NOTTING HILL

NOTTING HILL   

Screenplay by Richard Curtis

 Title

 EXT. VARIOUS DAYS

 'She' plays through the credits.

 Exquisite footage of Anna Scott -- the great movie star of our
 time -- an ideal -- the perfect star and woman -- her life full of
 glamour and sophistication and mystery.

 EXT. STREET - DAY
 
 Mix through to William, 35, relaxed, pleasant, informal.  We
 follow him as he walks down Portobello Road, carrying a load of
 bread.  It is spring.
 
    WILLIAM (V.O.)
  Of course, I've seen her films and
  always thought she was, well,
  fabulous -- but, you know,
  million miles from the world I live
  in.  Which is here -- Notting Hill
  -- not a bad place to be...
 
 EXT. PORTOBELLO ROAD - DAY

 It's a full fruit market day.

    WILLIAM (V.O.)
  There's the market on weekdays,
  selling every fruit and vegetable
  known to man...

 EXT. PORTOBELLO ROAD - DAY

 A man in denims exits the tattoo studio.

    WILLIAM (V.O.)
  The tattoo parlour -- with a guy
  outside who got drunk and now can't
  remember why he chose 'I Love Ken'...

 EXT. PORTOBELLO ROAD - DAY

    WILLIAM (V.O.)
  The racial hair-dressers where
  everyone comes out looking like the
  Cookie Monster, whether they like
  it or not...

 Sure enough, a girl exits with a huge threaded blue bouffant.

 EXT. PORTOBELLO ROAD - SATURDAY

    WILLIAM (V.O.)
  Then suddenly it's the weekend, and
  from break of day, hundreds of stalls
  appears out of nowhere, filling
  Portobello Road right up to Notting
  Hill Gate...

 A frantic crowded Portobello market.

    WILLIAM (V.O.)
  ... and thousands of people buy
  millions of antiques, some genuine...

 The camera finally settles on a stall selling beautiful stained
 glass windows of various sizes, some featuring biblical scenes
 and saints.

    WILLIAM (V.O.)
  ... and some not so genuine.

 EXT. GOLBORNE ROAD - DAY

    WILLIAM (V.O.)
  And what's great is that lots of
  friends have ended up in this part of
  London -- that's Tony, architect
  turned chef, who recently invested
  all the money he ever earned in a new
  restaurant...

 Shot of Tony proudly setting out a board outside his restaurant,
 the sign still being painted.  He receives and approves a huge
 fresh salmon.

 EXT. PORTOBELLO ROAD - DAY

    WILLIAM (V.O.)
  So this is where I spend my days
  and years -- in this small village in
  the middle of a city -- in a house
  with a blue door that my wife and I
  bought together... before she left
  me for a man who looked like Harrison
  Ford, only even handsomer...

 We arrive outside his blue-doored house just off Portobello.

    WILLIAM (V.O.)
  ... and where I now lead a strange
  half-life with a lodger called...

 INT. WILLIAM'S HOUSE - DAY

    WILLIAM
  Spike!

 The house has far too many things in it.  Definitely two-
 bachelor flat.

 Spike appears.  An unusual looking fellow.  He has unusual
 hair, unusual facial hair and an unusual Welsh accent: very
 white, as though his flesh has never seen the sun.  He wears
 only shorts.

    SPIKE
  Even he.  Hey, you couldn't help me
  with an incredibly important
  decision, could you?

    WILLIAM
  This is important in comparison to,
  let's say, whether they should
  cancel third world debt?

    SPIKE
  That's right -- I'm at last going out
  on a date with the great Janine and I
  just want to be sure I've picked the
  right t-shirt.

    WILLIAM
  What are the choices?

    SPIKE
  Well... wait for it...
   (He pulls on a t-shirt)
  First there's this one...

 The t-shirt is white with a horrible looking plastic alien
 coming out of it, jaws open, blood everywhere.  It says 'I Love
 Blood.'

    WILLIAM
  Yes -- might make it hard to strike a
  really romantic note.

    SPIKE
  Point taken.

 He heads back up the stairs... talks as he changes...

    SPIKE
  I suspect you'll prefer the next one.

 And he re-enters in a white t-shirt, with a large arrow,
 pointing down to his flies, saying, 'Get It Here.'
 
    SPIKE
  Cool, huh?

    WILLIAM
  Yes -- she might think you don't have
  true love on your mind.

    SPIKE
  Wouldn't want that...
   (and back up he goes)
  Okay -- just one more.

 He comes down wearing it.  Lots of hearts, saying, 'You're the
 most beautiful woman in the world.'

    WILLIAM
  Well, yes, that's perfect. Well
  done.

    SPIKE
  Thanks.  Great.  Wish me luck.

    WILLIAM
  Good luck.

 Spike turns and walks upstairs proudly.  Revealing that on the
 back of the t-shirt, also printed in big letters, is written
 'Fancy a fuck?'

 EXT. PORTOBELLO ROAD - DAY

    WILLIAM (V.O.)
  And so it was just another hopeless
  Wednesday, as I set off through the
  market to work, little suspecting
  that this was the day which would
  change my life forever.  This is
  work, by the way, my little travel
  book shop...

 A small unpretentious store... named 'The Travel Book Co.'

    WILLIAM (V.O.)
  ... which, well, sells travel books
  -- and, to be frank with you, doesn't
  always sell many of those.

 William enters.

 INT. THE BOOKSHOP - DAY

 It is a small shop, slightly chaotic, bookshelves everywhere,
 with little secret bits round corners with even more books.
 Martin, William's sole employee, is waiting enthusiastically.
 He is very keen, an uncrushable optimist.  Perhaps without
 cause.  A few seconds later, William stands gloomily behind the
 desk.

    WILLIAM
  Classic.  Absolutely classic. 
  Profit from major sales push -- minus
  ￡347.

    MARTIN
  Shall I go get a cappuccino?  Ease the
  pain.

    WILLIAM
  Yes, better get me a half.  All I can
  afford.