JIM: I thought I'd been stood up. It wouldn't be the first time.
CHRIS: Traffic jam. Someone drove their car off the M1.
On purpose? Fucking selfish pricks holding up the commute.
What's wrong with a bottle of aspirin, eh?
Mr Coulson?
COULSON: Repainted last week. No one wants to touch the place.
Agency can't shift it.
- (SWITCH CLICKS) - Oh, I'll check the fuse box.
Righty-tighty. I'll give you the greatest hit, shall I?
The neighbor said she heard a shot, then the dog starts barking
and then six more shots.
Most likely, he's woken up when he's heard the window smash,
he's come down the stairs, he's gone to have a look out here,
and then he's gone to have another look out the back here.
That's when he's discovered the shooter, who ends up there, where you are.
Her arrival makes him panic and that's when the gun goes off.
(GUNSHOT)
But here's the head-scratcher and it's a fucking doozy.
When he gets shot...
...he don't fall down.
He just keeps walking.
He doesn't drop where he should. He just keeps coming.
Even though he's been shot.
The second shot...
...hits her in the chest, but she doesn't drop, either.
She comes down a step or two. Third shot hits her in the stomach.
She keeps coming.
Fourth shot hits her in the chest, she still keeps coming.
Shots five and six hit him in the abdomen and the shoulder.
And then the last shot goes through his head...
...up into the ceiling, by which time he's practically on top of him.
And then he drops the gun
and he legs it out of the door with the car keys.
- Conversion? - Er, yeah. A starter pistol.
And they said the Olympics wouldn't leave a legacy, eh?
- They run at him? - No, no.
It was more of a leisurely stroll.
SOCO said they came at him at an even pace,
even had him in shot.
They only finally lay down and died when he left the house.
Now, how's it possible for two people to keep walking
when they've been shot three times, one of them in the face?
I told you it was a head-scratcher.
(INDISTINCT SHOUTING)
(DISTANT SIREN WAILING)
CHRIS: 'We need to go after the property manager.'
- JIM: 'Fuck's sake. What?' - 'Who showed us in. What's his name?'
JIM: 'Fuck, er... Coulson. I think. Jesus Christ, it's... '
- 'Did you get an address?' - JIM: 'Fuck's sake!'
JIM: 'The landlord says he hasn't seen him for a week.
'Estate agency doesn't know where he is. It's hard enough finding this address.
'No family. Mother dead. Father estranged. Lives abroad.
'Employment records practically non-existent.
'Trust-fund kid, which explains this place. Almost.
'Coulson wasn't managing the building at the times of the murders.
'He only got the job three days after the shooting.'
Turns out Michael Coulson's quite the colorful character.
Been quizzed several times, especially with violent stuff.
But nothing's ever stuck. Seems he genuinely never gets involved.
Just hangs around criminals and crime scenes.
I think he talks other people into doing stuff just cos he gets a kick out of it.
Then from July last year, he's been seeing a psychiatrist.
Dr Helen Fisher.
Private sessions about two miles from here.
Think he knows we're onto him?
Well, I don't think he's popped out for 20 fags and a wank mag.
Yeah, I'll admit this doesn't look brilliant.
- CHRIS: Hey, Kath. - Jesus Christ!
Chris...
- Anyone else know you're here? - Just Jim.
Where have you been?
Up north.
Man of fucking mystery, aren't you?
What makes you think he's the one?
Been linked to similar things before. Obsessed with crime scenes.
Means he's a ghoul.
Doesn't mean he's got anything to do with this.
He was seeing a psychotherapist called Helen Fisher.
Might be something in Fisher's notes that'll tell us where he is.
Go back up north, Chris.
KATH: 'Okay, there's a type of depression, dysthymia.
'It's long-term, mild symptoms, but it persists over years.'
So you can pretty much mumble one-word answers for the first session.
CHRIS: 'Any day, really.'
Erm, I...
Yeah, no. Er, let me just check.
Erm, yeah, that's fine.
'Er, I don't know. Mid-morning?'
'Yeah, what's the address, please?'
How are you today?
Fine.
What do you do for a living, Chris?
Could be living off benefits. Maybe your parents are paying for your therapy.
(SCOFFS) Don't have a job.
How was this week for you?
Have you done anything fun?
Just shit.
Are you on any medication?
They were giving out Venlafaxine like Smarties a while back,
but that might've changed. I can check.
Ven... laflax... flaxine. Ven...
- Venlafaxine? - Yeah.
- I came off it, though. - Okay.
- You take notes? - Yes.
Sometimes I'll review them before a session.
Where are they kept?
- KATH: 'Probably not under lock and key.' - I'm sorry?
But they might be in a different room.
- CHRIS: Your notes? - Oh. Over there.
But they're very safe. Nothing about you leaves this practice.
Can you tell me what you'd like to get out of these sessions?
I just wanna get better.
CHRIS: 'There's often no one else there.
'Course if someone were to ring the office,
'it might get her out of the room for long enough.'
You should've stayed up north, Chris.
People who suffer from depression often feel they've always felt this way.
(PHONE RINGS)
Like they're trapped in a cycle.
So, what I'd like to do is...
Excuse me. I'm gonna get that if no one else will.
(DOOR CLOSES)
(PHONE CONTINUES RINGING)
Sorry. They hung up.
Why do people do that?
KATH: "Mr Coulson presents a vivid convincing case
"that he is a... manic depressive,
"but symptoms may be co-morbid with other..."
Can't read that. "Disorders"?
"As such, I'm not convinced that he is fully bipolar.
"I'm treating him as such while keeping open to real pathology."
Why would someone pretend to have an illness?
Pots and kettles.
"He has expressed interest in other patients.
"Questions about range of conditions patients are said to have.
"I feel interest borders on morbidity, especially in light of his history."
Then there's this.
"Coulson for M. Suitable subject."
- M? - Morland?
I tracked him down. He's retired but still sees patients now and again in his home.
Maybe Coulson's one of them.
Strange word. "Subject."
(TAPE REWINDS FISHER'S VOICE) '...for you today.
'...people who suffer from depression often feel they've always felt this way.
'Like they're trapped in a cycle.'
FISHER: So, let's go through a typical Chris day, shall we?
I don't do anything.
FISHER: 'You must do something. It's impossible to do nothing.'
Fuck!
(SIGHS HEAVILY)
You've been coming here for over a month now, Chris, but...
...you can't progress unless you start to share a bit more about yourself.
Is there anyone in your life you have feelings for?
There's a girl.
And I, erm...
...kind of like her I suppose.
How did you meet her?
We met at a university up north.
I was older... Well, I am older than her.
And she was in her... first year.
And I didn't finish. I dropped out.
And I was just hanging round university, going to the bar.
- Did you go out? - No.
No, she...
She went out with a friend of mine, Jim.
So that's, that's how I met her.
Have you kept in touch with her?
'No, not, not really.'
I mean, I sometimes go over to sort of that part of town
because it's... it's, it's near where I live anyway, so...
What's she called?
Kathleen.
Her name's Kathleen.
Timing! Got a light?
Here you are.
Can I have a draw on that?
- Er... - Wanna share some?
Erm...
I can't cos it's, er... It's just that it's...
Sorry, it's my last, it's my last little bit, so, erm...
So I haven't got much...
(CLEARS THROAT) I haven't got much left, so...
- I only want a little bit. - Er...
(CHUCKLES)
(CAR ALARM BLARING)
CHRIS: 'Hi, Mum. Yeah. Yeah, good.'
(PHONE VIBRATES)
'Yeah, actually, it's okay. Going well.'
Hmm. It's a, er... psychotherapist. It's not a psychiatrist. Yeah.
'A she. She... It's a...
'Yeah, it's, it's a woman.
'Yeah, well, you know, just... just about stuff.'
(KNOCKING AT DOOR)
Hello, mate. Happy... Fucking hell! Jesus, mate!
I should've brought my hazard suit. Christ, honestly.
Open a window now and again. Give the rats a fighting chance.
- I'm kidding. How are you, man? - Er, good.
Look at this. The booze man cometh.
All unwanted samples from work. What is your poisson?
We got, er... whisky, ouzo, vodka.
What the fuck is this stuff? Here you are.
- That's for you. - Cheers.
Overflowing with gratitude as ever, I see.
Right, I can't stay. How's your, erm...
Oh, yeah, yeah, good. It's better.
Running. Seriously, mate, it works.
Endorphins. Get yourself a good woman.
Or even better, get yourself a bad woman. Yeah?
- All right, man. - How's Kathleen?
Yeah, she's good, yeah. We're good.
I mean, we've had a few problems, but, yeah...
Yeah, it's good.
- Drinks soon, yeah? - Yeah.
Get up!
- Ta-ra. - See you, Jim.
FISHER: 'What do you think about when you're walking?'
CHRIS: 'Just, er... daydreams and stuff.
'Dreaming I'm someone else.'
FISHER: Who are you in your dreams?
A policeman.
Like a...
Like a police detective.
Is that something you would've liked to have done?
Yeah. Yeah, I suppose.
And what have you done? For a living, I mean?
Bits and pieces.
Catering and... signing on at the moment.
But in your daydreams you're...
...someone more exciting.
It's like I'm a policeman.
And I've taken the blame for something. Something wrong someone else has done.
So I'm off the force, but I...
...still solve crimes.
It's really detailed in some ways and really vague in others.
Dreams are like that.
Daydreams, too.
Chris!
Chris. Hey!
- Hi. - That's so funny.
That's, like, the second time in this park.
What are you doing? You're not a kiddie-fiddler, are you?
(CHUCKLES) Are you out on your morning rounds?
No, no. I come, er... I come here a lot.
- Do you? - Yeah.
Don't you live three miles away or something?
Mm... How's work?
Erm, it's good, yeah. I've changed schools.
So it's... it's better. It's slightly better, yeah.
How about you?
Oh, you know, I'm, I'm... er, in between things.
Is that the same bracelet you had at uni?
Yeah, it is. What a strange thing to remember.
Oh, I should get going.
- It's good to see you. - And you. Definitely.
- I'll see you soon. - Yeah. Yeah, yeah.
Fuck!
CHRIS: 'Sometimes I daydream that I'm undercover in real life.
'Like when I'm here, I pretend I'm undercover,
'and it's part of an investigation, you know?
'When I'm walking I... I pretend that I'm trailing someone
'and it's part of a case.
'It's harmless, I think.
'I know it sounds weird, but I, erm...
'I should probably stop.'
Is Kathleen in these daydreams?
Yeah, she's like a profiler, like a psychological profiler,
like forensics.
Yeah. I mean, in real life, she's a teacher.
Anyway, she's, she's really smart, so it suits her.
What about other people? Like Jim?
Yeah, sometimes he's... I mean, he's another cop.
But in real life he works for a drinks company.
Erm, I know it's not real.
I mean, it's nice, but... I know it's not real.
MAN: Hello, old chap.
If I was a suspicious fellow, I'd say you were following me.
Er, no. I... Well, I just...
Er, I've just seen you at the therapy center a couple of times.
I just thought I'd say hello.
So you followed me halfway across London?
Er, I'm... Yeah, I'm really... I'm really sorry. Really, really sorry.
Well, it's comforting to know I'm not the nuttiest person in there.
I can... Erm... Yeah. Er...
- I better go. Sorry again. - Hey, what's your name?
Er...
- It's Chris. - Well, Chris...
Why don't we grab a coffee? You can pay.
Make up for the whole, you know... stalking thing.
- No, I better... - Buy me a coffee or I'll call the police.
Great.
My name's Michael, by the way. Michael Coulson.
Come on.
'Been to over a dozen therapists.
'Each of them trying to find the exact nature of the problem.
'Outsmarted them all, of course.'
Yeah, we're all in Hell.
Some of us just don't remember why we've been put there.
There's more to her than meets the eye.
- Who? - Fisher.
Not exactly clear what's going on, but, er...
Let's just say she's not exactly disinterested in her patients.
You know, she wants me to see another therapist? It's most odd.
Says we'll be the perfect fit. Very insistent. Won't let it drop.
- Well, are you gonna go? - Yeah, probably.
Just out of curiosity more than anything else.
See who this super psychologist is.
What's his name, the other therapist?
Morland. Alexander Morland.
It's quite a grandiose name, isn't it?
Right, let's go back to Waterloo.
- What Line do you need? - Er, Northern.
COULSON: Oh, Christ. Wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy.
I'll get us a cab. I'll pay. Come on.
FISHER: 'I'm really sorry, Chris.'
I've just found out that I've got...
I'm ill.
It's quite serious, I'm afraid, so I'm gonna have to take some time off.
I'd like to recommend another person you might consider seeing.
It will give you continuity. You wouldn't feel like you were starting from nothing.
Christopher...
I think we've made a lot of progress.
This doctor's called Morland.
Dr Alex Morland.
When we study to become psychotherapists, we have to undergo therapy ourselves.
It's part of our training.
And Alex, Dr Morland...
...he was my therapist.
Christopher?
Will you consider it?
(MUFFLED JAZZ MUSIC)
COULSON: 'She says he's right for both of us. Does that strike you as odd?'
CHRIS: I just think she wants someone else to pick up where she left off.
Oh! That's a lot of pills.
Oh. Yeah.
I should, er... I should become a dealer.
Well, it struck me as odd. Very odd.
Oh, I, er... I was there, you know.
At Morland's. Two days ago.
I won't say any more. I want to hear your first impressions.
Chin-chin.
(TRAIN NOISE)
(DOORBELL RINGS)
Trousers down for half a crown!
Christopher? Come in, come in.
Let me take your coat.
Usually, my man would be here to take it, but he's on his annual day off.
Did you get here okay?
Er, yeah, sorry. I was delayed, the... the train was...
Nationalize the whole bloody thing, I say!
Come up to my lair.
Sorry. Place is a bloody mess.
Sign of a creative mind. Or a lazy sod.
Ah... Please, sit, sit.
Now, just because we're plumbing the depths of the unconscious mind,
doesn't mean we can't have a cup of tea or coffee?
Er... tea, please.
Normal tea or some sort of gay tea? We've got the lot.
- Er, normal, thanks. - Coming up.
(MORLAND HUMS)
There you go. Nectar of the gods.
Now, then... How are you?
Er... yeah. Fine.
It's good of you to come out here to the sticks.
You'll find I have a bit of a different approach to Dr Fisher.
I don't believe in all this awkward silence stuff, you see.
If you don't say anything, I will.
Most people start talking sooner or later just to shut me up.
Did you notice the books? Seriously, he is into some weird shit.
Mm-hm.
Magic. The occult. Weird science.
The bottle. There is a bottle. Ask him about the bottle. Seriously, weird stuff.
Talking of bottles... Pah, pah, pah, pah, pah!
One more. One more? One each. Now, I've been tinkering and...
You know, just researching online, and all this stuff that Morland's into,
anthropology, maths, magic, it's all linked, all linked.
- Mm, come to this thing tonight. - Ah, nah. I don't...
- Come on! Come to this thing! - No.
There's some really interesting people I'd like you to meet.
You'll get on like a house on fire.
(ELECTRONIC DANCE MUSIC BLASTS)
MAN: ...and it was run by the CIA and the FBI.
Wiretapping, infiltration, brainwashing...
Don't talk to Danny. He'll fry your brain.
This isn't some bullshit, mind you, like the Illuminati,
or lizard men at the South Pole...
(MUSIC DROWNS OUT DIALOGUE)
(OVERLAPPING CONVERSATIONS)
(SNORTS)
...Civil Rights Movement, Black Panthers, Anti-Vietnam...
MAN: It's heavy. It's like a child's body.
A fat child. It's all in fifties.
Course, I'm 19, right? I got no brains.
I don't think to get a cab over to Gav's. I get on the Tube.
COULSON: Fucking hell.
I'm sat on the Tube with enough money to buy a fucking house.
Anyway, Gav's got this money counter
off a mate's dad who owns a furniture store.
There's 300 rolls of cash.
It takes about an hour cos the thing keeps jamming.
And we get to the end...
- ...and it's under. - Fucking hell.
So we go again, of course. Takes another hour.
We have to iron the fucking money with Gav's mum's iron. Yeah?
- And it's still under. - What happens if it's not all there?
- It has to be there. - COULSON: Yeah, but... what happens?
It has to be there.
But how does it benefit them to beat you up
or worse if it's not...
It has to fucking be there!
So the machine's fucked, we'll have to count it by hand.
We've got a wrap of speed on us.
And, I don't know, hours later, the sun's coming up,
our fingers and wrists are fucking killing us.
We can't see straight, we're grinding our teeth, we're crying.
We're laughing hysterically at nothing.
We're tapping our toes to the banging of the fucking central heating.
And it's still under.
So what do we do? Do we run? Where do we go?
I mean, we seriously entertained going down to the south of France.
I go to the toilet... put some water on my face.
And I come back, and I find Gav on his knees.
(GAV CHUCKLES)
And he's...
He's praying.
So I'm about to fuck off, leave him to it.
And then I think...
...fuck it.
What have I got to lose?
So we're both knelt on the floor, all this ironed cash lying around,
and we're fucking praying to God knows who.
God? Allah? Buddha?
Satan? Odin? Zeus?
Any cunt that will fucking listen.
The following morning, we agreed to go round there,
just come straight out with it and hope he sees in our eyes that it wasn't us.
So we go over, we show him round the back of the club,
and, Hill... I will never forget this for as long as I live...
he's watering potted plants listening to Radio 2, barely looks at us.
I give the bag over to his Neanderthal...
...and we totally fucking chicken out about telling him.
For two days, we sat in Gav's flat staring into space,
waiting for the hammer to fall.
A week later...
...Hill and the rest of the gang went down.
For life.
(CHUCKLING)
Now, I don't care what anyone fucking says.
Somebody heard us.
Anyone else got any stories?
MAN: How do you know you're not really an undercover cop?
CHRIS: Sorry. What?
How do you know if they haven't messed with your head somehow
and you really are an undercover cop, but you think you're a normal person?
S... Who?
Hypnosis. Implanted memories. Shrinks, man, they're head-shrinkers.
- How do you know about that? - Cos you told me you went to a shrink.
And you fantasize about being an undercover cop.
Fucking hell, I thought I was stoned.
Have you been talking to... Where's Michael?
What I'm saying is, what if you really are an undercover cop?
You're just imagining that you're a normal person.
You went in too deep and they flipped you and now you can't get out.
(RHYTHMIC DRUMMING)
(HORNS BLARE)
(METALLIC CRASHING)
(SIREN AND CAR ALARM WAILING)
(LABORED BREATHING)
(DOOR OPENS AND CLOSES)
WOMAN: Hiya.
I'm Maria, by the way.
Hi.
Thanks.
Do I have to write my number on my forehead?
No. Sorry.
Right...
- CHRIS: What's that? - MORLAND: Hm?
Ah, that?
That is a Klein bottle.
Yes, yes. Lovely object.
It has a non-orientable surface.
A closed manifold.
Plain English: it's got no inside or outside.
Look, if you go in a straight line and keep going,
you end up on the opposite side of the glass from where you were.
The outside becomes the inside, and the inside becomes the outside.
Of course, a real one can only exist in four dimensions.
It's like a bottle version of a Möbius strip.
Oh, Christ. Well, we'll start there.
Look, you tear off a strip of paper.
Twist it.
And if you start on one side and keep going,
you end up on the other side.
Imagine an ant wandering along the strip.
He'd end up back where he started,
without ever crossing an edge or turning back.
Pretty weird for the ant.
A bit like the ouroboros, which goes back to the Egyptians.
Then the medieval alchemists made it their own.
Then it was Jung's favorite, the eternal return, and all that.
You'll find I'm quite open to woolly ideas.
Not a bad trait for a psychotherapist, I think.
- What's that? - Hm? Oh, that?
That's a sigil. It's a magical symbol.
I've had it so long, I don't even notice it.
You write down a wish or a desire,
then combine the letters into a symbol.
It's supposed to make the wish come true.
I made it when I had... I had a bit of a health scare.
Oh, a decade ago now.
And I'm still here.
It'd be tempting fate to take it down.
Ah, who knows? Looks nice, though, doesn't it?
(PHONE VIBRATES)
COULSON: 'Chris, don't go to Morland. He's dangerous.
'Look, come over. I'll explain, okay? Yeah, come over.'
(VOICEMAIL) 'This is Michael Coulson. You know what to do.'
Right, let's get out of here, shall we?
Well, we're not getting anywhere sat here, are we?
Come on.
MORLAND: Getting better is a creative process.
It doesn't do to keep banging your head against the wall for too long.
It's not scientific. Not in the modern sense, anyway.
Don't get me wrong, I've got nothing against rationalism.
When I get on a plane,
I hope to bloody God the engineers are rationalists.
But this, what we're doing, trying to get you better...
...that's alchemy.
Mind your step.
Right here, where we stand right now,
is the center of the magical world.
Of course, that's true of anywhere.
But right in this clearing, a few years back,
they found a witch bottle, 17th century probably.
It had a heart with a nail in it.
William Blake wrote "The Book of Thel" about, oh, 30 miles that way.
John Dee practiced alchemy about 100 miles that way, 500 years back.
And in woods very like these, the New Forest, 1940,
Gerald Gardner and a coven of witches, the good kind,
performed a ritual to stop Hitler invading.
They stripped naked, danced,
and chanted, "You cannot cross the sea! You cannot come!"
It worked.
Well, it worked for them.
Made them feel better about how the war was going and their place in it.
Who knows? Maybe it really did work.
He never did come, did he?
Come on.
Schnell.
A lot of what I do is trying to distract you,
rather like a stage magician.
Only, the rabbit I'm trying to pull from the hat
is the solution to your depression.
That's what we have to crack with you, Christopher.
You have to believe you can get better.
Come on. Tea.
(VOICEMAIL) 'This is Michael Coulson. You know what to do.' (BEEPS)
(KNOCKING AT DOOR)
MORLAND: 'Either you tell me what's bothering you
'or I'm going to start banging on about alchemy and maths again.'
CHRIS: 'I don't know what else to say. I've told you everything.'
It's not about that. It's not about that.
Look, I... Do you know what? I'm too tired.
I'm too tired. I can't do this right now.
Really.
MORLAND: 'What is this thing that's making you so unhappy?'
CHRIS: 'It's depression. It's clinical depression.'
- That's just a name. Pick another one. - What?
Call it Derek or Tony. Or Mary if you want. Just name it.
But it had better do it justice, so maybe not a normal Christian name,
but give it a name.
I... I can't. It's...
"Clinical depression" is someone else's name. Give it your own name.
This is stupid.
You call it "clinical depression", you're locked into seeing it that way.
So call it something else.
Give yourself a chance to look at it from another perspective.
You said you were interested in magic.
Well, that's all magicians are doing.
When a magician raises a demon or an angel,
it may only be real in his head,
but if it's real to him, it may as well be real, full stop.
If he makes it into something tangible,
then he can deal with what it represents.
It's the process that matters.
We're trying to raise up whatever it is that's got you in its grip,
so we can deal with it.
Let's have another brew.
(ALARM BEEPS)
(TRAFFIC NOISE)
CHRIS: 'I know what it's called. I know its name.
'The Ghoul.'
Can you describe it?
It... It...
It comes out and I... I can't get rid of it.
It can be anywhere it wants to be.
And it...
It hollows you out and it...
...clings to you.
Other people can see it.
They see it on you and they're frightened to come near
in case it leaps off you and onto them.
So they stay away.
And... that's what it wants.
Is it here now?
Does it know I'm here?
Does it want me to be here?
It needs me to be alone.
But you're not alone, Chris.
You may feel like it, but you're not.
It hasn't beaten you yet, Christopher.
And it's been trying for years.
(CLOCK TICKS)
(PHONE VIBRATES)
(SNIFFLES) Sorry, Chris.
- It's so embarrassing. - It's okay. Don't worry. It's fine.
I didn't expect to cry my fucking eyes out.
He's such a f... fucking arsehole.
Yeah.
(CHUCKLES) Sorry, Chris.
- It's fine. - I'm sorry. I'm really embarrassed.
Don't worry. It's fi... It's fine.
- Please don't worry. - Thanks.
Really. Thank you.
Okay...
That's, that's fine.
I... I probably best get going.
I'll... Yeah, I'll just...
(COULSON MUTTERING)
COULSON: They're gods, they're gods...
(DOOR OPENS)
Come in, come in, come in.
I've been working very hard. I've been working very hard.
And I've worked it out, Morland and Fisher's plan, their purpose.
But there's a lot of work to do.
...people with vulnerable minds, and they'll go one by one through their patients
until they find the right one. One by one by one by one!
And Morland, the stuff he's into, magic, the occult and mathematics,
loops, circles, cycles, origins of consciousness,
he's been studying this for years.
Hang on, I've got something.
Fisher's job, her plan, her purpose...
She plans and she picks the patients.
If you believe something, it might as well be real!
They believe that they can create a loop inside a person's mind.
They can live inside the loop! They can move and they can change!
Fisher is dying. Fisher's got cancer. He hasn't got long. He's old.
What they're planning to do is prolong their life.
No one believes that he's a sorcerer.
And Fisher, her job, overall, is a protégée.
A pupil procurer that procures patients!
What they're doing is creating a universe of the mind!
- Basically, they're gods. They are gods! - Stop!
They are gods. They are gods.
They are gods!
KATH: 'Oh, God. It just sounds so alarming.'
(MUFFLED SOBBING)
- Horrible to see someone so unhappy. - KATH: Yeah.
What about you?
Well, you were so unhappy a while back.
I don't know. I'm getting there.
Oh, I should've seen it coming.
It's not the first time.
He's strayed a couple of times since uni.
I loved Manchester, you know.
I went back to visit a couple of months back.
And just driving up the motorway, seeing signs to the North,
it felt so good.
I don't think I'll stay in London much longer.
I'd like it if you stayed.
Is, er... is that a new dress?
Yeah, it is, actually. Do you like it?
- Yeah. - I...
Dunno. I might take it back.
I've got this, erm... tag gun. You know like they have in the shop?
If you change your mind, you just stick the tag back in the dress.
You just take it back, no questions asked.
- That's crafty. - I know.
Are you sure you should be in charge of children? You're like a super villain.
MORLAND: 'You seem better.'
CHRIS: 'Yeah.'
MORLAND: 'You were in a bad way when we first met.'
I was in hell.
Is that how it felt?
We're all in hell. We just can't remember how we got here.
- Where did you hear that? - Sorry?
That phrase. What you just said.
Someone just said it once.
This friend of yours, who's having a breakdown,
is it Michael Coulson?
No. Yeah, yeah.
Christopher, how long have you been friends with Michael Coulson?
I don't know. I just...
- We just met after a session once. Why? - Christopher...
It's very important that you don't have anything to do with Michael Coulson.
Look, I know he's manic depressive, but...
- Christopher... - He's fine...
Michael Coulson is not a manic depressive. He's dangerous.
- I've seen his medicine. - Oh, have you seen the bottles?
- Seen the labels on the bottles? - No. I didn't.
Would you know what medication someone with bipolar disorder takes anyway?
Christopher,
sometimes you encounter a person who is bad for you to be around.
Michael Coulson is one of those people for you.
I don't understand.
You know I can't share information about a patient,
but I must tell you Michael Coulson is not...
He's very adept at putting ideas in people's heads.
You must promise me that you'll stay away from him.
Christopher?
That's enough for today.
What is this place?
Sometimes I work in property management.
It's quite interesting. All these "Mary Celeste" houses.
Places where people have died.
Sometimes Tommy needs somewhere for one of his mysterious bags.
They come in quite useful.
You know Morland and Fisher are working together?
- Michael... - No, no, no, Christopher...
I'm not low, I'm not manic. I can see clearly.
They're trying to get inside your head and they'll drop you if they can't use you.
Fisher's out there now looking for someone more susceptible.
At first, they thought it was you, but... now they realize that you're strong,
they're gonna drop you.
Something needs to be done about them.
I am sorry, Christopher.
I've had some... some bad news.
I know this is a tough time for you, too.
But I'm gonna have to take some time off.
A colleague...
...actually a close friend of mine...
...is very ill.
Cancer.
This course of treatment lasts three weeks.
My friend will need some rest after that.
(MORLAND SNIFFLES)
It's been good to get to know you, Christopher.
'If only we had more time.'
- KATH: 'Hello?' - Hi, it's Chris.
(BUZZER RINGS)
KATH: 'Come in. What have you been up to?'
I saw Michael.
Erm, he's better, but he's still...
you know, strange and distant, but better.
Good. Good.
- It's good, isn't it? - Mm.
Look, erm... I bought those tickets for that thing, er... the play.
Okay.
Erm, I was gonna call and... ask,
but I knew you were at school, so I bought them anyway.
Do you want a cup of tea?
- Yeah. - Erm...
Chris, erm...
I'm really sorry.
I feel like I've given you completely the wrong idea.
No, it's...
- I've blown hot and cold. - No, it's fine.
- It's fine. - I just think, to be honest, I've...
I've felt really confused.
Fine. Look, I'm...
I'm big enough and ugly enough to... you know...
(PHONE VIBRATES)
(ELECTRONIC MUSIC BLASTS)
(PHONE RINGS)
(WOMAN GIGGLES)
(INDISTINCT CONVERSATION)
(KEYS JINGLE)
(MUSIC OVER SCREAMING)
FISHER: (ON TAPE) 'Sometimes I'll review... Nothing about you leaves this practice...
'Trapped in a cycle... '
(TAPE FAST-FORWARDS)
'Dr Morland, he was my therapist.'
MORLAND: '...we're plumbing the depths of the unconscious... Got no inside or...'
'...outside becomes the inside and the inside becomes the outside.'
'The inside becomes the outside.'
COULSON: 'You know what to do.'
(CHRIS GASPS)
(DOORBELL RINGS)
KATH: Hi. Okay.
Come in.
- Chris! - KATH: Do you want a cup of tea?
I'll make us a cup of tea, eh?
You all right, mate?
Well, look, I've gotta get packed, so, erm...
It's nice to see you, Chris.
Why are you packing?
I got that job I went up for up north.
- Is Jim going? - Yeah.
He's got himself a placement up there.
Chris, are you okay?
They're trying to make themselves immortal.
And I'm gonna stop them.
Alex? What is it?
MORLAND: Stay here.
Christopher... It's okay.
Helen, it's okay. Go back up.
- (CHRIS GROANS) - Helen...
Christopher, it's okay. Christopher...
- You're trying to make a loop of my mind! - Christopher!
- I don't know... - (SOBS) To make a loop.
Christopher, I need you to put the gun down.
- Christopher, I want to help you. - Shut up. Shut up!
Christopher...
(GUNSHOTS)
(FISHER CHUCKLES)
- You turned out well, Christopher. - We won, Alex.
You were on the road approaching London trying to get up north.
But you'll never reach her.
- You're approaching London right now. - (GUNSHOT)
We won! We won!
- We won! - (BOTH LAUGH)
(SIRENS APPROACHING)
(GASPS)
Shit.
(REVERBERATION AND DISTORTION)
(INDISTINCT VOICES)
(GROANS)
No, no, no!
(TIRES SCREECH AND IMPACT)
(MUSIC OVER AUDIO)