Synopsis

Doctors

(c) Harriet Smart, 2002

Part I

EXT. GRAVEYARD - DAY

Diana visits Patrick's grave in the graveyard.

INT. RIVERSIDE RECEPTION - DAY

Katrina discovers the ladies loo is flooded.

INT. - DAY

Katrina calls a plumber.

INT. RIVERSIDE RECEPTION - DAY

Diana arrives at the surgery for her appointment.

INT. RIVERSIDE - HELEN'S CONSULTING ROOM - DAY

Diana discusses her condition with Helen.

| DIANA

| So, Dr Thompson, how serious is this?

| HELEN

| With the right treatment, the condition is very manageable.

| DIANA

| Manageable. What exactly does that mean?

| HELEN

| It means that your day to day life shouldn't be too affected but - you will have to make some adjustments. It is inevitable.

| DIANA

| I see. And the treatment - I will have to go into hospital for that?

| HELEN

| Yes.

| DIANA

| How very tedious.

INT. RIVERSIDE RECEPTION - NIGHT

George Kwarme arrives in reception, asking for Ben. Kali overhears and realises that he is Ben's father, whom she has not met.

| KALI

| Mr Kwarme?

| GEORGE

| Yes?

| KALI

| I couldn't help overhearing. I'm a colleague - and a friend of Ben's. I'm Kali Hamada.

| GEORGE

| Oh?

| KALI

| It's just I'm seeing him a bit later. I just thought I could...

| GEORGE

| You are seeing him tonight?

| KALI

| Yes.

| GEORGE

| Socially, yes?

| KALI

| Yes. I suppose you would put it like that.

EXT. RIVERSIDE SURGERY - DAY

Kali introduces herself to George and tells him she will be seeing Ben later. She asks him to join them.

EXT. DIANA'S HOUSE - DAY

Diana's son and partner, Tom and Sarah, arrive. Sarah faints.

INT. DIANA'S HOUSE - DAY

Tom and Diana decide to go to the surgery to get an emergency appointment for Sarah.

INT. RIVERSIDE RECEPTION - DAY

Bob the plummer arrives.

INT. RIVERSIDE RECEPTION - DAY

Diana, Tom and Sarah arrive to get an emergency appointment.

INT. RIVERSIDE LADIES LOO - DAY

Bob tells Katrina that it will take all day to fix the plumbing.

INT. RIVERSIDE RECEPTION - DAY

Helen seeing Diana asks if everything is all right. This alerts Tom.

INT. RIVERSIDE LADIES LOO - DAY

Katrina brings Bob a cup of coffee only to find he is missing.

INT. RIVERSIDE RECEPTION - DAY

Tom asks Diana if he ought to be worried.

INT. RIVERSIDE SURGERY - DAY

Katrina discovers she and Bob share the same taste in music.

| KATRINA

| Er, excuse me -

| BOB

| Yes?

| KATRINA

| That's a live recording of Lou Birdy, isn't it?

| BOB

| Yes. Why, do you like his stuff?

| KATRINA

| Yeah, a bit.

| BOB

| I heard him play in Nashville last year. Quite something, I can tell you.

| KATRINA

| You did? Really?

INT. RIVERSIDE CONSULTING ROOM - DAY

Sarah tells Helen in her consulting room that she thinks she is probably pregnant.

INT. DIANA'S HOUSE - DAY

Sarah tells Tom she is suffering from a virus. He is already worried about Diana.

INT. DOLLY'S HOUSE - DAY

Helen goes to see a patient, Dolly, who is upset because the flowers on her husband's grave have been moved.

| DOLLY

| Somebody moved my flowers. The flowers I put there for Patrick. Lovely thery were. Orange and white. Perfect - and somebody moved them and dumped a whole load of mouldy old weeds on there. Can you believe it? Somebody took the flowers of my own husband's grave.

| MARY

| Sit down, Mum, you're just getting over-wrought again.

| HELEN

| Have you been sleeping any better, Dolly?

| DOLLY

| Sleep? How am I supposed to sleep? How am I supposed to do anything? Will you tell me that?

Part II

INT. RIVERSIDE RECEPTION - DAY

Bob asks Katrina to a concert. She refuses.

| BOB

| Well that ought to do the trick. Sorry I took so long. You see, i had to take a little detour. When I went to get the other parts, I dropped in on a mate and -

| KATRINA

| Wayne Newton and the Mississippi Fiddlers. I don't believe it. How in the world did you get those?

| BOB

| I told you I had a mate in, er, Wolverhampton.

| KATRINA

| You went all the way to Wolverhampton to get -

| BOB

| I fell in love. That was the trouble.

| KATRINA

| You fell in love?

| BOB

| With you. Walked in here and wham, bamm. Like the planets collided.

INT. CAFE - DAY

Kali is stood up by Ben but chats to George.

INT. BOTANIC GARDENS - DAY

George tells Kali that he is taking stock.

| GEORGE

| We make a lot of sacrifices, don't we, to be doctor's?

| KALI

| Yes but ... It's always worth it in the end. I mean for someone like you - think how many people you've saved.

| GEORGE

| And how many I've killed.

| KALI

| What?

| GEORGE

| It's a fact of life for a surgeon, Kali, death. We set ourselves up as such great men adn then we discover we have feet of clay.

| KALI

| Was it something in particular happened? Is that why you want to see Ben?

| GEORGE

| Nothing in particular. Don't look so worried. I'm not about to charged with malpractice. I was speaking philosophically. I've been taking stock a great deal recently, you see.

INT. RIVERSIDE RECEPTION - DAY

Bob appears again at reception and sweeps Katrina off her feet.

| BOB

| I know you said no, but I just thought you weren't seeing me in my true colours.

INT. DIANA'S HOUE - NIGHT

Diana tells Tom that she loved a man other than his father.

| DIANA

| Sometimes you never appreciate a thing properly until its gone.

| TOM

| Is that what you felt when Dad died?

| DIANA

| No, actually I wasn't thinking about your father.

| TOM

| Oh well, I suppose I know things weren't that wonderful between you.

| DIANA

| No they weren't. I was thinking of someone else. I loved a man and he died and the the world seemed not to be the same place any more. That's how you would feel if you lost Sarah I think.

INT. KALI'S HOUSE - NIGHT

Kali tells Ben she has seen his father. He is angry with her and storms out.

INT. DIANA'S HOUSE - NIGHT

Diana tells a worried Tom that she is dying but only in the ordinary way.

| TOM

| I'm not sure I'll sleep. You've rattled me. There is something, isn't there? You're not...

| DIANA

| Dying?

| TOM

| All right, yes. Are you?

| DIANA

| Only in the ordinary way.

INT. DIANA'S HOUSE - NIGHT

Diana sits alone writing letters.

INT. DIANA'S HOUSE - NIGHT

Diana goes in and kisses the sleeping Tom and Sarah.

INT. DIANA'S HOUSE - DAY

Diana takes her sleeping pills.

EXT. BEN'S HOUSE - DAY

Kali patches things up with Ben. He agrees to go and see his father.

EXT. RIVERSIDE SURGERY - DAY

Tom arrives at the surgery. He wants to talk to Helen about Diana.

INT. DIANA'S HOUSE - DAY

Sarah takes Diana a cup of tea. She can't wake her.

INT. RIVERSIDE - HELEN'S CONSULTING ROOM - DAY

Helen and Tom are talking about Diana when Sarah rings.

INT. RIVERSIDE RECEPTION - DAY

Katrina arrives late. She had a great night with Bob.

INT. RIVERSIDE - HELEN'S CONSULTING ROOM - DAY

Helen and Sarah and Tom discuss Diana's suicide. Tom has a letter to deliver to Dolly.

| HELEN

| That must be Dolly Keneally. She's one of my patients.

| TOM

| Her husband was in Mother's department. They were lovers - that's what she says here. He died and she could cope without him so she... For years. They were lovers for years. Ever since my father died and probably before. And she never -

| SARAH

| Oh my God.

| TOM

| Listen to this: " My darling, don't be sad, and try not to be very angry. This is what I want. Life has been a quiet hell without him and I cannot go on indefinitely. And then there is the threat of dying the sort of death he died, which I cannot countenance. It was cruel beyond words. Doctors are such clumsy fools. They never know when to give up."

INT. RESTAURANT - DAY

Ben and George have lunch. George says he's taking early retirement and that he approves of Kali.

INT. DOLLY'S HOUSE - DAY

Tom delivers the letters to Dolly.

INT. DIANA'S HOUSE - DAY

Sarah learns she is pregnant. She tells Tom. They wonder if it might have changed Diana's mind.

INT. RIVERSIDE - BEN'S CONSULTING ROOM - DAY

Ben, thoughtful, asks Kali to marry him.