The Night Caller (2024) s01e04 Episode Script
Episode 4
1
You're live on air, Tony.
Welcome to the show.
I was a teacher.
Twenty-seven years' loyal service,
so they could just throw me
on the scrap heap.
'You lost your job
because your face didn't fit?
'There must have been something
more to it than that, Tony.'
Ste, I ran over him.
I wanted to protect you.
You did it in my name?
When I'm talking to you lot
on the radio,
it feels like two old mates
putting the world to rights
over a couple of pints.
Mr Conroy?
Ste Murray is dead.
This is now a murder investigation.
Lawrence, thank Christ.
Sorry, do I know you, mate?
It's Tony. You know, from the radio?
We're friends.
Friends? You mean like
my 10,000 other best mates (?)
You used to be a teacher,
didn't you?
So don't be so bloody stupid, mate.
Seriously, brother
get a life.
FOOTSTEPS
HE EXHALES
Happy birthday, you old fart.
HE COUGHS
SNORING
LAWRENCE: 'So don't be
so bloody stupid, mate.
'Seriously, brother Get a life.'
HE SNORTS
'And welcome back.
We have a first-time caller.
'We have Tony,
and he's calling in from Bootle.
'You're live on air, Tony.
Welcome to the show.
'Listen, you're a hero, yeah?
You're a bloody hero.
'You're a - I don't know,
a Gary Cooper,
'a John Wayne, a Clint Eastwood.
'You're a Rooster Cogburn,
Butch Cassidy.
'You're the man
who does things his way.
'The man who stands alone.
'Yeah, but most of all, you're a man
'that I am insanely proud
to call my friend.'
Get up!
Get up!
Jesus! Get up!
Take T-Take whatever you want
I don't want your money.
I've got I've got
My wallet, where's my wallet?
I don't want your money!
I want you to tell the truth.
That's what I want.
Wh-What?
I trusted you.
I really, really trusted you.
It's you.
It's you.
Get out of my house!
You heard me. Get out of my
Get out of my house right now!
No! No. I'm not going nowhere.
What's wrong with you?
I'm calling the police,
you complete weirdo.
Breaking and entering,
trespassing
They're gonna throw the book at you,
mate.
Get off me!
Get off!
Get out of
my house!
No, no, no, no.
All right. OK. All right.
All right.
Easy, easy, easy, easy, easy.
Listen
Wh
Why don't you just - just go?
I won't say a word.
You know
..I had a happy place once.
What?
It was called school.
I was happy. The kids were happy.
BREATHING HARD
And then, suddenly
it wasn't a happy place any more.
And that's when I, erm
when I
erm
Yeah.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
I-I get it, man.
It's Tony, isn't it? It's Tony?
Yeah.
You know, I get I get it.
No, you don't get it.
I do. I do!
No, you don't get it!
If you did, you wouldn't have
told me all about your happy place.
The boozer by the river.
The pint on a sunny day.
Two best mates chewing the fat.
D'you know how good that sounded?
How much I wanted
to be a part of it?
And then you
you
The way you talked to me.
Yeah.
SHAKILY: Yeah.
I am
I'm so sorry, Tony.
I really am, mate.
I r I really am sorry.
I was I was bang out of order.
But you have to understand
one thing. Right?
I
I was having a super,
SUPER shitty day, mate.
You know, my-my-my head
was all over the place.
It was my birthday.
And my-my friends, phew
And, you-you know, Tony
..there's some other stuff
going on in my life
that you
couldn't even possibly fathom.
What like?
Like being told you had cancer?
Now, that WOULD be a bad day.
If you ever had cancer.
You But you didn't.
Did you, Lawrence?
You
How dare you?
PAPER FALLS TO FLOOR
How fucking dare you!
You had no fucking right.
And you had no right either!
D'you want sugar?
Yes, please. Here.
Hiya, love. Cup of tea, please,
when you're ready.
I'll bring it over.
I was, er, sorry to hear about
about what happened to your ex.
You know, it's
Anyway.
Yeah.
Have you seen Tony?
Hm?
No. I haven't.
What about you?
No.
He needs help.
Yeah. Oh, yeah.
But I don't know what to do.
HE CHUCKLES
I think you're probably asking
the wrong man.
Or maybe do
You do whatever your conscience
tells you to do, OK?
My conscience tells me one thing,
my heart another.
Please.
What should I do?
I'm sorry, I can't
No. I'm sorry.
What are you gonna do to me?
Why did you lie about having cancer?
I dunno.
I mean, obviously,
I-I took it too far.
You know, I was so convinced
that it'd be bad news
that I told a couple of people
that I had it,
and then when the biopsy
came back negative,
I didn't think I could backtrack.
You know, one minute,
you're pootling along,
everything's absolutely
Next minute, bang,
you got a fucking great big lump.
It's terrifying.
SHAKILY: And then you gotta
wait for the results.
And that
that is a nightmare.
You have no idea
what that's like, mate.
You have absolutely no idea.
Especially when you're on your own.
No-one to lean on.
No-one to talk to.
You have loads of friends.
Oh, you Oh, you mean
my mates at the party,
that lot on the wall?
HE CHUCKLES BITTERLY
I'd fucking I'd love to see
them feed me soup through a straw
and wipe my arse
while I'm ill and vulnerable.
No, mate.
It's just me, on my own.
Rattling around this big old gaff.
Not being able to sleep.
Not being able to function.
That's a funny thing, that, innit?
You know, me and you.
We're virtually the same person.
We're loners.
We're creatures of the night.
You're a liar, a fake
and a phony.
Well
I
I am a late night
radio talk show host, mate.
And I hate to say this,
but it goes with the territory.
So it's your job
to lie about having cancer?
To trick people into believing
that you went through chemo?
No!
It's my job to tell people
what they wanna hear.
KNIFE CLANGS
Don't people wanna hear the truth?
No.
They wanna hear THEIR truth.
I just simply help them find it.
I promised myself that I'd never
put my trust in anyone ever again.
After what happened.
I'd resigned myself to my fate.
Being lost, on my own.
But then you came along.
And you gave me hope.
OK.
That's a good thing, right?
Not if it's all you've got.
Cos when it's not there any more
you've got nothing left.
No, there's always hope, mate.
Not always.
Not after what I've done.
What do you mean,
after what you've done?
Stephen Murray.
It was me who ran him over.
What?
It was me. I did it.
Yeah, OK. But
it was an accident, right?
Tony, it was an accident, right?
S So, can
Can I just ask you
Can I just ask you
wh-why you did that?
It was my job to protect
to nurture.
OK.
It was my duty.
I couldn't allow myself
to fail again.
It's like you said -
it's our duty
to protect the vulnerable.
Right.
Oh
DISTANT SIREN
SIREN APPROACHES
SIREN FADES
I just - I really need the toilet
badly. It's urgent.
Where is it?
Just down the hall, mate.
Move.
SHE EXHALES
LINE RINGING OU
'Merseyside Police.'
Hello.
'How can we help?'
I've some information
about Stephen Murray.
'Take your time.'
I've the name of the person
who ran him over.
'Hold the line.'
BREATHING HEAVILY
Fuck.
WATER RUNNING
HE SNIFFS
Think, think!
Shit.
Fuck, fuck!
SHAKILY: Help. Help!
Someone help me, please.
Someone, someone help me, please!
QUIETLY: Help!
Please, someone help me!
MUFFLED: Help! Please!
SHOUTS: Please! Someone help!
Someone call the police! Please!
Help! Help me!
It's Lawrence Brightway!
Somebody, please help me!
Help! HELP!
BANGING CONTINUES
HE GRUNTS
LAWRENCE ROARS
Get off! Get off!
Help! Fuck off! Get off!
TONY GRUNTS
Argh!
No, no! No, no, no, no, no!
BOTH BREATHING HEAVILY
Oh, to be in your happy place now,
eh?
TONY CHUCKLES
I was just another voice
on the end of a telephone, wasn't I?
No.
You know, we get, like,
we get 100 calls a week.
Gotta keep everyone happy, and
Oh, you think playing with
people's lives makes them happy?
You're no different to all the rest.
No-one to take the year 11s
for footy?
"Tony Conroy will do it."
"Nice one, Tony."
No-one to do the open day?
"Ask Tony."
"Thanks, Tony."
Need sickness cover?
"Tony's your man. Top man, Tony."
And then
"Have some time out, Tony.
"The break'll do you good,
after all that's happened.
"The door's always open, Tony.
"We're here for you, Tony."
But they weren't there for me.
None of 'em.
"Move on, Tony.
"You have to put it all
behind you."
So, why didn't you? Eh?
Why didn't you move on?
I mean, you're not the first person
to lose their job, are you?
Oh, I didn't just lose me job.
I lost a part of me.
It was just a fucking job.
Will you just get over it, man?!
Get up.
Get up!
We're going on air.
OK, thanks.
He's not home.
He works nights.
I know.
Do you have his mobile number?
Yes.
So, perhaps if you could call him,
ask him where he is,
or ask him to meet?
What's gonna happen to him?
Will he go to prison?
That's for other people to decide.
For now, we need to speak to him.
And find out what exactly happened
and make sure no-one else gets hurt.
He's a good man.
He's just lost his way.
Look, you can't go crashing in
fucking live on air!
PHONE BUZZES
You know,
changes to the schedule
have to be OK'd by the controller -
sometimes, you know,
sometimes months in advance.
Call him. Mate, it's
the middle of the fucking night!
Tell him we're going on air
before someone gets hurt!
OK, keep trying.
Tony, why don't you just
drive off into the night?
You know, I-I promise you,
I'm not gonna tell a soul.
HE SCOFFS
And remember this, you've got -
you've got something on me, right?
You've got the cancer.
You know, we keep this between us,
and we'll just call it quits.
I promise you. I won't tell a soul.
I promise you, if you go
..I will find you help.
You'll get me some help?
Yeah. Professional help.
You know,
I know a fantastic counsellor.
Someone that you can talk to.
Someone that will listen.
I had someone to listen to,
didn't I?
Now get the station controller
on the phone.
All right
Tony, you win.
I'm a worthless, shallow
fraud.
I'm a duplicitous piece of shit.
Is that what you wanted to hear,
mate?
Well, now your listeners
can hear you say it.
Call him. Get him on the phone.
Now.
You realise this'll be
the end of both of us, yeah?
My life ended the day
I walked out of the school gates
for the last time.
I'm begging you, Tony,
I'm begging you, please.
Please don't do this.
This job is
..it's all I have.
I know.
This is the last broadcast
you'll ever give, Lawrence.
The death knell of your career.
And then you'll know what it's like
to be thrown on the scrapheap.
Hey.
Call him.
TONY SIGHS
TONY EXHALES,
SNIFFS
Yeah, Brodie.
Yeah, it's me, it's Lawrence.
Yeah, I know what time it is.
Listen
we have a major problem here.
'Good morning, and welcome to
this rather impromptu edition
'of Night Talk,
with me, Lawrence Brightway.
'Tonight, we're joined by
a good friend of the show.
'We're joined by Tony,
'who has chosen to join me here
in my studio.'
Now, the phone lines are open,
so you know what to do,
don't be shy, as tonight,
we are going to be talking about
Trust.
Trust.
And betrayal.
'And betrayal.'
'People who let you down.'
People who you thought
were your friends.
People who you thought
were covering your back.
We're talking frauds,
phonies
back-stabbers.
And we have our first caller.
Welcome to the show. Line one.
Hello, er, hi, you're on Night Talk.
Who am I speaking to?
SUE: 'Lawrence, what're you like?'
CHUCKLING: Hey!
Good morning, Sue.
'Oh, it's your birthday,
for goodness sake.
'You are allowed some time off,
you know.'
We're talking trust and betrayal,
Sue.
'Hello? And who are you?'
I'm Tony, Lawrence's mucker.
Isn't that right, Lawrence?
Yeah, that's right, yeah.
'Well, hiya, Tony.
'Any friend of Lawrence
is a friend of mine.'
It's good to meet you too, Sue.
'So, trust and betrayal?'
'Oh, gosh, well,
'me and my Kenny
have been together 40 years.
'We've never had
so much as a cross word.'
'So I don't know
if I'm the best person to ask.'
Well, maybe we can ask Lawrence
to help us out, then.
Come on, Lawrence.
Tell Sue all you know
about trust and betrayal.
Or should I tell her for you?
So, Sue.
You know, I don't quite know
how to explain this, you see,
but sometimes
..sometimes, you say one thing,
and you mean another.
I suppose it's a kind of a way of
protecting the people
that you really care about.
'Oh, Lawrence.
'It's not about the cancer, is it?'
Yes, Sue, yes, it's
..it's about the cancer.
SUE SIGHS
'It's come back, hasn't it?
'Me and my Kenny
have been reading your book,
'and it's absolutely
heart-breaking.'
Tell 'em, Lawrence.
You see, the thing is, Sue
..see the thing is, you see
Another caller.
We have another caller on line two.
You're gonna tell 'em.
Even if we have to sit here
all night.
You're live on Night Talk.
Line two.
Fuck off!
'Hello, you're on Night Talk.'
Fuck off.
'Who am I speaking to, please?'
ROSA: 'Hello?'
'Tony?'
Rosa?
Is that you, Rosa?
'Yeah.'
'It's good to hear your voice.'
It's good to hear yours.
'I'm sorry.'
About what?
'You and me.'
'I just wasn't, erm'
Yeah.
'You know.'
Yeah, that's OK.
We can still be friends.
'Yeah, I'd like that.'
TONY SNIFFS
'You not working?'
No. It was quiet.
I decided to shut early.
'I want you to promise me
something, Rosa.
'That you won't give up
on the foundation course.
'That you'll go to college
and train to be a teacher.
'Make your mum proud.
'Make me proud.'
Always ask the best of yourself.
'The best of myself?'
It's something that
I used to say to the kids.
'It's nice.'
OK, but you've got to promise me
something, all right?
You can't hurt yourself
or anyone else.
Tony. Are you still there?
Tony!
'Yeah, yeah, yeah.'
The kids you told me about
..the ones who everyone else
had given up on.
The ones who had nothing and nobody.
'And the ones whose lives
you turned around.
'They should be your legacy.
'You're a good man, Tony.
'You help people.
That's what you do.
'You save people.'
You know, it's funny,
but for some reason,
I thought I could save you.
TONY SNIFFS
'What happened with Ste, you
'..you just weren't
thinking straight.'
But you're not the one
who needs saving.
'You could get help.'
TONY SNIFFS
No, it's too late.
No.
'Death follows me.'
Ste wasn't the first.
WHISPERING: Keep going.
WHISPERING:
What do I say? What do I say?
'What do you mean, Tony?
'Tony, are you
Tony, are you there? Tony?
'Tony.'
He's gone.
'What do you mean?'
What do you mean, Tony,
that Ste wasn't the first?
MAN: Subject's last known location
is on the first floor.
LAWRENCE: 'And for those of you
just tuning in,
'I've been joined by Tony,
an old friend of the show
'for this one-off episode
of Night Talk.
'And we're talking about
trust and betrayal.'
Stand by for emergency entry.
'Please do keep those calls coming.
'We'd love to hear from you.'
Er, you're through to Night Talk
on line one, welcome.
Hello, you're on Night Talk.
What's on your mind?
WOMAN: 'Mr Conroy?'
WOMAN SNIFFS
'It'
SHE SIGHS
'It's Sarah Hall.
'Joe's mum.'
TONY SNIFFS
Mrs Hall?
'I've been
putting this moment off
'..but Siobhan says
she saw you on the bus.'
I didn't mean to upset her.
I just wanted to say sorry
..to both of you.
I know.
'How is Siobhan?
'Is she still enjoying science?'
Yeah.
She's Year 11 now.
She's got Miss Khan. She's
She's doing really well.
Ah, she's a bright kid.
She'll go far.
You know
'I should've been there for him,
I should've
'I should've, I should've been'
TONY CRIES
You mustn't blame yourself.
I was his pastoral carer.
He called me
..the night it happened.
What?
'I I-I didn't answer.
'I'm so sorry.'
THEY BREATHE SHAKILY
SHE SOBS
DIAL TONE
PHONE BUZZES
'I was I was gonna answer.'
BUZZING CONTINUES
'I I had so much going on.
'I couldn't be there for him.'
BUZZING STOPS
DIAL TONE
PHONE BUZZES
'I didn't
'I didn't know how bad it was.'
DIAL TONE
PHONE CLATTERS
BELL RINGS
SIGHS
DIAL TONE
SHE WHIMPERS
TONY SNIFFLES
Joe. I'm s I'm s
I'm sorry. I'm so sorry.
Help me!
Help!
SARAH SOBS
I didn't hear
his calls for help either.
'None of us did.
'It's not your fault.
'Joe thought the world of you.'
TONY INHALES SHAKILY
I'm so sorry that I let you down.
'Mr Conroy
'..you didn't let anyone down.'
SOBS
BREATHES DEEPLY
KNIFE SCRAPES
Put it down.
Tony, put the knife
MAN: Strike! Strike! Strike!
Armed police!
No, no, no, no, no!
WOMAN: Coming to you live
from London,
the nation's favourite, Radio UK.
Hey, welcome back!
Welcome to Night Talk.
You're listening to me,
Lawrence Brightway,
broadcasting from
the heart of London City
all across our wonderful nation.
Tonight,
we've got a first time caller.
We've got Wendy,
and she's calling in from Hackney.
Er, welcome to the show,
Wendy.
What's up?
DEEP BREATHING
OVER PHONE LINE
Don't worry, Wendy, take your time.
WENDY INHALES
You're amongst friends here.
'I'm sorry, Lawrence.
'The thing is, I just
I don't know what to do.
'I feel so low, so desperate.'
Right, well, why don't we try this?
Why don't we try you just talking
and me just listening?
Like there's nobody else here,
just me and you in your happy place.
'My happy place?'
Yeah.
DOOR BUZZES
'You know, that special place
that makes you smile.
'The place where you can be
at peace with yourself.
'Put all your worries behind you.
'Your happy place.'
Tony?
Visitor.
Hi.
Tony.
How've you been?
Yeah.
It's good to see you.
'Shall I tell you about
my happy place, Wendy?
'I think about sitting outside
by the river
'..with the sun on my back
'and me and my old mucker.'
You know, two old mates,
down the local boozer,
putting the world to rights
over a couple of pints.
You're live on air, Tony.
Welcome to the show.
I was a teacher.
Twenty-seven years' loyal service,
so they could just throw me
on the scrap heap.
'You lost your job
because your face didn't fit?
'There must have been something
more to it than that, Tony.'
Ste, I ran over him.
I wanted to protect you.
You did it in my name?
When I'm talking to you lot
on the radio,
it feels like two old mates
putting the world to rights
over a couple of pints.
Mr Conroy?
Ste Murray is dead.
This is now a murder investigation.
Lawrence, thank Christ.
Sorry, do I know you, mate?
It's Tony. You know, from the radio?
We're friends.
Friends? You mean like
my 10,000 other best mates (?)
You used to be a teacher,
didn't you?
So don't be so bloody stupid, mate.
Seriously, brother
get a life.
FOOTSTEPS
HE EXHALES
Happy birthday, you old fart.
HE COUGHS
SNORING
LAWRENCE: 'So don't be
so bloody stupid, mate.
'Seriously, brother Get a life.'
HE SNORTS
'And welcome back.
We have a first-time caller.
'We have Tony,
and he's calling in from Bootle.
'You're live on air, Tony.
Welcome to the show.
'Listen, you're a hero, yeah?
You're a bloody hero.
'You're a - I don't know,
a Gary Cooper,
'a John Wayne, a Clint Eastwood.
'You're a Rooster Cogburn,
Butch Cassidy.
'You're the man
who does things his way.
'The man who stands alone.
'Yeah, but most of all, you're a man
'that I am insanely proud
to call my friend.'
Get up!
Get up!
Jesus! Get up!
Take T-Take whatever you want
I don't want your money.
I've got I've got
My wallet, where's my wallet?
I don't want your money!
I want you to tell the truth.
That's what I want.
Wh-What?
I trusted you.
I really, really trusted you.
It's you.
It's you.
Get out of my house!
You heard me. Get out of my
Get out of my house right now!
No! No. I'm not going nowhere.
What's wrong with you?
I'm calling the police,
you complete weirdo.
Breaking and entering,
trespassing
They're gonna throw the book at you,
mate.
Get off me!
Get off!
Get out of
my house!
No, no, no, no.
All right. OK. All right.
All right.
Easy, easy, easy, easy, easy.
Listen
Wh
Why don't you just - just go?
I won't say a word.
You know
..I had a happy place once.
What?
It was called school.
I was happy. The kids were happy.
BREATHING HARD
And then, suddenly
it wasn't a happy place any more.
And that's when I, erm
when I
erm
Yeah.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
I-I get it, man.
It's Tony, isn't it? It's Tony?
Yeah.
You know, I get I get it.
No, you don't get it.
I do. I do!
No, you don't get it!
If you did, you wouldn't have
told me all about your happy place.
The boozer by the river.
The pint on a sunny day.
Two best mates chewing the fat.
D'you know how good that sounded?
How much I wanted
to be a part of it?
And then you
you
The way you talked to me.
Yeah.
SHAKILY: Yeah.
I am
I'm so sorry, Tony.
I really am, mate.
I r I really am sorry.
I was I was bang out of order.
But you have to understand
one thing. Right?
I
I was having a super,
SUPER shitty day, mate.
You know, my-my-my head
was all over the place.
It was my birthday.
And my-my friends, phew
And, you-you know, Tony
..there's some other stuff
going on in my life
that you
couldn't even possibly fathom.
What like?
Like being told you had cancer?
Now, that WOULD be a bad day.
If you ever had cancer.
You But you didn't.
Did you, Lawrence?
You
How dare you?
PAPER FALLS TO FLOOR
How fucking dare you!
You had no fucking right.
And you had no right either!
D'you want sugar?
Yes, please. Here.
Hiya, love. Cup of tea, please,
when you're ready.
I'll bring it over.
I was, er, sorry to hear about
about what happened to your ex.
You know, it's
Anyway.
Yeah.
Have you seen Tony?
Hm?
No. I haven't.
What about you?
No.
He needs help.
Yeah. Oh, yeah.
But I don't know what to do.
HE CHUCKLES
I think you're probably asking
the wrong man.
Or maybe do
You do whatever your conscience
tells you to do, OK?
My conscience tells me one thing,
my heart another.
Please.
What should I do?
I'm sorry, I can't
No. I'm sorry.
What are you gonna do to me?
Why did you lie about having cancer?
I dunno.
I mean, obviously,
I-I took it too far.
You know, I was so convinced
that it'd be bad news
that I told a couple of people
that I had it,
and then when the biopsy
came back negative,
I didn't think I could backtrack.
You know, one minute,
you're pootling along,
everything's absolutely
Next minute, bang,
you got a fucking great big lump.
It's terrifying.
SHAKILY: And then you gotta
wait for the results.
And that
that is a nightmare.
You have no idea
what that's like, mate.
You have absolutely no idea.
Especially when you're on your own.
No-one to lean on.
No-one to talk to.
You have loads of friends.
Oh, you Oh, you mean
my mates at the party,
that lot on the wall?
HE CHUCKLES BITTERLY
I'd fucking I'd love to see
them feed me soup through a straw
and wipe my arse
while I'm ill and vulnerable.
No, mate.
It's just me, on my own.
Rattling around this big old gaff.
Not being able to sleep.
Not being able to function.
That's a funny thing, that, innit?
You know, me and you.
We're virtually the same person.
We're loners.
We're creatures of the night.
You're a liar, a fake
and a phony.
Well
I
I am a late night
radio talk show host, mate.
And I hate to say this,
but it goes with the territory.
So it's your job
to lie about having cancer?
To trick people into believing
that you went through chemo?
No!
It's my job to tell people
what they wanna hear.
KNIFE CLANGS
Don't people wanna hear the truth?
No.
They wanna hear THEIR truth.
I just simply help them find it.
I promised myself that I'd never
put my trust in anyone ever again.
After what happened.
I'd resigned myself to my fate.
Being lost, on my own.
But then you came along.
And you gave me hope.
OK.
That's a good thing, right?
Not if it's all you've got.
Cos when it's not there any more
you've got nothing left.
No, there's always hope, mate.
Not always.
Not after what I've done.
What do you mean,
after what you've done?
Stephen Murray.
It was me who ran him over.
What?
It was me. I did it.
Yeah, OK. But
it was an accident, right?
Tony, it was an accident, right?
S So, can
Can I just ask you
Can I just ask you
wh-why you did that?
It was my job to protect
to nurture.
OK.
It was my duty.
I couldn't allow myself
to fail again.
It's like you said -
it's our duty
to protect the vulnerable.
Right.
Oh
DISTANT SIREN
SIREN APPROACHES
SIREN FADES
I just - I really need the toilet
badly. It's urgent.
Where is it?
Just down the hall, mate.
Move.
SHE EXHALES
LINE RINGING OU
'Merseyside Police.'
Hello.
'How can we help?'
I've some information
about Stephen Murray.
'Take your time.'
I've the name of the person
who ran him over.
'Hold the line.'
BREATHING HEAVILY
Fuck.
WATER RUNNING
HE SNIFFS
Think, think!
Shit.
Fuck, fuck!
SHAKILY: Help. Help!
Someone help me, please.
Someone, someone help me, please!
QUIETLY: Help!
Please, someone help me!
MUFFLED: Help! Please!
SHOUTS: Please! Someone help!
Someone call the police! Please!
Help! Help me!
It's Lawrence Brightway!
Somebody, please help me!
Help! HELP!
BANGING CONTINUES
HE GRUNTS
LAWRENCE ROARS
Get off! Get off!
Help! Fuck off! Get off!
TONY GRUNTS
Argh!
No, no! No, no, no, no, no!
BOTH BREATHING HEAVILY
Oh, to be in your happy place now,
eh?
TONY CHUCKLES
I was just another voice
on the end of a telephone, wasn't I?
No.
You know, we get, like,
we get 100 calls a week.
Gotta keep everyone happy, and
Oh, you think playing with
people's lives makes them happy?
You're no different to all the rest.
No-one to take the year 11s
for footy?
"Tony Conroy will do it."
"Nice one, Tony."
No-one to do the open day?
"Ask Tony."
"Thanks, Tony."
Need sickness cover?
"Tony's your man. Top man, Tony."
And then
"Have some time out, Tony.
"The break'll do you good,
after all that's happened.
"The door's always open, Tony.
"We're here for you, Tony."
But they weren't there for me.
None of 'em.
"Move on, Tony.
"You have to put it all
behind you."
So, why didn't you? Eh?
Why didn't you move on?
I mean, you're not the first person
to lose their job, are you?
Oh, I didn't just lose me job.
I lost a part of me.
It was just a fucking job.
Will you just get over it, man?!
Get up.
Get up!
We're going on air.
OK, thanks.
He's not home.
He works nights.
I know.
Do you have his mobile number?
Yes.
So, perhaps if you could call him,
ask him where he is,
or ask him to meet?
What's gonna happen to him?
Will he go to prison?
That's for other people to decide.
For now, we need to speak to him.
And find out what exactly happened
and make sure no-one else gets hurt.
He's a good man.
He's just lost his way.
Look, you can't go crashing in
fucking live on air!
PHONE BUZZES
You know,
changes to the schedule
have to be OK'd by the controller -
sometimes, you know,
sometimes months in advance.
Call him. Mate, it's
the middle of the fucking night!
Tell him we're going on air
before someone gets hurt!
OK, keep trying.
Tony, why don't you just
drive off into the night?
You know, I-I promise you,
I'm not gonna tell a soul.
HE SCOFFS
And remember this, you've got -
you've got something on me, right?
You've got the cancer.
You know, we keep this between us,
and we'll just call it quits.
I promise you. I won't tell a soul.
I promise you, if you go
..I will find you help.
You'll get me some help?
Yeah. Professional help.
You know,
I know a fantastic counsellor.
Someone that you can talk to.
Someone that will listen.
I had someone to listen to,
didn't I?
Now get the station controller
on the phone.
All right
Tony, you win.
I'm a worthless, shallow
fraud.
I'm a duplicitous piece of shit.
Is that what you wanted to hear,
mate?
Well, now your listeners
can hear you say it.
Call him. Get him on the phone.
Now.
You realise this'll be
the end of both of us, yeah?
My life ended the day
I walked out of the school gates
for the last time.
I'm begging you, Tony,
I'm begging you, please.
Please don't do this.
This job is
..it's all I have.
I know.
This is the last broadcast
you'll ever give, Lawrence.
The death knell of your career.
And then you'll know what it's like
to be thrown on the scrapheap.
Hey.
Call him.
TONY SIGHS
TONY EXHALES,
SNIFFS
Yeah, Brodie.
Yeah, it's me, it's Lawrence.
Yeah, I know what time it is.
Listen
we have a major problem here.
'Good morning, and welcome to
this rather impromptu edition
'of Night Talk,
with me, Lawrence Brightway.
'Tonight, we're joined by
a good friend of the show.
'We're joined by Tony,
'who has chosen to join me here
in my studio.'
Now, the phone lines are open,
so you know what to do,
don't be shy, as tonight,
we are going to be talking about
Trust.
Trust.
And betrayal.
'And betrayal.'
'People who let you down.'
People who you thought
were your friends.
People who you thought
were covering your back.
We're talking frauds,
phonies
back-stabbers.
And we have our first caller.
Welcome to the show. Line one.
Hello, er, hi, you're on Night Talk.
Who am I speaking to?
SUE: 'Lawrence, what're you like?'
CHUCKLING: Hey!
Good morning, Sue.
'Oh, it's your birthday,
for goodness sake.
'You are allowed some time off,
you know.'
We're talking trust and betrayal,
Sue.
'Hello? And who are you?'
I'm Tony, Lawrence's mucker.
Isn't that right, Lawrence?
Yeah, that's right, yeah.
'Well, hiya, Tony.
'Any friend of Lawrence
is a friend of mine.'
It's good to meet you too, Sue.
'So, trust and betrayal?'
'Oh, gosh, well,
'me and my Kenny
have been together 40 years.
'We've never had
so much as a cross word.'
'So I don't know
if I'm the best person to ask.'
Well, maybe we can ask Lawrence
to help us out, then.
Come on, Lawrence.
Tell Sue all you know
about trust and betrayal.
Or should I tell her for you?
So, Sue.
You know, I don't quite know
how to explain this, you see,
but sometimes
..sometimes, you say one thing,
and you mean another.
I suppose it's a kind of a way of
protecting the people
that you really care about.
'Oh, Lawrence.
'It's not about the cancer, is it?'
Yes, Sue, yes, it's
..it's about the cancer.
SUE SIGHS
'It's come back, hasn't it?
'Me and my Kenny
have been reading your book,
'and it's absolutely
heart-breaking.'
Tell 'em, Lawrence.
You see, the thing is, Sue
..see the thing is, you see
Another caller.
We have another caller on line two.
You're gonna tell 'em.
Even if we have to sit here
all night.
You're live on Night Talk.
Line two.
Fuck off!
'Hello, you're on Night Talk.'
Fuck off.
'Who am I speaking to, please?'
ROSA: 'Hello?'
'Tony?'
Rosa?
Is that you, Rosa?
'Yeah.'
'It's good to hear your voice.'
It's good to hear yours.
'I'm sorry.'
About what?
'You and me.'
'I just wasn't, erm'
Yeah.
'You know.'
Yeah, that's OK.
We can still be friends.
'Yeah, I'd like that.'
TONY SNIFFS
'You not working?'
No. It was quiet.
I decided to shut early.
'I want you to promise me
something, Rosa.
'That you won't give up
on the foundation course.
'That you'll go to college
and train to be a teacher.
'Make your mum proud.
'Make me proud.'
Always ask the best of yourself.
'The best of myself?'
It's something that
I used to say to the kids.
'It's nice.'
OK, but you've got to promise me
something, all right?
You can't hurt yourself
or anyone else.
Tony. Are you still there?
Tony!
'Yeah, yeah, yeah.'
The kids you told me about
..the ones who everyone else
had given up on.
The ones who had nothing and nobody.
'And the ones whose lives
you turned around.
'They should be your legacy.
'You're a good man, Tony.
'You help people.
That's what you do.
'You save people.'
You know, it's funny,
but for some reason,
I thought I could save you.
TONY SNIFFS
'What happened with Ste, you
'..you just weren't
thinking straight.'
But you're not the one
who needs saving.
'You could get help.'
TONY SNIFFS
No, it's too late.
No.
'Death follows me.'
Ste wasn't the first.
WHISPERING: Keep going.
WHISPERING:
What do I say? What do I say?
'What do you mean, Tony?
'Tony, are you
Tony, are you there? Tony?
'Tony.'
He's gone.
'What do you mean?'
What do you mean, Tony,
that Ste wasn't the first?
MAN: Subject's last known location
is on the first floor.
LAWRENCE: 'And for those of you
just tuning in,
'I've been joined by Tony,
an old friend of the show
'for this one-off episode
of Night Talk.
'And we're talking about
trust and betrayal.'
Stand by for emergency entry.
'Please do keep those calls coming.
'We'd love to hear from you.'
Er, you're through to Night Talk
on line one, welcome.
Hello, you're on Night Talk.
What's on your mind?
WOMAN: 'Mr Conroy?'
WOMAN SNIFFS
'It'
SHE SIGHS
'It's Sarah Hall.
'Joe's mum.'
TONY SNIFFS
Mrs Hall?
'I've been
putting this moment off
'..but Siobhan says
she saw you on the bus.'
I didn't mean to upset her.
I just wanted to say sorry
..to both of you.
I know.
'How is Siobhan?
'Is she still enjoying science?'
Yeah.
She's Year 11 now.
She's got Miss Khan. She's
She's doing really well.
Ah, she's a bright kid.
She'll go far.
You know
'I should've been there for him,
I should've
'I should've, I should've been'
TONY CRIES
You mustn't blame yourself.
I was his pastoral carer.
He called me
..the night it happened.
What?
'I I-I didn't answer.
'I'm so sorry.'
THEY BREATHE SHAKILY
SHE SOBS
DIAL TONE
PHONE BUZZES
'I was I was gonna answer.'
BUZZING CONTINUES
'I I had so much going on.
'I couldn't be there for him.'
BUZZING STOPS
DIAL TONE
PHONE BUZZES
'I didn't
'I didn't know how bad it was.'
DIAL TONE
PHONE CLATTERS
BELL RINGS
SIGHS
DIAL TONE
SHE WHIMPERS
TONY SNIFFLES
Joe. I'm s I'm s
I'm sorry. I'm so sorry.
Help me!
Help!
SARAH SOBS
I didn't hear
his calls for help either.
'None of us did.
'It's not your fault.
'Joe thought the world of you.'
TONY INHALES SHAKILY
I'm so sorry that I let you down.
'Mr Conroy
'..you didn't let anyone down.'
SOBS
BREATHES DEEPLY
KNIFE SCRAPES
Put it down.
Tony, put the knife
MAN: Strike! Strike! Strike!
Armed police!
No, no, no, no, no!
WOMAN: Coming to you live
from London,
the nation's favourite, Radio UK.
Hey, welcome back!
Welcome to Night Talk.
You're listening to me,
Lawrence Brightway,
broadcasting from
the heart of London City
all across our wonderful nation.
Tonight,
we've got a first time caller.
We've got Wendy,
and she's calling in from Hackney.
Er, welcome to the show,
Wendy.
What's up?
DEEP BREATHING
OVER PHONE LINE
Don't worry, Wendy, take your time.
WENDY INHALES
You're amongst friends here.
'I'm sorry, Lawrence.
'The thing is, I just
I don't know what to do.
'I feel so low, so desperate.'
Right, well, why don't we try this?
Why don't we try you just talking
and me just listening?
Like there's nobody else here,
just me and you in your happy place.
'My happy place?'
Yeah.
DOOR BUZZES
'You know, that special place
that makes you smile.
'The place where you can be
at peace with yourself.
'Put all your worries behind you.
'Your happy place.'
Tony?
Visitor.
Hi.
Tony.
How've you been?
Yeah.
It's good to see you.
'Shall I tell you about
my happy place, Wendy?
'I think about sitting outside
by the river
'..with the sun on my back
'and me and my old mucker.'
You know, two old mates,
down the local boozer,
putting the world to rights
over a couple of pints.