Promises The Dumping Ground Survival Files

Hey, guys. Welcome to the Dumping Ground.

APPLAUSE AND CHEERS

ALL SHOUT

Help! Help!

'It's not as bad as it sounds.'

'If you're watching this, you're one of us now.'

'Relax. You're going to love it here.'

'You'll meet some amazing new friends.'

-BOTH:

-Ta-da!

'Get to try exciting new food.'

HE GROANS

'We promise it's an experience that you'll never forget.'

-What?

-N-n-no!

-Brilliant!

'But remember, this is a place

'where random chaos can strike at any time.'

YELLING

'So you have to be prepared...'

-My face!

-'..for pretty much anything.'

CRASHING AND SCREAMING

'And that's why we've made this video blog.'

We've been through all this so that you don't have to.

'This time on The Dumping Ground Survival Files...

'Promises. Making them, breaking them,

'what happens when it all goes wrong

'and how to put things right.'

Have you ever made a promise that you couldn't keep?

Or has someone promised you the earth and then let you down?

Because they don't care about your feelings, it's all about them,

and they didn't even say sorry, and...

SHE SIGHS

But it happens, especially in this place.

'All kinds of promises get made here, believe me.'

You have to promise me

that you won't bring any more rubbish into the house.

Cross my heart, hope to die, stick a needle in my eye.

I promise I'll make it up to you, and Rosie and Poppy.

If it was something we'd done, you'd tell me, right?

-Of course.

-Promise?

Promise.

'OK, here's the thing - should promises always be kept?'

You've got to keep a promise.

If you can't deliver, don't open your mouth in the first place.

Don't look at me, I don't make the law.

I always keep my promises.

Unless I don't want to.

Stuff happens. Things change. You have to be flexible.

Sometimes that means breaking a promise. That's just life.

Mo, have you ever made a promise you couldn't keep?

Well, Tee did make me promise to stop hugging her so much.

And what happened?

I kept the promise...

..but my arms haven't.

So, it seems like promises do mean different things

-to different people.

-Yeah!

Er, do you mind? I'm filming.

-So, is this the guide for new kids, then?

-Yeah.

-I'm doing "Promises".

-Promises, right?

So you'll be speaking about the Buckingham Palace thing?

Er, do you mind? You weren't even there!

Yeah, but I heard all about it.

'How it all started when Mike got a very important-looking letter...

'..and how no-one could have predicted how what should've been

'an amazing day of celebration went so badly wrong...

'..all because of the promises that certain people ended up making.'

I've been offered an MBE!

-An MBE?!

-I knew it! As soon as I saw the envelope, I knew it!

-That means you get to meet the Queen!

-Is Mike going to meet the Queen?

Jody, er, listen, don't tell anyone...

-Mike's going to meet the Queen!

-ALL: Jody! Jody!

'You were desperate to go to the Palace.'

'We all were!

'But the way it went wrong was all Tracy's fault, really.'

We'll have an election. Each of you gets a secret vote,

and the three with the most votes get to go with Mike.

'So Tracy made you cheat then, did she?'

'It wasn't cheating...exactly.'

I'll vote for you if you vote for me.

'I just got a tiny bit too...generous with my promises.'

If you vote for me, then I'll vote for you.

-If you vote for me, then I'll vote for you.

-Yeah.

'Yeah...VERY generous.'

-Look, this is why you have to vote for me.

-Will you vote for me?

-Course I will.

-OK.

What are you doing? I thought you were supposed to vote for me?

I am, but one vote from you isn't going to be enough for me, is it?

So, you're just lying to everyone?

Well, not to you.

'Look, whatever I did, Johnny was way worse.'

How much?

-How much what?

-To vote for Tee. How much will it cost?

So, Johnny, how do you respond to all these allegations

-of electoral corruption?

-Don't know what you're talking about.

When you bribed everyone to vote for Tee.

Think how many chocolate biscuits you can get with this.

Uh-uh.

-First, you have to vote for Tee.

-No.

HE SIGHS

Imagine all the tasty biscuits, covered in thick, gooey chocolate...

All right.

And you don't tell ANYONE I gave you this money,

especially not Tee.

-Say, "Promise."

-I promise.

Tee deserved to go on that trip.

And I paid good money for those votes.

Then Jody got greedy.

-Oh...and you can do my chores next week.

-What?

Say, "Promise," or I'll tell Tee.

Promise.

You have to understand,

a lot of people broke their promises that day.

I mean, I was supposed to get five votes.

-Carmen, one vote.

-Erm, one?!

Elektra, four votes.

-And Tee, five votes.

-Yes!

So, that's Elektra, Tee, and Carmen going to the Palace with Mike.

-Yes!

-Yes! We won!

'Well, at least my measly one vote

'was enough to get me into the top three.

'But Tee was the winner, thanks to Johnny's promises.

'Turns out, though,

'his promises weren't worth the paper they were written on.'

'Oh, he wrote them down, did he?'

'It's a figure of speech.'

My room's a mess.

-So tidy it.

-We had a deal.

Yeah? Well, tough. The vote's over, and Tee won.

I kept my promise to Johnny.

I thought he's do the same for me.

So, you never had any intention of keeping your promise?

Doesn't that make you feel bad?

That's politics.

'Turns out politics can get a bit messy.

'It wasn't just Jody feeling sore

'about broken promises made during the election...'

-Elektra!

-Fight! Fight! Fight!

'..everyone was getting hot under the collar,

'and, not for the first time, World War III broke out.'

Oi, oi, oi! What's going on?!

-Mike,

-I

-actually won my vote fair and square.

-Carmen, you lied to everyone!

-You liar!

THEY ALL SHOUT

Oi, oi! Shut up!

Is that what this is about? My MBE?

Is this how you choose amongst yourselves?

-Johnny bribed Jody and Tyler...

-Tyler was the one who...

-I was the only one...

-I demand a recount!

THEY YELL That's it!

We have been given the opportunity of a lifetime,

and this is how you choose to treat it? Is it?

There's going to be no trip to Buckingham Palace.

I'm certainly not going. Neither are you lot.

Wow, people get really upset about broken promises.

Mike is just such a drama queen sometimes.

'And, anyway, it all worked out fine in the end.'

-You'll make me blush!

-I didn't mean you, I meant these two!

THEY LAUGH

'Tracy, Gus and Harry went with Mike, and they had an amazing day.

'And that's why we should forget about the whole election thing,'

especially seeing as you weren't actually even there.

-You're right, I shouldn't have gone on about it.

-All right, it's OK.

-I mean, the whole election thing was quite harmless, really.

-Exactly.

It is compared to that stupid promise you made Harry that time.

That was way worse.

Right, before she gets started, let me explain why I did what I did.

Sapphire and Harry were really close.

She was like a mum to him and he was gutted when she left.

I'll always come and visit you, but you've got to get used to me

not living up the Dumping Ground any more.

So take Jeff home, OK? We'll see each other soon.

Don't worry, I'll look after him. Come on.

'Look at that little face.

'What could I do? I hate seeing anyone cry.

'So basically, I made a bit of a crazy promise.'

Harry, you don't need to worry, cos...I can be your mum.

'I wanted to cheer him up. What's wrong with that?'

'Er, you're not his mum?'

Your hair, it's all disgusting. 'But I was a good mum, for a while.'

Don't you think Harry would look handsome

with clean, shiny hair, Jeff?

That's because his hair needs a good wash, too.

So, come on, let's get it done.

'Harry was all smiles again,

'especially once I'd got his hair all nice.'

There you are, Harry. Don't you look handsome?

Give me the egg. Careful, it's really delicate.

-Don't treat him like a baby, Carms.

-You be quiet, Carmen's my mum.

CARMEN GIGGLES

I wasn't too bad at being a mum, was I, Harry?

I liked my new mum...at first.

'But the problem was...'

'You got bored really quickly.'

Right, you'll sit there and you don't move until I get back.

'No, the problem was, I'm not Sapphire. Also, I got bored.

'Really quickly.'

Harry, don't you ever listen?

You've got chocolate all over you. What is wrong with you?

-Jeff says you're no fun any more.

-Tell Jeff he isn't, either.

-Jeff wants Sapphire.

-He can't have Sapphire because she's not here.

-Jeff says you're not my mum any more.

-Tell Jeff, "Thank goodness."

'Yeah, not great, was it?'

CACKLING

-I'm sorry, Harry, I tried, I really did.

-I know.

'I messed up, badly.

'And things were about to get much, much worse.'

-Where's Harry?

-I don't know.

-But I left him with you in the kitchen.

I told you to look after him. What happened?

Well, he-he can't have gone far. I'll find him.

'I was a bad mum, so Harry went to look for his good mum, Sapphire.'

-Big Issue? Big Issue?

-Do you know where Sapphire lives?

Sapphire? I'm sorry, kid, I don't know anyone called Sapphire.

'Finally, Harry found a real mum. Shame she wasn't his.'

Could you be my mum?

Aw, I can't, sweetheart.

I've got my own little Harry to look after.

-Sapphire!

-Harry? Harry!

-Harry, no, wait.

-Where have you been?

You, wait there. Sapphire, is it?

You're not taking him anywhere, I've called the police,

I don't know what kind of life you lead

-but you can't just abandon a child whenever you feel like it.

-What?!

-Are you OK?

-Yeah.

And we're with the police and everything.

Well, how do you think I felt?

'Thank goodness Harry was OK.'

But he might not have been, and it was all my fault.

I guess I did learn that you have to be careful what you promise.

I promise never to bring that story up again.

Thanks, Lily.

So, what have we learned so far about promises

to upload into the Dumping Ground Survival Files?

Well, promises are a serious business,

so think hard before making one.

Be sure that you'll be able to keep it,

because broken promises can leave people feeling upset and confused.

If something changes which makes it really impossible

to keep a promise, it's best to be upfront

and try to explain how you're feeling.

And very important -

never make promises that you have no intention of sticking to.

That's just lying, and no-one likes a liar.

I never realised how many dodgy promises I've made.

Well, don't blame yourself, everybody does it.

You've been a victim, too. Remember Justine Littlewood?

'Justine was Tracy Beaker's arch enemy.

'Tracy had warned us all that she was a stone-cold, evil witch.'

# You're gonna make me Make me love you... #

'But I really liked her, and her fiance, Charlie, seemed great, too.'

-All right, then, so who's coming shopping?

-Me, definitely.

-I am.

-Bye, Tracy.

-Right, come on, girls. Bye, Tracy. Come on.

This is going to be fun.

'But then a fun shopping day

'suddenly became a whole lot more serious.'

-Have you ever thought about fostering?

-Fostering?

-Why not?

You could have other people around you,

people who've been through the same thing you have.

-Er, are you talking about you and me?

-Kind of.

-Why, what do you think of that?

-Well, I don't know, I just met you.

Yeah, but you could get to know me. It worked for Cam and Tracy.

It did, didn't it? All right, I'll talk to Charlie.

-You mean it? Promise?

-Yeah, I promise I'll talk to him.

'I tell you what, that was quite a promise Justine made.'

Yeah, but that was my fault, I talked her into it.

She could've said no. She was in care, too.

-She knows exactly how much broken promises can hurt.

-So does Tracy.

-You're seriously thinking about fostering Carmen?

-Yeah.

-I'll talk to Charlie.

-Cos if this is just another way

to score one over on me...

You think I'd foster a kid to get at you?

We both know you're not going to foster Carmen.

You're just trying to get her hopes up so she likes you more than me.

Wow, you really haven't changed.

You still think the whole world revolves around Tracy Beaker.

-Er, no, I don't.

-Yeah? Well, what's this?

It's all, "Me, me, me, poor me."

When will you realise there's other people in the world?

-Give it back.

-No.

-Justine, give it back!

'Well, we've all read Tracy's book

'so we shouldn't have been too surprised...'

Right, that is it!

'..that what started out as a quiet talk about Justine's promise...'

-Ow, get off my hair.

-No, it looks rubbish anyway.

'..soon ended up as this.'

Stop it! Can you two stop it?

Look, I was just trying to protect you.

Protect me from getting fostered?

Justine hasn't thought this through. You only met her yesterday.

You said you knew that Cam could be your foster mum

-from the day you met her.

-That was different.

-How?

-I don't know...we had a connection.

-So have we.

From the moment I met Justine and Charlie,

I knew they could be my foster parents.

They're a great couple. This is my big chance, Tracy.

-Why are you trying to wreck it for me?

-She's not.

I'm sorry, Carmen, but there's no way Justine and Charlie

-are going to foster you.

-And what would you know about it?

Charlie's not who you think he is. He's a conman.

Whoa, talk about bombshell!

Yep, turns out Justine had been the victim

of some well dodgy promises, too.

And Charlie seemed to be such a great guy.

Remember that first time we met him, when he came for lunch?

I'd lost my purse, I thought I'd been robbed.

I saw it lying on the table so I went to hand it in

and that's when I saw the most beautiful girl I've ever seen

in my life and she's asking, "Has anyone...

BOTH: "handed in my purse?"

I was so relieved, I didn't think anyone that good-looking

could be that honest.

-So, what do you do now that you're not running the restaurant?

-Erm...

He can't work till his mum gets better and he won't sign on

because he's too proud to take hand-outs.

I literally had to force him to take money to buy his mum a stairlift.

And that's a loan, by the way. That will be getting paid back.

'Luckily, Rick is a bit more suspicious than the rest of us.

'He was on Charlie's case from the moment he clapped eyes on him.'

PHONE RINGS

That'll be Mum, I'd better take it.

Don't be long.

Sorry, babe. No, I've just been dead busy. Yeah.

Been having one of her bad days.

Anyway, did you manage to get the cash?

Ha-ha, you're amazing, you're amazing.

Charlie was a conman, a scammer.

Those guys will promise you anything,

they'll tell you exactly what you want to hear.

But you have to ask yourself, haven't you?

If it seems too good to be true, then it probably is.

-I heard you on the phone.

-To my mum?

That wasn't your mum. You probably don't even have a mum.

-And if you do, she's in on it as well.

-In on what?

I know what you're doing. You tricked Justine into trusting you

-by nicking her purse and giving it back to her.

-What are you on about?

Then you told her a sob story so she'd give you her money.

Probably got a load of other girls on the go right now.

CHARLIE LAUGHS You've got a good imagination, mate.

No, I've got two parents in prison for fraud.

I know all about scamming.

'Justine was having none of it, though.'

This is pathetic. You two are making this up to make me look stupid.

Think about it, Justine. You've known me for ever.

Why would I lie about something like this?

I'm...I'm going to need to see some proof.

'And where did this leave me? I was so confused.'

-KNOCKING ON DOOR

-Come in.

What do you want?

To say sorry about you and Justine not working out.

You don't know that yet, you might have got it wrong.

-Charlie might be OK.

-Don't get your hopes up, Carmen.

# You broke your promise... #

'What I did know, though, was the most important thing now.

'Even more important than me getting fostered

'was Justine finding out whether Charlie was her loving fiance

'or a money-grabbing scammer making false promises.

'So we got Tracy's stepmum Cam to help by pretending to lose

'her purse in the cafe. Sound familiar?'

-Excuse me? I think you may have dropped that.

-Oh, thank you.

How did I manage to lose that? I can be such a flake sometimes.

Don't worry about it, I'm always losing stuff.

-But not everyone would've been as honest as you've been.

-Well...

-Can I buy you a coffee?

-No, seriously, it's fine.

-Oh, OK.

Actually, no, let me buy YOU a coffee. That'd make me very happy.

And what would your girlfriend have to say about that?

-Well, luckily for you, I don't have a girlfriend.

-Is that right, Charlie?

-Justine, I was just...

-Don't bother. I had to see it for myself.

'Poor Justine. I felt so sorry for her.

'But she was still thinking about me.'

I shouldn't have made promises I couldn't keep.

It was just bad timing, that's all.

I'm sure one day you're going to make a great foster mum.

I just...wasn't the one. Not this time.

I can't believe you're handling this so well.

We're tough in this place, you should know that.

And like Tracy said, Dumping Ground kids can cope with anything.

-Never tell anyone I said this...

-What?

-Tracy Beaker's right.

You see, the thing is,

people like you and Justine might make stupid promises...

-Stupid? That's a bit harsh.

-OK, overenthusiastic promises.

-Better.

But at least you didn't end up nearly killing anyone with them.

Oh, well, great. Well done, us(!)

Well, it's been known to happen.

Let me remind you.

# Promised you a miracle... #

Remember the time when Sapphire had been flooded out of her flat,

and Tracy was campaigning to get her a new one?

# Promises, promises... #

If I wrote the article, then you could have your flat back.

-Yeah, right.

-No, I promise.

And if I can't get your old flat back, I will get you a new one.

-You ready?

-Yep.

'Tracy never did things by halves and that was one big promise to make.'

-This way, hurry up.

-Excuse me, isn't this breaking and entering?

No, not if it's your flat.

'Her plan was to write an article for the local paper

'pretending that Sapph was having to squat in her old flat,

'which had been condemned by the council.'

SWITCH IS FLICKED

They must have turned the electricity off.

'Yeah, I know - it was what we used to call a Tracy Plan!'

'But the thing about Tracy Plans

'is that they almost always run into trouble.'

No, it's OK, the light's good for the photos.

Gives it more...atmosphere.

'And this one was no exception.'

Got some great shots. We should probably get back

before someone misses us.

-Don't bother, I'm staying.

-What are you talking about?

-You can't stay here.

-Well, it was your idea.

I'm going to squat - for real.

'You see what I mean?'

Sapph, you can't stay here, it isn't safe.

Well, you shouldn't have suggested it, then.

-You know I never meant for you to actually stay here.

-That's tough.

-Come on, we've got to get back.

-Go on, then, I'm not stopping you.

Sapph, this isn't the way to get your flat back.

So, writing an article pretending to squat will get me my flat,

but actually doing it won't?

-MIKE: Tracy? Are you here?

-Look what you've done.

So, the Tracy Plan went belly up

and Tracy's promise got totally out of control.

Don't you hate it when that happens?

-Lily, you said you wouldn't...

-OK, I'm just saying,

promises can go all types of wrong. Even...deadly wrong.

I can't wait to leave anyway.

DOOR SLAMS

CRASHING

MIKE SCREAMS

'It turns out that flat was condemned for a reason.'

Mike?

Mike!

CLATTERING

WOOD CREAKS SLOWLY

SHE COUGHS AND SPLUTTERS

MIKE GROANS

-What happened?

-The ceiling collapsed.

HE GROANS

You have to go. It's not safe.

No, I'm not going without you.

No, no, you've got to get out of here. Get out!

Argh! Agh!

Right, I'm going to lift this up, OK? Hang on.

TRACY GRUNTS, MIKE SCREAMS

Right, I'm going to lift this up and you'll have to roll out, OK?

Are you ready? One, two, three.

Argh!

SHE SPLUTTERS

Come on, you have to stand up. Come on.

That's it.

'That was a promise that could've really led to disaster.

'Mike was lucky to get out alive.

'Makes the vote-swapping and being Harry's mum seem like kids' stuff.'

BOTH GASP WITH EXHAUSTION

You see? Things could've been so much worse.

None of your terrible promises put anyone in serious danger.

-Yeah, you're right. Unlike...

-What?

Unlike when a certain girl I know came up with a mad plan

to run off and join her dad on his holiday in Wales.

Ring any bells?

-What?

-You can't go all that way on your own.

And the police will find you, you know they will.

They won't find out, though.

-They will, Lily.

-By then, I'll be with my dad, so...

Oh, great(!) So, you're off with your dad

-and I'm stuck here without you.

-Come with me.

-What?

-Yeah, let's go together. It'll be a massive adventure.

I don't know.

It's fine, you just stay here, you get bored out of YOUR mind.

Only if you're too scared to go, of course.

No, it's just...

-OK, fine. Let's go for it.

-Yes! Ah!

'What happened next? Oh, yeah.

'You asked Tee to make a certain...promise.'

'Might have done.'

Where are you going?

-IN BACKGROUND:

-Oh, I know, I know! Look!

My dad's campsite.

-I thought it was in Wales.

-Look, Tee, it's nothing to do with you.

If you want to be our friend again, you won't say anything to anyone.

-Promise you won't snitch?

-Yep. Promise.

So how did you feel, Tee, when Lily made you make that really bad,

dangerous, reckless, bad promise?

I was really worried about you two. I had to talk it over with someone.

If someone was going to do something they shouldn't,

but you promised not to tell, what would you do?

-Bishop takes pawn.

-Gus!

-A promise is a promise.

If you break it, then it's not a promise, and everything falls apart.

But what if you didn't tell and that meant they'd get in danger?

Why would you keep a promise that got someone in danger?

Because friends are friends, you don't snitch.

But a friend who'd let you get hurt isn't a friend.

Obviously I couldn't break my promise,

but I didn't feel right about keeping it, either.

I had to do something, so I followed you.

BOTH: # Walking on sunshine, whoa

# I'm walking on sunshine, whoa-oh-oh

# And don't it feel good? #

-You can't go.

-What are you doing here, Tee?

Being a good friend and stopping you two from being stupid.

We're just going to spend some time with my dad, on holiday.

-Where's the campsite, then?

-Somewhere near Abergavenny.

-Somewhere near?

-So, you mean you don't actually have an address?

Well, I'll have phone signal by then.

It's your dad's signal we can't get hold of, Lily.

-What if it's dark by the time you get there?

-Doesn't matter.

-Well, there'll be no buses.

-Hitchhike?

-On your own in the dark?

-It's too late now.

-No, it's not.

-Yeah, it is.

Looks like you're coming with us.

'Of course, back home, they soon noticed we were missing.'

-Do any of you know where the girls might have gone?

-Tee asked what

she should do if she made a promise not to tell on someone

who's about to do something dangerous,

-and that friends don't stitch.

-Oh, no.

'Mike was beside himself with worry looking for us.'

-There it is, flash your lights.

-Beep your horn!

-Come on!

HORN BLARES

'And you know what his driving's like at the best of times!'

HORN BLARES

'Yeah, but luckily he found us, so that was all fine.'

-You girls...

-Careful.

-What you girls did was beyond stupid.

Nobody's covered themselves in glory today.

'And really luckily, Tee met this rich, old lady

'and we got a cheap holiday in her amazing house.'

# Perfect It's got to be... #

'I reckon that was probably the best holiday I've ever had.'

'Yeah, it was brilliant.

'But because of the promise you made Tee make,

'it could've all ended in disaster.'

'But it didn't.'

Yeah, but it could have. Not exactly your finest hour, Lily?

Or yours.

-Yeah, or yours.

-Or yours.

-Or yours.

-Or...yours.

-Or yours.

-Or yours.

-Or yours.

-Or yours.

-Or yours.

-Or yours.

-Or, erm, yours.

-Yours?

OK, enough.

Or yours. Ha-ha!

So, what have we learned about promises to upload

into the Dumping Ground Survival Files?

Well, making promises can be a tricky business.

If you make one, you should mean it,

so don't do it without thinking it through.

The person you make the promise to will be taking it seriously,

so you should do, too.

And if someone is promising you the earth,

or even just something simple like doing all your chores

in return for something,

make sure you're certain the person making it

is someone who will keep their word.

Making promises you know you won't keep as a way of getting

your own way is a definite no-no.

It might work in the short term, but you will get found out

and broken promises can make people very angry.

And don't make promises just to try and get people to like you,

or think better of you, or even just to prove a point.

That can end in disaster.

But, let's face it, life can get complicated

and it can be that after you've made a promise,

it becomes very difficult to keep it.

Then, it's best to come clean and tell people.

Hopefully, they'll understand.

'So, that's the low-down on promises.

'Safely uploaded into the Survival Files.'

Good luck if you have to put any of this into action,

and don't forget...

-we've been through all this...

-So you don't have to.

# Don't make promises you can't keep

# Don't make promises you can't keep. #