The Great Fire (2014) s01e03 Episode Script
Episode 3
(GLASS SHATTERS) Sarah! David, come on! Run, Hannah! Hanford's visitor carries a box with him at all times.
It's red.
I need you to get it for me.
He's promised me work, ma'am.
How do you know my husband? Mr Pepys knows my wife.
David! David! (INDISTINCT SHOUTS) (SCREAMING) Come with me.
Tomorrow, then.
I'll make certain my brother is there.
(I have to go back.
) (Auntie Sarah thinks David is with us,) (now I have to try and find him.
) ~ You don't even know where David is.
~ He'll be looking for his mother.
I'll try her employer's house, I'll look there.
Just cos his father's dead doesn't mean we have to lose ours too.
Uncle Will isn't dead, he's in the Colonies.
He's left them.
~ David! ~ Mother! ~ David! ~ Mother! ~ I'll do it.
I'll do it - whatever you want.
(BLOWS) (FLOORBOARDS CREAK) MAN: Water! Bring water! ~ The fire still spreads east towards the Tower? ~ Yes, sir.
Good morning, Your Majesty.
Good morning.
Well, it isn't, really.
Neither good, nor morning.
What are you doing? The wind is still gaining strength.
According to reports, the fire has already reached Queen Hythe on the water here in the west.
In the north, the Royal Exchange is threatened.
And though it burns slower against the wind to the east, it's slowly creeping down Thames Street towards the Tower.
It is unthinkable that it would reach St Paul's? Oh, yes, Majesty.
How long at the current rate of progress until it does? With the wind as it is, I would say about 12 hours.
Where did they put the firebreaks I ordered? Well, sir, you see It is possible that they have not yet actually managed ~ to specifically accede - ~ Speak English, Hyde, for God's sake.
He means they have not made the firebreaks you asked for.
Why not? The trouble was, Your Majesty, that each householder would have demanded compensation for his loss.
It was not a request, Lord Hyde.
It was not an invitation to hold a committee or set up an inquiry.
It was an order, a straight bloody order.
I want it carried out today.
Now.
~ Is that clear? ~ Your Majesty.
I'll go out and see how they fare first hand.
Why don't we send Hyde? I I must go myself.
(GENTLE SNORING) (FAINT CLATTERING) Sarah.
No, Tom.
Go.
Walk away! Hello.
What's this? ~ Please, walk away.
~ Sarah, what's wrong? I can't talk now.
~ Where did you go? ~ Please don't ask questions.
~ You have to leave! ~ Sarah, where did you get to? ~ Tom ~ Mistress Farriner.
~ You were with him.
~ No.
No.
~ No, Tom, it's not what you think.
~ Isn't it? ~ No.
Shall I take him? David is in Newgate.
~ What? ~ They're holding him there.
Get him, Tom.
Get him.
It's going to burn.
Promise me.
Promise me.
Promise me.
Why was the baker here? He was just checking that I was all right.
I told him I was.
Yes.
Well, why did he stand and stare? It's a little embarrassing, my lord.
Oh? He's jealous.
He thinks you are a suitor.
~ Follow him.
~ My lord, there is no need! Please.
Please.
Is it so surprising that he should consider you a likely suitor? My lord, I have done everything you asked.
When can I see my boy? You've cut your hand.
Yes.
Well, he had a dagger beside his bed.
Wait.
Come.
Have no fear, Sarah.
Despite your work, you have fine hands.
Thank you, my lord.
You're a strong woman.
You deserve a better life.
May I have my son now? Only letters, my lord.
No list of conspirators, no plan.
Well, there must be another box.
~ Where did you find this? ~ Right beside his bed.
Right next to him.
You have to take it back and find the one we're looking for.
But, sir it is morning.
Well, let us pray the Spaniard enjoys his sleep.
(CHURCH BELL CHIMES IN DISTANCE) Lizzie? Ruth? What are you doing? The cart I asked for is here.
We pack up everything of value.
Well, look to it, girl! The fire's coming.
What the devil is wrong with you, Lizzie? Why haven't you packed the curtains? If the house burns, we won't need curtains.
They cost me a fortune! I've been made a fool of, Lizzie.
I'm going back to Whitehall to tell the King how Hyde and Lord Ashley undermine his plans.
It's truly an outrage.
They treat him like a child! First I will drop all this at Sir William's house and come back for you.
Who is Mrs Bagwell? I've no idea.
Why? Someone was looking for her.
Perhaps she's a friend of Ruth's.
Remember the wine and the Parmesan cheese in the study.
We should bury it in the garden.
Thank you for meeting like this.
I'm afraid we must delay.
That is not possible.
It is dangerous for the Spaniard to remain here.
A fire consumes the city.
The fire is God's judgment.
It is surely a call to press forward, not retreat.
Sir We have managed to smuggle Signor Romero here under the very noses of Lord Denton and his jackals and we may not get another chance.
We cannot hope to succeed if the moment isn't right, Hanford.
Your Royal Highness .
.
was it not you who first told us the nation cried out for solace? We will only get one chance at this.
Then surely it is better to act today than to wish we had done so tomorrow? I know it is hard for you.
But God will not view this as a betrayal.
Very well.
We will seize the moment.
She's one of Denton's spies.
Sarah? My lord, I merely came in to air the room in our guest's absence.
She's lying.
I was doing my duties, sir.
You're lying, Sarah.
Tell me the truth.
Lord Denton has my son in Newgate, sir.
If I do not give him what he wants, he will not survive the day.
Give him what exactly? He wanted that box.
I caught her trying to put it back.
So he has seen its contents? Yes.
But he told me I had brought him the wrong one.
What did he expect to be in it? I don't know.
He mentioned conspirators, a list - a list of some kind.
We can't let her live.
You know the need for absolute secrecy.
We must deal with them all.
You need to go.
The Duke of York will be waiting for you at the palace and the streets are in chaos.
I will take care of it.
Please, my lord.
Please, please.
He has my son.
You.
~ Did you see the fire? ~ Yes, sir.
And does it spread as quickly as they say? It's burned for two days already.
No-one can stop it.
You know they'll never let us out of here alive? (RUMBLING AND CRASHING) MAN: The wall's come down! Move! Come on, come on! Where are you going? Oi, there's a boy in here! Nothing but a child! Where are you going? No, don't leave us! (PANICKED SHOUTS OF PRISONERS) (CHURCH BELLS CHIME IN DISTANCE) Wait! Wait! I'm looking for my nephew, he's called David Farriner.
~ It's too late.
It's too late! ~ You cannot leave them to burn! I ain't going down there, they'll kill us all! Get up there, put your head through.
Go on, push! Push! I can't.
Get down.
Where are the keys? ~ (PANTS) ~ What's your name? ~ David Farriner.
(PANTS) It may get rough, David Farriner.
So stay close to me.
~ THOMAS: David! ~ Uncle Tom! David, my boy.
I found you, I found you.
Wait, wait.
I've got the keys.
MAN: Hurry, now.
Hurry! Come on! Come on, we ain't got much longer! Let me see those! They're for the leg irons.
There must be another set for the door.
Everyone's gone.
~ Have you ever picked a lock? ~ Never.
I can't do it from this side.
But I can tell you how.
You're gonna need (COUGHS) ~ .
.
a piece of wire or something to probe.
~ (All right.
) And pliers! (COUGHS) Twist with the other hand.
A five-year-old could do it.
(COUGHS) Twist twist.
Gently.
No! (COUGHS) David, go and help the others with their leg irons.
Go on.
You, go.
It won't work - the lock's too stiff, trust me.
I'll take care of the boy.
I'll make it quick.
You won't serve a purpose dying here.
Go.
Go.
Go.
(COUGHS) David, come here, lad.
We need the keys, quickly.
Come on! (PRISONERS SHOUT ENCOURAGEMENT) Come on, come on! (YELLS) Thank you, Tom! We need to go and help your mother.
~ She's with Wickes, we need to find her.
~ He's the one who took us! What? He put me away and forced Mother to do something for him.
He's one of the King's men, he's not who he says he is.
It's all right, it's all right.
~ Hey! ~ What? ~ I need your help.
I need your help.
~ (COUGHS) His mother's with the King's men.
I need you to take him to Moorfields.
My children are there at the southeast corner.
~ I want to come with you.
~ Hannah and Mary are there.
Look after them.
Be strong.
Please? I'll take him there.
I owe you that.
Go on, go.
Come on, boy.
Watch yourself.
Sir, I do not know what enterprise you have embarked on or what it means for the King or the country.
My son is all I want.
Your Highness.
~ Were you seen? ~ No.
Follow me.
One of the benefits of age and experience, Sarah, is that it teaches us who our adversaries are.
Our enemy is the state we're in, not you.
My lord, they are watching you.
I know.
Listen to this.
'Only a brother's trusted hand will yield the result we all desire.
' Who do you suppose stands to benefit most from the death of the King, hm? 'Only a brother's trusted hand.
' It's James.
It's James who wants his brother dead.
And the Spaniard is his assassin.
(HAMMERING AT DOOR) Open in the King's name! Find the Spaniard! Where's the woman? Where is she? Beyond your grasp.
How foolish of me to have missed that.
She seeks only to escape us both.
We give her cause enough.
~ She plotted with you.
~ No.
I take responsibility alone for what we have begun in the service of the one true faith.
Do you really think the people of England will allow themselves to be ruled from Rome? I think the people of England cry out for the kind of sustenance you would never understand, Lord Denton.
He's not here, sir.
The Spaniard's gone.
Whitehall.
Now! No! Agh! To the palace.
What time did it reach Ludgate? I ordered the Queen and the household staff to start packing.
I'll send Hyde and the others with them.
That'll teach them.
Has someone cut out your tongue? What is the meaning of this? Your Majesty, this man before you is plotting with Lord Hanford an attempt on your life.
Is this so? Of course it is not.
He's our mother's priest.
No-one would move through this city unarmed! The letters in this box he carries are evidence of what they intend.
Brother Brother, I can assure you these allegations I know fanatics like Lord Hanford, Your Majesty.
Their object is to remove you from the throne and usher in a new dawn for our country.
Our mother would rather you sat on the throne than I? That is not what she says.
But she's concerned for you.
We all are.
You wish me to convert to Catholicism? I will not speak to you in front of these men, Charles.
You will speak to me wherever I instruct you to.
Yes.
Yes, we wish you to convert.
We fear for the throne you have worked so hard to regain.
We thought if you would consider returning in secret to the true - Have you gone mad? If anyone even knew he was here, they'd cut all our heads off in a heartbeat.
In case you have forgotten, brother, I am the Protestant king of a Protestant country.
I'm not deluded that our countrymen wish to be ruled by Rome! Hear me out, Your Majesty.
I have travelled far If you say another word, I will cut out your tongue.
Is that clear? What if this assault on His Majesty's soul had failed? What would have happened when it became clear his answer was no? They would have your throne, sir.
Charles, that is that is not Charles ~ Where's Elizabeth? ~ Out.
Where? She didn't say.
Why have you not packed up my books? She told me not to bother and to tell you that Mr Bagwell paid her a visit.
Elizabeth? May I come in? Please.
My most difficult client? Oh, a tricky question.
The Comte d'Orleans' mistress in Paris, Isabella.
What did she do to you? She was just exhausting.
That doesn't sound like much of a punishment.
You did not see her.
She danced like an elephant.
~ Boom, boom, boom! ~ (LAUGHS) And my best? Well you dance with a lightness one rarely encounters.
I am sure you say that to all your clients.
Actually, I don't.
You must possess many secrets.
Perhaps I do.
And I imagine you have to be very discreet.
Exceptionally.
Where is Mr Pepys today? With the King by now, I should imagine.
He's a great servant of the state.
But not of his wife.
(KNOCK AT DOOR) Did you tell my wife? Did you tell my wife of my visits here? I went first to the navy yards.
I was looking for work, but I couldn't find you.
So I came to your house.
When your wife asked how I knew you, I said ~ You bloody fool! ~ Sorry, sir.
'Sorry' isn't going to repair the damage you have done.
~ The damage I've done? ~ Yes! ~ The damage ~ I ~ have done? You come round here and despoil us.
You take my wife to bed Peter .
.
and I have to sit here and listen to it.
You speak of the damage I have done.
It is not me who chose to whore out your wife.
I pay good money Do you think we're not human? You've no idea what you've cost me! You've got plenty to pay for it with! You and your kind you've everything whilst we have to scrabble around to find the food to stop our children crying from hunger.
Is there nothing that you would not take from us? That is life, Mr Bagwell.
We cannot interfere with God's purpose.
I'm sorry.
I can't.
Signor Romero.
Unless you help me, the court will find you guilty of treason.
You will then be choked ~ (CHOKES) ~ .
.
on the gallows, before having your intestines drawn out on a spindle.
You will then be slowly cut into quarters before you are dead.
~ Do you understand me? ~ (CHOKES AND SPLUTTERS) (COUGHS) What is the extent of the conspiracy against the King? Who else besides his brother James, Hanford and yourself? No-one.
(CHOKES) Hanford's seamstress Sarah Farriner is she a zealot? Did she offer up herself to start the fire? No! Then she is an innocent? Hanford forced her to act? Tell me and I will end your life with as much mercy as I can.
Is she an innocent? Tell me! Tell me.
(CHOKES) My lord? Sarah Farriner was last seen heading towards Newgate.
Spread the word, there's a reward for her capture.
Oi! You, girl, come here! Come here! It's me.
(THUD) (FOOTSTEPS RETREATING) KING: That's not possible.
How long has St Paul's stood? I fear it is worse than you think, sir.
I believe the group that plotted the attempt on Your Majesty's life also sparked this inferno.
Are you saying that my own brother has fired our city? Can you imagine a more potent distraction, as they strive to topple the throne? Hanford is dead.
But we believe he persuaded one of his loyal servants to start the fire in her lover's bakery.
They will claim it is God's judgment.
I no longer know what to think.
My people are scouring the city for her as we speak.
I've spoken to the Lord Chief Justice.
I suggest we conduct a trial as soon as we have her.
The people will demand it.
We will make them pay for this, Your Majesty.
All of them.
You have accused my brother of not only starting this fire, but betraying me.
You'd better have the proof you speak of.
Leave us.
Did you know of the plot to fire the city? There is no plot.
And if you think that Lord Denton's accusations are proof of anything other than his paranoid imagination, then you do not know me at all.
You seem to forget Lord Denton's paranoid mind has kept me alive.
You have walked so long behind me, it was inevitable you would one day stab me in the back.
I don't want to be you, Charles.
But Mother and I believe that you are lost.
And that you would find steel and discipline and purpose in a return to the true faith.
~ No.
~ Yes, Charles! You dare to talk to me like that? I dare tell you the truth when nobody else will.
Look at yourself.
You're a mess.
An impecunious, whoring dilettante, whose profanity threatens us all.
Have you stopped to ask yourself why it is your officials feel free to so brazenly ignore your orders? No, of course you haven't, because you never stop to ask yourself anything! The city burns.
Somebody must get out there and fight.
Will you lead that charge? You rule by divine right, Charles.
You are the Lord's servant.
You must command.
I can command only what the people desire.
Or have you forgotten our father's fate? The people desire you to fight this fire.
And if you will not command, then I must.
And you will release me to do so.
Or do you think I will lead the mob to rob you of your prized throne? Get out! Sarah, wait! ~ Where is David? ~ He's safe.
~ But where is he? ~ I got him out.
~ We need to go to him.
~ They're still out there.
~ I need to go.
~ Sarah.
I got him out.
He will be on Moorfields by now with the girls.
He's safe.
It's over.
(SIGHS) I knew you'd come.
Thank you, Tom.
We should wait here just a few minutes, until we're sure they've gone.
Elizabeth? Elizabeth? They look like worldly goods worth preserving, my friend.
You must be a rich man.
Where's your house? Shoe Street.
Shoe Street? Nice.
Has it burnt already? Yes.
That's funny, that.
Cos I heard the fire ain't reached that far yet.
And that Shoe Street's been looted.
You were lucky to get away.
The constables have threatened to hang anyone caught thieving.
What they should be doing is stringing up those papist vermin.
It was them that started the fire.
Why would the Catholics want to do that? To seize the throne, my friend.
To ensure that we bow to Rome.
Come on.
Watch yourself.
I hear things down here on my river.
So let's say you did fill your guts with Catholic booty.
I say it's nothing less than a public service.
Everyone else takes what the hell they want.
So why shouldn't we? Tom? Yeah.
When I was in those cells, I met a sailor.
He was on a ship close to the Charity and he said they didn't pick up any survivors.
~ Sarah ~ Wait, Tom.
I have been silent too long.
That sailor protected me.
His kindness made me think about my life and the choices I have made.
My mother always taught me to try hard to see the good in people.
Even flawed men.
But sometimes it's harder to see the good things that are right in front of you.
Sarah, there's something I have to talk to you about.
No, I don't want to hear it.
Not now.
~ Sarah ~ Not now.
Tom.
Grave charges of treason are being made against you, the consequence of which is death.
What say you? If you could get me into the palace so I could speak on my behalf I cannot believe there is no hope.
It's red.
I need you to get it for me.
He's promised me work, ma'am.
How do you know my husband? Mr Pepys knows my wife.
David! David! (INDISTINCT SHOUTS) (SCREAMING) Come with me.
Tomorrow, then.
I'll make certain my brother is there.
(I have to go back.
) (Auntie Sarah thinks David is with us,) (now I have to try and find him.
) ~ You don't even know where David is.
~ He'll be looking for his mother.
I'll try her employer's house, I'll look there.
Just cos his father's dead doesn't mean we have to lose ours too.
Uncle Will isn't dead, he's in the Colonies.
He's left them.
~ David! ~ Mother! ~ David! ~ Mother! ~ I'll do it.
I'll do it - whatever you want.
(BLOWS) (FLOORBOARDS CREAK) MAN: Water! Bring water! ~ The fire still spreads east towards the Tower? ~ Yes, sir.
Good morning, Your Majesty.
Good morning.
Well, it isn't, really.
Neither good, nor morning.
What are you doing? The wind is still gaining strength.
According to reports, the fire has already reached Queen Hythe on the water here in the west.
In the north, the Royal Exchange is threatened.
And though it burns slower against the wind to the east, it's slowly creeping down Thames Street towards the Tower.
It is unthinkable that it would reach St Paul's? Oh, yes, Majesty.
How long at the current rate of progress until it does? With the wind as it is, I would say about 12 hours.
Where did they put the firebreaks I ordered? Well, sir, you see It is possible that they have not yet actually managed ~ to specifically accede - ~ Speak English, Hyde, for God's sake.
He means they have not made the firebreaks you asked for.
Why not? The trouble was, Your Majesty, that each householder would have demanded compensation for his loss.
It was not a request, Lord Hyde.
It was not an invitation to hold a committee or set up an inquiry.
It was an order, a straight bloody order.
I want it carried out today.
Now.
~ Is that clear? ~ Your Majesty.
I'll go out and see how they fare first hand.
Why don't we send Hyde? I I must go myself.
(GENTLE SNORING) (FAINT CLATTERING) Sarah.
No, Tom.
Go.
Walk away! Hello.
What's this? ~ Please, walk away.
~ Sarah, what's wrong? I can't talk now.
~ Where did you go? ~ Please don't ask questions.
~ You have to leave! ~ Sarah, where did you get to? ~ Tom ~ Mistress Farriner.
~ You were with him.
~ No.
No.
~ No, Tom, it's not what you think.
~ Isn't it? ~ No.
Shall I take him? David is in Newgate.
~ What? ~ They're holding him there.
Get him, Tom.
Get him.
It's going to burn.
Promise me.
Promise me.
Promise me.
Why was the baker here? He was just checking that I was all right.
I told him I was.
Yes.
Well, why did he stand and stare? It's a little embarrassing, my lord.
Oh? He's jealous.
He thinks you are a suitor.
~ Follow him.
~ My lord, there is no need! Please.
Please.
Is it so surprising that he should consider you a likely suitor? My lord, I have done everything you asked.
When can I see my boy? You've cut your hand.
Yes.
Well, he had a dagger beside his bed.
Wait.
Come.
Have no fear, Sarah.
Despite your work, you have fine hands.
Thank you, my lord.
You're a strong woman.
You deserve a better life.
May I have my son now? Only letters, my lord.
No list of conspirators, no plan.
Well, there must be another box.
~ Where did you find this? ~ Right beside his bed.
Right next to him.
You have to take it back and find the one we're looking for.
But, sir it is morning.
Well, let us pray the Spaniard enjoys his sleep.
(CHURCH BELL CHIMES IN DISTANCE) Lizzie? Ruth? What are you doing? The cart I asked for is here.
We pack up everything of value.
Well, look to it, girl! The fire's coming.
What the devil is wrong with you, Lizzie? Why haven't you packed the curtains? If the house burns, we won't need curtains.
They cost me a fortune! I've been made a fool of, Lizzie.
I'm going back to Whitehall to tell the King how Hyde and Lord Ashley undermine his plans.
It's truly an outrage.
They treat him like a child! First I will drop all this at Sir William's house and come back for you.
Who is Mrs Bagwell? I've no idea.
Why? Someone was looking for her.
Perhaps she's a friend of Ruth's.
Remember the wine and the Parmesan cheese in the study.
We should bury it in the garden.
Thank you for meeting like this.
I'm afraid we must delay.
That is not possible.
It is dangerous for the Spaniard to remain here.
A fire consumes the city.
The fire is God's judgment.
It is surely a call to press forward, not retreat.
Sir We have managed to smuggle Signor Romero here under the very noses of Lord Denton and his jackals and we may not get another chance.
We cannot hope to succeed if the moment isn't right, Hanford.
Your Royal Highness .
.
was it not you who first told us the nation cried out for solace? We will only get one chance at this.
Then surely it is better to act today than to wish we had done so tomorrow? I know it is hard for you.
But God will not view this as a betrayal.
Very well.
We will seize the moment.
She's one of Denton's spies.
Sarah? My lord, I merely came in to air the room in our guest's absence.
She's lying.
I was doing my duties, sir.
You're lying, Sarah.
Tell me the truth.
Lord Denton has my son in Newgate, sir.
If I do not give him what he wants, he will not survive the day.
Give him what exactly? He wanted that box.
I caught her trying to put it back.
So he has seen its contents? Yes.
But he told me I had brought him the wrong one.
What did he expect to be in it? I don't know.
He mentioned conspirators, a list - a list of some kind.
We can't let her live.
You know the need for absolute secrecy.
We must deal with them all.
You need to go.
The Duke of York will be waiting for you at the palace and the streets are in chaos.
I will take care of it.
Please, my lord.
Please, please.
He has my son.
You.
~ Did you see the fire? ~ Yes, sir.
And does it spread as quickly as they say? It's burned for two days already.
No-one can stop it.
You know they'll never let us out of here alive? (RUMBLING AND CRASHING) MAN: The wall's come down! Move! Come on, come on! Where are you going? Oi, there's a boy in here! Nothing but a child! Where are you going? No, don't leave us! (PANICKED SHOUTS OF PRISONERS) (CHURCH BELLS CHIME IN DISTANCE) Wait! Wait! I'm looking for my nephew, he's called David Farriner.
~ It's too late.
It's too late! ~ You cannot leave them to burn! I ain't going down there, they'll kill us all! Get up there, put your head through.
Go on, push! Push! I can't.
Get down.
Where are the keys? ~ (PANTS) ~ What's your name? ~ David Farriner.
(PANTS) It may get rough, David Farriner.
So stay close to me.
~ THOMAS: David! ~ Uncle Tom! David, my boy.
I found you, I found you.
Wait, wait.
I've got the keys.
MAN: Hurry, now.
Hurry! Come on! Come on, we ain't got much longer! Let me see those! They're for the leg irons.
There must be another set for the door.
Everyone's gone.
~ Have you ever picked a lock? ~ Never.
I can't do it from this side.
But I can tell you how.
You're gonna need (COUGHS) ~ .
.
a piece of wire or something to probe.
~ (All right.
) And pliers! (COUGHS) Twist with the other hand.
A five-year-old could do it.
(COUGHS) Twist twist.
Gently.
No! (COUGHS) David, go and help the others with their leg irons.
Go on.
You, go.
It won't work - the lock's too stiff, trust me.
I'll take care of the boy.
I'll make it quick.
You won't serve a purpose dying here.
Go.
Go.
Go.
(COUGHS) David, come here, lad.
We need the keys, quickly.
Come on! (PRISONERS SHOUT ENCOURAGEMENT) Come on, come on! (YELLS) Thank you, Tom! We need to go and help your mother.
~ She's with Wickes, we need to find her.
~ He's the one who took us! What? He put me away and forced Mother to do something for him.
He's one of the King's men, he's not who he says he is.
It's all right, it's all right.
~ Hey! ~ What? ~ I need your help.
I need your help.
~ (COUGHS) His mother's with the King's men.
I need you to take him to Moorfields.
My children are there at the southeast corner.
~ I want to come with you.
~ Hannah and Mary are there.
Look after them.
Be strong.
Please? I'll take him there.
I owe you that.
Go on, go.
Come on, boy.
Watch yourself.
Sir, I do not know what enterprise you have embarked on or what it means for the King or the country.
My son is all I want.
Your Highness.
~ Were you seen? ~ No.
Follow me.
One of the benefits of age and experience, Sarah, is that it teaches us who our adversaries are.
Our enemy is the state we're in, not you.
My lord, they are watching you.
I know.
Listen to this.
'Only a brother's trusted hand will yield the result we all desire.
' Who do you suppose stands to benefit most from the death of the King, hm? 'Only a brother's trusted hand.
' It's James.
It's James who wants his brother dead.
And the Spaniard is his assassin.
(HAMMERING AT DOOR) Open in the King's name! Find the Spaniard! Where's the woman? Where is she? Beyond your grasp.
How foolish of me to have missed that.
She seeks only to escape us both.
We give her cause enough.
~ She plotted with you.
~ No.
I take responsibility alone for what we have begun in the service of the one true faith.
Do you really think the people of England will allow themselves to be ruled from Rome? I think the people of England cry out for the kind of sustenance you would never understand, Lord Denton.
He's not here, sir.
The Spaniard's gone.
Whitehall.
Now! No! Agh! To the palace.
What time did it reach Ludgate? I ordered the Queen and the household staff to start packing.
I'll send Hyde and the others with them.
That'll teach them.
Has someone cut out your tongue? What is the meaning of this? Your Majesty, this man before you is plotting with Lord Hanford an attempt on your life.
Is this so? Of course it is not.
He's our mother's priest.
No-one would move through this city unarmed! The letters in this box he carries are evidence of what they intend.
Brother Brother, I can assure you these allegations I know fanatics like Lord Hanford, Your Majesty.
Their object is to remove you from the throne and usher in a new dawn for our country.
Our mother would rather you sat on the throne than I? That is not what she says.
But she's concerned for you.
We all are.
You wish me to convert to Catholicism? I will not speak to you in front of these men, Charles.
You will speak to me wherever I instruct you to.
Yes.
Yes, we wish you to convert.
We fear for the throne you have worked so hard to regain.
We thought if you would consider returning in secret to the true - Have you gone mad? If anyone even knew he was here, they'd cut all our heads off in a heartbeat.
In case you have forgotten, brother, I am the Protestant king of a Protestant country.
I'm not deluded that our countrymen wish to be ruled by Rome! Hear me out, Your Majesty.
I have travelled far If you say another word, I will cut out your tongue.
Is that clear? What if this assault on His Majesty's soul had failed? What would have happened when it became clear his answer was no? They would have your throne, sir.
Charles, that is that is not Charles ~ Where's Elizabeth? ~ Out.
Where? She didn't say.
Why have you not packed up my books? She told me not to bother and to tell you that Mr Bagwell paid her a visit.
Elizabeth? May I come in? Please.
My most difficult client? Oh, a tricky question.
The Comte d'Orleans' mistress in Paris, Isabella.
What did she do to you? She was just exhausting.
That doesn't sound like much of a punishment.
You did not see her.
She danced like an elephant.
~ Boom, boom, boom! ~ (LAUGHS) And my best? Well you dance with a lightness one rarely encounters.
I am sure you say that to all your clients.
Actually, I don't.
You must possess many secrets.
Perhaps I do.
And I imagine you have to be very discreet.
Exceptionally.
Where is Mr Pepys today? With the King by now, I should imagine.
He's a great servant of the state.
But not of his wife.
(KNOCK AT DOOR) Did you tell my wife? Did you tell my wife of my visits here? I went first to the navy yards.
I was looking for work, but I couldn't find you.
So I came to your house.
When your wife asked how I knew you, I said ~ You bloody fool! ~ Sorry, sir.
'Sorry' isn't going to repair the damage you have done.
~ The damage I've done? ~ Yes! ~ The damage ~ I ~ have done? You come round here and despoil us.
You take my wife to bed Peter .
.
and I have to sit here and listen to it.
You speak of the damage I have done.
It is not me who chose to whore out your wife.
I pay good money Do you think we're not human? You've no idea what you've cost me! You've got plenty to pay for it with! You and your kind you've everything whilst we have to scrabble around to find the food to stop our children crying from hunger.
Is there nothing that you would not take from us? That is life, Mr Bagwell.
We cannot interfere with God's purpose.
I'm sorry.
I can't.
Signor Romero.
Unless you help me, the court will find you guilty of treason.
You will then be choked ~ (CHOKES) ~ .
.
on the gallows, before having your intestines drawn out on a spindle.
You will then be slowly cut into quarters before you are dead.
~ Do you understand me? ~ (CHOKES AND SPLUTTERS) (COUGHS) What is the extent of the conspiracy against the King? Who else besides his brother James, Hanford and yourself? No-one.
(CHOKES) Hanford's seamstress Sarah Farriner is she a zealot? Did she offer up herself to start the fire? No! Then she is an innocent? Hanford forced her to act? Tell me and I will end your life with as much mercy as I can.
Is she an innocent? Tell me! Tell me.
(CHOKES) My lord? Sarah Farriner was last seen heading towards Newgate.
Spread the word, there's a reward for her capture.
Oi! You, girl, come here! Come here! It's me.
(THUD) (FOOTSTEPS RETREATING) KING: That's not possible.
How long has St Paul's stood? I fear it is worse than you think, sir.
I believe the group that plotted the attempt on Your Majesty's life also sparked this inferno.
Are you saying that my own brother has fired our city? Can you imagine a more potent distraction, as they strive to topple the throne? Hanford is dead.
But we believe he persuaded one of his loyal servants to start the fire in her lover's bakery.
They will claim it is God's judgment.
I no longer know what to think.
My people are scouring the city for her as we speak.
I've spoken to the Lord Chief Justice.
I suggest we conduct a trial as soon as we have her.
The people will demand it.
We will make them pay for this, Your Majesty.
All of them.
You have accused my brother of not only starting this fire, but betraying me.
You'd better have the proof you speak of.
Leave us.
Did you know of the plot to fire the city? There is no plot.
And if you think that Lord Denton's accusations are proof of anything other than his paranoid imagination, then you do not know me at all.
You seem to forget Lord Denton's paranoid mind has kept me alive.
You have walked so long behind me, it was inevitable you would one day stab me in the back.
I don't want to be you, Charles.
But Mother and I believe that you are lost.
And that you would find steel and discipline and purpose in a return to the true faith.
~ No.
~ Yes, Charles! You dare to talk to me like that? I dare tell you the truth when nobody else will.
Look at yourself.
You're a mess.
An impecunious, whoring dilettante, whose profanity threatens us all.
Have you stopped to ask yourself why it is your officials feel free to so brazenly ignore your orders? No, of course you haven't, because you never stop to ask yourself anything! The city burns.
Somebody must get out there and fight.
Will you lead that charge? You rule by divine right, Charles.
You are the Lord's servant.
You must command.
I can command only what the people desire.
Or have you forgotten our father's fate? The people desire you to fight this fire.
And if you will not command, then I must.
And you will release me to do so.
Or do you think I will lead the mob to rob you of your prized throne? Get out! Sarah, wait! ~ Where is David? ~ He's safe.
~ But where is he? ~ I got him out.
~ We need to go to him.
~ They're still out there.
~ I need to go.
~ Sarah.
I got him out.
He will be on Moorfields by now with the girls.
He's safe.
It's over.
(SIGHS) I knew you'd come.
Thank you, Tom.
We should wait here just a few minutes, until we're sure they've gone.
Elizabeth? Elizabeth? They look like worldly goods worth preserving, my friend.
You must be a rich man.
Where's your house? Shoe Street.
Shoe Street? Nice.
Has it burnt already? Yes.
That's funny, that.
Cos I heard the fire ain't reached that far yet.
And that Shoe Street's been looted.
You were lucky to get away.
The constables have threatened to hang anyone caught thieving.
What they should be doing is stringing up those papist vermin.
It was them that started the fire.
Why would the Catholics want to do that? To seize the throne, my friend.
To ensure that we bow to Rome.
Come on.
Watch yourself.
I hear things down here on my river.
So let's say you did fill your guts with Catholic booty.
I say it's nothing less than a public service.
Everyone else takes what the hell they want.
So why shouldn't we? Tom? Yeah.
When I was in those cells, I met a sailor.
He was on a ship close to the Charity and he said they didn't pick up any survivors.
~ Sarah ~ Wait, Tom.
I have been silent too long.
That sailor protected me.
His kindness made me think about my life and the choices I have made.
My mother always taught me to try hard to see the good in people.
Even flawed men.
But sometimes it's harder to see the good things that are right in front of you.
Sarah, there's something I have to talk to you about.
No, I don't want to hear it.
Not now.
~ Sarah ~ Not now.
Tom.
Grave charges of treason are being made against you, the consequence of which is death.
What say you? If you could get me into the palace so I could speak on my behalf I cannot believe there is no hope.