The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue

A young antiques dealer, George, leaves London for a few days in the countryside. A collision at a petrol station puts him together with Edna, who is travelling to visit her sister, and the two continue on the road as companions. Around the rural community where Edna's sister lives, the Ministry of Agriculture has been testing a machine that uses ultrasonic radiation to destroy pests. Its effect is not limited to insects: the recently dead rise and attack the living, and a vagrant who supposedly drowned days earlier is among them. When Edna's brother-in-law is killed, a suspicious police inspector fixes on Edna's sister and treats the newcomers as likely culprits, pushing George and Edna to work out what the machine has done.

Jorge Grau directed the film, which followed The Rash One (1964) and Acteón (1967) in his career. Sandro Continenza, Marcello Coscia and Juan Cobos wrote the screenplay, Edmondo Amati produced, and Cristina Galbó and Ray Lovelock star as Edna and George, with Arthur Kennedy as the inspector.

Released in late 1974 and running 95 minutes, the British, Spanish and Italian co-production sits in a cycle of European zombie films. On IMDb it holds 6.7/10 from around 10,000 votes, while on TMDB it has 6.4/10 from roughly 241 votes. A critics' rating of 7.4/10 from 22 reviews is higher than both audience scores, indicating stronger professional regard than its modest vote totals might suggest.