The characters in this story are fictional and any resemblance to real persons in coincidence.
The segment opens with a camera view from the seat of the medieval-style catapult. From this elevated position the pool of sludge stretches forth in all its green glory, with the yellow ‘G2S’ text seen upside-down. If this sight isn’t already toe-curling enough, it is accompanied by bubbling and squelching sound effects.
Beyond the pool are the many rows of seated audience members, whose presence will make the loser’s humiliation a very public one, although nobody will get a better view than the victor, who will be seated in the throne to the side of the pool. Between the pool and the eager audience, four figures stand with their backs to the camera: the presenters Natalie and Clara in their glamorous and revealing dresses; and the contestants, Abby and Isabella, dressed in their casual gymwear.
The scene switches to another camera, located in front of the stage, to which the four women face.
Natalie: Hello again! She’s Clara Quick!
Clara: And she’s Natalie Lloyd!
Natalie: This is Grudge-2-Sludge, the brand-new score-settling show!
Clara: This evening we are tasked with resolving a domestic dispute between two flatmates from Bristol – Abby Myers and Isabella Martinez. Abby is at her wits’ end with Isabella’s untidiness and frivolous attitude, while Isabella feels browbeaten by Abby’s hyper-cleanliness and control-freakery!
Natalie: Both have passionately put their case, but only one can be in the right. And by the end of the show, one of these ladies will get to settle the grudge in spectacular style, by slinging her opponent into this [gestures behind her] – our sloppy, slimy, smelly sludge!
Clara: After two rounds of games, Isabella is sitting pretty, with 28 points against Abby’s 14! But fortunes can change, with another round to play, plus the votes of our audience!
Natalie: Yes, at the beginning of the show we asked our audience to give their backing to one or other of our contestants – red for Abby, or blue for Isabella. Now it’s time to see how they voted!
The studio lights dim and a buzzer chimes. Each individual seat in the audience is illuminated by either a red or a blue light. Abby and Isabella anxiously survey the sea of colours before them; the amounts of red and blue appear to be close to equal.
Natalie: It’s a close one! But I can reveal that Abby got 51% of the vote, while Isabella got 49%!
Clara: Mmm. It’s so close, in fact, that upon dividing the percentages by 5 and rounding, it works out at 10 points apiece, meaning that Abby goes up to 24 points, while Isabella’s lead is undiminished with 38 points!
Natalie: However, because Abby was the winner, she will get the tiebreaker advantage. That means that if the match ends with tied scores, the grudge will be settled Abby’s way and Isabella will go in the sludge!
Abby’s face shows that she considers this a very minor consolation.
Clara: [sighing] Yes, I know, Abby. You really needed a big vote in your favour to level things with Bella, and you didn’t get it.
Natalie: But don’t get too crabby, Abby! There are two reasons not to lose hope. The first is that Round Three is a big scorer; the second is that you won’t be facing it alone. Because here comes a completely new feature of the show – not seen in the pilot episode – called Find a Friend!
Clara: We are going to randomly select, from our studio audience, someone who voted for Abby and someone who voted for Isabella, and those people are going to assist their respective players in the final round!
There’s a mixed murmur of excitement and apprehension from the audience.
Natalie: Computer, do your thing!
Futuristic music plays, and the red and blue lights over the seats begin to switch off – first in blocks, then on an individual level. This continues until only one seat of each colour is left illuminated, at which point the music stops with a loud chime.
In the red-lit seat, the camera shows a girl with long, straight, light-brown hair. Looking about herself, she puts a hand over her face as she realises the light is on her.
The shot then cuts to another girl, sitting under the blue light, whose hair is also long, but loosely curled and a darker shade of brown. She wears a surprised smile, while friends on either side excitedly nudge her.
Natalie: Come on down to the front, you two! That’s it folks – make room to let them out!
The two girls hurry out of the rows where they were seated and down the aisle towards the front, where stagehands guide them up a set of steps. The straight-haired girl has a short, stocky figure, while the curly-haired girl is taller and slimmer. Natalie and Clara direct the former to stand with Abby and the latter to stand with Isabella.
Natalie: [to the straight-haired girl] Welcome to Grudge-2-Sludge! What’s your name?
Straight-haired girl: [with a slightly reluctant air] Katie.
Natalie: Katie, you voted in support of Abby. Care to tell us why?
Katie: I used to live with an untidy flatmate and I know how annoying it is.
Clara: Well Katie, get to know Abby. She isn’t much of a team player, allegedly, but on this occasion she needs all the help she can get! [Turns to the curly-haired girl] And your name is?
Curly-haired girl: [in a strong accent] Ana, with one ‘n’.
There follow a few whoops from Ana’s friends up in the audience.
Clara: Welcome to the show, Ana with one ‘n’. Hang on a minute – are you Spanish? Is that why you backed Isabella?
Ana: [laughing] No, I’m Portuguese, so really I should be Isabella’s rival. But I agree with her that Abby needs to be more laid-back, to stop being so fussy…
Natalie: Well let’s hope you and Isabella can put national rivalry aside when you team up!
Clara: Katie and Ana with one ‘n’, we’re sure you’ll do as well as you can to help your respective contestant stay out of the sludge. But for some extra incentive, whichever of you helps your player to gain more points in Round Three – regardless of whether they win overall – will take a home a £250 cash prize!
A ‘wooo!’ sounds from the audience. Katie suddenly seems less reluctant about the whole thing.
Natalie: But, whichever of you gets less points…
Clara: Fewer points.
Natalie: …will face a punishment!
Katie puts her hand over her face again, while Ana grins nervously.
Clara: Did either of you bring a change of clothes?
Katie: Uh, no.
Ana: No!
Natalie: Well lucky for you we provide the costumes! Off you all go to get changed!
ROUND 3: Pizza the action
After some brief titles, the show resumes in an expansive set that resembles a commercial-scale kitchen. Along one side is a conveyor belt, along which discs of dough, a metre in diameter, are being moved, while the other side is dominated by two ‘stone-bake ovens’ (as with everything in this show, one has a red decor, the other blue). Along the back wall is a large board on which a list of ingredients is printed, with the word “ORDERS” in bold at the top. Somewhat unusual is an array of chains with pull handles that hang down above the empty floorspace in the middle. As the camera rises, it is revealed that these chains are connected to various nozzles and hoppers, each labelled with an ingredient.
Natalie and Clara step out into the playing area.
Natalie: Well hello there! Here we are in the Grudge-2-Sludge pizzeria, where everything is ready for our all-important final round!
Clara: We hope this game will suit both Abby and Isabella – Abby because it’s based in a restaurant and Isabella because it involves fast food!
Natalie: [tutting] But as usual our contestants are being slow to arrive. Any idea where there are, Clara?
Clara: I think they might be tied up with their partners, Nat. Ah look, here they come now!
The two teams make their cumbersome entrances. Abby is strapped to Katie, and Isabella to Ana, at the ankle and thigh, like in a three-legged race. Each pair also has their inner arms bound together, so they are essentially three-armed. They are wearing pizza chef outfits, comprising of checkered trousers, white double-breasted shirts, and neckerchiefs in their team colours.
Natalie: That’s it, come on over here! Good to see you getting so cosy with your partners!
Clara: Ladies, this round is called Pizza the Action, and you will be getting more than a slice! Take a look, if you would please, at the board above you…
Clara gestures the board on the back wall, which lists two dozen entries, each comprising a pair of ingredients:
Pepperoni & cheese
|
Ham & pineapple
|
Chicken & black olive
|
Beef & mushroom
|
Ricotta & spinach
|
Anchovy & artichoke
|
Tuna & sweetcorn
|
Sausage & red onion
|
Bacon & egg
|
Smoked salmon & cream cheese
|
Prawn & peppers
|
Green olive & aubergine
|
Egg & green olive
|
Prawn & artichoke
|
Pepperoni & black olive
|
Chicken & pineapple
|
Beef & peppers
|
Anchovy & aubergine
|
Smoked salmon & sweetcorn
|
Sausage & mushroom
|
Tuna & Ham
|
Bacon & spinach
|
Ricotta & red onion
|
Double cheese (regular & cream)
|
Natalie: Those are the pizza toppings that have been ordered. Some are mouthwatering, others are stomach-turning, but either way it’s your task to make as many of them as possible!
Clara: Each pizza begins life as a dough base, which you must pick up from the conveyor belt. Be careful because things can get a bit floury over there!
Natalie: Next, every pizza must have a pre-topping of tomato sauce, which you can get from one of these. [Points to a pair of pull-chains dangling from red canisters.]
Clara: Then you must apply the correct toppings. [Gestures the rest of the pull-chains.] Note that while there are two chains for tomato sauce, there’s only one for each other ingredient – and pushing and fighting aren’t allowed! So you may choose to make a different pizza to whatever your opponents are working on.
Natalie: Yes, you can tackle the list in any order, but take care not to make more than one of any pizza, cos we’ll penalise that!
Clara: Once you’ve topped your pizza to your satisfaction, it needs to be placed on your stone-bake oven. Each pizza made correctly to order will score you 4 points, but take care – any incomplete, incorrect or duplicate pizza will lose you 2 points!
Natalie: Oh, and we take hygiene very seriously in this restaurant, so if your pizza touches the floor at any time, it must be discarded. [Looks pointedly at Abby] We’ll be watching very carefully!
Clara: So, are you clear on everything?
The four women nod.
Natalie: Two minutes on the clock for this one. AWAY YOU GO!
And away Natalie and Clara go, jogging to safety. The three-legged pairs amble their way towards the conveyor belt, Abby and Katie having a slight speed advantage on Isabella and Ana.
As forewarned by Clara, clouds of flour puff out at the players as they approach the conveyor, dusting them with white. They grab at the passing pizza bases, which being uncooked, are rather floppy and fragile. Straight away Isabella and Ana’s falls on the floor. Instinctively, they reach to pick it up…
Clara: Uh-uh!
Meanwhile, Abby and Katie have reached one of the tomato sauce dispensers. They hold the pizza base outstretched with their outer arms, and reach up to the pull-chain with their collective inner hand. Bright red sauce splurts out, mostly hitting the floor. They move closer and try again; this time the sauce mainly hits them, splattering their hair and turning their pristine white shirts red.
Natalie: [sighing] I just washed those…
On the third attempt Abby and Katie hit the target. Scanning the board and the array of hoppers, they make for the hopper marked ‘pepperoni’, precipitating a shower of the pink-red slices onto their pizza. Meanwhile, Isabella and Ana have reached their sauce dispenser. Because Ana is taller than Isabella, they try the strategy of holding their pizza with their inner hands and Isabella’s outer hand, while Ana reaches up with her outer hand, but this method proves hard to get the sauce on the pizza without Ana getting heavily splattered.
The game progresses, and so the players’ costumes, not to mention hair, become an increasingly colourful medley of sauce, toppings and flour. Abby and Katie are relieved to discover that the eggs are of the boiled variety, but less delighted by the wet and slimy nature of the spinach. Isabella and Ana find out that while the regular cheese is grated, the cream cheese is basically a sloppy white goo.
Knowing that she is under the cosh, Abby dashes around like a demented thing, and at times Katie is lifted off her feet and carried around. Isabella and Ana take a more mutual approach, and at times their pan-Iberian cooperation breaks down in disagreement. Only at one point do the two teams clash, in a fight over sweetcorn, but Natalie quickly resolves the dispute by barking orders from the sidelines.
Clara: Your friendly notification that time is almost up! Ten! Nine! Eight!!
Abby: [to Katie] Come on!
Frantically Abby reaches up to the hopper of mushrooms and pulls the chain. The mushrooms mainly miss but she carries on to the oven regardless. Meanwhile, Isabella and Ana decide to go in opposite directions, which results in them losing their balance and tumbling to the floor.
Natalie, Clara and audience: …SEVEN! SIX! FIVE! FOUR!
Isabella and Ana try to stand up, but slip on the food-strewn floor. Abby dives towards the oven, causing Katie to stumble with her, and successfully throws their pizza onto it.
Natalie, Clara and audience: …THREE! TWO! ONE!!
The klaxon blasts.
Natalie: [stepping carefully through the mess on the floor] STOP!! Everybody stop what you’re doing and move away from the ovens!
Abby and Katie obediently take a couple of steps back, while Isabella and Ana pick themselves up off the floor. Clara follows Natalie onto the scene and snootily inspects the offerings. Abby and Katie have delivered 8 pizzas, while Isabella and Ana have racked up 5. The tension is clear on the faces of Abby and Isabella as they survey their handiwork and try to do the sums in their heads.
Clara: Hmm… well you’re not going to get any Michelin stars for this, but I suppose it’s a reasonable effort. Natalie, why don’t you check over Abby’s pizzas?
Natalie: Sure thing. You can unbind the contestants while I’m doing it.
Clara doesn’t look particular happy at this, but she complies, bending down to release the straps that tie each contestant to her partner. The four players wipe themselves down.
Natalie: Right, let’s have a look shall we? We’ve got Pepperoni and cheese – my personal fave but you don’t get extra points for that – check! Bacon and spinach – check! Egg and green olive – yuck, but check! Chicken and pineapple – check! Tuna and sweetcorn – check! Beef and… uh, what’s this meant to be, Abby?
Abby: [indignantly] It’s beef and mushroom.
Natalie: Yeah, I know it says ‘mushroom’ on the board, but we didn’t actually mean a single mushroom! [Points at the pizza while the camera does a close-up] Look at this, there’s literally one mushroom there! Your boss wouldn’t accept that in the restaurant, Abby, and neither will we. So you lose two points!
Abby opens her mouth to protest, but remembering her penalisation from Round One, thinks the better of it.
Natalie: Ham and pineapple – check! Anchovy and aubergine – [pulls a face] who comes up with these toppings? – check! So all in all, seven correct pizzas and one wrong gives you 26 points for the round, which means you finish with 50 points overall!
Abby nods, but is not minded to celebrate. She can do the maths and it is not encouraging.
Clara: Isabella, you have 38 points so far, and because Abby has the tiebreaker advantage, you need 13 to win. Now, you have five pizzas here, so you should be able to work out that things are looking promising for you…
Abby lets out a groan.
Clara: But are your pizzas valid? That’s the crucial question! Let’s have a look, shall we? Sausage and red onion – check! Pepperoni and cheese – check! What’s this – chicken and black olive? Well you’ve got the chicken and the black olives, but you forget the tomato sauce, so we’re going to penalise you 2 points.
Isabella sticks her tongue into her check. Abby’s face flickers with hope.
Clara: Smoked salmon and sweetcorn – check! That brings you up to 10 points so far. Everything rests on whether this final pizza is valid. Let’s have a look…
Isabella bites her lip and Abby swallows heavily while Clara makes a drawn-out play of painstakingly examining the last pizza.
Clara: Okay, you’ve gone for the classic double cheese. The tomato sauce is there – check! The cream cheese is there – check! The grated cheese is there – check! Isabella, you’ve got four valid pizzas and one invalid, giving you 14 points. That makes your final score 52 – you’ve won the match!!
Isabella: [doing a victory dance] YES!! Woo-hoo!!
Abby: [with her hands pressed to either side of her face, in a weak voice] Is it too late to appeal your decision on the mushroom pizza?
Clara: It’s always too late, because there are no appeals on this show! We’ll see to you shortly, Abby and Isabella, but first, let’s deal with our two participants from the audience!
Natalie: Katie, although you didn’t save Abby from the sludge, you and she were the higher-scoring team in Round Three, which means you win the £250 prize money – well done! [Hands over a golden envelope] Have you enjoyed yourself?
Katie: [wiping tomato sauce and bits of olive from her cheek, and looking like in truth she will enjoy the money more than the experience] Yes I have, thanks. Feel a bit sorry for Abby, but I did my best.
Clara: Well, don’t feel bad about yourself, cos Abby was deep in a hole, and you did well to get it as close as you did! [Turns to Ana] But as for you – Ana with one ‘n’ and no prize money and a forfeit to take – come with me! [Leads Ana away]
Isabella: [calling] Aww, sorry Ana! I really appreciate your help!
Clara leads Ana – already splattered with tomato sauce and sweetcorn and dusted with flour – to a corner of the restaurant. Here waits a chair, encircled by several pipes and nozzles, which Ana eyes with a nervous grin as Clara instructs her to sit down. What Ana doesn’t expect is that the chair starts rapidly revolving, as well as pogo-ing up and down to increase her disorientation.
Natalie: Now this is what they call fast food! Ana, there were a few toppings that we didn’t use in the game, so we’re going to give you a taste of them now!
Clara: First of all, barbecue!
Jets of shiny, dark-brown sauce fire from the nozzles in random short bursts, assailing Ana high and low as she spins around.
Natalie: How about some sour cream?
The nozzles switch from bursts of dark sauce to continual streams of white, which coat the hair and face of the screaming and laughing Ana.
Clara: And of course, this wouldn’t be a pizzeria without a big helping of mozzarella!
Right on cue, a wide, squat glob of whitish yellow falls on Ana, enveloping her like a canopy. The chair comes to a stop, revealing that the mozzarella is incredibly stringy and elastic, but nonetheless very liquid. Ana laughs as she raises a stringy hand to wave at her friends.
Natalie: And she’s still smiling! Ana, for being such a good sport you get a Grudge-2-Sludge towel and toiletry pack. Let’s have a big hand, everyone, for Ana and for Katie!
The audience duly applaud while Clara and Natalie direct Katie and Ana offstage. The presenters then return to Isabella and Abby, the former of whom is wearing a big, relaxed smile, while the latter is in a fraught state.
Clara: They’ve gone to get cleaned up and changed, and you two should go and join them. Because we’ve got an important part of the show coming up next! [Rubs hands together] Isabella, do you know what it is?
Isabella: Oh yeah!
Natalie: And Abby, do you know what part of the show is coming up next?
Abby offers only a very meek nod and a strangled giggle from deep in her throat.
Clara: [addressing the camera] Oh yes, Abby knows! And I’m sure you know too. The next part of the show is none other than…
Natalie and Clara together: THE SLUDGE SLING!!
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The scene opens with the camera hovering over the yellow ‘G2S’ at an oblique angle. Over the course of the show, the yellow colour has bled into the surrounding forest-green sludge, so that the text is less sharp than it was. The camera begins its epic journey across the lumpy and bumpy surface of the green gunk, encountering patches of turquoise and muddy green-brown on its way, all put to a soundtrack of bubbling and glooping.
Eventually the camera arrives at the pool’s end, at which point it rises, sweeping up the beam of the medieval style catapult. The foot-rest comes into view, together with a pair of bare feet that barely touch it, raised as they are on tiptoe. The shot continues up a pair of tight, light-grey yoga pants, gripped by a pair of hands around the knees. On Abby’s upper half, her red sports halterneck leaves her tensed mid-rift and goose-bumped arms exposed. Her light-blonde hair has been washed and dried, and is tied in a ponytail as before. Abby’s mouth is drawn into a grimace, and her eyes alternate between closed and staring upwards towards the back of the audience, so as to avoid looking at the sludge before her.
Natalie: [speaking from out of shot] Oohhh… You really do have to feel for poor Abby here. She strives for perfection, but she didn’t do very well in tonight’s games! She likes to be in control; she certainly isn’t in control of this situation! She loves everything to be clean and tidy… [sucks in] Oh my oh my, she’s soon to be anything but!
Abby draws her knees even tighter to herself and lets out a muted, slightly weepy giggle from between her grimacing lips.
Natalie: Oh dear, and now she’s got the delirious laughter! No point looking up there, love; down here’s where you’re going!
As Abby continues her strange giggling, the camera zooms out, revealing Natalie standing beside the catapult. The shot widens further, and we see Isabella lording it up on the throne, dressed in her blue vest top and black gym shorts, while Clara stands in attendance beside her.
The ambient studio lighting has been dimmed, with isolated spotlights on Abby and Isabella, while overhead lights bear down upon the sludge itself, making it glisten most grotesquely.
Clara: Isabella, many congratulations on your win. You got an early lead in Round One, thanks to Abby’s dodgy footwork and her answering back, and then you stormed ahead in Flan the Frauds. Abby did win the audience vote, but only by a smidgen. She also made a fightback in the final round, and tried to quibble her way out right til the end, but Nat and I were having none of it! How does it feel now that Abby’s reign as Queen of Clean is about to end with a spectacular splat?
Isabella: [wearing a blissful expression] Absolutely fantastic, Clara. Absolutely the best day since Ab and I moved in together!
Natalie: Ooh, Bella’s happy, and who wouldn’t be in her position! But Abby, while we at Grudge-2-Sludge may be harsh, we’re not entirely heartless. Just as a condemned prisoner is granted their last meal, so we have cooked you up a Three-course Ordeal!
Out of the gloom of the dimmed stage, Clara wheels a serving trolley, on which sit three pieces of ornate silverware: a tureen labelled “Gloop of the Day”, an Indian-style serving dish labelled “Manky Mains”, and a tall jug labelled “Just Desserts”.
Clara: Ta-da! Grub’s up! Abby, this is your chance to get some small measure of revenge on Bella, and make her less smug and comfortable on her throne. It’s also a chance for us to see how good you really are at pub quiz!
Natalie: I’m going to ask you three multiple-choice questions – one for each course of the ordeal. Get a question right, and Clara will gladly serve that course all over your flatmate!
Isabella pulls an unamused face at the camera.
Clara: But get a question wrong, and you can guess where the course will be served, can’t you?
Abby nods. The prospect of having her general knowledge put to the test has snapped her out of her cringing and giggling, and she is intensely focussed on the task at hand.
Natalie: Right then, let’s get dining! Clara, what is the Gloop of the Day?
Clara: [pulls the lid off the tureen] It’s pea!
Natalie: That’s pea with an ‘a’, before people accuse us of overstepping the line. Abby, here’s your first question: When it comes to housemate feuds, few have been more explosive – or public – than those in the Big Brother house. Now, we all instantly recognise the distinctive Geordie voice of the Big Brother narrator, but what is his name? Is it,
Johnny Austin?
Marcus Bentley?
Or Kevin Ford?
Abby: [face falling] Agh. Big Brother isn’t something I watch. Ermmm… [puffs through her cheeks]. Can you read out the names again, please?
Natalie: I shouldn’t really, but as I’m feeling kind: Johnny Austin, Marcus Bentley, or Kevin Ford.
Abby: I’ll go with Kevin Ford.
Natalie: Well Abby, considering you don’t watch Big Brother that was a good guess.
Abby begins to smile.
Natalie: But not a correct one! The answer is in fact Marcus Bentley!
Abby groans.
Clara: That means Gloop of the Day is coming your way!
Clara picks up the tureen and carefully carries it to behind the catapult, where she climbs a set of steps to stand over Abby. Abby has reverted to her cringing and giggling, her shoulders hunched and her chest heaving. Opaque and light-green, the soup pours onto the crown of Abby’s head, rapidly covering her blonde hair. Abby screams as it spills down her forehead and covers her bare shoulders. As Clara tips the tureen further, the smooth liquid gives way to mushy peas, which splatter wetly onto Abby’s head and run down the sides of her face. Isabella claps enthusiastically as she watches.
Natalie: Mmmm! Pea Gloop! How did you find that, Abby?
Abby: [wiping her cheeks] Yuck!
Natalie: Well look on the bright side; it has plenty of antioxidants! Now, onto the Manky Mains. Clara, what’ve we got?
Clara: Think we’ve got some sort of curry. [Pulls the lid off the ornate serving dish] Yep, it’s tikka masala!
Natalie: Right Abby, seeing as one of your complaints about Bella was her selfie snapping, here’s a question on the topic: In which year did Oxford English Dictionary designate ‘selfie’ as their Word of the Year? Was it,
2012?
2013?
Or 2014?
Abby: Hmm… [adopts a philosophical pose even as mushy peas plop down from her head onto her shoulders] Yeah, I remember when everyone started using the word. 2012 is too early, definitely. 2013? Was it that long ago? Or 2014 maybe? [Puffs] Nah, I’m gonna go for 2013.
Natalie: [sucks in] Abby, Abby, Abby. If you’d gone for 2014…
Abby winces.
Natalie: …you would have been wrong! 2013 is correct!
Clara: One tikka masala for the lady on the throne there!
Clutching the serving dish, Clara goes over to the throne and ascends a set of steps behind it. Isabella does her characteristic sticking of her tongue into her cheek as she waits for the pour. Clara inverts the dish, and a copious amount of bright-orange and very lumpy curry plops onto Isabella’s head, completely burying her dark auburn hair including her bun. Isabella sticks out her tongue as dollops of the curry slide down her face and back, while it’s Abby’s turn to laugh at her.
Natalie: Oh yes, orange is definitely Bella’s colour! Let’s see if Abby can give her some Just Desserts too. Clara, what are they?
Clara: [inspecting the jug] Seeing as Abby is really into yoga, we have some yoghurt!
Natalie: Abby, here comes your final question, and it’s a pot luck. Black Republican, Emperor Francis, and Royal Ann are all varieties of which fruit?
Cherries?
Grapes?
Or blackberries?
Abby: [immediately and confidently] Cherries. I eat lots of them!
Natalie: Alright, no need to show off! Cherries is indeed correct.
Clara: Which means that Bella will be getting her Just Desserts!
Isabella pulls another face at the camera while Clara lifts the jug from the trolley and returns to position behind the throne. The thick white yogurt flows smoothly onto Isabella’s head, creating a marble effect with the orange curry. Clara leans forward as she continues to pour, making sure plenty of yoghurt splashes over Isabella’s face, the front of her vest top, her lap, and finally her legs. Isabella holds up her arms in frustration at the mess.
Natalie: Two out of three – not bad! Abby, you’ve got Bella fairly messy, and you’ve vindicated your pub quiz skills to some extent. But you can forget being smug, because the meal is over, and your fate is nigh!
Abby is all too aware of this; she hugs her knees to herself, clamps her eyes shut, and resumes her delirious giggling.
As Handel’s Hallelujah Chorus resounds around the studio, the golden toilet-style chain, complete with its ‘jewel’-studded grip, descends to the right-hand side of Isabella.
Clara: Bella, I guess the curry-yoghurt combo is not something you’re thrilled about, but trust me, this will make you completely forget your discomfort. Take a good look at your flatmate Abby there. Think about the times she’s inconvenienced you by clearing your stuff away or even throwing it out. Think about her fussiness and her nitpicking, how she pushes health foods onto you and takes over the pub quiz team. And in your own good time, take hold of that golden chain…
Natalie and Clara together: [as they scarper to safe distances] AND SLING HER IN THE SLUDGE!!
By this time, Abby has bunched up her knees and is leaning forward so as to curl up in a ball. Isabella, licking her lips as she relishes the moment, gives the chain a concerted tug.
Fountains of sparks erupt either of side of the catapult. The beam jerks back to a horizontal angle, eliciting a squeal from Abby. At the same time, an irregular column of pink gunge begins to fall from the ceiling directly in front of the catapult, splashing into the green sludge close to the edge.
The catapult fires with a satisfying twang. The seat unfolds and straightens during the upshot, but Abby’s curled up position means that she doesn’t straighten with it. Instead she is fired like a cannonball, splashing through the downpour of pink, to slam into the pool dead on the ‘2’ of the ‘G2S’, sending out a forceful splash of virid goo that splatters far across the floor and into the bottom of the throne near Isabella’s feet. The ‘G’ and the ‘S’ are completely destroyed along with the ‘2’, reduced to fragments of yellow that dance on the irregularly churning surface.
The audience raucously cheers. Isabella raises both fists and grins as she looks down from her throne, eagerly awaiting the re-emergence of her flatmate.
A misshapen, sludge-coated object – possibly a foot – briefly pierces the choppy surface. Next, a green hand extends itself out of the depths, then retracts. Then, what can only be Abby’s face – though is not recognisable as such – breaks through the surface. Abby takes a gulping breath, loses her balance and sinks again. Her feet make contact with the floor of the tank and she raises herself on a steadier foundation, her head and shoulders lifting the sludge with them as they rise into view.
Abby takes another gulp of air and this time her mouth stays wide open in shock. Her eyes blink themselves clear. Her head is layered in a veritable palette of green, with some turquoise down one side. There is no indication of her hair, save a sludgy rope which is what her ponytail has become, and no clean skin can be seen on either her face or shoulders.
Abby continues to rise until she is standing upright, with the level of the sludge at her bust. Her halterneck has swelled with the cold gunk that has flowed liberally inside it, and Abby rues not wearing a bra underneath. Lower down the sludge is seeping through her yoga pants to embrace her legs and panties, and she can feel it squish under the soles of her feet as she fights for traction on the pool floor. Abby raises her gunge-coated hands in front of her, fingers spread in disbelief. Her mouth continues to gape; it is as if her jaw has locked open.
Isabella, taking in the full messy extent of her dishevelled flatmate, is in hysterics, slapping the arm of the throne. Abby’s eyes turn up towards her, mouth still gaping. Another column of pink descends from the rafters, splashing onto Abby’s shoulder and causing her to jerk. As Abby tries to chart a path through the sludge, a second column, the same shade of yellow as the text, catches her straight on the head.
Natalie: [stepping onto the scene as the main lights go on] Oh wow! Oh wow! That was utterly fantast–WOAH!!
A deluge of light-blue gunge, larger and more powerful than the previous two, engulfs Abby, who ducks up to her neck in the sludge, hands wrapped over her head, accompanied by another fit of cackles from Isabella.
Natalie: And it isn’t over!
Clara: [joining Natalie] Spectacular sludging, Nat, and richly deserved too! Worth seeing again in slow motion, I’d say!
In the action replay, Abby silently screams as the catapult draws back, while either side of her the spark fountains erupt, and in front of her the pink gunge starts to fall. The catapult fires upwards, and while the seat unfolds away from Abby, she remains tucked up in her ball, with her knees high and her legs bent upwards around her buttocks, so it looks as if she is performing one of her yoga positions in mid-air. When the catapult reaches the vertical position it comes to a sudden stop, while Abby is fired forward. She splashes through the shower of pink, which adds another layer of colour on top of the pea soup. She does a forward roll in the air, a whirl of pink and green goo and grey yoga pants, completing 360 degrees so that bombs into the gunge butt first, plunging like a stone into the morass.
The scene returns to the present, where the multicoloured mess that is Abby has managed to narrow her mouth by a few degrees but is still shocked and bewildered.
Clara: [standing by the throne] Isabella, you’ve done it! You’ve settled the grudge; you’ve turned the Queen of Clean into Lady Muck! How are you feeling right now?
Isabella: [grinning as she continues to regard Abby] Awesome! Absolutely awesome!
Natalie: Well, something else that’s absolutely awesome is your prize weekend with me and Clara in London! You’ll be enjoying a boutique shopping spree courtesy of the Grudge-2-Sludge credit card; a curry in Brick Lane – not in your hair this time, you’ll be relieved to hear; a night’s stay in five-star luxury; and, of course, you’ll get to model all your purchases in an extended photo session with top fashion snapper Hester Groome!
Isabella: Woo! Looking forward to it!
Clara: So are we! But let’s not forget the real prize! [holds a giant certificate up to the camera and reads it out]
This is to certify that
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has had the grudge with her flatmate
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settled in her favour, and that accordingly:
‣ Isabella has the right to greet Abby in any manner she deems suitable.
‣ Isabella may leave her possessions out around the flat and Abby will not clear away or dispose of them.
‣ Abby will not critique Isabella’s diet or try to push health foods on her.
‣ Abby will be a team player in the pub quiz.
‣ Isabella may take as many selfies as she wishes, whenever and wherever she pleases.
Signed,
Natalie Lloyd Clara Quick
Natalie: I’m sure this will look great in the living room of your flat! [Points to the bottom of the certificate] There’s a space there for you to insert your favourite photo of Abby in the sludge!
Clara: Speaking of photos, we think it’s only appropriate you mark your victory in the way you like best. [Hands a selfie stick to Isabella] Snap away my girl!
Isabella duly holds out the selfie stick and takes multiple poses of herself on the throne with her certificate, not seeming to mind that she is still covered with tikka masala and yoghurt. She then turns around so she can take selfies of herself with Abby in the background.
Natalie: Everybody, let’s have a huge hand for Isabella!
The audience cheers as Isabella continues to snap herself.
Clara: [Takes selfie stick off Isabella] Alright, that’s enough!
Natalie and Clara step up to the edge of the pool and chuckle as they look down at its occupant. Abby has recovered from her shock and musters a sporting smile for the camera.
Natalie: Abby, I hope you heard all of that. Your days of clearing away Bella’s stuff are at an end… though I reckon you’ll be too busy cleaning yourself to care about the flat!
Clara: Speaking of which, although you’re not getting that luxury yoga weekend in Totnes, we are going to gift you a Grudge-2-Sludge towel and toiletry pack!
Natalie: [brandishing the selfie stick] We need a photo for Isabella’s certificate, but I think it’s best you don’t take it yourself in your state. Would you mind posing for me?
With a wry and slightly resentful smile, Abby obligingly lines herself up to Natalie.
Natalie: Perfect… now say cheese!
A big dollop of white-yellow ‘mozzarella’, similarly to that which fell on Ana earlier, drops onto Abby, blanketing her.
Clara: The old ones are the best – and that was very old cheese!
Natalie: Let’s hear it for Abby – a very good sport!
The audience applauds, while Abby tries to pull the elasticky goop off her face. Natalie and Clara walk to the front of the stage.
Clara: That brings us to the end of the first episode of our new series.
Natalie: We’ve still got some slots available, so if you need to settle a score with someone, or you know two people who do, then please get in touch! You might win eternal bragging rights and a fantastic prize!
Clara: [while she and Natalie gesture to Abby and pull disgusted faces] …Or you could end up deep in our sludge!
Natalie: But for now, thanks for watching, and be sure to tune in again next week! She was Clara Quick!
Clara: And she was Natalie Lloyd! Good night!
The outro music begins and the audience breaks into sustained clapping. The camera returns for one more close-up of Abby, as yet more ‘mozzarella’ gloops down on her. It sweeps past Isabella, who has resumed snapping selfies on her throne, and then zooms out from the stage as Natalie and Clara stand waving.
While the credits continue to roll, a montage of the show’s highlights plays, starting with excerpts from the video reels, continuing through highlights of the games, the flannings of the librarians, and Ana’s forfeit at the end of Round Three. The montage culminates with Isabella yanking the chain, a side-on view of Abby being fired into the sludge, followed by a final shot of her shocked reaction.
Thanks once again to Sploshmonster for commissioning this series and providing the excellent characters and grudge.
Here’s the schedule for the forthcoming episodes:
Episode 2 (Oct): Worker Simon vs boss Sarah
Episode 3 (Nov): Fiancées Juliette vs Bec
Episode 4 (Dec/Jan): Sisters Kate vs Ellie
As Natalie said, I’m still taking commissions for this and it would great to have some episodes, so if you fancy commissioning an episode please see messycommissions.wordpress.com/. Ta, TG.