The Mighty Boosh (2003) s01e06 Episode Script
Charlie
Hi.
Welcome to the show.
My name's Howard Moon.
This is Vince Noir.
- All right.
- We've got a treat for you in the form of a very, very special friend of mine.
An actor, a great actor, who's agreed to play a part within the show.
- Not Simon McFarnaby.
- Yeah, Simon McFarnaby.
One of the foremost exponents of devised theatre in the country.
You only get him in cos you think he'll put you in one of his devised ''pieces''.
- He might do that.
What do you know? - l don't think so.
He's not working at the moment, so l though l'd get him in.
- l wonder why that is.
- What? He looks a bit weird.
He's all wooden.
He looks like a conker.
What are you talking about? He's here now.
Do you mind? Simon McFarnaby.
- Hi.
- How are you? - l'm well.
- You're looking great.
So, ermare you working much at the moment? A bit quiet at the moment but l got something lined up for the autumn.
- Bet you have.
- Hmm? So l just want to say that it's great to have you on the show.
Great to be working with you.
l'm really looking forward to working with you.
- Thanks.
l'll go and get Wanda.
- All right.
Why don't you put your head in some vinegar? What? - He's just mucking around.
- All right.
OK.
See you.
What are you doing? Get off.
Enjoy the show.
Simon! Simon! .
.
to the world of The Mighty Boosh.
Come with us to The Mighty Boosh The Mighty Boosh Come with us to The Mighty Boosh Come on, Howard.
Put some energy into it.
Get involved.
l'm carrying a bucket of seed.
How do l get involved in that? This is the best job in the zoo.
Millet distribution.
- Something wrong with you.
- What do you mean? You're always happy.
Everything's fun.
You see a peanut, the day's off to a good start.
You witness some soil, it's a jamboree for Vince Noir.
- l need something more.
- l think it's this poncho.
lt's impossible to be unhappy in a poncho.
l'm gonna get a sombrero as well.
lmagine that.
A poncho-sombrero combo.
l'll be off my tits on happiness.
You should get one.
Takes more than a Mexican outfit and seed distribution to make me happy.
You know, Vince, this zoo's too small for me.
l'm a man of grand designs.
l need something more, something to stimulate my mind cogs.
You know what l'm gonna be? l'm gonna be a writer.
As if you're gonna be a writer.
You haven't even got a pen.
You don't need a pen to be a writer.
- l think you do.
- Yeah, l'm a deep thinker.
- l'm gonna be a novelist.
- l write novels.
- What? - The Charlie books.
- The Charlie books? - Yeah.
- What, that pink shape you draw? - Yeah, Charlie.
(Vince) Charlie is genius.
He's made from a million pieces of old bubble gum.
lmagine that.
ln the summer of 1976, on his way home from an Alice Cooper concert, Charlie started to melt onto the pavement.
lt was too hot in LA and he melted like a pink bitch.
Luckily, there was Eric Philips, a local crocodile who dabbled in black magic.
He took pity on Charlie and scraped him off the floor with a pair of fish slices.
He poured him into an antique soup ladle and boarded his magic carpet.
(Eric) Ha-ha! Hold on tight, Charlie.
Destination, Alaska.
Eric Philips decided to refreeze Charlie but in his cold-blooded reptilian haste, he refroze him into the shape of a Hoover.
(Eric) l wasn't thinking.
Charlie wasn't fazed, though.
He just zoomed about the place, sucking up lnuits.
(Chuckles) Oh.
The lnuits didn't mind.
They loved it in Charlie's pink tight warm belly pouch and refused to come out.
Charlie said, ''l'm cool with that.
'' And set fire to a posh hammer to make it official.
(Hammer) l appear to be on fire.
The downside was that the lnuits suffocated immediately.
lt was airtight in there.
Charlie panicked and fired the tiny lnuit bullets into Eric's crocodile peepers.
(Eric) After all l did for you! The green shape was frozen.
After a quick drink, Charlie stole Eric Philips'magic carpet and left for Seattle.
Charlie was racked with guilt.
He'd killed 50 lnuits.
No one needs that.
He decided to spend the rest of his life putting small hairstyles on to boots, monkey nuts, trumpets and spanners.
That's not a novel.
That's the scribblings of a retard, Vince.
- They are.
They're novelettes.
- lt's in crayon, you berk.
- So what? l'm new school.
- New school.
l'm talking about books that'll get published.
Mine are.
l publish them myself.
You photocopy them and leave them in supermarkets inside Weetabix boxes.
That's not published, is it? Huh? l want to deal with real people.
Real issues and real characters.
- Charlie's real.
- Will you shut up about Charlie? - He's not real.
- He is real.
- Stop saying that.
- You're scared of Charlie.
- l'm not.
- Why are you scared of him? - l'm not.
- You don't need to be scared of him.
- l'm not scared of him.
- Charlie's always been here.
- What? - He's always been with us.
Shut up.
Stop that, all right? You know l don't like him.
- He likes you.
- What do you mean, he likes me? - He thinks you're funny.
- What do you mean? l'm not funny.
- Do you know what? - l'm serious.
He comes round when you're asleep, watches you, leans over your bed.
Ooh.
- You better shut up about Charlie.
- You can't handle Charlie.
Yeah, well, have a look at Techno Mouse, see how he's doing.
(# Techno ) - He's freaking out.
- What's wrong with him? He had a gram of speed and two microdots.
Get him in the ambient hutch.
Quick.
(# Ambient) Drink some water.
Oh, l tell you what, Vince.
When l'm famous, l'll be out of this zoo.
l'll be mixing with the high society, living the high life.
- What about me? - l'd bring you along with me.
- You could come along with me.
- Cool.
As a writer, l'd want to focus on the act of writing.
Wouldn't want to expend mental energy on mundane tasks like laundry, or emptying the rubbish and stuff, so you could do that for me.
- That would help me out.
- Get stuffed.
You could come along and make tea for me and hand me pens as and when l need them.
- Like a caddy? - Like a little writer's caddy.
- You'd like that, wouldn't you? - No.
You could follow at a discreet distance and if l have an idea, you could whip out a Biro for me.
- l'm not doing that.
- Carry a little pencil case on wheels.
Just behind me.
Wear a little chequered suit, a funny little hat.
l don't wear chequered suits.
- l thought you liked dressing up.
- Yeah.
ln ponchos.
- The offer's there if you want it.
- Thanks a lot.
l'm going to lunch now.
Naboo's done a chilli.
Are you coming? No, no, l've gotta do some reading.
Yeah? You mean you're going to stay here and spy on Gideon.
No.
l've just got to do some research for my novel.
You should be careful.
She's already put in a complaint.
See you later, Speedy Gonzales.
- What are you doing? - Just reading.
Yeah? Well, l got a problem with the black and white people.
Who? You know.
The black-eyed Chinese people that eat sticks.
- The pandas.
- ''Oh.
l'm Howard Moon.
''l know how to read.
l know all the animals' names at the zoo.
'' - Yeah, the pandas.
- What's the problem? Well, apparently, and this is on the QT, Bainbridge told me that when the man panda kisses the lady panda, they invent new baby pandas and everybody comes from all over and gives us money.
- That's known as breeding.
- Yeah, l know.
Hump time.
lt's difficult to get pandas to breed in captivity.
l thought you'd know that.
Yeah but l got a plan, Dingus.
You see, the man panda won't kiss the lady panda, right? So l want you to dress up as the man panda, start coming on to the lady, you know, la-da-da-da-da.
Make the man panda all jealous.
He moves in.
Boom.
Babies all over the place.
That is possibly the most obscene, disgusting, humiliating and potentially dangerous thing l've ever heard you say.
Thanks, dude.
No man should ever, ever be made to dress as a panda.
- Why am l doing this exactly? - Because you've got a way with animals.
- l look ridiculous.
- You look great.
- l don't look like a panda.
- Pandas are very short-sighted.
- That's the beauty of my scheme.
- What am l gonna do? What you do is get in the panda lodge with Chi-Chi, dance about erotically, make Frou-Frou jealous, bang.
- When Frou-Frou's jealous? - Knock on the door, l'll let you out.
- What are you gonna be doing? - l'll be here.
- Spying on Gideon? - No, having my lunch.
Come on.
There you go.
(Muffled) Howard! Oh! - Oh, hi there, Mrs Gideon.
- Who are you? Howard Moon.
l work here at the zoo.
Why have you got crumbs round your eyes? Oh, erthat's just me and Vince, been playing games.
Crumb eye.
We have to get crumbs in each others' eyes and, ermthe winner gets a rake.
- That's a good book.
l like that book.
- Have you read it? Oh, yeah.
Twice l've read it.
Once in the original and then the paperback.
Really related to the character of Jonathan.
l thought he was great.
The serial killer? Yeah.
l mean, in as much as, you know, we can all relate to a killer in our minds.
We've all killed in our minds.
What are you talking about? Well, as a writer, it's something that l have to do.
l have to get involved in the darker side of the human psyche.
- You're a writer? - Oh, yeah, yeah, big time.
Big time.
Love to write.
lt's like a compulsion for me.
The written word is like a drug.
lf you cut me, l bleed ink.
l wrote that.
lt's just one of the things l've written.
Are you a friend of Vince's? - Yeah.
- He is very nice boy.
(Chuckles) - What's going on here? - l'm just making him jealous.
All right.
He's jealous now.
Come on.
No way.
She's not interested in him.
He's a brute.
He doesn't understand her needs.
There's no way they're getting it on.
He's jealous now.
He's all charged up.
Time to let him in, let nature take its course.
No way.
l'm not letting him come in and steal all the glory.
- l put all the groundwork in.
- You've gone wrong.
Come on.
Get off me.
We've got a chemistry.
What are you looking at? l'll ring you in the week.
Sorry.
(Typewriter taps) (Wind whistles) (Wind stops) (Chuckles) Oh, dear.
(Wind whistles) (Whistling intensifies) (Wind stops) (Wind whistles) (Wind stops) - (Wind whistles) - Do you mind? (Wind whistles) l was pretty good, though, wasn't l? Sounded exactly like the wind.
Yeah, blowing a gale through my mind.
- l can do other elements.
- Can you really? Can you do fog? Howard? Howard.
Howard.
Howard.
Howard! Howard.
Howard.
Howard! Howard! Howard? Howard! Howard! - This better be good.
- You know the black bits in bananas.
Are they tarantulas' eggs? Please don't speak to me ever again in your life.
What's your novel about? lt's about a genius who can get nothing done because a monkey's annoying him.
- You've made a classic error.
- Have l? What you've done is focus in on the wrong character.
Now, the monkey, l'm loving him but the other guy, l'm getting nothing off him.
He sounds like a dick.
Yeah? Well, Mrs Gideon didn't think he did.
- Mrs Gideon? - Yeah.
- l knew this was what this was about.
- What? You're so transparent.
You're only doing this cos she likes writers.
- No.
l've always been a writer.
- Have you? She's interested in me because l'm an intellectual.
- She's an intellectual.
- Really? When we get together, it's inevitable, but when we do, it's going to be incredible.
We'll be going to poetry evenings every night.
We'll both have pipes.
We'll wrestle with the intellectual issues of the day into the small hours.
Oh, that sounds dreadful.
l like thick girls, girls who like bright colours, dancing and soft fabrics.
- Don't you want an equal? - Yeah.
- So how much have you done, then? - Well, it's coming on.
lt's not really about quantity when it comes to the modern novel.
lt's quality of prose, that sort of thing.
- So how much have you done? - One sentence.
- But it's, erm - What? One sentence? l fail to see what's funny about that.
lt's a damn good sentence l'll have you know.
- l'm gonna send it to Hamilton Cork.
- Who? The publisher.
l'm gonna send him this sentence.
l doubt he'll be interested in one sentence.
You're wrong.
He can tell with a sentence whether he wants to publish a book.
l'm gonna send him this one, cos it's good.
- l want you to read it.
- l'm all right.
- Look at it.
- l'm busy.
Why? l want you to look at it.
- l don't really want to.
- Why? - l'm not in the mood.
- Come on.
Just look at it.
- Don't be stupid.
Look at it.
- You know what you're like.
- Meaning? - You can't take criticism.
Don't be stupid.
Go on.
Read it.
Tell me what you think.
- That's really good, actually.
Great.
- Yeah? The only thing l would say He's a lunatic.
Absolute nut-box.
l can't believe it.
He's got anger problems.
He should go and see Naboo.
Naboo'll sort it out.
Naboo's great.
He'd sort anything out.
See you later.
Do you mind? l've got some private zoo business to attend to.
(# Ambient Oriental music ) (Knocking) Hello? Howard Moon? - Yeah? - lt is l, Hamilton Cork.
l have read your sentence.
lt was an absolute tour de force.
You're going to be published and be a famous writer.
(Knocking) Hello? - Howard Moon? - Yeah? lt is l, Hamilton Cork.
l'm looking for Vince Noir.
l'm Vince.
l found one of your Charlie books in a packet of Weetabix.
lt's an absolute tour de force.
lt's going to be published and you're going to be a famous writer.
Wow.
- This is the dream, yeah? - No, the other one was.
Noooooooo! Yes.
lt's clear you have a problem with jealousy.
- What do you mean? - You're jealous of Vince.
Why would l be jealous of him? He's successful.
He's got great hair.
He's a great writer.
- What have you got to offer? - l'm a writer.
- l haven't seen much evidence of that.
- Well, l've got writer's block.
That's because you're angry and unable to deal with criticism.
Why does everyone keep saying that? Now, what l want you to do is look at the picture of the kittens in a barrel.
Look at them.
They're having a whale of a time.
They're all happy.
- The one on the left's Philip.
- Philip.
- Look at Philip's eyes.
- He's got little eyes.
Whenever you feel angry, l want you to look at Philip.
- Look at his face.
- Your anger will recede like an ocean.
Thanks, Naboo.
- That'll be 159 euros.
- 159 Ah.
(Chuckles) Look at his little face.
- Hey.
- Hey.
- How's it going? - Good.
- What are you doing with my pipe? - l borrowed it.
l'm going to a party tonight.
You're not invited.
So l thought you wouldn't mind.
Yeah, that's fine.
What party? lt's just a writers' party.
Dixon Bainbridge has organised it.
Hamilton Cork's going to be there.
Apparently l'm going to be famous.
l'm really pleased for you.
lt's a nightmare.
Gideon's all over me.
She keeps coming round, making me little pastries.
l don't know what to do.
Oh.
Yeah, l'm cool with that.
- Come on.
l'm not interested in Gideon.
- Keep away from her.
- All right.
- Swear? - l swear.
- Swear on Jagger.
(# lntro to Satisfaction ) Oh, come on, Howard.
Oh! lt's gonna be all right.
l've been thinking.
What if you come the party with me? Cos think about it.
Hamilton Cork hasn't seen your sentence.
l'll put in a word for you.
You could show him.
- lf he likes it, we'll both be writers.
- Good idea.
- How cool will that be? - But l'm not invited.
Don't you worry about that.
l've got a way we can sneak you in.
(# Classical) Pencil.
HB, please.
- Who shall l make it out to? - To Jacqui.
- This is a 2B.
So? - l asked for an HB.
This is way too soft.
- All right.
- lt's gonna crumble in Jacqui's bag.
- There you go.
Don't push it.
Pipe, sir? l'm fine.
l've got a pipe.
- Something a little larger? - No, l'm fine with this one.
- Yeah? - Shh.
Remember the kittens.
- Relax.
- All right.
Calm like an ocean.
- How are they working out for you? - All right.
lf you want something more powerful, l've got an otter in a bib.
No, l'm fine with the kittens, thank you.
(# Fanfare) Vince! Great to see you! This book will really put our zoo on the map.
Bainbridge, that's Naboo.
This is Vince right here.
Vince, great book, excellent.
- Corky! - Bainbridge! Ho-ho! When was it last? Krakatoa '62.
We stayed on an extra day to watch the hanging.
Yes, God, she struggled, didn't she? lt was as if she didn't want to die.
- Great wedding.
- Yeah, yeah, yeah.
- Could l have a quiet word? - Mmm.
Oi, Baudelaire, come on.
- Yeah.
What? - You having fun here? - Yeah.
- Well, l'm not.
When are you getting me in with the big cheese cutter? - l'm waiting for the right moment.
- Now is.
Let's move it.
- OK.
You got your sentence? - Yeah.
- Let's go.
- All right.
- Ah, Vince.
- Hey.
- This is my mate Howard.
He's a writer.
- What do you want? Well, l understand you can tell whether you want to publish a book or not from reading the first sentence.
Yes, that is true.
We used to call him One-Sentence Cork.
l've got a sentence.
l'd like you to read it.
lf it's only a sentence, l suppose l could give it a little look.
- lt's not about golf, is it? - (Giggling) No.
- All right.
You got your kitten picture? - What? - You got your kitten - l've dropped it.
- l'll go and look for it.
- Howard? - Yeah? - This is superb.
- What? - Well, it's excellent.
- ls it? - Mmm.
Oh.
Soyou like it, then? Yes, yes, l do.
Oh.
Are you sure? - Mmm.
- Anything else to add to that? No, no.
There is just one thing.
Oh, sorry.
Fossil, get him out of here.
Gideon! l didn't mean to do that! l just l'm sorry! Gideon! Gideon, l love you! Gideon! He punched a filly in the face.
(Laughter) Oh, quite a day for you, Vince.
Yeah.
We just want to talk you through a few minor editorial changes.
- What changes? - The name.
- But he's called Charlie.
- No, the author's name.
Less Vince Noir and more Dixon Bainbridge.
But everyone'll think you wrote it.
You catch on fast, fool.
- You can't do that.
- Can l not? - Did you copyright it? - l photocopied it.
(Sneers) You prick.
Get rid of him, Fossil.
When Charlie finds out about this, he's gonna be furious.
- He's gonna come for you.
- He thinks Charlie's real.
He's priceless.
- Good day, sir.
- You're in a Hubba Bubba nightmare.
l said good day, sir.
Well done, Bainbridge, your first novel.
l didn't know you had it in you.
One doesn't like to blow one's own pipe.
(# Heavy rock) A-Charlie come, a-Charlie come, a-bubble gum A-Charlie come, a-Charlie come, a-bubble gum A-Charlie come, a-Charlie come, a-bubble gum A-Charlie come, a-Charlie come, a-bubble gum Charlie Burstin' your bubble like a Hubba Bubba nightmare Charlie Pink Mr Doom Feel my chewy justice Pink Mr Doom Feel my chewy justice Wrapping around your heart and mind and ribcage Wrapping around your heart, your mind, your soul We can jellico, we can jellico Burstin' your bubble like a Hubba Bubba nightmare (Roars) Can't believe it, Mrs Gideon getting off with that panda like that.
Yeah.
What went wrong? You did punch her in the face.
- Yeah, l suppose so.
- You idiot.
l don't know why you're so happy.
lt was your panda.
Oh, well.
Look at you.
You lose your panda, you lose the book deal, you're still happy as a bean.
lt's this poncho.
l can't believe it.
lt's impossible to be unhappy in a poncho.
But don't you worry about it, Howard.
l've got a surprise for you.
- Check this out.
- Oh, great.
Come on.
- lt's not working.
- Give it a couple of minutes.
Hi.
Hope you enjoyed the show tonight, particularly Vince, l'm impressed with your work in the show.
Would you be interested in being in my new devised piece? lt's about sleepwalking.
lt's called Autumn Magnets.
- All right.
- l think you'd be ideal for the lead role.
What's happening here? l'm saying l'm impressed with Vince's work.
- Really? - l'm gonna be in Autumn Magnets.
- l'm very proud of you.
- lt will be touring.
l invited you on the show out of the kindness of my heart.
What do you think you're playing at, you conker-headed berk? Don't mess with me.
29er.
And listen, it will be Equity minimum, but the per diems are very, very good.
Welcome to the show.
My name's Howard Moon.
This is Vince Noir.
- All right.
- We've got a treat for you in the form of a very, very special friend of mine.
An actor, a great actor, who's agreed to play a part within the show.
- Not Simon McFarnaby.
- Yeah, Simon McFarnaby.
One of the foremost exponents of devised theatre in the country.
You only get him in cos you think he'll put you in one of his devised ''pieces''.
- He might do that.
What do you know? - l don't think so.
He's not working at the moment, so l though l'd get him in.
- l wonder why that is.
- What? He looks a bit weird.
He's all wooden.
He looks like a conker.
What are you talking about? He's here now.
Do you mind? Simon McFarnaby.
- Hi.
- How are you? - l'm well.
- You're looking great.
So, ermare you working much at the moment? A bit quiet at the moment but l got something lined up for the autumn.
- Bet you have.
- Hmm? So l just want to say that it's great to have you on the show.
Great to be working with you.
l'm really looking forward to working with you.
- Thanks.
l'll go and get Wanda.
- All right.
Why don't you put your head in some vinegar? What? - He's just mucking around.
- All right.
OK.
See you.
What are you doing? Get off.
Enjoy the show.
Simon! Simon! .
.
to the world of The Mighty Boosh.
Come with us to The Mighty Boosh The Mighty Boosh Come with us to The Mighty Boosh Come on, Howard.
Put some energy into it.
Get involved.
l'm carrying a bucket of seed.
How do l get involved in that? This is the best job in the zoo.
Millet distribution.
- Something wrong with you.
- What do you mean? You're always happy.
Everything's fun.
You see a peanut, the day's off to a good start.
You witness some soil, it's a jamboree for Vince Noir.
- l need something more.
- l think it's this poncho.
lt's impossible to be unhappy in a poncho.
l'm gonna get a sombrero as well.
lmagine that.
A poncho-sombrero combo.
l'll be off my tits on happiness.
You should get one.
Takes more than a Mexican outfit and seed distribution to make me happy.
You know, Vince, this zoo's too small for me.
l'm a man of grand designs.
l need something more, something to stimulate my mind cogs.
You know what l'm gonna be? l'm gonna be a writer.
As if you're gonna be a writer.
You haven't even got a pen.
You don't need a pen to be a writer.
- l think you do.
- Yeah, l'm a deep thinker.
- l'm gonna be a novelist.
- l write novels.
- What? - The Charlie books.
- The Charlie books? - Yeah.
- What, that pink shape you draw? - Yeah, Charlie.
(Vince) Charlie is genius.
He's made from a million pieces of old bubble gum.
lmagine that.
ln the summer of 1976, on his way home from an Alice Cooper concert, Charlie started to melt onto the pavement.
lt was too hot in LA and he melted like a pink bitch.
Luckily, there was Eric Philips, a local crocodile who dabbled in black magic.
He took pity on Charlie and scraped him off the floor with a pair of fish slices.
He poured him into an antique soup ladle and boarded his magic carpet.
(Eric) Ha-ha! Hold on tight, Charlie.
Destination, Alaska.
Eric Philips decided to refreeze Charlie but in his cold-blooded reptilian haste, he refroze him into the shape of a Hoover.
(Eric) l wasn't thinking.
Charlie wasn't fazed, though.
He just zoomed about the place, sucking up lnuits.
(Chuckles) Oh.
The lnuits didn't mind.
They loved it in Charlie's pink tight warm belly pouch and refused to come out.
Charlie said, ''l'm cool with that.
'' And set fire to a posh hammer to make it official.
(Hammer) l appear to be on fire.
The downside was that the lnuits suffocated immediately.
lt was airtight in there.
Charlie panicked and fired the tiny lnuit bullets into Eric's crocodile peepers.
(Eric) After all l did for you! The green shape was frozen.
After a quick drink, Charlie stole Eric Philips'magic carpet and left for Seattle.
Charlie was racked with guilt.
He'd killed 50 lnuits.
No one needs that.
He decided to spend the rest of his life putting small hairstyles on to boots, monkey nuts, trumpets and spanners.
That's not a novel.
That's the scribblings of a retard, Vince.
- They are.
They're novelettes.
- lt's in crayon, you berk.
- So what? l'm new school.
- New school.
l'm talking about books that'll get published.
Mine are.
l publish them myself.
You photocopy them and leave them in supermarkets inside Weetabix boxes.
That's not published, is it? Huh? l want to deal with real people.
Real issues and real characters.
- Charlie's real.
- Will you shut up about Charlie? - He's not real.
- He is real.
- Stop saying that.
- You're scared of Charlie.
- l'm not.
- Why are you scared of him? - l'm not.
- You don't need to be scared of him.
- l'm not scared of him.
- Charlie's always been here.
- What? - He's always been with us.
Shut up.
Stop that, all right? You know l don't like him.
- He likes you.
- What do you mean, he likes me? - He thinks you're funny.
- What do you mean? l'm not funny.
- Do you know what? - l'm serious.
He comes round when you're asleep, watches you, leans over your bed.
Ooh.
- You better shut up about Charlie.
- You can't handle Charlie.
Yeah, well, have a look at Techno Mouse, see how he's doing.
(# Techno ) - He's freaking out.
- What's wrong with him? He had a gram of speed and two microdots.
Get him in the ambient hutch.
Quick.
(# Ambient) Drink some water.
Oh, l tell you what, Vince.
When l'm famous, l'll be out of this zoo.
l'll be mixing with the high society, living the high life.
- What about me? - l'd bring you along with me.
- You could come along with me.
- Cool.
As a writer, l'd want to focus on the act of writing.
Wouldn't want to expend mental energy on mundane tasks like laundry, or emptying the rubbish and stuff, so you could do that for me.
- That would help me out.
- Get stuffed.
You could come along and make tea for me and hand me pens as and when l need them.
- Like a caddy? - Like a little writer's caddy.
- You'd like that, wouldn't you? - No.
You could follow at a discreet distance and if l have an idea, you could whip out a Biro for me.
- l'm not doing that.
- Carry a little pencil case on wheels.
Just behind me.
Wear a little chequered suit, a funny little hat.
l don't wear chequered suits.
- l thought you liked dressing up.
- Yeah.
ln ponchos.
- The offer's there if you want it.
- Thanks a lot.
l'm going to lunch now.
Naboo's done a chilli.
Are you coming? No, no, l've gotta do some reading.
Yeah? You mean you're going to stay here and spy on Gideon.
No.
l've just got to do some research for my novel.
You should be careful.
She's already put in a complaint.
See you later, Speedy Gonzales.
- What are you doing? - Just reading.
Yeah? Well, l got a problem with the black and white people.
Who? You know.
The black-eyed Chinese people that eat sticks.
- The pandas.
- ''Oh.
l'm Howard Moon.
''l know how to read.
l know all the animals' names at the zoo.
'' - Yeah, the pandas.
- What's the problem? Well, apparently, and this is on the QT, Bainbridge told me that when the man panda kisses the lady panda, they invent new baby pandas and everybody comes from all over and gives us money.
- That's known as breeding.
- Yeah, l know.
Hump time.
lt's difficult to get pandas to breed in captivity.
l thought you'd know that.
Yeah but l got a plan, Dingus.
You see, the man panda won't kiss the lady panda, right? So l want you to dress up as the man panda, start coming on to the lady, you know, la-da-da-da-da.
Make the man panda all jealous.
He moves in.
Boom.
Babies all over the place.
That is possibly the most obscene, disgusting, humiliating and potentially dangerous thing l've ever heard you say.
Thanks, dude.
No man should ever, ever be made to dress as a panda.
- Why am l doing this exactly? - Because you've got a way with animals.
- l look ridiculous.
- You look great.
- l don't look like a panda.
- Pandas are very short-sighted.
- That's the beauty of my scheme.
- What am l gonna do? What you do is get in the panda lodge with Chi-Chi, dance about erotically, make Frou-Frou jealous, bang.
- When Frou-Frou's jealous? - Knock on the door, l'll let you out.
- What are you gonna be doing? - l'll be here.
- Spying on Gideon? - No, having my lunch.
Come on.
There you go.
(Muffled) Howard! Oh! - Oh, hi there, Mrs Gideon.
- Who are you? Howard Moon.
l work here at the zoo.
Why have you got crumbs round your eyes? Oh, erthat's just me and Vince, been playing games.
Crumb eye.
We have to get crumbs in each others' eyes and, ermthe winner gets a rake.
- That's a good book.
l like that book.
- Have you read it? Oh, yeah.
Twice l've read it.
Once in the original and then the paperback.
Really related to the character of Jonathan.
l thought he was great.
The serial killer? Yeah.
l mean, in as much as, you know, we can all relate to a killer in our minds.
We've all killed in our minds.
What are you talking about? Well, as a writer, it's something that l have to do.
l have to get involved in the darker side of the human psyche.
- You're a writer? - Oh, yeah, yeah, big time.
Big time.
Love to write.
lt's like a compulsion for me.
The written word is like a drug.
lf you cut me, l bleed ink.
l wrote that.
lt's just one of the things l've written.
Are you a friend of Vince's? - Yeah.
- He is very nice boy.
(Chuckles) - What's going on here? - l'm just making him jealous.
All right.
He's jealous now.
Come on.
No way.
She's not interested in him.
He's a brute.
He doesn't understand her needs.
There's no way they're getting it on.
He's jealous now.
He's all charged up.
Time to let him in, let nature take its course.
No way.
l'm not letting him come in and steal all the glory.
- l put all the groundwork in.
- You've gone wrong.
Come on.
Get off me.
We've got a chemistry.
What are you looking at? l'll ring you in the week.
Sorry.
(Typewriter taps) (Wind whistles) (Wind stops) (Chuckles) Oh, dear.
(Wind whistles) (Whistling intensifies) (Wind stops) (Wind whistles) (Wind stops) - (Wind whistles) - Do you mind? (Wind whistles) l was pretty good, though, wasn't l? Sounded exactly like the wind.
Yeah, blowing a gale through my mind.
- l can do other elements.
- Can you really? Can you do fog? Howard? Howard.
Howard.
Howard.
Howard! Howard.
Howard.
Howard! Howard! Howard? Howard! Howard! - This better be good.
- You know the black bits in bananas.
Are they tarantulas' eggs? Please don't speak to me ever again in your life.
What's your novel about? lt's about a genius who can get nothing done because a monkey's annoying him.
- You've made a classic error.
- Have l? What you've done is focus in on the wrong character.
Now, the monkey, l'm loving him but the other guy, l'm getting nothing off him.
He sounds like a dick.
Yeah? Well, Mrs Gideon didn't think he did.
- Mrs Gideon? - Yeah.
- l knew this was what this was about.
- What? You're so transparent.
You're only doing this cos she likes writers.
- No.
l've always been a writer.
- Have you? She's interested in me because l'm an intellectual.
- She's an intellectual.
- Really? When we get together, it's inevitable, but when we do, it's going to be incredible.
We'll be going to poetry evenings every night.
We'll both have pipes.
We'll wrestle with the intellectual issues of the day into the small hours.
Oh, that sounds dreadful.
l like thick girls, girls who like bright colours, dancing and soft fabrics.
- Don't you want an equal? - Yeah.
- So how much have you done, then? - Well, it's coming on.
lt's not really about quantity when it comes to the modern novel.
lt's quality of prose, that sort of thing.
- So how much have you done? - One sentence.
- But it's, erm - What? One sentence? l fail to see what's funny about that.
lt's a damn good sentence l'll have you know.
- l'm gonna send it to Hamilton Cork.
- Who? The publisher.
l'm gonna send him this sentence.
l doubt he'll be interested in one sentence.
You're wrong.
He can tell with a sentence whether he wants to publish a book.
l'm gonna send him this one, cos it's good.
- l want you to read it.
- l'm all right.
- Look at it.
- l'm busy.
Why? l want you to look at it.
- l don't really want to.
- Why? - l'm not in the mood.
- Come on.
Just look at it.
- Don't be stupid.
Look at it.
- You know what you're like.
- Meaning? - You can't take criticism.
Don't be stupid.
Go on.
Read it.
Tell me what you think.
- That's really good, actually.
Great.
- Yeah? The only thing l would say He's a lunatic.
Absolute nut-box.
l can't believe it.
He's got anger problems.
He should go and see Naboo.
Naboo'll sort it out.
Naboo's great.
He'd sort anything out.
See you later.
Do you mind? l've got some private zoo business to attend to.
(# Ambient Oriental music ) (Knocking) Hello? Howard Moon? - Yeah? - lt is l, Hamilton Cork.
l have read your sentence.
lt was an absolute tour de force.
You're going to be published and be a famous writer.
(Knocking) Hello? - Howard Moon? - Yeah? lt is l, Hamilton Cork.
l'm looking for Vince Noir.
l'm Vince.
l found one of your Charlie books in a packet of Weetabix.
lt's an absolute tour de force.
lt's going to be published and you're going to be a famous writer.
Wow.
- This is the dream, yeah? - No, the other one was.
Noooooooo! Yes.
lt's clear you have a problem with jealousy.
- What do you mean? - You're jealous of Vince.
Why would l be jealous of him? He's successful.
He's got great hair.
He's a great writer.
- What have you got to offer? - l'm a writer.
- l haven't seen much evidence of that.
- Well, l've got writer's block.
That's because you're angry and unable to deal with criticism.
Why does everyone keep saying that? Now, what l want you to do is look at the picture of the kittens in a barrel.
Look at them.
They're having a whale of a time.
They're all happy.
- The one on the left's Philip.
- Philip.
- Look at Philip's eyes.
- He's got little eyes.
Whenever you feel angry, l want you to look at Philip.
- Look at his face.
- Your anger will recede like an ocean.
Thanks, Naboo.
- That'll be 159 euros.
- 159 Ah.
(Chuckles) Look at his little face.
- Hey.
- Hey.
- How's it going? - Good.
- What are you doing with my pipe? - l borrowed it.
l'm going to a party tonight.
You're not invited.
So l thought you wouldn't mind.
Yeah, that's fine.
What party? lt's just a writers' party.
Dixon Bainbridge has organised it.
Hamilton Cork's going to be there.
Apparently l'm going to be famous.
l'm really pleased for you.
lt's a nightmare.
Gideon's all over me.
She keeps coming round, making me little pastries.
l don't know what to do.
Oh.
Yeah, l'm cool with that.
- Come on.
l'm not interested in Gideon.
- Keep away from her.
- All right.
- Swear? - l swear.
- Swear on Jagger.
(# lntro to Satisfaction ) Oh, come on, Howard.
Oh! lt's gonna be all right.
l've been thinking.
What if you come the party with me? Cos think about it.
Hamilton Cork hasn't seen your sentence.
l'll put in a word for you.
You could show him.
- lf he likes it, we'll both be writers.
- Good idea.
- How cool will that be? - But l'm not invited.
Don't you worry about that.
l've got a way we can sneak you in.
(# Classical) Pencil.
HB, please.
- Who shall l make it out to? - To Jacqui.
- This is a 2B.
So? - l asked for an HB.
This is way too soft.
- All right.
- lt's gonna crumble in Jacqui's bag.
- There you go.
Don't push it.
Pipe, sir? l'm fine.
l've got a pipe.
- Something a little larger? - No, l'm fine with this one.
- Yeah? - Shh.
Remember the kittens.
- Relax.
- All right.
Calm like an ocean.
- How are they working out for you? - All right.
lf you want something more powerful, l've got an otter in a bib.
No, l'm fine with the kittens, thank you.
(# Fanfare) Vince! Great to see you! This book will really put our zoo on the map.
Bainbridge, that's Naboo.
This is Vince right here.
Vince, great book, excellent.
- Corky! - Bainbridge! Ho-ho! When was it last? Krakatoa '62.
We stayed on an extra day to watch the hanging.
Yes, God, she struggled, didn't she? lt was as if she didn't want to die.
- Great wedding.
- Yeah, yeah, yeah.
- Could l have a quiet word? - Mmm.
Oi, Baudelaire, come on.
- Yeah.
What? - You having fun here? - Yeah.
- Well, l'm not.
When are you getting me in with the big cheese cutter? - l'm waiting for the right moment.
- Now is.
Let's move it.
- OK.
You got your sentence? - Yeah.
- Let's go.
- All right.
- Ah, Vince.
- Hey.
- This is my mate Howard.
He's a writer.
- What do you want? Well, l understand you can tell whether you want to publish a book or not from reading the first sentence.
Yes, that is true.
We used to call him One-Sentence Cork.
l've got a sentence.
l'd like you to read it.
lf it's only a sentence, l suppose l could give it a little look.
- lt's not about golf, is it? - (Giggling) No.
- All right.
You got your kitten picture? - What? - You got your kitten - l've dropped it.
- l'll go and look for it.
- Howard? - Yeah? - This is superb.
- What? - Well, it's excellent.
- ls it? - Mmm.
Oh.
Soyou like it, then? Yes, yes, l do.
Oh.
Are you sure? - Mmm.
- Anything else to add to that? No, no.
There is just one thing.
Oh, sorry.
Fossil, get him out of here.
Gideon! l didn't mean to do that! l just l'm sorry! Gideon! Gideon, l love you! Gideon! He punched a filly in the face.
(Laughter) Oh, quite a day for you, Vince.
Yeah.
We just want to talk you through a few minor editorial changes.
- What changes? - The name.
- But he's called Charlie.
- No, the author's name.
Less Vince Noir and more Dixon Bainbridge.
But everyone'll think you wrote it.
You catch on fast, fool.
- You can't do that.
- Can l not? - Did you copyright it? - l photocopied it.
(Sneers) You prick.
Get rid of him, Fossil.
When Charlie finds out about this, he's gonna be furious.
- He's gonna come for you.
- He thinks Charlie's real.
He's priceless.
- Good day, sir.
- You're in a Hubba Bubba nightmare.
l said good day, sir.
Well done, Bainbridge, your first novel.
l didn't know you had it in you.
One doesn't like to blow one's own pipe.
(# Heavy rock) A-Charlie come, a-Charlie come, a-bubble gum A-Charlie come, a-Charlie come, a-bubble gum A-Charlie come, a-Charlie come, a-bubble gum A-Charlie come, a-Charlie come, a-bubble gum Charlie Burstin' your bubble like a Hubba Bubba nightmare Charlie Pink Mr Doom Feel my chewy justice Pink Mr Doom Feel my chewy justice Wrapping around your heart and mind and ribcage Wrapping around your heart, your mind, your soul We can jellico, we can jellico Burstin' your bubble like a Hubba Bubba nightmare (Roars) Can't believe it, Mrs Gideon getting off with that panda like that.
Yeah.
What went wrong? You did punch her in the face.
- Yeah, l suppose so.
- You idiot.
l don't know why you're so happy.
lt was your panda.
Oh, well.
Look at you.
You lose your panda, you lose the book deal, you're still happy as a bean.
lt's this poncho.
l can't believe it.
lt's impossible to be unhappy in a poncho.
But don't you worry about it, Howard.
l've got a surprise for you.
- Check this out.
- Oh, great.
Come on.
- lt's not working.
- Give it a couple of minutes.
Hi.
Hope you enjoyed the show tonight, particularly Vince, l'm impressed with your work in the show.
Would you be interested in being in my new devised piece? lt's about sleepwalking.
lt's called Autumn Magnets.
- All right.
- l think you'd be ideal for the lead role.
What's happening here? l'm saying l'm impressed with Vince's work.
- Really? - l'm gonna be in Autumn Magnets.
- l'm very proud of you.
- lt will be touring.
l invited you on the show out of the kindness of my heart.
What do you think you're playing at, you conker-headed berk? Don't mess with me.
29er.
And listen, it will be Equity minimum, but the per diems are very, very good.