Along with several million others, I watched the final episode of Happy Valley, and appreciated till the last flicker on the screen the huge talent of Sally Wainwright, and all the actors and the crew. I was surprised and moved at the way the story twisted, so that at the end, we saw an attempt to depict Tommy Lee Royce as a human being – albeit a dangerous psychopath. I was reminded of the one or two people I have come across, in various ways, who have been psychopaths – not necessarily violent, although one was.
My point being this. It is not very likely that if you are a psychopath, you will inevitably recognize yourself as one. It was a brilliant twist, where the viewpoint shifted, and we understood that in his warped way of seeing the world, T L Royce was not a complete waste of space. On the contrary – he had been hurt, and treated unfairly. Or so he believed. How often we recognize ourselves as the people other people see – that is the big question of real life, and of fictional life. It applies to all of us, but it particularly applies to psychopaths.
We only just got home in time to watch H V. We were in Manchester for the weekend, and on Sunday morning I presented my story collection, Tell it Not, at the regular Sunday morning ARK session at Menorah Synagogue. Lots of people we have known in Manchester were kind enough to come and hear what I had to say. Thanks to all.
