Thriller s01e10- Spell Of Evil

[michaellevenson]

Tony Mansell is a tycoon, a successful businessman but at the moment he is desperately concerned about his ill wife.

She is in bed, Tony and the doctor discuss the situation outside on the landing.
The doctor is perplexed, Mrs Mansell's heart is failing, and 24 hours previously she was perfectly okay.
In the bedroom Mrs Mansell stirs as a breeze comes into the room, the window is opened and a figure in black enters. Mrs Mansell looks up, her view hazy, fuzzy, but she sees a female figure over her and screams.
Tony and the doctor run in, too late, she's dead. The doctor diagnoses heart attack, the mysterious female figure gone.

Many weeks later Tony is at the dining table at home, the housekeeper Mrs Roberts serving food, and suddenly she suggests Tony should remarry, it's what Mrs Mansell would have wanted. She immediately apologises, has no idea what made her say that, as if someone or something made her say it.
At the office the next day his business partner George Matthews has some disturbing news. Rivals Laker and Todd have bought stock in their company and are trying to purchase more shares , it seems a hostile take over is being planned.
Tony listens as George warns him of the fight they face to keep hold of their company, but Tony is distracted, and tells George he has written a letter to Modern Mates, a dating organisation, looking for a new wife.
Liz, Tony's secretary is basically infatuated with Tony, and the office junior secretary Suzy tells Liz that enough time has passed and she should make her move with Tony.
It comes as a blow to Liz when Tony asks her to post a letter for him, addressed to Modern Mates.

 

[michaellevenson]

Later that same day, a phone call for Tony is answered by George in the office, he hands the phone to Tony ,but not before passing comment that the voice on the phone sounds like a real sex bomb female. Tony takes the phone and speaks to a Clara Panton who says that Modern Mates have been in touch and think a meeting between them would be worth it. They arrange to meet in the office tomorrow at noon.

It's only after the call, Tony realised that he only sent the letter to Modern Mates earlier in the day, and he never told Clara the address. George still feeling hot under the collar from his brief chat with Clara reckons that Clara seems a lady who somehow will find her way to the office and he definitely isn't going to miss the occasion.
The next day Clara flaunts into the office, a stunning brunette and she breezes into Tony's office, a minute or so later, George rushes in asking Liz in the outer office if anyone's turned up, Liz points to Tony's office saying, " Snow White went that way."


George stunned by Clara's beauty, but Clara and Tony chat ignoring poor George and then leave the office for luncheon.
Eight hours later Tony and Clara arrive at Tony's home, Mrs Roberts sees to their needs, but she clearly is a bit offhand with Clara.
Tony is infatuated with Clara, he's spent the whole day with her, not returning to the office, and crazy as it seems wants to marry her.

 

[michaellevenson]

Clara and Tony marry, a day or so later and Clara and Mrs Roberts are in the marital bedroom, as Clara settles in, Mrs Roberts eager to help , Clara is taking charge, until she opens the dresser drawer and sees a crucifix, backs away, and suggests Mrs Roberts can continues the clearing away of the first Mrs Mansell's possessions.

That evening Tony and Clara are cuddling on the settee in the luxurious basement lounge.
Tony surprised that Modern Mates never contacted them to see how things turned out, or even sent a bill.
Tony confides in Clara that he is deeply worried about the Laker and Todd take over plans. Clara suggests that it might be worthwhile inviting them over for dinner and a congenial chat to try and solve their differences.

A few days later George and Tony in evening wear pace nervously waiting for Laker and Todd to arrive, George is far from convinced that it's a good idea to have them over for dinner.

George is proved right, the dinner part of the evening goes fine, but when business is discussed things go cold very quickly.
Clara urges them to a accept Tony's idea of a merger instead of a take over, Laker refuses to budge, and is going to persist with the plans. The evening ends with Tony and George threatening to see them in court to stop this take over.
Laker apologies to Clara for this abrupt end to an otherwise nice evening, but that's business.
Tony is despondent and confides to Clara that he feels he grovelled in front of Laker. Clara assures him, he hasn't grovelled, and things will work out fine.

 

[michaellevenson]

While Tony is in bed, Clara silently gets up, and walks downstairs to the basement lounge. A real log fire is alight, and Clara approaches fire, then kneels in front of it, holding an ashtray. The ashtray is a fancy one in the shape of a car which a day earlier Clara brought as a present for Tony, a habitual cigar smoker. Clara holds the model car ashtray over the flames, then closes her eyes and mutters under her breath, and drops the car ashtray into the flames.
The next day, Tony arrives at the office to be told by George that Laker and Todd crashed their Rolls Royce last night on the way home and burned to death!
George says, " horrible as it may sound that sort of deals with our problem."
At the end of the day Tony gets home, his had a bad day, Clara assures him it wasn't his fault what happened to Laker and Todd, Tony puzzled as to how Clara knew about it. Clara says it was in the evening paper, but when Tony looks and sees it isn't in there, Clara says she must have heard it on the radio.
That night Clara is downstairs again alone by the fire. She places a frying pan on the fire, on a sheet of newspaper she places a black candle and cuts the candle up, then tips the wax pieces into the heated pan. The wax melts, a black waxy liquid bubbling in the pan.......

The following morning Tony is a bit ill, flu perhaps Tony thinks, but he tries to get up and slumps back in the bed, feeling very peculiar. Clara suggests a day in bed would do him good.
Liz tells George at the office that Tony is spending the day in bed ill, George laughs, yeah he says, if he had a wife like that he'd spend a day in bed too.
Liz picks up a framed photo of Clara on Tony's desk, Suzy senses Liz is worried. Liz says for some reason she recognises Clara from somewhere else, for some reason associating the face with a school trip many years ago.
At that precise moment Clara at home senses danger, her face contorted in anger, she picks up a lead pencil and snaps it in two, instantly Liz cries out as she the framed photo slips out of her grasp and the glass shatters, cutting her thumb.


The following day Liz has replaced the broken picture frame, but has also made a copy of the photo, she puts the photo on Tony's desk as before, but the copy of the photo in her handbag, she needs it....for something.

 

[michaellevenson]

Liz turns up at the house with important papers for Tony to sign, Clara reluctant to allow this, but is persuaded when Liz says failure to get these papers signed could cost the company thousands of pounds.
Liz is shown in to the bedroom, Tony looks quite ill, breathing with difficulty, as he signs papers.
In the hallway Liz tells Clara that a doctor should be called, but Clara says Tony won't hear of it.
Liz leaves, Mrs Roberts tells Clara that Tony really needs a doctor and on her way to the shops she can pop into the local surgery to get the doctor to come. Clara thanks her and helps her put on her coat, remarking that she has beautiful hair, as she removes a stray hair from Mrs Roberts coat.
Mrs Roberts is unnerved by this and leaves.
Later Mrs Roberts is walking along the pavement near the surgery, stops to stroke a cat , meanwhile Clara holding the hair from Mrs Roberts coat concentrates hard, eyes closed, and at the same time the black cat runs into the road in front of Mrs Roberts, a car veers to avoid it, and smacks into Mrs Roberts, and Clara opens her eyes smiling, contemptuously blows the strand of hair into the air.


Liz the next day is seeing the advert for Modern Mates in the paper, and asks Suzy with her background in the newspaper industry does she know how to get the address of a company using a box number.

Later Liz is shown into the office of Modern Mates by the caretaker , Liz alarmed when he tells her that Clara as far as he knows from his occasional dealings with her, has been many times married and always to rich men who have died. Liz opens a cupboard and sees the shelves full of "car" ashtrays, a puzzled and worried Liz leaves.

 

[michaellevenson]

Liz is back at Tony's house the next day with more papers to sign. This time Clara doesn't allow it. Tony upstairs can hear Liz with Clara, he desperately tries to cry out, but can hardly breathe, he gasps, " Liz...Liz..help.."
Liz removes her coat and scarf and hands them to Clara who says if Tony is awake she'll relent and let her see him.
In the hallway Clara quickly removes the scarf from the coat pocket and hides it in the hall closet. She goes back to Liz and says Tony is asleep and she won't wake him.

Disappointed Liz leaves and gets in her car, then notices she has left her scarf behind.....at that moment Clara is holding the scarf that she took , wrapping it around the base of the hallway stairs bannister. Clara pulls at the ends of the scarf, as if strangling the bannister.....and in the car Liz chokes, hands clawing at her neck, being suffocated, as Clara screams in anguish, as if the effort is too much, she is hurled as if by an invisible force away from the bannister. Liz immediately stops choking, she's okay......Clara is lying on the floor of the hall , gets to her feet realising her failure.

 

[michaellevenson]

Clara is in the bedroom, Tony gasping as he speaks, asks if Liz was just here, Clara says yes but she didn't want to disturb him, so she sent her away. Clara also says the doctor will be here tomorrow, which is a lie, as she says this she is standing beside the head of the bed, hand resting on the metal headboard, gripping the metal tightly, Tony has noticed this.
Liz approaches George in his office tells him of her fears for Tony.
Liz, " I've found out things about her, things that make me concerned about Mr Mansell, I have a man coming here, I want you to see him."
George explodes with anger, " I'll do no such thing, a grubby private eye .."
Liz, " it's not like that, he's from the British Museum."
George, " I don't care, I know what you women are like when someone has grabbed the prize from you. You've been digging into her past, I will report this behaviour to Tony, you better start looking for a new job."
Liz ," have you been talking to Mrs Mansell?!
George, " GET OUT NOW!"

At the end of the day, Liz alone in the office when a gentleman in a grubby raincoat walks in his name is Pritchard from the British Museum.
He carries a briefcase, opens it and pulls out the photo of Clara that Liz sent him.
Pritchard, " this is the likeness you sent me, and this is the original from the 16th century." Pritchard takes out of his case a parchment, he unfurls it to reveal a painting in black , a face of a woman, remarkably similar to Clara.
Pritchard, " Carla the witch of Crampton, taken at the start of her career. Carla, Clara, the transposing of the letters, they do that, it amuses them."
Liz, " that's it, the picture , I saw it in a book on a school museum trip."
Pritchard, " this though is the original which makes it very potent."

 

[michaellevenson]

In the basement lounge Clara is with George, they kiss, George can't believe his luck, but feels a bit disloyal to Tony.
Clara, " if anything happens to Tony will you be in charge of the company George."
George stammers nervously, " erm yes I suppose so, I really don't know what I'm doing here Clara."

Upstairs in the bedroom, the window opens, in climbs Pritchard followed by Liz, they go over to the bed.
Liz, " look at him, she’s killing him, ( to Tony) dear Tony listen carefully, Clara is a witch, she's been doing this a long time."
Pritchard is looking in the dressing table drawer for something, " ask him where the fetish is."
Liz, " fetish?"
Pritchard, " the killing image, it must be close by to work so quick."
Pritchard leans over Tony ," Mr Mansell did you see the creature bring anything into the room, probably small, made of wax?"
Tony can't speak but shakes his head.
Pritchard, " is there anywhere the creature has stayed close to, as if drawn to?"
Tony looks upwards and to his left at the headboard, Pritchard goes over to it, and notices at the edge of it the design incorporates two ornate pieces of metal joined together with one metal segment clipping into the other. Pritchard pulls at the two pieces and they come apart, to reveal a hollow cavity, he reaches his hand inside and pulls out a black wax doll with pins stuck in it.
Pritchard is admiring of it, " oh it's a beauty."
Pritchard pulls the pins out one by one, " if a doctor could see this he'd go quietly out of his mind, unless he'd been with me in India "
Tony instantly recovers and says, " well she can't harm me now."

Pritchard, " don't count on it, true she'd have to abandon all subtlety, but her power is immense. What we have to do is destroy her before she destroys us. We need something of her."
Liz is at wardrobe, " there's a wardrobe full of clothes here."
Pritchard, " no, not personal enough, we need something of the creature's substance."
Tony picks up hairbrush from dressing table, Pritchard grabs it, " ah yes, not the brush, but the hair."
Pritchard takes out the parchment from his briefcase, the picture of Clara, he unfurls it on the dressing table, and places a hair from the brush on it.
Pritchard, " the original, taken at the start, the knowledge of its existence must have given her many sleepless nights."
Pritchard takes out a cigarette lighter and lights the parchment.

Downstairs Clara pulls away from George, her face angered as she senses something wrong.
Clara shouts, " loyalty , the fuss you people make of it, all that matters is survival, when will you understand."
Clara calmer now turns to George, " excuse me I have something I must do." She leaves the lounge, and under her breath says, " he will suffer for crossing me."
She walks up the stairs from the basement to the hallway , when suddenly smoke starts rising from her body!!
Clara screams, " NO NO! NNNNOOO! AAAARRRGGGGHH"

The smoke turns to flames that engulf her as she also ages rapidly...she looks 60, 70, 80, 90 , 100 and older, her withered frazzled corpse collapses to the floor. All that remains is ashes....as a shocked Tony, Liz, George and Pritchard look on.

Cast;
Clara......Diane Cilento
Tony......Edward De Souza
George......Jeremy Longhurst
Liz.....Jennifer Daniel
Pritchard ......William Dexter
Mrs Roberts......Iris Russell
Laker....Martin Wyldeck
Todd.....Philip Anthony
Suzy....Linda Cunnigham

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