"Actor: Christopher Guard"

• The Lord of the Rings (Animated Version) | DVD | (26/11/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £13.99

  Ralph Bakshi's 1978 animated adaptation of The Lord of the Rings is a bold, colourful, ambitious failure. Severely truncated, this two-hour version tackles only about half the story, climaxing with the battle of Helm's Deep and leaving poor Frodo and Sam still stuck on the borders of Mordor with Gollum. Allegedly, the director ran out of money and was unable to complete the project. As far as the film does go, however, it is a generally successful attempt at rendering Tolkien's landscapes of the imagination. Bakshi's animation uses a blend of conventional drawing and rotoscoped (traced) animated movements from live-action footage. The latter is at least in part a money-saving device, but it does succeed in lending some depth and a sense of otherworldly menace to the Black Riders and hordes of Orcs: Frodo's encounter at the ford of Rivendell, for example, is one of the movie's best scenes thanks to this mixture of animation techniques. Backdrops are detailed and well-conceived, and all the main characters are strongly drawn. Among a good cast, John Hurt (Aragorn) and C3PO himself, Anthony Daniels (Legolas), provide sterling voice characterisation, while Peter Woodthorpe gives what is surely the definitive Gollum (he revived his portrayal a couple of years later for BBC Radio's exhaustive 13-hour dramatisation). The film's other outstanding virtue is avant-garde composer Leonard Rosenman's magnificent score in which chaotic musical fragments gradually coalesce to produce the triumphant march theme that closes the picture. None of which makes up for the incompleteness of the movie, nor the severe abridging of the story actually filmed. Add to that some oddities--such as intermittently referring to Saruman as "Aruman"--and the final verdict must be that this is a brave yet ultimately unsatisfying work, noteworthy as the first attempt at transferring Tolkien to the big screen but one whose virtues are overshadowed by incompleteness. --Mark Walker

• Return To Treasure Island - Series 1 - Complete | DVD | (26/05/2008) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Their fates entangled once more the rapacious pirate Long John Silver and ex-cabin boy Jim Hawkins - now having graduated from Oxford University - are caught up in the search for even more treasure still buried on the infamous Treasure Island... Starring Brian Blessed (Flash Gordon I Claudius) as Long John Silver - a part he was surely born for - and Christopher Guard (Poirot) as the plucky Jim Hawkins this continuation of Robert Louis Stevenson''-s classic tale is written by John Goldsmith (Return of the Saint) and directed by the BAFTA-winning Piers Haggard (Pennies from Heaven). Episodes Include: 1. The Map - Part One 2. The Map - Part Two 3. Island of the Damned 4. Jamaica 5. Manhunt 6. The Crow''-s Nest 7. Fugitives 8. In Chains 9. Treasure Island - Part I 10. Treasure Island - Part II

• I, Claudius --Five Disc Set | DVD | (30/09/2002) from £27.99   |  Saving you £17.00 (60.74%)   |  RRP £44.99

  A truly epic saga of dynastic conflict at the heart of Imperial Rome, I Claudius was the landmark BBC drama series of the 1970s. Originally transmitted as 13 50-minute episodes, the series dramatises the human face of ancient Rome as interpreted by Robert Graves in his two enormously complex novels, I, Claudius and Claudius The God. Derek Jacobi gives one of the greatest television performances ever as Claudius, the appalled chronicler of the decadence, corruption, intrigue and carnage which comes with the absolute power of his ruling family. Augustus (Brian Blessed) is Emperor and Livia (Sian Phillips) his scheming, ambitious wife, Claudius's aunt. By virtue of his stammer and uncontrollable twitches, Claudius passes for a fool, thus escaping the poisonous machinations of Livia, all the while recording the comings and goings of the Imperial household. Events become increasingly frenzied as Caligula (John Hurt playing the tyrant with psychotic fury) bloodily slaughters his way to power, making a senator of his favourite horse along the way. Claudius eventually becomes Emperor himself, and Jacobi is simply magnificent in the intensely moving finale, which is not to overlook the rest of a fine cast, including: George Baker; Ian Ogilvy; Christopher Guard; Stratford Johns; John Rhys-Davies; Bernard Hepton and Patrick Stewart as the murderous Praetorian Guard Captain Sejanus. Inevitably lacking the visual scale of cinematic features such as Ben-Hur, and today looking more studio-bound than ever, I, Claudius remains a television masterpiece of intelligently written and rivetingly intense character drama. --Gary S Dalkin

• A Woman Of Substance - Barbara Taylor Bradford | DVD | (24/02/2003) from £7.88   |  Saving you £-5.89 (-296.00%)   |  RRP £1.99

  Spanning more than a century this is the epic story of the Harte dynasty as told through the best selling trilogy of novels by one of todays most popular authors. The story starts as the indomitable Emma Harte looks back over her remarkable rags-to-riches story while her own family plots against her to gain control of her mighty business empire.

• Great Expectations - Charles Dickens Classics | DVD | (03/07/2017) from £11.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  The acclaimed 1967 BBC adaptation of the Charles Dickens classic, Great Expectations is now available to own on DVD for the first time. Starring BAFTA-winner Francesca Annis (Home Fires), Gary Bond (Zulu), Hannah Gordon (The Elephant Man) and BAFTA-nominee Peter Vaughan (Game of Thrones) Young Philip Pirrip (Christopher Guard) universally known as Pip encounters escaped convict Magwitch (John Tate) in a deserted graveyard, and helps him find food and escape his shackles. When his kindness is later rewarded by an unexpected inheritance, the adult Pip (Gary Bond), surrounded by home comforts, grows mean and arrogant and smitten with the aloof Estella (Francesca Annis).Maxine Audley plays vindictive recluse Miss Havisham, who has raised Estella to distrust all men. Written by acclaimed playwright Hugh Leonard, who adapted many of Dickens books for TV and the stage, this is a delightful cautionary tale of the power of wealth to corrupt and betray.

• The Best Of The Worst Witch | DVD | (11/02/2002) from £15.56   |  Saving you £-2.57 (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  The Best of the Worst Witch DVD contains seven episodes of CITV's hugely popular Worst Witch series. Based Jill Murphy's internationally bestselling books that are said to have been an inspiration to JK Rowling and the Harry Potter books, the 25-minute episodes chronicle the hilarious adventures of would-be witch Mildred Hubble. Aimed at 5-11 year olds, the DVD starts with Mildred's first day at Miss Cackle's Academy for Witches, a secondary boarding school which emphasises discipline and traditional values but which also teaches young girls how to ride broomsticks, chant and cast spells. Mildred gets off to a flying start when arriving late on her broomstick: she crashes into the school bins! The strong storylines (taken from three series) mainly focus on whether Mildred will make the grade as a bona fide witch, and her continuing rivalry with snooty Ethel Hallow. Whether Mildred is turning Ethel into a pig or being transformed into a frog, pre-teenagers will relate to the heroine, learning from her the importance of determination, imagination and friends. There are admirable performances from Georgina Sherrington (winner of Hollywood's "Young Artist Award") as Mildred, Kate Duchêne as the stern Miss Hardbroom, Claire Coulter as the kindly Headmistress and the renowned Una Stubbs as the eccentric Miss Bat who spends school holidays in the cupboard! The stories are not scary and the special effects are used sparingly but with good results--particularly spectacular is the image at the start of each episode of students arriving for school on broomsticks. Entertaining, amusing and captivating, it's a real treat for pre-teenagers. --Tracey Hogan.

• Memoirs Of A Survivor | DVD | (23/06/2014) from £11.98   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Julie Christie stars in an award-winning adaptation of Doris Lessing's famous dystopian novel of 1974. This complex haunting science-fiction feature - screened in the Un Certain Regard section of the Cannes Film Festival in 1981 - is presented in a brand-new transfer from the original film elements in its as-exhibited theatrical aspect ratio. Set in Britain at an unspecified point in the near-future Memoirs of a Survivor tells the story of 'D' a housewife trying to carry on after a cataclysmic war that has left society in a state of collapse. Rubbish is piled high in the streets among near-derelict buildings covered with graffiti; the electricity supply is variable and water is now collected from a van. 'D' spends her time examining her relations with authority with the marauding gangs of brutalised children who roam the streets and with Emily the traumatised orphaned teenager who is delivered into her care. Special Features: Image Gallery Promotional Material PDFS

• The Lord of the Rings (1978) | Blu Ray | (10/12/2012) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £17.99

  Made in 1978, the original 'The Lord Of The Rings' was directed by cutting edge animator Ralph Bakshi using an innovative technique that allowed the animator to paint over live action footage, bringing the book to life with stunning success. Featuring an exceptional voice cast including William Squire as Gandalf the Grey, Christopher Guard as the Hobbit Frodo and guardian of the master ring, John Hurt as the heroic Strider, One Foot in the Grave's Annette Crosby as Galadriel and Star Wars' A...

• Les Miserables | DVD | (28/06/2004) from £3.99   |  Saving you £2.00 (50.13%)   |  RRP £5.99

  France 1796: in the new Republic poverty is rife and crimes harshly punished. Jean Valjean is sentenced to five years at the gallery for stealing a loaf of bread. There the Inspector of Guards Javert takes an intense loathing to him - and every rebellion on Jean's part is met with strict punishment and a longer sentence. Jean eventually escapes. Five years later he is living a respectable life as a Mayor when fate intervenes and brings him face to face with his old enemy Javert. Victor Hugo's enduring classic is lavishly recreated and performed by an outstanding cast.

• Les Miserables | DVD | (28/02/2000) from £4.98   |  Saving you £1.01 (20.28%)   |  RRP £5.99

  France 1796: in the Republic poverty is rife and crimes harshly punished. Jean Valjean (Richard Jordan) is sentenced to five years at the gallery for stealing a loaf of bread. There the Inspector of Guards Javert (Anthony Perkins) takes and intense loathing to him - and every rebellion on Jean's part is met with strict punishment and a longer sentence. Jean eventually escapes. Five years later he is living a respectable life as a Mayor when fate intervenes and brings him face to face with his old enemy Javert. Victor Hugo's enduring classic is lavishly recreated and performed by an outstanding cast.

• The Lord of the Rings -- Limited Edition Box Set | DVD | (26/11/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Ralph Bakshi's 1978 animated adaptation of The Lord of the Rings is a bold, colourful, ambitious failure. Severely truncated, this two-hour version tackles only about half the story, climaxing with the battle of Helm's Deep and leaving poor Frodo and Sam still stuck on the borders of Mordor with Gollum. Allegedly, the director ran out of money and was unable to complete the project. As far as the film does go, however, it is a generally successful attempt at rendering Tolkien's landscapes of the imagination. Bakshi's animation uses a blend of conventional drawing and rotoscoped (traced) animated movements from live-action footage. The latter is at least in part a money-saving device, but it does succeed in lending some depth and a sense of otherworldly menace to the Black Riders and hordes of Orcs: Frodo's encounter at the ford of Rivendell, for example, is one of the film's best scenes thanks to this mixture of animation techniques. Backdrops are detailed and well conceived, and all the main characters are strongly drawn. Among a good cast, John Hurt (Aragorn) and C3PO himself, Anthony Daniels (Legolas), provide sterling voice characterisation, while Peter Woodthorpe gives what is surely the definitive Gollum (he revived his portrayal a couple of years later for BBC Radio's exhaustive 13-hour dramatisation). The film's other outstanding virtue is avant-garde composer Leonard Rosenman's magnificent score in which chaotic musical fragments gradually coalesce to produce the triumphant march theme that closes the picture. None of which makes up for the incompleteness of the movie, nor the severe abridging of the story actually filmed. Add to that some oddities--such as intermittently referring to Saruman as "Aruman"--and the final verdict must be that this is a brave yet ultimately unsatisfying work, noteworthy as the first attempt at transferring Tolkien to the big screen but one whose virtues are overshadowed by incompleteness. --Mark Walker

• Lost Boys, The / Lord Of The Rings | DVD | (08/09/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  The Lost Boys: Sam and his older brother Michael are All-American teens with all-American interests. But after they move with their mother to peaceful Santa Carla California things mysteriously begin to change. Michael's not himself lately. And mom's not going to like what he's turning into! Lord Of The Rings (Animated): Made in 1978 the original 'The Lord Of The Rings' was directed by cutting edge animator Ralph Bakshi using an innovative technique that allowed the animator to paint over live action footage bringing the book to life with stunning success. When a dangerous and powerful magic Ring falls into his hands a little hobbit named Frodo is caught up in a gigantic adventure! Now join him the mighty Gandalf and a daring band of elves dwarves and warriors as they set out to defend their enchanted land from the wicked sorcerer who would destroy it. Highlander: The year is 1536. Scottish Clansman Connor MacLeod (Christopher Lambert) is mortally wounded in battle by a terrifying warrior - The Kurgan (Clancy Brown). When his wounds miraculously heal Connor is cast out by the superstitious villagers to live a life of solitude. Several years later Juan Sanchez Villa-Lobos Ramirez (Sean Connery) a nobleman of Egyptian / Spanish descent teaches him that like he and the Kurgan MacLeod is an immortal who can only die by decapitation. He tells how the immortals are fated to duel down the ages to a mysterious distant time called The Gathering when the last few will battle for The Prize.