HORROR fans will be able to enjoy some gore-some film fun when a popular festival returns to Southend later this month.

Now in it is the tenth year, the Horror-on-Sea film festival is set to delight and horrify fans of the horror genre in equal measure.

There will be never-before seen shorts, world premieres, and horror classics at the festival in Park Inn Palace Hotel on Pier Hill from Friday, January 13 to Sunday January 22.

The 2023 Southend event will showcase more than 35 feature films, more than 70 short movies fromcountries includingthe UK, Canada, Brazil, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Italy, Germany, Russia,Finland,Ukraine,India, Ireland, and the USA.

Echo: Horror-on-Sea film To Raise Her SpiritsHorror-on-Sea film To Raise Her Spirits (Image: Horror-on-Sea)

Things get off to a good start with lycanthrope thriller The Hunting, along with Molly Brown’sThe Curse of Room 102 which was filmed during the 2022 event at the Park Inn Radisson Hotel.

Paul Cotgrove, director and creator of Horror-on-Sea, said: “I can’t believe that we’ve hit a full ten years since the projectors first began showing all manner of scary films in my hometown.

“Cannes has the Palme d’Or and Southend has horror. Joking aside, since its inception Horror-on-Sea has been a vital opportunity for a huge number of people who love the macabre, spooky and downright frightening to make, create and celebrate the kinds of film they love.”

As is tradition, a number of films made in south Essex will feature, such as Video Shop Tales of Terror, Conkers for the Brave, Eat your Eggs, and Powertool Cheerleaders vs The Boy Band of the Screeching Dead.

Essex-based horror auteur Pat Higgins makes a welcome return with his masterclass on Saturday, January 14.

Higgins will also reveal how his own flick Powertool Cheerleaders vs the Boyband of the Screeching Dead went from a tongue-in-cheek Twitter exchange to becoming a finished movie.

Tickets cost £7 per film, £32 for a day pass, or £130 for a mega-festival pass covering the entire festival.

For a full list of all the films, the festival schedule and pre-ordering tickets and passes stalk over to www.Horror-on-Sea.com or call the festival hotline on 07754 391 163.

Please note that all films are rated 18.