Original subtitles

Bon voyage, mes amis.

Today I am going home to Paris.

It's your last day of lessons.

Two weeks went by so quickly.

We're going to miss you so much.

I'm going to miss you too.

But I cannot wait to see Maman.

Celeste, a word.

I'm all packed, Mam'zelle.

At what time do I leave?

I'm afraid you won't be leaving today.

I won't?

Miss Grayling has heard from your maman.

She has asked that you stay here for the rest of the term.

The whole term?

Mais...!

Why?

Can I speak with her?

Later, later, maybe.

Now you must unpack your things and get to class.

Celeste?

What's the matter?

Time for lessons.

Celeste?

Would you like a pear drop?

I'm not hungry.

I feel sick.

You were fine earlier.

Should I take you to the san?

Look, you'll be late for class.

Celeste's health is more important.

Yes.

I must go to the san.

What does it say?

Ah!

Well, she...she hasn't got a fever.

You can feel that.

Open your mouth.

Wider.

And her throat isn't sore,

so she hasn't got tonsillitis or the flu.

I should see my family doctor in France.

He'd know what's wrong.

Well, we're not in France now,

so I'll have to do.

Have you had breakfast?

No, she's off her food.

She won't even eat sweets.

That is, if we had sweets.

I don't suppose

this has anything to do with the news you had this morning?

What news?

I know you hadn't planned to stay the whole term.

You're staying?!

It is not about that.

I feel sick.

My head is all fuzzy.

Well, I suppose I can keep an eye on you for now.

Thank you, Josephine, back to class.

But Celeste needs me for company.

Hmm, nice try.

Off you go.

Au revoir.

Yes, goodbye.

Oh!

Feet up.

Good girl.

Don't look so worried, Mary Lou. It's not a test.

It's just a discussion about your future.

Miss Grayling, the future is all I can think about

and I still don't know what I want to do.

What about art?

You seem to have a passion for it.

Absolutely, but art is what I do to relax.

I wouldn't want it to become work.

Mm, that's fair.

Well, is there anything else

that you've enjoyed during your time here?

Well, that's just it. I've loved it all.

Not just the lessons, but having a timetable,

an organised day.

You enjoy the structure? Very much.

And I like being part of a community.

There's always people around.

Have you ever considered teaching?

A teacher?

Me?

Well, I may be biased,

but I do think it's a rewarding profession.

And you are a terrific head of lower school.

Well, teachers need to be commanding.

They ought to be leaders.

Mary Lou, in the time that I have known you,

your confidence has grown leaps and bounds.

I think you might surprise yourself.

You do?

Well, why not give it a try?

In fact, I could arrange for you to assist Mam'zelle today.

Thank you, Miss Grayling, I'd like that.

Splendid.

And then matron said Celeste wasn't going home,

and she had to stay the whole time.

Why? Has something happened?

Poor thing.

She was so excited to go home.

Maybe that's why she's unwell.

She's not physically sick,

she's just homesick.

But what can we do?

We can't exactly take her back to France.

No...

..but maybe we can bring France to her.

Change the common room into le petit Paris.

Fill it with things to remind Celeste of her home.

Won't that make her more homesick?

Of course not, she'll love it.

We can ask Fred to get some pain au chocolat.

And...

Oh, er, some escargots.

Escargots?

You mean snails?

They eat them in France.

I had some on holiday.

But snails are so slimy.

Actually, they are delicious.

What else?

Blue cheese. I think it's called "rock fort".

Mam'zelle mentioned it.

Wizard, you're in charge of the cheese.

Susan, you're in charge of the snails.

Get Felicity and Clarissa to help you.

Then we can meet at the common room at lunchtime.

It is wonderful you are thinking of teaching, Mary-Lou.

When Miss Grayling told me, I was so proud.

Did you always want to teach?

Oh, no, I wanted to be an actress.

Teaching was meant to be temporary,

but I fell in love with it.

What do you like about teaching?

Every day is different.

You have to be ready for anything.

Tough questions, chitty-chatter and, oh, the pranks, oh, la, la.

But I do worry about discipline.

Often the girls are just giddy,

but sometimes there is a reason for misbehaviour.

You must look past the troublemaking and make it work.

I hadn't thought of it like that.

There's more to teaching than lessons and exams.

C'est ca, much more!

Over here! Quick!

Go on, then, pick it up.

I can't, I'll touch anything else.

Spiders, mice, just not snails.

Stop! Thieves! Step away from the tomato plant

and there won't be any trouble.

Fred, it's only us.

And we're not stealing tomatoes.

We're collecting snails. Collecting snails?

Funny sort of hobby. What's wrong with stamps?

It's for escargots, Fred.

Is that for that Paris thing?

George asked me to get some French pastry.

Can you help us first? We need more than one snail.

Well, then, you're looking at the wrong plant.

Lettuces is their favourite.

Oh, yuck, there's loads of them.

Quite sweet, really, aren't they?

Sweet? They're pests.

Take them all if you want. I'll get you another box.

Hello, operator?

What do you think you're doing?

I must speak to Maman.

Do you know how much a telephone call to France costs?!

No, but... It is tres cher!

Au revoir.

For such an expense,

you'd need permission from Miss Grayling.

Fine, I will go ask Miss Grayling.

Oh, will you? Feeling better, then, are we?

Celeste,

if you're well enough to argue, you ought to be in class.

But I... No, I've had quite enough.

You haven't got a fever or a stomach bug and you're out of bed.

But I feel ill.

Well, in that case...

..you'd best have some of this.

Shampoo? No.

No, no, not shampoo.

This.

Cod liver oil.

Actually, maybe I am feeling

a little bit better.

Oh!

Well, I thought you might.

Now, off you go.

Look, I've named this one Pierre.

Don't get too attached.

You won't believe what cook left out in the kitchen.

Some blue cheese.

Oh!

It's awfully whiffy.

That's how you know it's good.

Oh, it's Mam'zelle, um, distract her.

We'll hide this. Quick, in my desk.

What about Pierre?

Make sure they can breathe.

Oh, Felicity.

You have a friend, I see.

I can't stand snails.

They used to call into Granny's kitchen.

I was sat outside during break. He must have sneaked onto my dress.

Well, you had better put him back. Vite, allez!

GRANDFATHER CLOCK CHIMES

And wash your hands.

Everyone is keen today.

Entrez, les filles.

Bonjour, tout, et welcome, Mary-Lou,

who has been so inspired by my lessons

she has decided she wants to teach.

Today's subject, le conditionnel, Mary-Lou.

S'il vous plait.

Er, the conditional is used

to talk about when something should, could or would happen.

For example, a...

Oh, goodness.

For example, goodness, quoi?

No, I mean goodness, can you smell that?

C'est puant. What is that?

Um...

I think it's coming from, um...

..this desk.

June. Me?

I...I can't smell anything.

Er...

Open your desk, please.

Oh, God.

See? It's just a box of pencils.

And what...

..is this?!

Oh!

That's, er, blue cheese.

Ce n'est pas blue cheese.

This is mouldy cheddar.

I thought it was "rock fort".

Roquefort is supposed to be mouldy.

Cheddar is not.

This is a prank, hmm?

You think it's funny to bring cheesy stink bombs into class?

No, it's not a prank. It's...

It's a prop,

isn't it, Jean?

Yes, it's a prop

for...

For the art class

I would like to teach later on.

I was going to ask if I could use the classroom at lunch.

This is such initiative.

But why not do it the period after?

It will give you more time.

I could finish my marking and you will gain experience.

A proper class?

Mm. Oh, uh, well, it was just a thought.

Don't be shy. I am sure the girls are thrilled to be taught by you.

Right, um, well, I was thinking

we could do a still life on food.

Hence the mouldy cheese.

Though, June,

you should not have brought mouldy cheese into class.

Apologise to Mam'zelle.

Je suis desole, Mam'zelle.

Um, dispose of it.

Well done, Mary-Lou.

I asked Irene for French music

and she says this is the best.

Topping!

It's all coming together. It's a disaster!

Fred couldn't find the pain au chocolat

and Celeste is heading this way.

What do we do?

Pain au chocloat means chocolate bread, doesn't it?

I have chocolate from my tuck.

Susan, do you have the roll from lunch?

Here.

FRENCH ACCORDION MUSIC PLAYS

And... Voila!

June Johns, you're a marvel.

Celeste, bienvenue

a petit Paris.

What is going on?

We thought you might be feeling a little bit homesick,

so we gathered some things to remind you of France.

Some escargots,

pain au chocolate and

the Eiffel Tower.

What do you think?

I think...

C'est merveilleux!

It's not quite the real thing,

but we hope you like it.

ACCORDION MUSIC STOPS

MUSIC STARTS AGAIN

It's delicious.

Although escargots are not just any old snails,

they take days to prepare.

Oh, sorry.

I'm not taking them out.

You're just as bad as Mary Lou.

She was terrified of Pierre.

Well, in any case,

we're glad you like it.

I love it.

It really does remind me of home.

There was supposed to be blue cheese,

but we nearly got in trouble for it.

Oh, please!

A bit of stinky cheese would hardly get you expelled.

What is expelled?

It's when you do something so bad, they send you home.

Has that ever happened?

Not while we've been here.

Although Jo's come close.

You have to do something really naughty,

like flood the bathrooms.

Or forget your prep every day for a year.

Or cheat in the lacrosse trials.

Or bring a horse into school.

Putting paint all over your arms.

What if you skipped class?

You didn't cheat!

That's enough!

I said, that's enough.

Get out of my classroom!

Get out of my classroom immediately!

Get out of my...

Get out of my class! Oh!

Mam'zelle, I was just practising.

You ought to get going.

Teachers cannot be late.

Of course. Thank you.

I'll be sure to drop in.

And, Mary-Lou...

Bonne chance.

DOOR OPENS

Oh, Celeste, top marks for punctuality.

Welcome to class, girls.

Today we are going to be painting with pointillism,

a technique created by an artist called Georges Seurat.

Can anyone guess where he was from?

France? Spot on.

He was from Paris,

a city famous for its creativity.

All right, um...

So we paint tiny dots.

It will create an image.

Shall we try?

Yes.

All right, come and get your paintbrushes.

Psst, I thought we left those in the common room.

Me too. Mary-Lou hates snails.

Distract her, I'll get it.

Oh, sorry.

That's all right. Let me help you.

Jo, what are you doing?

Oh, I was just tasting the fruit.

It's there to be studied, not eaten.

Sorry.

Clarissa.

Stay focused, girls.

I was just asking Clarissa what she thought of my pear.

Is it "pear-y" enough?

Let me see.

Mm, I like it.

Wait, but what are these silver lines?

They look like...

..snail trails! Oh, get it away!

I can't abide snails ever since I was small.

Me too, it's their little horns.

All right, let's just get back to the lesson.

Aargh!

Aargh!

Aargh!

They're everywhere!

Aargh!

Wait for me!

Felicity told you I was scared of snails, didn't she?

You all did this on purpose.

Not me, I'm scared of them too.

What was I thinking?

I will never be a teacher.

That's not true.

What did you say earlier?

Teachers must lead by example.

Exactly, not run away.

So try again.

Perhaps if you can be brave...

..maybe I can too.

Besides, they're only snails.

We don't have to run.

True.

They're too slow to catch us.

No, you're right.

I have to set an example.

I can do this.

I want the snails collected and you're all lining up now.

Right, whoever is responsible for this prank own up now.

Mary Lou, it wasn't a prank.

We brought the snails into the school,

but we don't know how they got into the classroom.

Well, if none of you confess, you must all be punished.

THEY ALL DENY IT

Mary-Lou, it wasn't any of us.

Yes, it was, it was me.

Celeste?

Why?

Because.

Because what? You scared Mary-Lou.

You have to apologise.

I'm...

..not sorry.

Now you must punish me.

Yes? Well, let's just talk about this.

Where are you going?

To Miss Grayling.

I must be punished.

Did any of you know about this?

No. Why would she play a prank and not tell us?

And why look so upset?

She has been feeling a bit homesick.

Well, we tried to cheer her up.

Perhaps we didn't.

Wait here.

I think I know what to do.

Celeste, wait.

I'm going to the head, you cannot stop me.

No, I won't, but just talk to me first, please.

Why did you do that?

It doesn't matter.

I have behaved awfully.

I think Miss Grayling should send me home.

Celeste, Miss Grayling will not expel you for a little prank.

Why not? It's not a little prank.

It's very bad behaviour.

Mary-Lou, explain yourself.

I went to check on your class

and found your students unsupervised.

I'm so sorry, Mam'zelle, but... It's my fault.

I brought this into class.

Escargots. Mais pourquoi?

Celeste is homesick, which is why I think she's causing trouble.

It's not that, I like it here.

But...

But what is it?

If you can tell us, perhaps we can help.

I'm worried about Maman.

I was meant to go home today.

Now I must stay the whole term.

But you won't explain why.

It was your maman's request.

Then why not tell me herself?

We are everything to each other.

Why won't she speak to me?

I am sorry, Celeste,

but I understand your maman cannot telephone at present.

Why don't you write to her?

She can reply when she's ready

and I'm sure she'll explain.

I can do that? Of course.

We write letters every Sunday.

It's Malory Towers' tradition.

Bonne idee, Mary-Lou. You write, and we'll post it.

Tout de suite.

I'm sure you'll hear from her in no time.

And you can tell her all about your fantastic prank.

D'accord. I think these belong outside, no?

Mam'zelle, I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have left them alone.

Sometimes teachers must think on their feet.

Celeste needed you,

and you saw past the troublemaking.

I tried my best.

You'll make a fine teacher one day...

..Miss Linnet.

We have them.

Brilliant.

Celeste, what happened?

They won't punish me.

Surely that's a good thing?

I wanted to be expelled.

But why? Don't you like it here?

Of course. I just didn't expect to stay for so long.

It's not like Maman to change her mind.

Do you think something's wrong?

I don't know.

But I'm going to write to her and find out.

Well, in the meantime,

we'd love to spend more time with you.

And we want you to feel at home here, too.

So, we made you a little England.

With scones, strawberries

and proper English tea.

This is...

..topping, thank you.

Well, don't thank us, tuck in.

Delicieux. You released the snails?

I'm sure they'll be glad to be outdoors again.

Just as I was starting to like them.

Do you think snails ever get homesick?

No, of course not.

They carry their homes with them wherever they go.

"Cher Maman..."