Children of the Stones (1977–…): Season 1, Episode 7 - Full Circle - full transcript
Matt is convinced he and his father cannot escape Milbury. But Adam won't give up and proposes a theory that Rafael Hendrick is using the power of a black hole left by and ancient supernova as a power source to control the village. But Matt realizes he's got it backwards. They prepare a new plan of escape but the results this time are even stranger than their first attempt.
CHILDREN OF THE STONES
Dad, there's no way out of the circle.
Dai told me. There's no way out
until the stones release us.
Mumbo-jumbo...
Come on.
- It's no good dad!
- We can try.
- We can't get out!
- Matt, what's the matter with you?
You're behaving as if you've
been braidwashed already!
We tried to escape this morning,
and what happened?
We found ourselves back here.
Dai was right. We're trapped.
Hello, darling.
Finished your prep?
Yes, mother. Those equasions,
suddenly they're so easy.
Miss Clegg's moved you
to the high table?
Yes, we're all there now.
All except Matthew.
I don't suppose
you'll have long to wait.
Happy day, Mrs. Smythe,
Miss Sandra.
Happy day, Mrs. Crabtree.
I've a message for you.
Professor Brake and his son?
I'm just on my way.
Don't be late now.
Poor things...
They must have felt so left out.
Alright.
Now what have we got to go on?
We know that the circle here is in
alignment with Hendrick's supernova.
- Which is now a black hole.
- Right.
- What do we know about black holes, dad?
- Oh, not much.
They're collapsed stars whose huge
gravitational forces allow nothing to...
not even lightwaves, to escape.
We know that anything that
comes within their boundaries
is sucked into the centre
and crushed out of existance.
Suppose Hendrick has managed to...
...to harness that imploding energy,
suppose he's using it somehow to
turn the villagers into happy-dayers?
- But why?
- Well, if he's some sort of priest,
perhaps he thinks he's doing it
for their own good!
There are enough men who
have said that this century!
I'm not talking about this century.
I'm talking about something that
happened thousands of years ago.
Something that keeps repeating itself.
In the beginning was the star...
And the star was some sort of god.
Hendrick's supernova...
Ursa XB-1,
the great bear.
Bear, bear worship!
Hendrick said it was one of
the oldest forms of religion.
Perhaps it has some
sort of benign power?
But then, when the supernova
became a black hole,
the power was reversed.
And the priests use it to extract...
well, something.
Man's ability to think for himself,
the quality that makes him human.
So that's what goes on in
Hendrick's peculiar dining room,
whenever XB-1 is in
aligment with the circle.
Wait a minute, wait a minute...
Being in the constellation
of the great bear,
that'll be fairly frequent.
Daily, probably.
He still needs split-second timing
to predict the moment of alignment.
Well that will explain the computer
you found in the crypt of the church.
And all the digital clocks
around the house.
No, he needs something far
more accurate than that.
Perhaps there's a master
clock somewhere.
Sending out signals to the rest?
Well, it's possible.
- Quartz!
- No, it's not accurate enough.
Atomic. Molecules...
Wait a minute, wait a minute...
Ageing brain grinds exceeding slow.
Hendrick caught you in the crypt, right?
You said you saw equipment, machinery.
The vent was making you choke,
making your eyes water, right?
That's right.
I smelt trouble.
- Ammonia. You smelt ammonia in the crypt.
- Yes.
The atomic clock is sometimes
controlled by the amonium molecule.
That's where he keeps it...
Dad, if we could alter...
- No, it's impossible.
- Are you sure?
Atomic clocks can't be altered.
Nothing can change the ammonia molecule.
And that's why they keep
such super accurate time.
All these digital clocks must
be driven by a master signal.
Can't we interrupt it?
Feed in extra pulses?
- So they'll gain time.
- So will we!
We'll get Hendrick to process us before
the black hole is in position up there.
- So we stay as we are.
- That is our way out!
This must be the junction box.
Feeds down to the
central heating system.
Yes, I shall want the oscilloscope
and the oscillator.
Wonder what's happened to our luggage.
It's in the car.
Unless...
- Unless what?
Well, Hendrick is expecting us to stay.
Perhaps he's had it brought
into the house. Come on!
- Ah, Link, everything ready?
- Indeed, sir.
Keep them well up to time, won't you?
Nothing must go wrong.
Come on!
Right, what does it look like?
200 volt sec, 55.2.
It's a square wave.
They're square waves?
That can't be a main signal.
Right. The atomic masterclock
must be driving the digitals.
Now Hendrick said dinner was in 55
minutes, can you remember from when?
19:49. It's now... 20:15.
Gives us about half an hour. Less.
- Got a pencil?
- Yes. One of yours, I'm afraid.
Now I want five minutes extra.
Work out what frequency we need.
Dad?
Talking of Ursa Major...
Early man worshipped
the great bear, right?
Right.
Did you know the Gaelic
word for bear is Math?
Get it?
Maths.
I looked it up.
- Have you finished?
We need a 64.1 hertz signal.
Gives us just under 5 minutes
in the next half hour.
I hope that's enough.
Alright, let's hope Hendrick
is not clockwatching.
4 minutes 12 seconds gained.
Matt...
- Dad, we've got it all wrong.
- What?
Of course, it's the other way up!
- What are you on about?
- The black hole.
The gravity's so great not even
light particles can escape.
but
whatever it is, this...
energy,
doesn't start there.
It comes from here.
So the dish here, the
circle, is a transmitter.
- Transmitting what?
- Evil?
Or Hendrick's concept of evil.
The capacity to do wrong.
The priest sacrificed to his god.
Hold on a minute.
Where's the power source?
Where does he get the
power for the transmission?
Do you remember
the night I discovered
that the ley lines all
led up to this house?
- Ley lines?
- They bring the power.
Psychic power to the circle.
A pagan storehouse of energy...
Dinner is served.
Aren't you going to say,
what an extraordinary room?
Most people do.
- In what way extraordinary?
What about my throne?
Unusual piece, don't you think?
Splendid.
But it's exactly the sort of thing
I would expected a man of
your conceit to have chosen.
You think I'm conceited?
I think you have an exagerated
sense of your own importance.
I'm sorry,
but you really are so predictable.
Even Matt here can tell you exactly
what your next move will be.
Really?
You'll sit on your throne
between dad and me,
and tell me that the table
acts like a transmitter.
focussing psychic energies gathered
by the stone disch of the circle.
Let's see if you're right, shall we?
Bon apetit!
My children.
Another village ceremony?
Don't you think you're
overdoing them a bit?
There are many just now,
during the summer solstice.
The time of ancient magic.
The rituals are important.
Traditions are very strong
in this part of the country.
Do you still practice human sacrifice?
Crude and unnecessary.
The methods of earlier times
are much more civilized.
Methods of what?
Purging the community of sin.
The task of a priest.
Accepting the burden,
taking it on one's own shoulders.
Anger of fire,
fire of speech,
breath of knowledge,
render us free from harm,
return to us the innocence
that once we knew.
Complete the circle.
Make us at one with nature
and the elements.
It is time!
Arise, my children.
I commune, and identify,
with the forces of nature.
Your sin is my sin,
your guilt is my guilt.
You are free.
I have fulfilled my function.
You are happy?
- So happy...
- Happy.
- Happy day indeed.
My flock is cleansed,
my task is done.
Take them outside.
When you join the circle,
your initiation will be complete.
You will be happy ones.
What's happened?
What's happened?
Master,
they are still impure.
The circle is broken.
Your protection is gone.
Come on Matt, you get Sandra!
Don't look back!
Mother!
Mother what's wrong!
- Sandra!
- No!
Matt!
Come on, come on!
- What are you up to, boy?
- Dai! You're alive!
Alive?
Of course I'm alive!
Thought I was dead, did you?
That I had no more use for this place?
We came because it's safe, remember?
Safe?
What is this?
Some kind of riddle?
- In a way...
No time for riddles,
I've got my work to do.
All these knives got
to get sharpened, see?
- Whose is that?
- That?
- Belonged to my father, that did.
- And his father before him.
But... Where are the rabbits?
The pheasants?
I... You were right, boy.
- Dai...?
- Aye, Dai.
Now be off with you.
And take him with you.
Dad... It's Dai.
Get back to your cottage,
and leave me to my work.
You know us, Dai. You know our cottage.
No friend of mine, professor Brake.
No knives for Dai to sharpen, never!
- You know us?
- Yes, I know you.
- Dai...!
- Come on, Matt
It looks different.
Professor,
master Matthew!
Where have you been?
We've been so worried.
Oh Mrs. Smythe,
you can cancel that call.
They're back, safe and sound.
Adam!
The car was still there this morning,
outside the cottage, luggage and all.
We've been worried to death.
What happened?
It's a long story.
I'm not quite sure.
Are you still determined to leave us?
If we can.
I'm glad we have such a hold on you.
It's been nice.
For me too.
- Goodbye, Matt.
- Yes, bye.
Sandra will be furious she's missed you.
According to her you're best in the class.
The others must be very backwards.
- Mrs. Crabtree...
- Goodbye.
Did it happen? Or didn't it?
I don't know, Matt.
I just don't know.
Perhaps there's another circle,
besides the stones.
- What?
- Time.
Perhaps that's circular too.
You mean it might all
happen again one day?
It may already be happening,
to the people inside the time track.
- Do you want to go back and find out?
- What I want is a sandwich.
Don't tell me...
Peanut butter,
strawberry mousse,
gherkins,
golden syrup.
Ah, Mr. Link.
Sir Joshua Litton.
Morning, sir.
Pleasant drive?
Delightful.
Can't tell you what a relief
it is to get out of London.
You couldn't find a nicer part of
the world to retire to than this.
Ideal.
I believe I shall be very happy here.
Come in, sir, will you?
Dad, there's no way out of the circle.
Dai told me. There's no way out
until the stones release us.
Mumbo-jumbo...
Come on.
- It's no good dad!
- We can try.
- We can't get out!
- Matt, what's the matter with you?
You're behaving as if you've
been braidwashed already!
We tried to escape this morning,
and what happened?
We found ourselves back here.
Dai was right. We're trapped.
Hello, darling.
Finished your prep?
Yes, mother. Those equasions,
suddenly they're so easy.
Miss Clegg's moved you
to the high table?
Yes, we're all there now.
All except Matthew.
I don't suppose
you'll have long to wait.
Happy day, Mrs. Smythe,
Miss Sandra.
Happy day, Mrs. Crabtree.
I've a message for you.
Professor Brake and his son?
I'm just on my way.
Don't be late now.
Poor things...
They must have felt so left out.
Alright.
Now what have we got to go on?
We know that the circle here is in
alignment with Hendrick's supernova.
- Which is now a black hole.
- Right.
- What do we know about black holes, dad?
- Oh, not much.
They're collapsed stars whose huge
gravitational forces allow nothing to...
not even lightwaves, to escape.
We know that anything that
comes within their boundaries
is sucked into the centre
and crushed out of existance.
Suppose Hendrick has managed to...
...to harness that imploding energy,
suppose he's using it somehow to
turn the villagers into happy-dayers?
- But why?
- Well, if he's some sort of priest,
perhaps he thinks he's doing it
for their own good!
There are enough men who
have said that this century!
I'm not talking about this century.
I'm talking about something that
happened thousands of years ago.
Something that keeps repeating itself.
In the beginning was the star...
And the star was some sort of god.
Hendrick's supernova...
Ursa XB-1,
the great bear.
Bear, bear worship!
Hendrick said it was one of
the oldest forms of religion.
Perhaps it has some
sort of benign power?
But then, when the supernova
became a black hole,
the power was reversed.
And the priests use it to extract...
well, something.
Man's ability to think for himself,
the quality that makes him human.
So that's what goes on in
Hendrick's peculiar dining room,
whenever XB-1 is in
aligment with the circle.
Wait a minute, wait a minute...
Being in the constellation
of the great bear,
that'll be fairly frequent.
Daily, probably.
He still needs split-second timing
to predict the moment of alignment.
Well that will explain the computer
you found in the crypt of the church.
And all the digital clocks
around the house.
No, he needs something far
more accurate than that.
Perhaps there's a master
clock somewhere.
Sending out signals to the rest?
Well, it's possible.
- Quartz!
- No, it's not accurate enough.
Atomic. Molecules...
Wait a minute, wait a minute...
Ageing brain grinds exceeding slow.
Hendrick caught you in the crypt, right?
You said you saw equipment, machinery.
The vent was making you choke,
making your eyes water, right?
That's right.
I smelt trouble.
- Ammonia. You smelt ammonia in the crypt.
- Yes.
The atomic clock is sometimes
controlled by the amonium molecule.
That's where he keeps it...
Dad, if we could alter...
- No, it's impossible.
- Are you sure?
Atomic clocks can't be altered.
Nothing can change the ammonia molecule.
And that's why they keep
such super accurate time.
All these digital clocks must
be driven by a master signal.
Can't we interrupt it?
Feed in extra pulses?
- So they'll gain time.
- So will we!
We'll get Hendrick to process us before
the black hole is in position up there.
- So we stay as we are.
- That is our way out!
This must be the junction box.
Feeds down to the
central heating system.
Yes, I shall want the oscilloscope
and the oscillator.
Wonder what's happened to our luggage.
It's in the car.
Unless...
- Unless what?
Well, Hendrick is expecting us to stay.
Perhaps he's had it brought
into the house. Come on!
- Ah, Link, everything ready?
- Indeed, sir.
Keep them well up to time, won't you?
Nothing must go wrong.
Come on!
Right, what does it look like?
200 volt sec, 55.2.
It's a square wave.
They're square waves?
That can't be a main signal.
Right. The atomic masterclock
must be driving the digitals.
Now Hendrick said dinner was in 55
minutes, can you remember from when?
19:49. It's now... 20:15.
Gives us about half an hour. Less.
- Got a pencil?
- Yes. One of yours, I'm afraid.
Now I want five minutes extra.
Work out what frequency we need.
Dad?
Talking of Ursa Major...
Early man worshipped
the great bear, right?
Right.
Did you know the Gaelic
word for bear is Math?
Get it?
Maths.
I looked it up.
- Have you finished?
We need a 64.1 hertz signal.
Gives us just under 5 minutes
in the next half hour.
I hope that's enough.
Alright, let's hope Hendrick
is not clockwatching.
4 minutes 12 seconds gained.
Matt...
- Dad, we've got it all wrong.
- What?
Of course, it's the other way up!
- What are you on about?
- The black hole.
The gravity's so great not even
light particles can escape.
but
whatever it is, this...
energy,
doesn't start there.
It comes from here.
So the dish here, the
circle, is a transmitter.
- Transmitting what?
- Evil?
Or Hendrick's concept of evil.
The capacity to do wrong.
The priest sacrificed to his god.
Hold on a minute.
Where's the power source?
Where does he get the
power for the transmission?
Do you remember
the night I discovered
that the ley lines all
led up to this house?
- Ley lines?
- They bring the power.
Psychic power to the circle.
A pagan storehouse of energy...
Dinner is served.
Aren't you going to say,
what an extraordinary room?
Most people do.
- In what way extraordinary?
What about my throne?
Unusual piece, don't you think?
Splendid.
But it's exactly the sort of thing
I would expected a man of
your conceit to have chosen.
You think I'm conceited?
I think you have an exagerated
sense of your own importance.
I'm sorry,
but you really are so predictable.
Even Matt here can tell you exactly
what your next move will be.
Really?
You'll sit on your throne
between dad and me,
and tell me that the table
acts like a transmitter.
focussing psychic energies gathered
by the stone disch of the circle.
Let's see if you're right, shall we?
Bon apetit!
My children.
Another village ceremony?
Don't you think you're
overdoing them a bit?
There are many just now,
during the summer solstice.
The time of ancient magic.
The rituals are important.
Traditions are very strong
in this part of the country.
Do you still practice human sacrifice?
Crude and unnecessary.
The methods of earlier times
are much more civilized.
Methods of what?
Purging the community of sin.
The task of a priest.
Accepting the burden,
taking it on one's own shoulders.
Anger of fire,
fire of speech,
breath of knowledge,
render us free from harm,
return to us the innocence
that once we knew.
Complete the circle.
Make us at one with nature
and the elements.
It is time!
Arise, my children.
I commune, and identify,
with the forces of nature.
Your sin is my sin,
your guilt is my guilt.
You are free.
I have fulfilled my function.
You are happy?
- So happy...
- Happy.
- Happy day indeed.
My flock is cleansed,
my task is done.
Take them outside.
When you join the circle,
your initiation will be complete.
You will be happy ones.
What's happened?
What's happened?
Master,
they are still impure.
The circle is broken.
Your protection is gone.
Come on Matt, you get Sandra!
Don't look back!
Mother!
Mother what's wrong!
- Sandra!
- No!
Matt!
Come on, come on!
- What are you up to, boy?
- Dai! You're alive!
Alive?
Of course I'm alive!
Thought I was dead, did you?
That I had no more use for this place?
We came because it's safe, remember?
Safe?
What is this?
Some kind of riddle?
- In a way...
No time for riddles,
I've got my work to do.
All these knives got
to get sharpened, see?
- Whose is that?
- That?
- Belonged to my father, that did.
- And his father before him.
But... Where are the rabbits?
The pheasants?
I... You were right, boy.
- Dai...?
- Aye, Dai.
Now be off with you.
And take him with you.
Dad... It's Dai.
Get back to your cottage,
and leave me to my work.
You know us, Dai. You know our cottage.
No friend of mine, professor Brake.
No knives for Dai to sharpen, never!
- You know us?
- Yes, I know you.
- Dai...!
- Come on, Matt
It looks different.
Professor,
master Matthew!
Where have you been?
We've been so worried.
Oh Mrs. Smythe,
you can cancel that call.
They're back, safe and sound.
Adam!
The car was still there this morning,
outside the cottage, luggage and all.
We've been worried to death.
What happened?
It's a long story.
I'm not quite sure.
Are you still determined to leave us?
If we can.
I'm glad we have such a hold on you.
It's been nice.
For me too.
- Goodbye, Matt.
- Yes, bye.
Sandra will be furious she's missed you.
According to her you're best in the class.
The others must be very backwards.
- Mrs. Crabtree...
- Goodbye.
Did it happen? Or didn't it?
I don't know, Matt.
I just don't know.
Perhaps there's another circle,
besides the stones.
- What?
- Time.
Perhaps that's circular too.
You mean it might all
happen again one day?
It may already be happening,
to the people inside the time track.
- Do you want to go back and find out?
- What I want is a sandwich.
Don't tell me...
Peanut butter,
strawberry mousse,
gherkins,
golden syrup.
Ah, Mr. Link.
Sir Joshua Litton.
Morning, sir.
Pleasant drive?
Delightful.
Can't tell you what a relief
it is to get out of London.
You couldn't find a nicer part of
the world to retire to than this.
Ideal.
I believe I shall be very happy here.
Come in, sir, will you?