"This is the story of a woman after a war..." "who lived and hoped... and struggled trough the anxious years, and now saw them end... and another peace begin..." "It starts in London on VE Day, 1945." "'This was the day that it started." "'I wish I'd been with my wife that day, 'but I was not in London." "'It was a very special day, meaningful in more than one respect." "'Later, when Kay had told me how it all began," "'I felt how strange it was 'that after we'd been together through so much, 'sharing so many moments of happiness, 'danger, war and pain, 'she should have been all alone that day." "'I'd like to tell you something about her, if I may." "'I say something because I don't know it all, 'and I'm her husband." "'I've been her husband for quite a long time." "'But does any man know any woman completely?" "'You meet somebody, you fall in love with her, you marry her." "'You come to need her more and more, 'to love her more, too." "'And when you're not with her, you long for her with all your heart." "'I hadn't seen my wife for almost a year, 'but she'd been writing regularly, so I knew that she was well." "'This is her story, Kay's story." "'Oh, and by the way, our name is Miniver." "'Our family was scattered around the globe." "'We hadn't seen each other for years." "'Judy, our daughter, was in Cairo." "'Our young son Toby was in America, 'and I was with the Army in Hamburg.'" "This is London." "Please stand by." "The Prime Minister, the Right Honourable Winston Churchill." "Yesterday morning, At 2.41am, at General Eisenhower's headquarters," "General Jodl, the representative of the German high command, and Grand Admiral Doenitz, the designated head of the German state, signed the act of unconditional surrender of all German land, sea, and air forces in Europe" "to the Allied Expeditionary Force." "The German war is, therefore, at an end." "Advance, Britannia!" "Long live the cause of freedom!" "God save the King!" "Mrs Miniver." "You don't remember me?" "Yes, I-I do." "Oh, you're Foley's boy!" "Tom Foley, of course!" "I'm so sorry, Tom, but after five years..." "Six since I last delivered the groceries." "Are you on leave?" "Just flew in from Cairo." "Oh, what a day to come home!" "I'm so happy for you." "Does your family know?" "Dad will be at the station." "Good." "Here, have half a suitcase." "Thank you." "Well, how are they, Mum and Dad?" "Oh, very good." "How's the shop?" "Still there." "You had doodlebugs, didn't you, all around the village?" "Uh-huh." "But it's over now." "Yes." "How was Cairo?" "Oh, hot as blazes." "My daughter's over there, Judy, in the ATS." "I don't suppose you ran into her?" "She saw me off." "Tom!" "Well!" "How is she?" "Judy's wonderful." "Still a corporal?" "She's far too nice to be a brass hat." "We, um, we saw quite a lot of each other." "I'm glad." "It's a bit tricky, though, because of my three pips." "Officers not encouraged to mingle with the unwashed." "However..." "I haven't heard from her for ages." "Now I understand why." "Oh, she...she sent this." "For me?" "Oh!" "That's a nice change." "Tom, will you forgive me if I...?" "Of course." "Go ahead." "I'll smoke." ""Hello, Mother, darling." ""Tom Foley's just leaving for home," ""so I'm dashing this off in a mad rush in the middle of the night" ""to let you know all's well on the Nile." ""The lights are out, and the girls are asleep," ""so I'm writing on my knee in the bathroom." ""Who do you think I've been driving around for the last month?" ""Steve Brunswick." ""Wherever he goes, I take him and bring him back." ""It's wonderful to be with a man who's really lived life to the dregs."" "All serene?" "Yes." "Tom, do you know a man called Brunswick?" "A brigadier?" "Brunswick..." "Oh, Steve Brunswick." "Commando Johnny?" "Good heavens, yes, he's a marvellous chap." "Why?" "Oh, Judy mentions him." "He's out there now." "Careless talk." "She ought to be shot." "That's what she says." "Anything like her?" "Tom, it's splendid!" "Are you always as good as this?" "I happen to know this particular subject rather well." "I hope to know her even better." "I'm so glad you were at the station, Mr Foley." "I just couldn't have walked another step today." "Takes it out of you, doesn't it, all this history?" "Thank you so much." "All alone here tonight?" "Oh, no, I have my boarders," "Mr Farraday and Richard." "Oh, yes, well, Mr Miniver will be home before long now, I reckon." "I hope so." "I'm delighted Tom's back." "Tell Mrs Foley, will you?" "I'll tell her." "I like your boy." "Good night." "Good night, Mrs M. All the best." "Thanks, Tom." "Oh, could I...could I have Judy back?" "Oh...yes." "Good night." "Thank you, Mrs Miniver." "Good night." "Anybody home?" "Spike!" "I'll be back in a minute." "Hi!" "I just thought I'd drop by and say congratulations." "Well, thank you." "Have I won anything?" "Only a war." "From here in, Kay, you're a veteran." "You, too, Colonel." "Well, that puts me in nice company." "Let's shake on it." "We might even have a cup of tea on it." "Come inside." "I'm due back at the base right now." "But I was hoping you might care to look in at the George with me later." "I guess most of the village will be there." "Kind of a farewell visit." "Farewell?" "We're pulling out Sunday." "Oh, no, Spike." "Oh, I am sorry." "I did want you and Clem to meet." "I know." "I sort of, er, wanted to say hello to that husband of yours myself." "He must be quite a guy." "Will you come?" "Please." "I'd love to." "Swell." "Pick you up at 8.30." "We're going to miss you in the village." "We're going to miss the village." "Somehow, I just can't believe that it's over." "It isn't." "Sure, some of the fighting's stopped." "A few generals have signed some documents on Lueneburg Heath." "For the rest of us, you can't just snap your fingers and say," ""Forget it, brother." "Go on home." ""Take up the old routine where you left off."" "When a war happens, a whole new life happens along with it." "And you're a part of mine, Kay... a very important part." "Well, I know we haven't seen each other more than...how often?" "A dozen times?" "Tea in the garden after a mission, a couple of movies, watching a soccer match." "Probably it doesn't mean very much to you, but it's helped, more than you know." "I didn't stop loving Ellen when I started to love you." "Dear Kay, don't look so worried." "I'm not expecting you to say anything except maybe "Here's a guy I knew in the war." ""Nice to have met him."" "I know it's all on my side." "You're married." "You too, Spike." "Only I'm here, and Ellen's there." "Sort of a mess I'm in, all right." "Oh, you'll snap out of it." "Very un-British, shooting my mouth off." "Only, this is our last evening." "And I just had to tell you." "You're not mad at me?" "No, Spike, I'm not mad." "It's...it's nice to know that one's been of use, if I have." "Let's dance." "My friends!" "Tonight, Europe is free!" "To the British I say, "Jolly decent of you!"" "To the Americans, "Nice work, kids!"" "To my own country, I say "God bless you."" "Very soon now, I return to you and to my dear wife and children." "Don't worry, darling." "Not tonight." "And so to all of you, to all the people and armies of liberation, on behalf of all Europe, tonight, I say..." "Wait a minute!" "Wait a minute!" "Won't you say something, Colonel?" "Please?" "Well, this isn't quite my line." "You go ahead." "Oh, no." "Come on, Spike." "Do it." "It would be nice." "OK." "Thanks, pal." "American..." "here." "I guess some of us will be leaving soon." "So, maybe I'd better make this goodbye." "When we first came to England, we weren't too keen about the idea." ""It's murder," they told us." ""Rains all day, and the folks keep themselves to themselves."" "Well, it rained." "They were right there." "We've had bad times and good times." "We've had an awful lot of war together." "So long, England." "Thanks for everything." "And have yourselves a good rest." "For he's a jolly good fellow" "He's a jolly good fellow" "For he's a jolly good fellow" "And so say all of us." "'It was a beautiful summer, 'that first summer of peace." "'England had a new kind of government, 'the world had a new kind of a bomb, 'and the weather was perfect day after day." "'It was as if God were saying," "' "This is what life could be like if only you'd let it."" "'It was still a beautiful summer when I said goodbye to Europe." "'The weather was perfect." "'Two hours later, we were home." "'I was the last of the family to come home." "'Judy had just returned from Cairo," "'Toby, from America." "'At long last, the four of us were home." "'And I was looking forward to a holiday of rest and happiness 'with Kay and the children.'" "How long has this been going on?" "About 12 months." "About 12 months?" "There's one up in Toby's room, too." "Is that so?" "And another in the kitchen, but that's over the sink, so that doesn't matter." "Nothing matters." "You're home." "It's about time." "Yes." "Listen to that, Dad!" "Mary Lou gave me a dozen records the day I left the States." "Let's get this coat off." "Who's Mary Lou?" "My girl!" "She's super!" "Super?" "Yes!" "She cuts about the meanest rug in Morgan Falls." "Oh, she does?" "Yeah, we were going steady until peace came and wrecked everything." "Mary Lou's 10." "Oh, she'll be 11 in March." "Well, that's different." "Sorry, Dad." "That's mine." "What is it?" "Baseball." "No, no, not like that." "Let me show you." "Batter up!" "What?" "Batter up!" "Home run!" "Home run?" "Yeah!" "All right, I'll answer it." "It's for me." "It's for me." "Hello, Steve." "I'm sorry." "I can't hear." "Who?" "Oh, it's you." "Toby." "Teddy Fathergill." "Excuse me, Dad." "She was easier to understand when she was younger." "Sowereyou." "Hiya, Teddy." "Yes, we just brought Dad home." "No, I can't make it tonight." "I told you." "My father." "Back from the war and all that." "I have to stand by and look happy." "OK, bye, Teddy." "Who is, um..." "Who's Teddy?" "He's a friend of mine." "Teddy Fathergill." "He's English, of course." "Ah, that's too bad." "Say, Dad." "You look kind of lost." "Why don't you give the body a break and go dunk yourself in the drink?" "Uh...drink?" "I mean, take a nice plunge in the dipper and have yourself a rubdown." "Well, thank you, Toby." "Thank you very much." "You're welcome." "I say, Dad!" "Will you get a load of that horn!" "Batter..." "Batter up." "Everything all right, darling?" "Fine, fine." "I'm about to dunk myself in the drink, get a load of a rubdown, and have myself a fine dip in the plunger." "I may also cut a few carpets if I have time." "Oh, and by the way, I just made a home run." "Dee dee da something something something something" "Goes in there" "Then the lights go on again..." "Come in." "Feeling better?" "I feel fine, wonderful, magnificent." "Don't I look it?" "You look sweet." "Thank you." "So do you." "Come here a minute." "Gosh, that's frightening." "What is?" "You...grown up." "And really quite lovely, if I may say so." "You may say so." "Oh, it's wonderful to have you back again!" "It's good to be back." "Believe me." "Hand me my socks there, will you?" "Well, young lady, how's everything?" "How many hearts have you broken already?" "I don't know why it's a shock to discover you have a beautiful daughter, but it is." "You know, when you were, oh, six months old, you were the ugliest thing I've ever seen in my life." "Yes, you were." "You took after me then." "Whereas now you take after your mother." "Ah, yes, you do." "I can see we're going to have a lot of trouble with you." "Father?" "Can we talk?" "Just for a minute." "Seriously, I mean." "Alone." "Oh, well, I think that might be arranged." "I'm afraid I'm going to shock you again, and this time, I don't think you'll like it." "I want you to know right away." "There's no secret about it." "Mother knows, but I'd rather you heard it from me." "Father, you know Steve Brunswick, don't you?" "Well, I..." "I don't know him." "I've heard of him, of course." "Why?" "I'm in love with him." "He's a little old for you, isn't he, darling?" "38, but that doesn't matter." "I mean, if that was all..." "He understands me, and I think I understand him." "Is that so difficult?" "Yes, it is, rather." "We met in Cairo at the end of the war." "He's home now." "We've seen each other several times." "Is he in love with you?" "I don't know yet." "I think so." "I hope so." "Well, then, everything seems to be more or less satisfactory, as far as it goes." "No, it isn't." "You see, he's married." "He has been for 12 years." "His wife is Pamela Lyndon, you know, the pianist." "She's awfully nice, I believe." "They used to have dreadful rows, but that was Steve's fault." "At least, he said so." "It's probably true." "And then he met me." "We have rows, too, but I don't mind it." "He's like that, you know, temperamental." "I love him so terribly." "I-I thought it was just the war, and I'd get over it, but it wasn't and I..." "I haven't." "And now, it's worse than ever." "And I..." "Thanks." "I suppose I should tell you all the wise and sensible things a father's supposed to have up his sleeve for these occasions, but I'm not sure that I know them." "And I'm not so sure they'd help very much." "Would they, huh?" "I'm awfully sorry." "Food!" "Life's quite a business, isn't it, then?" "Uh...all right?" "Very nice, darling." "A little tight around the middle." "I seem to have grown." "You know this is the first time we've all been together since 1940?" "Yes, it is." "Why, it's quite an occasion, isn't it?" "Shall I make a speech?" "No?" "Well, all right, all right." "All together, huh?" "Sorry, darling, what were you going to say?" "Nothing." "This soup, good stuff." "You haven't lost your touch." "Bits and pieces from yesterday." "Rather appropriate." "Dad?" "Huh?" "Have you got any souvenirs?" "What of exactly, Toby?" "You know, Europe." "Scars of battle." "Mary Lou's father was on Guadalcanal." "Killed four Japs in 20 minutes." "Brought home a Samurai sword he stripped off one of the corpses." "Toby!" "That's the kind they use to commit hara-kiri." "Push the hilt of the sword in the ground and jam your belly hard on the blade." "Works like thunder." "Splits their gizzards from top to bottom." "Like this." "Oh, Toby, shut up." "We'll all be sick." "Been like this for days." "America was a bad mistake." "Will you do me a favour?" "Collapse." "Toby, darling, would you do something for me?" "Of course, Mother." "Anything." "Forget about those 48 states for 24 hours and try and make do with your unfortunate family." "I'll go!" "You know, Toby, I'm afraid I'm going to prove a grave disappointment to you." "No medals, no trophies, no scars." "I've still got both arms and both legs." "My eyes are a bit groggy, and I'm afraid I'm going to need glasses." "But that's the best I can do for you." "As a homecoming warrior, I'm a complete washout." "You're OK, Dad." "You went to Dunkirk." "It's Steve!" "He's at the Majestic in Roxbury." "He's asked me over for dinner." "Darling, would you think it simply dreadful if...?" "Oh, no, Judy." "Not tonight." "I know it's awful, but I won't be late." "And I haven't seen him for 10 days." "Oh, it's not that, it's..." "As a matter of fact," "I'd be rather glad to get rid of the brat." "Then I could have you to myself." "All right, Judy." "She's all mixed up." "Can't eat, can't sleep, can't do anything." "I was like that with Mary Lou the first two weeks, but we came through OK." "You just have to adjust." "Yeah." "Gosh!" "If you really mean that about being alone," "I guess I'll go and see Teddy Fathergill." "He's all mixed up, too." "Really?" "His dad's a socialist." "Gotta straighten him out." "Go right ahead, Toby, and leave the old folks at home." "OK." "Goodbye, boy." "Bye!" "Bye." "Bye." "Hello, darling." "'I remember that evening for lots of reasons." "'The homecoming, the way Kay looked, the kids." "'After they'd gone, we cleared the meal away and went out." "'The rain had stopped, and there was that strange light over everything 'that comes so often in England at the end of summer, 'when it's a little too early to put on the lamps 'and a little too late to see everything clearly and true." "'We made a sentimental journey around the garden." "'It was good to be alone..." "and together." "'This is Kay's story, not mine, 'but I have to tell that evening through my eyes, not hers." "'I don't think there's very much difference." "'It was full of all kinds of memories, gay and grim." "'Extraordinary, the wide swing from the fear and terror of those nights in the shelter 'to the utter peace of the river that night I came home." "'It was good to see the old lady once more." "'She was beyond repair, and we never used her again." "'We couldn't afford it, and we hadn't the petrol." "'But she, too, was full of memories for both of us.'" "No petrol." "I wonder if..." "I seem to remember that there was a..." "Huh?" "Yes." "There might be a drop in it." "Yeah, good." "Five years old, that stuff." "Dunkirk spirit." "Still works." "Let's hope so." "Hello, sir." "Hello, Captain." "I heard you were back, sir, so I thought I'd just drop by and say welcome home." "Thank you, Captain." "Who is it?" "Foley's boy." "Thank you, Tom." "Thank you very much." "Delighted to see you." "We've, er, just been to Dunkirk." "Come aboard, Tom." "Oh, thank you." "Well, Tom Foley." "When did you get back?" "VE Day, sir." "Hm, lucky fellow." "Have a good war?" "Oh, fair to middling, you know, sir." "Am, uh..." "Europe?" "No, sir." "Desert mostly." "Cairo and the Middle East." "Cairo?" "Well, our girl, Judy, was out there with the ATS." "I don't suppose you saw anything of her?" "Well, funnily enough, sir, I did bump into her." "Did you hear that, darling?" "Tom Foley here met Judy out in Cairo." "Well, well!" "You must come over and say hello to her sometime." "She's home now, you know." "Yes, yes, I know, sir." "I'm afraid she's out for the evening, Tom." "Oh, really?" "Well, goodbye, sir, and it's really great having you back." "Thank you, Tom." "Thank you very much indeed!" "I'll tell Judy I saw you." "Oh, don't bother." "I just dropped by to say hello to Mr Miniver, that's all." "Goodbye!" "Goodbye, Tom Foley." "You know that I've hardly said two words to that boy in my life, and yet he takes the trouble to ride over here this evening simply to welcome me home?" "I call that extraordinarily decent of him, don't you?" "Yes, dear, I do." "There's some days you don't like to see go." "I'd like to put the clock back and have this one all over again." "The rain..." "roof leaking..." "everything." "Yes, it's been a lovely day." "Judy's not home yet." "Still striking." "Give Cinderella till the last chime." "There she is now." "Worried about her?" "Yes...aren't you?" "Yes." "I could talk to her." "I tried." "I don't think you can talk someone out of love." "What are we going to do about it?" "Wait, I think." "Of course, we could ask Toby to straighten her out." "I wish she'd find someone like you." "Well, that's a tall order, rather like reaching for the moon." "I'm in." "Good night, darlings!" "Judy?" "Did you have a good time?" "You don't have a good time with Steve." "He's not like that." "What is he like?" "Different." "Good night, Father." "Apparently that's the technique these days." "In order to be a success with the modern girl, you have to be different." "Uh...was I different when you married me, darling?" "You were unique." "Unique?" "Unique..." "Of course it's nice to see you again, darling." "But...the real joy of coming home is to be able to stand in your own bathroom once more." "Brush your own teeth in your own hot water!" "Don't know how lucky you are!" "Hot water, soap... all the delights of civilization, right at your fingertips." "If I could have...found a bathroom like this," "I probably never would have come home at all." "Ahh, that was wonderful." "It's funny the pleasure you can get out of a simple..." "Kay?" "What is it?" "Darling, you're..." "you're so pale." "Am I?" "It's..." "light..." "What's this?" "Well, it's...just... it's something for when you feel faint." "Feel faint?" "Don't look so worried, darling." "But I am worried." "I'm scared stiff!" "It's...it's all right." "I just get a little..." "dizzy spell now and then." "When it happens, then I..." "take two of these little things, and..." "I feel fine." "You mean you've had this sort of thing before?" "Occasionally, not for ages." "But why didn't you tell me?" "Darling, it's just a giddy turn." "Had to happen tonight." "Haven't had one for months." "It's your fault..." "coming home, getting me all excited." "Now, do you...really feel all right now?" "Of course, darling." "Now don't make a fuss, there's a dear." "You frightened the life out of me." "Oh, poor darling." "High time I got home." "You've been overdoing it." "Oh, don't be an old woman." "I'm not." "But I'd like you to be, one day." "Don't rush me." "Anything else you haven't told me?" "Any lovers tucked away that I don't know about?" "Dozens." "Just what I thought." "And you?" "Hundreds." "Dotted all over Europe, from Normandy to the Rhine." "They're going to be lonely tonight." "Nice talk, Mrs Miniver." "Stop a minute, darlings." "I wonder, is the doctor in?" "Yes, but have you an appointment?" "No, not today, but I did rather want to see him for a second if he could squeeze me in." "Well, I'm not sure." "Is it urgent?" "Not urgent, but, well, important." "I wouldn't be more than five minutes." "Come in, won't you?" "I'm Mrs Kanesley, and you're...?" "Mrs Miniver." "Oh, yes." "Harry's really not seeing anyone today." "It's my birthday." "Oh." "Oh, I am sorry." "Not that it's your birthday, but for disturbing you." "Doctors' wives see so little of their husbands, don't they?" "We get used to it." "The children." "A children's party!" "Oh, I couldn't spoil that." "Don't bother, I'll go." "I'll get it!" "Mrs Miniver, hello!" "I'm so sorry about all this." "Come in, won't you?" "Thank you." "Let's see...you don't know my three offspring, do you?" "The others are on loan." "Hello, where is everybody?" "Hello, come here, come on, come and say hello." "Now, this is Michael." "Hello." "How do you do, Michael?" "That is Susan." "Hello." "How do you do, Susan?" "And that is Joanie." "How do you do, Joanie?" "She only does that if she likes you." "All right, darling, that'll do." "You run away and play with yourself." "Fall out, you two." "How about a cup of tea?" "Oh, no, thank you." "I really do feel horribly guilty intruding like this on your one day off." "Nonsense." "One of the few women I'd get up for in the middle of the night." "I see what he means." "Why haven't we met before?" "I've never been ill before." "Oh, are you?" "I'm sorry." "You look splendid." "Let's go in here, shall we?" "Just for five minutes." "How lovely the park looks today, doesn't it?" "Yes, autumn." "Strange melancholy time of year." "Do you think so?" "I rather like it." "I've been sitting outside there under the trees for the last half hour, watching the leaves fall and trying to screw up enough courage to come in and see you." "Why, was it so difficult?" "You don't smoke, do you?" "No, thank you." "Yes, it was...very." "I had no idea coming to see the doctor could be such an adventure." "Oh, it is always... especially today." "Today?" "Oh!" "Today I'm less alarming than ever." "Do you like wildflowers?" "They're rather a hobby of mine." "Limonium vulgare, what we call sea lavender." "Charming name, isn't it?" "You know, flowers get called after all sorts of things, where they're found, people who find them." "It's fascinating sometimes." "Rosa canina, wild rose." "Rose..." "Once a few years ago, someone..." "Oh, nothing...memories." "Tell me, please." "Not just now." "You're going to tell me something." "Something I want to know." "You are, aren't you?" "Well, that rather depends what it is." "You know what it is." "How long have I got?" "Please." "It's all right, I want to know." "I realise you're not supposed to tell me." "It's...bad for the patient." "Professional ethics, and all sorts of reasons." "A few months ago, when you first hinted that it might be serious," "I..." "I was glad of them." "I preferred to clutch at straws, and pretend to myself." "But I've changed my mind." "It's a woman's privilege." "Well..." "I'm right, aren't I?" "Is your husband back?" "Yes, two days ago, and the children." "That's the chief reason I'm here today, the family." "There's so much to do, and there's just... so much time to do it in." "And so I..." "I want to know how much." "Please." "You're not afraid, are you?" "I'm not sure." "I mind, of course." "I love my husband very much." "He's going to miss me dreadfully." "That sounds vain and conceited, but it isn't, really." "It's been rather a perfect marriage." "No, I don't think I'm afraid." "One's become accustomed to..." "to death these last few years." "So many went, the young ones." "It's a tragedy when the young ones go." "An older person getting an illness that can't be cured... well, that's just bad luck." "I say rather that's it's a pity." "I'm not sorry for myself, and honestly, I don't want anyone else to be sorry for me." "Does your husband know?" "Not yet." "Well, I think he should." "I'll tell him..." "at the right moment." "How will you know when that is?" "I'll know." "Now, be a nice man and tell me... how long?" "Not less than six months, not more than a year." "Thank you." "Sorry, that was hard, wasn't it?" "Look." "I'm the doctor, you're the patient, you remember?" "I'll try." "10 out of 10 for you." "What's that?" "Full marks." "Hello, darling." "Busy?" "No, come in." "I didn't know you were in town today." "I've been shopping." "Quite suddenly I..." "I thought I'd like you to take me home." "When you're ready, I mean." "There's no hurry." "I shan't be two minutes." "No hurry." "What is it?" "You've changed." "Changed?" "Yes." "Since this morning." "Something's different." "You, er..." "Oh, yes..." "it's the hat." "New, isn't it?" "Like it?" "Very becoming." "You do look nice." "It's the first new one I've had for five...no, six years." "Why today suddenly?" "I don't know..." "just felt like it." "Sometimes a new hat does something for you." "I know." "Only this morning, I was saying to myself," ""Miniver," I said, "Why don't you buy yourself a new bowler?" ""Might do something for you."" "You had a good day?" "Oh, so-so." "Somehow the prospect of starting in again on my own isn't wildly exciting." "You might take an apprentice." "Do you know of any good young draftsmen hanging about?" "Foley's boy draws very well." "I saw some sketches he did of Judy, and they were excellent." "He's a nice boy, too, Clem." "I rather wish that Judy would..." "Do you like nuts?" "Yes..." "Yes, I like nuts." ""We in Brazil have in mind a certain building project" ""along modern European lines," ""and our minister of highways and civil construction," ""Senor Jose Antonio Campos," ""will be visiting Europe shortly to discuss this project." ""Tenders will be invited from the most vigorous" ""and enterprising architects of the day."" "I've just written to him." "Oh." "Aren't I vigorous and enterprising?" "Yes, darling." "Wouldn't you like to go and live in Brazil?" "What?" "Wouldn't you like to get out and away from all this, miles away, where the sun shines and there aren't any ruins on your doorstep?" "Kay..." "I can't tell you what it was like going across Europe." "Through one country after another, the desolation and the emptiness, the sense of utter futility." "It got into me, somehow, and I just can't seem to shake it off." "England isn't Europe." "It's too close!" "It belongs!" "We could take the kids and clear out." "We still got a good few years together." "Other people are doing it." "They're making a fresh start abroad." "What do you say?" "It's out of the clear sky." "I..." "I wasn't expecting it." "You've only just come home." "I'm thinking of the future." "That's an old one." "What is it?" "Let's dance." "Dance?" "Where?" "When?" "Here." "Now." "'She meant it." "I didn't know why... 'only that she meant it, quite seriously." "'As I took her hands," "'I remember thinking she had changed." "'It wasn't just the hat, it was Kay." "'There was something..." "elusive about her suddenly." "'Something...intangible." "'So, there in the office, we danced.'" "Hell's bells!" "Very funny." "Darling, are you all right?" "Maimed for life, I should think." "There's a car coming." "Hello." "Breakdown?" "Yes, ignition failure." "Coil's gone." "Oh, I'm afraid that's a garage job." "I'll have a look if you like." "No, it's all right." "I've got help coming." "Tom!" "Hello!" "Oh, friend of yours?" "Yes, sir!" "Foley, late captain, Royal Engineers." "Oh, I'm Brunswick." "Yes, I know, sir." "You gave us a pep talk in Cairo, before Alamein." "Was I good?" "Well, you were short, sir." "Oh...pleased to meet you, Foley." "Demobbed?" "Yes, sir." "I got out under class C." "Lucky blighter." "Wouldn't have a cigarette on you, would you?" "I think so." "Where are you off to at this ungodly hour?" "Oh, it's market day." "Dad keeps the grocery shop in Belham." "Belham?" "Steve, do get in." "You'll catch cold!" "Is your van full up?" "How do you mean?" "Be a good chap and give Miss Miniver a ride home." "Surely." "No, Steve, I'm staying with you." "You'll do as you're told." "You're with the Army now...right?" "Right!" "I've got a pig on board, but there's room for one more." "Out you come." "Steve, please let me stay." "I'd much rather." "Shut up." "You'll freeze." "Shut up!" "Please, Steve, please." "Do as you're told and don't argue." "It's a man's world and you won't accept it." "Don't you agree, Captain?" "Oh, yes, sir, absolutely." "Come on, then." "If she makes any trouble, wallop her." "That's an order." "Yes, sir." "Steve, when will I see you?" "Oh, your cigarettes." "Oh, keep 'em, sir." "Thank you, Captain." "You'd be a major for this if the war weren't over." "I'll see what I can do for you in the next one!" "Go away!" "Where on earth did you get that thing?" "He's not a thing." "He's a noble beast." "Aren't you, George?" "He smells." "Is he yours?" "No." "All right, George." "Go on." "No, I'm collecting him for the Nesbits." "He's a breeder." "Have you known him long?" "Who?" "Brigadier Brunswick." "He's a general." "OK, General Brunswick." "Have you?" "Yes." "How long?" "Ages." "Like him?" "He's a wonderful person." "In war or peace?" "Both!" "Does he, er, dance well?" "He does everything well." "That's why I've seen nothing of you since Cairo." "You've seen me." "At the shop in the queue a couple of times." "You can't make love to a girl in a queue." "Well, don't look so shocked." "I used to, quite a bit, in the Middle East." "When you were just a dumb little corporal with a couple of stripes." "Yes, and you didn't mind it, either." "In fact, you liked it, didn't you?" "Yes, Tom, I did." "I liked it." "Well?" "Well, it's different now." "I'm not." "Well, I'm not either, really, only I..." "Oh, what's the use?" "Ha ha ha!" "You are miserable, are you?" "No, I'm not." "I'm wildly, wildly happy, and I'm going on being happy with Steve and I don't care what anyone thinks." "No-one thinks anything, do they?" "I don't." "Just wondered why I hadn't seen you, that's all." "I like you." "I think you're a fool, mind, but I like you." "Thanks." "Don't mention it." "Here we are." "Tom..." "Yes, Judy?" "I..." "I just wanted to say... ..thanks for the lift." "That's all right." "Thanks for coming." "That's all right." "Friends?" "Friends." "Other Eden, demi-paradise." "Precious stone set in a silvery sea." "This blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this England." "What's all that?" "Oh, I was just saying how much I love my country and the weather." "Winter's all right." "Nice and crisp and invigorating." "What's wrong with winter?" "Nothing, when the bath water's hot." "Sorry, darling, it's only every other day from now on." "Oh, Clem, these cuffs will never do." "Shall I turn them?" "Come in!" "Morning, Mother, morning, Dad." "Morning, Toby." "Gosh, Dad!" "That's one of my handkerchiefs!" "That was one of your handkerchiefs, Toby." "It's now performing a more important function." "What's that?" "Keeping your father warm in a vital part of his anatomy." "What happened, Dad?" "Nothing happened." "If you must know the sordid details, my collar was frayed." "Life must go on, so we operated." "The tail of my shirt is the tale of England." "Here's the post, Mother." "There's one for you from the States." "Can I have the stamp after you've read it?" "Thanks awfully!" "You know, darling, my wardrobe is gradually becoming nonexistent." "If somebody doesn't do something about it pretty soon, one of these fine days, well, I'm just going to disintegrate." "I'm afraid the only solution is to enter the black market in a big way." "Trouble is, I haven't the faintest idea how to set about it." "Have you?" "Oh, sorry, darling." "Who's it from?" "Spike." "Spike?" "The American I met while you were away." "Ah, yes." "I've often wondered about that." "Have you, dear?" "Of course he fell in love with you." "Of course." "Well, what's the news from America?" "He sent us a food parcel about a month ago." "I wonder what's happened to it." "It takes six weeks." "Oh, oh, oh, he's accepted." "Senor Jose Antonio Campos is coming down to lunch tomorrow." "Who?" "The man from Brazil." "Uh, "Tenders will be invited from the most vigorous" ""and enterprising architects of the day."" "Don't you remember?" "Well, I sent in a few ideas and asked him to come down and feed with us if he were interested, and he's coming tomorrow." "You did what?" "I asked him to lunch." "Clem!" "Clem, how could you?" "You know we haven't enough of anything." "None of the plates match," "I have no cooking fat." "That's just what he wants." "He asked me to beg you not to put on a show for him." "Oh, nonsense." "Listen." ""Please ask your wife not to make any specialities for me." ""With the English today," ""it's an honour to eat bread and cheese."" "We can't possibly have an important man like that down to the house and give him what we have to eat." "Well, that's the whole point." "He wants to see a typical English meal." "Well, he may want to see it, he won't want to eat it." "But he does." "Men like that are used to Brazil, where they have all those nuts and things." "He's just being polite." "Clem, really, it's too bad." "You women are fantastic." "264, please." "It's the same thing every time." "A foreigner comes to England, having heard tales of our austerity and want, and positively bursting with sympathy and understanding, and the minute he puts foot in somebody's door, what happens?" "You women start a conspiracy." "You beg and you borrow, and you scrape together a full-size meal!" "Don't ask me how you do it or where it comes from..." "Go away." "All I know is the poor, unsuspecting visitor staggers out of the house, his stomach bulging with four people's rations for a month, convinced we're a nation of hypocrites and not half as badly off as we say we are." "I won't sh!" "The tale spreads across the ocean." "Highly delicate negotiations are compromised and the foreign policy of the country is seriously undermined and it's all your fault!" "Are you listening to me?" "No." "Hello?" "Sophie?" "Oh, Sophie, I'm awfully sorry to trouble you, but Clem has been perfectly ridiculous and invited a complete stranger down for lunch tomorrow." "So I wondered, could you possibly..." "Er, yes, dear, some marge and lard, and er..." "Oh!" "And, er, oh, yes, yes." "And, er, Sophie... ..the Wedgwood?" "Brazil?" "Do they play rugger?" "We'll ask them when we get there." "If they don't, we'll make 'em." "Be swell to get back to America." "South America." "North, south, what's the difference?" "The difference is considerable." "But don't worry about it because we shall probably stay here." "Seems kind of screwy." "I mean, we don't rate any longer." "We're a vanishing class." "Oh, we are, are we?" "Well, who says so?" "Teddy Fathergill." "Who?" "Oh, oh, yes." "You know, he's a socialist." "But I thought you were going to straighten him out." "Oh, I had a go at him, but he had a go at me, too." "He won." "Bye!" "Bye!" "Judy not down yet?" "No, she was rather late in, so I thought I'd let her sleep on." "Clem?" "Are you serious about Brazil?" "Thinking about it." "Thinking hard." "Be a big chance for you, wouldn't it?" "That's not the point." "Would you listen to me for a minute?" "I know you can think of a dozen arguments for staying put." "So can I, if I want to." "But there's one tremendous reason for clearing out." "You." "Me?" "Do you really think you've been fooling me?" "You had quite a war, Mrs Miniver." "You're having quite a peace." "Cooking, washing, scrubbing, standing in queues, hunting for rations, finding the meals, reading the headlines and worrying about Judy, about Toby, about me." "No, Clem..." "Will you listen to me for just a minute?" "There are times, quite a number of times, when you feel so utterly and completely tired that you could sit down on the stairs and cry like a child." "It might be quite an idea to take you out of the fish queue." "Give you a nice hot meal cooked by somebody else for a change." "Sit you out in the sun for an hour or two." "So it's...it's all on my account, this idea?" "No, it's not." "I told you, I want to get out of Europe." "And then there's Judy." "Doesn't it occur to you that to get her away at this time might not at all be a bad notion?" "Yes, darling, I know." "But there's..." "I'll go." "Hello?" "Uh, yes?" "Yes, no, I'm sorry," "I'm afraid she's not down yet." "Who?" "Who is speaking, please?" "Oh, General Brunswick." "Yes, it is." "How do you do?" "I've, er, I've heard a lot about you." "Oh, I'm sorry, that wasn't meant to sound ominous." "Your coat?" "It's quite safe." "Shall I send it to you, or will you...?" "Well, I..." "I'd like to meet you." "Uh, well, if you could wait two days, I could bring it." "Friday at 12.30?" "Well, I'd like that very much." "All right, I shall look forward to it." "'A a few days later, Kay took the 10.40 to London." "'Judy wanted her mother to know this man who meant so much to her, 'and Kay was determined to meet him." "'Brunswick lived in Westminster, only 10 minutes from my office." "'I had offered to return the coat for her, 'but she was adamant.'" "Hell's bells!" "Yes?" "General Brunswick?" "Good grief!" "Are you Mrs Miniver?" "Kay Miniver, yes." "Good grief." "You're a surprise." "A pleasant one?" "Decidedly." "That daughter of yours never told me." "You're a lot younger than I thought." "What were you expecting?" "Oh, I pictured something nondescript, middle-aged." "You're quite a beautiful woman, in your way." "Not really." "This is one of my good days." "Here's the coat." "Oh, thanks very much." "I've got foul manners." "What are we standing here for?" "Come in and have a drink." "Thank you." "I'd like a drink." "Ignore the chaos, I'm on my way out." "Today?" "No, tomorrow." "This is my wife's flat, really." "She gets back from Canada Sunday night." "Your wife?" "Pamela Lyndon." "Yes, yes, of course." "Do you like good music or jazz?" "Uh, both." "Ever hear her?" "I heard your wife give a Greek concerto a week before the war began." "First-class pianist, Pam." "Magnificent woman in many ways." "Impossible to live with." "Sherry?" "Thank you." "Women are impossible for the most part, you know?" "They get a bee in their bonnet about something and they won't let it drop." "They will go on and on." "I must say, you don't look as if you'd go on and on." "But you probably do, if the truth were known." "I'm worse than most." "Sit down." "Good grief, you're young to have a girl like Judy." "I suppose everyone says that." "Uh, it has been said before." "But I never tire of hearing it." "Cheers." "Cheers." "Do you fight a lot in your family?" "Or is everything placid and respectable?" "Oh, we tear each other to pieces all day long and half the night." "Hasn't Judy told you?" "No, she hasn't said much." "To be honest, she hasn't had much chance." "When we're together, I talk most of the time." "What do you talk about?" "Oh, life, love, the world in general." "The world's in a mess, did you know that?" "I had heard something." "Hmm." "You look reasonably intelligent for a woman." "Why haven't we met before?" "It wasn't my doing." "You steered clear of us." "Thought it was best, considering." "You probably hate my guts, don't you?" "I haven't had time to hate you yet." "You'll get around to it." "I'm starting the divorce as soon as Pam gets back." "Or rather she's starting it." "She cabled yesterday." "It'll take some time, of course." "As soon as it's through," "I'll marry your daughter." "Probably won't last, but I'll marry her." "Time." "How much time?" "A year, 18 months." "There's a queue of people waiting to get separated." "You don't like that, do you?" "You want to see your chick settled." "Every mother wants that." "But you're in a hurry." "How do you know?" "I know women and I read faces." "It was my job in the war, to guess the other chap's move and beat him to it." "Why are you in a hurry, Mrs Miniver?" "You must be a very difficult man to live with." "Oh, quite impossible." "I warned Judy, but she just laughed." "She thinks I'm worth it." "Are you?" "No." "She's very much in love with you." "And now that I've met you," "I'm beginning to understand why." "Are you?" "Well, I can't." "I thank my stars for it, but I can't think what she sees in me." "You're...different." "You're blunt, almost rude." "You're honest." "That's rare." "And you're rather dashing and glamorous." "Oh, nonsense." "Oh, yes, that's your reputation, you have a name for bold deeds and wild adventures." "You fire the imagination." "Oh, yes, I can see what Judy sees in you." "Matter of fact, if I were her age, I might..." "You might?" "That was very good sherry." "May I have some more?" "Have the whole bottle!" "Let's get tight." "I never get tight before lunch." "Let's have lunch together and get tight afterwards." "I'm a menace, Mrs Miniver." "I love Judy, I love her youth, her freshness, her naivete." "Her belief in all the things that I no longer believe in." "But I'll probably make her a shocking husband, just as I did Pam." "Not that that was altogether my fault." "We used to throw things at each other, you know." "What sort of things?" "Oh, anything that was handy." "Ornaments, books, gramophone records." "You have got a few of them left." "Are you saving those for Judy?" "Ha!" "I hope it won't come to that." "Not yet, anyway." "Peace and quiet for a time." "Yes, but you're not a man of peace, are you?" "I mean, you've no peace inside you." "That's why you're always fighting other people." "You'rereally fighting yourself." "You really are an unusual woman." "Well, you're right, of course." "I've no peace inside." "That's why I make a soldier." "I don't give two straws if I die." "Oh, death can be easy." "It's living that's difficult." "That's been said before, too." "It's still true." "What did you fight about?" "You and your wife." "Oh, please don't think that I'm just interfering or digging up the past, it's only that I'd like to be able to warn Judy about the dangerous topics so that she can keep off them." "Or perhaps she does keep off them automatically." "Does she?" "As a matter of fact, she does." "That's because she doesn't know anything about them." "She's just a baby." "No, Pam and I used to fight about the maddest things." "Small things blown up into large ones?" "No, large ones." "I thought I knew all about music." "She thought she was an expert on world affairs." "Who was right?" "Both of us." "Always." "That's what made the whole thing so impossible." "She has a first-class brain, Pam." "And a wide catholic taste." "Her mind's as nimble as her fingers." "But she's the most infernally obstinate woman" "I ever met in my life." "She's quite beautiful, isn't she?" "The loveliest person." "But of all the obstinate, idiotic, pig-headed females!" "You talked about the Greek, my Harry, the row we had about that!" "You remember that cadenza in the first movement." "Here." "The one that goes like this." "Lovely thing, isn't it?" "You remember the theme?" "That's the way it should be played." "The way it was written." "But that's not good enough for Pam." "She has to play it like this." "Now listen, listen to this!" "See what I mean?" "I'm afraid I don't." "They both sound the same to me." "All right!" "You don't have to know the difference." "You're just a..." "But Pam's an artist and a brilliant one, and to play the thing that way!" "She adores Scriabine and Pergolesi." "I loathe Scriabine and Pergolesi." "And her taste in painting," "I ask you." "Raoul Mati." "Obscure French painter." "Picasso school." "Trash!" "We paid 40 quid for that." "The second best art critic in town offered me 400 for it last week." "I still say it's trash." "These things are important to you, aren't they?" "Music and painting?" "Of course they're important!" "There's nothing else left." "Then they're worth arguing and fighting about." "I mean, if you're lucky enough to find somebody who knows about them, who feels as strongly about them as you do, even if that person doesn't always agree with you." "Yes, it was exciting being married to Pam." "Never dull, I'll say that for it." "Well, I don't think you'll have any trouble with Judy." "In fact, I'm sure you won't." "As you say, she doesn't know the first thing about any of these things you've been talking about." "I don't mean that she doesn't like music and painting, but, well, you know, we're just an average family." "We like a painting to tell a good story." "Or music to have a good tune." "Something nice and simple." "So you see, I'm afraid you will have to come down to her level, won't you?" "Because she certainly won't be able to climb up to yours." "Well... goodbye, General." "It's been a fascinating quarter of an hour." "Shall I give your love to Judy?" "Yes, thank you." "Thank you very, very much indeed." "Hello, Janet." "Mrs Miniver." "Oh, he's gone to lunch." "Just this minute, I'm so sorry." "Perhaps I can catch him." "Oh, no, don't bother." "He's not expecting me." "It's a surprise visit." "He left early today." "He's taken the passports, you know, to the passport office." "Oh, then we're going?" "I envy you." "Janet, tell me truthfully, is he doing this for me?" "Well, he thinks you need a change." "Most people do, but they seem to manage without one." "You don't want to go?" "No, no, I don't." "It's so far away from home and..." "I'd rather..." "I'd rather live here." "If you don't want it, Mrs Miniver," "I think you should say so." "I mean, tell him the reason." "Whatever it is." "I can't do that." "That's the one thing that..." "Besides, it isn't just for me." "He has a kind of desperate yearning to get away from this part of the world." "Oh, that?" "That's just the view from that window." "View from the..." "Yes, I know it sounds silly, a little thing like that affecting a man, but it does." "I'm sure it does." "He comes in quite cheerful and bright in the morning, then he sits down over there, and within about 10 minutes, he sort of glooms over, if you know what I mean." "Of course we could look for another office, I suppose, but I don't think he'd fancy the idea of moving." "Why, even when Mr Blakner retired, he wouldn't move." "Janet." "Mrs Miniver." "It's all right, lady, it's a pleasure." "Thank you, lady, much oblige." "Ten bob each, OK?" "All right with me." "How much did you get for it?" "Old Blakie's office." "Well, it was just an old junk room." "You're not angry, are you?" "I don't know." "I don't think so." "I've hardly had time to..." "Hello." "When did these come?" "While you were out." "Are they good?" "Are they good, Clem?" "Yes." "They're first class." "Somebody trying to put me out of business?" "No." "Somebody wants to come into the business." "Who did them?" "You've been plotting." "The Foley boy, these are his, aren't they?" "But they're good, Clem, you just said so." "You can't take that back." "I'm not taking it back." "No, well, don't try to." "Look, I can't take on an apprentice just as we're leaving." "We'll be out of the country within a month." "Good heavens, woman, if you loathe the idea so much, say so." "You want to get out, don't you?" "Yes, I do, I do." "The more I sit here day after day looking out at that..." "If you want to go, we'll go, darling." "Hey, come back here." "I want to talk to you." "No, not now." "Tonight at the dance." "Dance?" "The sailing club dance." "Don't be late." "Judy?" "Judy?" "Darling, turn around." "I have something to show you." "Judy, it's for you for tonight." "No, thanks." "I'm not going." "Not going?" "Darling, what is it?" "Aren't you well?" "Please don't touch me." "Judy." "Why?" "Why did you have to interfere?" "It has nothing to do with you." "I loved him, he loved me." "We'd have been married but for you." "But for me?" "Oh, don't pretend, please, don't pretend." "You were there today." "You went to see him." "Yes, of course I went to see him." "You knew that." "I told you I was going." "I went to take his coat back." "That was just an excuse." "Yes, just an excuse to see him, but not to make you unhappy." "You've hated the idea of Steve from the very beginning." "I never hated Steve." "I liked him." "He asked me in and we talked." "And broke it off." "Darling." "Please, don't come near me." "I don't know what you said to him." "I don't care." "I only know that yesterday everything was gay and sweet and rather lovely." "And now it's over." "Finished." "Oh, how could you?" "How could you?" "Oh, Judy." "Oh, darling." "I didn't try to talk Steve out of loving you." "I couldn't have, even if I'd wanted to." "Darling, he loved you." "He still loves you, my baby." "How could he help it?" "But I'm afraid he loves his wife more." "That wasn't true." "Not till today." "I think it was true all the time." "He lost sight of her in the war partly because he found you in the war." "But the war is over, Judy." ""The war, the war." Everybody blames everything on the war." "That's such a cliche." "A lot of cliches are true." "Well, I don't believe that one." "I do because I happen to know that it's true." "A lot of friendships spring up out of a war." "And they die when peace comes." "And it's right that they should." "What do you know about it?" "I'd like to read you a letter." "It came two days ago." "It's from an American." "We had an awful lot of war together." ""My dearest Kay, this is the first time I've ever written to you with Ellen in the room."" "Ellen is his wife." ""Kay, you remember our last evening together?" ""Remember you said, you'll get the war out of your system sooner than you think." ""And when it's gone, I'll be gone, too." ""I didn't believe you then." ""I've been home now several months and all that time I haven't believed you." ""Because all that time, it hasn't been true." ""But now, quite suddenly, it is true, Kay." ""I'm home again with Ellen." ""Really home." "Home in my heart." ""Dear Kay, I know you never cared for me the way I cared for you." ""It was all on my side, so this won't be a hurt but a happiness." ""I love Ellen now as much as I loved her before I met you." ""Maybe a little more because I did meet you..." ""and love you." ""Goodbye, Kay, my dearest Kay." ""You were there when I needed you." ""I don't need you any more." "I'll never forget." ""I shan't try to now because now there's no danger in remembering." ""God bless you, always." "Spike."" "That's why I know." "I know what Steve felt for you, what he still feels for you." "It could happen and still not touch his love for his wife." "Spike never knew." "Never." "And never will." "No-one will ever except you." "Will they, Judy?" "Nobody!" "Where is everybody?" "What's this, a hen party?" "This is just idle gossip, mother and daughter stuff." "Well, come on now, jump to it or we'll be late." "I promised Mrs Foley the first rhumba." "Second for you, Kay, and third for Judy." "That in order?" "Well, er, Judy's going to bed." "She's got a headache." "I think I'll come after all, if you don't mind." "Mind?" "Well, don't sit there messing about." "Come on." "Somebody's got to tie my tie for me." "Hurry up, girls." "You know, there's something about a well-cut jacket you just can't mistake." "I was afraid the moths might have got into it." "New dress, isn't it, darling?" "Oh, Clem." "It's six years old." "It can't be." "Rationing hasn't been in that long." "Well, I wasn't entirely naked when it started." "I'd thought for a moment you might have stolen my coupons." "I did." "And there's where they went." "And five of mine for the shoes." "Evening, Mrs M. Evening, Mr M." "How about a sardine sandwich?" "Mr And Mrs M, Mother." "Mrs Foley." "Hello, Tom." "What a lovely dance, Mr Foley." "And the food." "How did you manage it?" "I suppose we'll all suffer for this next week." "Half a dollop of marge instead of the usual two mouthfuls." "Oh, no, nothing like that." "Things are looking up." "Everything will be back to normal any day now." "He's been saying that every day since peace was declared." "Well, there's no harm in hoping, Mother, is there?" "She misses the bombs." "Well, at least they made you feel you were alive." "Oh, Tom, I've got something for you in the car." "Don't let me go off with it, will you?" "Something for me, sir?" "Yes, your sketches." "What did you think of them, sir?" "Well, I think that probably you'll put me out of business." "That is, if I don't take you into it." "How about it?" "Do you think you can spare him, Foley?" "Aren't you leaving us?" "I heard you were bound for foreign parts." "You mean you want to take Tom with you?" "Yes." "I want Tom to come with me, but only as far as London." "Do you think you can manage that?" "Trains run every half-hour." "Then Brazil is off?" "Hello, darling." "Oh, Clem." "Did you say something, dear?" "Monday morning, 10.30." "9.30, sir." "I'll tell you how to get to the office." "I'll tell him, Father." "You've only been there once in your life." "I'll tell him." "Mother." "Don't forget our rhumba." "Happy about everything?" "Completely happy." "Dance with me?" "Kay?" "Yes?" "Where are you?" "I'm here." "But you look miles away." "Come back, will you?" "I'm here, darling." "I was just thinking." "I have to tell you something." "Now?" "Yes, Clem, now." "It's hot in here." "Let's go outside." "All right, darling." "Our ninth anniversary." "Tenth. '18 to '28, 10 years." "'18 to '46?" "28 years." "'46 to '56 to '66 to '76." "We'll be like old man river." "We'll just keep rolling along." "Clem, you don't mind about Brazil?" "I belong here." "We both do." "Then you'll stay here?" "Always now?" "Of course." "If that's what you want." "We might slip away to the sea for a fortnight in the summer." "What do you think?" "Yes." "As long as we're home by autumn." "I want to be home for autumn, Clem." "It's important." "Why is it important to be home for the autumn, Mrs Miniver?" "Because next to the spring it's the loveliest time of the year." "And I..." "I won't be here for the spring." "What does that mean, exactly?" "My darling, my darling husband." "'She gripped my hands, gripped them tight till it hurt." "'And then, she told me, while the music played and the moon shone, 'and old man river, he just went rolling along." "'Kay told me that night that when the autumn was gone, she'd be gone, too." "'I heard her voice, I knew what she was saying." "'But standing there I seemed more aware of absurd, irrelevant things - 'an owl hooting on the other side of the water, 'somewhere inside on the dance floor, the tinkle of glass, 'one of the little fairy lanterns overhead flickering on and off." "'She stopped speaking and looked up at me, waiting." "'I felt a touch on my sleeve and then her voice.'" "The last dance, Clem." "'Somehow, I found my feet 'moving automatically back onto the floor." "'I remember thinking, "They're playing that thing from Annie, Get Your Gun."" "'Strange how music bridges the years." "'Showboat and Annie, Get Your Gun." "'20 years of married life." "'And so we danced." "We didn't speak." "Not a word." "'What was there to say?" "'We just looked at each other." "'And loved each other." "'And danced.'" "Clem." "I won't let it happen." "It shan't." "We'll find something, somewhere." "We'll go on till we do." "There's America, the whole world." "We'll go all over the world to the ends of the earth." "I know there's something!" "I've seen everyone." "The best." "The very best." "But there must be something, something we can do." "There isn't, my dearest." "There isn't." "I didn't tell you until I knew." "There's nothing that anyone..." "They say that it was the war, and then after." "You have to be pretty tough these days, and I wasn't quite tough enough." "You know." "You do know, don't you?" "How much I..." "I've loved you?" "Darling, I know." "We've had one of the rarest things in the world, a perfect marriage." "Nothing has touched it and nothing can break it, ever." ""Mr And Mrs Clement Miniver" "' "request the pleasure of your company" "' "at the marriage of their daughter, Judith Diana Elizabeth" "' "to Thomas Henry Foley at St Margaret's Church, Belham." '" "Take thee, Thomas Henry..." "Take thee, Thomas Henry... to my wedded husband... to my wedded husband... to have and to hold from this day forward... to have and to hold from this day forward... for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer... for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer... in sickness and in health... in sickness and in health... to love and to cherish... to love and to cherish... till death us do part... till death us do part... according to God's holy law." "according to God's holy law." "And thereto, I give thee my troth." "And thereto, I give thee my troth." "Well, Charles." "Thank you once again." "You did us proud." "They're a charming couple." "They go well together." "So, by the way, do you." "The first leaves." "You know, I often think that England is like a certain type of woman, at her loveliest in the autumn." "Goodbye, Mrs Miniver." "'He was right." "'As I put an arm around her and we walked back together into the house," "'I realised Kay had never looked more beautiful.'" "I think it all went off rather nicely, don't you, darling?" "I'm so glad it was fine for them." "It's been a beautiful day, Clem." "Something to remember." "I'll be down in a moment." "'Four years ago." "'Four years ago today." "'The house is still here." "'And we're still here, the Minivers, if you chance to be passing this way." "'Tom and Judy in our old room, Kay's and mine." "'Toby, when he's not at school, and I." "'Kay isn't here any more." "'I mean, you can't see her." "'But she's here." "'For me, close to me, she'll always be here, 'in a thousand places, a thousand ways." "'In the house, in the garden... 'everywhere." "'It's like that if you love someone." "'If you love them enough, nothing can touch your love, nothing can threaten it." "'You go on together, for ever.'"