Ward 42
Ewan Povey MA Scriptwriting Ward 42 Pg1
1 int. red lit bedroom night
ALAN A young man in his early twenties applies eye shadow, then a studded collar. His hair is dyed black and combed up in a wave. He looks at two tickets, to see the Manic Street Preachers. He takes out his mobile phone and dials.
ALAN
Alright Sally. Where are we meeting? What do you mean you’re not coming? What fireman? The Verve! What the fuck do you wanna go see the Verve for? Tell you what, don’t even bother!
He slams down his mobile.
ALAN
She’s fucking ditched me for a fireman.
JOHN, Alan’s flatmate, knocks at the door.
JOHN
Wasup?
ALAN
The bitch!
John rocks his head back and grins.
ALAN
Wha’ am I gonna do? I fuckin’ love ‘er.
JOHN
You don’t love her. You think you do, but really it’s just infatuation.
ALAN
John. We’ve been shagging for six months. I don’t call that infatuation.
John just shrugs.
2 int. off licence night
Alan buys a two litre bottle of cider.
Ewan Povey MA Scriptwriting WARD 42 Pg2
3 ext. Oxford Road night
Alan walks down the road swigging from a half drunk bottle of cider, listening to his stereo. He starts to sing.
ALAN
We don’t talk about love!
A passing Scally takes offence.
SCALLY
Shut the fuck up, div’, before I give ya a fuckin’ smack
ALAN
That’s just temporary man.
SCALLY
What the fuck’re you getting’ at?
ALAN
Nothing…
SCALLY
Yeah, we’ll keep it that way!
He struts off. Alan pulls a face and has a swig.
4 ext. Trinity Way night
Alan squats down by a road sign indicating Salford Precinct. He holds his bottle upside down, proving it is empty.
ALAN
Bitch!
He slaps his forehead, then his eyes narrow.
ALAN
Fireman, eh?
He giggles an impish, pissed up laugh.
5 ext. derelict tower block night
A sign telling people not to enter for their own safety is torn down as Alan breaks open one of the boarded up windows of the tower block.
Ewan Povey MA Scriptwriting Ward 42 Pg3
cont.
Inside is a lot of accumulated rubbish. Alan squirts lighter fluid over it all and lights a match.
6 ext. Churchill Way night
The tower burns while fire crews fight the blaze. Alan dances round and round with his eyes closed till he bumps into a policeman.
7 int. ward reception night
Two policemen flank Alan, while a nurse, TONY, interviews him. Alan is rather wild looking. Dressed in jeans and a brown jacket, he looks as if he hasn’t eaten in some time. Tony is a spry man in his thirties. He would be good looking were it not for too much alcohol and too many late shifts.
TONY
Name?
ALAN
Alan.
TONY
Surname?
ALAN
KING!
The policeman to the left puts his hand on Alan’s shoulder.
TONY
Next of kin?
ALAN
Joanne King.
TONY
Age?
ALAN
Twenty an’ a half.
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7 cont.
TONY
Religion?
ALAN
The bicycle!
8 int. smoking room night
TONY
You can smoke in here. Say hello to Alan, everyone!
Everyone says hello. Everyone being Jesus, Satan, Stalin, Tutankhamun, etc. Literally
JESUS
My son.
As Jesus speaks, a bell chimes and the air is filled with flowers, composed of b/w flowers. He is Irish.
SATAN
I’ll get you in the end.
STALIN
Comrade!
TUTANKHAMUN
May the Sun always bless your Nile! That’s Medea. She killed her children to spite her husband. A Hieroglyph.
He indicates a glowingly beautiful woman who is staring into space, caressing her teeth with her tongue. They go back to their cigarettes. Alan settles uncomfortably into a seat. His attention wanders to the television in the corner.
NEWSREADER
You! Yes, you! They’ll eat you alive in here.
Tony pops his head in.
TONY
Everyone alright?
NEWSREADER
Well, cats will be cats.
The screen shows a fireman up a tree.
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8 cont.
ALAN
Er, yeah.
TONY
Nice one.
Tony leaves as discreetly as he came.
NEWSREADER
ALIVE…
Alan gets out a bar of chocolate.
STALIN
Ooh! He has choklaat.
JESUS
I’d give some to Medea if I were you. Then she might not kill you in your sleep.
Mid lounge Medea fixes Alan with a look.
ALAN
I’ll leave it there.
9 int. toilet night
Alan steps into the cubicle with a cardboard hat-shaped thing. Tony is hot on his heels.
ALAN
Do you mind?
TONY
Uh?
ALAN
DO YOU MIND?
TONY
Oh. Right.
Tony takes a step back .
ALAN
Are you still there?
Ewan Povey MA Scriptwriting WARD 42 Pg6
9 cont.
Tony steps out of the cubicle, but holds the door open.
ALAN
If you’re that fucking keen, do it your fucking self.
10 int. smoking room night
ALAN
I need a fag.
He breaks one out and lights it. He starts to sing in a guttural voice.
ALAN
Poison gas and bulldozers!
Tony motions to Alan.
TONY
Alan! Could I have a word?
11 int. corridor night
TONY
Look. About, about the urine sample.
ALAN
Look. Fuck off!! If you’re not ready to apologise, fuck off!
TONY
Calm down, Alan.
ALAN
Don’t fucking tell me to calm down! I hope you die. I hope your mother dies. I hope everyone you care about dies.
Suddenly the hall fills with nurses. They pounce on Alan and hold him down.
TONY
50ccs of Pytreodactylizine and Tyrannadone.
ALAN
Rapists!
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1 cont.
They pull down Alan’s jeans and stick two needles in his backside. This done, they let go of Alan and stand back. Alan walks along the row of them, pointing his finger in their faces.
ALAN
Rapist! Rapist! Rapist!
They look uncomfortable.
ALAN
Can I use the phone?
TONY
Sure.
Alan fishes out a pound, puts it in the pay phone and dials.
ALAN
Mum. I’m in a mental hospital. … What do you mean, you could have guessed? Listen! Tell this lot that they’re rapists.
Alan hands the phone to Tony and stalks off. Before he has taken a few steps he sinks to the floor and passes out.
12 int. shadow world night
Alan staggers through a world of shadows, of people with no faces. He hears the deep, masculine voice of DR TAURUS.
DR TAURUS
Hello, Alan. My name is Dr Taurus. I am the consultant here. You’ve already met Tony, the staff nurse and of course, your mother, Joanne King. You do recognise your mother, don’t you, Alan? Well, we are here to tell you that you have been sectioned. In this instance, that means you will be kept here for observation for up to six months. Do you understand?
13 int. dormitory day
Alan wakes, somewhat groggy. He climbs out of bed and gets dressed. Satan, who has extremely red skin and is wearing an equally red Adidas tracksuit top skips up and down on his hooves, over to Alan
SATAN
Psst1 Want some tickets?
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13 cont.
ALAN
Let’s have a look! What are they?
SATAN
Wait a minute! We’ve got to agree a price.
ALAN
Price? I don’t even know what they are yet. Wait a minute! Those are
my Manics tickets. You shit!
Satan skips off on his goat-like legs, laughing. Alan sets off in pursuit but soon finds himself dragged to earth, as if by an irresistible force. He pursues Satan on his hands and knees. Satan continues to skip around him, laughing hysterically.
ALAN
Mad, fucking bastard!
SATAN
Mad? I’m not the one walking like a dog!
Tony pops his head around the door.
TONY
So, you’re getting Parkinsonisms I see, Alan. We’ll have to fix you up with some Brontosauradine.for that.
ALAN
Uh?
13a int. smoking room day
Alan is desperately trying to roll a cigarette. Medea levitates her way into a chair.
MEDEA
Why are you fighting?
ALAN
I really need a smoke.
MEDEA
The nurses
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13A cont.
ALAN
I need to get out. My girlfriend’s run off with a fireman.
MEDEA
I know. But you’ll never get out of here. It doesn’t matter how brilliant you are at pretending to be well. Look at Zeus! He’s a god, for Christ’s sake.
She indicates a corpulent figure in a toga, who is gaping blankly at the wall.
MEDEA
I’ve got my eye on you. You’re the heroic type. I have a thing about heroes.
She licks her lips and glowers coldly. Alan shivers in horror.
14 int. interview room day
This tiny room contains three chairs, around a desk.
TONY
Try to sit still, Alan.
ALAN
Can’t.
TONY
Dr Taurus will prescribe you something for it.
ALAN
He’d better.
TONY
Try not to be so…
ALAN
What?
TONY
…confrontational.
ALAN
I’ll be how I fuckin’
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14 cont.
Alan is stunned into silence by the appearance of Dr Taurus, who despite wearing a shirt and tie, is in fact a fully grown bull, who walks on two feet, with a ring through his nose.
DR TAUNUS
Good Afternoon.
ALAN
Fuckin’ Bull…
TONY
That’s not very nice, Alan.
ALAN
No! He’s a fuckin’ bull.
TONY
That’s not a very nice thing to say about someone with a weight problem.
DR TAURUS
That’s alright, Tony. Let’s forget about it and get down to business. Now Alan, how are you feeling?
ALAN
I need to get out of here. I’ve got to see my girlfriend. She’s running off with a fireman.
DR TAURUS
Well, I’m afraid we can’t let you leave here until we’re sure that you’re safe to be left on your own and on the road to recovery. Now, tell me, do you hear voices?
15 int. smoking room day
Alan sits dejectedly smoking a roll-up.
STALIN
Comrade.
Alan grunts. All around Stalin is in black and white. Like an old photo.
STALIN
You cannot let this Gulag crush your proletarian spirit.
Ewan Povey MA Scriptwriting WARD 42 Pg11
ALAN
What’re you on about.
STALIN
In the Gulags I created, men were truly crushed. Yet when the news reached them of my death, they still could throw their hats in the air in celebration.
ALAN
So?
STALIN
You’re very impatient. Reminding me of Revisionist Trotsky. Let me get ice pick.
ALAN
I’m sorry. Go on!
STALIN
Blood boiling…must control self, Stalin. Only if you get out can you crush your enemies. To get out you must stay calm and get well…
ALAN
You were talking about Gulags…
STALIN
Korekt, Komrade.
ALAN
The point was?
STALIN
There is only one way into Siberia and one way out. That is to crush the system.
ALAN
You’re not making much sense.
STALIN
Apologies. It’s the vodka.
ALAN
You have vodka?
STALIN
Only for leader of Revolution. You want vodka? You prove yourself to the working class.
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15 cont.
Alan is crestfallen, but perks up suddenly.
ALAN
Yeah! The working class. These wankers have been shitting on us for too long. It’s time somebody stood up and was counted.
STALIN
Da! Da! Da!
Alan stands up and sits back down again, breathless, due to his medication.
ALAN
Yeah! It’s like this medication business. Who are they to tell us what drugs we can and can’t take?
STALIN
Da!
Jesus speaks with an Irish accent and gives off psychedelic colours.
JESUS
Hell ? Sorry Father.
God speaks from above. He sounds like JB.
GOD
You are forgiven my son. Huh!
TUTANKHAMUN
How horribly true.
Tutankhamun has a honeyed voice and gestures with his slender hands. The air around him dances with hieroglyphs.
ALAN
I will start a resistance to these Fascists.
STALIN
Counter-revolutionaries.
ALAN
Yeah. What he said.
JESUS
How’re you going to do it, Alan?
TUTANKHAMUN
Yes, dear boy, are you going to humble these brutes?
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15 cont.
ALAN
I’m going to strike fear into their hearts. I’m going to hit them where it hurts. I’m going straight to the ballot box.
16 int. corridor day
Alan steps along the corridor, pacing from one end to the other. Tony passes by, looking over some notes.
TONY
Asphasia, Alan?
ALAN
Uh?
TONY
Restless.
ALAN
Yup!
TONY
Well, give it time.
Medea glides into the corridor, her feet not touching the ground. Her hair is red, black and voluminous, as is her makeup. Her voice is less of a purr and more of a growl.
MEDEA
You’re my hero.
ALAN
Thanks.
MEDEA
I hate heroes.
ALAN
Oh!
Medea licks her lips.
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17 int. dormitory night
Stalin and Alan have made a tent on Alan’s bed. Under the covers and by torchlight they hold council.
STALIN
Forget about ballot. Use bullet.
ALAN
But there’s so many of them, and I’m only slender.
STALIN
They are few. We are many. If we all spit together, they vill drown.
ALAN
So, if I can get everyone going.
STALIN
Da!
ALAN
How do I do that?
STALIN
Komrade Lenin, when he coughs, we had Revolution in Russia. We made lots of noise and soon everyone follow us.
ALAN
What happened then?
Stalin becomes flustered.
STALIN
Vell, let’s cross this bridge ven ve come to it.
18 int. dining room day
Everyone is eating their chocolate sponge and custard. Alan sidles in and looks from side to side, shiftily. Tony, who is stood in one corner, looking at his nails, narrows his eyes and looks at Alan.
ALAN
Help! Help!
People look up reluctantly.
ALAN
Help! Help! I’ve been robbed.
18 Cont WARD 42 pg15
Chairs squeak as everyone turns.
ALAN
Robbed of my dignity by the Mental Health System.
He pounds his fist into his hand.
ALAN
I say to you people, how long are we going to stand for them running our lives?
MEDEA
They like having their lives run.
ALAN
Eh?
MEDEA
They like it. They don’t want to look after themselves.
ALAN
Look. If you don’t mind.
TONY
Calm down Alan.
Alan skulks away.
CUT TO:
19 INT DORMITORY NIGHT
ALAN
Will I ever get out of here or is this to be continued.
CUT TO BLACK