Unknown Broadcast | "The Birds" — Daphne du Maurier’s Apocalyptic Survival Horror

0:09 Please please come in, Come in. So good to see you again, my dear. It's startlingly cold out there, I know, so have a seat by the fire. I put on an extra log just for you, hoping I could warm your bones. Before we choose with another scary story stories. You know what I don't like about winter very much? Oh well that as well, but not quite. There aren't as many birds. They're chirping, they're incessant singing, the way they look at you, almost as if they know they know everything. Then they flap away, squawking as they're slather through the air. I do enjoy birds, and I miss them during the winter. So tonight's story I chose is the births enjoy.

1:14 Tired of the everyday grind, ever dream of a life of romantic adventure, want to get away from it all. We offer you. Escape, Escape designed to free you from the four walls of today for a half hour of high adventure. You are in a farmhouse on the southern coast of England.

1:56 The autumn countryside around you desolate and bleak, and you know that in the dusk outside, waiting patiently for you, silently watching for you, is an enemy from whom there may be no escape. Listen now as escape brings you daph native ar Yer story The birds.

2:40 On assemble. The third the wind changed overnight, and it was winter. Until then, the autumn had been mellow soft, The earth was rich where the plow had turned it. I didn't do the plowing, No, my wartime disability had seemed that they gave me mostly the lighter repair jobs to do. In the three days a week, I worked at the farm, a bank to build up or a gate to mend. At the far end of the peninsula, where the sea surrounded the farm land on either side. Deborah and Eye had taken a cottage up here to try again for the sake of the children, and it seemed to be working fairly well. I enjoyed my work on the farm. It was pleasant to pause at midday to eat the lunth that dead had prepared and brought to me. We'd sit there on the cliff while I ate, and we'd watch the birds, so many of them. That yes, were the autumns better than spring for watching them?

3:35 Oh? Well, in the spring they're content, they're full of purposely know where they're going, there's no delay. But then an autumn it's different. The birds that don't my grat seem to follow their own cat. Hmmm. Great flux of them here on the peninsula, restless, uneasy, wheeling, circling, coming to rest and flying again. The land birds and the girls down there in the strange sort of rhythm in their movements. They don't really go anywhere. Doesn't seem to be any purpose to it. No, Well, if there is, we don't see it. They're restlessness. That they're more restless this year than usual seems to me.

4:16 You know, this morning two girls flew so closely knocked off my cap. Yesterday when the school bus letter asked, there was quite a few of them overhead, as if they'd been followed. Oh well, I suppose it means a hard winter. They always seem to know. Perhaps a message comes to them in autumn warning about winter and about death. Not many of them have died, and I think they know it. Perhaps they feel they have to spill their motion out before they die, like people who know their time is up and run about stupidly driving themselves. We shouldn't talk like that, Nat, That's that black side of you that stirred up the trouble between us.

4:57 Before I'm sorry, Debbie, but it's come over me lately as I've watched them, the land birds mingling with the sea birds in a sort of strange, unnatural partnership, land and sea and life and death. At night, it turned colder and the wind strengthened. Around two in the morning, the sound of it beating against the house woke me up.

5:39 I lay there with this slow, even breathing of deadly beside me, and I thought of Jill and Johnny in the room across the hall. We seemed safe, secure, And then I heard it at tapping on the window. First I thought it was a loose shutter, and then I realized it wasn't alright. Got out of bed into the window, opened it. Suddenly something brushed against my hand and jumped my knuckles. Ned has gone over the roof and behind the cottage. Hm m m yeah, uh, it's all right, Debbie.

6:24 It was a bird. I don't know what kind bird. Mm. Wind must have driven it against the window, so my hand's wet. It's blood. M little beggar drew blood. Good sleep. Ned must have been frightened and stabbed at me. In the dark. I offered the Ned the window seats. It to strap me. I've already seen it. It's some bird trying to get in m send them away. I can't sleep with that noise.

7:05 I'll laugh with you, but whine little stay away from my face, right, get away the world? Did you see that? There were half a dozen this time they went for me, tried. To peck my eyes. I'm not making it up there, it's you don't see what's the matter? Right coming, jail. Keeping? Where's Johnny? A quick? Get the children out of here, and get the children out of your and shut the door quick. I pushed them out of the room, and now I was alone with the birds. I seemed the blanket and I used as a weapon, sweeping it right and the left. I could hear the pud of bodies.

7:52 But they've kept coming at me, the jumping my hands, my head, trying for my eyes with beats as sharp as pointed forks. Wrap blanket around my head, beat apart with my bare hands, blindingly. I don't know how long I bought them. Finally the beating of wings lessened, and then, but still I unwrapped the blanket from my face. The cold, gray dawn had seeped into the room. The floor was littered with the tiny corpses of the birds, robins, finches, sparrows, locks, some at last feathers in the fight. The others had blood, my blood on their beaks. Sickened, I went to the window and a fierce sea broke harshly in the day.

8:41 But there was not a bird in sight. Not a sparrow chattered in the hedge, No early thrush or blackbird pecked on the grass for worms. There was no sound at all but the east wind and the sea. Net Ah, I'm all right, Debby. I didn't know what. You're covered with blood. Some of it's the birds. Look on the floor, fifty I counted them. Horrible. Come on, Danny, I'll clean the room later, when I have more stomach for it. It must have been gassed before. The children all right. Yes, I've put Joe to work making tea. Johnny's arbed just now asleep.

9:22 Not why the bird, Well, it must be the weather, a sudden change confused them. It has to be that. The tea's ready, Mummy. Oh good, did you drive away the birds? Yes? They're all gone now, do you? I hope they won't come again. Perhaps if we put bread runs for them outside the windows. They eat that and fly away. I've already had breakfast. I'd better hurry. I'll be late for the school bus. Buss. Oh uh, I'll walk with you to the. Road, Joe, Yeah, I think that'd be a good idea. I'll go get my cat book. I didn't want her to walk. And down at they they wouldn't come back again.

10:06 Oh, I'll go over to the farm and find out if they heard anything during the night. You keep all the windows and doors closed, they'd be just to be on the safe side. Hello, anyone about Hello, mister rockin a mister around, Missus Dragon, summer's the balls. But can you tell me where this call is coming from? Russia? I've never seen such a change. And it's going on the wireless. Says something to do with the Arctic Circle.

10:48 We didn't turn on the wireless this morning. The fact is we had trouble in the. Night, Oh kiddies poorly. No, no, not exactly. No, we we had some trouble with bird It sounds absurd, but they flew in the window and attacked us. Attacked you. No, mister Hockins, I'm not making an up, Missus Trigg. There are fifty dead birds on the floor of the children's bedroom. Fourign birds. No, no, the kind you see about here every day? Really will you ought to write up and ask the Manchester Guard you and they have an answer. Thod it. Good morning, mister Howkins has been telling about of birds last night the.

11:31 Pieces the attacked him. Attack you sure quiet? I heard of the thing I did before? Hungry maybe looking for food? You put out some crumbs? Yes, of course, I'll be up tomorrow as usual. Good morning, ordinary birds, he says. Attack him, Now, what did you take us for coming around with a storyline that strange one? He is without superior airs? See the look he gave us when he didn't swallow his story attacked him? I think he reads too many of those books.

12:28 Nat, did you find out anything at the fun. No, the trigs brilliant advice was to put out some crumbs, Debbie. I looked all around this morning. There's not a single bird in sight outdoors where they've gone. I don't know. The Trigs had no trouble last night. Not only that they clearly thought I was imagining it. Oh. I heard Trig mutter something about my superior airs and reading too many books as I walked away. Nothing's real to those clods until it hits them over their heads. Well, nice enough, people ned that they're isolated up here. Well that's certainly the polite word for it. I haven't been able to face going into the children's room these birds.

13:08 Oh guess I'll go and clean it up. I suppose the least I can do is give them a little beggars a decent burial. I dropped the dead birds into a sack, went down to the beach to bury them. The wind was bitter cold. I dug a pit in the sand with my heel and started to empty the sack into it. But the wind caught the birds and whirled them along the shore. There was something ugly in the sight that the tide would take them when it turned. I looked out at the crested breakers, and then I saw them, the gowls, out there riding the seas. Thousands, tens of thousands. They rose and fell in the trough of the sea, like a mighty fleeted anchor, waiting for the turn of the tide. Waiting. They stretched as far as my eye could reach. They covered the sea. I started up the steep park home, almost running. Someone should know of that someone should be told, but who, And then as I opened the front door, I saw deady beside the world. It's listening turned even attacking individuals.

14:29 It is thought that the Arctic airstream is causing the birds to migrate south in immense numbers, and that intense hunger may drive them to attack human beings. Householders are warned to see to their windows, doors and chimneys, and to take all precautions for the safety of their children. Further bulletins will be issued later. They've been repeating it every few minutes since you left. Well, perhaps now those empty headed idiots at the farm will no. You saw almost dead. Oh, don't talk rot des just that when people with half a brain try to tell me that. You'll forget that superior attitude of yours. Even now, don't choose that word superior to me. I'm sick of it, so are you.

15:12 I'm sorry the things made me a little nervy. I guess yes, I I'm sorry too, Mundy. One of the bulletins said, the birds seemed to be waiting for what. I don't know, They said, the birds are hungry. What you doing the hammer? I'm going to get some boards and see to the doors and windows as they tell you to. I think they could break in with the windows shut. The sparrows and robins, and how could they. I wasn't thinking about the smaller birds. I was thinking about the gulls. The gulls, Debby. Have you ever been close enough to get a good look at a gull's beak?

16:00 There must be a hundred thousand of them out there riding the sea waiting. For the rest of the morning, I worked upstairs boarding the bedroom windows, and I wondered whether they'd take these precautions up at the farm. I doubted it. It'd probably a big joke to the Triggs. But according to the wire, is it with no joke. At first, some of the bulletins had been light in tone, but as the morning wore on, the concern in the announcer's voice became more and more apparent. Well after I finished upstairs, I took the rest of the lumber down boarded up the lower floor windows.

16:48 What they ought to do is call the army out and shoot the bed That would soon scare them off. Debbie, Uh, how are we off for food? Now? Net? What you haven't next? Never mind? What have you got in the line shutting me tomorrow. You know that I don't keep uncooked food hanging about. It goes off. But I can put some things in tomorrow. Tomorrow. It's only three in the afternoon and it's almost dark. I guess the sky looks so heavy. Net, what's the matter? You've gone quite quiet. Look the tides turned. The gulls they've risen, circling over the sea. Not a sung from them.

17:39 Net. I'm going for Jill. I'll wait for it. The bus stop. You keep Johnny inside and keep the door shut outside. I looked at a weapon and a hole was all I could find, and I went to the top of the hill and waited. The surf was booming below, and a smudge rose behind the clay hills in the distance. It widened, divided, and spread north east south west. It was a vast cloud of birds and passed close by, heading inland up country. They had no business with the people here on the peninsula. Rocks, crows, jack doors, magpies, birds that usually preyed upon the smaller species, But this afternoon they were bound on some other mission they've been given the towns. I thought, they know what they have to do. We don't matter so much. Here the gulls will serve where us the others go to the towns.

18:47 And finally the bus came. When Jill got up, I took it by the hand. What's the house door, guy? Oh, I just bought it along. Come along, I, darling, Let's go home. It's cold. No hanging about them getting not tonight. Not come on, no d s there. Look over there, Look at the girls, the flying in from the sea. It's so quiet. Yes, sir, do hurry, darling. Where they're trying to all up the country? I dare say, well, where's warmer? Don't go so fast. I can't keep up, Harry, But it's sircling. It looks like waiting for chasing signal order.

19:30 Nothing. Come on, you're faster, but I can't go faster. Wait. Wait, there's Trigg in his two seater. Well it looks as though we're in for some fun hocking. Have you heard the news. Everyone's gone bird crazy, talking of nothing else. I'm going to take a crack at them with my gun. Could you run Jill home first? Of course, not room for you too. I'm afraid that's all. I just get Jill home, get in Julia you like to come shooting with me? No thanks, have you boarded your windows? A lot of nonsense. They like to scare you on the wireless. I'd bought them if I were you No gone, you winded, We'll see you in the morning.

20:12 Leave you a gull rings. I watched Trigg drive Joe toward the cottage, and then I followed on foot. The sound made me look up. The gulls were approaching. The order had been given and the farm was their targets. The black backed gulls were leading, and they were bigger birds, gannets turns, and suddenly one of them flow up, missed, rose to drive again, and then came the other six seven a dozen. I dropped the hole, covered my head with my arms, and ramp towards the cottage. They kept coming at it from the air with beating wings, each stab of a swooping big trunic flush to keep them from my eyes. With each diver.

21:02 It came older, and they had no port for themselves. When they missed, they crashed, bruised and broken on the ground, and I ran. I st kicking herself. Bodies in front of me. Mother aims got better closer to my eyes, closer and then I reached the door of the cottage, and then above me I saw the gannet poised against the sky for his dye. The girls drew back only the huge gannet. The wings folded suddenly to its body, and it rapped like a stone at me. The door opened and I flung myself in. Good that a ganet. He just put my skull. Yes, thanks quite the woundressing are the children from the other room.

21:58 I didn't want them to see you that way. Your hands are the worst. I'll be all right. We'd better all sleep here in the kitchen tonight. I'll bring down the mattresses. All right. I'll fix something tasty for supper. And yes, that sound, what is it? The birds crowding against the outside of the house trying to find a way in net. No, they can't get in. I tell you, they cannot get in. The boards will hold how long? How long? Yeah? I turn on the Wallas' down them out? Yeah? Better? Yes, anything so I can't hear that hole.

22:39 It's only the food that weiries mid Debbie. Now, I've noticed that the birds come in with the tide. But the tide will go out about nine to night, and we should have a lull of about six hours. I could slip out during that time and go to the farm see if they can give us something luck. The national emergency was proclaimed that four o'clock is up. Measures are being taken to safeguard the lives and property of the population, but it must be understood that these are not easy to affect immediately. Due to the unforeseen and unparalleled nature of the present crisis. It is absolutely imperative that everyone remained indoors until further noticed. The birds in vase numbers are attacking everything in sight. The population is asked to remain calm and not to panic. There will be no further transmission from any broadcasting station until seven a m. Tomorrow.

23:31 It like this all over? Then all over. Now by safer. Let's let's forget it. Let's all just try to get some sleep. Quick up, step back again. What time is it? The tie is coming again.

24:14 It's been a queer smell the last two minutes. Drop a light, burned feathers. Burn feathers the chimney. I got to be the fidump coming down the chimney. Where's the oil on the shelf? Got the squeezing through the chimney? Stand back there before the oil on the coals. Never get them, yea, then get me paper would anything it will burn? Hurry their charred bodies get dropping on the chimney. I raped them to one side, but more came. I threw on the rest of the oil. If out papers on it, kindling anything, the flames roared higher, more bodies. The stench was unbearable.

24:55 I kept at it. Finally they gave up and I went over to the basin. I was sick. Around nine in the morning, the rustling ceased. I opened the door a crack. Crushed birds were deep about the house, but there was not a living bird in sight. The tide had gone out. Now was my chance to get food and fuel. I ran all the way to the farm. There was no smoke from the chimney. I came around the corner of the house and stopped in the doorway.

25:43 Almost covered with dead birds were mister and Missus Trigg. What was left of them. Beside him was his gun, beside her a broken umbrella. I loaded the two seater with all the food I could find, enough for perhaps three days, and drove back to the cottage. I told Debbie the Triggs didn't need their car for a while and had told me to take it. She said nothing, and towards nightfall the birds came back again. We sat by the fire and listened to the vessel as they crowded against the house. But this time there was a new sound. They brought up their heavier forces against us, the birds with larger beaks. I could hear the sound of tiny bits of wood being torn away.

26:40 They stayed to the tide turns. Then they leave. Then they'll come back again, and they'll cheap coming back. Nat, Yes, the trigs, they're dead, dark thinks, yes, all alone strange. I keep closer to little another that it should take something. I fisted and bring it. Debbie, you may be interested to know that right now I do not give the beauty.

27:27 Oh I don't know, Debbie, I do not know. I listened to the sound of the spindling wood, and I wondered how many million years of memory were stored in the little brain behind the stabbing beaks, A piercing eyes now giving them. This seemed to destroy mankind with all the depth precision of machines, and switched on the world as was dead. I reached for the cigarettes. There was only one left in the packet, I lit it. I threw the empty packet on the fire and watched it burn.

28:40 Under the direction of Norman McDonald. Escape has Brought You the Birds by Daphne d Mourier, especially adapted for radio by Robert Wright, starring Ben Wright with Virginia Gregg. Featured in the cast were John Dayner, Ann Morrison and Whitfield and John Dodsworth. You're announcwer George Walsh. The special music for Escape is composed and conducted by Leif Stephens. Ah, that story darn near made me want to sprout feathers and fly away. Oh I'm kidding. I can't possibly leave, what my dear, Oh no, no, no, no, that's not a concern at all. They have no idea that you're here, and even if they did, what would they do. Well.

29:40 I suppose the sun will be up soon, so you should probably be on your way, head back to your beautiful home, your warm, comfy, cozy bed. Oh how I wish I had a bed with that. Go and enjoy yourself, head off to the land nod and I myself will, of course head back from where I came from until the sun sets again, so I'll see you here again tomorrow night. Until then, remember remember, be thankful, thank you for what you have