The Ultra Modern Gang

Glamour arrived in Grecondale when the Triang No. 53 Ultra Modern was purchased and renovated by some thoroughly modern newcomers.

The property is owned by Persephone Lavelle (known to her friends and family as Percy or Perce), a highly successful film actress. She lives in it with her hairdresser brother, Guy.

Also resident is Guy’s exuberant partner, Antonio. We briefly met Antonio and Guy at work in their hair salon, Curl up and Dye, in an earlier post.

Occupancy of the No. 53 soon increased when Percy’s good friend Liz, dropped in unannounced (luggage and twin girls in tow), and never left.

Liz, who it transpired had left her husband, is also a film actress but a rather less successful one than Percy. This might have something to do with her tendency to start drinking at breakfast and to continue more or less uninterrupted for the rest of the day. In fact, all four of the ‘Ultra Modern Gang’ adults lead quite an alcohol-fueled and hedonistic lifestyle. Percy, Guy and Antonio do, of course, have work commitments but they seem to manage the work/play balance very successfully – at least no one has come to grief in the hair salon yet.

Since the matter has yet to be resolved, it should be mentioned here that there have been some very strange ‘goings on’ in No. 53. These started when Millicent, the much put-upon maid, took delivery of an Egyptian sarcophagus, bought by Antonio from Hill House Antiques in Greconville.

The sarcophagus was installed in the dining room and dubbed Titi. Antonio claimed that it was a genuine antiquity and contained a fully preserved mummy but since it was sealed shut, nothing could be proven. It was noted, however, that following Titi’s arrival, the dining room was prone to sudden, unexplained drops in temperature.

Titi’s strange vibes were soon forgotten about, however, when Antonio announced that he was going to hold an Egyptian-themed barbecue. This heralded the arrival of Cameron, the monkey hired for the occasion, who escaped his cage and, like Liz, never left. Thankfully, he seems to have become more or less house-trained.

On the day of the barbecue, Antonio, in keeping with the Egyptian theme and to the amusement of all, dressed himself up as a mummy.

Later, with the barbecue still in full swing, Millicent was gathering empty glasses in the dining room when she noticed that the lid of the sarcophagus was ajar and, assuming someone must have managed to prise it open, she noted with relief that it was completely empty.

Meanwhile, out in the hallway, Rabbie bumped into what he assumed to be Antonio in his mummy costume, noting only that he was rather less communicative than usual.

It wasn’t until Rabbie bumped into Antonio again at the top of the stairs just moments later that he questioned who or what he’d seen downstairs. However, since Rabbie was on an urgent mission to declare his love to Joyce (as we saw in an earlier post), he quickly dismissed the matter and thought no more of it.

Millicent mentioned the empty sarcophagus the next morning at breakfast but when Antonio went to look inside, it was sealed fast again. Much to Millicent’s annoyance, since she had been run off her feet at the barbecue, Antonio and Guy suggested that perhaps she had helped herself to one too many drinks and her imagination had become overactive. To this day, however, Millicent is adamant that the sarcophagus was open and she keeps a very wary eye on it whenever she’s dusting in the room.