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NARRATOR |
Once upon a
time, a long time ago in a far-off land (because all good stories start like
that) three kings met together for a deep philosophical discussion; about
the ontological meaning of life, the eschatalogical significance of entropic
decay, the existential interpretation of naturalistic phenomenology and the
shockingly high price of coffee. Heavy stuff like that. Suddenly
there appeared a bright new star shining clearly in the evening sky.
For a while they were puzzled - until the first of the kings realised its
significance and explained to the others. |
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Patrick Moore voice |
KING 1 |
It's obviously
an intergalactic quasar and it's over a million million miles away - the
temperature at the surface is a trillion times hotter than our sun and its
light is incredibly intense. One day, Man will send ships up to the
stars to explore and quantify, to experiment and catalogue. Meanwhile
... is there any coffee left? |
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NARRATOR |
The other two
kings pondered on this. It was all very well knowing WHAT it was, but
what did this new star SIGNIFY? The second of the kings consulted his
reference books at greater length - and shared his conclusions with his
colleagues. |
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Russell Grant voice |
KING 2 |
The moon is in
its second phase and resides in the third house of Aquarius. With Mars
in the ascendancy I could be lucky in love. I will meet a tall, dark,
handsome stranger. I may have problems with money but can overcome
these difficulties with wisdom. Lucky number 5. Hey, could
either of you lend me a fiver? |
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NARRATOR |
Neither of
them could. Despite the deliberations of his two friends, the third
king was not satisfied with either of their suggestions. Throughout
the evening he had thought deeply about the heavenly apparition.
Finally, thoughtfully, he said ... |
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Total panic! |
KING 3 |
It's a UFO!
It's probably full of little green men! They'll take over the earth!
We'll all be eaten! Don't just sit there - let's run away and hide!
Help! |
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NARRATOR |
Meanwhile. on
the hillside outside Bethlehem were a number of simple, peaceful shepherds
watching over their sheep. All at once, the sky shone with a brilliant
light and a shining angel appeared, saying ... |
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ANGEL |
Fear not - for
I bring tidings of great joy. Unto you this day in the City of David,
is born a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And you shall find the
baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. |
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NARRATOR |
The shepherds
were startled, amazed, flabbergasted. They had never seen anything
like it. It wasn't long before one of them made up his mind what to
do. |
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Aside, to audience |
SHEPHERD 1 |
I must be
going crazy; completely flipped. I thought I saw an angel! If I
say anything to the other two they'll have me carted off to the "funny
farm". I'll just pretend nothing's happened. Er .... nice
evening isn't it? |
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NARRATOR |
Of course,
they couldn't all deny what they'd seen, and one of the other shepherds soon
realised what was going on. |
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SHEPHERD 2 |
Did you see
that shimmering light? I reckon it was something "weird". A
ghost maybe, or a spook! A ghoulie! A ghostie! A long-leggedy
beastie! Ooh! I'm not staying here all night: I should be at home,
safely tucked up in bed - especially as it's Christmas. |
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NARRATOR |
But the third
shepherd did not believe in witches and spooks - nor "things that go bump in
the night". He did not scare so easily. Well - not much ...
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Total panic! |
SHEPHERD 3 |
It�s a UFO!
It's probably full of little green men! They'll take over the earth!
We'll all be eaten ... in shepherd's pie! Don't just sit there - let's
run away and hide! Help! |
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NARRATOR |
What if it HAD
happened something like that? What if the kings had rationalised and
explained away the star ... instead of coming to worship the baby Jesus?
What if the shepherds had thought it best not to get involved ... instead of
humbly seeking out the Son of God? What if ... no, it's silly ... What
if ... YOU dismissed the whole thing out of hand? But then, of
course, you wouldn't ... would you? |
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- END - |
