What Really Scared You As A Child?

Errashareesh · 30-07-2020 11:48pm

Going to the doctor.

A TV series called Sapphire & Steel - which I was far too young for, and couldn't make head or tail of (still can't) yet loved it despite its unbelievable creepiness.

The TV series of Day Of The Triffids - the sound that the plants made was terrifying.

Numerous fairy stories were horrific!

Clowns - I don't know why they're so sinister, but they are.

And those public information films - e.g. the kid drowning in the paddling pool or the dog attacking the sheep, or the risk of your nightie combusting if you stood too close to the fire (that one was hosted by the aforementioned witch from Fortycoats - frightening woman!) And the nun shouting "Bah!" into the kid's ear to check their hearing. :eek:

Four Phucs Ache · 30-07-2020 11:58pm

80s Scotch video tape tv ad.

I'm highly confident because of these ads that I am a master of the word Fook and every version of it.

nthclare · 31-07-2020 12:00am

Holy pictures used to frighten me, and concrete structures where there's water.
Like dams and drains, big pipe's etc

Open culverts, there's something creepy about them and water works such as pump houses etc

The still give me the shivers.

I was scared of those even before the first Stephen king movie IT came out these buildings and feats of engineering gave me fear.

Four Phucs Ache · 31-07-2020 12:05am

nthclare wrote: »

Holy pictures used to frighten me, and concrete structures where there's water.
Like dams and drains, big pipe's etc

Open culverts, there's something creepy about them and water works such as pump houses etc

The still give me the shivers.

I was scared of those even before the first Stephen king movie IT came out these buildings and feats of engineering gave me fear.

With you on the concrete and water, went on a day out to turlough hill circa age 8. Crisp grey concrete and endless black water sticks with me.

Arghus · 31-07-2020 12:09am

Thoughts of the devil, hell, eternal damnation.

emo72 · 31-07-2020 12:12am

Space 1999 dragons domain episode. How the **** did this pass the censor for children's TV. Oh yeah we had to censor out the suggestion of a nipple on TV, but tentacled life force flesh stripping aliens? Yeah that's fine.

https://youtu.be/tvyWfwT5nwU

Lobsterlady · 31-07-2020 12:16am

Nuclear war....think it may have been When the Wind Blows that put the fear into me, plus my older brother telling me we lived only 30 minutes from Shannon Airport which would be a definite strike by the Russians. We'd all bleed out from our eyes and asses....and that would be it. That and Jaws .....never felt comfortable swimming in any sea water that was murky since.

punisher5112 · 31-07-2020 12:18am

That's just trolling

nthclare · 31-07-2020 12:21am

Lobsterlady wrote: »

Nuclear war....think it may have been When the Wind Blows that put the fear into me, plus my older brother telling me we lived only 30 minutes from Shannon Airport which would be a definite strike by the Russians. We'd all bleed out from our eyes and asses....and that would be it. That and Jaws .....never felt comfortable swimming in any sea water that was murky since.

I remember that in the 80's aerophlot used to land in Shannon and their pilot's and cabin crew would stay in local apartments.

We used to think they were spies.

Although the Russian women were quite attractive.

But during the first gulf war us kids/teen-agers thought Sadam was going to nuke the town any day soon

31-07-2020 12:25am

The 'Lonely Water ' ad from the 70's, where the grim reaper lurked beside the waters, just waiting to drag you down down into the murky depths...

Lobsterlady · 31-07-2020 12:25am

nthclare wrote: »

I remember that in the 80's aerophlot used to land in Shannon and their pilot's and cabin crew would stay in local apartments.

We used to think they were spies.

Although the Russian women were quite attractive.

But during the first gulf war us kids/teen-agers thought Sadam was going to nuke the town any day soon

Yes I remember that now...the Russians stayed in an apartment block just before the airport....or so I was told.

Airyfairy12 · 31-07-2020 12:30am

In the movie 3 men and a baby, theres a scene in it with what looks like a lifesize cardboard cutout of someone behind a curtain, there was a myth that this was the ghost of someone who had been killed on set, presumably a story made up by the movie makers to promote their sh!tty film.
I was terrified, didnt sleep the whole night after watching it the first time and anytime it came on tv I had to leave the room at the part with the 'ghost'. My mother eventually banned me from watching it because id wreck her head and get upset every time it came on.

paddythere · 31-07-2020 12:31am

The Invisible Man

Realt Dearg Sec · 31-07-2020 12:32am

punisher5112 wrote: »

People that identified as a woman but were a man and vice Versa

Do ye lads ever take a day off from the agenda no?

I used to be frightened by the McSpuds cartoon on Bosco. It was meant to be harmless kids stuff but like a lot of children's tv it had a creepy overtone. It was set in the nighttime in a supermarket and followed a family of potatoes, and their interactions with other food in the shop. It was creepy and dark in its animation and the music was this odd eery supermarket Muzak that I can still hear now, and every character has that all shrill voice that I associate with Bosco presenters generally.

Found this on YouTube, **** me it's still creepy and I'm 38.

https://youtu.be/O2St2rpxzbA

Gemancy · 31-07-2020 12:42am

My parents use to tell us the fairies would come and take us away if we wore our socks to bed, used to genuinely petrify me! Still wouldn’t dream of doing it!!

Also, my Nan’s old fashioned flowery wallpaper, if I stared at it long enough the flowers would start to turn into creepy, evil faces!

Spent a lot of time being petrified that ‘Holy God’ or Mary would appear to me, used to beg them not to...

ricero · 31-07-2020 12:49am

Pennywise the clown from the original IT film.

punisher5112 · 31-07-2020 12:50am

Mod edit - do not discuss moderation on thread

Dr. Colossus · 31-07-2020 12:50am

The Unsolved Mysteries theme song.

nthclare · 31-07-2020 12:51am

Gemancy wrote: »

My parents use to tell us the fairies would come and take us away if we wore our socks to bed, used to genuinely petrify me! Still wouldn’t dream of doing it!!

Also, my Nan’s old fashioned flowery wallpaper, if I stared at it long enough the flowers would start to turn into creepy, evil faces!

Spent a lot of time being petrified that ‘Holy God’ or Mary would appear to me, used to beg them not to...

You must have been very naughty like myself lol

Isn't it amazing how much fear we had of the Abrahamic religion.

I never feared Thor, Zeus, Beanshees Fairies etc

But that demon from the middle east scared the **** out of me

madmaggie · 31-07-2020 12:56am

My parents divorce.

punisher5112 · 31-07-2020 12:58am

Girls...

ArnoldJRimmer · 31-07-2020 1:11am

Some pretty random stuff

Nuns, and in particular photos of nuns from the the 1970s and prior. I had a nightmare about nuns when I was bout 5 or 6 that I remember to this day

When I stayed at my grannys house, I often slept in the living room due to lack of space. She had one of those pictures of Jesus where the eyes would follow you around the room, and living beside a main road, often passing cars would shine their lights into the room and you'd see the man himself staring at you

.anon. · 31-07-2020 1:15am

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1RsgSBySXk

chrissb8 · 31-07-2020 1:18am

[Deleted User] wrote: »

the banshee in darby o gill

We all live the same life it seems

Alanhooly · 31-07-2020 1:22am

The thoughts of someone breaking into my house. Every little sound from downstairs would startle me, especially when I knew everyone was upstairs & already in bed

gogo · 31-07-2020 1:29am

The local librarian had a soft spot for me and used to let me into the adult section well before my time.... it was there I discovered Stephen King at the tender age of 10/11.
The Shining positively petrified me! I used to collect Stephen king first editions, was a massive, massive fan of his when I was younger but have still never finished that book, it has engraved itself in the ‘Do Not Open’ section in my brain.
My 11 year old self had never gotten over it, when The tv show, friends, had it with Joey putting it in the fridge.... I totally got that. Best place for it!

_Whimsical_ · 31-07-2020 1:32am

When I was 4 :
A woman who I now realise was a childminder brought a different baby to school in the morning every so often when dropping her child off. Her son and myself were always first to school so I always had a look at the baby of the day. I asked her how she always had a different one and she told me that she bought them but would get sick of them and sell them on, then just buy a new one.
She used to tell me to ask my mother if she wanted to sell me, that I'd go for top dollah! I would politely lie to her and said I'd asked but my mum had said no.

I used to find it genuinely heartbreaking looking into the pram at the different babies imagining how they'd be heartlessly traded in for a "younger model".

I'm sure she has no idea that she terrified me and made me genuinely sad or that I still remember her.

gogo · 31-07-2020 1:33am

Oh and ‘The Dark‘, Landing light left on all through my childhood with the bedroom door cracked open, heaven forbid the electricity would go, id be screaming blue murder. Still sleep with the landing light on and the door cracked open.

Andrewf20 · 31-07-2020 1:34am

Those fraggle rock giants. Pure evil.

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Also, lightening at night time. You didnt know when it would flash next. Id have to turn on the light.

Purple Mountain · 31-07-2020 1:41am

There was a family on our road who were obsessed with ghost stories and fairies and myths etc.
The grandmother had stories of hearing the banshee as a child, seeing fairies in a fairy ring and of a ghost that haunted an old abandoned building locally.
Her grandchildren would then relay the stories to me and a few nights I lay awake in bed, sweating and my heart hammering waiting to hear the banshee's wail outside my window.
The sad fact is the grandmother actually believed her own stories.

Nesta99 · 31-07-2020 1:51am

Going north of the border, seemed to be guns everywhere and scary armed police officers. Adds on terrorism and about calling the confidential police line probably the reason.

TheUnderfaker · 31-07-2020 1:56am

Quicksand

.anon. · 31-07-2020 1:58am

Nesta99 wrote: »

Billy Mitchell from EastEnders is a rat.

_Whimsical_ · 31-07-2020 2:33am

Zaph wrote: »

Quicksand - I believed it was a lot more prevalent than it actually is and we all need to be on the lookout for it. I think it must have been in a couple of TV shows or films I saw fairly close together, I can't think of any other reason it would bother me, especially as I don't recall it ever being reported in south Dublin.

Quicksand occupied the minds of a lot of children of the 80s and early 90s.
I think it was a really cheap stunt in low budget 1970s tv shows that were recycled 10 years later on RTE. I definitely remember Wonder Woman and 1960s Batman having a few run-ins with it.

JupiterKid · 31-07-2020 2:38am

...and here is the very poster that terrified me as a 7 year old.

Seems pretty tame now, but back in 1982/83 this literally gave me nightmares.

11417_13424642_c350842c-ae55-42e5-87b1-eaa0d02c7377.jpeg

Ahwell · 31-07-2020 2:54am

Children of the Stones

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BeJ39FsWpbk

Hard to believe now that it was a children's program.

r93kaey5p2izun · 31-07-2020 2:55am

The Sacred Heart picture with the eyes that followed you.

Rimini Riddle.

Picnic at Hanging Rock.

The house where a fella murdered his family.

And what I now realise was the beginning of a life long affliction of sleep paralysis and hypnagogic hallucinations, but which at the time was people standing over me in my bed along with occasional spiders.

I also remember some issue had developed in England (Gloucestershire iirc) with what was described as a "flesh eating bacteria". A few people had died. It was discussed on Gay Byrne's radio show. I was petrified and lost sleep over it.

andekwarhola · 31-07-2020 2:58am

Example:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=747SKishQPg

Ipso · 31-07-2020 4:49am

The flying monkeys in the wizard of oz.

ILoveYourVibes · 31-07-2020 7:42am

I was scared of the sound of the ICE CREAM van.

And i was also scared of the lion on the lion bars.

winneconne-wi-14-january-2019-a-package-of-nestle-lion-bar-snack-on-an-isolated-background-2ANX8MT.jpg

winneconne-wi-14-january-2019-a-package-of-nestle-lion-bar-snack-on-an-isolated-background-2ANX8MT.jpg

ILoveYourVibes · 31-07-2020 7:44am

I honestly think my reasoning was sound. The Ice cream van sounds like a siren. And the lion looks like he will eat you.

El Gato De Negocios · 31-07-2020 7:45am

The Wheelers in Return to Oz

The room of heads, also in Return to Oz

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnIdI8iiK1M

The Skeksis from The Dark Crystal.

The Cyborg woman scene in Superman 3

The ghost librarian in Ghostbusters

Kids movies in the 80s were dark as fcuk.

The Freddy long arms scene from Nightmare on Elm St also has a special place in my psyche.

ILoveYourVibes · 31-07-2020 7:49am

Statutory Ape wrote: »

The Wheelers in Return to Oz

The room of heads, also in Return to Oz

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnIdI8iiK1M

The Skeksis from The Dark Crystal.

The Cyborg woman scene in Superman 3

The ghost librarian in Ghostbusters

Kids movies in the 80s were dark as fcuk.

The Freddy long arms scene from Nightmare on Elm St also has a special place in my psyche.

Nothing in comparison to the music from the Ice Cream man.

Wibbs · 31-07-2020 8:08am

Aglomerado wrote: »

Nuclear war for me too, and I was in my 30s when I first saw Threads. Imagine if I'd seen it back in 1984! I'd have been a gibbering wreck!

I did and I was.

Kylie Rapping Web wrote: »

Picnic at Hanging Rock.

Masterpiece of atmospheric horror that one.

Wanderer78 · 31-07-2020 8:13am

Statutory Ape wrote:

The Freddy long arms scene from Nightmare on Elm St also has a special place in my psyche.

Freddy in general, scared the sh1t outta me

Feisar · 31-07-2020 8:23am

The demons in my head.

Here be dragons

Archeron · 31-07-2020 8:32am

At the end of the intro to Bosco, a weird puppet thing used to pull on a blind cord pull that was attached to his head and then it would open the show. That puppet haunted my dreams.

The scene in jaws where the kid on the inflatable mattress was sucked into the water and then blood sprayed directly up out of the water.

Michael Jackson's thriller