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CHARACTERS:
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in
order of appearance:-
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SUE
SANDERS (MOTHER)
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LAURA
FOSTER, her daughter, aged 6
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JACK
FOSTER, her son, aged 10
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KEN
SANDERS, her second husband
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THE SCENE:
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is the kitchen of an ordinary family house in a side street
of a small Midlands town.
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THE TIME:
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is the present, just after 5.30pm on a Monday evening in
summertime. Laura is sitting at
the kitchen table, quietly colouring a picture. Mother enters, in haste.
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MOTHER:
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Just got baby off to sleep,
thank goodness – he’s been a real misery today, I think he’s teething
again. You are a good girl, Laura,
playing so quietly, but you’ll have to stop now, it’s
teatime.
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LAURA:
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I’ve just finished my picture,
Mummy, look, it’s our family.
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MOTHER (absently)
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Very nice, dear.
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LAURA:
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Look, Mummy, that’s you, and
that’s me, and that’s Jack.
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MOTHER:
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But you haven’t put in Uncle
Ken and Baby Harry -
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LAURA:
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Yes, I have, at the side here,
‘cos they’re not really our family, are they? And I didn’t know whether to put Daddy
in or not, now he’s gone away, but I’ve put him and Auntie Donna at the
other side, see?
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MOTHER:
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Yes, I see – well, I expect
you’ll understand things a bit better when you’re older. Sausages for tea today, I think.
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LAURA (sulkily):
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Oh! Don’t like sausages. Why can’t we have fish fingers?
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MOTHER:
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Because we had them on
Saturday and they’re all gone, until I buy some more.
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LAURA:
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Granny let us have fish
fingers every day when we stayed with her. I wish she hadn’t gone away. I miss her.
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MOTHER:
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So do I, dear, but remember
that she was very old and tired, and I’m sure she’s having a lovely time
in Heaven.
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LAURA:
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Everybody I love seems to go
away – first Daddy, then Granny – you’re not going to go away, Mummy, are
you?
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MOTHER:
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Not if I can help it,
dear! Anyway, Daddy hasn’t gone
far, only the other end of town, and you’ll be seeing him at the weekend,
won’t you?
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LAURA:
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Oh yes, I forgot. Can I take my new Rainbow uniform to
show him?
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MOTHER:
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I expect so, if you take care
of it. Oh, look at the time! Where has that boy got to?
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LAURA:
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I think Jack’s home, Mummy, I
heard the gate bang.
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(Sound of door opening and closing)
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MOTHER:
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What time d’you
call this, young man!
Half-past five I told you!
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JACK:
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Sorry, Mum – I did leave
Charlie’s at half-past, but then I had to come the other way home –
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MOTHER:
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Whatever for? It only takes you two minutes from
Charlie’s house, down Lansdowne Road.
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LAURA:
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Dizzy Harris lives in Lansdowne Road.
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MOTHER:
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What’s he got to do with it?
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LAURA:
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Dizzy and Jack had a fight at
afternoon playtime, and Mrs Williams sent them in to Mr Bolton.
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MOTHER:
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Oh, Jack! What was all that about?
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JACK (reluctantly):
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Well, he called me a dimmo
‘cos I only got 5 out of 20 for the spelling test, so I pushed him, then
he hit me and his mates joined in, Kev and Watto, then Mrs Williams came
over and sent us in.
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MOTHER:
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And what did the Head say?
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JACK:
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Said we were a bad example to
the younger children, and we’ve got to stay in at playtime tomorrow and
write out a hundred times ‘I must not fight in the playground’.
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MOTHER:
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Well, you’ll learn how to
spell ‘fight’ and ‘playground’ anyway, that’s a start. Look, if you knew you had a test, why
didn’t you bring the words home to learn?
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JACK (aggrieved):
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But I did! I wrote them out on a piece of paper,
left it on top of the telly on Friday, and when I went back for it on
Sunday it was gone.
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MOTHER:
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Well, I haven’t thrown away
any papers – oh, only that piece that was left on the coffee table with
Laura’s noughts and crosses all over it.
Where did that come from, Laura?
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LAURA:
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I found it on the floor –
Uncle Ken said he’d play noughts and crosses with me on Saturday if I
could find a piece of paper and a pencil, and I found a piece in the
corner and it only had writing on one side so we used the back.
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MOTHER:
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Oh, Jack, I’m sorry! It must have blown off the TV when we
had the back door open Saturday afternoon. Next time take it up to your room and
put it somewhere safe. You really
must take more trouble over your schoolwork – you’re going to get a lot
more tests and exams in your next school and it’s important to leave
school with some qualifications, you’ll never get anywhere without
them. Goodness, here’s Uncle Ken
home already – hullo dear, you’re early tonight!
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KEN:
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Hullo, darling, had a good
day? Hi, kids – not had your tea
yet?
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MOTHER:
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No, sorry, dear, we’re running
a bit late – Baby’s been grizzling all day with his teeth, I’ve only just
settled him down. You are early
though!
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KEN:
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Yes, we finished at half-four
so we could have a works meeting – tell you about it later. I’ll just go up and have a wash and
change while the kids eat.
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MOTHER:
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Well, don’t wake Baby, will
you? Here’s your tea, you two –
have you washed your hands?
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JACK:
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Yes, Mum. Ooh, bangers and beans – cool!
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LAURA (grumpily):
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Don’t like sausages.
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JACK:
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I’ll have yours, then.
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LAURA:
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No, you won’t!
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JACK:
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Yes, I will!
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LAURA (wailing):
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Mu-um! Jack’s dropped my sausage on the floor!
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MOTHER:
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Oh, stop squabbling, the pair
of you! Serves you right, Laura,
for grumbling. Just eat the beans,
you like those, and here’s your milk, don’t spill it. Tea for you, Jack, OK? Do get on with it or you’ll be late for
Cubs.
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JACK:
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Aw, Mum, do I have to go?
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MOTHER:
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Of course you do – Dizzy
Harris doesn’t go to Cubs, does he?
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JACK:
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No, but – they’ll all be
talking about the outing to the Safari Park on Saturday, and I’m the only
one not going.
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MOTHER:
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Now, Jack, you’ve known for
weeks that next weekend you’re staying with your Dad. It was all settled last year when the
divorce went through, I told you all about
it. You go to your Dad’s every
other Saturday for the day, and a whole weekend every two months. It’s all arranged, we can’t keep
changing it. You get on all right
with Auntie Donna, don’t you?
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JACK:
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Suppose so, but – she’s not
like you, Mum, she’s so young! And
she keeps kissing Dad, and she doesn’t wear proper pyjamas like you, she
comes down to breakfast in those soppy nightdresses, all lacy and frilly.
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MOTHER (laughing):
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Well, we can’t all be alike,
Jack, that would be a very dull world.
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LAURA:
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I like Auntie Donna, she lets me play with her make-up.
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MOTHER:
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Oh, does she,
indeed!
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LAURA:
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And she’s going to have a baby
– I heard her talking to Daddy about it.
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MOTHER:
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Oh! Well, that’ll be nice, won’t it,
another little brother or sister for you.
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LAURA:
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And Daddy’s going to be
re-instant.
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JACK:
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She means redundant. What’s that mean, Mum?
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MOTHER:
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Well, it’s when a firm hasn’t
got enough work for all its workers and can’t afford to keep them all on,
some have to leave and look for other jobs. They do get some money when they leave,
according to how long they’ve worked for the firm, but of course it’s not
the same as having a regular wage.
Oh dear, I hope it’s not going to affect the maintenance your Dad
pays for you. I’ll ask Ken if he’s
heard anything.
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LAURA (importantly):
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I know a big secret. Joanne Harris is in my class and she
said she’d tell me a big secret if I gave her my banana at playtime, so I
did and she told me.
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MOTHER:
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I don’t buy bananas for you to
swap for secrets! I hope it was
worth it!
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LAURA:
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Yes, it was. Dizzy Harris smokes cigarettes!
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JACK (laughing):
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Oh, that’s no secret! Everyone knows that – everyone in our
class, I mean.
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LAURA:
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Yes, but I know where he gets
them – Joanne told me.
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JACK:
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All right then, where?
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LAURA:
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You know their big brother
Mike, at the big school? Well,
he’s got a great big box full of packets of cigarettes hidden in his
wardrobe, Joanne’s seen them, and Dizzy goes in and takes some while
Mike’s out. They’ve been there two
whole weeks!
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MOTHER:
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Mike Harris isn’t old enough
to buy cigarettes, and certainly not a whole lot
like that! Two weeks? Wait a minute, it’s about a fortnight
since the Corner Shop had a break-in – they lost a lot of cigarettes, and
some chocolates, too.
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LAURA:
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Oh, he hasn’t got any chocolates, he gave those to his Mum. Joanne said she was ever so pleased.
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MOTHER:
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Well! I wonder if Mrs Harris knew where they
came from?
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JACK (boastfully):
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Well, I know where he smokes
them, so there! And I didn’t have
to pay a banana, Charlie and me found out last Saturday, see?
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LAURA:
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Well, I don’t care. Mummy, I’ve finished my beans and my
milk – can I go and play for a bit?
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MOTHER:
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Yes, if you’re quiet about
it. Oh, don’t forget your reading practice – I’ll hear you read later on.
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LAURA:
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Okay, Mummy.
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MOTHER:
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Now then, Jack, what’s all
this about last Saturday? You said
you were going round to Charlie’s to play with his new computer game.
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JACK (reluctantly):
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Yes, we did for a bit, but we
got stuck on the first level and couldn’t get off it, so we got fed up
and turned it off. We didn’t want
to watch the grotty TV programme with Charlie’s Mum and Dad, so we went
up to his room to look out of the window.
The people next door were having a barbecue so we watched them for
a bit, then we spotted Dizzy and his mates creeping along the back alley,
and Charlie said ‘Let’s track them like secret agents and see what
they’re up to,’ so we nipped out the back way and followed them. They went down Mayfield and right down Kirby Road to the school playing field
and went in.
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MOTHER:
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But the gates must have been
locked – did they climb over?
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JACK:
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No, there’s a loose railing,
you can pull it out and it leaves a gap big enough to get through. By the time we crept in, they were
right behind the old store shed, hidden by all those bushes – you know, the ones with purple flowers – Dizzy was giving
out the cigarettes and Watto had the matches. I don’t think Kevin liked his much, he
was coughing and spitting, then he said he felt sick and wanted to go
home, so we got out quick and ran – but I think they saw me as I went
round the corner into Mayfield. I
reckon Dizzy picked on me this afternoon as a warning – they were going
to beat me up, only Mrs Williams stopped them.
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MOTHER:
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I see – and what time did you
see Dizzy and his mates at the school on Saturday – about half-past
seven?
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JACK:
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Nearer eight, I should think –
I came straight back, and Charlie went in as though he’d just seen me
off. I got home about quarter
past 8,
I think.
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MOTHER:
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And the store shed was all
right when you were there?
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JACK:
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Yes, I think so – why? We didn’t do anything, Mum, we
were just watching.
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MOTHER:
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Well,
some time between eight and half-past eleven on Saturday evening, that
shed caught fire and burned down.
There’s no-one living opposite the school, so it wasn’t noticed
until the security patrol on the Industrial Estate ‘phoned the Fire
Brigade, and by then it was too late.
Didn’t you hear about it at school today?
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JACK:
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Oh, yes – there was a police
car at the front, and Mr Bolton said in Assembly that the field was not
to be used, so we had playground play, and missed games. Don’t know why they made so much fuss, it was only an old shed. Mr Simpkin had it open Friday afternoon
while we were having Sports practice, and there were just a few old desks
inside.
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MOTHER:
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He was making room for a load
of new games and PE equipment the PTA’s just bought for the school – it
was delivered Saturday morning, and Mr Bolton had it put in the store
shed till it could be unpacked today, but the whole lot’s gone, burnt or
ruined. The PTA’s furious, of
course; they’ve
called a committee meeting for tomorrow.
The police thought it was arson, like the fire at Green Bank School last month, but the fire
salvage people found cigarette ends and matchsticks among the mud and
ashes by the bushes, and because Mr Simpkin smokes that brand they’re
suspecting him of carelessness. He
swears he never smokes while he’s working, but they’re taking it
seriously – he might even lose his job for breaching the school’s ‘No
Smoking’ policy. All the Mums were
talking about it at the school gate this morning.
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JACK:
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Gosh, Mum, I didn’t realise it
was that bad. Poor old Simpy! He’s all right,
he never makes a fuss about getting balls down off the roof for us, not
like the last caretaker.
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MOTHER:
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You’ll have to tell someone
what you know – it could be vital evidence.
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JACK:
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But Mum, I can’t! If it comes out that Charlie was with
me, he’ll be in awful trouble – you know how strict his Dad is. And if I say anything about Dizzy
Harris, I’ll have all the Harrises on to me – there’s another brother
older than Mike at the big school, you know. My life won’t be worth living!
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MOTHER:
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But you can’t let Mr Simpkin
take the blame if it wasn’t his fault!
Look, leave it with me – I’ll have a word with Mr Bolton, see what
he says.
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JACK:
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Okay, Mum.
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MOTHER:
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Oh, here’s Ken – what was I
going to ask him? Oh yes, I
remember – Ken the children were saying that Frank’s being made redundant
– have you heard anything?
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KEN:
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Yes,
it’s true – we knew there were going to be some redundancies, but I
didn’t say anything – didn’t want to worry you – but it seems things are
worse than we thought. That’s what
the works meeting was about – the directors came down to tell us. If things don’t pick up in the next six
months, they’ll be closing down the works here and moving the plant up to
their other works at Bradford.
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MOTHER:
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Bradford! Ooh, I don’t like the sound of that –
we don’t know anybody up there.
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KEN:
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That’s the good news, love –
the bad news is that they’ll only want about 50 of the workforce to move
up there, and they haven’t said who they’ll want, so for the rest of us
it’ll be ‘so long, see you Monday at the Job Centre.’
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MOTHER:
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Oh dear! It doesn’t look very hopeful, does it?
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KEN:
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Oh, I’ll be looking out for
something else before then, don’t you worry! Anyway, what’s for tea, I’m starving!
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MOTHER:
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Oh, Ken, I’m sorry, I’ve been
so busy, I haven’t got anything ready.
I could make a salad, I suppose, or there’s pizza or lasagne in
the freezer –
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KEN (exasperated):
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I don’t want rabbit food, or
fancy foreign muck! I want
something I can get my teeth into – a nice pork chop and roasties, or a
hot-pot, or steak and kidney pudding, with apple pie to follow. You don’t have to go out to work,
you’re at home all day, surely you could have
something ready?
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MOTHER:
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Well, I like that! I’ve been rushing round all day, with a
teething baby doing my head in with his crying – I haven’t had time to
make puddings or pies!
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KEN:
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And what’s this I’m treading
on? A sausage! Really, Sue, it’s about time you taught
your kids better table manners!
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JACK:
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Don’t talk to my Mum like
that! It’s not her fault!
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KEN:
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I might have known you’d take
her side! Oh, I’ve had enough of
this – I’m off to the pub for some peace and quiet, I’ll get a pie
there. See you later.
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(sound of door slamming)
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MOTHER:
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He’ll calm down when he’s had
a bite to eat and a pint or two. I
expect Harry’s awake now! Get
changed, Jack, and off to Cubs – you’ll have to run!
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JACK:
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Okay, Mum – will you be all
right?
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MOTHER:
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Yes, I’ll cope – I’ll give Harry his bottle
while I listen to Laura read, then I’ll settle them both into bed, make a
cup of tea and put my feet up. I
feel it’s about time I had a bit of peace and quiet!
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(Closing music –
‘There’s no place like home’)
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