Brimstone and Treacle

"Although we all must sometimes stumble"

"as we journey through this life,"

"I never heard you moan or grumble,"

"The perfect mother..."

"and wife."

Terribly sorry, sir!

I do beg your pardon.

Why the devil don't you look where you're going?

I'm terribly sorry.

Hello!

Fancy bumping into you!

- What? - Wow!

Well, you're the last person I expected to see.

What are you talking about?

Oh, you've forgotten me, haven't you?

I don't know you from Adam!

Oh, I know it's been a long time, but...

Goodness, yes! How time flies.

Surely you recall, sir.

We met at the, uh...

the what's it... the, uh...

the, um...

What's my name?

Pardon?

My name!

What then is my name?

Don't you know your name?

Fancy not knowing your own name.

Bloody fool!

Don't know who you are, but I know what you are.

You're a piggy! Piggy!

Pig, pig, pig!

Piggy!

Oh! I beg your pardon.

Oh, no. My fault.

My fault. - Oh, thank you.

Excuse me.

Good heavens!

- What is it? - Well, well!

How are you?

Oh, um... hello.

You've forgotten me, haven't you?

No, no, it's not that, it's just that I...

Well, yes, I have, as a matter of fact.

Anyway, how are you?

Yes, yes.

It's been such a long time.

Goodness, uh...

- Long time, yes. - Yes, a long time.

You still at the same place?

- At the Evangelist Press. - No, no, I meant, um...

Oh, uh... Puddle Mear, yes.

Puddle Mear, dear me!

Still there, then?

Same old house.

A bit too big for us now, of course.

Uh, you must be...

Got it?

Yeah, a friend of Patricia's?

There, you've placed me now, haven't you?

How is dear... Patricia?

Well, of course...

she'll never be...

well, we've got her at home now, and we...

we do our best for her.

Oh, I'm sure you do.

Of course you do.

Well, I must be trotting along.

It's nice to meet you again

Taylor, Martin Taylor Remember?

Oh, yes, I seem to remember Patricia mentioning you.

It was the art college, wasn't it?

It's quite appalling how people lose contact, isn't it?

Yes.

There's so many things I remember.

I'd very much like to see her again.

See her?

- Well, you know, just to talk over... - She can't talk.

Oh. I...

We thought she would after the accident.

The doctors said she might, but, uh...

Oh, my God.

Well, I thought you knew

I thought you said you were a friend of hers

- I've been away. - What, for 3 years?

America... I went to study the arts.

The American realists.

I thought you knew.

Most of her friends abandoned her, of course.

I'm not a fair-weather friend.

I only heard about the accident, uh...

Steady, I say...

Are you... oh. I...

Oh, look, sit down over here.

I say, are you all right down there?

Miss, look, can you give me a hand please?

Don't try to move him.

You should put a handkerchief in his mouth.

We were just talking.

Loosen his collar or something.

He was just talking to me and he just... went over.

No, no, not necessary, I just...

Don't want you to bite your tongue.

Thank you!

Get him back as quickly as possible.

I should get him home.

Don't go rushing about now.

Take it very gently.

Well, well, young man...

whatever am I going to do with you, eh?

Do you think...

a piggyback...

What?

A piggyback.

Well, I'm not a...

How far?

As far as the car park.

I've got to get a taxi, you see.

Oh, a taxi, ye-yes.

To take me back to the station.

The station.

Look, I do apologize, my... oh.

Look, I can't just bung you in a taxi.

No, of course not.

Look, can you walk at all?

Walk?...

Look, my car's just round the corner, you see.

- Oh. - I'll tell you what...

I'll bring the car around to the edge of the park.

Yes. That's it

I'll bring it round to the back of the cathedral.

You just stay here, old man.

You just wait there, I won't be a moment.

I've got him.

I've got him.

Bastard! Bastard!

How stupid, Mister...

Bates.

Mr. Thomas Ezekiel Bates.

I'm very sorry, Tom.

I did try, you know. Really.

It doesn't help us when you can't be bothered.

Patty was very difficult this afternoon.

And I had this terrible headache, Tom.

just as if there was...

a stone rolling around inside my brain.

Your what?

I do work quite hard, you know.

I wrote 69 "in memoriam" verses this afternoon.

It's not entirely unreasonable

to expect a cooked meal when I get in, is it?

So, is it?

Please don't raise your voice, Tom.

After all, this isn't the first time this has happened, is it?

It's the second, actually.

More than that.

Please don't raise your voice, Tom,

it upsets Patty.

Oh, don't be foolish.

How can she tell which...

She knows, Tom.

She knows what goes on.

She knows when you're angry,

and when I'm sad.

But that's not...

it's not possible.

Listen to her, then.

That's horrible.

No.

What do you mean, Tom?

It's horrible. Horrible...

I mean, if she understands more than she can tell us.

Oh, but she can. I'm sure of it.

It's horrible. Horrible.

No, Tom, it's a sign of improvement.

The doctors don't know everything.

Don't...

Oh, it's all right.

Hush, darling, I'm here.

To be cooped up...

caged up inside your own head...

and be unable... - Don't, Tom.

It's like having an anaesthetic...

so that you're completely paralysed

as far as everyone else is concerned.

But they all think you're out... right out...

but all the time you can hear what they're saying.

No, Tom, it's not like that.

All the time you can see the knife in the surgeon's hands.

And no matter what they do...

or however much it hurts...

you can't scream...

or cry out.

Or...

It's horrible!

Tom!

I don't want this. I don't want to eat this.

I just want to be sick!

I spend much more time with Patty than you do,

and I notice many more little things.