The Colour Room

Morning.

- Whoever is stealing clay, you will be caught.

And you will be sacked,

and by God, you'll never work in potteries again.

Get that tat off your bench!

- Good evening, Miss Cliff.

Well?

It's almost ready for the lace.

Do you think Reg will like it?

He'll love it.

But it needs summat. - Well, it's not finished yet.

Hmm.

There.

(laughs) It's a wedding dress.

Oh, Clarice!

Every blessed day.

Dot, that's looking lovely.

Clarice, a letter came for you.

- (laughs) I got the job. I got the job!

I'm gonna be a lithographer at Wilkinson's with you, Dot.

- I'm not a lithographer. Neither are you.

- I know it seems like a step down

but I'll be at a better factory.

And the things that they're making, I mean, they're...

Oh, beautiful.

This one's called Oriflamme.

I want you to get on, duck,

but we can't get by on lower wages.

But...

- Lithographers are girls not smart enough to paint.

How is that going on?

We can't afford it.

We're not moving. That's an end on it.

- Olen said they're gonna sack me.

Well the clay that they were giving me to practice with,

they, they weren't giving it to me.

Oh, you never stole it?

- It were offcuts that no-one wanted.

And I just thought I...

Go upstairs.

Now!

How do I go about putting food on the table?

Take in washing?

- I like working at Wilkinson's. I have friends there.

Hm.

- Can you please behave yourself?

Hmm.

- Lithography down there. That's you, innit it?

Clarice.

- Coming through. All right, Gladys?

- (laughs) This place is amazing.

- It's filthy, is what it is. Come on.

Clarice.

Oh, that's my sister. Dot!

- She the one who wears on ya? - Mm.

Out of bounds.

- Clarice. - Hey up, Reg.

Dot didn't say you was at Wilkinson's.

Um, my sister's fiancé.

Oh. (Laughs)

Clarice.

- Two minutes. - Thank you.

What's this?

- Nothing. Misfires for chucking.

- For chucking? - Go, go, go.

- Two minutes of your time... - Shh!

- ...for hundreds of wasted man hours.

Two minutes.

50 years of design and we needn't spend a penny more.

- What about Oriflamme? - That proves my point.

A new line winning all sorts of awards.

Look at the sales.

Why are we wasting time and money

with your constant mwuh, mwuh, mwuh.

We have good pieces here.

Is that to be our legacy?

Just hawking old stock.

We should be at the forefront of innovation at Wilkinson's.

- I have production lines falling over.

Mould stores at bursting point.

- That's not my problem. - Father would be turning

in his grave. - Don't be such a nincompoop.

Uh, Gladys, won't you please get out of there

and go back to work?

So sorry, Mr. Guy.

I'm just showing the new girl around.

- Now, I'm late! - My apology.

- Not now, talk to my brother. He's always right.

- Out of the way! Out of the bloody way!

- For God's sake, man! - Welcome to Wilkinson's.

All right. There you go.

See if you can do one yourself now.

Like what you were.

Now on to t'plate.

Uh, no air bubbles.

Good. Right, you're done.

- So, that's it? - Well, yeah.

How hard d'you think it was? Bless yer!

Hey, where were you before?

- I was a paintress over at Hollinshead.

What, you're doing this now?

Fancied a change.

- Clarice, lunch ends in two minutes.

Hmm.

Where's she going?

Uh, I don't know.

God, she just does what she wants...

- Honestly, that factory tour, she was a nightmare,

I'm not joking.

Uh, no offense. (Laughs)

- Do you like the size? - Yeah, I do,

I do I like the model.

But somehow I miss the green.

- Yes, yes, well, we could have the green.

- It's possible we'll put some of this

into the next firing. - Hmm.

- Yes. I agree. - Good, good.

So does he. Don't you?

My wife never wears it, I don't know why.

Anyway. Onward.

Yes?

On you go.

Ah!

It's nothing.

- Lithography has ruined those paintress hands.

Mum.

Oh, Dot.

It's better than last week.

- You need to see a doctor.

- And how do we pay for that, hm?

- Hey, uh, the girls in lithography said

someone got a formal warning yesterday.

- Clarice. - It might not have been me.

It were nothing. I'm getting on, Mum.

And I'll earn more.

I'm practicing modeling

with a bit of clay left from Hollinshead.

- How many women modelers do you see in Wilkinson's?

I've got hands, I can model.

In anywhere?

Maybe you're right.

Maybe I should try kiln stacking at Wedgewood.

- Go the canal way so they don't see you.

I owe you, Reg.

Oh! Clarice!

That's fancy.

Just make sure you clean that rolling pin properly.

- How was the Hippodrome?

- We didn't go to the Hippodrome 'cause he was that upset.

Reg got the sack for helping you steal clay.

And no-one's hiring.

And you'll be sacked the instant you're through the gates tomorrow.

You need your strength. Eat!

Have you seen what Clarice made last night?

You should show 'em at Wilkinson's.

That'd get you noticed. Eat your breakfast.

Oh, she's been noticed, Mum.

And the worst of it is, she got Reg involved.

Your lunch!

- She'll be back home in time for lunch.

Cliff.

Come here.

Move.

- The braces won't hold. What about the capacity?

- There is no spare capacity.

No, no, the braces will hold.

- Sir, I- - They will hold,

that's an end to it.

- Excuse me, sirs. - What?

- Sirs, this, uh, young lady was caught stealing clay.

- Not only do we not tolerate thieves at Wilkinson's, Miss-