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Live From St Mildred's
by
Rusty Broadspear
(action)
I am Jane Edwards
(camera zooms close to capture famous eyes)
I am reporting from St Mildred's Farm,
Under a bright sky and a climbing searing sun.
Such a beautiful setting, I think you'll agree.
From the front of this 16th century house,
Such a large expanse of manicured lawns.
(camera pans wide)
High-rise, majestically graceful sprinklers
Swing to and forth whilst slightly bowing,
In acknowledgement to the beauty they enhance.
The lawns
Sweep down in layers as far as Dobb's Lane.
The lane encircles the Village of St Mildred's.
Until 18 years ago, the house was a working
farmhouse.
With the decline of the farming industry,
St. Mildred's closed down, as did so many others.
But now, even a cursory glance
(camera to the house)
Enlightens one to the fact that the house
And grounds are lived, loved and lavished.
(Camera pans down Jane to ground level)
As you can see, I have someone with me.
His name is Mister Chargrill, a Great Dane.
He is the lord and master of all he surveys,
(camera zooms to Mr. Chargrill licking Jane's hand)
And Mister Chargrill says a big thank you
To all supporters of St Mildred's Dog Rescue.
St Mildred's Farm is a home for rescued dogs.
Mr Chargrill is a permanent occupant.
(cut - to the back of St. Mildred's - pan the
kennels)
Here, at the rear of St Mildred's,
I hope you can hear me above the racket of the
residents,
One can see the purpose of this establishment.
We have here 92 heated aircon kennels, with runs.
Every one of the residents are taken on daily
Freedom runs in the grounds,
By a cross-section of voluntary staff.
The dogs are, in time, given to
Responsible owners, in return for donations.
As you can see,
(camera follows Jane and dog as she walks)
As I walk down the corridors of kennels,
The very presence of Mister Chargrill,
Quietens the energized canines.
This programme is all about Mister Chargrill,
And what we are about to reveal will astound you.
See you in a couple of minutes.
(cut to advertisements)
(camera on Jane sitting on bench with dog at her
feet)
Mister C wasn't cruelly treated prior to St
Mildred's.
At 3 months he joined Mr & Mrs Southwold,
A retired couple,
Who lived in an isolated house in St Mildred's,
And he became the child they couldn't have.
One year later, Mr Southwold died suddenly,
A brain tumour.
Leaving Mrs Southwold to deal with her grief
And to dote on Mr C, like a true son.
Mr C and Mrs Southwold were family companions
For three long and loving years.
And then, alone in the house with Mr Chargrill,
Mrs Southwold was taken seriously ill
With a stroke.
Mister Chargrill was alone.
(camera sweeps to Jane's hand patting dog's head)
Mrs Southwold lay paralysed on her bed.
(close up of Jane's tear filled famous eyes)
Mister Chargrill spent many days by her side.
Senses on alert, knowing bad was going down.
He grabbed a hand towel from a bedroom stool,
In his jaws,
Dragged it downstairs to the hall
And into his bowl of water.
Then he returned to the bedroom, onto the bed
And draped it slowly over Mrs Southwold's mouth.
This kept Mrs Southwold alive
And he repeated this over and over.
(camera roves around kennels as Jane reports)
Two weeks later, they found Mr Chargrill,
Lying beside Mrs Southwold.
(quick camera shot of Jane's face - back to kennels)
Mrs Southwold never fully recovered,
She now resides in Violet Shades Nursing Home.
So.......... back to St Mildred's Dog Rescue....
(sitting on a bench with the dog
in front of house lawn sprinklers as background)
SMDR was founded by Jemma Bywater,
Suffice it to say, she is an animal hypnotherapist,
Who had initial funding from the RSPCA,
On the basis of her remarkable history.
The RSPCA treated Mr Chargrill initially.
After four weeks he was up and around,
Eating drinking and fitfully sleeping,
Mentally, he was profoundly unwell,
So he was placed in the loving care of Jemma.
(camera zooms in to dog's face, dog chuffs
twice, blowing out his jowels, laughing)
After six months of TLC,
Mr C began to demonstrate some 'peculiarities.'
More sadness but with happier endings.
Jemma was treated for
A broken wrist, after falling off her bike.
A few hours after treatment
She sat on this very bench,
Her wrist was plastered and painful............
Until Mister Chargrill sat at her feet
And the pain vanished,
Not gradually, no flashing lights,
No visions of Jesus,
No stroking Mister Chargrill,
The pain just up and went.
Later, an x-ray showed no sign of broken bone,
Not even an old fracture.
Later tonight, Jemma will be telling her own story.
In Jemma's words she 'connected with Mr C that
day.'
And Mr Chargrill has since shone.
Dogs are brought in emaciated, wasted, injured,
Cruelly treated and so very demented, often sad.
All Mr C does is walk by giving a sideways glance,
They perk immediately,
Broken bones are mended,
Wagging tails replace dejection,
Wounds rapidly heal..............
Mr Chargrill, chuffs once as he passes,
He laughs, he smiles and wags his tail.
All of this is verified by Jemma
In our later interview.
In the meantime, let me shake Mr C's paw,
(camera frames hand and mutt's paw)
And to this day
Mister Chargrill remains an astute,
Remarkable, enigmatic dog.
Please tune in to Jemma's interview,
In thirty minutes and
Hear first hand
About her life and experiences
With our remarkable Mister Chargrill.
(camera closes on the dog - fades, goes to ads)
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