The Impossible Book, Peter Blegvad and Iain Chambersâ radiophonic drama for BBC Radio 3 - broadcast June 11th 2016, 9.15pm
âThe Impossible Bookâ began as an adaptation of âThe Ordeal of Gilbert Pinfoldâ, the novel by Evelyn Waugh in which a harried writer mentally unravels on board a ship. Little trace of Pinfold remains. The Impossible Book, played by Blegvad (voicing the two halves of the Riderâs divided self), is a writer beset by hallucinations on board a train. And this is no ordinary train but one which travels through time as well as space, and between parallel realities.
The piece engages with the question âwho has the right to write?â and how might that right be earned? In totalitarian regimes writers are denied freedom of expression, but individually writers often inhibit or censor themselves, feeling that their words lack value or authority.
As William Burroughs put it: âYou pay or you get nothing. You canât dodge the Museâs check. The Muse donât like welshers. A writer becomes a writer by PAYING...â But Blegvadâs writer seems to be writing/riding for free, gratis. Heâs hiding on the train without a ticket. The penalty he risks if caught is ârendition to another zone/where due process is unknownâ â a terrifying prospect.
Heâs on the run from the authorities (the Conductor played by Andy Partridge of XTC and the Sheriff played by David Thomas of Père Ubu. The two legendary musicians contribute memorable comic cameos). The piece ends with a kind of apotheosis in which Blegvadâs âfree writerâ is awarded a dubious accolade by Agatha Christie.
Ms. Christie is played by Harriet Walter, who brings her usual precision, grace and insight to the role. When she first read the script Walter accused Blegvad of being too hard on himself, assuming it was his own writing the play described as âbullshit.â In reply Blegvad explained that: âsome things one has to objectify, put out there, onto paper or hear them voiced, in order to become conscious of them, able to examine them. And in order to laugh at them if theyâre fears that might otherwise become obstaclesâe.g. I havenât earned the right to writeâhavenât suffered/experienced enough, or canât/won't write in the modes the authorities deem âworthyâ, etc.â
Being awarded the Nobel Prize for Bullshit by Agatha Christie is how Blegvad dreams of resolving/laughing at these feelings of inadequacyâwhich are not uncommon among writers, especially those of an experimental bent.
âThe Impossible Bookâ also features John Guerrasio, who coincidentally had just directed a production of âSleeping Car Hiawathaâ by Thornton Wilder, another play set on a metaphysical train that travels between worlds. 10 year old Aldo McKinney makes his acting debut playing Charles, a would-be desperado, and Sophie Duval plays his doting mum.Â
The free rider/writer: Peter Blegvad
Agatha Christie: Harriet Walter
The conductor: Andy Partridge
The sheriff: David Thomas
The passenger: John Guerrasio
Charles' mum: Sophie Duval
Sound design, music & production: Iain Chambers
