Simply Media, out now

Every pupil’s worst nightmare returns…

The Demon Headmaster – based on the books by Gillian Cross – is one of those series that those who saw it at the time of its first broadcast in the 1990s find it hard to forget – and will lap up Simply Media’s presentation of the whole run. But for those who haven’t seen it before, how does it stand up now?

The show sensibly throws us into the middle of a situation, as new pupil Dinah Glass discovers that things at her new school are worse than she could possibly have imagined. The headmaster – a great turn by Terrence Hardiman – is not what he seems (and that continues to be the case throughout the series: even death can’t stop his schemes, it appears). Can Dinah prevent his attempts at world domination?

The answer, of course, is yes, but there’s a great deal of fun to be had watching how both Dinah and her friends and the headmaster and his allies plot. The show attracted many recognisable faces – including Ed Bishop, Tessa Peake-Jones, Danny John-Jules, Tony Osoba and Annette Badland – but the plaudits go to Hardiman and Frances Amey as Dinah. Some of the effects are… well, some of them might have embarrassed Doctor Who twenty years earlier, but others hold up okay and it’s definitely one of those times that you have to look beyond the budget!

Verdict: An enjoyable children’s genre show. 7/10

Paul Simpson