The mules are restless, sir. A bad sign.
- Yes, I shall be glad when the sun rises. - Yes, sir.
(Bird call)
(Speaking native language)
Alarm!
- (Gunfire) - (Man) Alarm! Bugler! Alarm!
(Bugler playing)
Alarm! Alarm!
Alarm!
(All shouting)
(Man) Alarm!
(Bugler playing)
Fire!
Load! Present! Fire!
Present! Fire!
Fire!
Where are you? Are they all round? I can't see in this smoke!
Fire!
Load! Present! Fire!
(Durrance) Load! Present! Fire!
Load!
Fire!
(Shouting in native language)
(All shouting)
(Gunfire continues)
- Sir, Ali has news. - Good, what does he know?
(Speaking Arabic)
The Khalifa's left the Nile with his army.
That's the news we're waiting for. Give orders to sail at once.
This is grand. Kitchener can have his battle where he wants it.
Thanks to Durrance. He's done a magnificent job.
(Speaking native language)
(Cawing)
Peter?
(Gourd stopper pops)
Is that you, Peter?
Peter?
Peter? Peter?
- Peter! - (Cawing)
Willoughby?!
Burroughs!
Peter! For God's sake, answer me!
Oh, is that you, Peter?
I'm blasted near mad!
I...I can't see, Peter.
It's no good pretending any more, I can't see. I'm blind.
The sun got me out there in the mountains.
Why don't you speak? What's the matter?
Who are you?!
What, are you all dumb? You've never seen a blind man before?
Who the devil are you?!
Speak!
If not English then Arabic but speak. Speak!
It's true, then.
They're all dead.
All my company wiped out.
Nothing but a blind man and a dumb lunatic.
There's nothing left but death from thirst.
Come here. Come here!
Lean your head against the one cool thing left in this blasted furnace.
You won't? All right, well...
go to the devil alone!
(Gunshot)
(Grunting) Give it to me! Give it to me!
I'll kill you!
(Yelling)
Hello! Hello!
Company, stand to!
Company, fall in!
Load! Present! Fire!
Fire!
Load! Present! Fire!
Fire!
Load! Present...!
Give me my helmet, Sergeant, will you?
Ethne...
"Don't you like the polka?" "A bit jerky, isn't it?"
Ethne, I shall love you always.
(Cawing)
Hello, Doctor.
I'm glad to find you alone, Ethne.
- I really came here to talk to you. - Well, doctor?
Have you heard from Harry Faversham?
I've heard nothing.
It was his own wish and my wish that the break should be complete.
I've no idea where he is or what he's doing.
I promised to give you a message when I saw him on the night he left a year ago.
A year ago?
Then... I don't understand, Doctor.
He left England for one purpose only -
if he succeeded he said you would learn by means that needed no explanation.
If he failed then he asked me to let you know that at least he'd done his best.
I see.
He promised to write to me now and then, to show he was still alive.
If I heard nothing for a year then his silence would show that he was dead.
My dear.
So that's the end.
- You think I behaved brutally, Doctor. - No.
I did behave brutally. I behaved like the worst kind of coward.
I failed to help him when he was terribly in need of help.
Nothing you'd have done would've altered his decision.
- I could have helped him! - You could have done nothing.
His mind was made up. You must always remember that.
For the sake of his memory and for your own happiness.
Oh, Ethne!
What are you two mooching about outside for?
Having a dose of your country air, General.
It'll be bronchitis if you don't take care. Come on in for some sherry.
Look, an Arab. He's got an officer!
- He's trying to rob him! - Let's get him!
(Soldiers approaching)
Abdul, ask him what he has to say.
(Speaking Arabic)
(Groans)
It is useless, Your Excellency, he is from the Sangali tribe,
he cannot speak.
Put him with the thieves and send them to mend the roads.
- March him out, Sergeant. - Sir.
(Man) The doctor, sir.
- Doctor, how's Durrance? - He'll pull through.
Splendid. The regiment can't spare a man like that.
He's blind.
Blind?
Sunstroke. Exposure of the eyes to the sun.
I've seen it before, Colonel. A man alone lies there exposed.
But with rest he'll get better?
With immediate attention he might have, but not now.
The nerves are completely destroyed.
Jump!
- Bravo! - Good work, John, good work.
(Laughs) You'll have me riding to hounds in a few weeks.
- Up another six inches, Joe. - Not today.
- Just a tiny bit more. - Tomorrow. Time to dress for dinner.
Dress?! I can dress in ten minutes now.
- There's your shaving lesson, too, sir. - Ah, yes.
And my lesson in making bow ties. Back to school again, Ethne.
- Joe's a great teacher. - Easy with a good pupil.
And no more chopped up meals - I want a lesson in carving roast chicken!
See you at dinner. Come on, Joe.
Thank you.
Brave man.
I hope I can make him very happy.
Joe, you do it for me, will you?
Look here, I've been wanting to say something to you for a long time.
Beastly difficult to know how to put it.
It's no business of mine but are you sure you're right in doing this?
Quite sure.
A man becomes a soldier with knowledge of the risks.
If misfortune comes he doesn't ask for pity or sympathy
but you've got your whole life before you.
I know it's a noble, unselfish impulse - but for 30 or 40 years, maybe 50 years!
Please don't talk about being noble, there's nothing like that about it, just...
Well, it's just that I've made up my mind.
Yes, the Arab is a strange, unexpected creature.
You haven't heard the end yet.
Here's a solitary Arab, heaven knows where he comes from.
He packs my map, slings my water bottle round my neck
and never says a word from beginning to end.
- That must have been uncanny. - Uncanny? It nearly drove me mad.
Yet I knew he was trying to save me.
How long we travelled I'll never know - I was crazy with fever.
He gets me in a boat, floats me down the Nile
and in sight of the camp - here's the extraordinary part -
he lays me down outside the camp and calmly begins to rob me.
Nothing strange in that, just eastern business mentality.
He'd done a job and was taking payment.
He got less than he bargained for, I carry no papers or money.
He got nothing, then?
He only got one thing - the only thing I was carrying.
- Remember this? - My letter!
Your letter. There's a funny thing in this.
Ethne, read the postscript you wrote.
It's still got some sand in it!
Keep the sand as a souvenir.
Thank you.
- Go on, read the postscript. - Let me.
"P.S. Take care not to get sunstroke."
You always said I knew too much to take advice.
Darling, I'm sorry, you're trembling.
You mustn't take it like that. It might have been a lot worse.
I'd have been dead without my little Arab friend.
And what happened to him?
Wish I knew. They sent him to a convict gang.
When I came to, he'd escaped and I was never able to trace him.
Now for a turn in the garden. Stay here, I'll get my coat.
I'll fetch yours, Ethne.
Oh, my letter.
Thank you.
So Harry's alive, or was when he paid that debt.
(Laughing, shouting in Arabic)
- Who is it? - (Crowd laughing)
Peter, good of them to entertain us for nothing.
(Shouting and laughing)
If I had my hands free I'd applaud.
If I had mine free I'd strangle that blighter with the monkey.
Willoughby, do I still look sane?
No. Do I?
(Shouting in Arabic)
(Whispers) Don't despair.
Peter...
Peter?
Perhaps our message got through.
Perhaps Durrance got away and sent this fellow to help.
Escape? I wonder.
I wonder what his plan is?
Karaga.
Karaga Pasha.
Tell me, which do you think would give the better chance of escape,
the desert or the river?
How should I know? Nobody has ever escaped from here.
But surely some attempts must have been made to free you?
Yes, years and years ago.
But they all failed.
How long have you been here?
- Since Gordon was killed. - 13 years.
(Prisoners yelling)
(Guards laugh)
(Creaking)
- Swim? Swim? - Yes.
See island?
- (Speaking Arabic) - Tomorrow, boat waiting.
(Speaking Arabic)
So the mad musician of Omdurman was a British spy.
What message did you give to your British friends?
The Khalifa will reward you. What do you know of Kitchener's army?
Answer or we'll flog you until you do!
- Answer! - (Speaking Arabic)
(Whip cracking, Faversham crying out)
- There you are. - Thank heavens.
(Guards yelling)
- That's the end of that. - No pork for dinner.
Poor devil, they've flogged him. I wonder who he is.
Looks like an Arab. Probably paid by our people to help us.
- Has he got any papers on him? - Spies don't usually.
Well, I made a nice mess of that, didn't I?
Faversham!
Harry, how did you get here? Who sent you?
- Nobody. - Then why are you here?
- Explain, Harry. - No time to explain.
We're in a mess. Now, listen. The Khalifa has gone to meet Kitchener.
If he's beaten he'll kill us in revenge. If he wins he'll kill us for pure joy.
Opposite the prison is the arsenal of the Khalifa,
just a couple of guards and doorkeepers.
- Have you got that file? - Yes, that was a brainwave!
Does anybody understand the language of these poor devils?
That fellow over there. I'll fetch him.
- You all right, Harry? - Yes, I'm all right, Fat-face.
This is Karaga Pasha, once governor of the province of Kordofan.
You speak the language of these people?
I speak Arabic and Greek, they all understand one.
Then will you tell them that I have brought the means of setting them free?
Tell them not to make a sign or move until they get the word from me.
We must work very fast. Break that file in two.
Bring me the strongest man first.
Attention!
Fix...
bayonets!
(Drum rolls)
(1st drum roll stops)
- (2nd drum roll stops) - Attention!
(Horse whinnies)
They're deploying to attack. Their whole army.
(Speaking Arabic)
Perkins, to the right. Cranley, to the left.
Take positions and hold fire till the last possible moment.
(Shouting orders, indistinct)
- Load! - Kneel!
(All shouting)
- Grand sight, ain't it? - Horrible close. When do we fire?
When we're told.
If you can't look at 'em comin' on, shut your eyes,
I'll nudge you when to open 'em.
Present!
Fire! Fire!
(Distant gunfire)
(Muttering)
(Whooping)
- Get your chains off. - Tell them it's now or never.
They mustn't move until the guards reach us.
(Speaking Arabic)
(Yelling in Arabic)
(All yelling)
- They're rallying again. - (Yelling in Arabic)
- Not so many of them now. - Nor of us, sir.
Lengthen range 350. We'll have that tower.
- That's the arsenal. - Good! Blow it up!
Lengthen range 350!
- That's not a dervish gun. - They'll blow us to pieces!
Wait here.
They're firing at the black flag! We must get it down and put something else up!
- This'll do. - Harry, look! The one they took from us!
- Right, I'll take it. - Right.
They're lowering the flag - surrendering - hauling up a white one.
- It isn't white, it's ours! - What?!
(Church bells)
Paper! Khartoum recaptured! Paper! Paper!
Khartoum recaptured! Paper!
(Knock at door)
Come in.
- Hello, John. - Hello, Doctor.
How are you?
Have a drink - on the table there.
- Mind if I light the gas? - Sorry, old man.
- Give me the matches, I'll light it. - Heard the news?
I've been listening. Is it true we've got Khartoum?
Kitchener broke the dervishes at Omdurman.
Good, good! Splendid. Well, that's that. Sit down, Doctor.
- Whisky? - Not just now, John.
You've seen Dr Wesley?
I've just left him. Heine, the German specialist, was there too.
Nice fellow, took a lot of trouble.
You needn't tell me the verdict, I quite understand.
I think it's what you expected, John.
- He doesn't feel an operation... - Neither did I.
A man gets to understand these things.
If there's any spark left inside that could be fanned up again
I'm certain I should've felt it there.
I've known for some time that they were stone dead.
Heine explained that the trouble sometimes comes
from a lesion that can be repaired by operation. In your case...
In my case it's a complete blackout.
No harm in getting the best man, anyway.
- You've earned your whisky now. - Thanks.
(Durrance) Might've been a lot worse.
If I had known from the start I'd probably have blown my brains out.
But I've been learning to read this Braille stuff.
Funny how quickly the fingers get sensitive. Listen...
"Be not afeared, the isle is full of noises, sounds and sweet airs
"that give delight and hurt not.
"Sometimes a thousand twangling instruments will hum about mine ears
"and sometimes voices that if I had then waked after a long sleep
"will make me sleep again,
"and then in dreaming, the clouds me thought would open
"and show riches ready to drop upon me
"that when I wake I cried to sleep again."
- Splendid. - Marvellous, isn't it?
- I knew that bit by heart anyway. - (Laughing)
Here... Here's to your health, doctor.
- And here's to you, John. - Kitchener and his lads in Khartoum.
Now, stretch out your legs and read the news.
There's a report by Mallinson, the war correspondent.
- "Khartoum, 2nd September." - Good. Do read it.
"From Gordon's Palace I am proud to send news of victory.
"At dawn, after a night of storms,
"scouts reported the dervish army massing upon the hills above Kerreri."
That's where the legend said the British would be destroyed, now if...
- Oh, shut up and listen. - Sorry.
"At six o'clock the dervish army advanced
"and flung themselves at the British squares.
"Within two hours the dervish forces were in flight.
"A full report will be sent when details are available.
"I accompanied the North Surrey regiment..."
- Good old Surreys. - "..witnessed the most dramatic scene.
"During the battle the prisoners in the Omdurman dungeons
"captured the arsenal and held it till relieved."
- Bravo! - "They were led by two British officers
"captured at Gakdul Wells, Lieutenants Burroughs and Willoughby."
Peter, alive! And good old Willoughby!
Isn't that splendid?!
- What's the time? - Just gone seven.
We'll go tonight, we'll be the first to tell Ethne and the old man!
He'll be crazy with excitement about this!
- Joe! Joe! - Yes, sir?
Pack my bag! Get Dr Sutton's bags sent here!
We're going to General Burroughs'.
(Sutton) But I've got an appointment!
And tell Dr Sutton's man to cancel all his appointments!
- (Sutton) But they'll already know! - They don't get the evening papers.
- We'll walk in with the news! - The War Office will send a telegram.
You've always got some cold-blooded reason for doing nothing!
Don't you realise what this means? Peter's alive - and done a grand job, too.
Is there any more?
"..Burroughs and Willoughby,
"whose release was due to an act of heroism described to me by Burroughs.
"A man posing as a dumb Sangali native
"smuggled in a means of cutting the chains of the captives.
"He suffered torture and faced death to do so
"because he was, until recently, an officer of their own regiment."
Lieutenant Faversham.
Why should he try to rob me?
- Doctor. - Yes, John?
There's some notepaper on my desk, I want you to write a letter for me.
- I'm ready, John. - To Ethne Burroughs.
"Dear Ethne...
"I've just had some splendid news,
"I've been to a famous German eye doctor...
"and my sight can be restored."
Got that?
I've got that, John.
"It means a long treatment in Germany and I leave tomorrow.
"When I can see again I shall return to the army...
"with the happy memory of all you have done to help me through."
I'll sign it myself.
And add a postscript.
"P.S.
"Just heard the splendid news of Peter and Willoughby
"and Harry Faversham.
"I enclose a little souvenir
"of a journey through the desert with a dumb Sangali native.
"If you give him the chance that he deserves you'll find he's not...
"as mute as I thought he was."
That's all.
(Joe) Your bags are packed, sir. There's just time for dinner.
All right, Joe, we're not going after all.
I...
I still say the army of today is soft compared with our time.
Soft, that's your trouble.
Still, you did your best.
And as Harry's made you take your feathers back
he'd better marry the girl, eh, doc?
It's not as easy as all that. There's my feather too.
What deed of reckless daring are you going to do to make me take it back?
Must I?
Deeds of reckless twaddle! No such thing nowadays.
All you boys had to do was deal with fuzzy-wuzzies.
The Crimea was different.
War was war in those days.
No room for weaklings. Take Balaclava, for instance.
You won't remember the positions... It was this.
Ah, thank you. Here were the Russians. Guns, guns, guns.
- On the right, the British infantry... - One moment, sir.
Your famous account of Balaclava is not accurate.
- Not...? - Not accurate, sir.
- Not accurate?! - No, sir. Let me recall the position.
Out of the way, Peter.
Here are the Russians, behind the walnuts. Guns, guns, guns.
Here's the British infantry - the Thin Red Line.
Here's the commander in chief.
And here are you, at the head of the old 68th.
- Correct? - Absolutely.
You were riding a horse called Caesar
which my father sold you because he could never hold him.
Quite right, quite right.
According to your story you said, "The 68th will move forward."
- Quite right, quite right. - But you never said it.
- Nev...? - You never said it, sir.
- Never said it?! - No, sir, you never had time.
At that moment my father told me Caesar...
Er, Caesar. Caesar...
..startled by a stray bullet, dashed straight at the Russian lines.
Away went you, the 68th, away went everybody!
A magnificent mistake was added to a magnificent record.
But nobody ever told the 68th to move forward.
Unless it was the horse(!) Come on, sir, own up.
Well...after all these years it's difficult to remember the details but...
Confound it, I shall never be able to tell that story again!
Ethne, your feather.