A Bubble Full of Sunbeam
Script Preview ELLEN: Good afternoon, sir. Oh, no shirt today? BILL: No, no shirt. ELLEN: Well, how can I help, sir? Only, if you don't mind me saying, you seem to be emptyhanded. BILL: (To audience) I was terrified. She was laughing at me. But then, somehow, I plucked up the courage to look at her face - that lovely, kind face - and I knew she wasn't being cruel. Mind you, I was still dumbstruck. ELLEN: (To audience) He was scared! Of me! I thought that was adorable. I mean, it was obvious that he was out of my league, really. (To Bill) I finish at four. BILL: Oh, do you? (Checks his wristwatch) That's five minutes. (To audience) Of course, I knew very well that she finished at four on a Saturday. That's why I always came at this time, hoping I might be brave enough to ask her to go for a coffee with me in the cafe upstairs on the first floor. ELLEN: So, are you going to ask me to go for a coffee or something? We could go to the cafe upstairs. BILL: I'd really like that. Will you? I mean, will you come for a coffee with me? ELLEN: (looking over her shoulder) Oh, sugar! My supervisor's coming! Yes, sir, you'll find the cafe up on the first floor. Take the escalator and turn left and its right in front of you. (Lowering her voice and leaning towards him) And get me a slice of cake, will you? I'm starving. I'll be with you in five minutes. BILL: (Walks back to the table stage L, addressing audience) When I realised that she was as keen as I was - well - I wished I’d asked her weeks before. The lights dim on stage L and stage R, leaving centre lit. Coffee cups, cake, fork and paper napkin are set on table stage L. ELLEN: At last, he actually looked at me properly. And he spoke! I'd only every heard him say 'please' and 'thank you'. Oh, he had a lovely voice, all warm and melty. And he talked nice - I mean - he spoke nicely - not dead posh, like, but - well, just nice. I wondered what someone like him could possibly see in me. (Walks over to the table stage L) Lights up stage L as they dim centre stage. ELLEN: Oh, ta very much. Carrot cake. It's my favourite. How did you guess? (Sits and immediately tucks in to the cake) BILL: It's my favourite, too. ELLEN: (Putting her hand slightly in front of her mouth because it is full of cake) Do you want some? BILL: No, thanks. I'm not hungry. Anyway, I bought it for you. (To audience) I didn't know how she could eat. I could never eat in front of someone I'd only just met. I'd be scared of dropping crumbs in my lap or getting cream on my face. And here she was, Ellen, talking with her mouth full. I admired her for it. She was fearless and self-assured. Some people would have called her unsophisticated Tracey Hart
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ELLEN: His Mother called me unsophisticated. BILL: But she was honest - uncomplicated. ELLEN: (Uses the paper napkin to wipe her mouth) Well, that was very kind of you - what's your name? BILL: Bill. ELLEN: Bill. That's a good, strong name. Did you know it means 'protector'? BILL: No, I didn't. But I like it. And your name's BOTH: Ellen. ELLEN: How did you know? BILL: It's on your badge. ELLEN: Oh, yeah. (Laughs as she looks at the badge) BILL: And what does 'Ellen' mean? ELLEN: Sunlight. (Laughs again) I'm a little ray of sunshine. BILL: That you are. It's a perfect name for you. (To audience) And that's how we met. It might not be the most romantic story to tell the grandchildren, but BOTH: I fell in love over that cup of coffee. ELLEN: We were kindred spirits. BILL: I'd found my soulmate. BOTH: And we knew we were destined to be together. BILL: And I did want to be her protector. It seemed right when she said that about my name like that was my purpose in life - to protect that precious ray of sunshine. Ellen moves during Bill's speech, returning to stage R worktop, removing her tabard and placing it on centre stage table as she passes. Now both stage L and stage R are lit, the centre is dimmed. Set two chairs at dining table, centre stage, one either side. ELLEN: He worked in finance. Do you know, even after nearly twenty years of marriage I've no idea what that really means, what he actually does. We always had better things to talk about - often we didn't need to talk. We understood each other so well that we could sit in silence for hours. All I know about working in finance is it meant he wore good suits Monday to Friday. He looked really handsome in a suit. He wore a suit the day he met my parents. BILL: I was nervous about meeting her parents. I was the best part of a decade older than Ellen. I thought they might think I was a cradle-snatcher. ELLEN: My family really liked him. Even my Dad, and that saying something cos my Dad's a miserable old fart. He's even been known to find fault with Mother Teresa. Bill’s Mother, Lorraine, didn't approve of me. She didn't think I was good enough for Bill. If I did something, like bake a cake, she'd always make some little dig about how I could've done it better. BOTH: I'm/you're making her sound like a right cow. BILL: And she's not. ELLEN: Not really. Tracey Hart
[email protected] A Bubble Full of Sunbeam
BOTH: I'm/he's her only child. BILL: She's just a bit over-protective. ELLEN: She was a single parent. Not by accident - oh, no, not her. She'd planned to get pregnant and chose her victim carefully. BOTH: Bill/I never knew his/my Dad. BILL: Mum was a career woman, a business woman. She was a meticulous planner, nothing was left to chance. ELLEN: When she met my parents, she said they were the salt of the earth. That was a bit patronising. BILL: She meant they were decent, hard-working people. ELLEN: She meant she was surprised they were decent and hard-working. When she found out that I was from the Westgate estate she expected my family to be a bunch of thieving toerags. BILL: Mum meant well - she never meant to be insulting. ELLEN: I wasn't insulted, not really. BILL: Ellen always looked for the best in people, always forgave them - always bit her tongue when Mum said something a little bit - offensive. ELLEN: Well, she must be alright, really, Lorraine. She'd given me my lovely Bill, hadn't she? She was just having a bit of trouble handing him over. BILL: Ellen's family were worried about how serious we were. Her Mum thought she was too young to settle down. She said she should be going out having fun with her friends, spreading her wings, playing the field. ELLEN: I lost touch with my friends pretty quickly. I didn't want to be with anyone but Bill. Our relationship was all-consuming, passionate - perfect.
Tracey Hart
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