2020: Darran Anderson and Knightmare

In an essay for The Quietus, author Darran Anderson talks about how Knightmare created a 'semi-magic-realist escape' from his childhood in Derry during the Troubles. You can read the beginning free on The Quietus website here, with the whole thing available to subscribers.

16th October 2020: Alec Westwood in When Stars Align

Alec Westwood (Folly and Gibbet in Knightmare) is among the cast of When Stars Align, a vibrant and poignant new animated adventure from Renfrewshire Leisure.

November

3rd November 2020: Hugo Myatt in Suffolk Norfolk Life

Hugo Myatt has been interviewed for the November 2020 issue of Suffolk Norfolk Life magazine. He discusses his life and career, including of course his role as Treguard. You can read the interview in the magazine's digital edition here from page 48 onward.

5th November 2020: Knightmare in Pat Sharp's book

Out now: Re-run the Fun: My Life as Pat Sharp, a heavily fictionalised memoir ('sortabiography') from the CITV stalwart once known as Patrick Sharpin. As you would expect, there's plenty about Fun House, but Knightmare also is mentioned in the prologue:

The whole thing feels like a dream ... We've done 139 episodes [of Fun House]. That's fewer than EastEnders but more than Knightmare; fewer than The Really Wild Show but more than the 1994 FA Cup Final.'

Re-run the Fun is available from all reputable purveyors of books.

27th November 2020: Knightmare's Career Guidance

Tom Vaughan-Mountford is a video producer inspired at a young age to pursue a career in TV because of Knightmare's graphics. Tom has written an article on his website, discussing Knightmare and its influences in becoming a video producer.

28th November 2020: Fan art: dungeoneer action figure

How's this for some 3D Knightmare fan art? Thank you to Mark Harold for sharing this excellent creation via our Facebook page:

Fan-made action figure of Ben the dungeoneer from Series 6 Team 5, by Mark Harold

Mark writes: 'Hi Knightmare fans, I made a custom action figure (from various figures in the 5.5 inch Doctor Who range) of Ben the Dungeoneer who won in Series 6 [Quest 5]. Hope you like it, I am so pleased with it!' So are we!

28th November 2020: Paul Flannery: cast interviews

Knightmare Live's Paul Flannery has been keeping watchers entertained by interviewing Knightmare cast members via his Twitch channel this year:

Mark Knight (Lord Fear, Sir Hugh de Wittless, Ah Wok, Rothberry): 4th September

Cliff Barry (Lissard, Brother Strange, Raptor): 11 September

Alec Westwood (Folly, Gibbet): 23 October

Iona Kennedy (Sidriss, Greystagg, Maldame): 30 October

Joanne Heywood (Stiletta): 27 November

Highlight videos from some of these interviews are available on the Twitch channel.

December

13th December 2020: Michael Cule: online poetry readings

In Series 4, Brother Mace (Michael Cule) greeted dungeoneer Dickon with a quotation about Dickon from Richard III, adding, "Shakespeare, you know." Michael Cule can now be heard reading Shakespeare Sonnets on his YouTube channel. Recordings of other poems are also available.

20th December 2020: Hugo Myatt in The Day the Night Slept

Hugo Myatt, Treguard himself, is one of the voices on new rock opera album The Day the Night Slept: Rebirth from Knightmare fan David Newton and his power metal project Albion.

David writes that he 'sent an email [to Hugo's agent] just for fun, and was bowled over when they said yes. Fortunately he was very happy to indulge a fan and read out this nonsense for the album. Thanks, Hugo - you made a strange dream come true!'

Hugo voices The Conductor and can be heard on the tracks All Aboard, The Scorpion's Fire and Night on the Galactic Railroad. Listen and buy The Day the Night Slept at https://albion.bandcamp.com/

23rd December 2020: Projectile Vomit TV: Dungeonjarg

Projectile Vomit TV, an independent internet TV station based in Liverpool, launched in September. One of its programmes is Dungeonjarg, a gameshow that parodies Knightmare.

Of the four Dungeonjarg episodes released so far, Episodes 1 and 2 took place in an office and Episodes 3 and 4 in a discount store.

From Episode 3 onward, Dungeonjarg has used 'virtual and augmented reality [and] is made in Unity as a mobile phone app installed in the contestant's helmet. It uses hand-detection to pick up their hand so they can interact with the augmented world around them.'

Projectile Vomit TV and Dungeonjarg can be found across social media, including this YouTube playlist.

Other Years

Our record of Knightmare-related events, including appearances and cast/crew events are organised by year. You can see the events for any particular year by clicking on the relevant link below.

1999200020012002200320042005200620072008200920102011201220132014201520162017201820192020202120222023