10 British Horror Films You've Probably Never Seen

8. The Innocents

Released in 1961, The Innocents is a criminally under seen classic of British psychological horror beautifully directed by Jack Clayton and stunningly shot in stark black and white by Freddie Francis, who would later become David Lynch’s cinematographer of choice.

Inspired by the Henry James novella, The Turn Of The Screw, The Innocents tells the story of the newly arrived governess, Miss Giddens, intensely played by Deborah Kerr, to Bly House. She is charged with looking after two orphaned children who have been left to their own devices in the empty mansion. As the days pass she begins to believe they are being haunted by the ghost of the children’s previous governess.

A creepy house with creepy children are all the ingredients this film needs to be a horror masterclass in restraint and suggestion. This is a slow burn of a film, but put together its amazing atmosphere conjured by Clayton and Francis, the creepy sound design which was revolutionary for its day, and a mysterious black figure never fully seen, and The Innocents becomes a truly great film. One with the ability to creep deep under your skin.