The Devil Was Here Yesterday
by Colin Teevan
Colin Teevan - The Devil Was Here Yesterday
BBC Radio 3: Drama on 3
Broadcast: Sunday 3rd February 2008 @ 8:00 p.m.
Simón, a senior civil servant of an unnamed South American country, is recalled from his duties in Washington and charged by the
Minister with re-examining the circumstances in which the President came to be temporarily removed from office some years ago – a
number of army generals were tried by the courts for plotting and executing the coup, but found not guilty.
Simón reunites him with his ex-wife, Elisabet, who is struggling to secure a new passport for her architect husband, Héctor, who seems
to have been unofficially "blacklisted" for opposing the President. He also must sound out Elisabet's sister and his former lover, now a
senior judge, as the President is keen for her to head up an enlarged judiciary to bring credibility to his reforms.
Simón's journey takes him through all strata of society and the more he discovers, the more his dilemma increases. He has to decide
whether to deliver the report the evidence appears to support, or the report that the President wants the evidence to support.
Inspired by a visit to South America last year, Colin Teevan's new play explores the political landscape of a country undergoing an
oil-fuelled revolution.
With Owen Teale [Simón], Haydn Gwynne [Elisabet], Greg Hicks [The Minister], Stephen Greif [Héctor, Elisabet's Husband /
Professor], Clare Higgins [Victoria / Firmina], Rufus Wright [La Guacha], Alex Lanipekun [Angel], Nadine Marshall [Gregoria], Martin
Hyder [Willoughby / Woker], Nancy Crane [Linda Ford / Gloria], and Laura Molyneux [The Waitress].
Original music by Nikola Kodjabashia.
Directed by Toby Swift.
90 min.
Jim
