Rev. Alexander Algernon Ford (Gavin Reed) is a vampire attempting to look for a stronger bloodline within his own. He has imprisoned Susan Ford (Jackie Skarvellis) a pregnant relative and plans to use her as breeding material.

The acting was terrible as was the plot, make-up, and sound. Film includes a hunch-back and cemetery ghouls. Shows Ireland and America in a bad light. Cult film.

Brief nudity (Jackie Skarvellis)

The Reverand Alexander Algernon Ford (Gavin Reed) is from a long line of vampires, and tries to ensure the continuation of his lineage by abducting distant relative Susan Ford (Jackie Skarvellis),imprisoning her at Carfax Abbey, and using her as breeding stock. Susan's boyfriend Paul Donati (Richmond Ross) isn't about to let that happen without a fight...

Any review that claims that this is a good Andy Milligan film is misleading: it's not good... it's just not his worst.

A vampire film set in London, The Body Beneath sees Milligan taking a stab at classy horror, the director striving for style and atmosphere, but failing to achieve either. His attempts at a dreamlike Jean Rollin-esque ambience is ham-fisted, in particular the scenes featuring a trio of female vampiresses: dressed in garish coloured outfits and with crudely painted faces, they're like an unholy cross between Princess Fiona and Grotbags, unlikely to strike fear in the heart or arouse feelings of carnal desire. Andy simply doesn't have Rollin's flair for cool compositions, gothic eroticism, or ethereal vibes.

Milligan's clumsy direction makes this film a challenge to finish, but the dreariness is compounded by amateurish performances, a diabolical script, and a lack of gore, the only graphic scene of horror being a woman stabbed in the eyes with a pair of chunky knitting needles. The final 15 minutes or so see Milligan's awkward Euro-style surreality taken to extremes, with canted angles aplenty and vaseline on the lens for a weird vampire feast, where the Reverand announces that he and his clan will up sticks from Highgate to California, where he has secured tombs at Forest Lawn. I almost dozed off.

In what is clearly intended to be a poetic, darkly romantic ending, the now vampiric Susan and Paul awaken in Carfax Abbey to find the place empty... it's all theirs, for eternity!

2.5/10, rounded up to 3 for Spool (Berwick Kaler),the hunchbacked henchman, 'cos every film should have one.

I'm probably in a very small group of people that actually really enjoys Andy Milligan movies , this for me ,is without question , his best it's a very clear nod to "Dracula" 1931 version and Hammer movies that were still being churned out at the time , Milligan must have also been very aware of the story that was big in the press at the time of the so called "Highgate vampire " he uses about a minute of screen time of the location and even then we just see 3 pantomime style vampire ladies with green make up slathered over their faces attack a woman who is tending to a grave , the plot concerns a reverend who is a centuries old vampire whose bloodline is dying out due to incest , he traces family members who may or may not be good to sire the next generation of vampire children , he finds it in a relative who is already pregnant and plans to use her child to carry on the legacy , Its shockingly cheap , badly acted but there is just something about this film that appeals to me Don't go expecting a hammer style movie , this has more in common with Acorn Antiques !