"Timing underwater." "Speed underwater." "That is what half our assignments are about." "Harris!" "Are you listening to me?" " Yes, Sir!" "Then bloody well look at me!" " Yes, Sir!" "Yesterday one man completed the exercise precisely on time." "Me!" "Today you will all complete the exercise precisely on time." "You'll arrive at your first marker in exactly four and a half minutes from now." "The second marker 30 seconds later." "Three, two, one, go!" "NORTH SEA HIJACK" "That's better!" "Next time we'll make it more difficult." "I expect to see an improvement on the timing of yesterday's exercise." "Did you hear me, Harris?" " Yes, Sir." "Mr. Fletcher has a new job for us then, Sir?" " Presumably." "Not this trip, Mary." "You'll stay at your club as usual?" " The committee voted to admit females on the premises." "I resigned." "Will you be gone long, Sir?" " A day maybe two." "Goodbye, Enoch." "I said not this trip." "Now let me see, did I forget anything?" "Yes, I bloody well did." "Remember, you are in charge, Harris!" " Yes, Sir!" "And don't forget to feed my cats." "Good morning, Sir!" " Morning, Angus." "Madame!" "This is a non-smoker, which is why I and this gentleman here selected it." "This gentleman is my husband and he does not object to me smoking." "Have you a first-class ticket?" " You're unusually dressed for a ticket collector." "Aren't you going to clip it?" "We will find a smoker!" "A wise decision." "I can't change a 20 pound note, Guv." "Then we'll toss for it." "Call." " Heads." "Heads it is." "You're a lucky man." "Good evening." "Bless your heart." "What's it to be this time, more broken pipelines?" "Nothing so simple." "Oil production platforms." "Have you any idea how much they cost?" " Millions, I suppose." "Hundreds of millions." "We insure most of them." "And the Navy and the airforce aren't big enough to keep their eyes on them." "So, what do you want me to do?" " Work out what to do if one is hijacked." "Don't the armed forces have some ideas on that subject?" "Undoubtedly." "But an oil production platform is no building or aeroplane." "You can't approach it without being seen or heard, unless you're below." "Only a man of superior intellect is likely to think of a satisfactory way of hijacking a platform." " Exactly." "Well, therefore I must put myself in his position and devise a means." "And having done that, I simply work out how to overpower myself." "You think you can?" "Have I ever let you down?" " No." "I should think not." "Your apology is accepted." "Now then, nothing is likely to happen until spring." "The weather's too bad." "That gives me five months." "Should be ample time." "Will Mercia be joining us for dinner?" "I'm afraid not." "Pity." "Herring!" "Press Officer AANO, Sir." "Hope you received the cable." "Permission to bring six gentlemen of the press aboard." "Permission granted." "Bring your friends over to the first foredeck, Herring." "There's hot drinks and sandwiches in the mess-room." " Thank you, Sir." "It's good of you to have us aboard at such short notice." "I'm afraid you may be in for a long trip, gentlemen." "The weather forecast is none too good." "As you know, we are dropping off some spare parts at the drilling rig before we go on to the production platform." "Oh, this is hospitality, Captain." "Just what we needed." " Tell Magnussen we will be casting off in 5 minutes." "Yes, Sir." "Well, Sir." "I could introduce our guests." "This Mr. Lou Bramer, shipping correspondent of the New York Daily News." " Where do you see that?" "No, that's Kramer, not Bramer." "Sorry..." "Mr. Kramer." "Typing error." "It's not like the New York office to make a mistake like that." "Harold Shulman." " Boston Globe." "Robert F. Ackerman." "Dallas Herald." "Art Webb, Washington Post." "Mr. Eiji Tanaka and Mr. Saburo Yakamoto of the Tokyo Trade Press." "I'm afraid, I don't know which of you gentlemen is which." "Welcome aboard, gentlemen." "Enjoy your stay." "Now if you'll excuse me, I must return to the bridge." "Alright, skipper!" " What is it?" "I've got spare parts for "Jennifer"." " Alright." "Get it unloaded." "Hurry!" "Standby engines, Mr. Stallemo." "Standby engines." "Start engines!" "Cast off fore and aft!" "What's the verdict?" " It's okay." "Two of you can visit the wheelhouse now." "Let's get to work." "Welcome to the wheelhouse, gentlemen." "Don't worry, no-one is at the wheel." "First Officer Michelsen will show you how everything works including the automatic steering." "We know all about it, Captain." "What the hell is going on here?" "We're taking command of this ship, Captain." "Nobody's gonna get hurt if they do exactly as they're told." "Now get over there!" "He's dead." "Well, that was his decision." "Get down to the engine room!" "Piece of cake!" "You're on the wheelhouse." "Now move!" "Get up!" "Throw him over the side." "You will do nothing of the kind." "He is entitled to a decent Christian burial." " Do you wanna go with him?" "How long before we get to "Ruth", Captain?" "In three hours." "Tell Webb to start operations." "What do you think they'll do with us?" " Take us hostage, I suppose." "How much food do we have on board, Sanna?" " Enough for two weeks." "Do you think we'll be here that long?" " Some hijackings go on for a month." "We can't sit here doing nothing." " We do exactly as Captain Olafsen orders to do and nothing more, understand?" "Check your engines." " You had better come too, Olsen." "I'll be in the corridor." "If anybody sticks a head out, I'll blow it off." "Tell the skipper what you've been doing for the last couple of hours, Harold." "Well, I've been connecting the switch we have here to a bomb in the hold, so that any time I want to, I can just blow this ship to kingdom come." "Course, we'll go up with it, but that's one of the hazards, isn't it?" "No risk, no gain." "This man's an expert." "He's worked with demolition teams worldwide." "So why don't you remind what's left of your crew, that unless they're counting on making a visit to the great unknown, the spare parts to "Ruth" will be delivered in the usual way." "No problems." "No trouble." "Alright, remember now... you have 30 seconds after you prime the lines before they become live." "Touch 'em after that and you're fish food." "Well, it went off nicely." "We're now in the happy position of not only being able to blow ourselves out of the water, but "Ruth" as well." "Don't rub it in, Harold." "The Captain's got enough on his mind." "How long before we reach the production platform?" "Two hours." "That's an incredible piece of work, Lou!" "Well, she's the biggest ever built and the most expensive." "Two thousand million dollars and 615 personnel producing 300 thousand barrels of oil a day." "That's a lot of hair crème, isn't it, skipper?" "What do you want us to do?" " Anchor in the usual place and unload in the usual way." "Haven't you been listening to me?" "Are Eiji and Saburo all ready?" "You wanna give your crew another warning, Captain?" "I have already given my orders." " Yeah, well just to make me happy." "I am not in the business of making terrorists happy." "We're not terrorists, Captain." "Terrorists are confused." "I don't follow politics of any kind and I have no philosophies, but I do know what I want." "How much longer, Captain?" " We are almost finished." " Good." "Because we're just about to begin." "Get me Mr. King on "Jennifer" please, Captain." ""Esther" calling "Jennifer"." "Yes, Olafsen." "I'm only going to go over this once Mr. King, so will you double check that your tape recorder is functioning properly, please?" "Who is this?" "Well, my name is Lou Kramer, but don't run it through the computers, because I lifted it out of the Manhattan phonebook and you guys are gonna have plenty to do without wasting your time." "May I speak to Captain Olafsen, please?" "I am the temporary captain and you're gonna be taking your orders from me." "And the quicker you get it straight, the shorter that time is going to be." "So let's just play patty-cake together and get this over with." "Luck favours the man with the most limpet mines and I've got a bundle." "Two stuck to the underside of the drilling rig "Ruth"" "and 4 planted right under your ass on "Jennifer"." "Do I still have your attention, King?" "Just what is it you want?" "We want the British government, which is listed as the primary stockholder of "Ruth" and "Jennifer", to pay us a ransom of 25 million pounds in five different currencies:" "Pounds Sterling, US dollars," "Japanese yen, Swiss francs and German marks." "The money market is so unstable these days." "Have you got that?" "Yes, I've got it." "Is there anything else?" "They have 24 hours until 9 o'clock tomorrow night to produce the cash." "If they don't deliver it on time, we will blow up "Ruth"." "Then they get another four hours to think again." "If we still don't have the money, down goes "Jennifer"." "All 2 thousand million dollars of her." "Alright, Kramer, I'll pass on your request to the authorities." "You can pass it on to anyone you like but if anyone takes any action against us, everything goes up." ""Ruth", "Jennifer" and every damn person on board them." "Are you still there, King?" "Yes, I'm still here." "Well, get to work." "When you've got some news, give us a call." "How'd he react?" "Goodnight." "Lord Privy Seal's Office." "Mr. Tipping?" "His Lord Privy Seal here." "What is it?" "Good God!" "Get me the Prime Minister immediately." "Yes." "Who are they and what action can you take?" " Prime Minister's office." "I took the liberty of briefing one or two of those concerned." "Please be seated if you wish." "I need a whisky, Edward." "I read your résumé on the way over." "What sort of security do we have, that this kind of thing can happen?" "Keeping the North Sea secure is like keeping a cornfield free of vermin." "You obviously have plans for dealing with a situation like this?" "We have Royal Marines and SAS units to deal with most kinds of hijacking." "But there's not much we can do when there's maniac on a ship at sea waiting to push a button." "We can't even get in close without him seeing or hearing us." " That production platform is the biggest ever built, producing 300,000 barrels of oil a day." "Renewing it at today's prices would be 15 thousand million pounds." "My God, that's a quarter of the defence budget!" "That does not include the loss in oil revenue, the cost of the drilling rig and supply ship, nor the damage by pollution to coastlines and fishing industry." "From the financial point of view, it'd be better to accept their terms." "Out of the question." " It's not only the maritime economy that will suffer, it will also prove a disaster to Lloyds." "They cover the insurance?" " Every penny." " You have an idea?" "Well, while the government could not be seen to be paying off terrorists perhaps we could turn a blind eye if Lloyds did." "Apart from the financial point of view there are 697 involved, mostly British and American." "That had crossed my mind." " We could evacuate the 71 men from "Ruth"." "It's too far away for "Esther" to see anything." "Who is "Ruth"?" " It's a drilling rig." "It's serviced by "Jennifer"." ""Jennifer" is the production platform that Sir Edward was talking about." "Do that." "What?" " Evacuate "Ruth"." "Yes, Prime Minister." "Yes, I see." "Yes?" " A Norwegian fishing boat has just picked up the dead body of the first officer of the "Esther"." "He'd been shot." "I want a news black-out on all of this." "Put out a O-notice." "I'll talk to the editors later and explain." " Yes, Prime Minister." "It's an attractive idea to let Lloyds do our work for us." "I do not propose to allow a group of murderers to hold Britain to ransom." "Even so, there's no reason not to ask Lloyds for help." "I believe they have their own negotiating team and other means." "Well, talk to them." "Pick their brains." "Meanwhile, I want to know what the service chiefs are doing." "And I want to know if any of those wells can be sealed." "Goodnight." "Sexy Sanna around?" "Hey, you look as good in the morning as you do at night." "We should have breakfast together." " What do you want?" "Shut up!" "I wasn't talking to you." "They want breakfast up on the bridge." "When it's ready." " Now!" "When it's ready!" "We're gonna get along fine." "You gonna die on us?" "Probably." "Sanna." "What sort of poisons do we have in the hospital?" "Morphia, colchicine..." "But only the Captain has the key to that cupboard." "Would he let you have it?" " I don't think he would agree to it." "Would you?" "When I can see him, I'll ask him." "Exercise completed." "To the same." "Harris!" "You can turn that camera off now." "Thank you very much, Mr. Fletcher." " The men acting as sailors on the boat were ffolkes's men too, I take it?" "No, they were members of the local judo club." "They'd been trained to expect trouble and to resist without restraint." "They'd been on board for 12 hours when the attack came." "Thank you." "If you'd be good enough to wait in Mr. Shaw's office." "This way, if you please." "It might work at night." " The uncanny thing is this was shot over a month ago." "He anticipated that an attempt might be taken by some kind of supply ship and he worked out a method to take it." "What do you think, Admiral?" "Personally, I don't care for the idea of civilians attempting an operation which should be conducted by the Royal Navy." "Well, do you have a unit that prepared?" " Not at the moment..." "As Defence Minister, Mr. Dawnay, what do you think?" "The men are superbly trained, but what do we know about their morale under actual fire?" "How much determination have they?" "They're all ex-Navy or commando." " I still don't like it." "If just one of them were to be seen..." "Well, that's the risk with any kind of operation against terrorists." "What time is it?" "Nine a.m." "Only twelve hours left." "What did you say this man's name was?" " Ffolkes." "Two small F's." "Rufus Excalibur ffolkes." "I've taken the liberty of putting him on alert." "Just in case." "Stand by, Rainbow!" "Four, three, two, go!" "Harris!" "Man standing at four, d'you see him?" "Yes sir!" "Way through to the bow!" "Dawson, enough." " Yes, Sir." "Ellis!" " More view clear to the bow, Sir." "Four, three, two, go!" "Harris, man standing on a ladder from Vauxhall, you see him?" "I can see him, Sir!" "Go!" "There are over 600 people relying on us to save their lives." "And you, Sir, you whacked that ladder as though it's a dinner gong." "Do it again and I'll have your balls for breakfast." "Back to number 1." "Go!" "Let's hope that his crew is more seaworthy than his boat." "Oh, don't worry, Sir." "I've seen him work at sea often." "They know how to handle themselves." "If he keeps them at it like this, they'll be worn out." "He's an odd fellow, Admiral." "And he believes in preparation." "By the time I arrived, he'd had that mock-up built from photos and they'd already started working." " You've got to admire his professionalism, even if he isn't a regular." " Yes, Sir." "And deducing it would be a supply ship in the first place..." "Well, he's either a genius or incredibly lucky." " I hope he's both." "We will take a break." "Back in 40 minutes." " How are we doing, Sir?" "Like ploughmen at a bloody knitting convention!" " We're improving then!" "This is Mr. Ffolkes, Admiral." "Rufus, Admiral of the Fleet Sir Francis Brinsden." "Admiral." " Harry tells me that you hope to get your men to the wheelhouse unobserved." " I don't hope anything." "If I say I will get my men to the wheelhouse unobserved," "I will do so." " I was telling the Admiral your men are so well-groomed, they could find their way around "Esther" with their eyes closed." "If any of them moves around with his eyes shut, I will gouge them out." "It's time for a drink." "Bit early, isn't it?" "It's four hours since breakfast." "That's late." "We'll use your car." "Harris, this is Admiral Brinsden." "You know Captain Phillips." "Have a seat, Admiral." "We drink Scotch here the way it should be drunk:" "Neat." "Have any idea how many villains are on board?" " No." "Apart from a couple of stun grenades we'll only use knives and a harpoon." "Harris." "Show the Admiral." "Except for a squelch when entering the flesh, they do not make a noise." "Unless they hit bone." "But that won't happen." "My men know their way around a man's anatomy." "This is Mary." "I like cats and I don't like people who don't." "I wonder how to complete the operation we've just seen, what happens when your men reach the wheelhouse?" "It's a matter of timing." "My men, while you create a diversion, will surround the wheelhouse." "Harris will toss in the stun grenades and I'll kill the man at the switch." "I go aboard "Esther"?" " We both do." "You in your official capacity and I as your flag lieutenant." "And what makes you think that they'll allow us aboard?" "We shall offer ourselves as additional hostages when they begin to get nervous." "And I shall see that they do get nervous." "Cheers." "...mainly westerly." "5 or 6, showers, good." "London:" "Westerly, backing south-westerly, 5 or 6, locally, gale 8 at first." "Showers, mainly good." "Fastnet:" "Southwest..." "Come in!" "Would you like some lunch, Sir?" "Thank you, Sanna." "Kramer wants you." " Tell him I'll be with him in a moment." "He wants you now." "Don't touch me!" "You alright, Sanna?" "You okay?" " I'm fine." "What do you want?" " Call "Jennifer"." "I wanna talk to King." ""Esther" calling "Jennifer"." "Mr. King, please." "D'you want me, Lou?" " I don't like it." "We still haven't made the news." "Do you think they understand what'll happen if they interfere with the mines we planted?" " They'll find out if they try anything." "Mr. King is on the line." "Time check, Mr. King." "What's going on?" "We're doing our best, Mr. Kramer." "There is no best!" "You've got 8 hours, 5 minutes before "Ruth" goes down." "Everybody's aware of the time period, Mr. Kramer!" "Now I've been instructed to tell you Admiral Sir Francis Brinsden has been asked to negotiate with you." " There's nothing to negotiate." "Then how do we get the ransom to you?" " I'll tell you when I'm ready." "Now put the Admiral on." " He's flying over from Aberdeen." "I didn't give anyone permission to land on "Jennifer"." "Well, it's going to be extremely difficult to get any money to you." "Do we get permission for him to land or not?" "Alright, he can land." "But no planes within a mile of this ship." "And we'll be monitoring the radio." "Fair Isle:" "North-westerly 6 to gale 8..." "I'm sorry I'm late." "Ready for take-off?" "I'll give you the PM's instructions on the flight." "As soon as ffolkes arrives." "He insisted on his own uniform." "What's he like?" " Very odd." "Enough chips on his shoulder to sink a ship." "On the other hand, I suspect that you picked the right man for the job." "This is Royal Privy Seal Mr. Tipping, ffolkes." "He's not coming with us, is he?" "He is indeed." "He has instructions for me and you from the Prime Minister." "Hope there's room for all of us, otherwise one of you two will have to sit on the floor." "That's your brief from the PM." " Thank you." "No, thank you." "No, thank you." "May I ask, Mr. Ffolkes, how long have you been working on that?" "17 years." "I'm in no hurry to finish it." "You find petit point relaxing?" "Extremely boring!" "It helps me think, provided people don't talk to me." "We're coming up on "Ruth"." "There's "Ruth"." "Should be evacuated by now." "Soon be sending down our naval divers to defuse the mines." "That's a damned silly thing to do." "That's hardly your business, ffolkes." " Why did you say that?" "Any explosive man worth his salt would have arranged for the mines to explode when they're disturbed." "Up, or rather down, would go "Ruth"." "The naval bomb disposal divers are experts, too." "Would you care to discuss the survival statistics of bomb disposal experts, naval or otherwise?" "It's immaterial to Mr. Kramer whether "Ruth" goes up now or tonight." "It makes their case for paying up to save "Jennifer" stronger than ever." "He has a point." "I would like to listen to the weather forecast." "There is a storm coming up." "If you know there's a storm coming, why d'you wanna listen to the radio?" "Because if it's severe, we have to turn into the wind and ride it out." "Okay, turn the radio on, Harold." "Where are Eiji and Saburo?" "They're guarding the crew" " How about Webb and Ackerman?" " Asleep." "I would like the engineer up here to help me change position." "Okay." "Go get him." "Straight at him!" "No funny stuff!" "You better go with him." "Hey!" " Oh, it's okay." "Kramer gave us permission for the crew to do a little work." "Go on!" "We're going to change position." "Put on your oilskins." "Stallemo!" "You and Olsen stand by the engines." "Heyerdal, you come with me." "And don't any of you try to be heroes." "Sir, I would like the key to the poison cupboard." "Start up engines!" "Start up engines!" "Is it good news or bad?" " I don't know." "There's your helicopter." "My name's King." " Brinsden." "Alright, let's get to it." "Walk, calmly!" "How many know what's happening?" " Seven, counting my secretary." "There's nothing anyone can do about it anyway." "They could pray." " They could panic too." "Good afternoon." "He's on the phone." "May I?" "No, you may not!" "I didn't know they had females aboard." " Just 8 of us." "Things are improving." "A gigantic step backwards!" "This is King speaking." "I want that chopper to stay where it is." "Nobody is to leave "Jennifer"" "without my permission." " Yes, understood." "Now, who exactly arrived on it?" "Admiral Brinsden and his flag lieutenant." " No-one else?" "Nobody else, Kramer." "I'm sure the Admiral will be in touch with you shortly." " Yes, unless he's come to lead a chorus of "God save the Queen"" "as "Jennifer" sinks in 40 fathoms of the North Sea." "But what's his hurry?" "He's still got 6 hours and 18 minutes to play with." "He's a real charmer!" "Paranoid." "Momentarily drunk with power and revelling in it." "Don't talk to him for an hour." " Why not?" "His suggestion that there is no hurry is the opposite to what he feels." "He is bursting to know our reaction to his threats." "And what are we supposed to do for the next hour?" "Think, Admiral." "Think!" "If they wanna play games, let 'em." "When "Ruth" goes up, they'll know we're not kidding." "Lose your car-keys, Captain?" "My pipe." "Heyerdal, get it for me." "In my cabin, second drawer down." "With your permission, Mr. Kramer." "Go ahead." "What do you think you're doing?" " Just getting the Captain's pipe." "Mr. Kramer gave his permission." "Kramer, I'm putting you on to Admiral Sir Francis Brinsden." "Hello, Admiral." "Just so long as we get off on the right foot, have you got the money with you?" " No, that wasn't possible, but we are gathering your money, Kramer." "You've no need to worry." " Get this:" "I'm not worried." "Do you have any idea how difficult it is to get 25 million pounds in foreign currency in 24 hours?" "I don't believe you have the remotest idea." " You're entirely wrong." "I've researched this thoroughly." "I have to ask permission for my helicopter to return to the mainland." "If you haven't got the money, why did you come in the first place?" "I had to verify the nature of the emergency." "Can the helicopter leave "Jennifer"?" "In this storm?" "Why?" "To bring you your money, Kramer." "Okay, your thinking's right, Admiral." "But storm or no storm, that money comes in on schedule or down goes "Ruth", understand?" "Even if it can be arranged, you must accept that it's not going to be easy to transfer it in this weather." "You..." "You can rattle on like this forever, but my schedule remains the same." "No money by 9 o'clock tonight:" "Goodbye, "Ruth"!" "No money by 1 o'clock in the morning:" "Goodbye "Jennifer"!" "And that's it!" "There's no way we can make it." "The ransom can't be ready till ten." "We'll be lucky if we have it at 11." " Then why let the chopper take off?" "We want Kramer to think we're doing all we can to meet his demands." "There are two other reasons." "First, the Admiral has an order be transmitted to his staff." "What order?" " To blow up "Ruth"." "Why on earth?" "Well, since they cannot see her, make them think some bungling naval bomb disposal officer has done so." "Well, what will that achieve?" "I'd have thought that was obvious." "If they think "Ruth" has gone, they're hardly likely to try and blow her up themselves." "He may press the button anyway." "That is a chance we have to take." "I suggest a nice big explosion shortly after dark followed by a fire to light up the sky for miles." "I'll lay it on immediately." " Now what's the second reason?" "Since the helicopter brought three, it could take three people back, providing we can get them on board unseen." "Ah yes." "But which three?" " Well, there are 8 women aboard." "Nonsense!" "If women want equality in life they must also accept it in death." "Don't you agree?" "Of course." " Then take the three youngest regardless of sex." "The old have had their chances." "Coffee?" "Oh, thank you." "Very civilised." "Put it down there, would you?" "Nothing's going to happen for a couple of hours." "Why don't you lay your head down?" "No, I'm gonna go to the bathroom." "I'm gonna try to go to the bathroom." "Lou?" "There it is!" "Keep an eye on your little buttons, Harold." " Yeah, I will." "Well, there's nobody up here we can't live without." "What do you want?" " To relieve Heyerdal." " Is one of our guys on guard downstairs?" " Yeah, stop worrying." "Nobody's going any place." "If anyone even farts in the wrong key, we'll blow his brains all over the floor." "Go ahead." "Heyerdal!" "Tell Sanna to start the dinner now!" "You'd like to eat, I presume." "That better be the last thing you presume, Captain Courageous!" "The Captain says it's time to eat." "Then who's going to get it?" "I'm the only person who can get into the hospital without attention." "Anybody who's sick can go to the hospital." "I'm sick." " Are you sure you're up to it?" "I welcome the chance of being caught and put out of my misery." "Nobody gets that sick." " Don't you believe it." "Colchicine?" "We are grateful to you, Mr. Herring." "I have to go to the hospital." "Get something for this sea-sickness." "I didn't think he had such courage." " I don't know why he did it." "I do!" "He's one of them!" " We've got to stop him." " No!" "Just follow me!" "Come on, Peter, you've got to help." "I've got to get more supplies." "I can't do all the work myself." "Do you hear anything?" "I hope you were right." " If he was genuine, they'd never have got on." "You better get back." "Tell the guard I'll be along with the supplies." "Feeling better?" " Much better." " Haven't heard anything on the BBC." "Service with a smile." "Just put it right there, darling." "It's about time, too." "Wait for us, fellas!" "You've had your dinner, have you?" " Yeah." " Was it good?" "Fine." " How about having a cup of coffee with us just to show there's no hard feelings?" " No, thanks, we've already had some." "Two coffees, Harold." "No, this one's for Blue Eyes." "Sugar?" "Well, drink it." "Drink it!" "More coffee, Harold." "What were you gonna do, sailor boy?" "Fill us with poison and then laugh while we rolled around and died?" "Is that what you were gonna do?" "Was it?" "Let him go!" "Where is she?" "She's overboard." "He dead?" "Throw him over the side after his girlfriend." "That's a nasty cut you got there." "This is the bad time." "I wish I had sewn." "It's for you, Sir." "It's in code." ""The girl who follows the law comes of age an hour early tonight."" " What does that mean?" "In the Old Testament Ruth follows judges." "Coming of age is 21." "The Navy will simulate the blowing up of "Ruth" at one hour before 21:00." "I suppose you're one of those fellows who does the Times crossword in 10 minutes." " I have never taken 10 minutes!" "You believe in living dangerously, don't you?" "What's your news?" "This is the Admiral." "I'm sorry Kramer, but the Prime Minister has instructed me to tell you there's no possibility of getting the ransom to you before 11." "She hopes to have it ready shortly after that." "Under these circumstances I have to ask you to reconsider your decision to blow up "Ruth" at nine o'clock." " No deal." "We are not stalling." "If you wait..." "Eight seconds to go!" "Listen, Admiral." "If the Prime Minister went on air and said she was going to hand us the money personally, cross her heart, hope to die, the answer would still be "No!"" "You must reconsider, Kramer, don't you realise?" "What was that?" ""Ruth" has gone up!" "They must have been playing with one of my mines." "I warned them." " Admiral, we..." "He hung up." "Can't say I blame him." "Did he buy it?" " I hope." "There's too many people up here." "Webb!" "Ackerman!" "Take those two below." "Sure is pretty!" "If they don't get a call in to Red Adair, it could burn for a year." " Get me the Admiral on the buzzer." ""Esther" calling "Jennifer"." "The Admiral's flag lieutenant here." "The Admiral isn't available." "Then make him available." " That is not possible." "82 crew and 6 naval divers went up with "Ruth"." "He's very distressed." "He should be!" "He blew it, not me!" "Get this, Lieutenant." "We've got nothing to lose." "Now have the money here on time or the whole North Sea'll be on fire." "Do you think it worked?" "Don't let's do any chicken-counting." "He could still press that button intentionally or unintentionally." " What's the next move?" "I suggest ringing him every half hour to ensure he doesn't get any sleep." "In the meantime, I must teach you how to make a diversion look natural." "Cigarette, Kramer?" "Looks simple, doesn't it?" "But to do it naturally in 10 seconds takes a lot of practice." "Especially as you have to bend down 2 minutes after my men have boarded." "In other words, at 00:40 you will say, "cigarette, Kramer?"" "I shall expect him to be watching you when I kill him ten seconds later." "At the same moment, my man Harris will fling in two stun grenades which will go off with a very loud bang indeed." "By the time you've recovered, Kramer and his odious colleagues will be dead or disabled, clear?" " Zero, zero, forty?" "That's cutting it rather fine, isn't it?" " The closer we are to his deadline, the more jittery he will become and the more careless." "Supposing something goes wrong?" "Cigarette, Kramer?" "Nothing will go wrong." "Alright, go tell the others we found him." "And tell Eiji, nobody leaves that mess-room without my permission." "What happened?" " They jumped me." "I was coming to warn you." "They were going to poison you." "Well, they tried that." "They're overboard." "Who was in on it?" "I'm getting worried about you, Herring." "It's not a good sign." "You get your ass outside and keep your eyes open!" "Okay, Lou." "Lou." "Wait a minute!" "You said you were saving your escape plan until the last minute." "This feels like the last minute to me." "Where do you wanna go, Harold?" "Admiral, I think you should call him now." "Why?" " Because I want him to be busy at 21 hundred hours." "If it hadn't already happened, in exactly 12 seconds" "I'd be doing this..." "This is Admiral Brinsden." "Your ransom will be delivered to "Jennifer" at 00:40 tomorrow." "You said it would be ready at 11." "Well, it's a miracle we've got it at all." "It sounds like it's coming from your and the Queen's account." "I like that." "We shall have to winch it down from the helicopter." " While we wait" "I want you and King and your lieutenant Flag to come over here." "You're looking for additional hostages?" "No, but it has occurred to us that you might try to booby-trap the ransom." "No, I'm afraid that thought didn't occur to us." "Well, don't worry about it." "It would have." "So we'll see you at eleven, Admiral." "And incidentally, one of the buttons I've got in front of me detonates a bomb in this ship." "Try to turn your visit into a raiding party, we'll all go down together." "Your guys, our guys and "Jennifer" of course." "Well, at least it saves us having to talk our way on board." "We still have to talk our way to the bridge." "I don't like changed plans." "Mr. King, do you suppose you could ask your secretary to confirm that my men have put to sea as scheduled?" "You're late." " Admiral Brinsden, requesting permission to take off." "Of course you can take off." "How are you gonna get here if you don't?" "And Brinsden, be smart!" "Don't bring any hardware with you." "They're coming in." "Be on deck and search 'em!" "If anything happens, I'd appreciate it if you'd give this to my wife." "Admiral, I presume you'll want your family to know you went voluntarily?" "No, I don't!" "Sibyl would give me hell if she thought I'd volunteered." "But you might give her that if we don't come back." "Of course we'll come back." "You will both come back." "Now, zero, zero, thirty-two hours, that is 32 minutes past midnight precisely, you will call Kramer and tell him you wish to speak to of us to make sure we are unharmed, otherwise no ransom will be paid." "Have you got that?" "Yes sir." "Zero, zero, thirty-two hours." "Splendid!" "Now, since our lives will depend upon it," "I suggest that we synchronise our watches." "The correct time 10 seconds from now will be eleven fourteen." "Five, four, three, two, one." "Set!" "They're coming in." "You're on your own, Harold." "One false move and I'll blow your ears off." "Get off!" "Alright, move it!" "You'd be Mr. Kramer." "Glad to have you at our little clambake." "But if you're not an expendable statistic in the Navy, the next visitor we have better be carrying that 25 million in loose change." " I told you it will be here 40 minutes past midnight." " I know you told me." "I don't like you, Flag." "How fortunate!" "My instinct tells me you're bad news." "Did you search him well?" "I could tell you the size of his underwear." " Eiji!" "You and Saburo take the Admiral and King to the front cabin." "Lock 'em in." "Ackerman!" "Tell Harold to call the helicopter." "One guy's going back." "I want my flag lieutenant with me." "You invited him, Mr. Kramer!" "I changed my mind!" "Go on." "You'd better take that grin off your face or this guy will carve it off." "Lou!" "Why don't I go back with him?" "You don't need me anymore." "I'm not cut out for this, Lou." "You can split my share." "Webb, wait for Terry." "Hey, what's wrong, Terry?" "Come on, Lou!" "I did my part." " You did your part." "I got you on board." " You got us on board." "Go ahead!" "Get those two locked up!" "Yes." "I'll tell him." "They've called the helicopter back." "The pilot says there was shooting." "He thinks someone's been killed." "I'm going down to the flight deck." "I know I was right about that guy." "They may try something." "Put Eiji and Saburo on the main deck." "You and Webb, keep moving around." "What happened?" " He didn't like my face." "But what about the plan?" "You're supposed to be there!" "I know, Mr. Tipping." "I know." "I thought you knew the answer to everything, Mr. Ffolkes." "Typical of a woman to make a remark like that." "Must you smoke?" " Yes!" "Yes?" "It's the Prime Minister's private secretary wanting to know if everything's going as planned." " Tell him to put her on." "Mr. Ffolkes would like to speak to the Prime Minister." "Prime Minister, a change of plans has been forced upon us." "If anything should go wrong we must blow up the "Esther" and all on board her." "You're asking me to order the deaths of an innocent crew?" "I am telling you how to save the lives of 600 men and incidentally, the economic life of Great Britain." "I think it would be better to pay the ransom." "We have the money now." "No, Madame, you must not do that!" "If you don't stand firm on this issue then you will simply encourage every villain with a rowing boat to hold this country to ransom again." "If we come to that decision how do you propose we carry it out?" "Are you recording this?" "I want you to get it straight." "The helicopter must arrive at the "Esther" as scheduled." "At zero, zero, forty hours precisely." "That is 40 minutes past midnight." "But I want her to be carrying a bomb." "Now, if I fire a Verey light at zero, zero forty-one, everything will be alright." "If not, the bomb must be dropped immediately." "And I repeat:" "Immediately." " Alright, Mr. Ffolkes." "It will be done." "Thank you, Ma'am." "A wise decision, I assure you." "Mr. Ffolkes, how many crew are on the "Esther"?" "The insurance company log states 11." "But Admiral Brinsden, Mr. King and I will be on board at the fatal moment." "Good luck to you, Mr. Ffolkes." "Thank you, Madame." "She seems to have some brains." "Get on to the diving section." "I want a wet suit and a Verey gun." "Then get onto security." "I want a 45 automatic as quickly as possible." "You really don't like women, do you?" "I do not." "You see, I together with my five elder sisters was raised by a maiden aunt." "Both my parents died tragically in childbirth." "Until the age of ten, I was forced to wear my sisters' hand-me-downs." "Then when I married I discovered to my horror that my wife also had five sisters, all unmarried and all expecting my support." "I find cats a far superior breed." "Just on the off-chance I have made a will." "I've left everything to my cats." "I want it testified that I'm sound of body and mind." "Well, go on!" "Get me "Jennifer"." " "Esther" calling "Jennifer"." "If they're going to try anything it'll be before the money arrives." "Hey, Flag." " I'll get him for you." "A wet suit in vermilion!" "Just what one needs at night!" "Yes, Kramer." " That look in your eyes is still bothering me, Flag." "I thought I'd remind you if the Navy or anyone else starts acting cute..." "Nobody is going to try anything." "None of us particularly wants to die so I suggest we leave each other alone until the ransom arrives." "Time is short so it shouldn't be a strain." "Yeah, let's do that." "I don't like the sound of your voice either." "Trouble?" "Isn't there some way we can notify your men?" "Only by radio." "If they pick it up on "Esther" we'll all be dead before the message ends." "Anything wrong?" "Hey Art!" "I'm freezing my nuts off!" "What d'you say I go get some coffee?" "Okay, only make it quick." "It's cold enough to freeze the ass off a polar bear." "At least we're out of the wind on this side." "Hello?" "This is "Jennifer" calling "Esther"." "Hello?" "Hello, this is "Jennifer" calling "Esther"." "What's happening?" " He's dead." "Hello?" " Well, keep trying!" "Hello, this is "Jennifer" calling "Esther"." "Come in "Esther"!" "She should have called by now." "Bridge!" "Sir Admiral Brinsden." "I want to speak to Kramer." "What do you want, Admiral?" " Before the ransom arrives" "I have to speak to "Jennifer" to assure them of our well-being." "Really?" "And what if I say "no"?" "What do you want, Kramer?" "Your ransom or a disaster?" "It was agreed that if there was no signal from us, it would not be paid." "Webb." "Bring me the Admiral and King up here." " Hold this." "Come on!" "Kramer wants you." "Get me "Jennifer"." " "Esther" calling "Jennifer"." ""Esther" calling "Jennifer"." "Come in "Jennifer"." "I can't get through." " Well, keep trying." "You stay here." "I'll take the lower deck." "Thanks, boy." " Girl." "You look like a boy." "You act like a boy." "Okay, I'm a boy." "I was hiding in the lifeboat..." "I'll take the one in red." "That's a good boy." "If he comes to, slug him." "And keep out of the way." "Bloody fool!" "I've got "Jennifer"." "No tricks." "Brinsden speaking." "Brinsden!" "Everything is to go as planned!" "Everything!" "Yes, I understand." "Everything..." "As planned." "Get ready." "I can't see it." " But you can hear it." "We're going to be millionaires." "As planned..." "Right, Admiral?" "Or..." "What's that?" "Cigarette, Kramer?" "You aught to give those up..." "Where the hell's Harris?" " Someone threw him over the side!" "Dawson, port!" "Ellis, starboard!" "Oh my God!" "Admiral!" ""Jennifer"." "Ffolkes here." "You can tell the Lord Privy Seal the operation has been completed... as planned." "Naturally." "I suppose things could have been worse." "Cooper!" "Get below and release the crew." "Tell them it's all over." "You two come with me." "Get rid of him!" "My God, you're freezing!" "In here, boy!" "Wait!" "Don't bother with that!" "That feels wonderful!" "Turn around." "My God, you are a girl." "Even so, a lot of people owe you a great deal." "And so do I." "I still... don't like your face." "I'm here to greet and thank you on behalf of her Majesty's government." "I'd rather you didn't." " Nevertheless, a wonderful job." "Perfectly executed." "And it's fitting that you should receive some memento of our gratitude." "I'm told you do not approve of medals and other awards." "Damn lot of nonsense!" " Therefore we have chosen something we hope you may approve of." "Esther, Ruth and Jennifer... with the grateful thanks of the nation." "Very thoughtful." "Much appreciated." "Well, if you'll excuse me, Mrs..." "Prime Minister, I think they'd like a saucer of milk."