Original subtitles

They're gonna downsize, let some people go.

Are you happy, Thomas? Is anyone really happy?

I am. I've got the perfect car, no kids, no hassle.

Isobel was saying that your daughter's deaf. Can she speak?

Properly, or just mm-mm-mm?

Hey!

Stop freaking out. You're not well, Tom.

It's them. It's what they do to me. I love you.

Maybe it's time to take a break.

Put your health first and leave.

SOUND DROWNED OUT BY MUSIC

MUFFLED SPEECH

..that Loose Women.

They had this guy on from X Factor...

Excuse me. They were literally just sitting there gassing.

And he's flirting with them all. He's literally hugging them all.

They're all loving it. I think it's actually gone viral now on YouTube.

Has it? Yeah, it's actually gone everywhere...

Sorry, excuse me.

SIGHS

Can I help? I've got an appointment.

I wanted to say I'm here.

Date of birth? 5th of April, 1984.

Yeah. You're late. I'm not.

Even if you're a minute late... My appointment is at 9 o'clock.

I arrived at 8:57, and I've been standing here waiting.

If you're late, we can't guarantee the doctor will see you.

But I just told you, I'm not late.

I was here, but you were talking to your friend about Loose Women.

Is it urgent? Yes.

Can I say what it's about? It's... personal.

The doctor's more likely to see you if she knows what's it's about.

It's... mental health.

Yeah.

OK. Take a seat.

Will she see me? She'll do her best.

I'm not late. Take a seat.

MUFFLED SPEECH

BABY CRIES

SNEEZING

COUGHING

CRYING CONTINUES

SNEEZING

I think that's...

..everything that's happened.

I spoke to my wife. She's a nurse.

She thought probably I should come and see you.

You don't agree there's a problem?

I'm being pushed to this.

Anyone would get to the same point.

You feel persecuted. I AM persecuted.

And this thing that happened at your daughter's school.

You mean the car?

I mean telling your daughter to fight her friends.

Oh.

What car? Doesn't matter.

Right.

Encouraging your daughter to fight...

I was upset. I... Maybe...

I shouldn't have said that.

But...

You see the world as a negative place.

It IS negative. Look, what I need you to do, really,

is to say that, actually, I'm fine,

and that the problem doesn't lie with me, but with them.

Then I can go back in, and they'll have to take it seriously.

Thomas, I'm gonna sign you off.

It's my assessment

that you're suffering from anxiety and depression at the moment,

and that's leading you to behaviours

which are perhaps not characteristic.

Not characteristic because I'm surrounded by sadistic people!

You could do with a break.

I'm gonna prescribe some antidepressants.

We don't want this getting any worse. Honestly...

There's also an online course I'd like you to look at.

CBT. Have you heard about that? Yes, yes, I have, but...

Good. I'll give you this sheet.

You can log in, start working through it,

then come and see me next week.

You've just done the hardest bit,

coming here and saying you need help.

Get the pills in the pharmacy, then go home and relax.

Cut off from work for a while.

But someone will take my place.

Maybe, but you've got to put your health first.

DOOR OPENS

CAR DOOR OPENS Day off?

Yeah. How come?

Just a holiday.

You can help me in the garden if you're at a loose end. Sorry, plans.

Have you ever seen Tipping Point? What?

Ben Shephard? It's brilliant.

You've probably never seen it cos you're at work,

but it's before The Chase. Best thing since Pointless.

I'm not sure what any of that means. Ah, well, a whole new world.

Shall I come round? We could watch it together.

No. Thank you.

Are you picking Millie up today? I'm sorry? What time?

She's got dance class. 5:15, I think.

Oh, well, that's all right.

What? Tipping Point's at four.

'Four intrepid players, £10,000 for the taking,

'one mechanical mountain to overcome.

'Let's begin our ascent on Tipping Point.'

TIPPING POINT THEME TUNE

PHONE BUZZES

BUZZING CONTINUES

BUZZING CONTINUES

Hi. 'Hi. Just seeing how you are.'

I'm fine.

Oh. I heard you were ill.

Chris said my behaviour was erratic.

That I should see the doctor.

Take some time off.

'That's what I've heard, but I don't believe it.'

I don't believe that you're depressed or whatever.

I just think you've had tremendously bad luck.

I think some people have been unbelievably cruel.

He's paused the process, by the way. Carter.

After what happened with you, he said, "Let's just take a breath."

He said they need to see how you pan out.

So, yeah, if you're ill, fine,

but if you're not, I'd come back to work, pronto.

'The longer you're away, the more vulnerable you'll be'

to accusations that you're not up to the job.

'Because I don't think you're ill, Thomas. Do you?'

TIPPING POINT MUSIC PLAYS What's that noise?

You got the TV on? Nothing.

So, will I see you tomorrow?

I don't know.

'Oh, I hope so. I really do.

'Bye.' HANGS UP

The teacher said now she's aware of the situation, she can manage it.

She'll encourage Casey to get to know Millie

and spend some time with her.

That's good.

She said she didn't realise how serious it was.

Someone just needed to tell her, make it clear what was going on.

And what about you? How was the doctor?

She gave me pills.

I don't feel depressed, but there you are.

She also gave me this online course.

Cognitive behavioural therapy.

OK.

And you're up for it?

Sure.

Yeah, we've got savings for a rainy day, and this is that day, right?

Yeah. Yeah.

But maybe just...

after the champagne and the new suit,

maybe don't use the credit card any more.

OK?

Yeah.

Do you want me to take it? What?

Would it be easier if I had it?

No, it's fine.

I'm not gonna use it any more.

OK.

Great.

PHONE BUZZES

Have a good day. Take it easy.

ENGINE STARTS

You going to work? Yup.

Jess said you were taking time off for stress.

Yeah, well, I'm lying, Marie.

I'm lying to my wife, and I would appreciate it

if you didn't tell her. Is that OK?

You live your life, let me live mine.

You know, you can get stuff for hair loss.

I thought you'd gone. Doctor give you pills?

Because normally, if you've got a mental health issue,

it takes more than a day to fix it.

A friend of mine had mental-health. He was off for six months.

Where you going, mate?

Tom. What's... I want to speak to you.

Well, you'd better come in.

Er... Can I get you anything?

Coffee? Tea?

I want to make an official complaint. Right.

What do you want to complain about? Bullying.

I'm being bullied.

Wow.

You come in here, to my office, stand there looking all forlorn,

and tell me you're being bullied. I mean...

Can I be honest, Tom? Yes.

It makes me feel like a schoolteacher. No.

A baby-sitter, like I have to protect you.

No, that's not... What have they done?

I was trying to tell you before.

Andy didn't inform me

they did a change to Wi-Fi for the presentation.

That's why it went wrong.

Then I got Lancing to come back for a dinner meeting,

but they altered my phone time and met her instead.

Then Post-it notes were left on my desk...

Post-it notes? I know it doesn't sound much, but...

What did they say? Labelling stuff, like "pen".

"Hole punch".

Right. And then they moved a meeting room,

and left all these arrows saying where to go.

Sounds like they're being helpful.

Isobel made me invite you for the drink. She made you?

I... No, I don't mean that,

but it was a trap to make me pay for all that champagne,

and then Isobel turned up

at the dinner I was supposed to have with my wife and her father.

She says she just happened to see her as she was walking past,

but I don't believe... It's not unheard of,

bumping into someone. OK, OK, but it's the feeling.

That's why it's clever.

There's nothing I can prove.

Do you think it's real, Tom? Real?

Maybe it's banter, huh?

You need to give as good as you get. I've tried.

You're an adult. I know.

Stand up for yourself. It's not as simple as that.

It's always been as simple as that for me.

Standing up for myself.

I never found myself put off my work, my colleagues...

I was single-minded. I do try. I'm not bad at my job.

You used to be very good.

But I just don't go around sticking knives in people's backs.

And that's what they're doing? With the threat of redundancy,

they want to make me look ridiculous.

You realise you're not doing yourself any favours

using emotive language like that?

You're talking about knives, and...

..backs, or whatever.

It doesn't seem to me as if they're out to hurt you. It looks to me...

..if I'm honest, Tom, like they're professionals who work hard

and play hard, and maybe you can't keep up.

I can keep up, but not when I'm being attacked. Attacked?

Every day, when I drive into work,

every day I worry what's going to happen to me.

If I'll overhear them saying something,

or whether they'll decide to give me the right bits of information.

He didn't tell me they'd changed to Wi-Fi. That was deliberate.

He knew they were letting people go... Tom...

..and he deliberately left me pissing in the fucking wind!

DRAW OPENING

I'm just gonna show you this redundancy letter.

I mean, you can see the basic...

..package we're offering,

but I'm sure we could improve on that in your case.

Especially if it was voluntary.

You know, we paused the process while we thought you were ill,

but if you're saying you're not ill,

and you're also saying you don't get on with the others...

It's not that I don't get on... Let's have a look, yeah?

It's an option.

TURNS PAGE

I'm making a complaint of bullying.

I want you to follow the procedure.

DOOR OPENS

DOOR OPENS

Andy, can I have a word?

SIGHS

POURS WATER

You all right, mate? No. Go away.

What? You're not supposed to bother me.

Says who? Carter.

He didn't mention that.

He said a lot of other things, though.

I'm really sorry you felt bullied. I had no idea.

Leave me alone.

Hiya. We're not supposed to bother him.

I'm not bothering him. I'm here to use the watercooler.

Everyone knows the one in meeting room three is the best.

POURS WATER Why did you go to Carter about it?

We're mates, aren't we? Why? What did you say to him?

Why has he wanted to see us all?

When did you decide on this?

To ask you a question? Two seconds ago.

That you were going to attack me, push me out so you can all stay.

Thomas, you really think there's some big plan, that we sat down,

me and Becky, at some point, and said,

"If we undermine this little one, if we dent his confidence,

"then he'll fuck up and we'll all be safe?"

We don't even get on. I hate him even more than you.

He runs marathons so he can sleep with the charity workers.

He is, in fact, desperate to sleep with me,

which I don't want to do, not that I wouldn't.

I mean, if you look at his torso, he's built like a shithouse.

We should do that, show him your torso. Fine.

I wouldn't trust him as far as I could throw him,

and I can't throw him, Thomas.

That's obvious.

We don't get on at all.

Now, go on then, show him your torso.

Right.

What are you doing? Stand up.

I don't want to see your fucking torso.

You're not even supposed to be here. I'll tell Carter what you're doing.

You won't. Because you know by the time he got back here,

there'd be nothing for him to see. Now, ready?

See what I mean?

Shithouse.

Should be his name. Andy Shithouse.

Look, not an inch of goodness.

Sheer, muscular wanker.

Not like you. Flabby little thing, aren't you?

Lots of goodness in you.

But this one - different kettle of fish.

He's a piranha.

Touch it.

Put it down. Touch it, go on.

If you touch it, we'll go away.

Leave you alone.

Stop all this.

You'll leave me alone?

Promise.

SHE SNIGGERS

SHE LAUGHS

Now put your whole hand on it. You said...

I lied. OK, OK.

This time, if you put your whole hand on it,

we'll really go away. Really.

Won't we? Yeah.

SHE LAUGHS

Now your face. OK, fuck you.

We're not at school. I will.

I've made a complaint about exactly this kind of behaviour,

and if he comes in and finds you doing it,

that will be all he'll need to get rid of you both,

so, please, keep going. If I do it, will you do it after?

No. Come on.

You do it after me, and Andy and I will go away forever.

No more games.

Promise!

This is all you have to do.

And I'll do it first so you know it's just a bit of fun.

OK?

Agree?

OK!

Mmm...

Go on, then. Your turn.

No, I'm not doing this. You made me a deal.

No, I... It doesn't mean anything.

Put your face against his chest?

What the fuck is "put your face against his chest"?

No. Look, I've had enough. He said he'd do it.

No, I... You nodded.

I shrugged. Yeah, and then you nodded,

and now you're, what? Going back on it?

Yes, I'm going back on it. I'm really sorry.

I apologise profusely.

As a member of your team, Thomas, I look to you for leadership.

How can I trust you if you make promises that you don't keep?

If you want me to maintain my respect for you,

you'll come over here and put your face against my chest.

Or what? Or maybe you're right.

Maybe we should tell Carter all about this.

Carter's making one of us redundant, Andy.

You think it'll help your case if you explain this to him?

Do you really want to say,

"Becky put her face against my chest

"on the understanding that Thomas would do the same and now he won't?"

You say that, you'll sound about five years old.

So rather than going to our boss...

..you mean keep this to ourselves?

Is that what you mean?

Because if that's what you mean, I think you've got a point.

KNOCKING

Hi. Becky, can Chris have a word? Sure.

Thomas, we won't be much longer, all right?

DOOR CLOSES

You're very strangely-proportioned, aren't you, Thomas?

I mean, physically.

They said you think we're bullying you.

You are. Me?

Thomas, I've been on your side.

No. I can't trust you at all. You're just as bad as them.

I have said nothing, done nothing.

I've not been horrible to you.

I just... Sorry.

I've worked so hard to try to be fair, when they have been...

And now you've just...

SHE SOBS

SHE SIGHS

All right, all right.

If you've... really been on my side, then, fine.

I'm sorry, OK?

I'm sorry.

Thomas, Isobel, Andy.

Chris would love to see everyone now.

Together? Yes, please.

But that's not procedure.

HR say that, especially at an early stage,

to have a conversation with all parties, in the open, can be useful,

and Chris feels that would be appropriate in this case.

All right?

Come on then, Thomas. Let's clear the air.

Better out than in, right?

All right?

Well, thank you for all responding so quickly.

For anyone that doesn't know, this is Marion from HR.

I thought it would be best... Excuse me. We've got a problem.

We've had a disagreement.

Really? Just now while we were waiting.

Said he was gonna tell you all about it.

It's... not important. What?

Thomas, you explain. No, you explain.

Come on, it's better if you lay it all out.

What? What's the matter?

They were just playing a stupid game.

Exactly the sort of thing I've been telling you about. What game?

Andy lifted up his shirt, and Becky said

"If I put my face against his chest, will you do the same?"

And she did, but then I didn't want to, so I said no,

and then they both had a go at me for going back on the deal,

but that wasn't really a deal in the first place.

Andy?

Um... I think there's been some misunderstanding.

I was referring to us having a conversation about HR procedure,

whether we should all be meeting like this.

So what's he talking about?

I... I'm sorry. I really don't know.

Becky? Sorry.

Thomas, you're saying he lifted up his shirt and then what?

I put my face up against it?

Doesn't matter.

All right. Um...

Well, I've spoken to everyone.

All their stories tally.

They say there were jokes, but no more to you than anyone else.

In fact, they say, given your manner,

they avoided too much humorous activity with you.

That's bullshit. Don't swear, Tom.

They admit to taking the Lancing deal off your hands,

but say that was a practical consideration,

as you didn't seem to be reliable that day.

Sharp practice, as we said at the time, but...

Well, the result was what we wanted,

so I can't really fault them on that.

After all, it was your mistake in the first place.

He didn't tell me it was Wi-Fi now.

Look, clearly the team isn't functioning,

and I wondered if it would be useful

for us all to have a conversation together to try to work out why.

Them! It's them. They're evil. Hang on...

See? That is what I was talking about.

We've tried for weeks, and this is what we get.

Honestly, I just don't think he's up to the job.

He has trouble selling to anyone.

His language and presentation skills are non-existent.

He often comes into work with dandruff, bad breath,

and it not only puts off clients,

but are clearly distracting him from the task in hand.

And I've found he has issues with women.

Since his relationship ran into difficulty,

he's developed a real resentment towards us.

There's nothing wrong with my relationship.

Far from being professional with me,

I think he fantasises about something sexual a lot.

This makes me feel distinctly uncomfortable in his presence.

Are you feeling uncomfortable now? Yes. Can I answer all of this?

When we've finished, yes, you should.

An average of 10% of employees underperform,

and if it wasn't for current employment legislation,

would be replaced immediately.

One of the benefits of these redundancies

is to clear some of the chaff away, and I do believe he is prime chaff.

You two seem to have this sewn up.

This isn't bias. It's simply business. Effectiveness.

It's bullying. You see?

That's exactly what we're talking about.

He's said one thing, and it becomes personal right away

when nothing we're saying was personal at all.

The issue is, we can't take any action

unless we have definitive proof, Tom. Do you have any proof?

The Post-its. The Post-its were a joke.

It was me and Natalie. We were trying to have a laugh.

I wish we hadn't now. Anything else?

Texts. Emails.

Saying what?

Sarcastic things. Like what?

SIGHS

Isobel, anything to add?

Only that it's true.

Really? Yes.

Thomas does have dandruff.

You're backing up what they're saying?

Thomas is hard work. We've all done our best.

Right. Very good.

Tom, I think you've got two choices.

Thomas. What?

My name is Thomas. You always call me Tom, but my name is Thomas.

Two choices, then, Thomas.

You can try to carry on.

Um, I'm not sure how that's actually going to work.

Or to accept the offer of redundancy, which, it seems to me,

would solve all our problems.

Remove you from the team

and give you a good amount to start looking for the next opportunity.

But there won't be "the next opportunity".

I'm approaching 40.

I should be higher up anyway. By my age, I should be doing your job.

If I get made redundant, I won't get a job even at the level I have now.

I don't think... If I'm out, that's the end of all I've put years into,

and I'll be unemployed, just because the people in this room decided,

for some reason, that I should go, and they made it happen.

It's unfair. Thomas, calm down.

I've tried so hard, so hard, to work well,

to do things the right way and make money.

I'm better than them.

I'm better at the job, but that doesn't seem to mean anything,

and the idea of you all here in the room with me, ganging up.

That can't be the policy. We don't believe it's constructive

to have separate rumours flying around the workplace.

It's much better... Oh, shut up!

Hey! You know!

You know this is bullshit. You all just hate me. You fucking...

Tom, take a breath!

Thomas, Thomas, Thomas!

Oh! Hey!

Jesus!

Fuck! That was a present from my kids!

Argh!

Right.

Well...

That's the end...

..of the discussion.

Andy, Becky, Isobel, you can go.

Thomas, is there someone we can call to come and collect you?

His wife. I've got her number.

Um...

OK.

I'll give her a call. Let's give you some room to...

..calm down. Chris...

DOOR OPENS Someone should stay with him.

Honestly, I don't mind.

Well, fine, Isobel, stay, then.

We'll come back in ten minutes.

WOOD SNAPPING

Jesus.

DOOR SLAMS

Look.

Blood.

Millie's a beautiful girl.

Jess showed me a video of her singing. It was amazing.

I mean, you couldn't make out all the words, but, you know...

I don't know you.

No.

You were behind it all.

You made it happen.

Suggesting it.

Never the one at the front, but always there,

just spinning me enough.

Weren't you?

Yes.

Why?

From very early on, I've known so much about you.

You leave your passwords lying around,

in that book you keep on your desk,

so it wasn't hard to get into your Facebook, your email.

So I've always had a lot of crucial information about your life.

Things that you don't know I know.

And other facts I just sort of intuit about you

because they're obvious.

Like, you're worried.

Very worried.

That one day Jess will have enough of your plans and dreams

and she'll walk out on you.

That her already low estimation of you will reach the, er...

..tipping point.

So to speak.

Yeah, from seeing you two together at dinner, I think you're right.

When you tell her, she won't be surprised.

That will be the really tragic thing.

She won't be, like, "Oh, my God, you lost your job! Oh, my God!"

She'll be, like, "Yeah, of course he lost his job."

Better not let him see Millie too much now, she's got enough problems.

Don't want her to grow up in the distorted image

of her drip-drip of a father.

SIGHS

It's tough, isn't it? Life?

Is it a lot more difficult than you imagined it would be?

I mean, I'm sure you thought it was difficult,

but that through sheer, hard work and practice and training

and long hours and inspiration, and, in your case, perspiration,

you would come through and in the end succeed,

because you believed that, despite everything, it was a meritocracy,

and that fair play and honest, transparent behaviour at work

would be rewarded in the end,

that bad people like me would fall by the wayside,

and good people like you would triumph.

LAUGHS That's what you thought, isn't it?

Oops.

Don't you feel any guilt?

No. Don't you feel...

No, I don't feel anything like that, because I know, in my heart,

if it wasn't me, it would be someone else doing this to you.

I think it might be an evolved thing,

in society, in culture,

that if we see someone who's gonna bring down the whole tribe,

or whatever, somebody who's really gonna fuck up the rest of us

because they're stupid, or slow,

or weak, or thin, or short, or ugly,

or has dandruff or something, you have the desire,

somewhere deep within you, to take them down first and get rid of them,

and strengthen the tribe, and that's all I'm doing with this.

That's why I'm inexplicably drawn to you all the time,

poking and poking and poking and poking and poking and poking

and poking and being fucking awful to you.

And you're right. We are, all of us, Andy and me

and Becky and Natalie - we're really horrible to you.

Particularly Natalie. She's the worst.

But, yeah...

You're not imagining it.

It was real.

And that's why.

I don't think you'll see much of Millie as she grows up.

Because you're right, what you said to Carter.

You won't get another job easily,

and you're not the kind of guy to have lots of friends, are you?

So, you'll probably go home tonight, in a minute.

Jess will throw you out, then you'll want to call your mum,

but you can't, because she's dead. So you'll be on your own

looking for help, and the word will get round your friends,

what's happened, and they'll be a bit sympathetic, but, again,

they won't be surprised.

Your "friend" from school,

Mark Baxter, he'll hear about it.

Yeah.

Always knew he was likely to fail. Just something about him.

What?

Ooh, you're not gonna hit me, are you?

You know people can see, right?

SHE LAUGHS It's a game, Thomas.

And the trick is to stay just within the lines.

If I was to call you overweight, or boring, or if I'm sarcastic,

I might be crossing some organisational guideline,

but there's very little they can do, even if they see it.

Being mean isn't actually against the law.

But if I was to insult you according to race, or gender or disability,

that would be illegal.

Isn't that weird?

See, if I was to call you a fuckwit, nothing you can do.

If I was to call you a black fuckwit,

you could call the police straight away.

That's why I've never called you a black fuckwit.

I mean, you are.

But I've never called you it.

WHISPERS: Ooh.

Look at you.

Burning.

LAUGHS SOFTLY

Go on.

SHE LAUGHS

Do whatever you want.

Go on.

Yep.

Nothing.

Always the cop-out.

DOOR OPENS

Your wife's on her way. Um...

Ten minutes.

Probably best if you wait downstairs.

Very wise, Tom. For the best.

Thomas.

You OK?

Yeah.

Hey.

I'm watching you two.

Mummy! Mummy!

Hi! How are you?

Is that me? LAUGHS

PHONE BEEPS

You OK?

I've got something to play you.

'But if I was to insult you

'according to race, or gender,

'or disability, that would be illegal.

'See, if I was to call you a fuckwit, nothing you can do.

'If I was to call you a black fuckwit,

'you could call the police straight away.'

KNOCKING

'That's why I've never called you a black fuckwit.

'I mean, you are.

'But I've never called you it.'

TYPING

I'm sorry. I'm so sorry.

I had no idea.

He wants me to stay quiet.

In return for what?

TYPING

You don't want it.

You should be able to say what you want.

Turn it down.

Yeah.

But...

..think what we could do with it.

Bigger house,

I could set up my own business,

be my own boss.

It's exactly what I need. Thomas...

It's the only chance I'll get.

Don't you want to do something else now?

Something just... better?

You can sue the company for not listening to you.

You know, make sure it doesn't happen to anyone else,

and then move on.

I need you to be happy now.

So does Millie.

We are fine as we are.

Email him and tell him you don't want it.

Thomas.

Yeah?

Have you emailed him? Yeah.

So it's done? Yeah.

It's done.