Today we’ll share the draft text from the first version of Spring., performed as part of our 7-hour marathon quartet Summer.Autumn. Winter. Spring. at Old Granada Television Studios in 2016.

The text was projected onto screens above the stage and behind the audience.

This version of Spring. was performed by 7 pregnant women who lived in Manchester. 

Future versions of Spring. used elements of this text but focussed more on the singing of karaoke.

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Will the sun be shining?

Will the daffodils be out?

Do we need milk?

Should I start going to bed earlier now?

Should we move the cot further away from the window?

How many baby grows do I need?

Are Aldi nappies any good?

Does my dressing gown still fit?

How many nursing bras shall I buy?

Who will be the first person I call?

Will the birthing pool be available?

What if I tear?

Will your Dad cut the chord?

Will the epidural affect you?

How will I know when I have to go to the hospital?

Should we test the birth pool in advance?

When should I cut your nails?

Will I swear?

Will people remember my name?

Will the midwives call me Mum or my name?

Will I cry when you are born?

Will you be breathing straight away?

What time of day will you arrive?

Will it be the day we imagined?

Will it be the day we put bets on?

Will we drive through the rain?

Will the pain be unbearable?

Will I forget everything I’ve learned?

Will I recognise you?

What will your first hour be like?

Will I feel empty?

Will my vagina ever be the same again?

How will I deal with the lack of sleep?

How will I deal with night feeds?

Will I check that you’re still breathing?

How far will you crawl?

Will I cope with the terrible twos?

When will I forget what the top of your head smelled like?

When will you recognise me as yours?

What will your first word be?

What if it’s only 6.30 in the morning and we’ve already played all the games I’d planned for the day?

What if you keep on throwing glitter over the new rug?

Will you walk to school holding hands with little Coco?

What if you still wet the bed when you’re nearly 9?

Will you be an early riser?

Or a slow starter?

Or a late developer?

Will you burn the candle at both ends?

Will you eat fast food?

Will you talk really slowly?

Will you be tongue tied?

Will you have a hare lip?

Will you have the usual number of toes?

Will you need glasses with a patch on one eye?

Will I love you whatever?

Will I be secretly disappointed?

Will you pretend you’re somebody else?

Will you understand me but talk back to me in your own language that isn’t mine?

How could I change that?

Should I change that?

Will you ask me to wait in the car outside the school gate?

Will you run away from home?

Will you come back?

Will the living be easy?

Will you chase me?

Will you chase rainbows?

Will you like Miffy?

And Buffy?

Will you be a magical child filled with fairy dust and dreams?

What if I get bored?

What if I need to pretend that I like you?

Will you play in the shed with the neighbours children?

Will you play doctors and nurses?

Should I worry about that?

What if one day you tell me you’d rather be a boy?

What if one day you tell me you’d rather be dead?

Will I save your life in the sea?

Will I catch you when you fall downstairs?

What if I worry you’re a fantasist?

What if I realise you’re a liar?

Will you take me into your confidence?

Will you kiss me goodnight?

Will you crave routine?

Or will you need change?

Will you tell me your secrets?

Will I read your diary?

Will I read your letters?

Will I look at your phone?

Will you even write letters?

Will you use a fountain pen?

Will you like the feel of blotting paper?

Will you forge my signature?

Will you talk in your sleep?

Will I ever stop worrying about you?

Will I ever stop worrying about what you think of me?

Will you introduce me to your imaginary friend?

Will reading in the car make you feel sick?

Will you be clumsy?

Geeky or gauche?

Will you get freckles in the sun like your dad?

Will you love one of us more than the other?

Will you tell me?

Will you be afraid of spiders?

Or dogs?

Will you be fearless?

Do you think I’m cut out for this?

Do you think I’ll do a good job?

What if you think I’m not a good mother?

Will I be a good example?

Will you turn out to be like me?

And will that be a good thing?

Will you realise I’ve mapped out your future?

How will I cope with puberty?

And periods and wet dreams?

How will I deal with your disobedience?

How will I deal with your loud awful music and dirty socks and underwear and sperm on the sheets and the stench of Lynx?

Or when you never brush your teeth?

Or always leave without a key?

And don’t pick up when I phone you?

Or keep your phone switched off?

Or every time I call you tell me that

now is not a good time?

How will I cope with all that?

How will I react?

How will I deal with the sleepless nights again?

Will we make each other laugh?

Will we dance a fandango?

Or a flamenco?

Will you have 2 left feet?

Will you ask me for money?

Will you ask me for more money?

Will I ask you for money?

Will you praise God?

Will you blaspheme?

Will you have nothing to believe in?

Will you call me mum, mam, mummy or mater?

Will you ask me to change your name?

Will you be known as Lionel for awhile? Or Liza?

 Will you be confused, full stop?

Will I take you seriously?

Will I help you to change?

Will I sometimes feel like hitting you?

What if I do?

Will you sleep with your eyes open?

Will you be allergic to cats?

Will you be allergic to carpets?

Will you be allergic to life?

Will you live your life in a bubble?

Will you be sociable?

Will you be a sociopath?

Will you follow a stranger?

Will you follow a raw food diet?

Will you get headaches?

Will you avoid going to the doctor

until it’s too late?

Will I sit anxiously in the waiting room?

Will you survive?

Will you thrive?

Will you hold me when you’re older?

Will you be taller than me?

Will you be obsessed about your weight?

And your slight overbite?          

Your receding hairline?

The colour of your eyes?

The size of your arse?

Will you work at a petrol station at night on your own?

Will you try to stop the men putting a man in the boot of a car?

Will you like Coldplay?

And will I try to change your mind?

Why am I so bothered about that?

Hey?

How can I teach you kindness?

How can I teach you forgiveness?

How can I teach you to stand up for yourself?

How do I make sure you’re assertive but not rude and arrogant?

How do I do that?

What will I say when you tell me you hate me?

How will I feel?

Will people say we look alike?

Will people say you’re just like your father?

Will that make me jealous?

Will we be the best of friends?

Or will I just imagine that?

How do I teach you about culture?

And geography?

And about how to get to places?

How to make your way from here to there?

How to take risks?

And pay attention?

And to relax, to not sweat the small stuff?

And not to want to be in control all of the time?

And to take responsibility?

And to take care?

Will you disappear?

Will you be held hostage?

Will you strike a deal?

What would I swap for you?

If you were in a crowd would I recognise the back of your head?

If your face had pixelated and an actor’s voice added, would I still know it was you?

Will the tinned lentils be any good?

Will you still like Disney films in your twenties?

Will that annoy the hell out of me?

What if you’re a really fucked up person, with a really fucked up brain and really fucked up ideas and opinions who does really fucked up things?

What if you’re obsessed with your looks?

What if you come on to me?

What if you don’t care about anything at all?

What if I just run out of ways to get through to you?

Will you say yes?

Will you think it’s pointless?

Will you have a lust for life?

Will you love Iggy or Beyoncé?

Jay-Z or Coldplay?

(See – them again…)

Fine wine or Tizer?

Will you cringe when I kiss your dad?

Will you notice when I no longer kiss him?

Will you fuck a sheep?

Or a donkey?

Or a child?

What will you care about?

Will you fight?

Will you stand on your own two feet?

What will you fight for?

What will be your thing?

What if you run with the wrong crowd?

Or will you be cock of the school?

Will you lead the team?

Or head up sales?

Will you join the rat race?

And eat all the other dogs?

Will you remain calm when all about you are losing their head?

Or will you run screaming with the rest of them?

Will you stand in the rain without an umbrella?

Will we jump in puddles together?

Will we sing songs from the shows?

Will you go on a submarine?

Or up up in the sky in a beautiful balloon?

Will you sky dive?

Will you go into space?

Will you see the earth from afar?

Will you play amongst the stars?

Will you learn the names of the constellations?

Will you understand that each star in Orion’s Belt is actually light years away from the next?

And that each star is a sun?

What will you make of that?

Will that make you feel very, very small?

Or utterly immense?

Will I catch you when you fall?

Will I catch your drift?

Will you buy Mayfair or the Old Kent Road?

Will you appear on The Apprentice?

Will you be fired?

Will the world stop turning while you’re alive?

Will the oceans freeze over?

Will you take photographs of the whales on the beach?

Will you live through a war?

Will it all end with a bang or a whimper?

Will you be alright?

Will we all be alright?

Will the times keep a changin’?

Will you hold up signs to tell me what you’re thinking?

Will you steal ideas from other people?

Will you be judge and jury?

Will you become a people trafficker?

Or join the traffic police?

Will you give me a ticket?

Will you give a toss?

Will you say scone or scone?

Will you look like Marilyn Monroe?

Will you die tragically?

Or glamorously?

Will you get cancer?

Will you be strangled by your scarf caught in the wheel of a car?

Will you embrace mankind?

Will you give a toss?

Will you watch a war on television and think “I wish I could do something”, then watch more television?

Will you donate 10% of your salary to charity?

Will you work with the poor?

Will you steal from the rich?

Will you have loads of money?

Will you expect me to pay your way once you’ve left home?

Will you never leave home?

Will the world be your oyster?

Is all the world a stage?

Will you be bamboozled?

Will you be easily entertained?

Or easily led?

Will you look me in the eye?

Will you pretend I’m not there?

Will you pretend you’re somebody else?

Will you admire me from afar?

Will you applaud my every move?

Will you demand an encore?

Or leave before the end?

Will we walk through the dunes?

Will we go to the top of the mountain?

Will we run through the jungle?

Will we sit in a cave?

Will we recognise the shadows?

Will you love awful puns?

Will you have your doubts about Cliff Richard?

Will you call him Sir Cliff?

Will you burgle a house?

Will you go to prison?

Will I visit you?

Will you visit me?

Will you pop round for a cup of tea?

Will you live too far away?

Will I never see you?

Will that be ok?

Will you change the world?

Will you work at a petrol station at night on your own?

Will you try to stop the men putting a man in the boot of a car?

Will you dive from the highest cliff?

Will you kiss me goodbye?

Will you stay on the other side where it’s a bit safer?

Will you bore me silly?

Will you use your judgement?

Will you stand alone?

Will you hate me for snoring?

Will you marry?

Will I love you forever?

Will you struggle?

Will you ask me for help?

Will you lend me the books you’ve read?

Will you take me to your favourite restaurant?

Will you kiss me goodnight?

Will you be a worrier?

Will you be a warrior?

Will you be a hero?

Will you be a superstar?

Will you be a loser?

Will you be a dick?

Will you be really dumb?

Will you be a nasty piece of work?

Will people call you a nasty piece of work?

Will I defend you to the last?

When will I stop opening my door to you?

Will all of this really happen?

Will you document the ends of things?

Will you find joy in places still?

Will you get headaches?

Will you say no?

Will you go to Thailand for it?

Will you be irritated by how I eat?

Will my breathing wind you up?

Will you feed me?

Who will look after you when I’m not around?

Who will look after you when I’m gone?

Will you help me in and out of the bath?

Will you wipe my backside?

Will you help me get my clothes on?

Will you check that I’m still breathing?

Will you puree my parsnips and my apples?

Will you feed me with a spoon?

Will I think you’re someone else?

Will you wet my lips with the flannel on my bedside table?

Will you resuscitate?

Will you know what my favourite flowers are?

And which version of “You are always on my mind” I like the most?

Will you face the final curtain?

Will you kiss me goodbye?

Will I have the last word?

Will you get short of breath?

Will your skin change colour?

Who will lift you?

How far will you crawl?

When will you let go?

How big are you now?

Are you a boy or a girl?

Do you have eyelashes yet?

How fast is your heart beating?

Do you have all your eggs yet?

Where is your head?

Where is your heart?

Can you hear me?

Are you scared?

What are you hoping for?

Are you capable of thought?

What will you make of it all?

Will you come with instructions?