Category
🎥
Short filmTranscript
00:00I do enjoy these visits to the palace. A glass of sherry, a little verbal fencing and a bracing
00:08dose of hatred and contempt. Most invigorating. And today there's going to be a little extra
00:14treat. No, I won't spoil it. Wait and see.
00:17Thank you. Hello, Mycroft.
00:20I'm sure he's on to something.
00:24What did he say?
00:26Nothing. Just that smile of his, you know.
00:30Mr. Eckert, it's some weeks now since you hinted to me you were planning to call a general election.
00:35Yes, sir, I believe it is.
00:37I beg that of some idea of the date you have in mind.
00:39I'm sure you would, yes. And, of course, you will be the first to be informed.
00:44But there are some imponderables and some parliamentary business still to be enacted.
00:49What business, if I may ask?
00:51Of course you may, sir. Your prerogative.
00:53We, uh...
00:55We thought about taking another look at the civil list, amongst other things.
00:59After a full-scale review only a year ago?
01:02Yes, we thought about having another look.
01:06I trust you're not being vindictive, Mr. Eckert?
01:08Not at all, sir, not at all. Far be it from this government to lop another million or so
01:13off a deserving royal family on the specious pretext of babies starving in the streets.
01:18Oh, for God's sake, man. That sort of cheap remark's unworthy of you.
01:23I hear you've been having secret talks with opposition leaders
01:26and one or two of the less trustworthy members of my own party. Is this true?
01:30I have a perfect right. I would regard it as my duty
01:34to inform myself of all shades of political opinion.
01:37Yes, but that right hardly extends to conspiring in Chelsea restaurants
01:42and trying to organise a bloodless coup against the elected government of the day, does it?
01:47Well, now, look here. Consultation doesn't mean conspiracy.
01:49And questioning the government isn't a criminal activity, is it?
01:52We know what you've been up to.
01:54And my advice on that little venture is pack it in.
01:58It won't work. It'll all end in tears.
02:02Eckert, what are you frightened of?
02:04If my views are wrong, they'll be seen to be wrong, won't they?
02:06And if they're not wrong, then they should be heard and you should welcome them, shouldn't you?
02:12I understand you're preparing a television programme now. May I see a copy of the text?
02:17No. Still in preparation.
02:23I should think very carefully about all this, if I were you, sir.
02:30Well, do you know I have done, Prime Minister, and I shall continue to do so.
02:39What I would prefer, of course, is that he'd give up thinking altogether.
02:42Kings aren't supposed to think.
02:44It was a great mistake sending him to university,
02:46letting him talk to all those architects and philosophers.
02:49Thank you, Miss Carmichael.
02:51Pleasure, Prime Minister.
02:53He's become far too fond of the sound of his own voice.
02:55The trouble is, other people seem to like it too.
02:57I do hate confrontations.
02:59Somebody always ends up getting hurt.
03:01Time for a visit to the House of Wounded Feeling.
03:08We have to keep our options open.
03:12Your Royal Highness.
03:15What do you want this time?
03:17To assure you of my government's warm and continuing interest in your welfare, Ma'am,
03:22and to inquire if there is any way in which I could be of service to you.
03:26Thank you.
03:28Look, it's very good of you to take the trouble, but, um,
03:32I'm afraid I can't do that.
03:34I'm afraid I can't do that.
03:36I'm afraid I can't do that.
03:38I'm afraid I can't do that.
03:41Look, it's very good of you to take the trouble, but, um,
03:44could I just ask if you're planning to spend one of those meaningless half hours saying absolutely nothing?
03:49Because if you were planning something like that, I'd just as soon leave it out, if you don't mind.
03:54I've sort of had all that, as I'm sure you can imagine.
03:57Yes, indeed.
03:59Yes, indeed.
04:01Thank you.
04:04So, is there any chance of my asking a couple of simple questions and getting straight answers?
04:10You could try, Ma'am.
04:12I want to know what he's up to.
04:15In my view, he's playing a dangerous game, Ma'am.
04:18He's playing politics.
04:20His usual line, but he's taking it further.
04:23He's coming into direct conflict with the elected government,
04:26and his advisers, who should be restraining him, seem to be egging him on.
04:32I take it you no longer have any influence there?
04:35I never had, Mr Urquhart.
04:37That's a pity.
04:38Or anywhere else.
04:39Oh, now, there you are too modest.
04:43What's going to happen, Mr Urquhart?
04:45I'm afraid that by his actions, His Majesty is going to injure himself.
04:50You mean you're going to injure him?
04:54Do you really want to destroy the monarchy?
04:57No, Ma'am. I do not want to destroy the monarchy.
05:01You have nothing to fear from me, nor does your son.
05:05You need friends, Ma'am.
05:07You need strong friends whom you can trust.
05:11I sought no quarrel with your husband.
05:14I wished to be his friend, and now I wish to be yours.
05:18The breach between him and me can be healed if he wills it.
05:23Whether he does or not, you and your son will not suffer.
05:29I think you understand me, don't you?
05:32Yes, I do.
05:37But can I trust you?
05:43You know you can.
05:53Mother?
05:54Yes, darling?
05:58Mother?
06:08Look stranger on this island, now the leaping light for your delight discovers.
06:13Stand stable here, and silent be,
06:16that through the channel of the ear may wander like a river the swaying sound of the sea.
06:22I love my country, but I have to tell you that I fear for what is happening to it.
06:26Sadly, pollution is the word that comes most readily to mind.
06:29Wow, that's really, really bad news.
06:33Oh, come on, Charlie, man's telling the truth.
06:36Oh, Quilly, what do you know from diddly squat?
06:39Man's making a stand. You've got to respect that.
06:44Pollution in the most literal sense of our seas and rivers, of our roads, our cities.
06:49Pollution caused by the cynical exploitation of natural resources.
06:53But also a deeper, more insidious form of pollution.
06:57Moral pollution.
06:59What one might almost call pollution of the soul.
07:03This kind of pollution permits the cynical exploitation of human resources,
07:07the waste of human talent,
07:09the destruction by design or by neglect of human hopes and aspirations,
07:14the erosion of human dignity,
07:16and the gradual obliteration of those values which I've always felt to be peculiarly ours.
07:21Ours in these islands.
07:23The values of fairness, of human kindness.
07:27That sense that we are all equal in the eyes of God.
07:32That to be human means to be bound together in mutual trust and dependency.
07:37That sense that what will survive of us is love.
07:41Love in its broadest sense.
07:44Nowadays I find that I sleep badly.
07:47And my waking hours are troubled by a pervasive sense of unease.
07:50And I know why.
07:52There is a new spirit abroad.
07:54A deeply disturbing and depressing spirit.
07:57We are beginning not to care about each other anymore.
08:01Some of us who have jobs and homes and money
08:04are beginning to regard the unemployed as just a little less human than ourselves.
08:09The homeless as a little less human than ourselves.
08:14The very poor as a little less human than ourselves.
08:18We begin not to notice them.
08:20To harden our hearts against them.
08:22Even to blame them for their hardship and their unhappiness.
08:25As if they weren't quite human.
08:28As if they didn't feel pain and hunger quite as we do.
08:31But they do.
08:33They do.
08:34I don't want to rule over a country.
08:35I don't want to live in a country in which people don't care about each other.
08:39I'm not a political animal.
08:40But it seems to me that we must find a new way to live together in this land of ours.
08:46I think we all know that.
08:48Things are going to have to change.
08:50I want to be part of that change.
08:53Let us begin to make that change.
08:56Now.
08:59And the excitement here, outside 10 Downing Street,
09:02is scarcely less than that outside the palace.
09:05The King's broadcast has brought out a truly extraordinary public response.
09:10The crowds are out in the streets here in London and in all major cities
09:14in support of the King's apparent opposition
09:17to Francis Urquhart's hard-line policies on welfare.
09:20The King's broadcast has brought out a truly extraordinary public response.
09:24The crowds are out in the streets here in London and in all major cities
09:27in support of the King's apparent opposition
09:29to Francis Urquhart's hard-line policies on welfare.
09:32And we're just waiting now for the Prime Minister,
09:35who's on his way here from Chequers.
09:37And here he comes now.
09:49Could you give me a few words?
09:50Of course. Happy to.
09:52I'm here on Downing Street,
09:53following the King's savage criticism of government policy.
09:56Absolute nonsense.
09:57His Majesty and I enjoy excellent relations
10:00based on mutual trust and a free and frank exchange of views.
10:04If I may say so, that is not the way it's being seen by Buckingham Palace sources.
10:08They see it as something pretty close to civil war.
10:10They may very well think that if they're silly enough.
10:13Here's the way I see it.
10:14His Majesty is as much entitled to his views as you or I.
10:18He's an idealist, and I like him all the better for it.
10:21He's actually a very nice man, you know. All right?
10:26I want a full report on this.
10:27Yes, sir. Which particular aspects?
10:29All aspects. Where's Mr Stamper?
10:31He's waiting for you, sir, and Mrs Hardy.
10:33Right. And I want no calls for the next hour.
10:35Right.
10:41Out! Out!
10:48All right. What's the damage?
10:50We've underestimated him.
10:51He's a first-class bit of propaganda.
10:53You've got to hand it to him.
10:54What are the polls saying?
10:55Ten percent swing against the government.
10:57Ten percent?
10:58People are so very fickle, aren't they?
11:00They don't seem to appreciate what I've done for them at all.
11:02It's just a temporary blip, Francis.
11:04Come the election, they'll vote for low taxes and a tight ship.
11:07They always do.
11:08I hope they will, Tim.
11:09So far, your efforts to get that view across have been remarkably unsuccessful.
11:13What the hell is your little pal Brinford Jones playing at?
11:15I don't know if you...
11:16Time for a change of heart.
11:18I thought you had him muted!
11:19So did I.
11:20And Bullaby's rag appears to have lost its brains completely.
11:23King of hearts!
11:24Well, you know the pit, Paul.
11:26No, actually, that was one thing I left to you.
11:28This isn't good enough. I'm extremely disappointed.
11:31You can have my resignation any time you like, Prime Minister.
11:34I don't want your resignation.
11:35I just want you to do the job I thought you were capable of.
11:39Could we have a word in private?
11:41No. I don't think that'll be necessary.
11:44And I've got rather a lot to do this morning.
11:49Thank you.
11:51Thank you.
11:53DOOR SLAMS SHUT
11:55SIGHS
12:16Perhaps we should consider the possibility that he may be in the right.
12:22Stamper?
12:25The King.
12:28He may be right, Sarah.
12:32He's not right.
12:33What he said had no intellectual content whatsoever.
12:36No thought.
12:37It's all bleeding heart. Compassion babble.
12:41Go on.
12:43Well, no-one likes distress and poverty.
12:48But if we left it up to him, he'd plunge the whole country back into debt.
12:53We'd be back in the same old vicious circle of subsidising indolence and apathy
12:57and penalising talent and industry.
13:00He's put it on the agenda, though.
13:02Compassion, I mean.
13:04He's really done it, I'm afraid.
13:07Compassion's here to stay.
13:10Is he, um, very angry?
13:13You could say that, yes.
13:15Forget about that knighthood for a start.
13:18Do you know, I don't think I thought about that at all when I was writing that leader.
13:25Feel quite proud of that, in a way.
13:28Oh, well, the trouble is, unless you toe the line now,
13:31that other business is going to have to come out.
13:34What other business?
13:36The business of your indecently exposing yourself on Stirling Railway Station.
13:40What business do you think?
13:41Stamper, for pity's sake.
13:43Nothing personal.
13:44Brian, you know that. Rule to the game.
13:46But the heat's on now and he's calling in all favours.
13:49A fuse on the warpath and the price of coffins is going to raise.
13:56Huckleberry Finn.
13:58The only book I ever read right through at school.
14:01I'll later come to that.
14:05And a total waste of time that was, too.
14:12Do you ever wonder
14:15Do you ever wonder if the whole game's worth a candle?
14:21Almost every day now, Tim.
14:23Really?
14:28He can be such a swine, Brian.
14:32I don't think he appreciates how much he owes to me.
14:35Do you ever think about the future, Tim?
14:38Next PM, I mean, taking over from FU.
14:41Not any more.
14:44Not enough of a power base.
14:47Who's heard of me, anyway?
14:48I spent my whole political life as Oak at Stourge.
14:51Some of us appreciate your qualities, Tim,
14:53and would support you if the opportunity arose.
14:57No one's invulnerable.
15:00That's true.
15:02Thanks, Brian.
15:04Who knows, eh?
15:15What did you talk about with her?
15:18Did you talk about politics?
15:21Sometimes.
15:24I used to let her ask me questions.
15:26It was a sort of game we had.
15:30Do you mind me asking about her?
15:34I'd rather you ask me than anyone else.
15:44Did you love her very much?
15:48Do you wish it was her here now, not me?
15:51Don't answer that.
15:53Forget it. It's all right. Forget it.
16:00I feel stifled.
16:04It's as if I'd like to open the curtain and stand at the window looking out.
16:08What is it you want to see?
16:11Nothing. I'd just like to be able to do it, that's all.
16:15Don't worry. I wasn't going to do it.
16:18You don't have to worry about me.
16:25I think I'll go home now. Is that all right?
16:27Of course, if that's what you want to do.
16:33I think I should.
16:36You're not regretting this.
16:38Oh, no.
16:42It's not easy, but I'm not regretting it.
16:46It's all far too interesting for that.
16:49I think it's the most interesting thing I've ever done.
16:52Good.
16:54You mustn't worry, Francis.
16:57I told you, I want to learn everything I can from you.
17:01And then you'll leave me.
17:04Well, nothing lasts forever, does it?
17:08I think I'd better take a shower.
17:10I must absolutely reek of you.
17:13I don't think Andrew would approve.
17:15Is that OK?
17:17Of course.
17:29No, it isn't easy.
17:31It is interesting, but it isn't easy.
17:34So many people gather in these rooms where lovers meet.
17:38So many ghosts, so many silent witnesses
17:42from my past life and her present one.
17:46Sometimes it seems they suck up all the sweet, fresh air
17:51and I can't breathe.
17:56I wanted to make her my slave.
17:59And now I almost feel in danger
18:02of becoming hers.
18:04The reaction's brilliant.
18:06We've just received these figures from the BBC, sir.
18:09You went over like a dream.
18:11I must say I feel greatly encouraged.
18:13Thank you, both of you, for your input.
18:15No, it was you, sir.
18:17You wrote your own words this time and people recognised that.
18:20You signed it like yourself and you said what they wanted to hear.
18:23You said what everyone wants to hear.
18:25Well, I hope so, Claire.
18:27I don't think there can be much doubt about that, sir.
18:30I've seen the latest poll for tomorrow's standard.
18:33Up to a 12% swing against government policies.
18:44Best the firm has done for years, if I can put it that way.
18:49But...
18:50I beg your pardon, sir?
18:52There's a reservation there, David. What is it?
18:55I don't see how you...
18:57how we are to go on from here.
18:59Urquhart's gearing up to fight a general election.
19:01He'll choose the date to suit himself.
19:03Now, is the palace intending to side with the opposition openly?
19:07I can't do that, David.
19:08The king cannot actively enter into party politics.
19:10I think you already have done, sir.
19:12And I think it's the best thing that could have happened.
19:14No, no, no.
19:15Absolute bloody nonsense, Chloe.
19:17It's my duty to take soundings.
19:18It's my duty to say what I think is right.
19:20And that is all I am doing,
19:21encouraging all political parties to adopt more humane,
19:24caring and rational domestic and international policies.
19:27And that is utterly and completely consistent with my status
19:29as the constitutional monarch in a parliamentary democracy.
19:32That's not the way the people see it, sir.
19:34They see you as the only man who has the stature
19:36and the moral authority and the sheer guts
19:38to take on Urquhart and win.
19:40And they're right. Urquhart's your enemy now.
19:42I'm not going to listen to any more of it.
19:44Please, leave us, Chloe, please. Thank you.
19:47I'm sorry, sir.
19:49I'm sorry, sir.
20:00I will not...
20:01This is not some petty personal blood feud,
20:05and I am not a politician.
20:10She's wrong, isn't she?
20:12I think so, sir.
20:15You're seeking to lead and influence public opinion.
20:18That'll make itself felt in all parties, and people can change.
20:22I know that.
20:25Of course, the Urquharts of this world aren't about to change.
20:30Chloe was right about Urquhart. He is your enemy.
20:33And I think he'll be utterly unscrupulous about the tactics he uses.
20:38And in that connection, there's something about me...
20:47No. No. Whatever it is, I don't want to hear it.
20:53Your private life clearly has nothing to do with your ability to do your job.
21:03Good God, David.
21:05Good God, David.
21:07The hell that wife of yours would put you through,
21:09you'd have been entitled to a full-scale nervous breakdown.
21:12Believe me, I know what it feels like.
21:14You're a rock, David. An absolute rock. Always have been.
21:17Best man I've got. Best man I know.
21:19Look here, David, if you're trying to tell me that you've found...
21:23someone else,
21:25and you're shagging yourself silly,
21:28well, jolly good luck to you, whoever it is.
21:31Nothing to do with your job. Full stop.
21:34Now...
21:36if you want to confide in me as a friend,
21:39well, now, that's something else.
21:42I don't think so.
21:46If it's not a problem for you, sir, it's certainly not one for me.
21:52As a matter of fact, I'm happier now than I've been for years.
21:55Oh, good.
21:57I'm delighted, David.
22:00Oh, yes, I knew her.
22:02She must have been the last virgin left in the EEC, I should think.
22:06Over 12, I mean, and properly connected.
22:08Did they take her word for it, or have the family doctor look her over?
22:11Brucey, that is beastly.
22:13How should I know? Do you want me to ask her?
22:16God. Could you? Would she tell you?
22:20You're just so disgusting, aren't you?
22:22It's not for me. It's for history.
22:25Oh, yeah. I forgot.
22:27You old hypocrite.
22:29What a little pig you are, little Brucey Willoughby,
22:31with your sack of money.
22:33Little Brucey, little Brucey!
22:35Oh, for God's sake, Charlotte! I love it.
22:37Please, can we get on?
22:39Now, it's better for her to mate with the strongest bull,
22:42for then she stands the best chance of producing strong pups next year.
22:46Number two bull chases number three away from a female
22:50and then claims her for himself.
22:53Was he seeing anyone else at the time?
22:55At what time? Oh, yeah, right.
22:57Well, of course he was.
22:59Who?
23:00God, I can't remember. Loads of people.
23:03You haven't really got this, have you, bully?
23:06Look, if you're one of his lot, you just send for anyone you want.
23:10It's what you call a thingy.
23:12Perk of the job.
23:14Silly old bullies.
23:16You can't remember any names, then?
23:18Oh, wow. Honestly.
23:20I didn't know this was going to be such hard work.
23:23Oh, and Lady, of course.
23:26Lady Baker Harvington.
23:28Oh, and Pooh. Pooh Bender.
23:31Do you know Pooh? Oh, you'd adore her.
23:33Pooh's a sport.
23:35Try anything once, Pooh. Point of principle.
23:38Oh, and, um...
23:40Oh, God.
23:42This is so exhausting.
23:44Bully, bully, can't we stop and have another little rest?
23:49Ooh!
23:54You don't think you might be letting things slide too far, Francis?
23:57There's not much to be done about it at the moment, Elizabeth.
24:00We've seriously underestimated him.
24:02Let's be frank about it.
24:04He's turned out to be quite a performer.
24:06But then, life would be very dull without its little ups and downs.
24:11No rest for the wicked.
24:13Oh, by the way, I shall be dining at this table.
24:16Oh, by the way, I shall be dining at the house this evening, if that's all right with you.
24:20Of course. I think I'll go down to the country.
24:23You don't need Cawdor this evening, do you?
24:25No.
24:26I think I'll give him dinner and we could make a start on Siegfried.
24:29That would be jolly.
24:31Very good value, Cawdor.
24:33I think so, too.
24:38Prime Minister's question time.
24:40Very frightening, like being mugged by a guinea pig.
24:43Mr John Stroud.
24:44Is the Prime Minister aware...
24:46Is the Prime Minister aware, as he certainly should be,
24:51if he's read a newspaper this week, if he's listened to the radio this week,
24:55if he's watched TV this week,
24:58if he's talked to any ordinary man or woman in the street this week,
25:03which I very much doubt he's done for a very long time,
25:06because he wouldn't like to hear what they've got to say.
25:09Too many words. You'll never learn.
25:11Is he aware that the vast majority of people in this country,
25:15from His Majesty himself to the homeless beggars in the streets,
25:21are fed up with him and his discredited policies?
25:25When, when will he go to the country,
25:29as he has continually hinted that he will,
25:32and give them a chance to vote him out
25:34and vote in a government that cares about people?
25:41I'd like to assure you, Madam Speaker,
25:43that the government is well aware of the problems
25:45so eloquently and movingly expressed by His Majesty,
25:48and, of course, his little...
25:50I mean the Right Honourable Gentleman.
25:52And I am happy to tell the House that the government is now in a position
25:56to address those problems directly
25:58in the series of measures to be announced next week.
26:03After which...
26:05After which we shall humbly submit
26:08to the verdict of the British public at the polling station.
26:15Yes, it's all very well tormenting the intellectually challenged,
26:19but we have been pushed into a bit of a U-turn by our royal friend,
26:22and those parts of the media we haven't fixed are going to say so.
26:25All the opposition have to do is to get a new leader
26:28without too many penalty points on his licence,
26:30play all the court cards, and we could be in serious trouble.
26:33Back to the welfare state without passing go.
26:36Dismal egalitarianism running rampant with a royal seal of approval.
26:40Thank God for the House of Lords, is all I can say.
26:43This debate is about foxhunting, but it's about much more than that.
26:47There are wreckers in this land, my lords,
26:50who want to do away with everything we hold most dear,
26:53whether it be the time-honoured customs of our country,
26:57or the great tradition of charity to our less fortunate fellow men,
27:01or even the sacred tradition of the monarchy itself.
27:05My lords, this is the first time I have been moved to speak in this house in 15 years.
27:12I only want to say this.
27:14Don't meddle in things that don't concern you.
27:17That's foxhunting.
27:19Do something about poverty and injustice,
27:22or you'll have a bloody revolution on your hands.
27:24And finally, don't blame the royal family.
27:28It's not their radical...
27:30Crisis, what crisis?
27:33The constitutional crisis.
27:36The Lords and Bishops signing with the King against the government.
27:39Storming a teacup, Gordon, a lot of bloody nonsense.
27:42This is not the Middle Ages.
27:44Chef has a glass too many at lunchtime, blows off steam,
27:46a lot of publicity, mad bishops join in.
27:48Well, that's what the House of Lords is for, isn't it?
27:52Oh!
28:04Prime Minister in.
28:10Sorry to butt in, nephew.
28:12Yes, Tim. What is it?
28:16What is it?
28:18We've got a crisis on our hands.
28:21We're trailing 14 points,
28:23and suddenly it's all right for everyone to call us names.
28:25The troops are getting very jumpy.
28:28I need to tell them something positive.
28:32We go to the polls three weeks from tomorrow.
28:35All right with you?
28:37How bloody excellent.
28:40We just need to get things moving, that's all.
28:43The chaps will soon fall into place.
28:45I mean, who really cares about champs and beggars, for God's sake?
28:49Oh, um, I've got Staines to do a point of order,
28:53just for the look of it.
28:55Who?
28:57Staines. You know, always keen to please.
29:00Can you stop him?
29:02Well, we've already started by now.
29:05Why, what's the matter?
29:07I wish you'd consulted me first, Tim.
29:09Staines is about to become a problem.
29:12Earlier this afternoon, Madam Speaker, in another place,
29:15a noble lord accused this government of all kinds of wickedness.
29:21Fox-hunting peers get a better view of things from their high horses, I suppose.
29:26Like the royals in their Bentleys.
29:29And that gives them the right to lecture us.
29:32How dare they?
29:34How dare they challenge the people's elected representatives
29:38and try to claim a moral superiority over ordinary, decent folk?
29:42How dare they?
29:44Who do they think they are, Madam Speaker?
29:47We know who we are and what we're for.
29:50Who are they?
29:52And what are they for?
29:55To live off our backs and read our sermons on how to live?
30:01Do we actually need moral sermons
30:04from a degenerate aristocracy and a discredited royal family?
30:09Buggery, actual bodily harm, gross indecency,
30:13a number of lesser charges.
30:15He allured them underage, of course.
30:17He allured them with young offenders in custody or bail hostels or in care.
30:21Apparently, he regarded it as a perk of the job.
30:30Mr John Staines.
30:33Yes.
30:35My name is Hackett, sir, Detective Inspector Hackett.
30:38We'd like you to come to the station now, sir,
30:40to help us with some inquiries we're making.
30:43Mr John Staines, the Member of Parliament for Stansted,
30:46is still being interviewed by senior police officers,
30:49having been charged with a number of sexual offences against juveniles.
30:53Earlier this evening, Mr Staines made an impassioned speech
30:56in the House of Commons rebutting recent attacks on the government
30:59and criticising the lifestyle of the aristocracy and the royal family.
31:06What a shame.
31:08Apparently, it was a very good speech.
31:10It won't carry quite so much moral authority now.
31:14You take it all very calmly.
31:16These things are sent to try us, Sarah.
31:18I never cared for the man, one of Stamper's boys.
31:21Tim Stamper's not the world's most brilliant judge of character
31:24and he's running out of luck.
31:26If any of this dirt sticks to Stamper, I'll drop him like a hot brick.
31:30In some ways, it might be a very good thing.
31:33The way the tie is running against us, we could do with a scapegoat.
31:36I thought he was your oldest friend.
31:38He is.
31:42Staines thought his boys were fair game, a perk of the job.
31:45Apparently so.
31:46Is that what I am?
31:47Do you see me as a perk of the job, Francis?
31:50Of course not.
31:51You might as well say I'm a perk of your job.
31:53We have freedom of action.
31:55We choose each other.
31:58How did Mattie Storen see it?
32:07What?
32:13What is it?
32:17You have nothing to do with her.
32:19That relationship was utterly different.
32:21What you and I have is unique.
32:24Mattie Storen is dead, Sarah.
32:27She's gone for good.
32:38It isn't easy, this.
32:40It isn't as easy as I thought it would be.
32:44I'm spending too much time thinking about you.
32:48Not the job, you.
32:51And people in your past, like Mattie Storen.
32:55I seem to have become unhealthily obsessed.
33:01And I'm afraid I'm in some danger of falling in love with you.
33:06Oh, come on, David.
33:08This is silly.
33:09Yes, I'm sure it is.
33:12It's just upset me, that's all.
33:14This Staines business.
33:16He was there that night, in that club, with that kid, with one of his kids.
33:21Toting him around and showing him off as if to say,
33:23look what I've got, wouldn't you like one too?
33:26I mean, he was almost offering this boy round as if he were a packet of cigarettes.
33:29And then he said...
33:31I can't remember exactly what it was, but the implication was,
33:34we're all the same, we're all at it.
33:36But what you and I do is the same thing as what he does.
33:39It's not, David.
33:47Yes, I know.
33:50My client, who is completely innocent of these very serious charges,
33:54is nevertheless anxious to offer you his very fullest cooperation in your enquiries.
34:01I'm not asking for a deal, are we?
34:04He is in a position to offer you very extensive and detailed information
34:08on the details of the case.
34:10I'm not asking for a deal.
34:13He is in a position to offer you very extensive and detailed information
34:17relating to this particular enquiry
34:20and to others that you may be interested in pursuing.
34:24Run it! Run it! Enough is enough!
34:27Old England gives warning to Essex Man.
34:30We care for the kids, says Staines, and is promptly arrested for buggering them.
34:33Yes, I know you can't say it, but...
34:35Hint, hint, hint!
34:37A man in a box hunting Lord Quillington, rebuked by the stainer from Stansted.
34:42And a pitfall, Lord Approved.
34:44I heard that. You're fired.
34:46Now, this is the story.
34:48You've got the King against the Prime Minister,
34:50you've got the Lords against the Commons, the bishops are in now,
34:53you've got Don't Blame the Royals,
34:55and in particular you've got Urquhart's plan to bring down the monarchy for good and all.
34:59And they have all played the personal morality card,
35:03every one of them, which means in my book
35:05that everybody's private life is now up for grabs, and I mean everybody's!
35:10This is absolutely excellent, Sarah.
35:13It attacks the problem of the inner cities,
35:16it tackles unemployment, and it's going to put some very surprised layabouts under strict discipline.
35:21Original, bold, and very practicable.
35:25And this is the only copy?
35:27Oh, yes. No-one else has seen it, and I haven't discussed it with anybody.
35:30Let's keep it that way.
35:32Timing is everything.
35:35I'm extremely impressed, Sarah.
35:37Thank you.
35:39Oh, no, I can't, really. Not this evening.
35:42We've got people coming.
35:44I wish I could stay, honestly, but it's just not possible.
35:48Of course. It's all right, Sarah. I understand.
36:05MUSIC PLAYS
36:35MUSIC STOPS
36:44I am sorry. I got held up. I'm so sorry.
36:49You selfish bitch!
36:51I'm sorry you're upset.
36:54Is that all?
36:56I still love you.
36:58I can smell him on you, Sarah!
37:02How could you do it?
37:04I don't know. I don't know.
37:07I'm trying to talk about something I don't understand myself.
37:10Give him up. Just give him up, now!
37:19I can't.
37:22What about me?
37:25What about me?
37:28You bitch!
37:34PHONE RINGS
37:44Hello.
37:46Piece of advice, Sarah.
37:48Stop now, or you'll end up like Maddy.
37:52MUSIC PLAYS
38:05Maddy was a brilliant young journalist.
38:08Brilliant, but unstable.
38:11I met her first several years ago when she came to interview me.
38:15I liked her very much right from the start.
38:18I found I was incapable of resisting her.
38:22I had thought that my feelings for her were entirely platonic.
38:26She showed me that they were not.
38:29She showed me they were quite otherworldly.
38:33They were quite otherwise.
39:04Krayeski used to be first class, but he's come seriously unstuck.
39:09Completely paranoid now.
39:11You know, pedals a lot of conspiracy theories which don't quite stand up.
39:15I suppose I've got contacts in the IRA, but nobody's quite sure.
39:19We tend to give him a rather wide berth these days.
39:24I suppose I could arrange a meeting for you,
39:27if you really thought it was worth your while.
39:29Yes, please, Brian. I'd be very, very glad.
39:32I'd be very, very grateful.
39:34Well, take everything he says with a big pinch of salt.
39:37Personally, I think he's off his head.
39:39They've bugged the phones, they've bugged the buildings.
39:42You have no idea.
39:44So who do you work for? Who's paying you?
39:46I work directly to Francis Urquhart, but this isn't for him.
39:50This is purely personal.
39:52Maddy Storring...
39:55..was a lovely girl.
39:57She was Francis Urquhart's mistress, wasn't she?
40:00I don't know.
40:03Yes, yes, yes, she had to be.
40:05But then again, it's...
40:07..it's so hard to get my...
40:10I think he killed her, you see.
40:12Or he had her killed.
40:14What?
40:15We knew he killed O'Neill or had him killed.
40:17Put rat poison in his cocaine. Isn't that a different trick?
40:20Oh, really? That's just absurd.
40:22Think what you like. No skin off my nose.
40:24I can't prove it now. All Maddy's tapes were stolen.
40:28Sounds crazy, doesn't it? You think I'm crazy, don't you?
40:31I don't know. Are you?
40:35Yes. I think I probably am a bit.
40:38What I don't know is why the bastards haven't killed me yet.
40:41It's very... it's very unsettling, you see.
40:44Just walking round, waiting for them to do it.
40:46Why don't you just go to the police?
40:48The police? It's the police they'll probably employ to do it.
40:51Violently resisting arrest, found hanged in his cell.
40:55I just wish they'd bloody well get on with it.
40:57I don't think I can stand watching all of this.
41:03They'll probably kill you too now.
41:06I'm off.
41:07Good luck.
41:20Come in.
41:22Sir Bruce is here, Prime Minister.
41:24Good. Excellent.
41:26Show him in.
41:28Sir Bruce.
41:30Bruce, good to see you.
41:32Thanks for coming in at such short notice.
41:34Always a pleasure, Francis.
41:36Afternoon, Tim. Hello.
41:39Ah, I see you've been reading the paper.
41:41No hard feelings, I hope. These things need airing.
41:44Well, of course they do. Quite right. Do sit down.
41:49Would I be right in thinking you're on some sort of morality crusade?
41:53Morality crusade, Bruce?
41:55Oh, in a sense, yes.
41:57Opening a debate about morality in public and private life. Why not?
42:00With everyone's private life a legitimate subject for scrutiny.
42:04Well, if it's all right for the royals, why not the rest of us?
42:07Who could argue with that?
42:10How are you getting along with the princess?
42:12Very well, surprisingly enough.
42:14Yes, we thought so too.
42:17Stamper has some photographs he'd like to show you.
42:21The technical quality is rather poor in some of them.
42:25Other way up, I think, Bruce.
42:28That's it.
42:30There's a video too.
42:31I was very doubtful about the morality of infringing your privacy, Bruce.
42:35But after what you've just said...
42:40How much for the prints and the negatives?
42:42Bruce, please.
42:44A little loyalty from our friends is all we ask.
42:48Just a helping hand in these rather trying times.
42:54Oh, well, of course.
42:57We weren't actually going to put the boot in.
43:00No, not in a serious way.
43:02These are tough times for all of us.
43:04We gather the princess's memoirs have been quite revealing.
43:08Bloody dynamite.
43:10And not just about her, not just about the younger generation, if you follow me.
43:14Staggering stuff.
43:16They're all bloody at it. Always have been.
43:20Print them.
43:23I can't do that. I made a solemn promise.
43:25It's not a word, Mother. The princess is still alive.
43:28Francis!
43:31It would destroy her and not just her.
43:34She doesn't deserve that.
43:36No, perhaps you're right.
43:38We'll just have to make do with these then, won't we?
43:43All right, you bugger.
43:46Ding-dong, ding-dong.
43:50And as for you, Stamper...
43:52What?
43:58Just like old times.
44:12No.
44:37The body found on waste ground in West London last night
44:40was today identified as that of John Krajewski,
44:43a freelance investigative journalist.
44:45The killing bore the hallmarks of a so-called execution by the Provisional IRA,
44:50but it has been claimed by a group previously unknown on the mainland,
44:54calling themselves the London Irish Branch.
44:57John Krajewski had a distinguished career in journalism,
45:00having worked as a reporter, sub-editor and deputy editor
45:04for many newspapers from the Times to the tabloids.
45:07Sarah, Sarah, I'm surprised at you.
45:10You actually went to meet him?
45:12Why would you want to do that?
45:16It's embarrassing.
45:20I got a bit obsessed about Mattie Storrin.
45:23I was jealous of her, I suppose.
45:25I thought if I found out a bit more, it would help.
45:28And did it help, I mean?
45:31Yes, I think it did.
45:34What strange creatures we are.
45:37The things we feel we have to do.
45:40He said he knew he was going to be killed.
45:42He didn't say he meant the IRA.
45:44And what else did he say?
45:46Nothing much.
45:47He said Mattie Storrin was a lovely girl.
45:51She was a lovely girl.
45:54But she's not with us any more.
45:58And that was all he said?
46:00More or less.
46:03You do trust me, don't you, Sarah?
46:07Yes.
46:09Yes, I do.
46:12Good.
46:23But they all, all of them, betray us eventually.
46:28They love us, but not quite enough.
46:31They trust us, but not quite enough.
46:35And we trust them to be entirely human,
46:38meaning less than trustworthy,
46:41which means that we can never quite entirely sleep.
46:46As the cat's eyelids flicker,
46:49some part of us must stay awake, always, ready,
46:55as the coiled spring is ready.
47:03Bully, you don't know what you've done.
47:05You didn't even tell me first.
47:07God, I knew you were a bit of a toad,
47:10but I never ever in a million years
47:12believed you'd do anything so completely and utterly crappy.
47:16Bully, how could you?
47:17You have to believe me.
47:19I feel as bad about this as you do.
47:21I feel as bad about this as you do.
47:23He had me over a barrel.
47:24You have to believe me, Charlotte.
47:25My arse was on the line.
47:27What about my arse?
47:28What about my arse?
47:29Does my arse mean anything to you?
47:31It means a great deal to me, Charlotte,
47:33more than I can say.
47:35But in the final analysis...
47:37Shut up! Shut up!
47:39Just bloody well shut up!
47:42God, Bully, I can't believe what you've done.
47:45Well, Quilly's going to kill you.
47:46He means that.
47:47He's absolutely serious.
47:49I shan't try and stop him.
47:52Over the last few weeks,
47:54the integrity of this government and of Parliament itself
47:57has been subjected to an organised and virulent attack
48:01from various sources.
48:03You might think that some of those who made accusations
48:07were not perhaps in the ideal position to throw stones,
48:11living as they do in glass houses.
48:14Or should I say glass palaces?
48:18You might very well think that.
48:20It would not be proper for me to comment.
48:24Most of you will be aware of the so-called revelations
48:29in the Clarion today.
48:31Many of you will deplore, as I do,
48:33the prevalence of muck-raking in our tabloid press.
48:38But for muck-raking to happen,
48:41there has to be muck to be raked.
48:44And sadly, this commodity is not in short supply
48:48amongst the English aristocracy.
48:51And very sadly, in the royal family...
48:54This is very damaging stuff.
48:58No, it's not.
48:59We're getting to him.
49:01He's running scared.
49:02A poll to be published tomorrow
49:05shows that a majority now favour
49:08further drastic reductions in public funding for the monarchy.
49:13I am not at present prepared to accede to this
49:17and remain, in spite of everything,
49:21a loyal servant of the crown.
49:24But I should like to leave you with these questions.
49:30What is the monarchy for?
49:34Where has it gone wrong?
49:37And how can we help the monarchy
49:40to serve the country better?
49:43How much does Bullaby have? What could he publish?
49:45Everything the princess was able to tell him.
49:47A lot of it's hearsay, of course,
49:49but I'd say there's enough to bring down the monarchy for good.
49:53Damn you, man. Is that what you want?
49:54No, sir, it is not what I want.
49:56And I think, I'm sure, in fact,
49:58I could persuade him to suppress the more sensitive items.
50:02The price being my silence and complicity, I suppose.
50:04You might see it in those terms.
50:08All right, do your worst.
50:10I beg your pardon, sir.
50:13I don't think the people want any more muckraking.
50:16I think the whole nation is sick to death
50:18of negative campaigning and dirty tricks.
50:20They want to be given hope. They want something positive.
50:22I want to show them there is an alternative, and I shall.
50:24You have given your word, sir.
50:26I have given my word not to make any political speeches, and I shan't.
50:29But I shall make it very clear
50:31that I oppose you bitterly in everything you stand for.
50:34I used to think you were an honourable man.
50:36I don't think that any more.
50:38I think you and your party are intellectually and morally bankrupt.
50:41It's time for you to go, and you know it.
50:43I shall like to formally request a dissolution of parliament
50:46in preparation for a general election.
50:49Granted, mister.
50:51Why are you doing this? What can possibly be in it for you?
50:56You really don't understand, do you?
50:59I do believe you're frightened of me.
51:02I do believe you're frightened of me, mister.
51:05You believe that if it gives you any comfort, sir.