Friday, May 06, 2005

Green Wing Butterfly Emergency!

Which is like a normal emergency but, you know, more so.

I've written a scene for GW to plug a tiny gap, but it's reliant (as is so much of contemporary drama) on finding a load of those wind-up butterflies you put between the pages of a book, only for someone to open the book later on and shout 'Jeusmyheart!' and fall to the ground dead*. It's very funny. We did this at Waterstone's once, and the target got a terrible shock, but didn't actually die, which was surprising as he had a weak heart and had only just come back from hospital for that very reason. I should make it clear that we were actually trying to kill him, as he was an evil man, and his death would have raised the average goodness of human beings up by about 0.1%, which isn't a bad days work. He eventually moved to Belgium, so the effect was much the same.

Anyway, we desperately need some wind-up butterflies, by Sunday at latest (well possibly Monday), so they can be shown to the art department who will then be convinced of their brilliance and won't try and make their own version which won't be quite as good**.

I've tried online, and there's a mention of Hallmark Cards doing them, but nothing specific. Belladonna, do your museum connection have any influence here? Or if anyone else has seen any in a shop somewhere could they let me know and we can send someone round with a tenner.

UPDATE: London Butterfly House has been suggested, which is an excellent idea - closed now, but I'll ring them in the morning.

UPDATE UPDATE: We have positive confirmation (via Lauren) that Clinton's cards sell them, so that's good enough for me. So tomorrow crack squads of GW runners will comb the city for Clinton's Cards shops, buying up every wind-up butterfly they see, and throwing the Clinton's stock computer into a spin from which it will probably never recover...

Thanks to everyone for your help. I knew the power of blogging couldn't let me down.


*That's not the scene. But what I've written is almost as good, frankly.

** I mean it will be very very good, but let's try and save them the time it'll take. Sorry, Art Department didn't mean to disparage your fine work.

7 comments:

rach said...

How about ringing someone like the London Butterfly House (http://www.butterflies.org.uk/)- they say they've got a giftshop with 'paperware' and 'various items'...

James Henry said...

The special 'murderous' butterflies were sourced originally by Katie, from Hawkin's Bazaar - but I couldn't find anything on the website.

It's all in the hands of the runners now - thanks everyone.

BiScUiTs said...

I've never even heard of wind up butterflies! Oh dear. But still, sounds interesting!

James Henry said...

I think so - they're certainly checking it out, and Rob's very impressed with rapidity and quality of the response. Quite rightly.

Anonymous said...

Um, hi.
Er, love the show, and I read this SOS a bit late- but, there's a Clinton's near me who have loads of the windy-up butterflies. If I help in connecting runners to butterflies (now there's a kinky fantasy), can I visit the set and wind them all up? The butterflies, not the runners. Er, except, I'm pretty good at both... :-D Seriously, the Clintons at Southgate had loads of the buggers this weekend just gone. (And some really cool Star Wars cards, too- they make sounds when you open them!! Although perhaps sending a wheezing Darth Vadar card to one's aged relatives on their umpteenth birthday probably isn't so tactful. Oops.)

James Henry said...

The final decision was that they wouldn't 'read' well enough (i.e. be clearly visible) on the day, so something else was used instead. I've seen the scene, and it works fine, but obviously I'm still hankering to use the wind-up paper butterflies somewhere else at some point.

Many thanks to everyone for their dedicated butterfly-chasing on my behalf though.

Anonymous said...

10 months later and I am in desparate need of some wind up butterflies. I last saw somein Spain many years ago and have been looking for nearly a year for some replacements. Can any tell me where I could purchase some from the US? (I am near Chicago and can't just pop around to Clinton's to buy a few.)

Thanks so much
Kyczy
kyczyh@gmail.com