Cwmderi Diary 2014: 16 October 2014

Stacey begins to panic when she cannot find her mother

Stacey returns to the hospital, and panics when she finds Kath’s bed empty; as she demands where her mother is, Kath walks in, saying she has discharged herself, wants a shower and her best clothes.

Mark and Liam on The Centre

Mark and Liam are on The Centre in Bristol, with St Mary on the Quay in the background; Liam does not want his mother to know he has met Mark, and Mark reflects that if it had not been for Liam, they might have been scattering his ashes on the River Mynach by now.

They hug, and part company

They hug, and Mark begins his journey home.

Dai taunts them as they try to remove the graffiti

Siôn and Britt are trying to scrub the graffiti reading “TRAITOR” off the door of Bethania; Dai taunts Siôn, “Half of the village helped them paint that! Your God doesn’t support sticking a knife in Meic’s back! What’s he ever done to you?”

A packet containing the orders of service is delivered to Maes-y-Deri; Gemma reads, “Beloved son of Kath and Dyff, faithful brother of Stacey, loving fiancé of Gemma and caring father of Ricky.”

"Your mother and Stacey will take care of me"

She stands by the coffin and says, “Mark, I’m so sorry about the lies I’ve told. What we had was incredible, it will remain with me for ever. But you can rest in peace because your mother and Stacey will take care of me.”

"It's a shame you failed to buy the Deri"

Gwen brings drinks to Meic and Anita in the café; she says, “It’s a shame you failed to buy the Deri.” Colin assures Meic that although he did not invest, he was 100% behind the project. “If it is a disaster, you might get another chance in a year or two,” but Meic knows that is impossible.

Colin borrows the taxi keys to collect the flowers

Kath comes in to see Ricky, and asks if someone can drive to town to collect the flowers; Colin says he will go.

Cwmderi down in the valley

On the hill overlooking the village, someone has given Mark a lift;

He thanks the driver for his lift

he has only to walk down the path into Cwmderi.

Colin passes, and sees a familiar figure

Colin, on his way to collect the flowers, sees a familiar figure in a blue hoodie on the path, but dismisses the thought that it is Mark.

Siôn, rather subdued at Kath's comments

Siôn visits Maes-y-Deri, where Kath exclaims, “So it is true that the Deri is a dangerous place! I’m sure Mark would have something to say about being buried by a bloke with a shiner!” When Siôn thinks that under the circumstances, he should not be officiating, Kath demands, “Do you expect me to Google ‘Ministers’ and pick the cheapest?”

"You'll have more than a black eye!" promises Stacey

Stacey tells him in no uncertain terms, “You’re here to do a job, and you’ll get paid. Make sure you’re here, or you’ll have more than a black eye!”

Siôn seeks a large measure of Dutch courage . . .

Back home, Siôn pours himself a very large drink,

. . . and tries to camouflage the damage

looks in Britt’s make-up mirror, and begins to apply her concealer around his bloodshot eye.

More floral tributes are brought in

Stacey and Colin bring in the wreaths and place them on the coffin; Colin looks scared, and when he looks at Ricky’s blue tie, mutters, “He was wearing a blue hoodie.”

Two old friends of Dyff Jones have arrived

Colin goes outside where the hearse is waiting, and some friends of Dyff Jones have arrived.

Colin maintains that he saw Mark earlier

Colin mentions to Meic and Dai, “There’s a saying that a person killed in an accident refuses to go to the other side, because they’re not ready. I saw Mark earlier!” but they take no notice of him. Siôn arrives, but Meic will not shake his hand, saying, “Saviour of souls and saviour of the Deri – what a saint!”

They note that Siôn stinks of whisky and is wearing makeup

Inside, some male voice choir music is playing; Dai comments that Siôn stinks of whisky and Colin notices he is wearing makeup.

Colin, about to read his tribute to Mark

Siôn invites Colin to read his poem in tribute to Mark.

“In Cwmderi the school caretaker,

Happy postman and mischief-maker,

Friend, father, lover, good man,

And stand-up comedian.

His laughter is silenced for ever — I guess.”

The cortège passes through the village

In the village, people come out of their houses to watch the funeral cortège, with the hearse followed by the mourners on foot. Siôn is pleased to see Meic there, but Meic emphasises he is there for Mark’s sake.

Mark arrives home . . .

By this time Mark has arrived at Maes-y-Deri and lets himself in;

. . . but is concerned at what he sees . . .

he is bewildered to see all the furniture rearranged, then the Western Post with its headline,

. . . he is, allegedly, dead!

and finally the order of service on the table.

Psalm 23 is read

In the churchyard, Siôn reads verses from Psalm 23, then Meic speaks of his memories of Mark, from stealing sweets from the shop to becoming, “A solid man, with his heart in the right place.

Mark delivers his eulogy

“He was dependable and trustworthy, a rare quality these days – very, very rare.”

Siôn is on the receiving end of Meic's comments

Siôn looks guilty as he hears these words. Meic continues, “He was always surprising us, and the final surprise was very sudden, and the worst of them all.”

Mark is very unsettled by the deserted village

Mark runs into the village, only to find it deserted and all the shops closed.

A red rose on the coffin

As the coffin is lowered into the grave, Gemma throws a red rose on to it, and Kath and Stacey drop handfuls of earth.

Debbie sparks off the proceedings

As Anita comforts Meic, Debbie snaps, “Are you two back together?” Kath tells her that this is not the time, then Debbie erupts, “Shut up! You changed the funeral, shutting me out! All these crocodile tears, and you haven’t seen him for years! He should have had a public funeral in Bethania!”

Tempers flare as Kath throws earth at Debbie and she retaliates.