Voila! Finally, the Liam
script is here for all you quotes spouting fans of the movie directed by Stephen Frears. This script is a transcript that was painstakingly
transcribed using the screenplay and/or viewings of Liam. I know, I know, I still need to get the cast names in there and I'll be eternally
tweaking it, so if you have any corrections, feel free to
drop me a line. You won't
hurt my feelings. Honest.
- You look funny.
- Don't talk about her like that.
You...
...nice.
- Come on, lad.
- Don't follow us up to the pub.
- We won't.
With the parting of the ways
You took my happy days
And left me lonely nights
Morning never comes too soon
I can face the afternoon
- What?
- Go easy.
What?
Well, what is it?
- I can take my ale.
- Smell of a barman's apron, lad.
You taught me
how to love you
Now teach me to forget
You broke my heart
a million times
Down. Now!
What do you think this is?
What's your name?
- Liam.
- Liam Sullivan.
I'm watching you,
Liam Sullivan.
You're gonna miss me, honey
Some of these days
You're gonna miss me, dear
You're my to care
- You're gonna miss my kissing
- I'll miss your bleeding gob.
You'll miss me, honey
Bed, now!
Bloody heavy!
Ten, nine, eight...
seven, six, five...
four, three, two, one!
- Happy new year!
- Happy new year!
Happy new year.
Happy new year! All the best!
- Happy new year!
- Happy new year!
- Happy new year.
- Happy new year, love.
I'll take you home again
Kathleen
Across the ocean
Wide and wild
- You're away to shite, Kathleen!
- Hey, quiet.
Where your heart
has ever been
Since first you were
my bonnie bride
If it's that bleeding good over
there, what are you doing here?
And we're off to join the IRA
- And we're off tomorrow morn
- Here am I, a loyal Orangeman
Just come across the sea
For singing and for dancing
- Sure I hope I will thee please
- Where the bayonets flash
And the rifles crash
To the echo of the Thompson gun
Get upstairs right now, lad!
Wear the sash my father wore
- Sure it's old, but it is beautiful
- Come on.
it's colors they are fine
Get out!
- Here am I, a loyal Orangeman
- We're off to join the IRA
Lizzie!
Here I am, a loyal Orangeman
Just come across the sea
For singing and for dancing
I hope I might beat thee
Stop it! Never ever sing that song
again. That's the Proddie dogs!
Seven, six, five...
four, three...
two, one...
Here you are, love.
Come on, then.
All right?
Out.
Rent.
Gas.
- Coal.
- Flat week.
Food.
Don't let him in.
Oh, come on. We're gonna
have our tea in a minute.
"Christ praised
the widow's mite".
- God bless this house.
- Bless you, Father.
Hope I'm not interrupting.
Bit short this week, Father.
Christ praised
the widow's mite.
See you out, Father.
When I started work, Father,
I had to serve my time.
Other fellas brought home men's
wages while I earned shirt buttons.
But I stuck it out.
Those fellas are on the dole now,
Father, and I'm still working.
I've got no conscience about that, I
earned my peace of mind years ago.
I served my time.
Goodnight, Father.
Turn.
No daughter of mine cleans
another woman's lavatory.
- Yes?
- I've come about the job.
Mom's through here.
She's come about the job.
- Really?
- Yes.
- And what's your name?
- Teresa Sullivan.
- I'm not a Catholic.
- We're Jewish.
Are you?
- Does that make any difference?
- No.
Closing.
- Closing.
- Closing.
- Closing.
- Closing.
- It's closing.
- Closing.
- It's closing.
- Closing.
Silence!
I want to be able
to hear a pin drop.
Quiet!
Line one.
Line two.
Back there. Go on.
Face me.
- Who are you?
- Teresa, sir.
Hello, Teresa.
Now...
you can't see it,
but it's there.
And when you were born,
it was as white as the driven snow.
But you've sinned.
And each time you've sinned,
you've put a mark on your soul.
A stain on your soul.
And now, that soul is...
Describe your soul.
- Dirty.
- Oh, it's more than dirty.
- Filthy.
- Filthy. Absolutely filthy.
But next week, when you
make your first confession...
you can wash away
all that filth, all that sin.
And then, and only then...
only when your soul is as white
as on the day you were born...
then you can receive your
first Holy Communion.
- What'll I do with this?
- Chuck it out.
We've been eating it all week.
We're sick of it.
Teresa.
- Thanks.
- Good night.
Good night.
Go home, son.
Go on.
Dad.
Sacked?
They gave it to you?
Well, your dad's working.
We don't need charity.
Where is he?
Where is he?
What's wrong?
- What's going on?
- Nothing.
Can I... soothe your nerves?
- Where have you been?
- For a drink.
Starting that game again,
are we?
- What's this?
- A few hours ago, it was your tea.
If I'd known, I'd have took it the
ale house and put it over your head.
You haven't told her have you?
- Told me what?
- The yard's closed.
You knew?
What are you gonna do?
Go down the dock in the morning, see
if I can get a bit of casual work.
You and a million others.
- I'm not going to any priest!
- Why not?
- Get that idea right out your head.
- Why not?
- That's why.
- There's thousands on the parish.
- And I'm not gonna be one of them.
- We've been paying it for years.
I won't be beholden
to any priest.
And I'm not gonna see
my family starve.
They won't starve. Teresa's
working, Con's working.
- What they get is shirt buttons.
- I'll be working...
- Where?
- I'll be working.
If I've gotta choose between your
pride and putting food on my table...
- You keep away from that priest.
- ...I'm gonna put food on my table.
I want nothing off a priest!
For God's sake,
will you talk to each other?
Will you ask Aggie for a loan?
Why?
Gonna buy the gaffer
a few pints.
I buy him a couple of pints,
he gets me some work.
The man I married
said he'd never do that.
He lied.
Do you want a cup of tea?
Children!
Silence!
Can anyone tell me
what sin does?
Can anyone tell me
what sin does?
Apart from blackening your soul
and smearing your souls with filth.
Can anybody tell me
what sin does?
Will you please tell them
what sin does, Father?
It drives the nails deeper...
into the hands of Christ.
Christ died to take away
the sins of the world.
And the more sin,
the more he had to suffer.
Each time you sin...
you add to the
suffering of Christ.
You drive the nails...
deeper into the
hands of Christ.
There's a somebody
I'm longing to see
I hope that he
turns out to be
- Someone to watch
- A pint and a half, please.
Over me
I'm a little lamb
who's lost in the wood
I know I could always be good
To one who'll watch over me
- Ta, Aggie.
- Although he may not be the man
Some girls think of
as handsome
To my heart
he carries the key
Won't you tell him please
To put on some speed
Follow my lead
Oh, how I need
- Someone to watch
- Ta very much.
Over me
Come on, boss.
Go away!
Go away!
He knew I was out here.
- He didn't, love.
- He knew I was in here!
Liam has a question
for you, Father.
Ask Father Ryan the question
you asked me, Liam.
How do you know
if a sin is a sin?
That was it, wasn't it?
Yes, miss.
A sin is a sin...
if it's in your conscience,
if it troubles you.
Anything that troubles you,
you must tell the priest.
And what happens, Father, if they
hide anything from the priest?
Then you commit
the gravest sin of all.
Sacrilege.
And if you die with
a sacrilege on your soul...
God will send you
hurtling down to Hell.
- Teresa?
- Yes.
Would you get your things, please.
You're under arrest.
You're under arrest for
stealing meat from the kitchen.
Would you bring us some tea,
please, Teresa?
Sorry.
Go on. And you, go on.
Go on.
Go on.
Go on, hurry up!
- How much do you work for?
- Let me pass.
You get picked every time. Why?
Cause you're undercutting us.
- Will you let me pass?
- You're working cheap, Irish scab!
Get out of my country!
Get out of my country!
Well, you should've spit
in that gaffer's eye.
I have done.
He'll ask you how much.
Say: "Seven and a tanner".
I will not write it down.
You can say it.
Just say it.
"Seven and a tanner".
"Seven and a tanner".
My mom said:
"Seven and a tanner".
"Seven and a tanner". My mom
said: "Seven and a tanner".
"Seven and a tanner". My mom
said: "Seven and a tanner".
"Seven and a tanner".
My mom said: "Seven and a tanner".
How much do you want?
How much?
- Twelve and a tanner.
- Is there a sign saying "benevolent"?
No, it says "tight fisted bastard",
as a matter of fact.
- Stain on the lapel.
- Holy water. Blessing himself.
- Eight shillings.
- Look at him.
- Eight shillings.
- The poor lad is starving.
- Scared to walk over a grid.
- Eight shillings.
That's not a heart you've got,
it's a swinging brick!
For God's sake,
look at the poor lad.
- When will it come out, son?
- Friday for sure.
He's up in court.
- Nine bob.
- For God's sake. It's brand new.
- I can see my face in it.
- That must be a terrible sight.
Miserable gob like that!
Make it the ten.
- Ten bob?
- You'll get your reward in Heaven.
That big pawnshop in the sky
where everything's redeemed.
- Nine and a tanner and that's it!
- For God's sake!
Nine and a tanner.
You can go again.
Don't answer me back,
just do it!
Because it's time you moved in
with Con, that's why.
- You're better off with your brother.
- There's not enough room in here.
You've done nothing wrong.
It's just Teresa needs to be
on her own, that's all.
Night-night.
- You pee the bed and you've had it.
- You, shut it.
The coppers are coming!
The coppers are coming!
The coppers are coming!
You're singing a
communist song and I object!
I've worked as hard
as any man here...
for the rights of men,
for the rights of the unemployed.
But I will not
join you in this.
They're pulling down our churches.
Do you want to be part of that?
The destruction of
the Christian message?
You ask me to choose between
Lenin and Jesus Christ?
The first is a man,
the second is the Son of God.
- The coppers are coming!
- How dare you sing this song...
while they're pulling
down our churches?
What were you doing there anyway?
They're all bloody communists.
Socialists.
I'd get this country back to work.
I'd get rid of the Irish, the Jews.
Teresa, would you give this
to Mrs. Samuels?
On the quiet?
Teresa. Come in.
- What is it?
- Morning, Teresa.
I've made you out a list, if you can
try and get them at lunch time.
I will.
Thank you.
Would you like some
of Jane's clothes?
There's a nicer one.
You know how much it hurts
when you burn your finger?
Imagine burning
your whole hand.
Imagine thrusting your hand
into the fire and keeping it there.
Your arm. Both your arms.
Your entire body.
Now, think of the hottest fire
you've ever seen.
Are you all thinking of it?
The hottest fire you've ever seen.
Well, it is nothing
compared to the fires of Hell.
The fires of Hell are a million
times hotter than any fire on earth.
And you will be in there.
Your entire body will be
in there, burning forever...
in the fires of Hell.
Forever.
Can you help them to
imagine "forever", Father?
Think of a beach,
the biggest beach you've ever seen.
You go there.
You pick up a grain of sand.
You take it away.
You go back a year later and
take another grain of sand.
And the next year, another.
How long before you've removed
all that sand from that beach?
A billion years?
A billion, billion, billion years?
And forever hasn't even begun.
Forever.
To burn forever
in the fires of Hell.
First Confession today?
First Confession today?
Close your eyes.
Put your hands together.
Go on, Liam.
Forgive me, Father, I have sinned.
This is my first Confession. I've...
disobeyed...
my mom.
Sworn... taken...
- Is Liam still in there?
- Yes, miss.
...the Lord's...
name...
in...
vain.
Anything else?
Is there something
bothering you, my child?
You can't tell me...
because you can't
get the words out?
Or you can't tell me...
because you're
too embarrassed?
- There's nothing else then?
- No, Father.
For your penance, say three
Hail Marys and an Our Father.
"Ego te absolvo in nomine Patris,
et Filii et Spiritus Sancti, Amen".
I was hoping another
shilling or two a week.
- Look, it's not possible.
- Will you let me have a check?
- You can't manage as it is.
- Have I ever let you down?
In the past, no. But your husband,
he's not working now.
You'll get your money.
Every Friday, without fail.
Please, just let me
have a check?
- I can't. I can't.
- Look...
it's his first Holy Communion.
- I just wanna rig him out.
- I know, I understand.
- Please?
- It's not possible.
- Will you let me have a check?
- No, I'm sorry.
It's not possible.
There's no excuse for dirt.
No matter how poor you are,
there's always water in the tap.
No tide marks round your neck,
no spuds in your ears.
Nails clean?
I'm late.
Go to Aggie's after school.
Ask her if she's got a dicky bow.
Sullivan!
Come along, Sullivan.
Pay attention!
Now, get along to your class.
After me:
"I am the Lord, thy God...
who brought thee
out of the land of Egypt...
and out of the
House of Bondage".
First, thou shalt not have
false gods before me.
Second, thou shalt not take
the name of thy Lord God in vain".
Sit.
Third, remember that thou keep
holy the Sabbath Day.
Fourth, honor thy
father and thy mother.
Ninth, thou shalt not covert
thy neighbor's wife.
Tenth, thou shalt not covert
thy neighbor's goods".
Eleventh...
thou shalt not get caught.
Dicky bow, dicky bow. My mom
wants the loan of a dicky bow.
Dicky bow, dicky bow. My mom
wants the loan of a dicky bow.
Closer.
Bunch, bunch closer.
That's it.
Aggie!
Come on then, hurry up.
- How much longer?
- A minute.
- I've got a pan on in there.
- It's the light.
- I want a pee.
- Well, you'll have to wait.
For God's sake, Tom, I'm getting
lock-jaw here. What do you want?
- All right, now. Smile!
- We're smiling.
- What now?
- Dicky bow.
It's bloody jammed.
- For God's sake. What did you say?
- All right.
- Tell me what you said.
- No!
- Tell me what you said.
- No!
- Tell me what you said!
- You heard.
Don't you ever
talk to me like that!
- Come out. Don't hide behind a man.
- Don't go making a show of us.
- He was hard-faced, he deserved it.
- You hit my son, you can hit me.
- He deserved it! Look, get in.
- You get in.
- For God's sake!
- What do you want?
- You hit my lad.
- Yeah, he deserved it.
- I chastise my kids, no-one else.
- You should do it more often...
...they're growing to be hooligans.
- You'd know all about that.
- Meaning?
- The headcases you're bringing up.
I bring my kids up proper. They talk
proper, act proper and eat proper.
- And mine don't?
- Yours? Only when I feed them.
Every time I see you, you're
after a fight or a few bob.
- You've got a few bob, have you?
- Yes, I have!
You've got a few bob because your
husband goes down on his knees...
- You leave my husband out of this.
- ...kissing the gaffer's arse!
I've seen your husband do it, love!
I've seen him buy the gaffer ale...
and pick stumps up out the gutter.
So don't come the high and mighty!
- You've seen no such thing.
- I've seen it. Now get!
I smacked him cause he deserved it.
You should smack him even harder.
- Well, you'll smack him no more.
- I'll see him no more!
I'll see your bloody family no more!
I might save myself a few bob!
Listen to it! Listen to it!
We owe her half a crown!
- That's right.
- A lousy stinking half a crown!
- You'll get your half a crown!
- Good.
If it's the last thing I do,
you'll get your half a crown!
- You tight-fisted cow!
- Good.
- And I never wanna see you again!
- Good.
Yeah, good.
You seen enough, have you?
Haven't you seen enough?
You, the back kitchen.
You, the yard. Now!
Go on, get out
from under me feet!
Go and see if you can find
a few stumps in the gutter!
Excuse me, sir.
Of course I miss you.
When? When?
No, but that could be
a bit awkward.
Don't be ridiculous,
you know why that's awkward.
I've gotta go.
Bye, Barbara.
Bye.
Teresa.
Thank you.
Take this. Take it.
"That's our Geraldine
and Eunice's redskin".
- Hiya.
- Hiya.
- "The black foot... "
- Bacon!
- Where are you going?
- To pay a debt.
Fancy a pint?
- Is she in?
- Aggie?
- You're wanted.
- Who is it?
Come and see.
Round two, is it?
- Half a crown.
- Your daughter's paid it.
I couldn't keep it,
so I gave it to Auntie Aggie!
I thought you'd get talking again!
I was trying to do some good!
I wasn't being hard-faced,
I was trying to do a bit of good!
Why couldn't you keep it?
Because I couldn't.
- Did he give it to you?
- Who?
The man of the house.
Did the man give you that money?
For God's sake!
"Woe to you,
Scribes and Pharisees.
Hypocrites. You are like white
sepulchres: on the outside...
clean and beautiful,
but, inside...
full of dead men's bones and
maggots and stench and decay".
Now, that could be you at
your first Holy Communion.
Clean and smart
on the outside...
but inside,
in your heart and soul...
sin, filth, stench.
Woe betide you, if that's the case.
What will happen if that's the case?
We will burn forever...
in the fires of Hell.
Pick one to keep.
Pick one.
- Thirteen and a tanner.
- Thanks.
How much?
Don't!
How are we gonna eat?
We're skint. We can't pay you
cause we're skint.
We've got no fucking money.
We are skint.
Can't you understand that,
you Jewish bastard?
We can't pay you
cause we're skint!
He'd live off the wax
in your ear, him!
What?
Water, you can drink right up
to receiving Communion.
You can drink tea
up to an hour before.
But you must not eat
before receiving Communion.
We don't want the Body of Christ
sloshing around with bits of toast.
No, Mrs. Abernathy.
Little Lord Fauntleroy.
- How did you manage this?
- Don't start.
No work?
Nothing at all?
- Took all his blue-eyes on.
- Tom?
Lizzie's fella?
Oh, my God!
- Two mouthfuls?
- Yes, Father.
Look at her!
Look at her!
You've seen this
poor woman struggle...
to kit you out for your
first Holy Communion!
And because of your selfishness,
all her efforts have been wasted!
Are you not ashamed?
God wants you to make
your first Holy Communion.
And by Sweet Jesus, son,
you're going to make it.
I'd like to say how nice
the children look.
The girls in their frocks...
the boys in their
lovely white shirts.
- You've done them proud.
- Wanna know how we paid for it?
- Sit down.
- No.
Jesus Christ has got
us all skint, Father.
You kit them out for Christmas,
and you finish paying by Easter.
You do it for Easter,
and you're finished for Whit.
You do it for Whit and it's
Christmas again before you know it.
And you're getting
deeper and deeper.
And Jesus Christ is
a millstone round your neck.
- He's got me skint.
- Please...
...sit down!
- No!
I'm gonna tell you how
these all paid for this!
They all got a check
off the Jew boy.
And tomorrow morning, all these
clothes are going in the pawnshop.
And that pawnshop's run by another
bleeding Jew boy. Isn't that funny?
Those who profit from all this
Christianity are all bleeding Jews.
Isn't that really,
really funny?
They're all bleeding Jews!
- I'll never set foot in there again.
- It needed saying.
Oh, for God's sake! Nothing but
families there. Families and...
...bits of kids, and you start.
- Are you altogether stupid, woman?
- Shouting your mouth off.
- Don't you see what we're doing?
- Everyone squirming.
- We can't afford to eat...
...and you're spending on frocks!
- And why not?
- Why not dress them up nice?
- Cause we've got no bleeding money!
Why not let them feel a bit of...
...pride...
- Father Ryan is probably...
getting a back hander
off the Jew boys.
- A little deal with the Jew boys.
- Stop going on about the Jew boys!
- Are you talking to me?
- Yeah.
- Don't you talk to me like that!
- Leave him alone.
- You're talking through your arse.
- Nobody talks to me like that!
Just don't answer your father back!
For Christ's sake, stop it!
- We all start blaming each other!
- Just stop it right now!
You're a Catholic, for God's sake!
Jews first...
then the Irish.
Then it's the Catholics.
Raise your voice to me and
I'll knock your head off!
You're bringing home a few bob
and you think you're...
I'm the man of this house!
Leave it right there!
Stop it!
Stop it!
Come on!
They did it after the war!
They tried to bring women
into the workforce.
On the railways, on the docks.
But they didn't do that for women.
They did it to swell
the pool of labor!
To bring down the cost
of your labor!
And now they're at it again,
only this time, it's not the women.
It's the Irish.
Hundreds and thousands
of Irishmen...
are flooding this country,
and bosses...
Jewish bosses are welcoming
them with open arms!
Because they know, they know
they'll work for a pittance!
They know they'll
take your jobs!
They'll drive down
the cost of your labor!
We are being over run with...
Jews and Irish
and as far as I know...
here, this is still England!
- Put your nice frock on.
- I don't want to.
- It's Sunday.
- It needs ironing.
Iron it.
Just as the farmer
gathers his weeds...
and burns them with fire,
so will it be on the Last Day.
The Son of Man
will send forth his angels...
and they will gather in
all the sinners of the world...
and cast them into
a furnace of fire...
where there will be
weeping and wailing...
and gnashing of teeth.
- Riley?
- o'clock Mass and Holy Communion.
- Toolan?
- o'clock Mass and Holy Communion.
- Donnelly?
- o'clock Mass and Holy Communion.
- Are you sure, Donnelly?
- Yes, miss.
- What color were the vestments?
- Green, miss.
Sullivan?
God helped the
Apostles to speak.
By filling them
with the Holy Spirit.
Do you remember that?
But would God help you to speak
when you are lying?
You said you went
to Holy Communion.
You didn't, Liam,
I was there.
Why didn't you go up
for Communion?
If you really did go,
God would help you then.
You'd say it easily,
wouldn't you?
Do you need to go
to Confession first?
Then go.
In.
Bless me, Father. It is one week
since my last confession. I have...
Come on, lad.
I made a bad first confession
I concealed a sin from you
I was too ashamed
to tell you last time
What is this sin?
I saw my mother naked
And there's something
wrong with her
Something wrong with her?
I'll go to Hell when I die
I'll go to Hell when I die
You silly lad.
All women have hair
down there, son.
- Not just my mom?
- Not just your mom.
I denied my faith, Father.
I thought I wouldn't get the job
if I told them I was Catholic...
so I said I wasn't.
And I stole meat from their house.
It was getting thrown out anyway...
but it's still stealing.
And she's got this boyfriend.
She's married, but she's got
this boyfriend, and I've...
taken messages for them.
And the other day, her husband was
listening to her on the telephone...
and I warned her about it. And
she give me money and dresses...
and that's bad,
but there's worse, Father.
She makes me ashamed
of my own mother.
She's nice. She talks nice, she
dresses nice and my mom doesn't.
My mom shouts and
she's poor and she's tired...
and I want this other woman
to be my mother.
You helped the woman to sin.
You must stay away
from that house.
Bless me, for I have sinned. It's
weeks since my last confession.
What are you doing to my kids?
- You'll be late for work.
- I'm not going.
Wanna bet?
I don't work there any more.
Why?
- Because.
- Why?
Why?
Pass that one up, will you?
How many hundredweight?
Get out of my country.
- Hammond?
- o'clock Mass and Holy Communion.
- Sefton?
- o'clock Mass and Holy Communion.
- O'Connor?
- o'clock Mass and Holy Communion.
- Donnelly?
- o'clock Mass and Holy Communion.
- Vestments?
- Red, miss.
Sullivan?
o'clock Mass and
Holy Communion, miss.
- Spragg?
- o'clock Mass and Holy Communion.
My name's Liam Sullivan.
I live at Westbourne Street...
and I went to nine o'clock Mass
and Holy Communion.
My name's Liam Sullivan.
I live at Westbourne Street...
and I went to nine o'clock Mass
and Holy Communion.
o'clock Mass and
Holy Communion.
My name's Liam Sullivan.
I live at Westbourne Street...
...and I went to nine o'clock Mass.
- Wait here.
Hello, stranger.
Come on in.
Why?
Because.
Why?
The priest said I can't
work here any more.
Why?
All right you two,
come with me.
Because we're Jewish?
Come on, let's go.
Light it. I've worked
all my life as hard as him...
harder than him, and I live in shit
and look at this place!
The dirty, filthy Jewish fucking
rich bastard! Come on, light it!
What are you doing here?
Liam, go home, lad, go home.
Come on!
That's it!
Get off!
What are you doing?
What are you doing?
What? What?
Come on.
Speak, son. What?
I'll get your money.
Liam!
Teresa!
Oh, my God, do something!
Please, smother her!
Quick!
Oh, God!
Where is she?
Upstairs.
I'm sorry.