265 Curse of the Crimson Altar ( 1968 )

With  censorship  pretty  much  at  an  end  by  1968 ,  here's  where  we  start  seeing  a  bit  more  flesh  in  the  films. Curse  of  the  Crimson  Altar  was  another  Tigon  effort  which  stars  Christopher  Lee  as  the  apparently  avuncular  descendant  of  an  executed  witch. This  doesn't  win  any  prizes  for narrative  coherence  but  there's  a  fair  amount  of  female  flesh  on  show  to  compensate.

Mark  Eden  (  famous  as  Coronation  Street  villain  Alan  Bradley )  is    hero   Mark  Manning  investigating  his  brother's  unexplained   (  which   remains  so  after  the  final  reel  )  disappearance. One  of  the  writers  Henry  Lincoln  was later among  those   responsible  for  all  that  Da  Vinci  Code  nonsense. It's  one  of  Boris  Karloff's  last  films  and  he's  in  a  wheelchair  for  most  of  it.

Virginia  Weatherell  ( as  Eve  Morley )

Sex :  Eve  has  sex  with  Mark. Though  pretty  tame,  it's  the  first  real  sex  scene  we've  covered.

Death : Survives

Though  the  credits  claim  she  is  being  introduced, Virginia  already   had  a  few  film  appearances  under  her  belt  as  well  as  parts  in  Dr  Who  and  Crossroads. She  went  on  to  other  horror  films  but  after  1973  her  career  took  a  back  seat  to  that  of  husband Ralph  Bates. She  retired in  the  late  nineties  to  run  an  antiques  clothes shop  in  London  and  a  cancer  charity  in  Bates's  memory. She  is  now  74.

Barbara  Steele  ( as  Lavinia )

Sex : Nice  cleavage

Death : Originally  executed  by  burning  but  returns to  take  possession  of  her  descendant

I  can't  really  think  why  Barbara  took  this  part. It's  little  more than  a  cameo  and  she  has  to  wear  blue  body  paint  -at  least  on  the  visible  parts.

Rosemarie  Reede  ( as  Esther )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Rosemarie  was  a  bit  part  actress  with  this  her  only  credited  film  role  though  she'd  made  a  handful  of  TV  appearances. She  vanishes  after  this

Nita  Loraine  ( as  woman  with  whip )

Sex : The  woman  is  topless  though  her  large  breasts  are  smeared  with  black  paint

Death : Survives

Nita  was  a  bit  part  actress  active  in  the  sixties  and  early  seventies. She  is now  75.

Vivienne  Carlton ( as  sacrifice  victim )

Sex : The  victim  is  naked  but  her  genitals  are  obscured  by  a  belt  and  her  breasts  by  her  hair

Death :  Stabbed  by  Peter  Manning

This  was  Vivienne's  only  film.

Vikki  Richards  ( as  Belly  dancer  at  party )

Sex : She  pours  drinks  over  her  breasts

Death : Survives

Vikki  was  a  bit  part  actress  in  films, of  which  this  was  the  first  though  she  had  more  substantial  roles  on  TV. She  was  born  in  Trinidad. Her  last  acting  role  seems  to  have  been  a  one scene  cameo  in  Howard's  Way  as  Charles  Frere's  wife  in  1985  ( a  scene  I  actually  recall ). She  is  now  67.

Tasma  Bereton ( as  girl  who  is  painted )

Sex : The  girl's  breasts  are  being  painted

Death : Survives

Tasma  was  a  bit  part  actress  with  just  three  films  to  her  name.

Lita  Scott  ( as  girl  with  cockerel )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Most  of  Lita's  action  was  cut  leaving  just  a  couple  of  quick  glimpses

Nova  St  Claire  ( as  Girl  in  car  chase )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

This  was  Nova's  only  film  appearance  though  she  made  a  few  TV  appearances  around  this  time.