The Coroner Page #7

CLINT:

To be honest, you’re the only person I’ve met today who hasn’t tried to

scratch my back.

MRS BLACKSTONE:

See what I mean?

CLINT:

What’s your number?

[MRS BLACKSTONE TAKES THE PIECE OF PAPER

AND WRITES HER NUMBER DOWN. SHE TURNS IT

OVER AND READS THE BACK]

MRS BLACKSTONE:

Don’t get yourself mixed up in gambling. I lost my first husband to the

horses.

[CLINT LOOKS AT THE PAPER. IT’S THE PIECE THAT

PRINCE GAVE HIM:
A GAMBLING CHIT]

CUT TO:

EP2/SC34. EXT/INT. DORA’S HOUSE. DAY 1. 14:01

DORA, JANE, DAVEY

[DORA OPENS HER FRONT DOOR REVEALING

DAVEY AND JANE. DORA POKES HER HEAD OUT TO

SEE WHETHER THE RANGE ROVER IS STILL

AROUND. IT IS NOT]

JANE:

Just us.

DAVEY:

I’m afraid we still haven’t identified the body.

DORA:

What else do you need?

DAVEY:

Any identifying features you can think of.

[DORA’S SHIFTY]

DORA:

His tooth. I don’t know why I didn’t think of it before. He had a false tooth

here. I think it’s called a canine? Got knocked out in a boxing match.

[JANE REMAINS POKERFACED]

JANE:

It’s up to me to confirm that the body we’ve discovered is Mr Burton. To

make sure I can I need you to tell me whether he had any tattoos.

DORA:

Tattoos?

JANE:

Perhaps like this one? A tattoo of a barcode on his right hip?

[JANE DIGS OUT HER SMARTPHONE AND OPENS

THE TEXT FROM BETH. IT’S A PICTURE OF THE

TATTOO SHE WANTS]

DORA:

Yeah, I think he did.

JANE:

Do you have a picture of him with that tattoo?

DORA:

Don’t think so.

JANE:

If you did I’d be able to sign the death certificate.

[BEAT. DORA NODS]

DORA:

I’ll see if I can find one.

JANE:

Be in touch as soon as you can.

[JANE AND DAVEY TURN THEIR BACKS TO DORA

AND WALK AWAY. FROM THE FRONT WE SEE JANE

THROWING A WINK AT DAVEY, UNSEEN BY DORA]

CUT TO:

EP2/SC35. INT. CORONER’S OFFICE. ENTRANCE / HALLWAY/

OFFICE. DAY 1. 14:34

DAVEY, JANE, CLINT

NSE JOURNALIST:

[JANE AND DAVEY STRIDE BACK INTO THE OFFICE]

DAVEY:

You really gonna let Beth get herself that barcode?

JANE:

She won’t go through with it. I told her I quite fancied the same myself.

Quickest way to stifle your teenager’s fashion choice is to tell them you

want it too.

[JANE SEES THE NSE JOURNALIST AND STRIDES

PAST]

JANE:

Not now.

[WE STAY ON DAVEY AND JANE AS THEY HEAD

INTO THE OFFICE. JANE LOOKS AT HER COMPUTER]

JANE:

Come on Dora.

DAVEY:

You know if she drops herself in it that still leaves us with an unidentified

body?

JANE:

It does, but there’s a big upside for me. Free steak.

[CLINT RETURNS]

CLINT:

(PLACING FILES ON HER TABLE) Four sea-burials from two

undertakers, but none match your man.

JANE:

Which ones were they?

CLINT:

These two were done by Gravelle’s in Brixham and Prince’s in Torquay did

two but they were both females, so…

JANE:

And nothing out of the ordinary?

CLINT:

Not to do with the burials. Sorry. Prince likes a flutter but that’s no crime.

DAVEY:

Likes a what?

CLINT:

Flutter. He gave me his number on the back of a casino chit. Weirdo.

JANE:

Which casino?

[HE PULLS THE CHIT FROM HIS POCKET]

CLINT (CONT’D):

(READING) The Hippodrome.

[JANE AND DAVEY LOOK AT EACH OTHER. JANE’S

COMPUTER PINGS]

JANE:

When it rains…

DAVEY:

She’s emailed?

JANE:

What a lovely picture of Kevin Burton with a barcode tattoo…

[DAVEY LOOKS AT THE COMPUTER SCREEN]

DAVEY:

Has she done that with a biro?

JANE:

She puts the artist in escape artist…

CLINT:

You’ve identified the dead body?

JANE:

We’ve identified a body…

DAVEY:

…but it’s not dead. That photo’s definitely been taken in that house –

JANE:

Best place to hide’s in plain sight.

[JUST AS DAVEY IS ABOUT TO LEAVE, JANE’S

PHONE STARTS RINGING]

JANE:

It’s her.

[THE ROOM SILENCES]

JANE (ON PHONE):

(INNOCENT) Jane Kennedy? Have you? Ok let me just check my

computer…

[BEAT]

JANE (ON PHONE):

Yes, I’ve got it here. And how old is that picture? About five years.

[BEAT]

JANE (ON PHONE):

Yes I think I can, but I’m going to need your signature on the death

certificate too, as his Next of Kin…could you meet me at the police station?

Soon as you can. Sorry for your loss.

[JANE BEAMS AND HANGS UP]

DAVEY:

We’ll get her on perverting the course of justice.

JANE:

And Burton?

DAVEY:

Here’s hoping he’s home alone…

[THEY ALL HEAD OUT]

CUT TO:

EP2/SC36. EXT. DORA’S HOUSE. DAY 1. 14:56

DAVEY:

NSE POLICE OFFICERS

[SEVERAL POLICE CARS SILENTLY SPEED UP TO

DORA’S. DAVEY HOPS OUT OF ONE. HE WALKS TO

DORA’S FRONT DOOR AND KNOCKS. NOTHING.

DAVEY THEN MOVES AROUND THE SIDE OF THE

HOUSE AND PEERS THROUGH A WINDOW]

CUT TO:

EP2/SC37. INT/EXT. DORA’S HOUSE. DAY 1. 14:57

DAVEY:

NSE KEVIN BURTON

[DAVEY’S HEAD PEERS THROUGH THE WINDOW,

AND, LIKE A RABBIT IN THE HEADLIGHTS, NSE

KEVIN BURTON STANDS IN THE MIDDLE OF HIS

LIVING ROOM. A MOMENT’S STILLNESS BEFORE HE

SPRINTS TOWARDS THE BACK DOOR]

CUT TO:

EP2/SC38. EXT. DORA’S HOUSE. BACK GARDEN. DAY 1. 14:58

DAVEY:

NSE KEVIN, NSE POLICE OFFICERS

DAVEY:

He’s running!

[DAVEY SPRINTS AROUND THE SIDE OF THE HOUSE

AND INTO THE BACK GARDEN. UP AHEAD, KEVIN

LEAPS OVER A FENCE. DAVEY FOLLOWS]

CUT TO:

EP2/SC39. EXT. BACK ALLEYS. DAY 1. 14:59

DAVEY:

NSE KEVIN:

[DAVEY DROPS DOWN INTO THE ALLEY AND

CONTINUES CHASING]

CUT TO:

EP2/SC40. EXT. FIELD. DAY 1. 15:01

DAVEY, HARVEY

NSE KEVIN, NSE POLICE OFFICERS, NSE HEAVY

[KEVIN’S GAINING DISTANCE ON DAVEY. KEVIN

BREAKS OUT OF THE ALLEYWAY AND INTO A

FIELD BUT HIS PATH’S BLOCKED BY THE RANGE

ROVER. HE JUMPS AND SKIDS OVER THE HOOD

AND CARRIES ON. OUT OF THE BACK OF THE CAR

LEAPS HARVEY WHO RUGBY TACKLES HIM. WITH

KEVIN PINNED HARVEY PULLS HIS ARM BACK

READY TO BEAT HIS HEAD INTO MINCEMEAT

BUT…]

DAVEY:

Don’t even think about it.

HARVEY:

Where’s my money?!

DAVEY:

Hand him over.

[RELUCTANTLY, HARVEY DOES THE RIGHT THING.

HE PICKS KEVIN UP OFF THE GROUND AND

LITERALLY HANDS HIM OVER]

DAVEY:

Kevin Burton, you’re pretty fast for a dead man.

[OUT ON DAVEY, DELIGHTED HE’S CAUGHT HIS

MAN]

CUT TO:

EP2/SC41. INT. POLICE STATION. LOBBY. DAY 1. 15:12

JANE, CLINT, DORA

NSE POLICE OFFICERS

[JANE WAITS IN THE POLICE STATION LOBBY FOR

HER LOBSTER, CLINT REAPPEARS, EXCITED]

CLINT:

She’s pulling up.

[SEVERAL NSE POLICE OFFICERS LIE IN WAIT. THE

DOORS SWING OPEN AND THE LOBSTER ENTERS]

JANE:

Bad news or good news?

DORA:

Good news.

JANE:

Good news is your boyfriend’s alive. Bad news is you’re about to be

arrested for perverting the course of justice…

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