I have known this before
Morning. A locked door. A house of silence and strangers
- I've been asked to inquire if you're hungry - Food? I never touch it
The financial adviser didn't turn up. You can have his breakfast
He phoned his order through, then phoned again to cancel the appointment
- For what reason? - Jack spoke to him, not me
What reason did he give your friend?
Jack said he said he found himself without warning in the centre of a vast aboriginal financial calamity
He clearly needs an adviser
I won't bring you breakfast if you're going to waste it
I abhor waste
I have known this before. The door unlocked. The entrance of a stranger
The offer of alms. The shark in the harbour
Scrambled eggs
- Shall I open the champagne? - ls it cold?
- Freezing - Please open it
- Who is the cook? - We share all burdens, Jack and myself
Thank you
We're old friends, Jack and myself
We met at a street corner
I should tell you he will deny this account. His story will be different
I was standing at a street corner. A car drew up. It was him
He asked me the way to Bolsover Street
I told him Bolsover Street was in the middle of an intricate one-way system
A one-way system easy enough to get into. The only trouble was that, once in, you couldn't get out
I told him his best bet, if he really wanted to get to Bolsover Street, was to take the first left...
...first right, second right, third on the left, keep his eye open for a hardware shop...
...go right round the square, keeping to the inside lane, take the second mews on the right and then stop
He will find himself facing a very tall office block, with a crescent courtyard
He can take advantage of this office block. He can go round the crescent...
...come out the other way, follow the arrows, go past two sets of traffic lights...
...and take the next left indicated by the first green filter he comes across
He's got the Post Office Tower in his vision the whole time
All he's got to do is reverse into the underground car park, change gear...
...go straight on, and he'll find himself in Bolsover Street with no trouble at all
I did warn him, though, he'll still be faced with the problem, having found Bolsover Street, of losing it
I told him I knew one or two people who'd been wandering up and down Bolsover Street for years
Wasted their bloody youth there. The people who live there...
...their faces are grey, they're in a state of despair, but nobody pays any attention, you see
All people are worried about is their illgotten gains. I wrote to The Times about it
Life At A Dead End, I called it. Went for nothing
Anyway, I told him probably the best thing he could do...
...was to forget the whole idea of getting to Bolsover Street
I remember saying to him: This trip you've got in mind, drop it, it could prove fatal
But he said he had to deliver a parcel
Anyway, I took all this trouble with him because he had a nice open face
He looked like a man who would always do good to others himself
Normally I wouldn't give a fuck. I should tell you he'll deny this account. His story will be different
- When did you last have champagne for breakfast? - Well, to be quite honest, I'm a champagne drinker
- Oh, are you? -I know my wines. Dijon
In the thirties I made many trips to Dijon, for the wine tasting, with my French translator
Even after his death, I continued to go to Dijon, until I could go no longer
Hugo. A good companion
You will wonder of course what it was he translated. The answer is my verse. I am a poet
- I thought poets were young - I am young
- Can I help you to a glass? - No thanks
- An excellent choice - Not mine
Translating verse is an extremely difficult task
Only the Rumanians remain respectable exponents of the craft
Bit early in the morning for all this, isn't it?
Finish the bottle. Doctor's orders
Can I enquire as to why I was locked in this room, by the way?
Doctor's orders
Tell me when you're ready for coffee
It must be wonderful to be a poet. And to have admirers, and translators
And to be young. I'm neither one nor the other
Yes
You've reminded me. I must be off. I've got a meeting at twelve
- Thank you so much for breakfast - What meeting?
A board meeting. I'm on the board of a recently inaugurated poetry magazine
And we've got our first meeting at twelve. Can't be late
- Where's the meeting? - At The Bull's Head in Chalk Farm
The landlord is kindly allowing us the use of a private room on the first floor
It is essential, you see, that our meeting be private, as we shall be discussing policy
- The Bull's Head in Chalk Farm? - Yes. The landlord is a friend of mine
It is on that account that he has favoured us with a private room
It is true of course that I told him Lord Lancer would be attending the meeting
He at once appreciated that a certain degree of sequesteredness would be the order of the day
- Lord Lancer? - Our patron
- He's not one of the Bengal Lancers, is he? - No, no. He's of Norman descent
- A man of culture? - Impeccable credentials
- Some of these aristocrats hate the arts - Lord Lancer is a man of honour. He loves the arts
He has declared his love in public. He never goes back on his word
Now really I must be off. Lord Lancer does not subscribe to the view that poets can treat time with nonchalance
- Jack could do with a patron - Jack?
- He's a poet - A poet? Really?
Well, if he'd like to send me some examples of his work, double spaced on quarto...
...with copies in a separate folder by separate post in case of loss or misappropriation...
...stamped addressed envelope enclosed, I will read them
- That's very nice of you - Not at all. You can tell him he can look forward...
to a scrupulously honest and, if I may say so, highly sensitive judgement
I'll tell him. He's in a real need of a patron
The boss could be his patron but he's not interested
Perhaps because he's a poet himself
It's possible there's an element of jealousy in it, I don't know
Not that the boss isn't a very kind man. He is. He's a very civilised man. But he's still human
- The boss is a poet himself? - Don't be silly. He's more than that, isn't he?
He's an essayist and critic as well He's a man of letters
I thought his face was familiar
Yes, sir
I have known this before. The voice unheard. A listener. The command from an upper floor
Charles. How nice of you to drop in. Have they been looking after you all right?
Denson, let's have some coffee
You're looking remarkably well. Haven't changed a bit. It's the squash, I expect
Keeps you up to the mark. You were quite a dab hand at Oxford, as I remember
Still at it? Wise man. Sensible chap. My goodness, it's been years
When did we last meet? I have a suspicion we last dined together in '38, at the club
Does that accord with your recollection? Croxley was there, yes
Wyatt, it all comes back to me, Burston-Smith. What a bunch. What a night, as I recall
All dead now, of course
No, no, I'm a fool. I'm an idiot. Our last encounter, I remember it well
Pavilion at Lord's in '39, against the West Indies, Hutton and Compton batting superbly
Constantine bowling, war looming. Surely I'm right? We shared a particularly fine bottle of port
You look as fit now as you did then
Did you have a good war?
Oh thank you, Denson. Leave it there, will you? That'll do
How's Emily? What a woman
Black? Here you are
What a woman. Have to tell you I fell in love with her once upon a time
Have to confess it to you. Took her out to tea, in Dorchester
Told her of my yearning. Decided to take the bull by the horns
Proposed that she betray you. Admitted you were a damn fine chap...
...but pointed out I would be taking nothing that belonged to you
Simply that portion of herself all women keep in reserve, for a rainy day
Had an infernal job persuading her. Said she adored you...
...her life would be meaningless were she to be false
Plied her with buttered scones, Wiltshire cream, crumpets and strawberries
Eventually she succumbed
I don't suppose you ever knew about it, what?
Oh well. we're too old now for it to matter, don't you agree?
I rented a little cottage for the summer. She used to motor to me twice or thrice a week
I was an integral part of her shopping expeditions
You were both living on the farm then. That's right, her father's farm
She would come to me at tea-time, or at coffee-time, the innocent hours
That summer she was mine, while you imagined her to be solely yours
She loved the cottage. She loved the flowers. As did I
Narcissi, crocus, dog's tooth violets, fuchsia, jonquils, pinks, verbena
Her delicate hands. I'll never forget her way with jonquils
Do you remember once, was it in '37, you took her to France?
I was on the same boat. Kept to my cabin. While you were doing your exercises...
...she came to me. Her ardour was, in my experience, unparalleled
Ah well
You were always preoccupied with your physical condition, were you not
I don't blame you. Damn fine figure of a chap. Natural athlete
Medals, scrolls, your name inscribed in gold
Once a man has breasted the tape, alone, he is breasting the tape forever
His golden moment can never be tarnished. Do you run still?
Why was it we saw so little of each other, after we came down from Oxford?
I mean, you had another string to your bow, did you not. You were a literary man. As was I
Yes, yes, I know we shared a picnic, with Tubby Wells and all that stuff
We shared a whisky and soda at the club, but we were never close, were we?
I wonder why. Of course I was successful awfully early
- You did say you had a good war, didn't you? - A rather good one, yes
- How splendid. The RAF? - The Navy
- How splendid. Destroyers? - Torpedo boats
- First rate. Kill any Germans? - One or two
- Well done - And you?
- I was in Military Intelligence - Oh
- You pursued your literary career, after the war? - Oh yes
- So did I -I believe you've done rather well
Oh quite well, yes. Past my best now
Do you ever see Stella?
- Stella? - You can't have forgotten
- Stella who? - Stella Winstanley
- Winstanley? - Bunty Winstanley's sister
- Oh, Bunty. No, I never see her. - You were rather taken with her
- Was I, old chap? How did you know? - I was terribly fond of Bunty
He was most dreadfully annoyed with you. Wanted to punch you on the nose
- What for? - For seducing his sister
- What business was it of his? - He was her brother
That's my point. What on earth are you driving at?
Bunty introduced Rupert to Stella. He was very fond of Rupert
He gave the bride away. Rupert and he were terribly old friends
- He threatened to horsewhip you - Who did?
- Bunty - He never had the guts to speak to me himself
Stella begged him not to. She implored him to stay his hand. She implored him not to tell Rupert
I see. But who told Bunty?
I told Bunty
I was frightfully fond of Bunty. I was also frightfully fond of Stella
- You appear to have been a close friend of the family - Mainly of Arabella's. We used to ride together
- Arabella Hinscott? - Yes
- I knew her at Oxford - So did I
- I was very fond of Arabella - Arabella was very fond of me
Bunty was never sure of precisely how fond she was of me, nor of what form her fondness took
- What in God's name do you mean? - Bunty trusted me
I was best man at their wedding. He also trusted Arabella
I should warn you I was always extremely fond of Arabella
Her father was my tutor. I used to stay at their house
I knew her father well. He took a great interest in me
Arabella was a girl of the most refined and organised sensibilities
Oh yes, I agree
Are you trying to tell me you had an affair with Arabella?
A form of an affair. She had no wish for full consummation
She was content with her particular predilection. Consuming the male member
I am beginning to believe that you are a scoundrel
How dare you speak of Arabella Hinscott in such a fashion?
- I will have you blackballed from the club - Oh my dear sir, may I remind you...
...that you betrayed Stella Winstanley with Emily Spooner, my own wife...
...throughout a long and soiled summer, a fact known at the time throughout the Home Counties
And may I further remind you that Muriel Blackwood and Doreen Busby...
...have never recovered from your insane and corrosive sexual absolutism?
And may I further remind you that your friendship with and corruption of Geoffrey Ramsden at Oxford...
- ...was the talk of Balliol and Christchurch Cathedral? - This is scandalous! How dare you?
- I will have you horsewhipped - It is you, sir, who have behaved scandalously
To the fairest of sexes, of which my wife was the fairest representative
It is you who have behaved unnaturally and scandalously, to the woman who was joined to me in God
- I, sir? Unnaturally? Scandalously? - Scandalously. She told me all
- You listen to the drivellings of a farmer's wife? - Since I was the farmer, yes
You were no farmer, sir. A weekend wanker
I wrote my Homage to Wessex in the Summerhouse at West Upfield
- I never had the good fortune to read it - It is written in terza rima
...a form which, if you will forgive my saying so, you have never been able to master
This is outrageous! Who are you? What are you doing in my house?
Denson!
A whisky and soda
You are clearly a lout. The Charles Wetherby I knew was a gentleman
I see a figure reduced. I am sorry for you
Where is the moral ardour that sustained you once? Gone down the hatch
Down the hatch. Right down the hatch
I do not understand... I do not understand, and I see it all about me continually
How the most sensitive and cultivated of men can so easily change, almost overnight...
...into the bully, the cutpurse, the brigand
In my day nobody changed. A man was
Only religion could alter him, and that at least was a glorious misery
We are not banditti here
I am prepared to be patient. I shall be kind to you
I shall show you my library. I might even show you my study
I might even show you my pen, and my blotting pad. I might even show you my footstool
Another
I might even show you my photograph album
You might even see a face in it which might remind you of your own, of what you once were
Or the faces of others, in shadow, or the cheeks of others, turning
Or jaws, or backs of necks, or eyes, dark under hats, which might remind you of others...
...whom once you knew, whom you thought long dead
But from whom you will still receive a sidelong glance, if you can face the good ghost
Allow the love of the good ghost. They possess all that emotion, trapped
Bow to it. It will assuredly never release them, but who knows what relief it may bring to them
Who knows how they may quicken in their chains, in their glass jars
You think it cruel to quicken them, when they are fixed, imprisoned?
No, no. Deeply, deeply, they wish to respond to your touch, to your look
And when you smile, their joy is unbounded. So I say to you, tender the dead...
...as you would yourself be tendered, now, in what you would describe as your life
They're blank, mate, blank. The blank dead
Nonsense
- Pass the bottle - No
- What? - I said no
No pranks. No mischief. Give me the bottle
- I've refused - Refusal can lead to dismissal
- You can't dismiss me - Why not?
- Because I won't go - If I tell you to go, you will go.
Give me the bottle
Bring me the bottle
- I'll have one myself - What impertinence
Oh well, it doesn't matter. He was always a scallywag
ls it raining? It so often rains, in August, in England
Do you ever examine the gullies of the English countryside?
Under the twigs, under the dead leaves, you'll find tennis balls, blackened
Girls threw them for their dogs, or children, for each other, they rolled into the gully
They are lost there, given up for dead, centuries old
It's time for your morning walk
- I said it's time for your morning walk - My morning walk?
- No, no. I'm afraid I don't have time this morning - It's time for your walk across the Heath
I can't possibly. I'm too busy. I have too many things to do
- What's that you're drinking? - The great malt which wounds
My God, you haven't got a drink. Where's your glass?
- Thank you. It would be unwise to mix my drinks - Mix?
- I was drinking champagne - Of course you were, of course
- Albert, another bottle - Certainly, sir
I can't possibly. I'm too busy. Too many things to do. I have an essay to write. A critical essay
We have to examine the files, find out what it is I'm supposed to be appraising
- For the moment it's slipped my mind - I could help you there
- Oh? - On two counts
Firstly, I have the nose of a ferret. I can find anything in a file
And secondly, I have written any number of critical essays myself
- Do you actually have a secretary? - I'm his secretary
A secretarial post does less than justice to your talents
A young poet should travel. Travel and suffer
Join the navy, perhaps, and see the sea. Voyage and explore
I've sailored. I've been there and back. I'm here where I'm needed
You mentioned a photograph album. I could go through it with you
I could put names to the faces
A proper exhumation could take place
Yes, I am confident I could be of enormous aid in that area
- Those faces are nameless, friend - And they'll always be nameless
There are places in my heart where no living soul has or can ever trespass
Here you are. Fresh as a daisy
- A drop for you, sir? - No, no. I'll stay where I am
- I'll join Mr Friend, if I may, sir? - Naturally
- Where's your glass? - No thanks
Oh come on, be sociable. Be sociable. Consort with the society to which you're attached
To which you are attached as if by bonds of steel
- Mingle - It isn't even lunchtime
The best time to drink champagne is before lunch, you cunt
- Don't call me cunt - We three, never forget, are the oldest of friends
- That's why I called him a cunt - Stop talking
To our good fortune
- Cheers - Cheers
The light out there is gloomy, it's hardly daylight at all. It's falling, rapidly
Distasteful. Let us close the curtains. Put the lamps on
Ah. What relief. How happy it is
Today I shall come to a conclusion. There are certain matters...
...which today I shall resolve - I'll help you
I was in Bali when they sent for me. I didn't have to leave, I didn't have to come here
But I felt I was called, I had no alternative
I didn't have to leave that beautiful isle. But I was intrigued. I was only a boy
But I was nondescript and anonymous. A famous writer wanted me
He wanted me to be his secretary, his chauffeur, his housekeeper, his amanuensis
- How did he know of me? Who told him? - He made an imaginative leap
Few can do it. Few do it. He did it. And that is why God loves him
You came on my recommendation. I've always liked youth because you can use it
But it has to be open and honest. If it's not open and honest you can't use it
I recommended you. You were open, you had the whole world before you
I find the work fruitful. I'm in touch with a very special intelligence
This intelligence I find nourishing. I have been nourished by it. It's enlarged me
Therefore it's an intelligence worth serving. I find its demands natural
Not only that. They're legal. I'm not doing anything crooked
It's a relief. I could so easily have been bent
I have a sense of dignity in my work, a sense of honour
It never leaves me. Of service to a cause
He is my associate. He was my proposer. I've learnt a great deal from him
He's been my guide. The most unselfish person I've ever met
- He'll tell you. Let him speak - Who to?
- What? - Speak? Who to?
- To him - To him?
To a pisshole collector? To a shithouse operator? To a jamrag vendor?
What the fuck are you talking about? Look at him
He's a mingejuice bottler, a fucking shitcake baker. What are you talking to him for?
Yes, yes, but he's a good man at heart. I knew him at Oxford
Let me live with you and be your secretary
ls there a big fly in here? I hear buzzing
No
- You say no - Yes
I ask you to consider me for the post
If I were wearing a suit such as your own you would see me in a different light
I am extremely good with tradespeople, hawkers, canvassers, nuns
I can be silent when desired or, when desired, convivial
I can discuss any subject of your choice. The future of the country, wild flowers, the Olympic Games
It's true I've fallen on hard times
But my imagination and intelligence are unimpaired. My will to work has not been eroded
I remain capable of undertaking the gravest and most daunting responsibilities
And temperamentally I can be what you wish. My character is, at core, a humble one
I am an honest man and, moreover, I am not too old to learn
And my cooking is not to be sneezed at. I lean towards French cuisine
But food without frills is not beyond my competency
I have a keen eye for dust. My kitchen would be immaculate
I am tender towards objects
I'll take good care of your silver
I play chess, billiards, and the piano. I could play Chopin for you
I could read the Bible to you. I am a good companion
My career, I admit it freely, has been chequered
I was one of the golden of my generation. Something happened. I don't know what it was
Nevertheless I am I. I have survived insult and deprivation
I am I. I offer myself not abjectly but with ancient pride. I come to you as a warrior
I shall be happy to serve you as my master. I bend my knee to your excellence
I am furnished with the qualities of piety, prudence, liberality and goodness
Decline them at your peril
It is my task as a gentleman to remain amiable in my behavior...
courageous in my undertakings, discreet and gallant in my executions
By which I mean your private life would remain your own
However, I shall be sensible to the least wrong offered you
My sword shall be ready to dissever all manifest embodiments of malign forces that conspire to your ruin
I will face death's challenge on your behalf. I will meet it, for your sake, boldly...
...whether it be in the field or in the bedchamber. I am your chevalier
I had rather bury myself in a tomb of honour than permit your dignity to be sullied by domestic enemy...
or foreign foe. I am yours to command
Before you reply, I would like to say one thing more
I occasionally organise poetry readings, in the upstairs room of a particular public house
They are reasonably well attended, mainly by the young
I would be happy to offer you an evening of your own
You could read your own work, to an interested and informed audience
To an audience brimming over with potential for the greatest possible enthusiasm
I can guarantee a full house, and I will be happy to arrange a straightforward fee for you
Or, if you prefer, a substantial share of the profits
The young, I can assure you, would flock to hear you
My committee would deem it a singular honour to act as your host
You would be introduced by an authority on your work, possibly myself
After the reading, which I am confident will be a remarkable success...
...we could repair to the bar below, where the landlord, who happens to be a friend of mine...
...would I know be overjoyed to entertain you, with the compliments of the house
And, nearby is an Indian restaurant of excellent standing, at which you would be the guest of my committee
Your face is so seldom seen, your words, known to so many...
...have been so seldom heard, in the absolute authority of your own rendering...
...that this event would qualify for that rarest of categories, the unique
And I beg you to consider seriously the social implications of such an adventure
You would be there in body. It would bring you to the young, the young to you
The elderly, also, those who have almost lost hope...
...would on such an occasion leave their homes and present themselves
And you would have no trouble with the press
I would take upon myself the charge of keeping them from nuisance
Perhaps you might agree to half a dozen photographs or so, but no more
Unless of course you positively wished, on such an occasion, to speak
Unless you preferred to hold, let us say, a small press conference, after the reading...
...before supper, whereby you could speak through the press to the world
But that is by the by, and would in no sense be a condition
Let us content ourselves with the idea of an intimate reading, in a pleasing and conducive environment
Let us consider an evening to be remembered, by all who take part in her
Let us change the subject. For the last time
- What have I said? - You said you're changing the subject for the last time
- But what does that mean? - It means you'll never change the subject again
- Never? - Never
- Never? - You said for the last time
- But what does that mean? What does it mean? - It means forever
It means that the subject is changed once and for all and for the last time forever
If the subject is winter, for instance, it'll be winter forever
- ls the subject winter? - The subject is now winter
- So it'll therefore be winter forever - And for the last time
Which will last forever. If the subject is winter, for example, spring will never come
- But let me ask you, I must ask you... - Summer will never come
- The trees... - Will never bud
- I must ask you... - Snow...
Will fall forever. Because you've changed the subject. For the last time
Yes, but have we? Have I? That's my question. Have we changed the subject?
- Of course. The previous subject is closed - What was the previous subject?
- It's forgotten. You've changed it - What is the present subject?
That there is no possibility of changing the subject since the subject has now been changed
- For the last time - So that nothing else will happen forever
- You'll simply be sitting here forever - But not alone
No. We'll be with you. Briggs and me
- It's night - And will always be night
- Because the subject... - ...can never be changed
But I hear the sounds of birds
Don't you hear it? Sounds I never heard before
I hear them as they must have sounded then, when I was young
Although I never heard them then, although they sounded about us then
Yes. It's true. I am walking towards a lake
Someone is following me, through the trees. I lose him, easily
I see a body in the water, floating
I am excited. I look closer and I see I was mistaken. There is nothing in the water
I say to myself, I saw a body, drowning. But I am mistaken. There's nothing there
No. You are in no man's land
Which never moves, which never changes
Which never grows older, but which remains forever, icy and silent
I'll drink to that