4 men, 1 woman.

ACT ONE SCENE ONE January 15 l947
A large room with a table and several chairs.
It’s a cluttered bed-sit with old newspapers, clothes and rags all over the place.
HARRY is typing a letter and listening to the radio

RADIO
(v/o)
‘Here is the nine o’clock news from the BBC Home Service.
(He moves the tuner to try and get a better sound and loses it to Mozart)
Mr. Bevin, denounced what he called the murderous terrorists
(strains from Don Giovanni)
the British Mandate in Palestine
(Mozart intercuts)
blew up the King David Hotel in Jerusalem last year
(back to Mozart)
raided banks in Jaffa and sabotaged police compounds….’
(Mozart)

Harry sings the Mozart with the radio as he searches among the clutter. He finds his army uniform, puts it on. For a few moments he marks time on the spot. The door opens.
MAX enters with a black leather bag.
He passes it to HARRY who takes it gingerly and opens it.
HARRY takes out a revolver and whistles.
He returns it to the bag which he hides under the table

HARRY
How many?

MAX
Three Stens. Two Enfields.

HARRY
Anyone see you?

MAX
What you take me for?
(HARRY takes off his uniform and gets back into his own clothes)

HARRY
You’re late. I was anxious.

MAX
No buses. I had to walk

HARRY
(BEAT)
Did you shave this morning?

MAX
Yeh.

HARRY
Not ‘yeh’. Yes

MAX
The fog’s so thick, conductor walks in front of his bus with a torch. I gets off and I can’t even see my own hand in front of me. And it’s brass monkey out there. Can’t you light that fire?

HARRY
(He picks up solitary lump of coal and shrugs)

MAX
Any tea going?

HARRY
What am I? A nippy in Lyon’s Corner House? How is she?

MAX
Mrs Gold?

HARRY
Yes

MAX
Fine

HARRY
That’s all?

MAX
A bit nervous

HARRY
Nervous. We’re all bloody nervous. Was she alone?

MAX
Yeh

HARRY
Good (SILENCE) What’s up?

MAX
What?

HARRY
I can smell it. There’s something.

MAX
Nothing

HARRY
Was she careful?

MAX
She’s done it before hasn’t she?

HARRY
What?

MAX
Hiding stuff.

HARRY
Don’t ask questions

MAX
She asked plenty

HARRY
Oh?

MAX
About you.

HARRY
And what did you say

MAX
Schtum .

HARRY
Was her kid there? What’s his name?

MAX
Adam. He’s away. No one saw nothing.

HARRY
If you say so.

MAX
What you writing?

HARRY
Letter to The Times.

MAX
(takes the letter and reads)
Dear Sir, Lord Balfour promised Palestine to the Jews as a homeland.We Jews fought and died in the British Army fighting fascism and how are we rewarded? With the Foreign Secretary waving The White Paper, in our faces. And what does it say? “No more Jews in Palestine” .
(HARRY takes the letter and rips it up)

HARRY
Waste of time.

MAX
Dresden. Berlin. Hanover. All those bombs. (BEAT) Why not the railway?

HARRY
What you on about?

MAX
It really bothers me you know that.

HARRY
What?

MAX
Auschwitz.

HARRY
Oh that

MAX
Why didn’t we bomb it?

HARRY
Because ‘we. That is Churchill didn’t want to risk English pilots/

MAX
They knew all about it. Back in ’43

HARRY
/just to save the Yids

MAX
A few bombs on those tracks and think how many lives

HARRY
(interrupts)
would have been banging on the doors to get to Palestine?

MAX
When did you get involved with all this?

HARRY
Questions, questions.

MAX
You want to go there?

HARRY
Where?

MAX
Palestine.

HARRY
Don’t you?

MAX
I want to see Jaffa. Haifa. Tel Aviv. Jerusalem.

HARRY
Where it stinks of God?

MAX
What does that mean?

HARRY
I want a state but I don’t want all that religious nonsense

MAX
Who do you support? Menachim Begin?

HARRY
The Pole? I don’t care about names. I just want the Brits out (picking up ripped pieces of paper) Maybe I should’ve sent this.

MAX
No. HARRY Why not?

MAX
If they check up on you….

HARRY
Paranoid. (BEAT) Irene Gold

MAX
What about her?

HARRY
Something’s up

MAX
No it’s not.

HARRY
You said she was asking questions?

MAX
She sends her love.

HARRY
What?

MAX
Or was it regards?

HARRY
You look guilty.

MAX
Me?

HARRY
You and her?

MAX
What about it?

HARRY
Something happen?

MAX
Any tea going?

HARRY
Later.

MAX
Dry as a wooden crate.

HARRY
What?

MAX
Never mind.

HARRY
Why a wooden crate?

MAX
Shall I boil some hot water then? HARRY Wait til the others get here. I don’t want you schlepping all over the house

MAX
How long you got this place?

HARRY
A few months

MAX
What happened to your manor?

HARRY
Hilda’s there

MAX
Kick you out did she? SILENCE

HARRY
(shivers)
You’re right. It is brass monkey. I could do with a real drink. Warm me up. When did I last have a decent Scotch. (BEAT) You didn’t finish

MAX
What?

HARRY
Irene Gold.

MAX
Oh her.

HARRY
Well? What was she asking?

MAX
I had to….

HARRY
What?

MAX
You know

HARRY
Do I?

MAX
She was jumpy about the stuff

HARRY
What?

MAX
I had to ‘calm her down’.

HARRY
You shtupped her. Is that what you’re telling me?