Original subtitles

Vinny!

Vinny!

Vinny!

- Excuse me. - Shut the door, Betty.

Oxgodby.

Tha will be rare and soaked.

Reet down to t' skin, maister.

Ticket, please.

You can borrow me umbrella if tha want.

- What? - I said, you can borrow my umbrella.

Oh, er, that's all right. I'm not... going far.

Cup of tea, then, in t' station house?

Er, thank you but I have an appointment.

Aye, I know. You've come to t' ohuroh, haven't you?

If you don't find what you're looking for there,

come and see us other lot at ohapel.

Thank you.

Damn it!

What were you doing?

Just now, outside.

Oh, er...

Checking the rain gutters, the downpipes.

- Why? - Because if they were no...

Good, there would've been no point in my bothering to come in.

It would've been...

Destroyed, you see.

Well, if you'd waited to ask me,

I could have told you they're all functioning perfectly.

Could have saved yourself a run in the rain.

I'm keach, by the way.

Reverend jg...

Keach.

It was I who wrote to you.

If you're mr birkin, that is.

I take it that you are.

Yes.

At what time did you leave London?

11 o'clock.

I see that in your anxiety to check the gutters

you didn't take the time to drop your things off.

Where do you intend to stay?

Well, I thought, um... here.

Here?

Where here?

- What about the belfry? - The belfry?

I can't say that appeals to me, having somebody live in the belfry.

Shouldn't you take lodgings? A room in the Shepherd's arms?

I'm a bit short, you see.

Oh, I see. Well, then, in that case...

But I should warn you that ropes pass through the belfry floor,

and when mossop rings them, um...

I don't mind.

Very well, then.

What period do you suppose it to be, the mural, the wall painting?

Oh, I would guess about 1430 because of the black death.

Survivors avoided hellfire by...

Donating wall paintings to churches.

It's impossible to say for sure, of course, until I've UN...

Covered some of it.

In any case, about 1430.

We shan't entertain any extras.

- There won't be any. - There mustn't be any.

Now, you've agreed a fee of 25 guineas.

12 pounds, 10 shillings to be paid halfway,

and 13 pounds, 15 shillings when finished.

- And approved by the executors. - Not by you?

Miss hebron omitted my name from the form of bequest.

An oversight, of course.

But, to all intents and purposes, I represent the executors.

You answer to them through me. I shan't mind if you touch it up.

Touch it up?

Well, any bits that have faded, you can fill them in,

as long as it's appropriate and tones in with the rest.

Tones in with the rest?

It isn't absolutely sure there's anything there.

Of course there's something there.

Mr birkin, you should know here and now

that your employment here does not have my support.

But as the solicitors refuse to pay out her £1,000 bequest to our fabric fund

until your job is finished, I have no choice.

When the painting is uncovered, it will be in full view of the congregation.

It will distract from worship.

Well, after a... time they won't notice it.

It will distract.

Well, mr birkin.

I shall leave you to settle into your quarters.

Good night.

Oxgodby.

Morning.

Good morning.

James moon. I'm the chap in the bell tent in the field opposite.

I meant to let you settle in, but I felt I had to come and have a look at you.

Well, it's partly that, but...

Really because I get so stiff in the night my legs force me up.

So I stump across most mornings

to see if laetitia's managed to climb out during the night.

Well, I mean, you never know, do you?

"Oh, most loving and delightful wife."

I can never make out if that's grief or relief.

Do you mind if I come up for a moment?

Oh, I won't if you think I'm invading.

Come up.

Good.

You think there's something there, eh?

- I hope so. - Good. We live by hope.

- What do you think you'll find? - A judgement, I expect.

Ah, yes, yes, a judgement. Yes, that's what it would be, wouldn't it?

Judgements always got the plum spots, so the whole parish could see the...

God-awful things that would happen to them if they...

Didn't fork out their tithes and...

Marry the girls they got with child.

Saint Michael weighing souls, eh?

Christ in majesty, refereeing.

And down below the fire that flameth evermore, eh?

Look, why don't you come over and have a cup of tea before you start?

Come on. You've got the whole summer.

Spin out the anticipation another half an hour, why don't you?

Come on.

I'm looking for the grave of miss hebron's forebear,

one piers hebron, born 1373.

He was excommunicated, buried somewhere outside the graveyard.

All I have to do is spend four weeks digging for his bones.

- And if I can't find them... - You'll have wasted your...

- Time. - Wasted my time?

Good god, man, can't you see?

I'm not here for piers' bones.

I'm here for a major discovery.

We're standing on a basilica, a Saxon chapel.

Probably goes back to 600. I've found a couple of cremation jars.

There must be hundreds of them. You'll keep quiet about it, won't you?

I don't want anyone to tumble to what I'm up to, until I've written it up.

So, you're... doing onejob

and being paid for another.

That's right. Why not, if it's money well spent?

And I'll leave some time to prod around for piers' bones before I go.

I'll find them, don't you worry.

Oh, whoops... whoops!

You were over there too?

It's where you developed your twitch and stammer.

Well...

I developed a great affection for holes.

They make me feel safe.

And they keep me insulated.

Here, have a look at this. It's my latest cremation jar.

Ah, moon.

Morning, colonel. Morning, mossop.

The colonel is miss hebron's brother. Mossop looks after the church.

This is mr birkin who's come to uncover the painting.

Good. Well done.

And what about you, moon? Making progress?

Any sign of old piers' bones yet?

Um, not yet, colonel, no.

Found anything out of the ordinary?

Gold or silver?

Jugs and jars, et cetera?

- Well, I wish I had. I... - Hm. Press on. Let me know.

Stay as long as you like.

Care to umpire for us on Saturdays?

Mossop here says he can't manage any longer on account of his legs.

Well... would've liked to loiter with you...

Another morning perhaps. Must be on my way. Things, er...

Things to do.

So, mossop, there's your umpiring taken care of.

Very civil of you.

Tha found summat, then?

Oh, just the usual artefact, mossop. Yes.

Yes, well, he isn't out of the usual catalogue, is he?

He's a real wintry hardliner, your Christ,

all justice and no mercy.

No, I wouldn't fancy being in the dock if he was the beak.

"And he shall come with woundes red

"to damn the quick and the dead."

We now hear the words of Jesus

to lead us and encourage us in prayer.

"Then shall the king say unto them on his right hand,

"'come, ye blessed of my father.

"'Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

"'For I was enhung'red and ye gave me meat,

"'i was thirsty and ye gave me drink,

"'i was a stranger and ye took me in,

"'naked and ye clothed me,

"'i was sick and ye visited me,

"'i was in prison..."'

- look behind you, keach. - "'...And you came unto me..."'

that's what you're praying to.

He doesn't want your prayers.

He wants some answers.

Did you feed the hungry, hm?

Did you give drink to the thirsty?

Do you... clothe the naked and the needy?

What about me, eh?

Any of you offer me bed and board?

You smug Yorkshire lot.

I'll have a word with him about the way you've treated me.

He'll get you yet.

"And the king shall answer and say unto them,

"'verily I say unto you,

"'in as much as ye have done it unto one of the least of these, my brethren,

"'ye have done it unto me."'

Hello, there, mr birkin.

Hello.

I'm Kathy ellerbeck and this is me brother, Edgar.

Our dad's t' station master. We brought you rabbit pie.

Us mam says you need nourishment.

Thank you.

Our dad said you must be miserable working all day on your own up there,

so he said we could play you some records.

- Didn't he? - Can we come up now?

I'm sorry. No one's allowed up.

That's an ab... absolute rule.

What about mr moon? Mr mossop says you let him up.

Ah, well, we have... A reciprocal agreement.

He looks at my work and I look at his.

Can we stay down here, then?

As long as you don't mind my... turning my back on you.

Why do you want to?

Me dad says you're an opportunity that might not come again

in a little spot like this, watching an artist at work.

I'm not an artist.

I'm just a labourer who cleans up after artists.

We have a picture painted on our chapel wall, behind the pulpit.

Three big arum lilies. It's very beautiful.

- Why? - Why what?

Well, why lilies? Whyjust lilies?

I mean, why not, um... Lilies and roses?

Or just roses?

Or roses and...

Daisies?

Because around it, it says, "consider the lilies,"

in old-fashioned lettering.

It's a text: "Consider the lilies, how they grow. They toil not." You know.

Well, why couldn't they look at roses or... daisies?

Oh, I don't know.

Well, this is very nice.

From the station master's wife, eh?

Her children brought it.

And what has the reverend jg keach brought you?

Nothing.

No money yet?

Oh, by the way...

You said something the other day about longing for a woodbine.

Well, look what I dug up this morning.

Thanks.

Well...

I shall see you anon.

Oh, I'm sorry. Did I wake you?

That depends on...

Whether I'm awake or not.

You, er... been here long?

Oh, maybe ten minutes. I'm not sure.

I'm Alice keach. I just came to find out if you're all right in the bell loft,

or if there's anything you needed. It seems so...

So inhospitable, you up there on the floorboards and we in our beds.

- We've got a travelling rug. - No, I'm all right.

At the end of the day, I'm so tired, I sleep like the...

."Dead.

And during the day sometimes too.

Oh, well...

- He's working off his cramp. - Oh.

The painting, when will we be able to see all of it?

Well, I don't know. It's a bit like a Jigsaw.

A face, a shoe, here a bit, there a bit.

It comes together very slowly, if it comes together at all.

Of course, after...

500 years, I can't be sure what I'll find.

But that's the exciting part, not knowing what's round the corner,

like, er... like opening a parcel at Christmas.

So you must let me see it.

Anyway, I'll haunt you a little until you do.

Are you related to the reverend jg...

- Keach, the vicar? - Yes, I'm his wife.

- Mrs keach. - Mr moon.

- She's a stunner, isn't she? - Is she?

Of course she is, and you know it! Come on, admit you do.

Oh, I admit it.

But perhaps she wouldn't. Perhaps she doesn't even know it.

Rubbish, every woman knows if she's beautiful.

And imagine keach catching her, of all people.

You're married too, aren't you?

Sort of.

She went off with another chap.

Not for the first time.

Can't say I blame her, really.

Her name is vinny.

Yes, thought it might be something like that.

As for me, never really met the right woman.

Luckily for her.

That's all for today, mr birkin.

Right.

Mam and dad say you've got to come to dinner on Sunday.

- What? - You're coming to dinner on Sunday!

Oh... well, thank you.

Mr douthwaite'll be coming an' all. Blacksmith. He comes most sundays.

Right, well, thank you. Oh, er, what time?

- 11 o'clock, of course. - 11 o'clock?

Yeah, at chapel. It starts at 11.

Brethren and fellow sinners.

Yay, sinners!

I say sinners,

for are we all not hereunto sinners?

Is there one amongst you here who can say he is not a sinner?

Is there?

If so, I challenge him to come forward

and speak!

Lord...

Well, what it boils down to, lord, is that we'd like to accept with thanks

and we'd like you to know

that as we sit down to dinner today

we hold thee with great love in our heart,

and gratitude,

for we know, lord, that without thee,

we wouldn't have a dinner.

And furthermore,

we wouldn't be here in t' first place.

Me father was a butcher, mr birkin.

Oh, it's barton ferry for me this afternoon, mother.

Does it have to be you?

But you're tired out.

You should be lying down, not doing that long walk in the sun.

Last time you went, you came back all faint. Didn't he, mam?

Ey, I'd do it for thee, Jack. Tha knows.

But I promised to teach Bible at grimsley Sunday school.

No, it's all right, George. I'll manage.

Mr birkin here will go for you. Won't you, mr birkin?

What?

- Go where? - We'll show you.

- Well, what do you say? - Well...

There's no denying that mr birkin's legs are younger than mine.

You wouldn't mind going, would you, mr birkin?

To do what?

Oh, just a bit of preaching.

I've never...

Preached in my life.

Well, you heard me this morning.

- Just do that. - Yes, just do what dad does.

J“ while the voice of Jesus calls you, be in time

j“ if in sin you longer wait

j“ you may find no open gate

j“ and your cry be just too late

j“ be in time j“

Brethren and...

And fellow, um...

Sinners.

My, um... my sermon today

derives...

Denves, eh"

Look here.

I only came in place of mr ellerbeck today because he's...

He's indisposed.

I can't preach.

So all I can do it tell you

about what I'm up to in oxgodby, in the church there.

And if you want to leave or nod off, then that's all right by me.

Well, I'm cleaning the wall, the one above the knave,

because behind the dirt and the layers of paint, there's a...

Picture.

So, there I am, you see, up on my scaffolding,

scraping away until I get back to the picture itself.

It's really all Patience, you see, my sort of work.

But I don't get any second chances. That's what makes it so exciting.

One dab too few, and some poor chap won't get back from five centuries ago.

One dab too many and... Wiped him out forever.

Makes me sound rather like god, doesn't it?

Really, I'm...

I'm just a servant

like every one of us, except I'm the servant of the painter.

And I...

I hope I'm good enough to serve this painter because...

He deserves the very best of servants.

You're from London, are you, mr birkin?

Yes.

London, that's right.

We've never met a londoner before.

You're the first, mr birkin.

You were over there, were you, mr birkin, in France?

So was our Perce. He had it taken on his last leave.

On his 19th birthday.

He was a right good lad, Perce. A real worker.

He'd give a hand to anybody. Everybody liked him.

Well, would you like to look at the farm, mr birkin?

Yes, Lucy, why don't you show mr birkin round the farm?

Would you like to see around?

We can't. We've got to visit Emily clough. We promised her.

And we told our Sunday school teacher we'd take her her star card.

Emily clough?

We said we'd bring you an' all. She's expecting you.

- In't she? - Aye!

Oh, well, perhaps another Sunday.

Mrs clough, we've come to bring Emily some flowers.

Go on up.

On the way out, you can have a jam tart.

I've brought you your star card, Emily.

Mr douthwaite stamped it "s" for sick.

S's count same as stars.

You only need six more stars for a prize.

Or s's for sick.

I've been thinking about my prize. I'd like "the forgotten garden".

What are you two having?

"The coral island" and Edgar's having "the children of the new forest".

Isn't that a bit beyond him?

He'll grow to like it later. I've heard it's a good story, with two girls in it.

Mr birkin's the man living in church, Emily.

Oh, I've heard about you.

I hope you'll still be there when I'm up, mr birkin.

I like your straw hat, Kathy. Can I try it on?

She knows she's dying, doesn't she?

So, Kathy,

was mr birkin here as good as your dad at the preaching?

Well, he didn't really do no preaching.

He just talked about his painting, didn't he?

He did an' all.

Here, are you all right, mr birkin?

You've hardly touched your tea.

He had his tea at Lucy Sykes'. She asked us in.

She's a fine, strong girl is Lucy Sykes.

That's right. A good Christian upbringing too.

Time we asked her to the Sunday school outing, father.

Aye. Aye, I meant to last year.

Please excuse me, I...

I must get back.

It's that Lucy Sykes. He's been funny ever since he saw her.

God! What god?

There is no god!

I don't really want "roses of picardy" this morning, if you don't mind.

Well, will you accept my travelling rug?

Sorry, I thought you were someone else.

Yes, I know. Kathy ellerbeck and her gramophone.

Now you'll have to let me come up. That was our agreement.

May I?

Mr moon was saying that he was sure you wouldn't let me.

That you wanted to keep it all to yourself.

But this is horrible.

It's horrible, it's...

It's like a sort of hell.

It's probably not so horrible if you believed in it.

Do you believe in it?

When I look at it, when I'm working on it, I believe in his belief.

It's impossible not to, really.

But otherwise, you don't believe there's a hell?

Well, I suppose hell means different things to different people.

What does it mean to you?

Hell on earth, I think.

Yes, of course.

Although, I don't really understand.

How could I?

Why should you?

Well, I suppose one should try.

No, you shouldn't. I'd rather you didn't.

Were you always in the, er...

Cleaning business, mr birkin?

My father travelled in...

Soap.

Thank you.

For letting me see.

Hello.

I came to see your husband, but he isn't, um...

Oh, he wouldn't be able to hear you.

He's playing right at the end of the house.

You haven't been here before, have you?

We have it all to ourselves.

Most of the rooms are empty, you see.

Completely empty.

This one.

And this one.

It can be quite oppressive.

Gives me nightmares sometimes. Well, the same nightmare, really.

That the trees are closing in and there are only the walls to stop them.

I just found mr birkin on the doorstep.

You couldn't hear the bell.

No, I suppose not.

At least, I didn't hear it.

We don't have many visitors, you see.

No. One gets out of the habit of listening for them.

I was just saying to mr birkin, such a big house for the two of us.

Yes... yes, it is, really.

And the rooms, we don't know how to fill them, do we?

Er, no. No, that's true.

Except for that. At least it's big enough.

We don't know what it is or what it does. It seems to be part of something else.

My husband's father bought it in an auction. Nobody else wanted it.

To help fill up the room. Didn't he?

That's right, he did.

I... just came to sort out the question of my... money.

The money? Um...

I suppose you've brought a receipt, mr birkin?

- A receipt? - For the money.

I sent mossop with your instalment this morning.

Didn't he give it to you?

Er, we must've passed each other.

Well, perhaps you'd like to see the rest of the house.

Er, thank you. I... have to get back to work.

- Did you come by the wood? - Er, no, the road.

Oh, well, I'll show you the way through the wood.

When will you show my wife the painting? She's very anxious to see it.

Oh, I've already seen it.

Have you?

I hadn't realised.

These are my roses.

I spend a lot of time on them.

But I don't know why because...

There really isn't anyone to look at them but me.

This is a Van fleet.

A very old variety.

Mind the sharp thorns.

They keep blooming until Autumn.

So, you'll know when summer's ended, because...

I usually wear one of the last in my hat.

This is beautiful.

A kind of paradise.

- Look. - Oh.

Many men would say that you were beautiful, mrs keach.

Yes, well, that's what comes of believing in paradise.

Look at this.

Have you ever seen a detail like this in a medieval painting?

Anticipates the bruegels by 100 years.

And that face...

Meant something to him. It's a portrait, it must be.

And he was covered over years before the rest.

It's the Crescent. One could swear he was almost meant to be identifiable.

Would he have dared, your painter?

And what was he like? You must know him pretty well by now.

I can't even put a name to him. He hasn't signed it.

Why would he? Our idea of personal...

Fame meant nothing to him.

But he was fair-haired.

And I know that from hairs that keep turning up

where his beard prodded into the paint.

He was right-handed, about your build.

And he needed a stepladder to get up to six foot.

The weird thing is, he didn't finish the job himself.

See this bit here? It's a rough job, fill-in.

Probably done by his apprentice.

I cannot imagine why.

Just when his nose was past the finishing post.

And he knew this was his great work.

You can feel it, can't you?

Whatever he'd done before was just a run-up to this.

He'd sweated here, tossed in his bed.

Groaned, howled over it.

"And he shall come with woundes red," eh?

Well done.

Moon!

He fell.

That's why he didn't finish it. It was his iastjob. He fell.

You'd better watch it, then, eh?

Ah, but, mr birkin, you've a real eye for quality.

That anybody can tell, and we want the best there is.

What's more to the point, mr birkin, is we want t' best we can afford.

Look at this lot.

Well, I'm no great musician, mr birkin, I'll freely admit that,

but there's one thing I do know about and that's wind.

Jack, no.

What do you think, mr birkin?

Well...

- This one vibrates. - That's right, lad, it does.

And that one smells odd.

Then this is the one we test, to the limit.

Kathy, lass.

Go inquire how long he's gonna make that din for, mr birkin.

Excuse me, um...

J“ rock of ages, cleft for me

j“ let me hide myself in thee

j“ let the water and the blood

j“ from thy riven side which flowed...

- I much prefer thejollier hymns. - J“ be of sin the double cure

j“ cleanse me from its guilt and power j“

Oh, that's impressive, Jack.

The deep resonance of its base notes. I think you'll agree with me there.

Aye, sound as a bell.

Now, that, mr birkin, was music.

Beautiful!

That's it, then. We'll have the auberdech.

Any discount for cash down? Aye, a couple of quid off for cash in hand.

And to include delivery, of course.

- Where to? - Oxgodby.

- Chapel. - Good day.

Four pounds off, including delivery!

We'll have to move if we're gonna catch the 4:07.

Aye, mine's packed up. Right, let's be off.

Actually, I'd quite like to look at the church while I'm here, so...

- Suit yourself, then. Come on, love. - See thee later.

Er, excuse me.

- Are you here from oxgodby? - Yes.

Well, er, just visiting.

Have you bumped into a chap called moon over there?

James moon, digging up some field or summat.

Yes, I have.

And is he a stocky, fair-haired sort of chap? Smiles a lot.

That's pretty well him, yes.

A captain in the 18th Norfolk artillery?

That clinches it, then. Must be the same chap.

- Would you give him a salute from me? - Of course.

And all the other officers in the 18th Norfolk.

The ones who didn't sit out the last six months of the war

in the glasshouse, like our hero did.

For buggering his Batman.

Want some milk?

Yeah.

Thanks.

It agrees with you, doesn't it?

- What does? - Oxgodby.

Since you've been here they've gone, your twitch, tremor and stammer.

Yes, I suppose they have.

Hadn't noticed.

What about the vicar's lovely lady?

You seen anything of her?

No, not really.

Oh, pity.

Is it?

No, not really.

Better off without it, aren't we?

If we want an easy life.

Well...

Here's to an easy life.

- Ey, up. All right? - All right, George.

Come on, dad. I'll buy you a pint.

I half wanted it to happen.

There were times when I'd just had enough.

Well... you know that.

So many had gone.

Chaps I cared for.

Sometimes it seemed like they were the lucky ones.

The night's the bad time. Well, I expect you've heard me.

I still wake up screaming.

I can still see the...

Still see.

But I tell myself it'll get better as time passes,

and it sinks further back.

But it's got nowhere to sink to, has it?

We'll always be different, the whole lot of us, all the...

Millions of us that survived, if millions did.

Different, I mean, from the generations who went before,

who had no idea that anything like that could ever happen.

I don't know if it's worse not having something to show for it like...

A lost limb or two, or blindness.

I mean, people like you and me,

the intact ones.

The worst part for me was the last six months

when I was kept away from the fighting.

Went for months without seeing a single corpse.

The faces I did see...

But...

I'm a little bit round the bend, you know.

Always will be, I expect.

Still...

No point in letting it get one down, eh?

One has one's life to lead.

"And then he shall come with woundes red," eh?

"To damn the quick and the dead."

You got the military cross, didn't you?

I saw it in your tent.

Medals.

Huh.

There go the chapel lot again.

Wish they'd buy themselves a new organ.

Well, what is it?

Either a Boulder, deeper than it ought to be,

or the lid of a stone coffin, perhaps.

You, er... Do you know what this is for?

Isn't it exciting,

digging where someone must have dug 500, 600 years ago, hm?

Well, you're spoiled, of course.

You clean a wall and uncover a masterpiece.

You turn over the earth and expect to find a pot of gold.

But we diggers, we keep our palettes fresh.

A mild deviation of tinge is all we need

to stir the blood.

Haven't you noticed that you're throwing up soil

that should have been three spits deeper?

Thank you.

Horn button, 15th century.

Right on target.

Well, come on. Is it piers or isn't it?

Just "miserrimus".

"I, of all men, the most wretched."

They really had it in for the poor devil.

Wonder why.

Ah, well.

I suppose we shall never know.

Come on, let's take a look.

Third rib down.

Miserrimus.

So...

Piers was a Muslim.

A Muslim in oxgodby.

He must've got caught up in some medieval crusade, I suppose.

Converted to save his skin.

Imagine the ruction when he turned up here

and was still worshipping to the east.

Well, no wonder they buried him outside the churchyard.

Well, well.

Both our mysteries solved.

It was the same mystery, wasn't it?

Mossop told me you'd finished. And I can see you have.

Very good.

In accordance with the executors' wishes,

here is the final payment of miss hebron's estate.

13 pounds, 15 shillings.

As was agreed.

What do you think of it?

Well... it's there.

So you've done the job you were contracted for.

- And now you've been paid. - Thank you.

Of course, I'll need the scaffolding for several more days.

- Why? - Because I haven't finished.

What remains to be done?

That's for me to decide.

- I shall have the scaffolding removed. - Oh, will you?

Then I shall inform the executors that...

You've prevented me from completing my work,

which will relieve them of the obligation to contribute £1,000 to your fabric fund.

I should not wish to quarrel with you, mr birkin.

I know how you see me, mr birkin.

The way you want to.

You've never thought what it's like for a man like me, have you?

The English are not a deeply religious people.

Most of those who attend divine service do so only from habit.

Their acceptance of the sacrament is perfunctory.

I've yet to meet the man whose hair Rose at the nape of his neck

because he was about to taste the blood of his dying lord.

Will I find such a man in oxgodby?

Even when they come to my church in large numbers at...

Harvest, Thanksgiving or the Christmas midnight mass,

it's merely a pagan salute to the passing of the seasons.

They do not need me.

They merely find me useful

at baptisms, weddings and funerals.

Oh, chiefly funerals,

because I see to the orderly disposal of their dead.

But I'm embarrassing you.

And embarrassing people is a grave sin, is it not?

If you could let me know when I might have the scaffolding dismantled.

- I hear you've finished. - Yes.

I've brought you some apples, to say goodbye with.

Thank you.

They're ribston pippins.

They do very well up here, exactly the right soil and climate.

Lots of other varieties don't take, though.

You're an expert on apples too, are you?

I am.

My father taught me.

Before he bit into one,

he'd sniff it,

and roll it around in his cupped palms.

Then he'd smell his hands.

And he'd tap and finger it like a blind man.

Sometimes he'd ask me to close my eyes,

and, when I'd taken a bite, say, "which apple?"

So this is where you've been living all this time.

- And there's mr moon. - Yes.

He's, er...

Dug up the bones he was commissioned to dig up.

Turned up an anglo-Saxon basilica in the process.

The basilica's what he really came for.

He knew it was here.

So you've both found what you came to find.

Well, I...

Well, um...

I'm glad.

Your book.

Hello?

Mr birkin?

Mr birkin?

Letter for you.

Postman asked me to bring it in.

Thank you.

Huh.

It's from my wife, vinny.

Probably wants us to start over again. She usually does.

And will you?

I usually do.

Where are you off to?

Basra, Baghdad.

Big dig going on over there. I'd like to get in on it.

Right.

- What about you? - Oh, I don't know.

- Wait for another church, I suppose. - You'll never get another one like this.

I know.

It's been a summer, hasn't it?

So, anyway...

Er, well...

'Hello, there, mr birkin.

'I'm Kathy ellerbeck.'

Our dad's t' station master. We brought you rabbit pie.

Us mam says you need nourishment.

Our dad says you must be miserable working all day on your own up there,

so he said we could play you some records.

Didn't he?

Can we come up now?