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SCENE 1. TERRY
TO CAMERA, on DOCKSIDE
On 23rd May,
1873, Megan Thomas arrived at Cardiff docks to meet
her father, Tegwyn. He'd been away to the Far East as
the third mate on a clipper ship and was coming home
to Merthyr Tydfil for some shore leave. It was 4 in
the afternoon when he landed.
2.SHOTS OF
CASTLE and COUPLE WALKING :
VO (voice over
the pictures to me and you): The train to Merthyr didn't
leave till around 6, so Megan and her father walked
up to Cardiff castle for a bit of sight-seeing and a
cup of tea.
As they reached
the walls of the castle Tegwyn complained that he felt
ill. His legs gave way and his breathing became harsh.
His daughter said that she thought there was a bluish
tinge to his skin. She ran to find a policeman who summoned
an ambulance.
3.HORSE DRAWN
AMBULANCE ARRIVES, TERRY IN FOREGROUND
V/O : The horse-drawn
vehicle arrived after almost an hour and Megan was disturbed
to notice it was numbered 13 - and she was a superstitious
girl.
The two ambulance
men were memorable too. The younger one had a face scarred
by some disease while his old, round-shouldered partner
was totally bald.
The men loaded
the unconscious sailor onto the ambulance but regretted
that there was no room in the ambulance for Megan. They
drove off. The girl was never to see her father again
- dead or alive.
4.TRAIN PULLS OUT / TERRY WALKS BESIDE IT
Terry to camera
: She wanted to get home and report to her mother so
she took that 6 o'clock train from Cardiff Central station.
5. MEGAN, MOTHER,
HOSPITAL, POLICE STATION
V/O : When
Megan and her mother returned the next day they walked
to the hospital and asked about the sailor who had collapsed
at Cardiff Castle. The hospital said that no such patient
had been admitted.
The distraught
women went to the police.
6. TERRY TO
CAMERA, CARDIFF CASTLE
The police
said that with no evidence - apart from Megan's word
- of Tegwyn Thomas ever being in Cardiff. They couldn't
waste valuable resources looking for a man who may never
have landed. When the women persisted a police inspector
visited the hospital.
The ambulances
were lined up. There were nineteen of them, numbered
one to twenty - but there was no number 13. The senior
surgeon claimed superstitious patients didn't want to
travel in an ambulance with that unlucky number. And,
no, they had never had two drivers answering Megan's
descriptions.
The girl returned home and told her story to the Merthyr
Times newspaper, but the story was ignored in Cardiff.
Why? And what
was the explanation?
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