No. [hissing] Fuck me!
-[thud] -PAUL: Jesus Christ.
I'm sorry. Can't find me other shoe.
-What time is it? -Uh, seven. [grunting]
-ALLY: Is today the dreadful day? -Yeah!
I'm taking Mum and Dad to the hospice,
then heading out to shatter some dreams.
-Where the fuck has this shoe gone? -Will you be here for dinner?
Probably late again, I'm afraid.
Working for Brandon is like
being in a Dickens novel, only now,
Scrooge moisturizes and wears veneers.
Ah, there you are, you little prick.
[groans]
[exhales]
Christ. Look at me.
Smart-casual Grim Reaper.
It's Brandon's idea to divert these funds.
He should be the one wielding the axe.
It's a scythe. The Grim Reaper uses a scythe, not an axe.
-You're such a twat. -[laughs]
Four of my projects are gonna lose their funding,
you know-- four. I'm dreading it so much.
-It's gonna devastate them. -I'm sorry.
These are really important community projects, you know?
They actually make a difference. They save lives.
Darren fired everyone at the studio via WhatsApp.
I mean, to be fair to him, he did it with a voice memo
-to add the personal touch. -[laughs] Classy.
-Hey, good luck today. -Thank you.
Well, I'd better go.
Bye.
-Bye. -[smooch]
Oh, by the way, you need to speak to Luke,
'cause I'm worried he's-- he's getting insular again.
-Ally, I'm really-- -You're busy, I know.
But so am I, and you just need to make time for him.
[sighs] Okay.
Uh, I'll try. See ya.
See ya.
[jazz music playing]
-Hey, it's me. -JACKIE: Hi, love.
You nearly ready, Mum? Got half an hour.
I'm just putting me face on, Paul.
Ooh. Nice suit.
-Court appearance? -PAUL: I wish.
Better get a move on if you want a lift to the hospice.
-Oh, I'm not going. -Why?
Well, Chrissy's your mum's friend.
I barely knew her.
Anyway, she's better at this sort of thing than me.
You know how women like to talk amongst themselves.
Dad, it's not afternoon tea at the Ritz. Chrissy's dying.
Exactly. And why would I want to watch her die?
And why would she want me to? I've got woodwork to paint.
Why are you doing this at half seven in the morning?
I get up at six. I'm old. We do that.
Yeah.
-Oh, you look nice, Mum. -Oh, thanks, love.
-So do you! -Oh, well...
JACKIE: Yeah, thanks for taking me.
I've booked a cab to come back.
PAUL: Mm-hmm.
I'll send Chrissy your love then, shall I, Jim?
Yeah, tell her I said hello.
-I'll get me coat. -PAUL: Yeah.
ALLY: Got it! I've got my card.
Right, so 7:30 precisely, it goes live,
then I have to keep hitting "refresh." Okay?
-Okay, well, good luck. -All right.
And... go!
[hitting key]
-ALLY: Oh... -[hitting key repeatedly]
AVA: No. No. How can this happen?
All sold out already, in, like, seconds.
Well, I think the ticket touts use some kind of algorithm.
-[phone buzzes] -Did you?
Grace didn't get any, either.
-Ohh. -Speak to you later. Bye.
Aw, you really want to see this band, don't you?
Peach 66 are amazing, and they probably won't be touring here
for another two years or something.
I can't promise anything, but Darren knows this guy
who works helping out with the sound at the Apollo.
I could-- I could ask him and see if he could get us some comps.
Would you? That would be amazing.
Well, I mean, I'll do-- I'll do my best. [chuckles]
Anyway, go get ready for school. Go.
-Right, yeah. Sorry, sorry. -Oh!
[percussive music playing]
-[indistinct chatter] -PAUL: Hey up.
Yes. Paul. How's it going?
-Yeah, good. -Yeah? Yeah, good, thanks.
Wow, look at that.
Yeah, these guys are machines.
-Yeah, right. -[chuckles]
You all right? You want a coffee?
There's instant in the flask, but, you know--
No, no, it's fine. Thanks, mate.
Actually, uh, Donovan,
I've got some bad news, I'm afraid,
about, uh, your funding from us.
-Shit. -Yeah.
It's being pulled?
It-- Well, it's-- it's complicated.
See, in order to establish growth in other sectors,
we have to evaluate which projects we can actually commit to.
Paul... Don't, mate. Please.
We're losing our money, right?
Yeah.
Yeah, they're pulling your funding
and, uh, using it somewhere else.
Trust me, mate, it wasn't my idea.
-I-I tried to fight it. -Uh-huh, I'm sure you did. Jeez.
-This is-- this is good work we're doing, you know. -Yeah, I know.
All this stuff, this young offender stuff-- you know
what difference it's making in these guys' lives, right?
-I'm really sorry, mate. -[scoffs]
Uh, I'll have that coffee, though, if you're still going.
-Yeah, yeah. -Thanks.
Guys... Paul's got something to tell you.
[children chattering]
-What's wrong? -[crying] I'm so sorry.
-Oh, my God, are you and Dad getting a divorce? -No!
No, no, I'm just-- I'm just-- I'm just really sorry that...
that I'm such a... an amazing mum,
for getting us three tickets to see Peach 66.
-No. Oh, my God. Really? -Yeah!
-[giggling] -Grace is gonna be so excited.
Do you want to hear some of their music?
Yeah, yeah, yeah, play it.
[indistinct rap music playing]
What do you think?
Mm... Just-- yeah. Yeah.
Thank you so much.
I can't believe we're actually gonna go see them.
I can't wait to hear that live,
because it's gonna be something.
[door slams]
PAUL: Hey, Luke.
-Hiya, Dad. -Oh, my... ooh!
[muffled shout]
Ah...
-Good day? -[high-pitched laugh]
-What are you up to? -Not much.
Just coming up with a new baseline.
Cool.
-Jacob not around? -No, he's taking Ruby
to see the Felice Varini exhibition.
-Oh. -At the Tate Modern.
He does, like, anamorphic illusions.
-[laughs] Does he? -Yeah.
Good for him. [scoffs]
-[Luke clears throat] -It's-- It's always hard
when your mate starts hanging out with his girlfriend more than you.
But we've all been there, mate.
Me and Jacob, we're mates and all.
-Mm. -But we're not really best mates anymore.
-That's a shame. -I mean,
-he's got Ruby... -Hmm.
...and I've got my band.
So, yeah, it's fine, I mean...
Well, I'm always here for you, Luke.
-You know that. -Thank you, Dad.
-Would you like to scream into my pillow again? -No, I'm good, thanks, mm.
See you later.
[sighs] Hi.
-Hey. -He seems okay.
I think that band's gonna be the thing that saves him.
-Any dinner left? -Oh, no, sorry.
I thought you'd get something at work.
No, I've not stopped.
-Tell me about it. -Ah, man.
That was, I think, one of the worst days of my life.
Jesus Christ. I feel that, if any of the kids
we're now not helping gets into trouble
or, God forbid, hurts someone, then that's on us.
Well, not on us, on fuckin' Buffalo Bill.
I honestly don't know if I can carry on working for him.
No, don't eat those. They're for Ava's concert thing.
-What concert? -Oh, I got her tickets
for this impossible-to-get-into gig.
-She's over the moon. -Christ. How much did that cost?
Wow! Wow, that's your first response?
[chuckling] Sorry, it's just, you know, "impossible to get into"
doesn't exactly scream "bargain."
I have to work a free shift, which will probably kill me,
but at least it might stop Ava wanting to.
Why have we never got anything for fucking sandwiches?
Maybe because I'm busy with other things, Paul.
I haven't got time to prioritize buying fucking ham.
That wasn't a dig at you. It was a dig at both of us.
-Well, it sounded like a dig at me. -I'm just fucking hungry.
-And I'm fucking tired. -Well, join the fucking queue!
Are you seri-- Ally.
Ally.
[whispered scream]
[long exhale]
Yeah.
[somber music playing]
-[faint whirring] -[phone chimes]
[whirring stops]
[bloop]
-Shit. -[bloop]
[sighs]
[percussive music playing]
[mutters] Oh, shit.
[whispers] Oh, fuck.
-Shh, shh, shh. -Wh-What are you doing?
I just-- I don't want to talk to Carl about knocking him off his bike.
I'm frightened he's gonna sue me or something.
ALLY: What's he doing?
Is he still there?
-ALLY: Ava. -[Ava chuckles nervously]
ALLY: [whispering] Is he coming? Is he coming over?
ALLY: [whispering] Ava! What's going on?
-He's gone. -Ohh. Great.
Oh, by the way, I was thinking of streaming the journey
to the gig tonight and, like, going into the venue,
-so everyone can, like, feel a part of it. -Everyone?
Don't worry. It'll just be my friends watching.
-Okay. -Well, Grace's friends.
And some friends of friends.
-How many, Ava? -Thirty?
-Tops.
[inhales] Okay, sure.
But I don't want to become a meme--
Promise I won't be a meme.
-Promise. -Whatever a meme is.
No one can believe you got the tickets,
and they're so excited for us.
-Why are you still sitting down? -Oh! God.
Ah! Yes. [inhales] Right, have a good day,
and, uh, yeah, I'll see you later for some massive fun.
-Oh. -I'll see you later. Bye! Love you.
Love you.
BRANDON: Come in!
-BRANDON: How you holding up, Paul? -Um...
Oh, man, you look exhausted, dude.
Have a seat.
Yesterday must have taken a toll.
Uh, yeah, it-- it did, a bit.
'Cause I met-- Oh, fuck me.
[groaning] Sorry...
I met with three of the four
project managers who we're gonna be cutting funds to.
Yeah, I appreciate how hard that must have been.
-Thanks. -So one more to go?
Uh, well, yeah, that's what I wanted to talk about.
-Go ahead. -Um... We fund a theater-in-education group
that does really fantastic drugs and alcohol work,
with Year Nines-- the same sort of age as my boy.
Right... [sighs]
Emotional investment is powerful stuff.
Isn't it? Um...
they really can change kids' lives, right?
So I thought it might be worth another look
before we pull the plug.
Oh... I can see that this means a lot to you--
Right, if we stop their money, they shut down.
Okay...
How about you keep this one going for another year?
Uh, well, yeah, that's-- that's great, Brandon.
I mean... whew.
They'll be-- They'll be relieved. I'm relieved.
-Thank you. -You are welcome.
Are we gonna have you on the Seattle Initiative call this evening?
Oh, for-- Yes. Yeah, I'd love to.
Thank-- Yeah. Yeah, I'll be here.
Great.
PAUL: All right.
ALLY: Come on, girls, let's get a wriggle on!
AVA: We're coming! Grace is going to the toilet. Again.
[girls giggling]
Oh! Hi. Sorry, I-- Hi, Carl.
I'm just about to take Ava to a concert, so...
-Well, try not to hit anything. -Ohh.
Yeah, I'm being lighthearted. I'm being lighthearted.
No, I just wanted to, uh, check in on you--
post-"the accident."
-Must have been a bit of a shock for you. -Oh, and for you, too.
I was actually gonna pop in and, uh, you know,
talk to you about maybe buying you a new bike.
Oh. Well, the old one did cost over £2,000.
Christ alive. Um...
I might have to pay for that in-- in installments.
Oh, no, forget it! I claimed it on the house insurance.
Oh, Carl, are you sure?
-GRACE: Have you started streaming? -ALLY: Wow! Thank you.
I've just got so much going on in my head at the moment.
Freelancing, kids, menopause.
[chuckles] Too young for that, surely.
Well... no, that's very-- that's very nice of you.
-It's absolutely true. But I've still got it. -[both laugh]
-Well, I'll let you go, you know. -Thanks.
You know, I really rate exercise
as one of the best medicines for people of our...
-our vintage. -Right, yeah, yeah.
I mean, cycling, naturally, and, uh...
cardio strength training.
And people shy away from weights,
but they really are one of the easiest things you can do.
You know, you pick weight lifting up...
-as you go along. [chuckles] -[chuckles] Yes.
It's my little joke on the subject.
-Oh. [forced laugh] -Lunges are good, too.
I forgot about the lunges. And they don't cost anything.
Oh, I don't know, Carl. No such thing as a free lunge.
[laughing] Oh, yes! Very good.
-Is it? -CARL: That's excellent.
Uh, this really tickled me.
[chuckling]
"No such thing as a free lunge." Very good.
This is my mum. Mum, say hi.
-Ooh. Hi! -[rap music playing]
She got us the tickets, like a total boss.
-Yeah, she did. -ALLY: How many people are watching this?
-GRACE: We're up to 47! -ALLY: Oh, bloody hell.
ALLY: Right, now, fasten your seatbelts. Extinguish your cigarettes.
-We are clear for takeoff. -[girls whooping]
-Whoo! -[all laughing]
JIM: So, you're all keeping well, then?
PAUL: Yeah. We're okay.
JIM: Well, just okay?
Well, I've been working late a lot, so...
Oh, yes. The new boss.
This, uh, Chet fella?
Brandon, yeah.
Have you told him you're disabled?
What I've got isn't a disability.
Well, he's not to know.
-You might get a parking space. -I've got a parking space.
You mustn't let that bastard grind you down.
You need to be able to be around for your family.
What... like you are? With Mum and Chrissy.
Well, that's a different situation.
Is it? She's your friend, too.
We were never really friends.
Mum's struggling... doing it on her own, Dad.
I think she's just sad that you weren't with her.
Family first, eh?
I'll talk to my boss, you talk to Mum.
[crowd chattering]
Hi. Three tickets under Worsley. Ally Worsley.
We're, um, we're on the guest list.
-[through speaker] Yeah. -We're at the ticket office right now.
-Oh. [chuckles] -There's nothing under Worsley.
Oh! Well, um, try Grant then. Ally Grant.
-[keyboard clacking] -Oh. Hi!
Yeah, no. Sorry, no. There's nothing under that name on the system.
But can you look again, please? 'Cause...
-Mum, what's going on? -Oh, no, it's fine.
It's-- everything's fine. He's just...
Just trying to find our tickets.
-Oh, yeah. Now here we are. -GRACE: Ohh!
I can't believe this is actually happening.
-Right, Worsley is it? -Yes.
I've got three tickets down for last night's show, uncollected.
-What? -The tickets were for last night's show.
-No-- No one collected them. -Um, there must be a mistake.
Because he definitely told me that they were for tonight.
He might have said they were for tonight,
but they're down for last night, so...
Okay, uh, well, if, um,
if we were on the guest list last night,
then can we just switch them to tonight?
-No. No, no, you can't. -Sorry, are you saying that we can't go in?
Not tonight, no. But you could've last night.
Yeah? Okay. [whispers] Fucking twat.
I'm so sorry.
[phone chimes]
[sighs]
-Hey, Brandon. -Just got a wonderful email
from, uh, Harriet, the director of your theater project.
-She's very grateful. -I need to go home.
-Are you sick? -No, th-the thing is, uh...
My son. He needs me.
-He's going through some stuff. -Okay, uh...
Any way it could wait until after the call?
You could just say hi, hop off early?
I need to spend some time with my kids, Brandon. It's important.
Uh... [clears throat] Yeah, you get home, man.
-See your kids. -Thank you. Right.
Uh, I'll-- Yeah, I'll-- I'll head off now then.
-All right. -Good luck on the call.
-See you tomorrow. -Yeah.
Hey.
Ruby texted me last night, asking if I think she should break up with Jacob.
[Paul chuckles]
Oh, right. Yeah, uh... Okay, so what did you say?
-Nothing! I ignored her. -Mm.
I'm sorry, Dad, I just didn't know what to say.
-I just got all-- -Hey, hey. It's all right.
It's okay. I'm here now.
-If I tell her to chuck him... -Mm-hmm.
...I get Jacob back as my best friend.
-Yeah, I guess, yeah. -But he'll be really gutted
not to be with Ruby.
Why don't you tell Ruby to stay with Jacob?
That way, you can be the good guy...
safe in the knowledge that, in a few weeks,
she probably will have moved on.
Okay... thanks, Dad.
-Mm-hmm. -Here, I'll text her now.
Good.
Hmm. That was fuckin' easy, wasn't it?
-[car door slams] -Bye.
-[front door shuts] -I'm so sorry...
about tonight and...
Should we get something to eat?
Make the best of it.
[quietly] No thanks.
Ava...
This is the second time you've humiliated me in front of my friends.
First the birthday party, and now this.
The birthday party wasn't my fault.
I didn't want it. You made me have it.
And when Dad had to leave home because of Luke,
you didn't care about me or what I wanted.
That's not true. And that was your dad's choice.
You should have stopped him.
No, that's-- that's not how it works.
Look, I-I'm sorry that you've had such a hard time, but...
I've had a hard time, too, you know.
I know.
But it doesn't change how I feel.
I can't help feeling this way about you.
[somber music playing]
[engine starts]
Hey. How'd it go with Ruby?
Not good. I did what you said.
-Mm-hmm. -And then she replied back,
saying that she's already finished it with him.
Now Jacob's texting me, saying that he knows
she asked me for advice on whether they should break up or not.
Right. But... that's all right, though, isn't it?
No, it's not. Jacob thinks I told her to dump him.
-Hmm. -I tried to explain it to him,
but he just won't believe me.
-He thinks I fancy her. -[chuckling] Shit.
-Do you? -No. Well, maybe.
-[laughs] -[sighs] Oh, God.
Luke, you didn't ask her to split up with Jacob.
She should be telling him that.
[sighs] Yeah...
Hey, you don't think she asked your advice
-'cause she fancies you, do you? -What?
Asking if she should bin Jacob.
You know, maybe she's hoping that you say yes.
Kind of a roundabout way of finding out if you like her.
-No, of course not. -Ah, okay.
I don't want you to get freaked out over this.
None of it's your fault, Luke.
Don't get too anxious, all right?
-I won't. -Good.
-Well, you know I will. -Yeah, of course you will, yeah. Hmm.
[car idling]
You all right, Jim?
Thanks for coming with me.
[somber music playing]
[sniffles]
[muttering] Go away, go away.
Be gone.
ALLY: Still there.
Oh... sod it. [sighs]
-Teenagers, eh? -[car alarm chirps]
-Do you know much about them? -No.
-Uh, oh, Ally... -Yes?
I was, um...
visiting my sister after we spoke,
and, um...
Oh! She a drug dealer?
Oh! [chuckling] No, she's actually
-long-term unemployed. -Oh, I'm so sorry.
Well, she's been taking these sage tablets
to help with her menopause symptoms,
and apparently they really help with the night sweats.
Yeah, before she took these, she'd have to...
wrestle off her cardigan like it was full of bees.
[Carl chuckles]
Oh, they're all natural and organic.
That's very sweet of you, Carl.
It's-- thank you.
[fighting tears] No one seems vaguely interested in how it... just...
Just rips away at the very heart of who you are.
-[sobbing] Yeah! -Ah.
[crying] Yes, exactly that!
Yeah. Thank you. That's very kind.
Oh, you're welcome.
-Oh, um... one thing. -Mm-hmm?
You might start to exude an aroma of sage.
-Oh. Mm-hmm. -From your-- from your pores.
My sister says she smelt like a Sunday dinner.
Mm. I love a roast. [chuckles]
Well...
-[Ally sniffles] -CHRISSY: Jim...
it's so lovely to see you.
Well, that's good to hear. [grunts]
[Chrissy chuckling softly]
How are you, Chrissy?
-[Chrissy laughing] -Jim.
CHRISSY: Oh, you know, Jim. Dying.
[Chrissy and Jackie laughing]
Jim's been doing a bit of D.I.Y.
He's got the real bug for it.
How is the flat?
Small and high up.
I'm busting for the lav, Chrissy.
I'll be back in a minute or two.
Talk to her, for God's sake.
You're acting like a robot.
PAUL: Hi.
I was just downstairs with Luke.
He's in a bit of a state about Ruby and Jacob, you know.
Was the gig canceled or something?
Yeah. By me.
There was a sort of a mix-up with the dates,
so we didn't get to go.
Ohh, mate. I'm so sorry.
Yeah.
Well, I'm sure it wasn't your fault.
No, it was. It was 100% my fault.
And I think it's important to acknowledge when you've fucked up.
-I agree. -How's your day been?
Uh... yeah, it was good. It was good, thanks.
-Had two wins today. -Right.
I managed to save one of my projects from funding cuts.
And then I finally stood up to the walking fuckin' Ted Talk.
I think he was a bit intimidated by me, actually.
Good for you.
Have I missed something? I feel a bit like I'm giving a police interview.
Do you know what, Paul?
So much of this shit is-- is actually your fault.
The reason that Ava hates me, or the reason that she started...
to hate me is-- is down to you.
-To me? Right. -Yeah.
Your mad fucking rages started all of this.
I mean, Luke couldn't even bear being in the same house as you.
-We know all that. I'm a shit dad. Yeah, yeah. -Don't you get it?
-Clearly fuckin' not. -Ava blames me...
for the fact that you moved out of the house.
She thinks that I pushed you out, and do you know what?
I think you have allowed her to believe that.
That's batshit crazy, Ally! I'm sorry, hon, but it just is.
It's not, it's the truth, and you need to listen to me!
Everything bad in this family can be traced back to you!
[laughing] That's mad.
To your rages, to your-- to your selfishness,
to your refusal to-- to change or to have therapy--
-I had therapy! I had therapy! -To make any fucking effort at all to be normal!
It all goes back to you, and I'm fucking sick of it,
and I am fucking sick of you!
Hon, do you want some pizza?
Honey...
would you like some pizza?
[door slams]
Luke, mate. Grub's up.
Can't have one fucking good day. One fucking good day.
[haunting music playing]
[music continues]