Thirty years ago, it was a byword for gore, suspense and over-acting. Now the Hammer House of Horror is open for business again, exclusively online, writes Hannah Strange.

Beyond the Rave, the first horror movie made by Hammer Films since 1976, will be released not in cinemas but through MySpace, the world's biggest social networking site, on which it will be streamed in episodes next spring before being released on DVD.

The studio said that Beyond the Rave would contain all the ingredients of a Hammer classic: “vampires, blood, death and suspense throughout”, but, as the name suggests, with a 21st century twist.

Hammer's resurrection follows its takeover earlier this year by a consortium led by John De Mol, the Dutch producer behind Endemol and creator of Big Brother. The new owners have promised to plough £25 million into a new generation of films for horror lovers via the web and mobile phones.

Featuring Sadie Frost, arguably the perfect choice for a breathy Hammer Horror heroine, the film is a UK co-production with MySpace, which is owned by News Corporation, parent company of Times Online.

Celebrated for 1950s horror movies such as The Curse of Frankenstein and Dracula, Hammer Films launched in 1934 and became one of the best known British film companies in the 20th century, elevating actors such as Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee to worldwide fame.

This latest venture aims to refashion the genre for a modern audience using a host of up-to-the-minute technologies, according to Simon Oakes, Hammer Film Productions chairman and chief executive.

“When Hammer Films first started, it was an innovative production company and this new venture marks the beginning of a journey to recalibrate the DNA of Hammer Films for a new audience,” he said.

“To relaunch with MySpaceTV’s first UK co-production is perfect for a company originally born out of a culture of risk-taking and creativity.”

The film’s cast also includes Jamie Dornan - who featured in Sofia Coppola’s 2006 film, Marie-Antoinette, starring Kirsten Dunst - Nora-Jane Noone, and Tamer Hassan.

James Fabricant, MySpace Europe’s director of entertainment and head of video, said: “This partnership demonstrates the power of MySpace and how traditional media is being turned on its head.

“For Hammer to make their first movie in 30 years specifically for the MySpace community is a phenomenal development and shows the dramatic change in how consumers want to access content.”

Hammer Films has produced over 150 movies since its first production, The Public Life of Henry The Ninth, in 1935. But it is best-known for dominating the horror boom of the 1950s.

Its last film was To The Devil A Daughter, featuring Honor Blackman, in 1976.

The studio was sold to Mr De Mol's Cyrte Investments after being bought in February 2000 by a consortium which included advertising supremo Charles Saatchi.

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