Route Irish

Ferg, it's me, Frankie.

Listen, I'm leaving messages on your phone.

I need to talk to you tonight. It's about midnight your time, now.

Phone me back when you get in.

Fergus, it's me. Listen, lad - I need to speak to you.

I need to speak to you tonight. Fuckin' phone me back, will you?

It's all gone fuckin' wrong, here. I need to...

Where the fuck have you gone, eh?

On the fuckin' piss? I need to talk to you tonight! Now!

ROUTE IRISH

To the front! Go, go, go!

So where we going, then?

Fuck knows. Africa? Africa?

I was thinking somewhere like France.

France? It's too close. What about... Brazil?

Or Australia.

Australia. That's good, that.

How about lndia? India?

India. Still somewhere to go, isn't it? It's far away.

New Zealand? New Zealand.

Doesn't appeal to me.

It's right by Australia.

I've just decided. I'm going to Australia.

Rachel.

I need to see him.

Frankie. I need to see him.

I'm really sorry, sir.

Even his family haven't seen him. The coffin's been sealed.

Yeah, I know.

Let them all go. I'll see him then.

No, I don't think you do understand.

You see, the coffin's been sealed, because the body...

Well, the deceased was very badly injured.

Very badly injured, and he's not complete.

Frankie...

They gave you a fuckin' tie...

He hated fuckin' ties.

Get it off.

What have they done to you? Eh?

What have they done?

Where's your hand?

At least I recognise your hand.

With Frankie, you learned always... to expect the unexpected.

But that could never hide what a terrific soldier he was.

Courageous, loyal, funny.

Tough as nails, but always fair.

And I'm here today to tell you... that Frankie, the man,

didn't change when he left the army, and came to work with us at Tyree.

The skills he learned as a soldier were used to protect engineers,

bringing water and electricity

to the long-suffering people of Baghdad,

to protect doctors, surgeons, experts in child nutrition,

journalists, electoral advisors.

He was a protector,

a nation-builder,

a force for good.

And I'm ashamed to have to say this, but...

there are no memorials in this country to men like Frankie.

No Union Jacks,

no guards of honour, no sympathetic words from politicians.

In fact, precious little respect at all.

In my book, these men are the unsung heroes of our time.

Patriots,

soldiers for peace.

And to Rachel, and Frankie's family...

I want to say it was a privilege

to have known this true giant of a man.

He was desperate to speak to you. Where were you?

I fucked up.

I got in a fight.

Two bouncers taking the piss out of Craig cos he's blind.

I told them it happened in Baghdad, they don't give a fuck.

They ended up in hospital, I ended up in a police cell.

Why don't you come back with me to Ibiza for a while?

Huh? No drink, no drugs.

They've got me passport.

Listen, when this case is over, I'll come. I promise you.

You promise me! I promise.

Jamie gave me this.

He came to visit me... but it came from Frankie.

It has this little note attached.

"Dear Marisol, please keep this safe for me.

"If you see Fergus first, please give it to him nobody else.

"Got to rush. Can't wait to see you, love.

"Frankie."

We don't know everything that happened,

but we have a pretty clear idea of how it unfolded.

We have some documents here,

which you may want to look over later.

On the 17th of September, they was on Route Irish...

Sorry... Route Irish?

Route Irish is...

It's a codename for the road from Baghdad airport to the Green Zone.

They were on their way to pick up a Spanish journalist from the BIAP -

the Baghdad International Airport.

His name?

His name was Sergio Perez Minguez.

Which paper?

Does it really matter? Yeah.

Just asking a few questions. It matters.

The paper was El País.

Frankie and three contractors were ambushed

approximately two kilometres from the airport by terrorists.

There are no direct eyewitnesses as such,

but we do have signed statements,

from another company of passing contractors,

who passed by within minutes of the incident.

They said the vehicle was in flames, and it had been immobilised.

So the vehicle - was it soft-skinned or armoured?

It was one of our new fleet. Just came up from Kuwait.

It was armoured, Fergus. Do you have a photograph?

We thought that kind of material would be a little upsetting,

on a day like this, Fergus.

But we can have a copy sent to you, Rachel, if you want.

Yeah.

One of the contractors from the other company recognised Frankie,

who was lying outside of the vehicle, beside the road.

That's when he pulled to a halt, tried to stabilise him,

and evacuated him to the CSH, which is the...

What was his name? Which company?

Fergus, will you do me a favour, mate? Just let...

He's got a right to ask questions.

He's part of this family, as far as I'm concerned.

All I'm doing is trying to get to the bottom of what happened.

I think it's important that you all understand

that Route Irish is the most dangerous road in the world.

I'm very sorry, but they were just...

in the wrong place, at the wrong time.

"The wrong place, at the wrong time"? No.

No fucking way. Not Frankie.

Frankie was never in the wrong place,

at the wrong fucking time!

You don't fucking understand, do you?

He was born lucky. He was born lucky.

Fergus, fucking hell, mate... Sit down!

Fucking get out, before I lose me temper!

All right, I'm going, I'm going.

Sit down, Andy.

He was born lucky. I'm sorry.

So sorry about this. It's OK.

Don't be sorry. Look...

Those boys were like brothers. They went to school together.

They grew up as brothers, he's just...

He's lost the fuckin' plot.

Does he... ever see his family?

His mother more or less deserted him, got remarried

and went to London.

Basically, the only family he's ever known has been Frankie and us.

He's a good man.

Thanks, Andrew.

These are all for you, Rachel.

There is one small thing.

Frankie borrowed a mobile phone from an Iraqi driver,

and never had time to hand it back to him.

The driver lost his son a week later,

and he had some photographs on that phone.

So for sentimental reasons, we're trying to get it returned to him.

God, that's really terrible. Sorry, he didn't mention it.

Look at that. Have you seen that? What?

That fucking cunt over there.

Fucking Haynes. What's going on?

It's fuckin' Haynes, giving out his card. He's fucking recruiting.

He's fucking recruiting people at Frankie's funeral.

Fuckin' hell. He's going over.

Fucking cunt.

Giving out your fucking card at Frankie's funeral!

Fucking cunt!

You fucking scumbag!

You fucking toerag!

We approached him.

It's a wake. We approached him. Calm down.

Have a bit of respect. Just remember where you are.

Calm down, Fergus. Let me go!

I'm all right, I'm all right.

Hey, it's me.

Give us a bell. Suppose you're on the piss, aren 't you?

Give us a bell when you're back. Ta-ra.

Hey, slaphead, it's me.

I left a message on your mobile. Listen, phone me back.

Phone me back tonight. Speak to you in a bit.

Fergus, me back's against the wall. I've got no one to turn to.

Where the fuckin' hell are you? Answer your fuckin ' phone!

I've got to deliver this notice for a non-payment of gas.

Turn up at this house, the woman comes out the kitchen.

This fuckin'... You know?

I said, "Look, I've just got to..."

And I give her this thing. I said, "It's from the Gas.

"Non-payment of bills. I've got to serve you this notice."

She went, "Fuck off..."

Next thing, she goes to the back door - to what I thought was the garden -

opens the door.

Fucking dog.

Fucking head on this dog... like that, honest to God.

Fuckin'... big American fuckin' thing.

You know these dogs... I know exactly what you mean.

Pit bull, innit? This fuckin' thing was like that.

Chasing me down... fuckin' chasing me down the road!

He hasn't had a go at you, has he? Fuckin' look at that.

Fucking hell, mate!

Aye, aye!