Read Act 1, Scene 1 and explain whether you think it is an effective way to start the play

When Frank is looking for alcohol behind books he can not remember where he had hidden the bottle of whiskey which indicates that he might have been drinking before. "Where the hell...? Eliot?" When he remembers where he has hidden the whiskey he is very happy. "Jubilantly." This visual clue shows the extent of Frank's alcoholism. Franks "pours himself a large slug into the mug." People drink in small glasses because it is very strong.

When Rita mentions "Flora," Frank thinks she means the Latin word for "Flowers" but she means the brand of margarine. The misunderstanding between them is the source of much of the humour in the scene.

Rita tries to show that she is aware of art by talking about the painting on the wall, but she does so in very direct terms, which startles Frank such as when Rita says "erotic" and "tits". Rita further shows her directness by referring to the Open University as "degrees for dishwashers".

Russell brings humour into the play before anyone says a word. We think that Frank is looking for a book on the shelves but we soon find out that Franks is actually looking for a bottle of whisky that he has hidden so the student and other teachers cannot see it. He drinks from a mug which indicates to us that Frank's drinking is secretive and he might be a big drinker.

Rita culture reference is with cop shows such as Elliot Ness, which clashes with Frank's references, which are to do with the poet T.S.Elliot. This shows to us that Frank and Rita are from two different worlds, this also creates humour in the play.

Rita asks Frank what assonance means. When Frank gives her an example of assonance, he asks her if she has heard of Yeats the poet but Rita confuses Yeats the poet with Yeats the wine lodge. This shows that they are completely different people. When Frank tells Rita what assonances means, she reacts by saying "oh. It means getting the rhyme wrong". This is a clever and witty. Later on in the play Frank uses Rita's idea of assonance in one of the lectures while he is drunk.

Russell makes Rita move around a lot on the stage. This visual clue tells us that Rita is not middle class because a middle class person would not move around or fidgets with objects in an interview. We soon find out that Frank is very lazy: "Erm-yes. I suppose I always mean to..." When Rita tells him to get the door fixed. Rita is very direct, rude, outspoken and tells Frank what to do: "It's that stupid bleedin' handle on the door. You wanna get it fixed!" This tells us that Rita says anything that she wants to or what is on her mind without thinking about it.

Rita asks Frank why he took the job to work for the Open University. Rita also asks him if he needed more money. Asking Frank if he is doing it for more money is very rude.

Russell makes the scene entertaining and dramatic by making the scene humorous.

Rita tries to show that she is intelligent by "going to the bookcase," this shows that she is interested in books, literature and want to learn.

Rita picks up a book called Howards Ends by E.M.Forster. She read the title of the book and makes a joke about it: "its sound filthy."

Willy Russell makes it an effective way to start the play. He introduced the characters quickly and effectively. We find out what the characters are exactly like straight away.