Westerman Flat
by John Kirkmorris
John Kirkmorris - Westerman Flat
BBC Radio 4: The Monday Play
Broadcast: Monday 10th March 1975
Vacationing in a remote area of Westerman Flat in Essex for a fortnight with his new, second wife, Ronald Strutt, an economic advisor to the
government, feels that they should stay there permanently - move out of the city. The ecomomy is very bad at the moment and will only get
worse. With unemployment high and soon to rise higher, the city will be an ugly place to live. This time it 'will' be a nightmare for all
concerned.
Ronnie plans to put an offer on the eighty-year-old house they're staying at, which just happens to be for sale along with its five acres of
land, even though four of those acres are under water. Nora, his wife, is not so keen on the idea. Though born a country girl, she couldn't
get out fast enough and does not relish returning to that lifestyle. Her biggest concern is that she wants to have a child while he, with a son
from his first marriage and 49-years-old, does not.
While boating out on the water, they notice a light aircraft in trouble, on fire, over the sea. As the plane crashes in a shallow watery area of
Westerman Flat, Ronnie and his wife boat over and find a survivor - the pilot, Bob Foster. Taking him back to the house, Nora, a trained
theatre nurse, tends to his wounds. Fortunately, he only has a bad case of blisters and not burns. With the nearest telephone six miles away
at the coast guard hut, Bob will have to stay the night until they can figure a way to transport him properly to hospital. Asking a few
questions on how he came to crash the plane, Ronnie becomes suspicious of Bob's story of taking the plane from Southend Airport, about
40 miles away, for a test run. But more than that, a strain on their marriage begins to show as Nora takes Bob's side....
With Alan Dobie [Ronald H. Strutt, an Economist], Frances Jeater [Nora Strutt, Ron's Second Wife], Simon Callow [Bob Foster, a Pilot],
and Stephen Thorne [The Radio Newsreader].
Produced by Jane Graham.
Re-broadcast on Sunday 16th March 1975 @ 2:30 p.m.
90 minutes.
Jim
