Suffragette Page #6

---

SONNY (CONT’D)

(to GEORGE)

Go on.

(to Maud)

Off you go.

On MAUD hurrying over VIOLET.

VIOLET:

You ready?

Yeah.

MAUD:

VIOLET hands her a small posy of flowers, white, purple and

green - the suffrage colours. MAUD takes it, smiles, pinning

it to her lapel as they head off up the street, spirits high.

VIOLET:

Here you are Maud. You gotta look

the part ain’t ya?

EXT. COURTYARD. HOUSE OF COMMONS. LONDON. 1913. DAY.

ON MAUD, EDITH, ALICE AND VIOLET as they move through a

growing crowd of SUFFRAGETTES, gathering around the HOUSE OF

COMMONS steps, a sense of excitement, MAUD and OTHERS smiling

at its heart. A SINGING SUFFRAGETTE stands by a POLICEMAN

guarding the gates - ‘March Of The Women’ the Suffragette

anthem carrying across the crowd. The atmosphere is almost

festive. MAUD filled with excited anticipation, her arms

locked in VIOLET’s.

ALICE:

(craning to see)

Can you see anything?

MAUD:

They haven’t opened the doors yet.

VIOLET turns on seeing MISS EMILY WILDING DAVISON [early

40s].

Suddenly a door opens, the sense of MINISTERS about to exit.

A PRESS PACK of JOURNALISTS SURGE FORWARD-

MAUD (CONT’D)

Is that him?

The crowd livelier now, MAUD jostles with the OTHERS, all

craning to see over the tops of heads towards the steps.

EXCITED CHATTER ALL AROUND.

SEVERAL PRESS PHOTOGRAPHERS stand, cameras held in waiting-

LLOYD GEORGE emerges mounting the steps, paper in hand,

BENEDICT close behind.

MAUD, ALICE, EDITH and VIOLET all move towards the steps. The

SNAP of PRESS CAMERAS and MURMUR OF JOURNALISTS LOOKING FOR

COMMENT.

LLOYD GEORGE:

The Prime Minister duly reviewed

all the women’s testimonies. After

careful debate with a number of

MP’s very sympathetic to the

women’s cause, it was carried that

there was not the evidence to

support any change to the Suffrage

Bill.

What?

VIOLET:

HECKLES FROM THE CROWD. LOUD JEERING.

MAUD stares dumbfounded. Her eyes meet VIOLET’s, similarly

shocked.

JOURNALIST:

No votes for women then, Sir?

LLOYD GEORGE:

No, no votes.

MAUD:

But Mr Lloyd George listened. He

took it all down.

RISING JEERS as the men make their way towards an awaiting

CARRIAGE, POLICE PROTECTION shielding them from the crowd.

EDITH:

Sham. Sham!

On MAUD, the full realisation hitting her as she is pushed

forward, her face stinging with the betrayal as she watches

LLOYD GEORGE, catching his gaze as he climbs into his waiting

car.

EXT. COURTYARD. HOUSE OF COMMONS. LONDON. 1913. DAY.

MAUD, EDITH, ALICE, VIOLET and OTHERS watching the departing

MINISTERS. MISS SAMSON and MISS WITHERS dots in the crowd.

EDITH:

Liar..Liar..

ON MAUD, falling into CHANTING WITH THE OTHER WOMEN.

MAUD:

Liar..Liar..Liar..

The CHANTS OF THE WOMEN GROWING, LINKING ARMS TOGETHER.

WOMEN:

Liar..Liar..

The JEERS louder-

WOMEN bang their hands against the windows of LLOYD GEORGE’S

official CAR.

A wall of MOUNTED POLICE emerge from the House of Commons.

A barricade of POLICE OFFICERS shove and push at the crowd.

POLICE OFFICER:

Come on now, you’ve had your fun.

Get back.

INCREASING NOISE all around. The tension building as MORE AND

MORE WOMEN see the POLICE OFFICERS, arming themselves ready

to attack, pushing forward, seeping into the crowd. Behind,

STEED moves towards an OFFICER, caught amongst the fray.

The POLICE OFFICERS lunge at the WOMEN as peaceful protest

dissolves into violent attack. The WOMEN caught unawares by

this sudden, brutal onslaught. The SINGING SUFFRAGETTE is

brutally beaten with a truncheon.

MAUD:

Hey! Leave her alone!

ON MAUD, panic and terror overwhelming her, cornered with the

crowd kettled against a wall.

MAUD is pulled down to the ground by a LARGE OFFICER.

EDITH caught in a headlock by the two OFFICERS. The SMASH of

a truncheon against her head as she refuses to concede.

STEED looks on, impassive.

EMILY is grabbed from behind.

EMILY:

Unhand me!

The LARGE OFFICER arrests MAUD, dragging her by the hair

towards a waiting POLICE VAN. Blood falling across the

pavement as EDITH is manhandled into the van.

STEED looking on as MAUD is hurled violently into the back of

the van.

VIOLET is thrown into the van after EDITH. ALICE desperately

pushes her way towards the OTHERS, trying to help them. She

is dragged by an OFFICER towards the van.

ALICE:

Get off me... Get off me...

INT. RECEPTION/CORRIDOR.POLICE STATION.WESTMINSTER.1913.DAY.

CLOSE on MAUD, waiting in custody, wavering on seeing-

ALICE with a newly arrived BENEDICT. He stands at the

counter, hurriedly writing a cheque, about to hand it to the

POLICE OFFICER.

BENEDICT:

How much is bail?

OFFICER:

Two pounds, sir.

ALICE:

No, Benedict, you must bail all the

women. I cannot be the only one to

go free. Benedict please-

ALICE snatches the cheque out of his hands, reaching for a

pencil.

BENEDICT:

I will not.

ALICE:

How much is the sum?

OFFICER:

Two pounds, each.

ALICE:

Twelve pounds to release all the

women. Please sign it.

(silence)

It’s my money. My money.

BENEDICT turns on ALICE gripping her tightly by the arm.

BENEDICT:

(close to)

But you’re my wife. And you’ll act

like a wife. I have humoured you

Alice, thus far but... this is an

outrage.

(to Officer)

Thank you.

ALICE fumes. BENEDICT straightens his coat, nods to the

POLICE OFFICER and then waiting, turning to ALICE.

BENEDICT (CONT’D)

Come on.

On ALICE, reluctantly following BENEDICT.

INT. INTERVIEW ROOM. POLICE STATION. WESTMINSTER. 1913. DAY.

MAUD sits at a wooden table, bruised and in shock, her eyes

quietly following the steady TICK TICK of the clock overhead,

edging towards six. STEED enters and sits.

MAUD:

I have to fetch my son by six.

(silence)

I’m late. He’ll need his tea.

STEED:

You won’t be home for tea.

STEED clocks the wedding ring on her finger, MAUD seeing

this, hands shaking, she presses them firm in her lap.

STEED (CONT’D)

Would you like me to contact your

husband, Mrs Watts?

On MAUD, panic rising, desperately trying to keep it in.

MAUD hesitates. STEED nods, calm, letting the silence hang-

STEED (CONT’D)

(close to)

I picked up a suffragette last week

-

MAUD:

(sudden)

I’m not a suffragette.

STEED:

Rough little diamond. In her

bloomers? Three bricks. Works for

Mrs Pankhurst directly. I asked her

why she does it. She said it makes

her life worth something.

(close to)

She’s just the hod carrier.

MAUD:

I’m not a suffragette.

STEED:

I’m glad. You know they say that

the way in which certain types of

women have acted in the past months

gives a good deal of colour to the

argument that the mental

equilibrium of the female sex is

less than that of the male’s. But I

don’t agree. There’s no madness in

it. They know exactly what they’re

doing. But my opinion doesn’t

matter. My job is to enforce the

law, Mrs Watts. So I’m going to

give you some advice now and I

sincerely hope you take it. You’ll

serve your time now. At worst

you’ll get a week. Then you go home

to your husband.

Rate this script:3.0 / 2 votes