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  • 6 weeks ago
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00:00We'll be again.
00:01I can't tell you what a joy it is to have a pancake with sugar and lemon again.
00:06What do they eat them with in America?
00:08Maple syrup.
00:09And sometimes, bacon.
00:12That continent is a cauldron of all perversities.
00:16I think it sounds quite delicious.
00:18We could experiment with spam and treacle.
00:21We have both in the cupboard.
00:23If that is how you would like to celebrate passing your exams, you have only to say.
00:28It's wonderful news, lass.
00:31Welcome to our profession.
00:39Wonderful work.
00:40That's wonderful work, Maxine.
00:42You forget how much it already has.
00:45Oh, Steve.
00:46Steve.
00:48Stevenson!
00:50I need you.
00:51When you do the solicitor's office, they don't like the pine disinfectant in the toilet.
00:56You have to use the lemon.
00:59I'm supposed to be doing her cleaning shift for her.
01:01Do you have to leave now, Mr Drummond?
01:03This baby's about to be born.
01:11Oh, Reggie, love.
01:13You've even sliced the lemons.
01:15Aren't you good?
01:16I thought it would speed things up.
01:18Well, no-one ought to be kept waiting on pancake day.
01:22Oh, good on you.
01:23You've been practising your new money.
01:27It's easier than olden money.
01:29Now, that is what the government told us when they said that we were going decimal.
01:33Although, two weeks in, I don't think they've convinced a single shopkeeper.
01:55You have a little girl, Maxie.
01:57Another girl.
01:58We've got another girl.
02:00I thought you wanted a boy.
02:03What?
02:04Never.
02:05Never, ever.
02:11Oh, my God.
02:17Oh, my God.
02:21Can I kiss her?
02:23Go on.
02:25I'll kiss you first.
02:43Razzling.
02:44Oh, I didn't knock.
02:46I thought it was too late.
02:47The pancake batter's been standing all evening.
02:50I was listening for the sound of your bike wheel.
02:54Cyril, I'm in my uniform and you're in your slippers.
02:59Good delivery.
03:01Actually, it was inspiring.
03:06Oh, good girls.
03:09Bang on time.
03:11Oh, that's nice, isn't it, Christopher?
03:14Lovely kisses to start the day.
03:18He's getting better from having his kidney removed, isn't he?
03:22Yes.
03:23And we'll find out when he starts his chemotherapy soon.
03:27Girls, don't forget the rota for wiping round the sink in the downstairs bathroom.
03:32We need to be extra careful of germs.
03:36Oh, Teddy ever does his feet the rabbit.
03:38That's because chores need to be assigned to people I can trust.
03:43Patrick, are you up yet?
03:45The coffee's on.
03:48I'm on district duty for the rest of the week.
03:51We need a thorough review of all our diabetic patients.
03:55Sister Catherine, in honour of your first day as a fully qualified midwife,
03:59I have assigned you the antenatal round.
04:03Entirely solo, unsupervised and independent.
04:08I hope you've eaten a hearty breakfast, honey.
04:10You'll be riding that bike for miles.
04:13I've just added Thelma Cutler at 8 Lowman Street to your list.
04:16That poor lady who was sick on the floor in clinic.
04:19Six months are long and her nausea is intractable.
04:22It's rare, but I think the poor lass might be stuck with it for the duration.
04:49District nurse, Mr Kingsley, I found this little scamp halfway down the street.
04:57It's rare, it's to the street.
04:58Come here.
05:00Oh, Terence.
05:03If you keep doing this, I'm going to get you a collar and lead, huh?
05:06Mr Kingsley, it's February.
05:08It's cold.
05:10He needs more on than one sock and a vest.
05:14What is that child doing up at the window?
05:19She likes looking down, seeing what's going on.
05:23Edna!
05:24I actually came from Dr Turner's practice to make sure that everything was up to date with
05:31your diabetes medication.
05:32We haven't seen you for a while.
05:34No, I'm under the hospital.
05:36I'm a serious case.
05:37Edna!
05:42Hello, nice.
05:43Mrs Kingsley, I didn't know you were expecting again.
05:47Do you have any clothes for these children?
05:51Loads.
05:53Just need to sort the washing out.
06:06Hello, big wife calling.
06:09It's on the latch.
06:16Poor love.
06:17There's nothing to bring up.
06:19It's just bile.
06:20I'm not crying.
06:21It's just...
06:22My eyes are watering.
06:27I'm not crying.
06:29You don't have to be brave all the time, Thelma.
06:32Sometimes it's all right to say this is hard.
06:35And it is hard.
06:37I remember flushing my contraceptive pills down the toilet when we decided to start trying
06:41for a baby.
06:44I feel like I've done nothing but stare down that toilet ever since.
06:49Bed and a washing up bowl are probably better.
07:01I've got another three parts of this.
07:07Lass, you need to attend clinic.
07:09And you need to get your home ready for the new arrival.
07:13Got it ready for the last arrival.
07:15We've still got the cotton bottles and everything.
07:19Yeah.
07:21Hairbrushed.
07:22Lippy on.
07:24That better?
07:27Sometimes getting dressed and ready to face the day is half the battle.
07:31Felt like a battle since we lost our eldest.
07:35You've had a lot to come back from, Edna.
07:38What I would advise is...
07:39I don't need advice from someone at the ark.
07:47The father's not doing his daily urine tests.
07:50And that flap reeks to high heaven.
07:52An army of lice on all four kiddies.
07:55And the eldest should have been in school.
07:58Faye Marie, born November 1965.
08:01And there was that little boy who died when they were at a different practice.
08:05I'm afraid we've missed St. Cuthbert's Diabetic Clinic for this week, Doctor.
08:09Would you like to assess Mr. Kingsley yourself?
08:11Yes, as soon as possible.
08:12Well, I haven't seen Faye or Nicky for two years.
08:16And there are gaps in their record before that.
08:20We'd better tell social services.
08:22Go on through.
08:23They're all in there.
08:25Oh, come on in, nurse.
08:27We're just having a women's lib meeting.
08:28You don't mind me getting on with things while I'm feeding, do you?
08:31Oh, no, not at all.
08:32But once baby's finished on the breast, I will need to examine you.
08:35Fair enough.
08:36Take a pew.
08:38Go on.
08:39You can join us.
08:40It doesn't matter if we're supported or derided on the Women's March through London.
08:45The most important thing is that we are seen and we are heard.
08:49Does derided mean made fun of?
08:51Yes, but it can also mean dismissed or belittled.
08:54Women have been put down since time immemorial and we aren't going to put up with it anymore.
08:58We want to get that on a placard.
09:00You might have to make it a bit shorter.
09:03And the point me and all the other women on the Cleaners Association want to make, placards or no placards,
09:09is that we want equal rights, equal status and equal pay.
09:14Which is why we are all going to be marching shoulder to shoulder through London.
09:21Thelma seems to be living on bits of toast and boiled sweets, Doctor.
09:26And she can scarcely keep those down.
09:28If she ends up clinically dehydrated, we'll send her to St Cuthbert's.
09:33I've not seen many cases of true hyperemesis, but every time, it's the lowest I've ever seen a pregnant woman
09:41brought, mentally as well as physically.
09:44There's not really any medication for it, is there? Not after thalidomide.
09:48There will never be any medication for it after thalidomide.
09:53A political meeting at the bedside of a newly delivered mother. I'm amazed she had the energy.
10:00It was as though all the women were getting energy from each other. I've never seen anything like it.
10:05They even gave us some homework.
10:07Show them your book, child.
10:09The Female Eunuch by Germaine Greer.
10:12What a very striking cover.
10:15What I want to know is, where do they come from?
10:18All these educated ladies campaigning side by side with cleaners from the East End.
10:24I think mostly hamstered, although there's no doubt the movement's spreading.
10:27Women of all classes have always been involved in women's advancement.
10:32My granny used to finish a factory shift in Paisley and go out campaigning.
10:38Will you come on the march with Joyce and I, Phyllis?
10:44Perhaps I should come to the meeting.
10:47I've no objection to finding out more.
10:49I think that's extremely public-spirited.
10:52The sisters and I look forward to hearing all about it.
11:10You forgot the knit lotion.
11:12I'm sorry.
11:12I must have got distracted putting a new diabetes kit together for Mr. Kingsley.
11:16I deal with him myself, but I've two new cases of Venus also.
11:20And I think the family as a whole might respond better to a younger person.
11:29So, the projected budget details are in the blue folder,
11:33but we're still missing the sign returns from the Board of Health.
11:36I'm afraid you've drawn a dreadfully short straw.
11:38I've assigned myself nursery duties in the maternity home
11:42for delicious little newborns, including twins.
11:47I'll be down at feeding time,
11:48and we agreed that secular staff make better inroads with the council.
11:52Go.
11:53Lead me to get on.
11:56Asking you to fill in the 1971 census.
12:00An army of men and women with light blue statues...
12:02Honey, I'm the nurse.
12:04Are you a mum and dad at all?
12:06The form is secret.
12:08There is nothing to fear from completing it.
12:10When it's content to be destroyed...
12:11What are you doing with those pills?
12:14These are saccharine tablets.
12:16Never put them in your tea.
12:18What are you doing with them, child?
12:26Is that all you have to eat?
12:38Your daughter should be at school,
12:40and all of your children are hungry.
12:42They need to be deloused, but first, they need to be fed.
12:45Who gave you leave to come in here and start shouting odds, eh?
12:48My wife has been diagnosed with depression.
12:51I'm going to go to the corner shop
12:53and buy a loaf, some margarine and some jam.
12:56And when I get back, we're going to discuss our plan of action.
13:03I'm calling on behalf of Nunata's house, Hendy Street,
13:06with regard to our projected budget from June of this year.
13:09Please hold for a moment.
13:11Of course.
13:13Would that be my friend, Lady Aylward?
13:16Yes.
13:18I wasn't expecting to be put through to you, Dr Threpwood.
13:21I asked to be connected directly, should you call.
13:24I feel I should forewarn you of certain developments.
13:28Now?
13:29It would be expedient to meet within the week.
13:35Come on.
13:36Nurse Hyland.
13:39Mr Kingsley refused to cooperate with their diabetes protocols,
13:43and I'm taking the children to the cleansing station.
13:46There's no way of heating water in that flat,
13:48and I think the youngest has scabies, as well as lice.
13:52I'd better take a look at them.
13:54Come on.
13:55Oh, yeah.
13:57I know.
14:02This belly aches worse than the sickness, sister.
14:05If I could just go.
14:06Go properly.
14:08You know what I mean.
14:10If you're dehydrated, that might well lead to constipation.
14:13But I'll have a feel of your tummy,
14:15just to make sure things are as they should be.
14:17I'll be back.
14:25I am putting in a complaint as soon as I get back to the surgery.
14:28That cleansing station needs to be open at all times,
14:31not on request or by appointment.
14:33I've never seen a family in a worse state than this.
14:36I've thought that so many times.
14:42May I come in?
14:43Yeah.
14:49Have your bowels moved at all, Selma?
14:57I'm going to get you back to bed with a hot water bottle.
15:00Then I'm calling Dr Turner.
15:03There's nothing you can give me.
15:05Don't waste his time.
15:07The surgery's three minutes walk away,
15:09and we won't be wasting his time
15:11if we ask him to pop round and rule out early labour.
15:15We need to take care of you, Selma, and your baby.
15:22I wish there was no baby sometimes.
15:38We're going to have to get them taken into care.
15:42It may take a few days to implement,
15:44but this is a clear case of neglect.
15:47I think it's worse than neglect.
15:49There's bruises on the backs of the children.
15:52And I need you to look between Nikki's toes.
15:55I think there's a cigarette burn there.
16:13Something's moving to the toilet.
16:15Can I see?
16:20Was it a baby?
16:23Yes, sweetheart, it was.
16:31Don't move.
16:37Sweetheart, we need to get you up.
16:39Yeah.
16:48It's all right, Selma.
16:50I'm with you.
16:54I'm going to leave you, but only for a moment.
16:56I need to fetch my bag.
17:23I'm afraid I always fear the worst
17:25when Dr. Threatwood starts taking an interest in our fortunes.
17:27All I could do was arrange to meet him at his office next week.
17:32Baby, 28 weeks gestation delivered into the toilet.
17:35Still breathing.
17:36Dr. Turner?
17:37Dr. Turner?
17:39He was breathing.
17:40What's happened?
17:41Premature baby, six months gestation.
17:44Get the flying squad.
17:45Sweetie, whose baby is it?
17:47Thelma Cutler, 8 Lawman Street.
17:50Colonel Wethro, yes.
17:52The infant is still showing signs of life.
17:57Your sensor is still damaged.
18:00The skin.
18:01The skin is like tissue paper.
18:05We've lost respiration.
18:08Come on.
18:10Come on, little warrior.
18:12Yeah.
18:18It's all right, Thelma.
18:19Everything's going to be all right.
18:22Where did Sister Catherine go?
18:24She took your baby to the maternity home, Thelma.
18:27Because it was dead?
18:29No.
18:30Because it's alive.
18:34Was it a boy or a girl?
18:36I don't know.
18:39We're taking it to Imperial Hospital.
18:41It's the only place in London with any expertise when they're this early.
18:45And this small.
18:46We haven't weighed him.
18:49Weight was the least of our concerns.
18:51Fingers crossed it survives the journey across town.
18:53Blue lights all the way.
18:56It is a little boy.
19:08Three, four.
19:09Oh, yeah.
19:10Ready to knock?
19:11Turn the lock.
19:13Play school.
19:16I wouldn't generally advise taking the bull by the horns in such a way in this highland.
19:21But in this case, it's as well you did.
19:24It's the indifference that angers me.
19:26The indifference and the laziness.
19:29As well as the cruelty.
19:31Life is more of a struggle for some people than it is for others.
19:34We're fortunate.
19:36Our struggle is only with our feelings.
19:51Good afternoon, Mr. Kingsley.
19:53Have you got my kids?
19:54Your children are all here.
19:56They have been receiving hygiene treatment.
19:58We're taking them home.
19:59I suggest you come inside and speak to Sister Veronica.
20:02As a health visitor, she is the best person to advise.
20:05As her father, I'm best placed to advise the lawyer.
20:09You do not have the right to enter private premises in this manner.
20:13And you do not have the right to abduct my children.
20:17Edna.
20:18Edna.
20:20Nurse Highland brought your children here because they were in desperate need of bathing.
20:24And now we have found bruises that will have to be explained.
20:28You'll have to prove they weren't inflicted here.
20:30Huh?
20:31I know the way your sort operate.
20:33And we know our rights.
20:35Edna.
20:45Come on.
20:48Come on.
20:50Come.
21:00And thank you, Eleanor, for reminding us that women are not just discriminated against
21:05in the professional field, they are also discriminated against at home.
21:10The time has come for us to declare our self-respect and to claim a full identity
21:16and to get equal pay for equal work.
21:24Before we move on to discussing the logistics of the march, Maxine will highlight the things
21:28we're going to do to publicise it.
21:31Namely the one-day strike on Saturday and the exhibition of bra burning.
21:35First, I'd like to open the meeting to the floor in case anyone has anything to say.
21:39I would like to say two things.
21:41Thank you very much to the Women's Liberation Movement and it's high time.
21:51I would like to say thank you to the women who welcomed me round this table tonight, to
21:57the women who showed me that this fight is necessary, and to the women who I will stand
22:02with when we shout this from the rooftops.
22:04Yes, Aneda!
22:18Enter.
22:21You need not concern yourself with your attire.
22:25The Lord gave you those tresses,
22:27and if they are his delight, they do not offend me.
22:45I have prepared you a beverage out of concern for the day you have endured.
22:53But I find I have left it in the kitchen.
22:57I'm happy just to have your company.
23:01It was a terrible day.
23:04I have seen its like many times.
23:08An infant lost, or maimed, or not shaped well.
23:17I keep turning it over and over again in my mind.
23:24Did I do all I should have done?
23:27Did I do anything to make things worse?
23:31I recall that unabating voice.
23:35The doubt that pursues you home, and seeks to be your bedfiller.
23:42But say this to yourself.
23:46Tonight, a child breathes.
23:50Tonight, a mother lives.
23:55Tomorrow, you will resume your tasks.
23:59But what is my task now?
24:03The child is born.
24:05It has arrived.
24:08But the mother is still on the journey.
24:12And you must bring her home.
24:17I've never once doubted the importance of female solidarity.
24:22But for women of my age, it went unspoken.
24:26If we'd had a motto, it would have been deeds, not words.
24:29But we had a war to be getting on with.
24:31But even in the war, too many women were forced into limiting roles
24:36because of damaging stereotypes.
24:38That's why burning bras is so important.
24:40It's about the rejection of frivolity.
24:43A good bra is a very practical item, and not frivolous at all.
24:49Trixie, tell me you're not going to be joining in with all that carry-on.
24:52Well, perhaps not with my current bras.
24:54I bought them at a New York lingerie department.
24:57But definitely something from my back catalogue.
25:02You were quite quiet in the meeting, Joyce.
25:05Didn't you enjoy it?
25:06I go quiet when I think.
25:08And I was doing a lot of thinking.
25:10So was I.
25:11I kept thinking, my husband had the power to run our finances into the ground without telling me.
25:18My husband beat me so badly, I left him without telling him.
25:22But what I learned tonight is that it's not what men have done to us that matters.
25:27It's what we do as women going forward.
25:31You have to come to hug you with.
25:42And that's it.
25:43We're ready for your outing.
25:45Shoes on, coats at the ready, and I've got your washing up bowl.
25:49I don't need it, Kev.
25:51I haven't been sick since yesterday.
25:54I keep trying to picture the baby.
25:56I never even saw his face.
25:59The sooner we get you to the hospital, the sooner you can have a proper look.
26:03You'll feel better then, I promise you.
26:11I can't believe the ideas women's liver coming up with. A one day strike.
26:16We'll draw attention to the march at a local level and give women who can't attend the chance to demonstrate
26:21their views.
26:22They tried it last year in America. Women withdrew their labour right across the country. No cooking, no ironing, no
26:28childcare.
26:29And there are no reports of any deaths.
26:33Prescriptions signed by Dr. Turner, all present and correct.
26:37Oh, thank you. We're very low on pethidine. And Mrs. Kumar's penicillin was becoming urgent. It's good of you when
26:43you're so busy.
26:44Well, I might be a lady of leisure tomorrow if I join in with this strike. Will you be participating?
26:51No, Mrs. Turner. I've decided to forego the pleasure.
26:54Why is that?
26:56Because I come from a generation of women that got on with it. No histrionics, no sloganeering, and our foundation
27:04garments stayed intact.
27:12Baby weighed in at exactly two pounds and a half an hour. We've had a couple of two pounds do
27:17very well this past year. The doctors here are very skilled, learning all the time.
27:23What's with the blade paint? I think those are the transistorised monitors. There's one attached to every incubator. If a
27:30baby stops breathing, or there's a problem with the heartbeat, an alarm goes off.
27:34That's correct. Here he is. Baby Cutler. We can update the labels once you've picked a Christian name.
27:43We liked James, didn't we? James Kevin or James Paul. Look at him, Felmer. He's beautiful. He's gorgeous.
27:55Baby Smith has collapsed.
28:00She needs a chair.
28:04I'm sorry.
28:06It's all right, Wilma. You only gave birth yesterday.
28:10What did I give birth?
28:13It was nothing that felt like a contraction.
28:16I didn't even realise that I pushed.
28:18My body just...
28:21let go of him.
28:24I failed.
28:25God, you didn't fail.
28:29You were valiant throughout your whole pregnancy.
28:31It wasn't even a whole pregnancy.
28:36God, it doesn't even look like a baby.
28:40It's my fault.
28:42It's my fault because I said that I wished that there was one.
28:46But baby James is doing well.
28:53Oh, Lady Aylwood. What an unexpected pleasure.
28:57Are you looking for anything in particular?
28:59Yes. Support for the Women's Liberation March on March the 6th.
29:03Oh, women's lib.
29:05Would you want me as Violet Buckle Haberdasher or me in my mayoral robes?
29:11Either. Or both.
29:12Violet Buckle Haberdasher is a highly successful businesswoman
29:16and the mayor of Tower Hamlets is a trailblazing female politician.
29:22But I never thought of myself as liberated.
29:26Probably because you've been too busy.
29:28It's not necessarily men holding women back, Violet.
29:31But if we don't stand shoulder to shoulder with each other,
29:34we're never going to realise just how strong we are.
29:37I'll come, but only as myself.
29:40The Alderman might object if I wear the mayoral chain.
29:51What happened to your moped?
29:53It fell foul of budgetary cuts.
29:56Do you need to brief me on anything before we head in?
30:00The gap in their records is because they were out of the area when their son died.
30:05I've telephoned Gwynedge, but we still don't know what happened.
30:10It's nice to see the children eating a cooked meal at lunchtime, Edna.
30:13Well, Faye gets a hot dinner at school and I want you to see I'm not incompetent.
30:17Social services are not your enemy.
30:20We're here to help.
30:21Especially with the children.
30:23You were meant to help when Martin died.
30:26Hm?
30:27Fat lot of you she were then.
30:29Ian, do you want to tell us what happened to Martin?
30:32He had a fit.
30:34That's all. Babies have fits all the time.
30:36Martin wasn't a baby.
30:38He was four and a half.
30:39You're just setting a trap.
30:41Nobody's setting a trap.
30:42But we do need to understand why there are injuries on your children.
30:46Then look at how we can help you get back on your feet as a family.
30:49We've heard that before.
30:50When they took the kids away from us.
30:52After Martin died.
30:53Took us six months to get them back.
30:57You...
30:58I'm not having them this time.
31:25I'm not having them this time.
31:29Wondering at the retribution.
31:32Their personal acquaintance with pain.
31:42Blessed are the blood relations
31:46Of the young ones who have died
31:51Who had not the time or patience
31:55To carry on this earthly life
32:06Rain will come and winds will glow
32:10While deer die in the mountains snow
32:15Birds will be to heaven's light
32:19Checking away like a little clock, just the way I like to hear it.
32:23You have obviously been doing everything right.
32:26Not many people say that sort of thing to me.
32:29Edna, the doctor and I were wondering
32:31If you'd like to come and have a look at the ward
32:33And deliver your own work.
32:34Oh, we thought you'd like to mull over having the baby with us
32:36Instead of at St Cuthbert's.
32:38I've decided against St Cuthbert's now.
32:41I'm having a home birth.
32:43This is your sixth pregnancy, Edna.
32:45And you just tell me I've been doing everything right.
32:47I'm not spending one night away from our kids.
32:50This will be a home birth, so you best get that in your reds.
33:01I used to work as a paediatric nurse, sister.
33:05And I know the quest to heal can cause terrible suffering.
33:09Baby James was born at 28 weeks.
33:11He is considered viable.
33:13But what does viable mean?
33:15Does it mean he'll go home as a happy, healthy baby?
33:19Or could he be brain damaged and blind?
33:22We're working to regulate the amount of oxygen these babies receive.
33:25Now we know too much can affect their eyesight.
33:29Sister Wilmot, do you share that information with the parents?
33:33We tell the parents what they need to know when they have to make decisions.
33:38James' mother is in no fit state to make any decision.
33:42She struggles to even believe he is her child.
33:45And without that bond, how can she choose what's right?
33:50Sometimes the parents don't choose.
33:53Sometimes the problems overwhelm the babies and they simply declare themselves.
33:57We can't help them all.
33:59But you can help the mothers.
34:02Or at least, you could help me to help this one.
34:08I'm sorry, Mr. Robinson.
34:09Sister Veronica has left for her district visits.
34:12The Kingsley family's case notes have come through.
34:15I have more details on the death of Martin.
34:18Good. I don't like having a child merely marked as deceased in our records.
34:23It seems to speak of want of care.
34:27Martin died of oxygen deprivation from a seizure that was only witnessed by his parents.
34:33The post-mortem noted old bruises on his upper arms and back.
34:39And a cigarette burn was found between his toes.
34:41Were the parents ever charged?
34:43No, they were not.
34:45There was thought to be insufficient evidence of child battery or neglect.
34:48And the police fell back on a compassionate approach.
34:51Will surveillance of the family increase now?
34:54It's ten past five on a Friday.
34:57But yes, it will.
35:00Hands through the portholes.
35:02Like that.
35:03Excellent.
35:05And then just clean the little face with the damp cotton wool.
35:09Why do you feel sore with that big plaster on it?
35:13I swear he's smiling.
35:15It's like his lips just turned up a little bit at the corners.
35:20Stand back.
35:20You stop breathing.
35:30That's the three of us, often ready for our big adventure.
35:34Sister Veronica will collect Christopher.
35:37She's going to read to him from some Cantonese story books.
35:40Oh, that's great.
35:41Teddy and me are going to do an airfix model.
35:43But we're on strike, Patrick.
35:46In preparation for the Women's March next Saturday.
35:48And I'm all for it.
35:50Some of the newspaper coverage has been really thought-provoking.
35:54But, Daddy, you need to do the ironing and washing.
35:57I was in the army.
35:59Ironing holds no fears.
36:02Have you left us a casserole or something?
36:04That's not how women's strike works.
36:12What's this, Sophia?
36:14It's a list.
36:15It's a list of everything that I usually do on a Saturday and Sunday in order to keep this household
36:19on the straight and narrow.
36:20But it starts with, run a haberdasher shop.
36:24And then it says, batch bake.
36:26And then it says, clean all the shoes.
36:29And then it says, and my handbags.
36:31I mean, how do you fit all this in an afternoon?
36:33You've got more handbags than the Queen Mum.
36:37I do your shoes.
36:38Then I do my shoes and my bags while the batch bake's in the oven.
36:43Why do you think I close the shop at four o'clock at weekends?
36:47A home and a family do not run themselves, Fred Buckle.
36:51But I can't run the haberdasheries.
36:53I don't know the names of all the different types of elastic.
36:57And people come in and ask for, um, female things.
37:01I'll stick with the paper shop.
37:04Cyril's running the paper shop.
37:05He's strongly in support of feminist ideals.
37:16I'm sorry we're having to do this here.
37:18I do need to ask you a few questions about bleeding and what goes on in the bathroom.
37:24But we can do that before Kevin gets back with the tea.
37:30Kevin keeps pushing me to agree to give James a tracheotomy.
37:34I have the consultant said it's for the best.
37:38They've said it's best for his chance of survival.
37:41How do we know it's the best thing for him?
37:44A tracheotomy will prevent James from suffering so many collapses, Thelma.
37:51They'll cut into his throat from the outside and stick a plastic nozzle in.
37:55He'll have to breathe through his neck.
37:59How's that better?
38:01Why is it better to just keep him surviving?
38:05Even if he may never see, even if his brain is going to be damaged.
38:09We don't know any of those things are going to happen, Thelma.
38:13No, we don't know that they won't.
38:16You know more than me, Sister Catherine.
38:19But when it comes to a baby like James, nobody knows anything.
38:34Hey, keep it up.
38:36There's probably a cub badge for potato peeling.
38:40It's taking you an hour to do two shirts.
38:53Trixie, you made it.
38:55Yes.
38:56Jaunty's nanny said she'd go on strike next week instead.
38:59We worked it out between us.
39:01Compromise is power.
39:02Are you sure that's right?
39:03When I have arguments, I like to win them.
39:05Oh, Mrs. Turner, you are quite the dark horse.
39:12You ever invented new pence, wants hanging.
39:17I've had to charge people in decimal for things that I'm measuring in yards,
39:20and that's before you start talking about two-ply wool and press studs.
39:25Oh, flaming Nora!
39:34Flaming scones!
39:37Being a man is terrible.
39:50What happened?
39:51She fell out the window.
39:54Where are parents?
39:55I don't know.
39:57Do you know the child, sir?
39:58Yes.
39:59I'm a social worker.
40:04Excuse me, love.
40:06You haven't got such a thing as a compact mirror, have you?
40:10I'm sorry, it's not a thing I generally carry around.
40:13I suppose not.
40:14I've got five minutes before a photographer arrives.
40:17Me and my Nina are going to be in the papers.
40:20We're taking her home.
40:2114 months we've been in here.
40:2414 months?
40:25She must have been in the wars.
40:27Not half.
40:28Born at 28 weeks.
40:30Bowel surgery.
40:31Tracheotomy.
40:32They thought she had a brain bleed.
40:34Now all we're waiting for is a set of ankle splints and we're off.
40:38Is my lippy all right?
40:39For the photograph.
40:41It's a bit smudged.
40:43Here.
40:46Tal, I owe you a favour.
40:54I told the consultant you'll need a statement.
40:57But he confirmed that Faye has a fractured femur and collarbone and concussion.
41:02The police really look up here too.
41:04They also found she had catastrophically low blood sugar.
41:09She seems to have swallowed prescription drugs or been fed them.
41:13Why would anyone feed a child prescription drugs?
41:15Because low blood sugar makes a child dozy and compliant.
41:19I don't know.
41:21It is the honest answer.
41:22Just as I don't know how anyone blessed, blessed with such beautiful children could treat them with such hideous contempt.
41:40Millicent, do you think I'm barking up the wrong tree, resisting all this women's lib talk?
41:47Well, not everyone is in support.
41:50I've heard quite a number of ladies saying I'm not a feminist, but...
41:54I just don't like the gimmicky way it's all been put together.
41:58I would always counsel against objecting to a book because of its cover.
42:03Oh!
42:05Innocent, you're reading the female eunuch.
42:08The authoress makes a series of very sensible points.
42:12Notably, regarding female sexuality.
42:16It's a thing.
42:17I spent much of my life being ashamed of.
42:24I never did, oddly enough.
42:27It's like being a vegetarian.
42:29As though I was wired to run counter to the general view.
42:36But why am I being like this?
42:39Why am I picking holes in something the young people are full of fervour for?
42:47Well, do we perhaps fear losing our place in the scheme of things?
42:53Two weeks ago, I was standing outside the Draper's on Inkeman Street.
42:57And there was a blouse in the window with a psychedelic pattern.
43:02Jewel tones, but with such a beguiling design.
43:07And I was looking at it, and I thought, I will never wear that blouse.
43:15Why?
43:16There's no harm in breaking out a bit, fashion-wise.
43:20Phyllis, there is no harm in breaking out.
43:25And if we don't, we'll be left behind.
43:28And you're not wrong.
43:32Psychedelic pattern or no psychedelic pattern.
43:39Police?
43:42Don't answer it.
43:45Mr. Kingsley?
43:47Mrs. Kingsley?
43:49Because of concerns about the welfare of your children, a place of safety order has been issued.
43:54We have come to remove them.
43:56Don't let them take them in.
43:58They're our kids.
44:00They're not going anywhere.
44:01They're terrified.
44:02Mr. Kingsley will force entry if you do not cooperate.
44:05As well as the police, I have Sister Veronica with me.
44:07The children will be well taken care of.
44:11Mr. Kingsley?
44:13Mrs. Kingsley?
44:16This is uncultful.
44:17Are you in, Kingsley?
44:19And the Mary Kingsley.
44:20I'm arresting you and suspicion of child neglect and cruelty.
44:23This is what they wanted all along.
44:27We've already lost one of our children.
44:30Doesn't that mean anything to you?
44:33It means a very great deal, Mrs. Kingsley.
44:37And I wish that we didn't have to do this.
45:12Honestly, love, you wouldn't have given a tuppence.
45:14It's apenny for her chances in the first few weeks in old money or new money.
45:18She's as bonny as anything now.
45:20Look at her chubby little cheeks, Phil.
45:22Mm-hmm.
45:24How's she with normal food?
45:25After all those months with the cheap up her nose?
45:27Oh, she's great with chocolate pudding.
45:30Not so good with her greens, though,
45:31but as long as it's all mushed up,
45:33she's just like any other baby, really.
45:35Do you ever feel like any other mum, Bernice?
45:39I feel like her mum.
45:41It's not so different from having any other child.
45:44You can't turn your back on them.
45:47You can't work out what they're thinking.
45:49You can't picture the future.
45:51The doctors never gave us any guarantees.
45:55No baby gets a guarantee, really.
45:58Guarantees are the things you buy in shops.
46:00And we're lucky.
46:02We get to call our babies a miracle.
46:11Oi!
46:12Yes?
46:13My waters are broken.
46:15And I'm not going to hospital!
46:18Edna Kingsley is in labour,
46:21screaming blue murder
46:22and refusing to get into the ambulance.
46:25Police said she wants one of us to attend,
46:27and I'm first on the court board.
46:31Whatever's gone on in the past
46:34or is yet to come,
46:36she is still a mother.
46:39Let me know if it's a boy or a girl,
46:42and I shall add it to my notes.
46:53I'll get my back.
47:13I'm afraid this isn't good news, Lady Edward.
47:16And it can't be countermanded,
47:18even with all the womanly wiles at your disposal.
47:21A simple statement of facts will suffice, Dr Threatwood.
47:24Very well.
47:25By 1974,
47:27all medical service provision across the country
47:30will be taken out of council hands
47:32and given direct to the National Health.
47:34But the Order have worked hand-in-love
47:36with the National Health since its inception.
47:38And this council has been the go-between.
47:41Without our future involvement,
47:43there can be no more cajolery,
47:45no more persuasion.
47:47It is over.
47:48A great deal could happen between now and 1974.
47:52The new rules will be facing from this year.
47:55And there is one I know the sisters won't accept.
48:01I know it, Edna, lass.
48:04Save your strength.
48:06I want it to be all right, nurse.
48:08You're on the home straight, I promise.
48:10There's no reason to suppose anything will be amiss.
48:14I don't mean with the baby.
48:15I mean with everything.
48:17Come on.
48:19So come up, Barley Sugar,
48:20and concentrate on what's happening here and now.
48:23They can't take a newborn off you, can they?
48:27Edna.
48:31Save your energy for this last big push.
48:35Come on now.
48:37Steady push.
48:40Steady, steady push.
48:45You have a beautiful little daughter, Edna.
48:50I love you.
48:54I love you.
48:56I love you.
48:56I love you.
48:57I love you.
48:57I love you.
49:10Martin looked just like that when he was born.
49:14You forget when we haven't got a photo of him.
49:18We never had a camera.
49:22I'm going to give you the best life.
49:26Do you hear that?
49:28The best life.
49:36Hello, Mr. Franklin, so good of you to go out of your way.
49:45What sort of friend would I be if I didn't tip up with a cup of Rosie and the chips
49:49are down?
49:54I don't want to join me.
49:55What kind of members of the club?
49:56I don't know, Sir.
49:58I don't know.
50:01I don't want to say this.
50:10I don't know.
50:14Yes, ma'am.
50:16I'm going to do your best.
50:16I understand.
50:17I don't know.
50:17I am going to do my best.
50:19employees, and the new rules state that we will have to dress as such, or leave the system.
50:25We have never been a part of the system. We have rejoiced in that.
50:30Dr. Threpwood said he'd like your response by the end of this month. I think it ties
50:34in with the end of the financial year.
50:40Who is this man to lay down the law in this way?
50:46This decision will be driven by prayer, not by the fiscal calendar. Therefore, I will
50:51choose the appropriate date. We will tell him what we are going to do on August 31st, which
51:00happens to be the feast day of St. Raymond Nonnatus.
51:05People think I talk too much.
51:07I don't. I know. And I know you listen. I've never seen here she goes again, writ large
51:18on your face. But the thing I think people don't understand about the life I chose is so much
51:31of it is silence. I understand.
51:36It isn't about when we can't speak. It's about what we can never say. What we can never name,
51:47because that might expose us, lay us bare.
51:54Yes.
51:55And we can't afford that, can we?
51:58No. Because really, who wants the whole wide world to hear them howling?
52:07I don't think I can silence the howling anymore.
52:14What is it you want, Veronica?
52:20If we're going to drop the sister bit, I think you better call me Beryl, my real name.
52:30You can call me Geoffrey if it's not too much of a stretch.
52:37What is it you want?
52:43I want a child.
52:47I want a child of my own to hold in my arms and keep safe and cherish always.
52:59I want a child before it becomes impossible.
53:09I feel like he ought to have a special little night even if he's dad had an operation.
53:14I feel like his dad should have had the day off work.
53:18James' first year is going to be a long haul, Thelma.
53:21Keeping up a normal routine is going to be good for everyone.
53:24I'm good at routines.
53:27Before I fell pregnant, I used to dream I'd have all the nappies on the line every Monday.
53:32Dreams are a lovely thing to have.
53:35But sometimes we just have to dream for longer than we thought.
53:40He'll be a baby for longer too.
53:42I think I might like that.
53:52Have you come to take James for his tracheotomy?
53:55I'm his mother.
54:08What's this?
54:13Something to wear on Saturday, perhaps?
54:26On your marks.
54:27Get set.
54:28You want a sausage roll?
54:30I'll have one.
54:34I'll tell you what, pal.
54:36I love our lady folk.
54:38All of them.
54:39But it's liberation, Mark.
54:42It's hard work.
54:53I went for cotton.
54:54I thought it would burn longer.
54:57I bought this one from discounted stock.
55:00Nobody's buying long line these days.
55:02I relented.
55:04Bergdorf Goodman's finest.
55:07Girls!
55:08Where did you get that from?
55:11The charity cupboard.
55:12Provenance?
55:13Uncertain.
55:15Sisterhood takes many forms.
55:17I think we should celebrate them all.
55:27There will always be things.
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