The Time Machine Father Brown

THUNDERCLAP

WHIRRING

THUNDER RUMBLES

CRACKLING

-Arnold?

-Hm?

Wake up!

What?

WHIRRING CONTINUES

CRACKLING

LIGHT BULB SMASHES

THUNDERCLAP

WHIRRING GETS LOUDER

What's going on?

Jacob?

-Oh, Lord!

-What on earth is he up to now?

Looks like he's started a fire.

Go downstairs, telephone the fire brigade,

I'll fetch the extinguisher.

-Maybe I should help.

-I'm perfectly capable.

CRACKLING

THUNDERCLAP

It works!

It actually works!

What works?

My time machine!

ZOOMING

THUNDERCLAP

DOG BARKS

Bull's-eye!

Thought you were supposed to be helping me.

Sorry, Mrs McCarthy, I was just re-living my youth.

Oh, I suppose you'll be climbing a tree next.

-No, no. Not with your gout.

-Hm.

CAR APPROACHES

DOG BARKS

Sorry to interrupt.

Not to worry. Mrs McCarthy won't let me play anyway.

Oh, never mind. I wonder if I might have a word?

Something of a delicate matter.

Manic depressive, obsessive, and, lately, delusional.

-Delusional?

-His father died last year - suicide.

Only Jacob's become convinced it was murder

by one of his own family.

Could he be right?

Absolutely not!

They're delightful.

How long have you known them?

I met Georgina at a charity function for the arts several years ago.

She's an aspiring romantic novelist, like me,

although, frankly, her work isn't a patch on mine.

Her structure's a bit overwrought and her language is too flowery.

Back to the murder.

Er, suicide.

Jacob says he can prove it was foul play.

-How?

-Georgina won't tell me,

but she's worried her nephew is going the same way as his father.

I said you could...

examine the facts of Frederick's death.

Talk to Jacob. Show him it was suicide.

Assuming it was.

Frederick was found in his home laboratory

with a vial of strychnine beside him.

-Suicide note?

-No, but the room was locked from the inside.

-Windows?

-Yes, but the laboratory's on the top floor. Sheer drop.

-Perfect. Let's go.

-Now?

Yes, no time like the present.

On your marks!

Get set!

Laces.

GUNFIRE

10.5. Good girl.

Thanks, Dad.

11.5.

Run like that in Vancouver next year

and you'll be coming back with another bronze.

She deliberately distracted me.

Is that true?

Of course not.

I won't abide cheating.

There's no greater dishonour.

Father Brown, Arnold Francis - Jacob's uncle.

I've asked the Father to help with Jacob's...situation.

My cousin doesn't need a priest, he needs a psychiatrist.

Angelica and Sarah, Arnold's daughters

and Olympic champions, no less.

Not quite.

Silver and bronze.

I think that still qualifies.

"Champion - a person who's surpassed all rivals

"in a sporting contest or other competition."

Oxford English Dictionary.

I stand corrected. Nevertheless...

What do you think you can do for Jacob?

I don't know till I talk to him.

Well, he's not going to listen to you.

-He's an atheist.

-I'm not trying to convert him.

I'm trying to give him some answers to some questions.

Girls!

'The story practically writes itself.'

Sister against sister, head-to-head

at the British Empire and Commonwealth Games.

You'd be a fool not to cover it. Everyone else is.

CHIMING

Good, I'll see you tomorrow.

The Times of London are coming to the luncheon.

Don't say I don't do anything for you.

How many people are coming to this thing?

Now is not the time for penny-pinching.

-SHE GASPS

-Felicia, darling!

Georgina!

You're looking as pulchritudinous as ever.

How very perspicacious of you.

You must be Father Brown. I told Felicia this wasn't necessary.

-I'm only here to help.

-Where's Jacob?

In his laboratory.

In fact, you've come just in time.

He's promised a demonstration at noon.

Demonstration of what?

His time machine.

-His what?

-Told you.

Jacob's studying quantum physics.

22 and already doing a PhD at Cambridge.

Practically a prodigy.

Even so, he does sound like he may have been reading

too much HG Wells.

Your predecessors were similarly damning

of a young scientist named Galileo.

Locked him in a dungeon.

And don't even get me started on Giordano Bruno.

You must be Jacob. My name's...

-What's going on?

-This is Father Brown.

He has some experience in criminal matters.

Lady Felicia thought he could help.

Father Brown has a commendation from the constabulary.

I don't need any help.

I'm not here to intrude.

Even so, I must admit to be fascinated by your field of study.

-Is that so?

-Absolutely.

Unlocking the secrets of the universe -

Einstein, Schrodinger, Heisenberg

and now, perhaps, you.

You've read their work?

Well, can't pretend to understand everything but,

unlike my predecessors, I believe that scientific discoveries

should be celebrated, not damned.

It's time.

MULTIPLE CLOCKS TICK

Lumbricus francisus.

Named after my father. He discovered them.

Your father was a biologist?

A brilliant one, at that.

This used to be his lab.

And your mother?

She died giving birth to me.

I'm sorry.

Why?

Please, have a seat.

I present to you an invention that will forever redefine and expand

the known laws of physics, transforming our world in ways

I can't even begin to imagine...

-and ensuring my place in history.

-SHE SNIGGERS

The power to transcend the fourth dimension,

to captain the arrow of time.

My machine.

Looks like a fairground ride.

How does it work?

By generating radial geodesic motion,

it creates an Einstein-Rosen bridge, by way of a maximally

extended extrapolation of the Schwarzschild metric.

Ah.

What are you going to do?

The power cells haven't fully powered up yet,

so it'll be a short trip.

A quick nip into the future, then back to the present.

With proof.

CRACKLING

WHIRRING

SPUTTERING

SCREAMING

SHE SCREAMS

WHOOSHING

Jacob?!

SHE SHOUTS

He's going to electrocute the lot of us.

Jacob!

WHOOSHING

What the...?

RINGING

Jacob!

SCREAMING

CRACKLING

WHOOSHING DIES

Is that it?

HE PANTS

The 12:05 at Newbury should have just started.

I've got a bet on that.

-And you are?

-My chauffeur.

Which horse, Chauffeur?

-Sailor's Honour.

-Too bad.

What are you saying?

You've been to the future and know the result?

Exactly! And written the names of the three winning horses

on a piece of paper inside that envelope.

RADIO: 'Puddle Jumper still on the outside, Dumb Luck close behind,

'Sailor's Honour striking out for the lead.'

Sounds like I backed the right horse.

-HE LAUGHS

-Wait and see.

'..overtaking Sparrow's Nest, then Fluffy Duck, Puddle Jumper,

'Sailor's Honour streaking ahead.

'Oh! Sailor's Honour has fallen!

-'Sailor's Honour is out of the race.'

-Sidney!

'And now it's Dumb Luck and Wackadoodle neck and neck,

'Due North falling back behind Sparrow's Nest,

'then it's Puddle Jumper, Fluffy Duck at the rear.

'And now, in the last furlong, Wackadoodle clawing back

'the distance, pushing past Dumb Luck,

'and he's crossed the finish line! CROWD CHEERS

'Wackadoodle in first,

'Due North second,

'and Dumb Luck in third.

'What a race! What a race.

'Jockeys and horses alike...'

RADIO OFF

"First Wackadoodle.

"Second Due North.

"Third Dumb Luck."

Congratulations!

Poppycock!

-I'm not surprised YOU don't want to believe it.

-Meaning?

Meaning I'm almost certain I know which one of you killed my father.

And you think it was me?

The machine will have fully charged by 1pm,

allowing me to travel back a year and find out.

And then what?

Stop the murder?

I can only observe, I can't change history,

as per temporal modification negation theory.

Of course.

But I can witness the crime and confirm my suspicions.

How do you explain the locked doors?

I believe the killer subdued my father in his lab,

forced him to swallow the poison,

and, then, escaped through the window, using a rope to climb down.

-Hmm.

-Problem?

Well, the killer would've had to secure the rope to something solid.

-How would they have got rid of it after...?

-Perfectly obvious.

In the distraction, after we entered the room,

they simply untied the rope and let it fall through the window.

Why would any of us want to kill your father?

The house.

The house?

My father and uncle each inherited half the estate.

They wanted to sell it,

in order to finance their daughters' lust for glory.

But my father was blocking the sale.

We lived here, with my grandparents, since I was born.

This is OUR home.

Of course, whoever killed him

was too short-sighted to realise I'd inherit his half.

Your father was well-loved.

He was part of this family.

To even suggest...

SHE WHIMPERS

-SHE WEEPS

-I'll make sure she's all right.

I'm not listening to any more of this nonsense.

You need help.

My brother's death was a tragedy.

You're turning it into a farce!

-You all right?

-I'm fine.

If you don't mind me asking,

which of your family do you think...?

My uncle.

The barbarian.

I heard him arguing with my father in his lab

a few hours before the murder,

my father telling him he was "going to put a stop to it".

The house sale? What else?

Did you tell the police?

Of course.

But the Inspector, stupid clod called Valentine,

didn't think it was relevant.

He does make the odd mistake.

Shortly after the argument, I was sitting there

when I heard a smash.

SMASHING

Dad?

Dad? Dad!

'I ran to the door, but it was locked.'

Dad, open the door!

'I started banging...'

Dad, if you can hear me, open the door!

'..calling him. The rest of the family came running.

'Arnold and I broke through.'

-Dad!

-HE COUGHS

'We found him on the floor...'

Dad! Look at me!

'..writhing in agony.'

He was dead within seconds.

'And then I saw it -

'the vial.

'It wasn't suicide.'

It's not logical.

He wasn't depressed. He was angry, defiant.

Ready to fight for this house.

Does that sound like a man who kills himself?

HE SIGHS HEAVILY

How hard can it be?

DOOR OPENS

What do you think you're doing? Off!

All right, fella. Fella, calm down, calm down.

-Was only going to take her for a spin.

-Out.

Listen, when you've done what you've got to do,

how about you let me...?

HE COUGHS AWKWARDLY

How's Georgina?

She wanted to be alone.

I'm sorry for dragging you into this.

If I'd known how far gone Jacob had...

I don't think Jacob is as far gone as people think he is.

-HE MUTTERS:

-Damn!

-HE MUTTERS:

-Come on!

CLOCKS TICK

WHIRRING

You don't seriously think Jacob has built a time machine?

No, but I don't think he's necessarily wrong about his father.

I told you, they're not capable of...

CRACKLING

CRACKLING

Jacob?

If he wants to play his make-believe games, let him.

-Oh!

-Jacob!

CRACKLING

THEY COUGH

WHIRRING DIES

SHE SCREAMS

TICKING

He planned to use it go back in time

and prove that his father's suicide, by strychnine, was, in fact...

murder.

Jacob had some problems.

We should have got him help.

It's not our fault.

There's no suicide note.

History repeating itself.

Of course, the other possibility is that, if his father WAS murdered,

whoever did it would be afraid that Jacob was going to expose...

Yes, well, I'd rather not make any assumptions just yet.

Thank you very much.

In the meantime, Sergeant Goodfellow, here,

will take your statements downstairs.

This way, please.

SWITCH FLICKS

RADIO CRACKLES

Father Brown.

MUSIC PLAYS

SWITCHES RADIO OFF

Oh, boy.

I'm sorry.

DOOR CLOSES

Are you all right?

As all right as one can be after a second death in the family.

Were you close to Jacob?

Not particularly.

We didn't have a lot of common interests.

What about his father? You seemed very upset earlier.

Well... Well, of course. The things Jacob was saying.

If you'll excuse me, I don't think you're telling the whole truth.

What were you apologising to Frederick for?

It's my fault.

What?

His death?

God, I miss him.

You have no idea what that feels like.

To be able to say it out loud.

The only thing worse than grief

is having to hide it.

Tell me.

Confession?

If that's what you want.

I'm lapsed.

Ah!

It's never too late to return to the fold.

Bless me Father, for I have sinned.

It's been ten years.

I'm listening.

I started it.

Seduced him, I suppose.

Why?

When I met Arnold,

he was my dream come true.

Handsome.

Charming.

Champion rugby player.

Until shortly after the girls were born.

He developed acute arthritis.

For a man like Arnold,

that must've been a bit of a knock.

He became bitter.

Depressed.

He might have snapped out of it, but then the war came.

He was forced to stay at home,

while his friends died on the battlefields.

After that, a string of failed businesses.

By the time financial necessity required we move here,

he was a shadow of what he was.

I know it's selfish of me, but...

I needed more than that.

How long were you and Frederick lovers?

Four years.

Did Arnold ever find out?

We were scrupulous in our discretion.

Then why do you blame yourself for Frederick's death?

When Angelica and Sarah started to show prowess on the track,

Arnold...

It was as if something reawakened in him.

He started to pay attention to his daughters for the first time.

To all of us.

So I plucked up courage...

..and I ended it with Frederick.

He was devastated.

A week later, he killed himself.

What's going on?

I am offering counselling.

How are the girls?

They're fine.

We're all fine.

We don't need counsel.

Thank you for your concern, Father, but what we need...

..is time to grieve.

Alone.

Of course.

Good afternoon.

What was all that about?

Like he said.

Counselling.

It is the most plausible explanation.

You have a very loose definition of "plausible".

Just a small amount of strychnine in the bowl of Frederick's pipe -

one puff, that would be enough,

plus conveniently burning the evidence.

Even if that's how he ingested it,

it doesn't mean he didn't put it there himself -

evidenced by the vial that was found beside him.

But the killer could have planted that in the confusion

after they all entered the room.

Doubly so in the case of Jacob's murder, with all the smoke.

-KNOCKING

-Here you go, sir.

Sergeant.

So you've reopened the case?

No.

Just reviewing some of my predecessor's findings.

Does it mention whether Frederick's pipe

was found at the scene of the...?

-That's none of your concern, Father.

-I am just trying to...

Meddle?

Besides, did Jacob even smoke a pipe?

-I don't recall.

-So how was the poison administered to him?

I haven't quite worked that out.

Yet.

But I urge you not make the same mistake as your predecessor

by thinking that Jacob's murder was suicide.

And I urge you to get on your bike.

Both figuratively and literally.

Strychnine acts in seconds,

so Jacob had to have ingested it in the room.

-Oh, good morning, Father.

-Good morning.

But no food or drink near the body.

-No tobacco.

-Oh, you're in one of those.

And no-one near the room when we arrived.

I'll get started on these accounts

and you can tell me all about the murders.

-Sid told me...

-I think the answer lies in the laboratory.

I'm going back to the house.

-I don't think that's a very good idea.

-Why?

If there's a murderer in that family,

there's no telling what they might do to stop you.

I could always whack them with my umbrella.

Well, you are not going alone.

Besides, I can help.

How?

I can whack them with my handbag.

And although this takes place

in the shadow of a tragic death in the family,

we hope our girls will inspire everyone

who sees them to exult in life,

to perseverate against the odds.

How do you feel about your sister overtaking you?

I'm very proud of my sister, but I'd be lying

if I didn't say I'm certain I'll be beating her to gold in Vancouver.

Not if Helsinki's anything to go by.

Help yourself to the refreshments, and in 15 minutes,

the sisters will run the track

and show...

..show you why they are so confident

that they will be returning from Canada

clutching gold.

Thank you.

THEY CHATTER

Hello. What are you doing here?

Father Brown thinks one of your friends

is a cold-blooded killer.

I wouldn't put it quite like that.

-You're persisting with that notion, are you?

-Yes, I am.

-Well, I hope you're wrong.

-So do I.

Mrs McCarthy, would you mind waiting here and holding the fort?

TICKING

RUMBLING

WHOOSHING

CRACKLING

WHOOSHING DIES

I'll be back in a minute.

CREAKING

LOUDER CREAKING

CLICKING

TICKING

DOOR CREAKS

I don't recall inviting you.

Lady Felicia invited me.

Please leave this room.

Of course.

Just one question, if you don't mind.

Jacob said he heard you and his father arguing before Frederick died.

Was that about the house sale?

Who do you think you are?

Hm?

Some sort of detective?

I said get out.

I'm afraid I can't do that.

And why's that?

Because there's been another murder.

Laces. I mean it this time.

So what do you want to report? Wormicide?

-The Inspector'll think you've gone mad.

-Problem?

Father Brown was snooping around my house.

Really?

Erm...I got lost on the way to the little boy's room.

I'd like to see your brother's pipe.

-What?

-Frederick's pipe.

It was on the floor when he died.

It's in a box with his belongings.

Look, I really don't have time for all this.

We'll wait.

So you think I may be right?

I'll know what to think

once I've accumulated the evidence, Father.

Thank you for your patience, everybody.

I do believe that Sarah and Angelica

are ready to begin.

On your marks!

Get set!

-Everything all right?

-I saw that girl...

GUN FIRES

-APPLAUSE

-Come on, girls!

APPLAUSE

Very good!

-SHE CRIES AND COUGHS

-Sarah!

SHE GROANS

GROANING CONTINUES

Could it be strychnine poisoning?

Possibly.

Confirm it with a blood test.

So much for the press luncheon.

This is all they'll be writing about now.

That's the least of our worries.

We need to get you to hospital.

It's just a dizzy spell.

This is a vendetta against this family. What else could it be?

-I know who did it.

-Not now, Mrs McCarthy.

I saw her put something into her sister's water bottle.

Some kind of powder.

Is this true?

Sergeant.

Miss Francis!

Miss Francis!

I don't even like running.

-Then why do it?

-Why do you think?

For your father.

It's all he cares about.

The only person in this entire family

who didn't treat me like second best was Uncle Frederick.

He helped me with my school science homework.

Said I had aptitude.

I didn't kill him.

Or Jacob.

Then what did you put in Sarah's water bottle?

Laxatives.

That would've given the press something to write about.

She only took a swig.

Wouldn't have made her collapse.

Then the strychnine must already have been in the water...

Angelica Francis, I am arresting you on suspicion of murder.

You are not obliged to say anything, unless you wish to do so,

but what you say will be taken down in writing

and may be given in evidence.

-SHE SOBS:

-Please, I didn't do it. I didn't do anything.

You're not taking my daughter anywhere!

I'm afraid you don't have a say.

Not until I've telephoned a solicitor.

You're making a mistake.

Please, Inspector.

Now, aren't you glad you brought me along?

I almost solved the whole thi...

Isn't it curious that Sarah survived strychnine poisoning,

but her uncle and her cousin didn't?

Well, maybe she has a stronger constitution.

She is an athlete, after all.

The poison is in the dose.

And in small doses...

Mrs McCarthy, well done.

"Sarah Francis - Training times."

0.1mg,

0.25mg,

0.75mg.

What's that?

A whopper of a clue.

So you know who did it?

Not quite.

But you do know how it was done?

Not exactly. But I think it's something to do with these worms.

Worms, what worms?

Mrs McCarthy, would you mind waiting outside?

I'd like to conduct an experiment.

The solicitor's on his way.

She's not going anywhere until he gets here.

POPPING

WHINING, CRACKLING

What in the blazes...?

What the hell do you think you're doing?

MACHINE DIES

THEY COUGH

Just a spot of time travel.

You think this is some kind of joke?

On the contrary.

I think it's deadly serious, after what I've just witnessed.

Which was what?

Two murders.

First Frederick, and then Jacob.

You mean...that thing really works?

Jacob was troubled, but was clearly a genius.

You've been back in time?

Twice.

I hid in the corner a year ago.

I witnessed the murderer put strychnine

in the bowl of Frederick's pipe.

And then, yesterday, the culprit put the poison

in the cooling fan so Jacob would've inhaled it

when he turned on his machine,

which also explains why some of the strychnine fragments

went into the worm tank.

In both cases, I think we can safely assume

the killer discreetly planted the vial

after they entered the room.

So, who was it, then?

Jacob said he heard you arguing with Frederick.

"I'll put a stop to it," he said,

but he wasn't talking about the house sale, was he?

He was talking about you.

You've been using strychnine to enhance your performance.

That's ridiculous.

Only this afternoon...

you took too much.

Do you have any evidence of this?

It's all in there.

That's private property. You can't!

You knew about this?!

Mr Francis?

I only found out after the Olympics.

Frederick told me he found her stealing strychnine from his lab.

-You cheating...!

-You swore to me that you'd never do this again.

Frederick was going to inform the Olympic Committee.

She'd have been stripped of her silver.

Shamed.

Which gave you both of you a motive for killing Frederick

and stopping Jacob revealing it.

The only question is which one of you did it?

Following Jacob's lead,

I've written the killer's name

in this envelope.

SHE PANTS

-No, don't!

-Don't do it!

-Stop her!

CRACKLING

MACHINE DIES

RADIO CRACKLES

'Wackadoodle clawing back the distance, pushing past Dumb Luck.

'And he's crossed the finish line!

'Wackadoodle in first,

'Due North second

'and Dumb Luck in third.'

I don't understand.

Jacob recorded the race minutes before we entered the room,

then he switched the radios after the demonstration.

And I switched them back again.

But the race started after we entered.

To complete the illusion,

he set every single clock in the house seven minutes early.

The rest was just theatrics -

electricity and dry ice.

All with the aim of flushing the killer out.

Sadly, it worked too well.

I prayed that it wasn't true.

How could you?

Sarah!

Miss Francis, come back!

Hey, stop there!

Stop!

-Look, there's nowhere to go!

-Sarah!

Put it down, Sarah!

Don't come any closer.

Sarah, please!

I'm not going to prison.

-Sarah!

-Listen to your family.

-Sarah!

-Or what?

I'll go to hell?

Is that what you think?

Where else am I going?

Well, it's up to you.

I'm past redemption, Father.

I've killed two people.

Faked their suicides.

Maybe a real one is what I deserve.

You deserve understanding, like anyone else.

To do what you've done,

I can only imagine how terrified you must have been.

Terrified?

Of what?

Tell him.

You only love champions.

Don't you dare try to blame this on me.

It's true.

Sarah, put it down, please.

I love you, no matter what.

Both of you.

If I've made you feel less than...

..less...

You're both so precious to me.

All of you.

I'm sorry I find it so difficult.

I'm sorry.

Oh, I'm sorry.

Morning.

Ah, Inspector, what a pleasant surprise.

No need to look so happy, Father.

I'm not here to convert.

I've been meaning to ask you about this.

Admittedly, I wasn't 100% sure

whether it was Arnold or Sarah,

but I was sure

that if the culprit believed the time machine was real...

They wouldn't miss a last chance to save themselves.

Exactly.

I suppose this is one of the rare instances

where my meddling has proved...

Meddlesome?

As usual.

Good day.

Ah!

Another pleasant surprise.

How are you both?

Adapting to new circumstances.

I'm starting university in the autumn. Natural sciences.

Congratulations.

Sarah's trial should be over by then.

How is she?

Coping.

Barrister's arguing that

-the strychnine may have impaired her mental state.

-Mm.

Diminished responsibility.

And your husband?

Angelica, wait inside.

I told him about Frederick and I.

If there's one thing I've learned,

the fewer family secrets, the better.

How did he take it?

Father.

We'll be fine.

CHURCH BELL TOLLS THE HOUR