Walter…
Walter?
Why are you crying? Are you hurt?
It's my hands! They're all warty!
Show me
Show me your hands, Walter
They're all mucky
Put your hands in the water
Don't be afraid
The water will wash them clean...
.. if you believe
I'd be grateful if you could send the manuscript to me here
Yours faithfully, Emily FitzAllen Pride
Now, a letter to Dundas & Critchley
Solicitors and Commissioners for Oaths
Dear Mr Dundas,
I agree that what is taking place at Portacarrick,
the report of which you sent to me,
constitutes unwarranted commercial exploitation,
for which permission has neither been sought nor given
I'll go, Miss Pride
It's from Portacarrick
Shall I open it for you?
Yes, please, Miss Godwin
This way, sir
Good. Thank you, Chief Inspector
For all your help
Perhaps I shouldn’t tell you this, but Cairo
pronounced themselves more than satisfied
All part of the service, sir
Oh, by the way, I managed to intercept these
before they were forwarded
to the Canal Zone. Personal stuff
Oh, thank you, sir
Officially you're with us till the end of the month
Shall I tell Scotland Yard that you're back?
Er, no. Damn fool idea, I agree
I have the report to write, sir, and...
Well, I have promised someone I'd write it in congenial surroundings
Wise man
- Care for a drink? - Thank you
I am writing to you on a matter of some gravity
The fact is, my life has been threatened
Last year, when my sister died,
I inherited some property in Argyll,
part of Portacarrick town,
as well as the island lying off it in Carrick Loch
As an English landlord I expected to inherit a certain Celtic resentment
However, of late, resentment has turned into threat
I do believe someone in this idyllic backwater
means to do me harm
Cissie?
- Hello, Angus - Hi, Cissie
- Always something, Angus - Aye
- Always something - Aye, it's a lump of a building
I'll be going over on the afternoon boat, then, Major. I'll be back about five
She's coming here
Another damn ultimatum from London
She's coming here
She shouldn’t come here. She's not welcome here
It won't change our plans. We'll still catch the train
I'll just pick you up at Gerard's in an hour or so
The train leaves at five
Who is this woman, anyway?
Emily Pride. She was my instructor
Oh, yes?
I owe her a great deal. She... helped me during the war
I'm sure she did
She taught me colloquial French
And how many other women do you have tucked away in your past?
Oh, lost count
Mind you, not many of 65
Well, why the urgency?
Her life's been threatened
Miss Emily
There you are, Roderick
Where have you been?
Three years ago, on Portacarrick island,
some poor child had his warts cured by washing them in a pool there
Such cures are a known phenomenon
He also claims to have had a vision
of a lady in green
Unfortunately some press reporter got hold of it
The newspapers went to town, as you can imagine
Now the place is being commercialized, vulgarized beyond belief
And I won't have it
- Can you stop it? - My solicitor tells me I can
I've no objection to people visiting the place
in the superstition they can be cured
What I object to is its being sold to people
as some sort of quasi-religious rite
Look at this
The Poems of Elspeth Cost
An Ode To The Pixie Falls
Ye plashing Falls, their secret own
Iron and water, earth and stone
Pixie Falls. Ye gods
My sister tolerated such nonsense because
she claimed the water cured her headaches
No doubt she believed it
She died six months after her cure,
so she can hardly be claimed as one of its enduring triumphs, can she?
Miss Emily
Miss Emily, please. How has your life been threatened?
This is the latest one
Come and have a cup of tea. There's something I want to show you
- Angus? - Ah. Good day, Miss Cost
I see the Major's had another letter
Aye
From London
Aye
- The woman's coming here. - Really? When?
The day after tomorrow. That's what she says, anyway
I see
Then we’d better be reedy for her, hadn’t we?
What is it?
A mystery
And that's the point
We can guess, that's all
Just as we can only guess at any of the riddles
surrounding the Celtic religion. We don't know
Why did you want me to see it?
Because I take the past seriously
I value it
The cult being cooked up at Portacarrick is a pernicious fake
I won't have money being made out of people's gullibility
- I won't - I can appreciate that but...
You don't actually have to go to Portacarrick, do you?
Oh, yes I do
Suppose this person really means to do you harm
I'm quite aware I should take steps to protect myself
What would be adequate protection?
There's no such thing
I think a gun is the answer
What?!
You could obtain a permit for me and give me some instruction
I'm not going to fiddle a firearms licence for you
I'm certainly not going to teach you to be quick on the draw
Why not?
Please. Don't go
Tea
There's a simple solution to all this, of course
What's that?
You could come with me
I'm sorry, I can't
Why not?
I have a report to write
For someone who's not exactly disgraced himself in the Intelligence service
you're very transparent sometimes, Roderick
Am I?
It's understandable, I suppose, that you prefer
the youth and, no doubt, the beauty
of this so-called report,
to the concerns of your old teacher, however serious they are
That's emotional blackmail, Miss Emily
On a former comrade in arms
Perhaps one is cruder where one's own concerns are at stake
The solution, as you say, is simple
Don't go. Let your lawyers deal with it
Then, when I get back, we'll go through their reports together
and hammer out a plan
It's a long time now since you and I formulated plans
That would be nice
We'll do that, then, shall we?
I'd forgotten how persuasive you can be, Roderick
I must go
By the way, my report...
she's called Agatha Troy and she's an artist, and...
I'm impressed. You must, of course, not let her down
I do have a report to write
You've got a most fetching tan
You don’t look so bad yourself
Behold
Oh, very lovely
For walking the wolds in the footsteps of Girtin and Turner
Not working for you, watercolouring for me
- When do we leave? - 20 minutes ago
If you've managed to sort out your friend
I think I've done extremely well,
considering she's the most stubborn woman in the whole universe
Apart from you, of course
Damn. Not this time in the morning
Patrick?
I thought you were going to meet Jenny
Yeah, right, Mother. I'm getting up
Margaret?
He's not addressing his ruddy troops
Please. He's got so many responsibilities running this place
For God’s sake, it's not my fault. He's not my father
- Are you still in bed? - Yes
Don't be so damn cheeky
What's the matter, Keith?
- It's that Cost female - What about her?
She's downstairs
- Could you... - Yes. Of course
Bloody woman
So, you're agreed, then, Mrs Ballantyne?
Council of War for the interested parties here this evening
Yes, about five o'clock. I'll tell Keith. You know how involved he likes to feel
Yes, quite
Well, if you tell Major Ballantyne, I'll tell Dr Nairn
Oh, have you seen the Doctor?
Yes. Just a check-up
My asthma's gone
Pixie Falls saw to that
Oh, good
Well, if you're sure
It's no bother
I make it my business to tell Dr Nairn
Your business. What isn't your business?
- Good morning - Good morning, Miss Cost
Mrs McBride
Put one of those in MacPherson's window
Thank you
Alistair?
It's that wretched Cost female
A vulgariser and a pernicious gossip
- There's to be a meeting - Good
Well, I'll get on with my sermon
On what?
Worshipping false idols
Aye. Well, good
And no compromise, Alistair
Jenny!
A lot's changed
- So have you, Jenny - I should hope I have
I'd be disappointed if two years in Paris hadn’t rubbed off on me one way or another
Come on
The boat leaves for the island in 20 minutes and it'll bring you back in the afternoon
I shall pray for you
Perhaps today will bring us another miracle
Perhaps. We don’t expect, we only hope, Mr MacPherson
That is the voice of wisdom
Bless you
I shall pray for you all
You make sure those kitchens are fit for a surgeon to operate in, if you don't mind
More pilgrims?
Will that be the last of them?
Aye, that's the question
She's coming here, Provost, from London
Every one of my guesthouses depends on this damnable Englishwoman
She could close Portacarrick down
It won't do, will it, Mr MacPherson?
It won't
Meeting tonight at five
- Yes, in the back room - Thank you very much
- Hello, Jenny - Hello, Dulcie
- Minister - Good evening
- Dr Nairn - Jenny
- What's all that about? - Council of War
Because Miss Pride’s coming?
Not everybody’s against her, surely?
- Nearly everyone - What about you?
Good afternoon
You mustn't give an inch, MacPherson
- Who's he? - The Provost of Portacarrick
Come to defend commerce?
That's it
I do hate it, you know, all this
- Sherry, Mr MacPherson? - Oh, yes, please
Bloody rabbits
So, Miss Pride
She'll be staying here at my invitation
The question is, what we say to her,
what we present her with as a body. Yes?
Absolutely, yes
Good. So, as the whole thing began with a miracle,
perhaps we should start with you, Minister
- With me? - Yes
I think we’d all like to hear the fact that you don't deny the truth of these cures
You don’t deny them, do you?
No, I don't
I thank God for them
- Good - Thank you, Minister
For them. For them in themselves
But it's... Well...
It's all the rest. All the um... fiddle-faddle
The publicity and the subsequent commercialisation
That's what Alistair objects to, quite frankly
And so do I
May I ask a question, Mr Cruickshank?
Please
Our Lord performed miracles, did he not?
Yes
Did he perform them out of the sight of other men?
Was he ashamed of them? No
On one celebrated occasion more than 5,000 people were present
The gospel writers wrote about them
- Publicity, you see - What?!
I have been plagued with asthma most of my life
And now I'm cured
Why should others not benefit?
Why should we not spread the word?
I'm sorry, but it won't wash, Mr MacPherson
Oh, won't it?
Our Lord did not set up turnstiles
He didn’t sell 5,000 brass tokens to people
to go and collect their bread and fish
Besides which...
Yes?
Och, it doesn’t matter
What were you going to say?
Never mind, never mind
I'm sorry, Mr MacPherson, but there it is
I don’t think you can take that line
Oh, can't I?
This is the livelihood of the people of Portacarrick
Exactly! And very laudable, I'm sure
Just don’t bring God into it, if you don’t mind
All right. All right
Now, where have we got to so far?
Dr Nairn, what does a man of science say?
I'm keeping out of this
Oh, that's very helpful. Come off the fence!
Are they cures or are they not cures?
Major, if you want answers, ask the patients
If they feel better, fine. A remission of symptoms, fine
Cures are more difficult, I'm afraid
My God
I am cured
For 30 years I've suffered
You examined me yourself this afternoon, Dr Nairn
Clear as a bell
Come along, Doctor. You said so
There has been a significant remission certainly
In other words, a miracle!
Bloody jargon
Witchy woman
You see? You can do it
What?
Do you realise I've never seen you relax before
Mr Alleyn, excuse me. There's a telephone call for you
Here we are, sir
Hello?
Oh, Mr Alleyn, I've found you at last
Miss Godwin? Is anything wrong?
Miss Emily's gone to Scotland
To Portacarrick. By herself
From what she told me, I felt sure that you thought
she wouldn't
Wouldn’t you care for someone to accompany you? Surely...
Certainly not. I shall, however,
require admission to the enclosure
Of course
Tokens
No, no, no, no. That's not necessary. Please take as many as you like
I should like seven, please. There's seven shillings
No, it's not necessary
I would be obliged if you would take the money
Thank you
I hope you walk over a bloody cliff
All gone. All gone
I'm sure it'll help
Hello. Miss Cost's just slipped out for a minute
Oh, there she is now
This is surely hell itself
Oh, Cissie, I've just finished the costumes for...
You have my letter, Miss Cost?
Yes...
Miss Pride
- You understand it? - Of course
Your lease is due for renewal when?
In three months
Well, you may have it again, and on the same terms,
provided all this... goes
That is to say, anything which advertises
the supposed properties of the water in the pool
My work has been praised in discriminating quarters, you know,
as a worthy continuance of the folk art tradition
That is not the point
- It gives a lot of pleasure - I dare say
Especially to the ailing
None of this is at issue
My work has been conceived in a spirit of reverence
And you sell it
You do, don't you?
Yes, but...
Then you are advertising the waters and profiting from it
And that is the point
But I myself am a living witness
Perhaps
And when the island is restored to its natural condition,
nobody will be prevented from visiting the little glen
I am, however, concerned with
the commercial exploitation of people's belief
I won't have it. Is that understood?
Yes
This festival of yours...
You can't stop us
Pixie Falls ground is sacred ground
You be careful
You can't prevent people celebrating. You can't prevent them
Besides, we have permission
The Provost
We have hundreds of people...
Hundreds of people coming
You...
This is your doing
Cissie
You wicked woman
Can I do anything for you?
Can I do anything?
No, I think it's best that you leave her now
You may have your festival. It'll be the last
But you may have it
This is the first time we've managed a few days together
without something else in the background
Since that phone call it's been the same as ever
You've been like Jeremiah with the toothache
I'm sorry. I just can't get out of my head
that she might be in some sort of danger
It sounds as if she's been in danger all her life
She probably enjoys it
She's never asked for help before
She asked for advice. You gave it, she ignored it
Good night
She's badly shaken up
There's bruising, concussion is a possibility,
strongly denied by Miss Pride, I may say
These things can be dangerous at her age
You're never quite sure what might initiate
But she is an appalling patient, so she'll probably be fine
She has been quite awkward, actually
It takes vitality to be that difficult
And practice
Indeed. I'll call again this afternoon
Thank you for looking after her
It's been an education
Old lady better, is she?
I'm sure everyone will be very relieved to hear that
She's not a popular woman,
but I'm sure no-one wishes her bodily harm
Naturally I'm glad you're here, Roderick,
and I am delighted to meet the celebrated Miss Troy at last. Of course I am
I still don’t see why this trolley business
should be considered sinister
It was probably an accident
How can you possibly know that? You were warned it might happen
Nothing much has happened and everyone's making such a fuss
I dare say it was a bit fussy of me coming all this way
Perhaps I'll go back, shall I?
I've made him angry
Yes, I think you have
He's not tremendously fond of overnight sleepers
Nor, indeed, am I
I didn’t mean he was making a fuss
Or you!
It's just everyone else
Well, I'm not going back to bed
Will he insist I go back to bed?
I think he just wants you to take his advice, that's all
Men always do
But I've got to a reasonably advanced age by ignoring most of it
And you haven't got to be doing what you do
by taking men's advice, have you?
All I said was I think he looks too nice to be a policeman
What on earth's the matter with you?
Nothing. Absolutely nothing
I've got Roman law to learn
Was it something I said?
- Everyone's a bit on edge, I think - You're telling me
Oh, I telephoned the Doctor and he's very happy
to let Miss Troy have the cottage
Thank you
- Hello, Dulcie - Jenny
You'll be Mr Alleyn
How do you do? I'm Dulcie Cruickshank. The minister is my husband
- Pleased to meet you - How's the patient?
- Impossible - Good for her. That's the spirit
Festival of the Waters
- Do I take it you disapprove? - Disapprove?
The wretched Miss Cost is having a rehearsal
this afternoon for this heretical rubbish
- Will you be going? - Certainly
So will Alistair. We want to know what tune the Devil is playing
- Morning - Morning
I think I've persuaded her she shouldn’t leave her room
That's impressive
Miss Williams thinks she's found a cottage for you
How nice
This is an experiment for us. We've not let the old cottage before
Don't be shy telling us of any inadequacies, will you?
- I'll try to be bold - Excellent
You found Miss Pride in good spirits?
Very defiant
I welcome her visit on aesthetic grounds
I think what they've done to the island is a disaster
Let alone the dubious morality of selling hope to the afflicted
Let's hope it was wise of her to come
So, you're convinced it was an accident
Now, look. It is an absolute rule
the trolley is chocked up when not in use
I can institute safety procedures
It takes one pea-brained idiot to balls things up
It doesn't look like an accident to me, Major
You're a bit posh for a copper, aren't you?
I've met your type before
Swanky armored regiments, thinking they're cavalry with horses still
I'm still a copper
Yes
I really don't think this is a good idea
Please, Miss Troy, I am perfectly capable
Ah! Mrs Ballantyne?
I would appreciate it if you could find me an old cushion
Oh, yes, of course, Miss Pride
One doesn't know how long this rehearsal of Miss Cost's might last
- Superintendent. Alistair - Hello
- Young Mrs McDonald, is it? - Aye, she's due any hour now
You'll have a new member of your church by tomorrow morning
There's your man from Scotland Yard
Superintendent Campbell? Roderick Alleyn
I got your message, Chief Inspector
You understand, I'm only here as an old friend of Miss Emily
Very tactful, Chief Inspector. Thank you
Needed to be said, I expect. Now you've said it
Yes
And Miss Pride’s accident?
No accident, you think?
I tried the trolley. Somebody must have aimed it at her
Any idea who might have done it?
Alistair, if the wretched woman is going to be practising sacrilege,
of course you've got to be here
You have to see what she's intending to do
It's her going on about illicit sex
in the heather I can't bear
What am I supposed to do about that?
Come on
Thank you
- Cissie, this is for you - Right
Mind what you do with that sword, James
Right, Walter, you know what to do with that. That's right
Cushion
Thank you
Cissie, we're ready to start now
- Tell him - Wally
- Walter - Wally
You can do the music now
Come along, now
Cissie?
In the sorrow of his disfigurement...
In the sorrow of my disfigurement
To the Falls his steps he bent
To the Falls...
my steps are bent
There to cool his sorrow's fever
as he knelt beside the river
There to cool my sorrow's fever
as I knelt beside the river
Kneel, Walter
"Be not afeared," sayeth the lady
Bright she was, and pure
Leave your hands in yonder water
it will effect a cure
So, in the sparkling waters blessed
I washed my poor, warty skin
When I awoke from night's sweet rest,
gone was my disfiguring
Miss Cost! Wally! Come on!
Barbarians
Filthy barbarians
This is sacred ground
You defile it with your presence
Your filthy practices will be punished, believe me
I...
.. will... punish... you
I will...
punish...
I will...
I'll be just down the corridor
That is quite unnecessary
Nevertheless, that's where I'll be
You still think I shouldn't have come, don't you?
You think this is some whim, don't you?
How little you know me
It is much, much more
Good night, Miss Emily
Good night
Oh, dear
And you've still got a report to write
- That reminds me - What?
Oh, nothing much
For you. From Egypt
Thank you
One can't go to Egypt and come back without a dung beetle
No?
The dung beetle gets a small piece of dung,
rolls it up a slope, lets it roll down again till it's a perfect sphere
Ancient Egyptians thought a great dung beetle in the sky
did the same thing to the sun every day
How entirely reasonable
A scarab, you mean
Oh, Rory, it's beautiful
With the sun in its claws
It's perfect. Thank you
I... think I'd better catch my boat
I think perhaps you’d better
Emily?
Superintendent, I found her out there
All I've done is dragged her out of the water
I never thought anybody'd be mad enough
to take it this far
What's happened? Miss Pride?
No
My God!
Miss Cost
But why are you so angry?
I ask you not to come up here in the first place,
I ask you to take the most basic precautions, you ignore me
But here I am
I slipped out to put up a notice, that's all
Then I went for a walk. All is well
All is not well. Someone's been killed!
What?
Who?
Miss Cost
And she was almost certainly killed because she was mistaken for you
A direct result of your most incredible obstinacy
Yes, I see, well...
You've made that very clear
- Rory, what's happened? - Miss Cost...
Patrick?
What's all this about?
The Inspector was only asking me to look after Miss Pride
I made no promises
I know that
- It's not that - So what is it?
Elspeth Cost is dead
That's what he told me
They think she was murdered, you know
- How do you know? - God, everything's such a mess
What is?
- It scares me rigid to think what... - What?
I don’t know
I don’t know!
That's the trouble. All guesswork
Here I am. Rules of evidence
- Teaching myself to respect evidence - Evidence for what?
There's no evidence
Forget it. It's nothing
Overactive adolescent mind, probably
Sorry
Sir?
Any footprints up there?
We’d better not confuse the ground any further
Sorry
- We shouldn’t be tramping about up here - No, I suppose not
Sir!
Possible murder weapon
Witchy woman
Witchy woman!
You're very good at that, Wally
Did you throw a stone at Miss Pride?
It's a secret
Notice is given that the owner of this property
wishes to disassociate herself
from any claim that may have been made
for curative properties of the spring
She also gives notice that the property will be
restored to its natural state
She's not scared of sticking her neck out, is she?
She could teach a giraffe, believe me
Mind you, it just confirms what we've both been thinking, doesn't it?
That somebody might have thought that Miss Pride was standing under that umbrella,
not Miss Cost at all
Oh, yes
When did she put this up, do you think?
This morning
Somebody tore it down
The beads!
She...
She must have come up here to get her glass beads
What's the matter, lass?
She lent them to me to represent the waters
If I hadn’t have dropped them yesterday, well...
.. none of this would have happened, would it?
I'll drop by, see her later on. OK?
Doctor?
Any thoughts on time of death?
8... 8.15
Look, I saw Miss Cost earlier
She was headed up this way from the shop
- When was this? - It would be about 7 o'clock
I was on my way over to young Mrs McDonald
She was having a baby. It was a nice easy home delivery
I was hardly needed
Did you see Miss Cost again?
No, I finished at 7.30, went back to Portacarrick
Did you see anybody else?
There was the McNabb boy, Wally
He was running around pretending to be an aeroplane, as far as I remember
Do you have any idea, Doctor, professionally, on Wally?
Well, I'm not qualified, but...
No, sorry, I'm not qualified
What would happen to him, do you think, if...
I doubt he’d be held responsible for his actions
That's not a professional opinion either, by the way
Ladies and gentlemen
Please! Ladies and gentlemen, please
I do understand your frustration
The police are investigating something very serious
A leading member of the community has been killed
Until the police have finished their inspection of the site,
I'm afraid it's...
- What's happened? Do you know? - No. Only that she's been killed
- Patrick said you’d spoken to the police - Not really
Is he all right?
What a horrible business. What a wretched, horrible business
I hope you will bear with us. Thank you very much
I heard nothing in the night. Nothing
I've always slept well
Nothing has ever disturbed my sleep or spoilt my appetite
You haven't forgiven me, have you, Roderick?
No
Why not?
Why don’t you tell me the real reason why you came up here?
My sister
It was my sister
She was cruelly exploited
She was an innocent. She was a good person, I was simply clever
How was she exploited?
She had a malignancy,
which was operable
She came here
That ridiculous Cost woman persuaded her to stay
Stuffed her head with nonsense about the pool
By the time she returned to London her condition was no longer operable
Miss Cost filled her with false hope
She killed my sister
I'm not sorry she's dead
You’d better not express that opinion anywhere else
I'm prepared to shout it from the rooftops
No, please don’t
They hate me
Yes, I'm afraid they do
I'm still determined to stop it
No-one is going to profit from another tragedy
such as my sister's
You're a very brave woman
That's why some of us love you
I want you to do something for me
I don't want you to leave this room
Promise?
Please, don’t let anyone into her room. Anyone
- Unless it's me, of course - Of course
- Troy will relieve you later - OK, that's fine
Thank you
God
- Inspector Fox? - That's right
Welcome to bonnie Scotland
Let me out!
I'm locked in!
Chief Inspector, I've done something dreadful, I'm afraid
I've locked her in
She appears to be trying to smash her way out
I could murder her
The very man
Mr Alleyn is putting you in protective custody, ma'am
He says - begging your pardon, ma'am -
that you were the best teacher he ever had
and he doesn't want your death on his conscience
And what's more, I don't want him to have
your death on his conscience
This is Constable Menzies
He has strict instructions from Mr Alleyn
as to what you may or may not do
Good evening, ma'am
There you are. Lovers' Hollow
You could say it has connections with the victim
- Really? You surprise me - I could show you the station log book
Miss Cost was always complaining about disgusting behaviour
The lads at the station called her Old Mother-Never-Had-It
Sir!
Excuse me
Excellent. I wonder what he was doing here
- Who's that? - The tippling major from the hotel
He smokes those like a chimney
Perhaps that hoof print will confirm it
- I'll take a cast of that - Good man
I'll leave you to it
There you go, Major
What do you think, Miss Williams?
I think Wally'll have told Miss Troy the truth
He's a very literal boy. Not devious
Something's troubling him, though
God
What, Miss?
If Wally were involved, I'm just thinking what
a pointless mess it would be
His life's blighted enough as it is
He can't be ruled out on those grounds, I'm afraid
Thank you
Now...
Let's assume, just for the moment,
that Miss Pride was the intended victim, not Miss Cost
Where does that lead us?
Miss Pride threatens to close the pool
Whose livelihood is affected?
First of all, I suppose the Ballantynes - the Major, wife, stepson
They appear to have put their life savings into this... pile
Who else?
Dr Nairn
He runs a private nursing home
He must benefit from these boatloads of invalids
Nearly all the tradesmen were doing well from these visitors
Aye. MacPherson's coining it in
He's got three guesthouses and a chippy
What about the McNabbs? Wally and his father
I'd say they have a very great deal to lose
Miss Troy was able to befriend young Wally this afternoon
Wally admitted he was on the hillside early this morning,
and that was confirmed by Dr Nairn's sighting of him
Wally says that he didn’t see Miss Cost, but says that he did see Miss Pride
He also admitted to throwing a stone at Miss Pride
He says, however, it was the "ither" day
and it was a "wee yin", which didn’t hit her
Whatever that means
Anything else?
Yes
This word was cut out of the front page of last week's Sporting Chronicle
What it said was: Death of favourite at Ayr
Good
Called to the bar already?
Excuse me. Mrs Ballantyne, I wonder,
could you spare me a moment?
Yes, of course
What were your relations with Miss Cost?
She was an interfering busybody
Lonely people often are
Lonely?
You didn’t know Miss Cost
Mrs Ballantyne, I think there are a lot of lonely people on this island
I was just thinking that perhaps Miss Cost
invented the story of the green lady,
embroidered it, if you like, because she was lonely,
to give her life some meaning
I always thought it was a lot of old damn nonsense
Oh, the cult was nonsense, of course, but...
.. the green lady was real
Wally's a simple lad. He tells the truth
"She wore a green dress and she was beautiful"
It was you, wasn't it?
Patrick thinks it's me that's changed,
but it's not
It's everything
Look at him now
He and Margaret used to be so thoroughly sane and nice
They really did
I think they took on too much...
For God’s sake, Mother, anything would have been better than this
I know what's going on. I'm not blind
Oh, Patrick. Do you think I'm the first woman
to get tired of being pushed around by a drunk?
- Who made him into a drunk? - Well, not me
I didn’t want it to happen
It was that stupid woman
That poor, stupid woman
Miss Cost?
Do you want to know what made him a drunk?
His conscience
His own guilty conscience
Sir?
Yesterday morning?
The morning Miss Cost was killed
Oh, in bed. Awful night
Much consumed
Rabbits
Do you have a licence for that?
- What? - You need a firearms licence
Oh, it's my pistol. Service issue
I know that, but the war's over, Major. You’d better get one
Yes. Yes, of course
You smoke a great deal, don't you?
Care for one?
Thank you
I tell you something, I thought of joining the police
when I left my regiment
Took up this damn poodle-faking instead
Well, there you are
Listen, old boy, I feel I ought to warn you what they're saying
- They? - In the cottages down in Portacarrick
Not that I agree, necessarily
- What are they saying? - The two women hated each other
Old Cost and Miss Pride
Miss Pride was there
Probably blames Cost for her sister's death
That's what they say
Can't get away from it. She was there on the spot
Hanging up her damn notice
Well, you should know. You were there too
You went to the Falls
- No - I put it to you that you did
Absolutely not
Are you calling me a liar?
What were your relations with Miss Cost?
Who the hell do you think you are?
Sticking your nose in like some bum-sniffing dog
Well, that certainly gives me some sort of answer
Oh, does it, just?
Are you a sporting man, Major?
Yes
And I see you take The Sporting Chronicle
This was my wife's idea, Chief Inspector
Don't be so wet, Alistair
Tell him
It's about Miss Cost
But I'm sure you've found out for yourself, Inspector
She was a...
You see...
She set her cap at every man of her age and class in the district
- Including Alistair - I don't know about that
I do. I saw her off
Then Dr Nairn gave her short shrift
After that she tried an accountant on holiday from Dunfermline
I believe our local librarian even was honoured with some attention
Did she succeed with anyone?
- We think she may have - Oh, Dulcie
Alistair! She's been killed. It's important
We think she had an understanding with the Major
- An understanding? - But that's not the point
The point is, the way she was obsessed with sex
She was always complaining to me about
people making love up there in the heather
She'd quote time, date, place
She quoted times?
Oh, yes. She went looking for them
She was a voyeuse
She collected them
Sir?
Well, well
Inspector Alleyn
- I have that postmortem report for you - Thank you
- Any surprises? - No, no. Not really
- Time of death? - 8, 8.15
Pretty much as you thought
By the way, would you say Miss Cost was... sexually obsessed?
Well, that was certainly her reputation
I know this is difficult, because he's probably a patient of yours,
but exactly what time did you see Wally playing aeroplanes?
7.45. I was back on the mainland by 8 o'clock. It would have been about quarter to
Asphyxiation following cranial injury
Sir, can I have a word with you for half a minute?
Excuse me
I found the key to it hanging from one of the bedsprings
The first two and a half are proper diaries
But in the third...
Just look
Very cryptic
Times, dates, initials
Looks like a game book at a hunting lodge
And in this instant, the game was courting couples
She didn’t just write about them, she took their pictures as well
Crikey
Lovers' Hollow
Any distinguishing features?
Well, you’d have to be a foot fetishist to recognise this one
Bailey, that last diary...
When does it end?
- Last month - Last month
Was there a later one? Is that what they were after?
Could anybody have found that?
I can't see how, sir
No sign of any forcing, or even trying
- Anyway, why not take the lot? - Exactly
So, if the intruder hasn't got it, where the hell is it?
7.20. Miss Emily leaves the hotel followed by Major Ballantyne
7.25. Miss Emily hangs up her notice at the enclosure
Major Ballantyne hides behind rock
Excuse me
- Morning - Morning
- Troy! - Rory
7.30...
Go on
7.30 - Miss Emily leaves. Major removes notice,
chucking it in the mud
Still 7.30, Mrs Dulcie Cruickshank arrives
at McDonald's cottage to assist at birth
7.35 - Major Ballantyne returns to hotel
So he says
In brackets "own account"
Close brackets
Still 7.35: Dr Nairn comes out of McDonald’s cottage
He sees Wally McNabb
7.45 - Dr Nairn heads back to the mainland
Arrives 8 o'clock
Still 8 o'clock. Mrs Cruickshank leaves McDonald's cottage
and heads for hotel
All right if I start here, sir?
The diary... it's in the post
The damn thing's in the post!
Bailey!
Rory, those timings...
.. they don't make sense
Four days now and still no asthma
Blessed, blessed waters
I saw him at the hotel tonight
He kept looking at me
He stared at my ankles
I was sitting above the Falls
I was feeling the magic of the water
and then she came out from behind a boulder
in a green dress
I could hear a man laughing. I couldn't see him, but I knew
I knew all the wicked desecration of it!
I am shocked, horrified and sickened by what I've seen this evening
My hand shakes
But I must write it down
At last I shall speak
I shall tell her... he could have loved me
I'll make them suffer. I shall drag their names through the mire
I shall send this to the proper authorities
Now. Tonight
I am determined
This isn't the end
People are so stupid
Do you know what they're saying now?
The latest money is that Miss Pride took a lump of rock to Miss Cost
I think the latest money's in for something of a surprise
- Hello, Dulcie - Oh, hello
I promised Miss Emily a return match
Two sessions in one day? You're a glutton for punishment
Oh, I enjoy a good opponent
Do you need fortifying?
Maybe I do. She's terrific
Rory?
Enter
Yes, Roderick?
Miss Emily, I owe you an apology
You do? Why?
Miss Cost wasn't killed because she was mistaken for you
She was killed because...
Because she was Miss Cost
- You bitch! - For God’s sake!
These are private premises
Get out!
Not just yet, Major
Patrick, you're a lawyer
Hardly
Would you say that this fight is connected in any way
with the death of Miss Cost?
Patrick. How can it be?
Perhaps that's a question that I should properly put to the Major
What the hell do you mean?
Are you saying I did away with Elspeth Cost?
First things first, Major
I'm saying it was you who threatened Miss Emily Pride
You who caused her grievous bodily harm
And you who followed her to the Falls that morning. Didn't you?
I was in the bar
Tell him
You smoke too much, Major
Cheroots at breakfast time
You were at the Falls, no question
But did you go to kill Miss Emily?
Or did you go to kill Miss Cost?
You're better than I thought
There doesn’t seem to be any way out, does there?
I thought this was all about plain, straightforward greed
A stubborn old lady who nearly got killed because she dared stand up to greed
and grasping vulgarity
There was greed, of course, but there was also good old-fashioned lust
And Miss Cost, I'm afraid, was... consumed by it
Wasn't she, Major?
I didn’t touch her
But you met her that morning, didn't you?
She'd gone to collect her beads from the Falls,
and she confronted you
A lonely, bitter woman who you had cast aside
Perhaps she provoked you
Told you things about your wife you'd rather not have known
Walked away. She was ranting
I didn't touch her
No, you didn’t
No, the man who killed her
was the man she was in love with
Obsessed with
The man she followed
Spied on
A man she grew to hate
because she watched him commit adultery with another woman
You think this has some bearing on the death of Miss Cost
Mrs Ballantyne, Miss Cost was killed
because she threatened to expose the lover of the green lady
Rejected, she turned on the man she loved
She would ruin him, professionally
She had times, dates, photographs
She put them in the post to the General Medical Council
She told you what she meant to do,
so you followed her to the Falls
and you killed her
It's hardly possible
She died between 8 and 8.15. I left the island at 7.45
Back on the mainland by 8 o'clock
Troy, could you tell us, please, exactly when you
saw the Doctor on the morning of the murder?
I was doing a watercolour
I'd set up by the quayside
I'd just laid a wash on and I knew
I had ten minutes before it dried
I heard the clock, checked my watch
It was 8.30
That's when I saw you return
She can't have seen me at all
She had her back to me
Oh, yes, I did
I saw you reflected in the windscreen of a parked van
It was 8.30 exactly
8.30, Doctor
That's half an hour on the island
unadmitted, unaccounted for
He was with me. He was with me!
I'm sorry
Come along, now, Doctor
Don't make it worse than it already is
Don't come any closer
Come along, now, Doctor
I mean it, Alleyn!
Rory!
Rob?
I'm sorry
You know, Roderick, I'm not convinced I should have come here at all
I think perhaps I should have done it all through my solicitors
What do you think?
Well, of course, I did get one thing right
Who would want to kill me?
Goodbye, Miss Troy. And thank you so much
Roderick, are you sure you won't accompany me back to London?
I can't, Miss Emily
I still have that report to write,
and Superintendent Campbell has asked me to stay
Did the Superintendent really ask you to stay?
Did I say Superintendent?
Can't think what came over me
Must have been someone else I meant
Well, I'd like to stay on
But I don't expect you to
I don't expect you to do anything
I know you don't
I think that's one of the many reasons why...
Will you marry me?