Blithe spirit act 1, scene 1.

you go and meet her, darling. (a1, s1)

I’ve lent my bike up against that little bush, it will be perfectly alright if no one touches it.

my dear madame arcati! (a1, s1)

im afraid im rather late; but i had a sudden presentiment that I was going to have a puncture so I went back to fetch my pump. (take off coat) and then, of course, it turns out I didn’t have a puncture at all.

perhaps you will on the way home. (a1, s1)

Doctor bradman! the man with gentle hands!

i’m glad to see you looking so well. this is my wife (a1, s1)

we are old friends - we meet coming out of shops

would you like a cocktail? (a1, s1)

if its a dry martini yes, if its a concoction no. experience has taught me to be very wary of concoctions.

its a dry martini. (a1, s1)

how delicious. it was wonderful cycling through the woods this evening, i was deafened with bird song.

its been lovely all day. (a1, s1)

but the evenings the time mark my words! Thank you! cheers, cheers!

dont you find it very tiring bicycling everywhere? (a1, s1)

on the contrary it stimulates me. i was getting far too sedentary in london. that horrid little flat with the dim lights, they had to be dim you know - the clients except it.

i must say i find bicycling very exhausting. (a1, s1)

steady rhythm thats what counts. Once you get the knack of it you need never look back! on you get and away you go.

but the hills madame arcati; pushing up those awful hills. (a1, s1)

just knack again. down with your head and up with your heart, and your over the top like a flash and skimming down the other side like a dragon fly. this is the best martini ive had in years.

will you have another? (a1, s1)

certainly. your a very clever man mr. Condamine, anybody can write books, but it takes a genius to make a dry martini thats dry enough.

Are you writing anything nowadays madame arcati? (a1, s1)

every morning, regular as clockwork. seven till one.

is it a novel or a memoir? (a1, s1)

its a childrens book. I have to finish it by the end of october to catch the christmas sales. Its mostly about very small animals, the hero is a moss beetle. (mrs bradman laughs) unfortunately i had to give up my memoir about princess palitini, i talked to her about it the other day and she implored me to go on with it but, i really hadn’t had the heart.

you talked to her about it the other day? (a1, s1)

yes through my control of course, she sounded very irritable.

i expect its dreadfully ignorant for me not to know but - who was princess palitani? (a1, s1)

she was originally a jewess from odessa of quite remarkable beauty. it was an accepted fact that people used to stand on the seats of railway stations just to watch her wizz by.

she was a keen traveler? (a1, s1)

in her younger days, yes. later on she met a mr clarke in the consular service and settled down for a while.

how did she become Princess pallitani? (a1, s1)

that was years later. Mr clarke passed and left her penniless with two strapping girls.

how unpleasant. (a1, s1)

she had cousins there. some years later she met old pallitani who was returning from a secret mission in japan. he was immediately staggered by her beauty and very shortly afterwards married her. from then on her life became very interesting.

….what happened to the girls? (a1, s1)

she neither saw nor spoke to them for twenty three years.

how extraordinary. (a1, s1)

not at all. she was always very erratic emotionally.

…thank you edith, shall we? (a1, s1)

no red meat, i hope?

…would you rather have an egg or something?(a1, s1)

no thank you. its just that i make it a rule to not eat red meat before i work, it sometimes had a odd effect..

what sort of effect? (a1, s1)

oh, nothing of the least importance. if its not very red, it wont matter much. Anyhow, we shall risk it!