King Charles III by Mike Bartlett

Author:Mike Bartlett
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Nick Hern Books

3.5

A kebab van.

HARRY, exhausted, goes up to it.

There’s no one there. He bangs on the side.

PAUL appears – he’s bright, upbeat.

PAUL.

Yeah mate?

HARRY.

A kebab please.

PAUL.

Ooo. Too late. Switched it off.

HARRY.

Please… I’ll pay more.

PAUL.

…Okay okay. Doner?

HARRY.

Yeah.

PAUL starts serving the kebab.

PAUL.

Long night?

HARRY.

I… I think I might quit my job.

PAUL.

Ah – be careful about that. Way things are, I mean we all have shit jobs, don’t we? Maybe it’s different for you. You sound a bit posh, don’t want to be rude but perhaps your mum and dad can help you out or something –

HARRY.

My mum’s dead.

PAUL.

Oh right. Mine too. I suppose everybody’s mother dies one day.

HARRY.

Yes.

PAUL.

Even the King. His mother dies, he doesn’t cry, what’s that about?

Why do you want to quit then?

HARRY.

I think I’m in love.

PAUL.

Pretty girl?

HARRY.

Yeah.

PAUL.

You want to run off with her? Start a new life.

HARRY.

Maybe.

PAUL.

Just warming up – that’s four eighty.

HARRY pays with a five-pound note. PAUL looks at it.

Out of date now innit?

HARRY.

Suppose so.

PAUL starts to cut the kebab meat.

PAUL.

You know since she died. World’s gone mad. I swear. Every night, people have this look. Bit like you – They come here, they want a kebab, a Coke, and it’s like they’re terrified. And I think I know why. They don’t know where they live. They don’t know what Britain is any more.

HARRY.

What do you mean?

PAUL.

Slice by slice, Britain’s less and less. You cut the army, that’s one bit gone, squeeze the NHS, have Scotland threaten independence, the Post Office gone, the pubs shut, less and less. Smaller all the time and when does Britain get so cut down, that it’s not Britain any more?

HARRY.

You think that’s now?

PAUL.

Well the Queen’s dead. If you take enough layers away, what have you got left, underneath, know what I mean? Maybe she was what held it together.

HARRY.

I’ve got no layers left.

PAUL.

What? Here you are.

He gives him the kebab.

Where’s this girl of yours then?

HARRY.

She left me.

PAUL.

You love her.

HARRY.

I… yeah. I think I do.

PAUL.

That’s something then. Find her. Night.

PAUL shuts up the van again. HARRY eats the kebab, walking off –

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.