"(theme music playing)" "(clock ticking)" "The white dwarf, Richter Alpha, is now in maximum luminosity as previously calculated." "I shall now compare its position with plates taken six months ago." "As far as can be seen, the dwarf is now three degrees from its previous position in an elliptical orbit which would seem to contradict previous expectations of where the dwarf would..." "John:" "All right." "Yes, I've got that." "Well, Mrs. Gale will be round here any moment now." "I rang her half an hour ago." "Yeah." "Right." "I'll let you know." " (sighs) - (doorbell rings)" "Stay there, Sheba." "Good morning." "Oops, mind the step." "When you rang I actually believed you had got up up with the larks." "I've been on the phone ever since." "In you go." " Coffee?" " Thanks." "What's all the panic?" "Have you seen the morning papers?" "You expect me to be here in 30 minutes flat and to have read the papers?" "Have a look at that one, and the other." "The Army to be mobilized?" "What on earth for?" "Well, it's got nothing to do with battles." "Do you know what a white dwarf is?" "It's some kind of astronomical body." "The core of the supernova." "Um... what does that mean then?" "Well, stars explode sometimes." "Well, when you say a "star," you don't mean a planet?" "No, no, no, no." "The word "star" gets used very loosely." "Stars are really like our sun, burning masses of gas." "Every now and then, one of them explodes." "Every now and then, meaning every few million years." "Well, not necessarily." "There was one quite recently in 1054." "Bang up to date." "The Crab Nebula is the debris from it." "You see, when a star explodes, as our sun will one day, there's an enormous out-throwing of energy." "During the next few days, the heat and light of the exploding star increases from 1 to 100 million times its original state." "And when it's all over, you get a white dwarf." "Yes, probably not much bigger than our own Earth." "After that, it becomes a space wanderer." "There's a theory, you know, that our own solar system started this way." "First, there were twin binary stars, then one of them exploded and some of the debris became the planets." "That's Professor Richter's theory, isn't it?" "If you've already read up on this," " you're wasting my time, aren't you?" " Keep your shirt on." "All I know about his theory is that he said that the white dwarf would re-enter our solar system one day." "He still maintains that theory, as far as I know." "He doesn't maintain anything anymore." " He was murdered last night." " Murdered?" "Well, who would want to kill a man like him?" "That's what I want to find out..." "Why his notes were stolen, the tape recording he was working on destroyed." "Now, he was making a very important observation last night." "He went to the Ministry of Science six months ago and said that in 15 months, the white dwarf would re-enter our solar system." "That give us nine months to go." "Now last night, he was going to confirm or deny those calculations." "Do you know what the return of the white dwarf would mean?" "It'd go for the sun, wouldn't it?" "A thimble full of white dwarf matter weighs a thousand tons, according to our standards." "It has more gravitational pull than anything else in the universe." "You're right, it would go for the sun, but it would take us with it." "If this news got out, there'd be a worldwide panic." "Well, the government knows that." "That's why they mobilized the armed forces to try and keep law and order." "They're not telling anyone yet." "But other countries, certainly other observatories have a right to know." "Not if there's the slightest possibility of a leak." "And if communiqués were sent all over the world, it might happen." "When is the government going to tell the country that the world is coming to an end?" "It's being decided this morning." "Now our problem is to try and find out why Richter was killed." "So do you know Tor Point Observatory?" "It's in Cornwall." "It's a fascinating place." "And the Cornwall Riviera leaves at midday." "And what will you be doing while I'm away?" "What do you think?" "Having myself a good time while there's still time to have it." "Sheba, come on, up." " Morning, Barker." " Morning, sir." " Any further news?" " No, sir." "I've been onto the PM." " There's to be a Cabinet meeting this morning." " Mm-hmm." "It's absolutely incredible, Barker." "The one man who'd been following the path of the dwarf" " to be... to be murdered?" " Hmm." "Oh, I phoned Tor Point again last night, sir, and told Professor Cartright not to inform the local police." "Yes, quite right, whoever killed him will have to go scot-free for the moment." "Of course, you know what the service chiefs will say..." "Why didn't we let them occupy the place six months ago?" "But we agreed, sir, that would have drawn too much attention to it." "Oh, yes." "That's what I told the PM." "Have you found out when they can make another observation?" "Yes, sir, just before midnight on Wednesday." " Another four days." " I know." "But Cartright says that's the earliest time when the dwarf can be observed from this hemisphere." "I see, well, I shall have to suggest to the PM that he holds back the communiqué to other governments until after that observation." " Hmm." " We certainly can't pronounce world doom on the basis of an observation made six months ago." "No, we couldn't do that." "Tell Cartright we shall want to hear from him by 1:00 A.M." " on Thursday morning." " Yes, sir." "Meantime, I'll tell the PM what's happening." "(door closes)" "We must inform the police, Mr. Barker." "Barker:" "I'd afraid that's quite out of the question, Professor." "It's the Minister's expressed wish that no one shall be informed." "He wants you to carry on normally, make the observation on Wednesday as planned, and inform him immediately of your findings." " Is that understood?" " No." "No, it's not understood." "But I take it we have no option." "Now just what is supposed to have happened" " to Professor Richter?" " As far as the Ministry is concerned," "Professor Richter is on leave indefinitely." "Well, thank you, and good day, Mr. Barker." "So you heard that." "Mount Palomar in California could make an observation tonight, if we could tell them." "No." "No, Dr. Fuller, we can't." "No, if there's a leak, there could be a panic, worldwide social disorder." "That's far more important than any concern for scientific truth." "Man:" "Perhaps, they're right." "If we are seeing what people do when they are frightened or in panic, you might agree with the officials." "Well, I suppose I'd better tell Luke that his father has gone on indefinite leave." "It's all right." "I'll tell him." "Thank you." "Well, I think it might come better from you." "Luke!" "Luke?" "Luke:" "Yeah?" "You really shouldn't go in there, you know." "I haven't properly seen him since last night." "The Minister's been on the phone." "There isn't going to be an inquiry." "Can they decide that?" "I think it would be better if we do what they want." "Well, I think it'd be better if we told them to go to hell." "Look, if Cartright isn't going to call in the police," " then I am." " Now, look you've had a terrible shock." "We all have." "But nothing's gonna bring your father back." "I just can't think why." " I mean, can you?" " No, of course, I can't." "Look, why don't you go back to the guest house and get some rest?" "I've been trying work out who could have done it?" "People kill because they hate or they're frightened or they wanna get something out of it." "Well, who could have gotten anything out of killing my father?" "Certainly nobody here." "I wonder." "Yeah, okay." "When the price reaches $2.50, sell." "Yeah, the lot." "And credit my number one account, Bank of New York." "Mm, oh, and call me here again tomorrow in care of Maxwell Barker, Hyde Park 5011." "Huh?" "Yeah, London." "You got that?" "Okay, goodbye." "Well, that'll take care of today's buying." "Let's see now, I make the total cash reserve at... 2, 3, 5, and two is 7..." "Here we've got to have..." "Um, 7.5 million English pounds." "That's not bad." "But, you know, Max, if you could let some other friends of mine in on this, we could make it up to 30 or 40 million." "And what would be in it for us?" "Why, 10%, 20%." "Well, you could name your own price." "They'd be glad of the tip-off." "That would all be extra for us." "It would all be extra risk, too." "No, not necessarily." "Now, look, Max, when the government announces Richter's theory and we start buying, our names are gonna stick out like sore thumbs." "But if there was somebody else buying at the same time, it would make it look like we weren't the only ones who didn't believe the world was coming to an end, right?" "But we won't be buying under our own names, remember?" " At least, I won't." " Ah, okay, Max." "Even so, couldn't we use those extra percentages?" "We could if we knew we were going to get them." "You might get four shillings out of a man who's earned a pound on your tip-off, but you try getting 4 million out of anyone who's earned 20 million, he'd tell you to go and whistle." "I just thought we'd do some friends of mine a favor, that's all." "When you're one of the two richest men in the world, that's the time to think about doing favors." "Even then, I'd consider it to be a sign of moral weakness." "Yeah, well, I guess maybe you're right, Max." " Oh, hello." " Hello, Henry, I didn't expect you." "Hello, Max." "I'm sorry." "I hope I'm not butting in." "No, not at all." "I was just leaving." " Ah." " See you tomorrow, Max." " Bye." " Bye." "Well, now, let me get you a drink." "Thank you, Max." "You're seeing a lot of this fellow Johnson these days." "It's good to keep up overseas contacts." "He's a big man on Wall Street." "You know, for brothers, we couldn't be more different," " could we?" " Oh, I don't know." "Just because you don't like my friends and I don't like yours." "I've got nothing really against Johnson." "He's probably no more unscrupulous than you are." "Well, we can't all dedicate our life to public service." "Someone has to keep the wheels of commerce turning." "Oh, is that what you call it?" "Well, if Professor Richter is right, there won't be any wheels of commerce anymore or anything else." "All your efforts to scrape a meager living of however many millions a year it is will be brought to naught." "I thought there was gonna be an announcement today." "They couldn't make the observation last night." " Too cloudy or something?" " Technical hitch." "But the government must tell the people fairly soon, surely." "Well, there are two points of view inside the cabinet." "One is to tell other governments straight away so that they can mobilize the Armed Forces and police to maintain public order." "Then what happens if you find out Richter was wrong?" "Well, the world would have been thrown into social chaos for nothing." "The other point of view is to say nothing until the Tor Point astronomers have made sufficient observations to be completely sure that there's no hope." "The one thing the cabinet does agree on is that the world should learn its fate in a proper and orderly manner." "So between these two extremes, what master stroke of British compromise" " has finally been decided?" " There's no question of compromise." "The next possible observation is Wednesday midnight." "If Tor Point then confirms Richter's theory, communiqués will be sent to all governments at 1:00 on Thursday morning, and the Prime Minister will speak to the country" " a few hours later." " But, surely, all the time the dwarf is up there, there's the possibility that some other astronomer might see it." "Well, of course, the government would prefer it if there could have been other independent observations." "But the chances of any astronomer even looking at the dwarf, let alone observing its path, are on a par with your looking through a pinhole and seeing one particular seagull nesting on the cliffs of Dover." "You really think this is going to happen?" "I find it difficult to believe that Richter could have been wrong." "I was thinking if it comes to the worst, you and Mary might like to join me at my villa on the French Riviera." "We could live it up a bit." "I haven't planned my summer leave, yet." "Oh, but you're forgetting, Henry, the world may be coming to an end." "If we are going to be dragged into the sun, it will be summer all the way for all of us... until we melt." " Yes?" " Good evening." "I'm Dr. Gale, you're expecting me." "Oh, yes, yes." "I've got your room ready." "You will be at the observatory, I suppose?" " That's right." " Oh, they all stay here, you know." "Not a room to spare since our place opened." "There's one of them waiting for you now in the lounge." "Dr. Fuller, Dr. Gale is here." "Gale:" "Could I possibly have something to eat?" "Yes, certainly." "There's carrot soup and herb omelet and baked bananas, be all right?" " Lovely, thank you." " Dr. Gale?" "I'm Elizabeth Fuller." "Nice of you to be here to meet me." " I was just having some coffee." "Maybe you'd like to join me." " Thanks." " I'll show you your room when you've had your dinner." " Right." "This is the lounge and the tea room." "It's not exactly The Ritz, but we manage." "You take molasses?" "I have done." "Well, we don't get sugar here or meat." "We're very, very healthy, but growing increasingly thin." "Oh, and we don't smoke, at least, not when Miss Tregarth's around." "I hope you can stand the pace of our high living." "It's the only place to stay around here, isn't it?" "Well, it's the only place near the observatory, unless, of course, you can afford to run a car." "Unfortunately, in this country, an astronomer's pay doesn't run to such luxuries." "You've been working abroad, haven't you?" "Yes." "I was in Mandsaur for two years." "Oh, India." "Oh, that must have been very interesting, but a bit remote." "Oh, we managed to keep up with things." "You know, Cartright and Richter, of course." "I know their work." "Yours, too, of course." "I was very impressed with your paper on the asteroid belt." "Well, I didn't seem to impress Tikhov." " You know him, I suppose?" " Mm-mm." "I've never been to Russia, at least not to any of the observatories there." "Tell me, what's Professor Richter working on at the moment?" "He's gone away, on indefinite leave." "Oh, this is Dr. Luke Richter." "Dr. Gale." " How do you do?" " How do you do?" "Dr. Gale's been at Mandsaur the last two years." "Oh, really?" "Then you should feel at home here." "We have Dr. Rahim on loan from Bombay." "Well, you must have met him out there." "I'm sure he'll be delighted to see you again." " Professor Cartright?" " Mm-hmm." "Oh, yes, Rahim, what is it?" "Oh, what's the lowest possible angle of the telescope?" "Well, it's about 20 degrees." "Why?" "Well, I've been thinking about the dwarf." "Oh, but it's not over the horizon yet." "I know, I know, not for four more nights." "But we have the place of Professor Fuller's observation of the comet Dondima, which is also at an angle of 87 degrees, to the planetary disc, but, of course, more distant than the dwarf." "It seems to me that any movement the dwarf has made must be reflected in the curve of Dondima or into the dwarf's immense density." "Yes." "Yes, that's possible." "I've been studying the spectrum reading Richter took of the dwarf." " Well, it's mainly iron, isn't it?" " Yes." "It's the typical dwarf interior atomic structure to the gravitational pull of 2,000 to 1 compared with Earth." "I wish your permission to make an observation of the comet Dondima." "Yes." "Yes, of course." "You go ahead." "Look, there's no one's using the telescope tonight." "But don't you think the chances of making a characterization" " on that basis is rather remote?" " Yes, I know." "But if the chance exists, I think we should take it." "All right." "I'll let you know straight away if I'm successful." "Thank you." "You see it's not very far from the guest house." "Doesn't Miss Tregarth mind you coming and going at all hours of the night?" "Oh, I think she's gotten used to it, but she still thinks there's something a little immoral about sleeping during the day." "This is the office." " Oh, hello, Luke." " Hello." "Oh, Professor Cartright, this is Dr. Gale." "Oh, I'm very pleased to meet you, Dr. Gale." "How do you do?" "Oh, my letter of introduction from the Ministry." "Oh, yes." "Yes, of course." "Well, we're not observing Mars from here yet." "You want to stay until its opposition, I suppose?" " I would like to." " No, not at all." "If there's anything you want, you let me know, won't you?" "We record our programs up here." "It usually works out quite well." "I see Professor Rahim is using the telescope." "I didn't know we had anything programmed for tonight." "Well, he had some idea about Alpha Richter." "I'll tell you about it later." "Well, now, if you'll excuse me, I have some plates to develop." " If I might borrow Dr. Fuller." " Yes, certainly." "I'm so sorry, we're not very used to strangers, but you're very welcome." "Perhaps, Dr. Richter will show you around." "Excuse me." "I'm afraid you'll find we're a little preoccupied just at the moment." "Would you like to see the telescope?" " Yes, I would." " This way, please." "They call this place new, but you'll see most of the stuff has been handed down." "The telescope, however, is brand-new." "I'm sure Rahim will be delighted to see you." "It's just possible, of course, he won't remember me." " Shall I lead the way?" " Yes, do." "Do you mind if I put some lights on?" "Rahim?" "Uh, just a moment." "I'll turn the lights on." "Mind you don't trip over anything." " Oh, good morning, sir." " Oh, good morning." "Mr. Barker is expecting me." "Yes, sir." "Yes." "Yes, all right, I've got that." "Dr. Gale." "Yes, thank you." "Good-bye." "Hello, Max." "Hello, Jonathan." "I won't be a minute." "Would you like some coffee, sir?" "Oh, yeah, thanks." "Well, then, what did your brother have to say last night?" "Nothing we don't know." "Except that our elements inside the government who'd rather not make the announcement on the basis of one man's observations." "I've just had a call from the observatory." "Professor Rahim was killed last night." " Who?" " Rahim." "He was from the University of Bombay." " Well, that could mean police investigation." " I know." "The sooner this business is over, the better." "Look, Max, you can't expect to make this kind of money without taking some risk." "Maybe I come from a tougher school than you do, huh?" "I doubt it." "It's just that there's a Dr. Gale down there as a guest of the Ministry?" "Gale?" "Gale?" " I've never heard of him." " It's a woman." "Her visit may be just a coincidence?" "But it couldn't have happened at a worst time." " Is this your brother's doing?" " No." "Look, you were saying something about elements in the government having to do..." "They don't want to take the risk of the newspapers getting a hold of the story before they make an announcement." "On the other hand, they'd be much happier about making that announcement if there had been other independent observations." " Maybe we can fix it." " How?" "Well, I know a man that I can... put pressure on." "Look, do you mind if I call New Jersey?" "Go ahead." "Don't you worry." "I will... hello?" "Oh, yeah, I wanna make a person-to-person call..." "What?" "Oh, sorry." "A personal call to a Professor James Larsen," "University of New Jersey." "Hyde Park 5011." "Okay, fine, I'll stick by this phone." "Was Professor Rahim really after the white dwarf?" "I'm certain of it." "They all know what happened to Richter and what he was on to." "Playing it dumb, eh?" "They're doing exactly what they've been told." " They're loyal." " Yeah, but to whom?" "I've been doing some investigating of my own." " By remote control." " In a way, yes." "I've been asking myself why should anyone want to kill Professor Richter?" "Sounds like right thinking." "The white dwarfs are coming and we all fry together, so what's the point of anyone murdering anyone else?" "Unless, of course, Richter was wrong." "None of the people around him seem to think he was ever wrong." "Well, who's to know what's right or wrong in astronomy?" "Well, obviously it's all theoretical, but right means a theory that's mathematically watertight, wrong means one that isn't." "Yeah, well, come and sit down." "Scientists can be wrong." "Richter was an old man." "Now let's take a purely theoretical question for a while." " Is everything all right?" " Looks lovely." "Who would stand to gain out of a widespread scare about something that isn't going to happen?" "To gain a political point or to make money?" "Either." "Well, politically, the social order would come to a grinding halt the moment the news got out" " and no one would care anymore." " Exactly." "There's be chaos and everybody would have a feeling that nothing mattered." "The country that knew it was a fake scare could just walk in." "Yes, except they'd have their own military forces to contend with." "No, they wouldn't care either." "Yeah, that leads to the next thing." "What do the world stock exchanges do when there's a threat of war?" "Prices drop." "Except for armaments." "I'm beginning to see what you mean." "As soon as the government communiqués goes out, all the world's observatories are focused on the white dwarf." "It'll take a couple of days to confirm whether the threat is real or imaginary." "During that time, the smart operator comes in, buys up half the stock market shares on the cheap, biggest killing in history." "Yes." "Still doesn't explain Richter's death." "But if he was going to contradict what he'd told the government six months ago..." "Now I have the list here of all the best known financiers who've been making sellings on a grand scale." "Now the person who wants to buy up half the world, he's gonna need all the money he can lay his hands on." "There are 20 or 30 names here." "Most of them have legitimate reasons for selling." " It's the others I wanna find out about." " Hey, just a minute." "There's a name here that rings a bell." "Maxwell Barker." "Where's my bag?" "Oh, here." "In my letter of introduction from the Ministry of Science," "I'm sure there was something..." "yes, here we are." ""I beg to remain your obedient servant,."" "Ooh, something quite unreadable." ""For and on behalf of Henry Barker," "Head of the Division of Astronomy."" "It's a pretty common name, but they could be related." "They could, indeed." "No, that's out of the question, Professor." "No, no, no, don't get up, Barker." "It's good to see you again, Professor." "I can't tell you how shocked I am about Rahim's death." "Yes, I've just been telling Mr. Barker," "I think it's high time we called in the police." "I couldn't agree more, but I'm afraid it's quite out of the question." "Surely you must inform Bombay about Rahim's death." "Well, we can't keep this accident quiet." "I'm afraid we'll have to, at least until after the observation." "Then, in that case, we must have some sort of protection at the observatory." "I've got a damn good mind to go straight down to Scotland Yard." "Have you tried to explain the government's views to Professor Cartright?" "Yes, sir, I'm afraid, Professor, that unless you can give us your absolute assurance that you will not inform the police, we can't even let you return to the observatory." "I see." "Perhaps you'd like to come back there with me, explain the official view to my colleagues." "Yes, that might be a very good idea." "Provided, of course, your colleagues aren't gonna regard Mr. Barker as a Whitehall spy." "You might also be able to assist Professor Cartright" " with some security arrangements." " But of course." "I do hope this will be agreeable to you?" " I suppose I have no choice." " Good, that's settled then." "Now then, I shall want you to telephone me at my private number immediately after the observation" " on Wednesday night." " Yes." "The Cabinet has decided that if you are able to contradict Richter, of course, there'll be no announcement at all." "But if your observation confirms his predictions, then coded messages will be sent to British embassies throughout the world and they will inform the governments of the countries concerned." "The messages will suggest that the armed forces and the police be mobilized to maintain public order and also that... well, that national observatories be alerted to track the dwarf." " (buzzes)" " Yes?" "Woman:" "There's a Mr. Steed to see you, sir." "Ah, yes, I'm rather tied up at the moment." "The Minister is with me." "Ask him to wait, will you?" " Don't let me interrupt your work, Barker." " Not at all." "Are you going straight back to the observatory?" " Yes, if that's agreeable to you." " Good." "Then I'll have my chauffeur take you to catch your train." "We'll be out of Mr. Barker's way." "All right, send Mr. Steed in." "Oh, when are you coming down, Mr. Barker?" "That depends on the Minister." "Oh, we'll see to all that, Professor." " We'll have a talk about this later." " Yes, sir." " Oh, good morning." " Good morning, sir." " Good morning." " Good morning, Mr. Steed." "Good morning, Mr. Barker." "It really is a privilege to see Sir Charles in person." "Oh, you know the Minister?" "Do sit down." "Not personally, no." "Wasn't that Professor Cartright of Tor Point Observatory with him?" "Yes." "I'm afraid I'm not quite clear what it is you wanted to see me about." "Your secretary wasn't very precise on the telephone." "Very hard to get good secretaries these days." "I don't want to worry the poor girl." " My card." " Oh, thank you." "Now we are stockbrokers for some of the most successful financers and investors in the country." "Although I say it myself, you've probably heard of us." "I..." "I'm sorry," "I'm afraid I'm not very well up on the city." "Oh, really?" "Well, it's quite simple." "I have to advise my clients when to buy and when to sell, and I thought that you would be the best person, the very best person to tell us whether we really are going to be wiped out" "by the white dwarf." "Just tell him you didn't want to say anything until you were sure." "Say that you saw it for the first time six months ago, if you like, and that you've been studying the problem completely independently." "Yeah... now listen," "I wanna hear some results of your observations within the next 12 hours." "You got that?" "12 hours." "Okay, goodbye." "Well, that ought to fix it." "(doorbell rings)" " You expecting someone?" " Not particularly." " Oh, good afternoon." " Is my brother in?" " Yes, sir." " He's not expecting me" " but I'm sure it'll be all right." " Yes, I'm sure it will be, sir." " Thank you." " Your brother, sir." "Hello, Henry, I thought you'd still be at the Ministry." "Something I want to talk to you about, Max." "Good afternoon, Mr. Johnson." " Let me get you a drink." " No, not just now." "It's rather personal, actually." "I can take myself out to the study." "Henry:" "That's very kind of you." "I'll come straight to the point, Max." "There was a man in my office just half an hour ago from the city." "He knew all about the white dwarf." "I thought I was the only person you told." " Exactly." " Now just a minute, Henry." "Before you jump to any conclusions," " how many people work at the Ministry of Science?" " Oh, I don't know." "And how many people are employed at this observatory," " Tor something or other?" " Tor Point." "You know perfectly well how many people work there." "You also know that as far as this end is concerned, the Minister and I are the only people who know" " what's going on." " And the Prime Minister and the Cabinet." "Oh, you're deliberately making this very difficult for me, Max." "He mentioned you by name." " Did he give you his name?" " I don't think that matters." "He showed me a list of the stocks you've been selling in order to raise capital." "He also said you've been deliberately spreading a rumor through the city that the world was coming to an end." "That's not true." "He concluded that you were up to some big swindle, that possibly there wasn't a white dwarf at all, and that somehow you knew that." "None of us are going to know that" " till Wednesday midnight, are we?" " I simply want to know how he got on to the White dwarf at all" " if it wasn't through you." " If there's no one else knows in London except you and The Minister," " how about your observatory people?" " I've told you..." "You have not answered my point about them." "Maybe one of your tame professors has been indiscreet." " Nonsense." " You're putting them under a very big strain." "Thinking the world is coming to an end, and not being allowed to talk about it to anyone, not even their relatives, which is a restriction you did not apply to yourself, you remember." " Now, Maxwell..." " You're accusing me of betraying you." "This man mentioned you by name." "If I saw some way of making capital out of it," "I'd keep it to myself, wouldn't I?" "I'll see the Minister in the morning and offer him my resignation." "I swear I said nothing about this to anyone." "I've always been fond of you, Max, but I'll never trust you again." "I told you something in confidence because I was depressed and frightened." "Now I see I was a fool." "Don't you think you ought to talk this over with Mary before you do this big Boy Scout act and ruin your career?" "Well, if there really is a white dwarf," "I have no career to ruin, have I?" "Johnson." "Oh, I just wanted to let you know my brother had gone." "Is that all you wanted to let me know?" "Were you listening?" "Look, I've got stake money on this, too, don't forget." " Will he go straight home from here?" " What do you mean?" "Well, you don't think I'm gonna let him keep his morning appointment with the Minister now, do you?" "Knowing my brother," "I can't think of any way to stop him." "Yeah?" "Well, there's always one way." "You think that Henry Barker fell for it?" "I don't see why not after he turfed me out of his office." "I stayed and watched the front door." "He came out about 10 minutes later." "He ordered a cab which took him to his brother's magnificent apartment." "It's all pretty obvious." "It doesn't prove he's done anything criminal." "After all, what would you do if someone came bursting in here and accused your brother of perpetrating a swindle?" "I should be very surprised, I haven't got a brother." "No, Henry Barker may be guilty of selling secrets or he may be just a fool who can't keep his mouth shut." "The end result is the same." "This is all presupposing, of course, that it is a swindle and there's no real dwarf." "Listen to this." "Stay there, Sheba." "Where are we?" "82, here." ""Based on the radioactive decay of uranium deposits"" "which will turn into lead, the existence of the Earth as a separate body" ""can be calculated at about 2,000 million years."" "There is an alternative theory, put forward by the Bishop of Armagh in 1654 that the Earth began at 9:00 in the morning on the 26th of October in the year 4,004 B.C., but later research would seem to question this." "Well, whichever these dates you want to take, the point is the Earth's been going a long, long, long time." "It's not going out of business just like that." "That's probably what they were saying before the Flood, but it happened just the same." "I know cosmic collision is a rare event in the universe." "But it can happen, and it could happen to us." "(telephone rings)" "Excuse me." "Yep?" "Oh, it is, is it?" "Thank you very much." "Good-bye." "Do you know a man called Larsen in America?" "Professor Larsen?" "I've heard of him." "Well, this Professor Larsen has told the American Science Foundation he's been tracking a white dwarf for six months which is now dangerously close to us." "Do you think this is genuine?" "I would if Professors Richter and Rahim hadn't been murdered." "Where are you going?" "I'm going round Maxwell Barker's apartment." "There was nothing else I could do." " When was this?" " I told you, just after you left here." "Believe me, he was going to kill you." " I don't believe you." " It's true." "I've only got your word for that now." "You'll have to help me, Henry." " Who knows he was up here?" " Only you." " And your manservant?" " I sent him out." "He didn't see the body." "I suppose we could dispose of him." "This is rather out of my line of country, really." "We've got to do something!" "I'll say he's disappeared." "I'll carry on normally as though nothing had happened and you will have to do the same." " Meaning what exactly?" " Your resignation, you can't go through with that now." " What you've done makes no difference to that." " Oh, but it does." "You can't walk out of a job like yours on a five minutes' notice." "They'll want to know why you're packing it in." "It's all going to come back to me, and then to him." "All right, Max, I'll help you, provided you do one thing." "I don't trust you, and from now on" "I won't let you out of my sight." "I'm going down to Tor Point Observatory the day after tomorrow." "You're coming with me." "I didn't know he was until I went through his pockets." "Mervin Johnson, American citizen living in New York." "No idea how he got in there?" "No, but apparently, what's his name, Barker and a man called Johnson..." "I assume it's the same Johnson..." "Have been merging their business interests in the past few months." "Oh, well, it's the end of a happy little relationship." "Now, here you are." "I got these for you on the way back." "Oh, thank you." "Are they any good?" "They look convincing enough to me." "So it all depends whether they will convince anybody else." "These notes you found could be in Richter's writing." "I'll have to check them when I get back to the observatory." "Mind you, it won't prove or disprove anything." "It'll just tell somebody where to look for the white dwarf." "Such as Professor Larsen in America?" "I thought Dr. Gale would be down by now." "Oh, she's still up in her room changing," "Leave it, she shouldn't be too long." "Well, I don't want it to spoil." " No, really, don't worry." " All right, then." "I'll bring your tea in a minute." "Well, what do you suppose it is?" "Stewed seaweed, by the look of it." "I suppose we should be glad for small mercies." "Have you decided yet if you're going to spend your last nine months with me?" "I haven't really been able to think about it the past few weeks." "In any case, it'll only be six months, if we're lucky." "You see, according to your father, the Earth's atmosphere will be drawn off oh, three months before we're actually dragged out of orbit." "And the sky goes black and we die of suffocation, a pleasant thought." "And what, I wonder, will all the generals and admirals be doing?" "Rushing around, issuing orders to each other." "Well, I don't think so." "Not once people can see the dwarf coming at us." "I think they'll be paralyzed with fear." "Hmm, may put some sense into the world at last." "But it should take a thing like this?" "It's gonna be a bit late, isn't it?" "Luke, what would you do if you knew there wasn't a Dwarf, that your father had been wrong?" "Well, that now means Larsen's wrong too, remember?" "Well, just supposing." "Go to that overpaid job in America... take you with me." "Oh, um, I've brought your tea." "Will you all be working again tonight?" "Yes, until midnight." "Oh, that'll be a nice change for you..." "To have a night's sleep." "I hope it's not spoiled." "Though actually, it can hardly taste any different." "It's all right." "Did you do all you had to do in London?" "Yes, just a few people I had to see there." "Do you know what I think?" "I think our Dr. Gale is some sort of Ministry spy." " Luke!" " Well, hasn't it struck you as odd how she's appeared here just at this time?" "Just at what time, Dr. Richter?" "You don't really think my father's on leave, do you?" "Luke, I don't think Dr. Gale wants to know about that." "I think she's been sent here to keep an eye on us, to make sure we're going to keep quiet about having a murderer amongst us." "Luke, I'm speaking in your interests." "I don't think you should pursue this!" "I love the way everyone can reduce my father's disappearance to what's in my interest." "None of us have any interest anymore." "Do you think we might tell our guest about the white dwarf, or would that be breaking" " the Official Secrets Act?" " Fuller:" "Are you crazy?" "We are making an observation tonight, Dr. Gale to ascertain whether the entire solar system is to be imploded by a wandering white dwarf, which according to my late father, is heading towards the sun and shows every sign" "of scooping us up on the way." "This, however, is supposed to be a Whitehall secret." "If what you're telling me is true, don't you think it's better that way?" "Not if it results in two people being murdered without being given a chance even of their last six months." "Fuller:" "Oh, but, Luke, there's surely no connection." "I wish I was as trusting as you, Elizabeth." "Look, it's time everyone knew what was going on." "If you'll excuse me," "I'll get off to the observatory." "Professor Cartright is there, I suppose?" "Yes." "And you'll need this." "By special orders of the Ministry, we're keeping the front door locked." "Typical bureaucratic thinking for you, lock the stable doors after the horses have bolted." "Well, we were discussing our last six months." "Let's talk about that after the observation." "Where are you going?" "To make a telephone call." "Tor Point 859, please." "(phone rings) 859." "Yes?" "Well, thank you very much for telling me." "Yes, I know what to do about Dr. Gale." "(door slams)" " Oh, good evening, Dr. Gale." " Good evening." "Could I have a word with you?" "Yes, of course." "After you." "Well, do sit down." " May I?" " Thank you." "Well, I believe you know all about the white dwarf now." "Dr. Fuller telephoned me." "Our young Richter, he shouldn't have said anything." "But I suppose there's no point in keeping it from you anymore." "Knowing about this, you must all have been under quite a strain in the last few months." "Yes, perhaps in my time of life it doesn't seem quite so cruel, but for Fuller and Richter, it seems so unfair." "Oh, and for you, too, Dr. Gale, knowing that you have so little time." "Since you'll all be back early tonight," " I'll leave some sandwiches for you." " Yes, thanks very much." "You... you wouldn't know about when your father's coming back, I suppose, would you?" "No!" "I'll let you know about it." "Nice manners some of them have, I must say." " Oh, excuse me." " Oh." "Good evening." "You wanted something?" "Yes, I wondered if you have a room for the night." "Just for the one?" "Yes, just for myself for one night." "Well, it's a bit late, isn't it?" "Well, that's why I want a room." "Oh, are you with them?" "No, no." "I'm just with myself." " Good evening." " Good evening." "Wow." " I had a room till about an hour ago." " Oh." "It's all these people from the observatory." "Well, it must be quite a problem." " Were they from the observatory?" " Oh, yes, everybody." "I've got two men just come from the Ministry." " The Ministry?" " Yes." "I've got them sharing a room." "You haven't got a camp bed or a blanket in the bath or..." "Oh, no, no." "I wouldn't like to do nothing like that." "I could let you have some blankets and lots of tea in the lounge at a reduction, of course." "Oh, that'd suit me admirably, thank you." "Oh, that's all right then, just for the one night." "It won't be the end of the world." "Come on, then, I'll show you the bathroom." "Thank you very much." "Elizabeth..." "I'm sorry I lost my temper back at the guest house just now." "You better say that to Dr. Gale." "After all, it was a pretty cruel way of telling her what's in store for us all." "I just kept having the feeling somehow that she knew already." "Luke, none of us are gonna know for sure for the next 10 minutes." "Anyway, how are you gonna feel if the observation proves your father was wrong?" "Delighted." " Ah, gathering of the clans." " Telescope locked on yet?" "No." "No." "I'm gonna do that." "That's all right." "I'll see to it." "Dr. Gale, I..." "I'm sorry I told you about the white dwarf so brutally." "The last few days have been a bit of a strain on me." "I quite understand." "Will I be able to help with the observation at all?" "No." "That's a one-man job really, but we may as well all be there." " (telephone rings)" " Who the devil can that be?" "Miss Tregarth said something about a couple of men" " from the Ministry." " Oh, I thought they'd given that idea up." "Well, I suppose I'd better go and roll out the red carpet for them." "Will you be staying on here if we get an affirmative reading tonight?" "I mean, observing Mars will be a bit pointless, won't it?" "We'll see." "Oh, good evening, Professor." "Good evening, Mr. Barker." "I trust you're satisfied with our security arrangements." " We now lock the door." " Oh, yes, very good." "You don't mind my bringing a colleague along with me from the Ministry?" "No, not at all." "(clears throat)" "Well, would you like to go up to the dome straight away or would you like a conducted tour?" "I don't think there's really time for a conducted tour." "So if you'd like to lead the way, Professor." "Certainly." "Oh, Dr. Fuller, this is Mr. Barker with the Ministry." " How do you do?" " How do you do?" " And Mister..." " A colleague of mine." "Good evening." " We're all set up, are we?" " Yes." "Ah, it's a..." "I don't quite understand." "If the telescope's at this angle, why can't you see the dwarf now?" "Because the moon is in the way." "That's what makes observation of it so occasional." "Well, you might care to look through this one." "Ah, thank you." "Well, this is about it." "There's just something I have to do first." " I'll join you in a moment." " That's okay." " Of course, it's only a basic principle." " Yes." "Oh, this is Dr. Richter." " How do you do?" " How do you do?" "Dr. Gale is on her way up." " Who?" " Our guest, Dr. Gale." "I thought you sent her down here." "Well, we're very departmentalized." "I'm sure it's all right." "Well, now, it must be nearly time." "Yes." "Right." "Well, if you'd give us some room to work in?" "Dr. Fuller, could you handle the plates?" "Dr. Richter, would you look after the light?" "Ah." "Well, that's it." "Now do you want to see it?" "Oh, can you tell anything yet?" "No." "No, not until I make a comparison." " Oh." " Thank you." "Dr. Richter, you can put on the light." "I think your father was right." "It's affirmative." "This is quite true." "The white dwarf is still on course." " You can see for yourself." " But it can't be." "My only regret is that I should have anything to do with you in the last few months of my life." "Dr. Richter," "I murdered your father and Professor Rahim." "And my share, I believe, was to be a million pounds, wasn't it?" "Stop there!" "What are you gonna do with all these?" "Read them eventually." "What's this?" ""Instant astrology or what stars foretell."" "This book is about astrology." "Astrology?" "The book shop assistant must have made a mistake." "Tsk." "Astrology." "It's very good, you know." " What's your birthday?" " Fifth of October." "Fifth of October." "That puts you under Libra." "That's right." "Page 42, paragraph 7." "That'll give your horoscope for the whole of next week." "Thank you." ""With the planet Mars now in opposition"" "and Neptune in the ascendant, this is your chance to break out of the rut you live in." "Throw care to the winds, come out of your shell." "Here at last is your great opportunity" ""to live dangerously."" "(theme music playing)"