It's not a badger you spastic!

I'll come right out and say it now... The Devil of Winterborne is hands down the best thing I've seen from BBV and hell even Reeltime never reached this peak in its storytelling. It's one of the longest spin-off productions to date running at 80 minutes in total, it even has a sequel which I'll get to at a later date...

When P.R.O.B.E. is summoned to investigate the savage murder of a retired headmaster, Liz Shaw is disturbed to find evidence of satanic rite near the scene of the crime. She soon discovers a web of deceit and corruption that extends back in time, threatening the current occupants of nearby Winterborne School. With P.R.O.B.E. under threat from within and the death toll mounting, Liz finds herself under increasing pressure from all sides to produce results... The Devil of Winterborne is at large and only Liz can stop it!

From the get-go, The Devil of Winterborne tackles themes of satanic rituals, blind faith and hell, even touching upon reincarnation and immortality. Mark Gatiss has excelled himself here as per the norm, even if he is dismissive of his efforts for BBV, this is really an amazing achievement. The dialogue is something else entirely and really delivers some brilliant scares and dramatic weight, again a testament to Gatiss' writing. There are too many good moments to list but Gavin Purcell's interrogation is truly a centrepiece in how to build suspense even on a very low budget with some ingenious camera work and utterly brilliant performances from the leads. Peter Davison steals the film as Gavin Purcell unlike his brief cameo from The Zero Imperative, he's on top form and delivers a performance that rivals even some of his best work in Doctor Who. Terry Molloy, Louise Jamerson, Mark Gatiss, Reece Shearsmith, Geoffrey Beevers and of course Caroline John all work together fabulously.

Overall, The Devil of Winterborne is a disturbing serial killer story with an occult twist, which puts K-9 and Company to shame. The adult themes are tackled maturely, giving it a nasty edge without seeming gratuitous, and the uncompromising nature of the violence on display (especially the skinned dog's head and assorted bloody corpses) makes for an effectively disturbing feel.

Have you ever known real fear, Miss Shaw? It's a beautiful thing. The power it gives you. To hold a human life in the palm of your hand and crush it. If that's what you want.