Unit 36: There's a concert on Wednesday
1. You leave on Monday morning at eight.
(The boss is going to travel on business again. As always, Susan has his itinerary arranged.)
| Boss | Ah, there you are, Susan. Is everything OK? |
| Susan | For your business trip? Yes. You leave on Monday morning at eight. First you go to Paris, then on Tuesday evening you go to Hamburg. You stay in Hamburg until Thursday evening, then you go to Munich. You come back from Munich on Saturday evening. |
| Boss | Good. |
| Susan | It's like the last trip, isn't it? Exactly the same. Yes—I remember. You left on Monday at eight and went to Paris. Then you went to Hamburg and stayed until Thursday evening. |
| Boss | That's right. Then I went to Munich and came back on Saturday evening. |
| Susan | You are lucky! |
| Boss | Lucky? |
| Susan | To travel like that. |
| Boss | It is a business trip, you know, Sue. I have to talk about business most of the time. |
| Susan | But at least you talk business in Paris ... |
(Dream sequence: Paris—a young man drinks champagne from Susan's shoe.)
| Susan | ... and in Hamburg ... |
(Dream sequence: Hamburg—a sailor shows Susan a ship in a bottle.)
| Susan | ... and in Munich ... |
(Dream sequence: Munich — a waiter brings Susan a beer, and dances.)
| Boss | Yes, that's true. On my last trip I certainly talked business in Paris ... |
(Dream sequence: Paris—the boss argues with a client.)
| Boss | ... in Hamburg ... |
(Dream sequence: Hamburg—the boss argues again with a client.)
| Boss | ... and in Munich ... |
(Dream sequence: Munich—the boss gets bad service from the waiter.)
| Susan | And you fly everywhere — that's wonderful! |
(Dream sequence: In an aeroplane—the captain sits next to Susan.)
| Susan | Flying's wonderful. |
| Boss | Sometimes. |
(Dream sequence: At the airport—the boss waits for delayed aircraft.)
| Announcement | And we now hope that the six o'clock flight will leave at eleven o'clock. Thank you. |
* * *
| Boss | Well, what are you going to do next week, Sue? |
| Susan | Oh, nothing much. There's a concert at the Festival Hall on Wednesday. I'm going to that with my sister. And there's a film I want to see, so I'm going to go to the cinema one evening. There are my evening classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and there's a television programme I want to see on Monday. It's going to be a quiet week. Not like you—Paris, Hamburg, Munich. I wish it was my business trip. |
| Boss | So do I, Sue. So do I. |
2. Shakespeare was born in 1564.
(Monday evening, Susan is at home with her mother and sister Julie.)
| Julie | Cheerio, then. |
| Mother | Bye, Julie. Have a good time. |
| Julie | Thanks. |
| Susan | Bye. |
| Julie | Nothing to do tonight, Sue? |
| Susan | There's a programme I want to see on television. |
| Julie | OK. Don't forget the concert on Wednesday. |
| Susan | No. Bye. |
| Julie | Bye. |
| Susan | Do you mind if I watch television, Mum? |
| Mother | No, dear. |
| Susan | Perhaps, one day, I'll be on television. |
(Susan dreams that she is on television as a quiz-master.)
| Susan | And now I'm going to ask you: Who are they? For instance, who is this? He was born in 1564 and died in 1616. He went to school in Stratford-on-Avon ... Julie? |
| Julie | William Shakespeare. |
| Susan | Very good. That was easy. Now try this one. She was born in 1819 and died in 1901. Her mother was German and her husband was German ... Yes, Jason? |
| Jason | Queen Victoria. |
| Susan | Right. That's one to each team, so here's one more question. She was born in 1955, in Surbiton. She became a secretary in 1974. Who is she? |
| Julie | I don't know. |
| Boss | Neither do I. |
| Jason | Tell us the answer, please. |
| Elsie | Who is she? |
| Susan | I'm sure you know her. It's me. Me. Me. |
| Mother | What did you say, dear? |
| Susan | Oh, er—nothing, Mum. |
| Mother | Aren't you going to watch that television programme? |
| Susan | No. No, I think I'll read instead. |
3. I went to a football match with Michael today.
(Julie is reading her old diary when Susan comes in.)
| Susan | Julie? |
| Julie | Come in, Sue. |
| Susan | What are you doing? |
| Julie | I'm reading this old diary. |
| Susan | Is it interesting? |
| Julie | Not really. I didn't do very much ten years ago. Listen to this: "I'm going to a football match with Michael on Saturday. Saturday: I went to a football match with Michael today." It's always the same. I always said what I was going to do. Listen. "Good news! There's a birthday party at Mandy's on Friday, September 3rd. It starts at ten o'clock and goes on all night. Stephen is going to be there!" |
| Susan | Stephen now! |
| Julie | Here we are. "Last night I went to a Birthday party at Mandy's. It started at ten o'clock and went on all night. Stephen was wonderful!" |
| Susan | Was he? |
| Julie | Yes. I remember him. |
| Susan | You always knew what you were going to do, and you did it. Not like me. I'm a dreamer. |
4. Do you like it?
| Julie | Do you like it, Sue? |
| Susan | Yes, very much. |