8 November 2023

Cheryl's blurred view of Kath

We are treated to a blurred ‘Cheryl-eye-view’ of Kath, Cassie and Kelly calling her name.   

"We should take her to hospital"

Kelly comes to the conclusion that they have to take her to hospital;  “There’s no time for an ambulance – I’ll take her in the car and Jason can come with me,” says Kelly.

"Everyone should stay here"

Mathew is against this, insisting that everyone should just stay there 

"I can't believe this is happening again!"

and Rhys cannot believe this is happening again.   

This is more than drunkenness

Howard wonders if she is simply drunk and it is pointed out that she was fine a minute ago.   

She is helped by Kelly and Jason 

Supported by Jason and Kelly, Cheryl is helped outside, while the rest of the participants look very shocked.   Kath demands whether they are phoning the police, but Cassie reminds her that they do not know whether Cheryl has been spiked;  Rhys is adamant that she must have been – and that someone there is responsible.   They all look at each other.

Diane's TV-witching is disturbed

Diane is watching something amusing on the television when there is a knock at the door;  

There is no-one to be seen . . .

she looks outside but can see no-one.   

. . . but then she screams with horror

Then she notices something on the doorstep and recoils in horror with a scream.

"What sort of person would do that?"

At Llwyncelyn, Gaynor asks, “What sort of person would leave a dead chicken on someone’s doorstep?”   

"Do you think they're behind those letters?"

Hywel does not know the answer to that and she continues, “Do you think whoever’s responsible is behind those letters?   

"I'm phoning the police"

“I’m phoning the police!”

He thinks this is something to do with Penrhewl 

He tells her not to do that, but she is worried what they will do next.   “I’m sure this is something to do with Penrhewl,” he says. “Involving the police could slow down the process.”

Gaynor cannot understand why he is so concerned about this planning application and he merely answers that it is complicated.   

"OK – it's none of my business"

“OK – it’s none of my business!” she sighs.

They sit around in the Deri

In the Deri, everyone is sitting around in a anxious condition as Cassie is talking on the phone;  

"The police will be at least two hours"

“Right, well, the police are busy and will be at least two hours.”   Rhys insists that is not good enough as this is a crime scene.

"I suggest that we all go home"

“I suggest that we all go home and then the police will see you individually,” says Cassie, 

"No – everyone has to stay here!"

but Mathew is adamant that everyone has to stay there.   Kath does not want to be locked in a pub where someone has done that to Cheryl.

"Everyone here is a suspect"

“Everyone here is a suspect – we have to wait for the police!” instructs Rhys, and Howard moans that it could take ages.   “Someone in this room is ‘spiking’ people – it’s happened twice here.”   

"You weren't in the Deri when it happened to you"

Kath stresses that Rhys was not in the Deri when it happened to him and he explains that he took a drink from there and drank it at the party;    “Someone here is ‘spiking’ people!”

"All right, Columbo"

“All right, Columbo,” sneers Howard and it is decided that they will all stay there until the police arrive.

Gaynor has cleaned up the blood

Gaynor has managed to get rid of the blood from the doorstep;  “And the chicken is in the bin, in case you change your mind about going to the police.”

"What?   In case they need its fingerprints?"

“What?   In case they need its fingerprints, is it?” he jokes, and then adds that he is grateful for everything she has done.   She picks up the letter and studies it, pointing out that it says he is going to pay for what he did.

"So what have you done that has upset people?"

“So what have you done with this planning application that has upset people?” she wants to know.   He does not believe that it refers to Penrhewl, 

"I think this is about the accident"

but rather to the accident – somebody knows what he did.

"That was ages ago"

She reminds him that it was ages ago 

"I've been having trouble with Britt lately"

and he also confesses that he has been having trouble with Britt lately, but does not know if she is responsible.

"I could stay in the spare room tonight"

Gaynor volunteers that she could stay tonight in the spare room, if he does not want to be alone.   

Then there is a repeated knocking at the door and she goes to investigate.   

"Sorry for calling so late . . ."

It is Diane, who apologises for calling so late.

". . . I've just found a dead chicken on my doorstep"

“I had to come and tell you – I’ve just found a dead chicken on the doorstep,” she says;  he reveals he has had the same experience.   

"This has to be connected with Penrhewl"

“This has to have something to do with Penrhewl’s chicken shed plans.”

"But you're against the plans"

Hywel points out that he is in favour of the plans and she is against, so why would someone target both of them.   

“Well, as it happens,” Diane replies, “I’m thinking of voting in favour now – but no-one’s supposed to know that.”   

"We still don't know who did it"

Gaynor says that leaves them in the same position of not knowing who did it.

"I won't let anyone bully me!"

Diane is adamant, “I won’t let anybody bully me into changing my opinion!”

"Any chance of a pint?"

In the Deri, Howard asks Cassie for a pint, and Mathew continues his pondering;  “Is anyone here tonight who was here when Rhys was ‘spiked’?”

"So many people come and go"

Cassie cannot remember, as so many people come and go;  “I want to sort this out – I don’t want this place to get a bad name,” she insists.   Howard is still asking for his pint.

"Was anyone acting oddly?"

“Was someone acting oddly – or did someone have something against Cheryl?” asks Rhys;  

Howard helps himself to a bottle

meanwhile Howard comes round to the other side of the bar and helps himself to a bottle.   He maintains that if he has to stay there, he deserves a drink.

"Was he here that night?"

Mathew demands whether Howard was there on the night of the party;  

"He's here quite often, isn't he?"

Kath replies that he is there quite often these days.

They look accusingly at Howard

Rhys jumps to another conclusion that Howard is responsible, but is asked why Howard would ‘spike’ him.   Mathew suggests that perhaps Rhys was not the target and they look accusingly along the bar.  

"Was it you?"

“Was it you?” Rhys demands.

"The murder?   I've lost the piece of paper"

“The murder?   I don’t know – I lost the piece of paper,” says Howard;   

"Did you 'spike' Cheryl?"

Rhys demands whether he ‘spiked’ Cheryl – and simply wants him to answer the question.

"Just empty your pockets!"

“There’s no need for that,” Mathew interrupts, “Just empty your pockets and we’ll see if it was you!   I won’t ask again – empty your pockets!”   

"Who are you?   The drugs squad?"

Howard refuses, demanding whether they are the drugs squad;  

"It was you!"

now Rhys is even more confident that Howard is the perpetrator, but it is suggested that perhaps Rhys did it.

“I heard rumours that you ‘spiked’ yourself – your plan backfired, did it?   It’s a bit of a coincidence that you’re here when Cheryl’s ‘spiked’ as well.”

"I know him and I trust him!"

Mathew squares up to him, quite sure that it was not Rhys;  “I know him and I trust him!”   Howard hopes that will stand up in court, but Rhys is now even more insistent that he should empty his pockets.

“What’s the point?   You’ve all decided I’m guilty, anyway!” snarls Howard.   

"Text from Jason"

Kath stops them, having just received a text from Jason, saying that Cheryl is going to be all right and they are taking her home now.   

"They suspect she has been 'spiked'"

They do suspect that she has been ‘spiked’.

"Who else here is an ex-con?"

Rhys grabs Howard and demands, “Who else here is an ex-con?”   

"You need some evidence, Rhys"

Cassie reminds him that he needs evidence before accusing Howard.

"The pigs know where I live"

Howard snarls, “Stuff this!   I’m going home – the pigs know where I live, and if they think I’m guilty, they can come and find me.”   

"It's him, beyond all doubt!"

In Rhys’ rather warped estimation, this proves that he is the perpetrator.

"Right, there's no point phoning the police"

At Llwyncelyn, they have agreed that there is no point phoning the police, with Hywel concerned that it could affect the planning permission.   

"We still don't know who is responsible"

Gaynor comments that they still do not know who is responsible, 

"I suppose it should be Eileen"

but Diane suspects that it could be Eileen.

“Why would Eileen want to target me?” asks Hywel, and Diane had heard that the meeting got messy, so as he was chairing it, she may be angry with him.

“And Kelly lives with me – perhaps the chicken was meant for her.”   

"That may be a possibility"

Hywel agrees that may be a possibility, but now Diane must go and leave them in peace.   She did not realise that Gaynor was back at Llwyncelyn, 

"I just wanted to spend some time with Esther"

so Gaynor explains that she just wanted to spend some time with Esther.

"Well, what a night!"

“Well – what a night!” Gaynor exclaims, after Diane has gone;  Hywel concedes that it could be anyone, as he has upset so many people lately.

"Rhys and I aren't on the best of terms"

“Rhys and I aren’t on the best of terms,” 

"He would never do this!"

but Gaynor is convinced that Rhys would not do this.   “Whoever it is, they want to frighten me and they know where I live,” he says.

She suggest that if he does not feel safe there, perhaps he should move out, but he thinks that he will have to stop making so many enemies.   

"I can count on one hand how many people like me"

“I can count on one hand how many people like me at the moment,” he groans.   

"We all make mistakes, Hywel"

Gaynor remarks that they all make mistakes.

“Listen, what you said earlier about staying . . .” he begins, 

"What?"

but Gaynor’s phone rings;  she receives the alarming news about Cheryl being ‘'spiked'’ 

"I've got to go back to Maes-y-Deri!"

and confirms that she will come back to Maes-y-Deri immediately. 

"Not until tomorrow?"

Cassie is once again on the phone to the police, who inform her that they will not be available to attend until tomorrow morning;  

"They say they're too busy"

“They said they’re too busy.   I’ve got everyone’s details and I’ll pass them on to the police.”

"So they just don't care!"

“So they don’t care that someone’s going around ‘spiking’ people!” snaps Rhys and Cassie stresses that no-one is angrier than her that this has happened in the Deri.   

"We have to let the police do their job"

However they simply have to wait and let the police do their job.

A group of unhappy villagers

“Any one of us here could have spiked Cheryl – including you!” she stresses, 

Cassie's comment was aimed squarely at Rhys

looking at Rhys, “So I suggest that you stop going round, pointing the finger, until we know what has happened.   Now go home, please.”

Cheryl is brought back to Maes-y-Deri . . . 

Kelly arrives with Cheryl at Maes-y-Deri;  

. . . and settled on the sofa

sitting her down on the sofa, she will make a cup of tea, “Or if you want to go to bed, I’ll stay and explain everything to Gaynor.   And the police will probably want a statement at some point.”

The door opens

Then they hear the door open 

Gaynor is very worried

and Gaynor comes in, very worried about her sister.   Kelly says that she is going to be fine, but the doctors want them to keep an eye on her.   

"We have no idea who did it"

They have no idea who ‘spiked’ her, and Kelly will now leave them, telling them to shout if they need anything.   

"Oh, Cheryl!"

Gaynor hugs her sister.

The boys are back at the shop flat

In the shop flat, Mathew brings Rhys a cup of tea;  

"I don't want to accept a drink from anyone"

“This is really stupid, but I don’t want to accept a drink from anyone at the moment,” groans Rhys.   Mathew assures him that he is not the one going round ‘spiking’ people.

"Is this how girls feel all the time?"

“I know it’s not you – but is this how girls feel all the time?   Having to have eyes in the back of their heads?”   Mathew appreciates that it is not a joke, not knowing who to trust.   

"I trust you, anyway"

Rhys picks up his cup;  “I trust you, anyway.”

Mathew enquires if he really thinks that it was Howard;  

"I don't like not knowing"

“I like to think it was Howard – because I don’t like not knowing,” Rhys groans.

They have done some clearing up

With the Deri closed, Kath and Cassie retire upstairs;  they have cleared up as much as they can.   

"Poor Cheryl!'

“Poor Cheryl – this is going to seriously affect our business – unless they can find the swine who’s doing it,” says Cassie.

"We mustn't get ahead of ourselves"

Kath warns they must not get ahead of themselves, but Cassie remembers how people reacted when they thought Colin and Britt had been ‘spiked’ in the Deri.   

"You and me are a good team"

“Do you know what?   Whatever happens, we’ll be all right – because you and me are a good team.   

"Who was the murderer in the end?"

“So who was the murderer in the end, then?   I didn’t have time to read through the notes – I was too busy, wasn’t I?”

“All of us, replies Cassie, “We all had a reason to kill the vicar – and Miss Demeanour.   That was the twist in the end, you see.”   

"Why would I want to kill the vicar?"

Kath cannot understand why she would want to kill the vicar and is told that he did not like her food.   Kath does not consider that a reason to kill someone.

"Well, you can organise the next one"

“Well, you can organise the next one, if you think you can do better, Cassie challenges her.

Cheryl is dozing

As Cheryl is dozing, Gaynor has been phoning the police, who are going to send a detective to talk to Cheryl;  

"They have to catch the swine"

“They have to catch the swine who’s done this to you.”

"No, Gaynor!"

Cheryl does not agree with this;  “No, Gaynor – I want to go to bed – 

"I don't want to involve the police"

“I said I don’t want to involve the police.”   Gaynor suggests that she could rearrange it for tomorrow instead, when Cheryl is feeling better, 

She struggles up the stairs

but she slowly climbs the stairs.

"It's been quite a night"

Now they are back at Bryntirion, Jason remarks that has been quite a night;  

"Do they know who did it?"

Diane asks if they know who did it.   “I have no idea – but I wouldn’t look any further than Howard,” he answers.   

There is an unpleasant smell

Then he wonders what is the smell that he can detect;  “It smells like . . .”

"Someone threw a dead chicken at the front door"

She explains that someone threw a chicken at the front door and it is by the sink.   “It’s probably a protest against Penrhewl’s plans.”   

"Why is it still in the house?"

He demands why it is still in the house, and she replies that it is evidence – and she had also run out of bin-liners.

"Put it in the bin outside, then"

“Put it in the bin outside, then!” he urges her, “Just take it out, will you?   I’m tired – I’m going to bed.”   

Diane does as Jason suggested

She picks up the malodorous item and goes out of the back door.

Cassie brings Cheryl's things

At Maes-y-Deri, there is a tapping at the front door and Gaynor discovers that it is Cassie, who has brought Cheryl’s things from the Deri.   

"She doesn't want to talk to the police . . ."

Gaynor says that she has gone to bed and did not want to talk about what happened;  neither did she want to talk to the police, for some reason.

". . . probably something to do with the drugs"

Gaynor suspects that it may be something to do with the drugs;  she asks if Cassie saw anything, or anyone acting oddly.

"We can't understand who would want to do that"

“Look, we’ve been going over it again and again – and we can’t understand who would want to do such thing to poor Cheryl.   The sooner police investigate, the better – so we can catch the swine!”

Diane has found something in the bin . . .

Having disposed of the chicken, Diane comes back inside, carrying a small packet which she has discovered, 

. . . Flunitrazepam tablets

containing some tablets.   She is obviously jumping to a conclusion, which happens too often in Cwmderi.

Hywel is brooding . . .

Hywel is sitting, brooding, on the sofa in Cwmderi;  

. . . and looks again at the letter

he picks up the letter and looks at it again.

Diane looks up 'Flunitrazepam' . . .

Diane is searching on her laptop for ‘Flunitrazepam’, the name on the packet of tablets, 

. . . and is shocked by what she finds

and discovers that it is that another name for ‘Rohypnol’.   

"Oh – Jason!"

“Oh – Jason!” she sighs.