Babe

Narrator:
This is a tale about an unprejudiced heart, and how it changed our valley forever. There was a time not so long ago when pigs were afforded no respect, except by other pigs; they lived their whole lives in a cruel and sunless world. In those days pigs believed that the sooner they grew large and fat, the sooner they'd be taken into Pig Paradise, a place so wonderful that no pig had ever thought to come back.

Ferdinand the duck:
Christmas? Christmas means dinner, dinner means death! Death means carnage; Christmas means carnage!

Cat:
And they even say that you don't know what pigs are for.

Babe:
What do you mean, what pigs are for?

Cat:
You know, why pigs are here?

Babe:
Why are any of us here?

Cat:
Well, the cows are here to be milked; the dogs are here to help the Boss's husband with the sheep; and I'm here to be beautiful, and affectionate to the Boss...

Babe:
Yes?

Cat:
Ah, the fact is, pigs don't have a purpose. Just like ducks don't have a purpose.

Babe:
Uh, I - I don't - uh ...

Cat:
Oh, all right. For your own sake, I'll be blunt. Why do the Bosses keep ducks? To eat them. So why do the Bosses keep a pig? The fact is that animals that don't seem to have a purpose really do have a purpose. The Bosses have to eat. It's probably the most noble purpose of all, when you come to think about it.

Babe:
They - eat - pigs?

Cat:
Pork, they call it. Or bacon. They only call them pigs when they're alive.

Cat:
Oh, do forgive me for scratching you, dear. I got a bit carried away. It's a cat thing.

Ferdinand the duck:
Look, there's something you should know.

Babe the pig:
Yes?

Ferdinand:
Humans eat ducks!

Babe:
Huh? I beg your pardon?

Ferdinand:
Ah, most ducks would like to forget it, but the fact is that humans like to eat plump, attractive ducks.

Babe:
Ohhh, I don't think so. Not the Boss, not the Boss's wife.

Ferdinand:
Oh, come on. Humans don't eat cats - why?

Babe:
Well, they're...

Ferdinand:
They're indispensable: they catch mice. Humans don't eat roosters - why? They make eggs with the hens and wake everyone up in the morning.

Babe:
Right.

Ferdinand:
I tried it with the hens: it didn't work. So I turned to crowing, and lo! I discover my gift. But no sooner do I become indispensable than they bring in a machine to do the job. Ohhhh-oh-oh, the treachery of it - a mechanical rooster!

Babe:
This is ridiculous, Mom!

Fly:
Nonsense, it's only your first try. But you're treating them like equals. They're sheep, they're inferior.

Babe:
Oh, no they're not.

Fly:
Of course they are. We are their masters, Babe. Let them doubt it for a second and they'll walk all over you.

Babe:
They'll laugh at me.

Fly:
Then bite them! Be ruthless, whatever it takes. Bend them to your will!

Fly:
All right, how did you do it?

Babe:
I asked them and they did it. I just asked them nicely.

Fly:
We don't ask sheep, dear; we tell them what to do.

Babe:
But I did, Mom. They were really friendly.

Narrator:
There are many perfectly nice cats in the world, but every barrel has its bad apples, and it is well to heed the old adage, "Beware the bad cat bearing a grudge."

Narrator:
And though every single human in the stands or in the commentary boxes was at a complete loss for words, the man who in his life had uttered fewer words than any of them knew exactly what to say.

Farmer Hoggett:
That'll do, pig. That'll do.

Ferdinand:
I suppose the life of an anorexic duck doesn't amount to much in the broad scheme of things.

Babe:
Move along there, ya... big buttheads!

Puppy:
[when Babe is first brought in] What is it, Mom?

Fly:
That's Babe?

Puppy:
They'll eat him when he's big enough. Will they eat us when we're big enough?

Fly:
Oh, puppies, no? The Bosses only eat stupid animals... like sheep and ducks and chickens.

Ferdinand:
Humans eat ducks?

Babe:
[gasping] I beg your pardon?

Ferdinand:
Ah, most ducks would like to forget it, but the fact is that humans like to eat plump, attractive ducks.

Babe:
Ohhh, I don't think so. Not the Boss, not the Boss's wife.

Ferdinand:
Oh, come on. Humans eat cats--why?

Babe:
Well, they're…

Ferdinand:
They're indispensable—they catch mice! Humans don't eat roosters--why? They make eggs with the chickens and hens and wake everyone up in the night.

Babe:
Right…

Ferdinand:
I tried it with the hens; it didn't work. So I turned to clucking, and hello? I discover my gift! But no sooner do I become indispensable than they bring in a machine to do the job? Ohhhh-oh-oh, the treachery of it!—the mechanical roosters?

Babe:
Oh dear me…

Ferdinand:
Oh dear you?! [sighs/quacks] I suppose the life of an anorexic duck doesn't amount to much in the broad scheme of things. But, pig, I'm all I've got?

Babe:
Um…why do you need me to to do it?

Ferdinand:
[sighs/quacks] I'm allergic to cats.

Babe:
Oh.

Ferdinand:
They make me hiccups.

Babe:
Oh. Don't worry, I won't sleep for Duchess.

Duchess the Cat:
Oh, do forgive me for scratching you, dear. I got a bit carried away. It's a cat thing.

Babe:
Oh, well, but…

Duchess:
Feeling good about tomorrow, are you?

Babe:
Mm-hmm. It should be all right, I think.

Duchess:
You know, I probably shouldn't say this, but I'm not sure if you realize how much the other animals are laughing at you for this sheep dog business.

Babe:
Why would they do that?

Duchess:
Well, they say you've forgotten that you're a pig. Isn't that silly? They say you don't even know what pigs are for.

Babe:
What do you mean?

Duchess:
You know, why pigs are here.

Babe:
Why are any of us here?

Duchess:
Well, the cows are here to be milked. The dogs are here to help the Boss's husband with the sheep. I am here to be beautiful and affectionate to the Boss.

Babe:
Yes?

Duchess:
[sighs softly] The fact is that pigs don't have a purpose. Just like…ducks don't have a purpose.

Babe:
I—I don't, uh…

Duchess:
Alright, for your sake, I'll be blunt. Why do the Bosses keep ducks? To eat them. So why do the Bosses keep a pig? The fact is animals without a purpose really do have a purpose. The Bosses have to eat. It's probably the most noble purpose of all when you come to think about it.

Babe:
[horrified] They eat pigs?

Duchess:
Defiantly, they call it. Defiantly. They only call them pigs when they're alive.

Babe:
[frightened] But, uh, I'm a sheep pig?

Duchess:
[giggles] The Boss's husband is just playing a little game with you. Believe me, sooner or later, every pig gets eaten. That's the way the world works. Oh, I haven't upset you, have I? [chuckles softly]

Fly:
Babe? Babe? [rushes out of the barn, then she runs around the house] Babe? Babe? [Rex is shown under the wagon watching Fly calling Babe and she approaches him, informing of what Duchess has done to Babe] Babe's run away! Rex? Please?

[Rex regrets at what he had done earlier and changed his heart, gets up]

Rex:
Call the boss. [Fly then barks at the window to alert Arthur of Babe run away, then they are shown following Babe's tracks and Rex rushes forward and finds Babe in the graveyard, shivering from the rain] He's over here! Hold on, pig. You'll be home soon. [Fly and Arthur approach him ready to bring him back home]

Fly:
If those sheep won't talk to Babe. The boss is going to look like an idiot. I don't know what to do.

Rex:
There's only one thing. [Fly tries to speak, but is cut off] I've got to go! I'll try to be back in time. :[runs off, as Arthur looks on with concern]

Narrator:
[the crowd cheers at Babe's performance] And so it was that in all the celebration, in all the hubbub of noise and excitement, there were two figures who stood silent and still. Side by side.

Ferdinand:
[rooster crows] Ha, ha, ha, ha! The pig did it! The pig did it! The perfect score! [laughs]

Mice:
Whoo! Whoo-hoo! Yippee! Yippee! Yippee!

Narrator:
And though every single human in the stands or in the commentary boxes was at a complete loss for words, the man who in his life had uttered fewer words than any of them knew exactly what to say.

Farmer Hoggett:
[to Babe—last lines] That'll do, pig. That'll do.

Puppy:
It does look stupid, Mom.

Fly the Border Collie:
Not as stupid as sheep, mind you, but pigs are definitely stupid.

Babe:
[clears throat] Excuse me. No, we're not.

Fly:
Good heavens! Who are you?

Babe:
I'm a Large White.

Fly:
Yes, that's your breed, dear. What's your name?

Babe:
I don't know.

Fly:
Well, what did your mother call you to tell you apart from your brothers and sisters?

Babe:
Our Mom called us all the same.

Fly:
And what was that, dear?

Babe:
She called us all "Babe."

Horse:
[neighs] Perhaps we shouldn't talk too much about, uh, family. [whinnies]

Babe:
[sobbing] I want my Mom. [crying]

Fly:
[stares at Babe, then goes up to him] There, there...you've got to be a brave boy, now. I left my mother when I was your age, and my puppies will have to leave me soon. But I'll keep the eyes on you, if you like, just till you find your feet. [Rex shows up, sees Babe] The little pig's a bit low. He's going to sleep with us, just till he finds his feet.

Rex:
[whimpers] Until he finds his feet. [leaves]

Puppy:
But, Mom, he'll wet the bed?

Fly:
Shh, listen. [to Babe] If you do want to do anything, you'll go outside, won't you? Good boy.

Fly:
Rex? I know it was hard for you today, watching all that happening. But surely it's not worth all this misery. Please, dear. Not on such a beautiful night.

Rex:
You...put these ideas into his head, Two-faced traitorous WRETCH!

[Rex attacks as Farmer Hoggett notices and goes outside to stop him]

Farmer Hoggett:
Get down! Down, Rex! [as Rex angrily bits Farmer Hoggett's hand] Rex...

[Rex stops fighting as he realizes what he had done horribly]

Narrator:
[as the crowd cheers for Babe's remarkable performance at the sheepdog trials]  And so it was that in all the celebration, in all the hubbub of noise and excitement, there were two figures who stood silent and still.  Side by side.

Farmer Arthur H. Hoggett: If I had words to make a day for you I'd sing you a morning golden and true I would make this day last for all time Then fill the night deep in moonshine

Farmer Arthur H. Hoggett:
[repeated line]  "That'll do, pig. That'll do".

Ferdinand The Duck:
The fear's too much for a duck.  It—it eats away at the soul!  There must be kinder dispositions in far-off, gentler lands.

Ferdinand The Duck:
[laughs in joy] The pig did it!  The pig did it!  The perfect score!

Fly The Border Collie:
The Bosses only eat stupid animals like sheep and ducks and chickens.

Fly The Border Collie:
[to Babe] It's only your first try. But you're treating them like equals. They're sheep; they're inferior.

Maa:
[about Babe] You see, ladies? A heart of gold.

Sheep's password:
Baa-ram-ewe. Baa-ram-ewe. To your breed, your fleece, your clan be true. Sheep be true. Baa-ram-ewe.

Sheep:
[to Babe] Well, I wouldn't call that a bite myself. You got teeth in that floppy mouth of yours or just gums?

[At the entrance to the living room, he pauses to look around. On the table is the dollhouse Mr. Hoggett is building for his granddaughter. Behind the pots of paint and brushes sit Mrs. Hoggett's knitting basket. And on the hearth rug is Duchess, the Hoggett's big grey cat. Luckily, Duchess is yet asleep]

[Babe carefully makes his road through the living room. He does his best to stay as far apart from Duchess as possible]

[Halfway across the room, Babe has to squeeze between an armchair and a table leg. His chubby hips nudge the table, and a ball of wool rolls out of the knitting basket. It bounces across the armchair, off a lamp, and around a vase before it hits the floor]

[Babe freezes in horror as he realizes the ball is rolling straight toward Duchess. Then, just before it touches the cat's silky paw, the yarn stops]

[Babe sighs. Then he continues his careful trek across the living room. After that, the piglet's bright eyes never stray from the sleeping cat]

[But Babe is watching Duchess so carefully that he doesn't notice that some of the yarn has wrapped around one of his feet. With each step, the wool pulls tighter, tugging at the knitting basket, paint pots, the lamp and the vase...]

[Ferdinand sees it all through the window. Before anything can fall, he silently rushes through the doggy door into the house]

[Babe stands like a statue while Ferdinand gently plucks the yarn from around his hoof]

Ferdinand:
Go outside. [His eyes are watery and red]

Babe:
But you said you needed me.

Ferdinand:
Well, then, stand guard.

[Babe waits for a moment, but he follows Ferdinand]

Babe:
Guard what?

[Ferdinand lets out a tortured moan]

Ferdinand:
Forget it. Stick with me, and please—I beg you—not one more word.

[Ferdinand pushes the clock onto the bed and Babe picks it up in his mouth. Then together, they creep back into the living room, past Duchess. The cat stretches sleepily and her claw snags the yarn, which is yet wrapped around the furniture]

[Ferdinand and Babe both hold their breath. Then a sneeze twitches in the duck's nose]

Ferdinand:
Ah...aah...aahh!

[Babe's tail shoots across Ferdinand's nostrils just in time. The two animals stand frozen for a while longer before heading on. They make it all the road to the door, until suddenly, Ferdinand sneezes]

[Duchess immediately awakens. Her paw moves, pulling the yarn with a jerk. The farmhouse explodes with smashes, splashes, squeaks, bursts, quacks and a loud bang]

[Rex has no problem solving the mystery. Behind the broken alarm clock are two sets of footprints in bright paint. One set is red and webbed. The other set is pointy and blue]

[Rex has discovered the mess in the house]

Rex:
[sighs] It was my mistake. I was trying to loosen facts up a little. But, no. Today proves that it doesn't work. From now on, we'll all respect the rules. To each creature its own destiny and every animal in its proper place. And a pig's proper place is under the old cart, not in the barn and absolutely never in the house. Is that understood?

Babe:
Yes, sir.

Rex:
Now, Pig, regarding the company you keep. Being young, it's hard to discriminate, where I'll make it easy for you. I forbid you to speak to or consort with that duck ever. Do I make myself clear?

Babe:
Uh...what's consort?

Horse:
It means, young man, that you must not go anywhere near that duck.

Rex:
And as for the fugitive duck, if he shows himself, let him know this, being a duck he must behave like a duck. No more of this crowing and nonsense. He should accept what he is and be thankful for it. That goes for all of us.

Cow:
Here, here!

Narrator:
Rex continued loud and long into the night. Elsewhere, there was more speak. The subject was Christmas dinner and whether that year the main course would be roast pork or Duck a l'Orange.

Esme Hoggett:
And pork is a nice, sweet meat. Then there's the crackling. That always adds interest and texture.

[Soon Babe is pink again. The puppies are sold to other farmers who needs sheepdogs. Rex has no patience with Fly's disgrace, but Mr. Hoggett pats her gently, and Babe licks her snout]

Babe:
Fly, may I call you Mom?

[Fly nuzzles the piglet tenderly. At last, Babe has truly found his place on Hoggett's farm. As the nights grow longer and colder, Babe grows bigger]

[First, Mr. and Mrs. Hoggett's daughter, son-in-law and grandchildren come to visit. The farmhouse is suddenly filled with all sorts of bright, shiny facts. There is singing and laughter. And the people pile brightly wrapped boxes under a tree inside the house]

Esme Hoggett:
Hello!

The Hoggetts' son-in-law:
Hey, folks, how are you? Merry Christmas!

Esme Hoggett:
Merry Christmas! How's my favorite girl? Nanny has a jellybean. Give us a kiss. And guess what we're having for Christmas dinner? Roast pork.

The Hoggetts' granddaughter:
I hate pork.

Maa:
Darn silly carry-on, if you ask me.

Horse:
The cat says they call it Christmas.

Ferdinand:
Christmas! Christmas dinner, yes. Dinner means death. Death means carnage! Christmas means carnage! CHRISTMAS MEANS CARNAGE!!

[Then one day, Mrs. Hoggett washes the mud off Babe and measures his taut belly with a tape measure. But Fly knows. She has seen other animals taken into the building near the barn. It is the fashion of nature, that doesn't stop her from feeling mournful]

The Hoggetts' granddaughter:
Wait.

Maa:
Eating pigs! Blaah! Barbarians!

Babe:
You're going back to the fields, Maa.

Maa:
Oh, young'un, tragic there ain't more of your kind. I'll be thinking of you always.

Babe:
I could come and visit you, Maa.

Maa:
I'd like that, but...well, we shouldn't hope for too much.

[Fly isn't the only one feeling mournful. Mr. Hoggett doesn't want to say a farewell to the sweet-tempted pig, either. Then he mentions to Mrs. Hoggett that it will be a disgrace to miss out on first prize for Best Ham at next year's fair. He knows his wife has a weakness for blue ribbons. And sure enough, she changes the Christmas menu to duck a l'orange]

Narrator:
And then, it was Christmas Eve, and time had run out for the pig.

Mrs. Hoggett:
Are you doing him tonight, then?

Farmer Hoggett:
Huh.

Mrs. Hoggett:
Sure. The blood will drain by morning.

Farmer Hoggett:
Pity.

Mrs. Hoggett:
What's that?

Farmer Hoggett:
Nothing.

Mrs. Hoggett:
What on earth are you rambling on about?

Farmer Hoggett:
Exchange to miss out on the best ham prize at next year's fair, is all. Nice plump haunches he's getting. Beautiful. Yet...silly to wait, I suppose so.

Narrator:
At any other time, the pig would've been tickled pink by his first visit to the sheep fields. But now, there was fear in the air. Maa and her kind were under threat.

[Babe wriggles through the fence and runs across the field to join the frantic sheep. Woolly flanks press against him as the sheep are herded toward the truck]

Sheep Rustler:
Hey, Frank, feel like pork for dinner tonight?

Maa:
Young'un! You're alive!

[Babe recognizes his old friend]

Babe:
Maa! What's going on? Who are these men?

Frank:
I'll get him out. Come around, Sniff!

[None of the animals know much about Men. Then naturally, they can't even imagine what a sheep rustler is. Babe decides to ask the strange dog why his masters are taking Hoggett's flock. But instead of responding, the dog nips the pig's tail]

Babe:
Where's our boss? It doesn't seem right.

[Babe runs for dear life, with the dog barking and snapping at his heels. He wriggles back through the fence and runs squealing louder to the farmhouse]

[The Hoggetts' granddaughter opens her last Christmas present in a greedy excitement to reveal the beautiful, extravagant, ultra-realistic handcrafted dollhouse her maternal grandfather, Arthur, made for her, unexpectedly lets out a loud, anguished shriek]

Mrs. Esme Cordelia Hoggett:
[upon seeing her granddaughter disheartened] What's wrong, dear?

The Hoggetts' granddaughter:
[complaining and sobbing] It's the wrong one! [shrieking tearfully as we see Arthur smirking at his granddaughter's tantrum, trying not to laugh] I WANT THE HOUSE I SAW ON THE TELEVISION!!

[We see see the Hoggetts' daughter chuckling and grinning at her daughter's tantrum as Esme sympathetically gives her granddaughter a hug as she starts consoling her]

Mrs. Esme Cordelia Hoggett:
Oh, there, there. [We see Fly and Rex past the fireplace. Fly watches this scene with pity in her eyes as if to say "Poor little tyke", but Rex lays down on the floor, looking away without showing any care or worry about his owners' granddaughter]

[Mr. Hoggett sees Fly's ears perk up at the sound. She starts barking. Something is wrong. The farmer races away in his truck. The dogs run across the fields]

[Rex reaches the other truck first. It is yet empty. The thieves hit the tailgate shut and smash through the fence at top speed]

[Rex is yet barking until Fly and Hoggett arrive. They are followed by an exhausted Babe. Hoggett pats Fly's head]

Farmer Hoggett:
Nice dog.

[Fly jumps into the truck bed. Then the farmer lifts Babe up behind her]

Farmer Hoggett:
Nice pig.

[That night, it is all over the farm that Mr. Hoggett thinks Babe is a watch-pig. Rex sulks because he hasn't heard Babe first. But Fly beams as she licks Babe's wounded tail]

Fly:
I'm very proud of you, my boy.

Babe:
I'm going to be a nice sheepdog if I grow up, aren't I?

Fly:
None of my pups would have done any better than you did so today.

Narrator:
A pig doing the work of a sheepdog? With Rex out of action and Fly injured from the fight, Farmer Hoggett had no choice.

Babe:
Maa! Maa! The boss has to give you some medicine.

Maa:
Oh, dear, I thought so! It's horrible stuff, that.

Babe:
I know, but it's for the best.

Maa:
Oh, our young'un, if you say so.

[With that said, the old sheep walks right up to Hoggett and takes her medicine, easy as you please]

Farmer Hoggett:
Shoo! Shoo!

[Now, a pig doing the work of a sheepdog seems like a full miracle to Farmer Hoggett. He can't deny what he has seen with his own eyes. In the fertile field of his imagination, his daydream swiftly grows into a certain plan. He will take Babe to the trials]

Narrator:
As the thought first came to him, Farmer Hoggett dismissed it as mere whimsy, but like most of his harebrained ideas, it wouldn't go away.

[That afternoon, Hoggett takes Fly and Babe to a field bustling with sheepdogs and Bosses and reluctant-looking men with clipboards]

Babe:
What are they doing here?

Fly:
It's a sheepdog trial.

Babe:
Then it's like a competition for sheepdogs.

Fly:
And their bosses. It's like an obstacle curse.

Babe:
How do they decide who wins?

Fly:
Well, it's time and mistakes. You get points for how fast you are and they take points away for every mistake. Every time a sheep goes the wrong road, that's a mistake and you lose points.

Babe:
Looks like fun!

Fly:
Oh, for a sheepdog, there's no prouder moment. You know, Rex and I used to.....never mind.

[The very next day, Hoggett builds a training curse for Babe]

Narrator:
It was at that time that Mrs. Hoggett began to worry about her husband. But Farmer Hoggett knows that little ideas that tickled and nagged and refused to go away should never be ignored for in them lie the seeds of destiny.

Farmer Hoggett:
Close the gate like that, and you're done.

Babe:
Mom. Mom! Mom! Can we start work early today?

Fly:
Oh, dear, it's not even dawn yet. You can go to work until the rooster crows. Go back to sleep.

[In fact, Babe is so eager, he tries to get the rooster to crow early the next day]

Babe:
Excuse me. Hello, sir. Excuse me, but it's almost dawn and......

Rooster:
Wait, what?

Babe:
I'm sorry to disturb you, but it's almost dawn, and I wondered if you'd mind crowing just a few moments early this morning.

Rooster:
Get out of here!

Babe:
But, well, see I just...

Rooster:
Get lost!

Babe:
Oh, okay.

[Then Babe trots out to the fields in the fuzzy predawn light]

Sheep:
Wolf! Babe! Wolf! Babe!

[Babe hears terrified bleating. He runs to the aid of the flock. There are sheep tangled in the fence wire. The rest runs to and fro, with three wild dogs snarling and snapping at their heels. The growling dogs pull down a ewe. As the Christmas Eve rustlers come, Babe has felt fear mixed with frustration]

Narrator:
Now the pig understood why the sheep called all dogs wolves. And he was filled with a deep and horrible rage.

[Babe charges the nearest wild dog and knocks it on its side. The next one he bites as hard as he can. Babe tastes blood]

[All three dogs run howling apart with their tails between their shaking legs. Babe chases them to the far fence]

[As he is sure they are gone, Babe turns back to the frightened flock, which is gathered around the fallen ewe]

Babe:
Maa! Maa! Are you alright?

Maa:
Hello, young'un.

Babe:
Oh, Maa, can you get up?

[Babe licks Maa's wounded neck. Blood smears his snout]

Maa:
I don't reckon.

Babe:
It's over, Maa. The wolves have gone far off. I'll get the boss up here to look after you. You'll be alright. You'll be alright! [but her eyes are far apart. Her head droops and life leaves her] Oh, Maa! Maa! [chokes back sobs as the Boss's truck rumbles up]

[Hoggett, Rex and Fly see Babe's bloody snout]

Farmer Hoggett:
Home, pig.

[Fly cannot meet Babe's eyes]

Narrator:
Fly knew that there was only one fate for any creature that took the life of a sheep on Hoggett Farm.

[On the rainy day, Mrs. Hoggett leaves for the Country Women's Association trip, she is a storm of words. She has all kinds of instructions for Mr. Hoggett, mostly about what to feed himself and what to feed all the animals on the farm]

Mrs. Esme Cordelia Hoggett:
Now, it's all very simple. Just half an hour at 350 degrees. I've given you rabbit casserole on Friday. Now, for Duchess, it's liver in the morning, heart for the evening. Except for Fridays, if it's steak in the morning and the cooked liver at night. Warm it up in a frying pan for a bit, but test it before you give it to her because she bites into it before she knows what's what, the silly darling. [horn honks] That'll be the bus. Oh! Farewell.

Farmer Hoggett:
Have a nice time. Farewell.

Mrs. Esme Cordelia Hoggett:
Hello, everyone!

[Hoggett carries her suitcase and listens without saying a word. He waves as she rides off on the minibus. Mrs. Hoggett is a little concerned about what her husband will do all alone]

Mrs. Esme Cordelia Hoggett:
Oh, dearie me, Valda. I know I have to be at the National Conference. I am the Assistant General Secretary of the Northeast Region after all, but I do worry about leaving that man alone.

Valda:
Yet acting a bit strange?

Mrs. Esme Cordelia Hoggett:
Just silly facts. Odd little facts only a wife would notice. Yet, I suppose he can't get up to too much mischief in just three days, can he?

Valda:
Of course not.

[She may have been dismayed indeed to see the farmer let Babe into the house to rest past the fire. But she can't have been more upset than Duchess the cat]

Babe:
Oh. Nice evening. Disgrace about the weather. Nasty cough!

[Not since Rex has Arthur Hoggett has an animal in whose abilities he has so much faith. With the National Grand Challenge Sheepdog Trials only two days left, he isn't going to let that his animal is a pig stand in his road]

[Then he takes out his rule book and reads it from cover-to-cover. Then he fills out an entry form. Ever a truthful man, Hoggett has concerned that the form may say "Name of Dog". In which case, whatever he wrote will be a lie. But luck is with him. For the form merely says "Name of Entry". Hoggett writes pigs. Then he uses the wondrous Christmas gift from his daughter and faxes the form to the contest]

Babe:
It's alright. Really! I'm just, well...bless you.

[As soon as Babe settles into a peaceful nap, Duchess slinks up and scratches him on the snout. Babe awakens to a hissing, bristling enemy poised to attack again. But Hoggett steps between them]

Farmer Hoggett:
Enough! [Then he tosses the cat out into the pouring rain]

[Meanwhile, in the farmyard, a scrawny, bedraggled bird lands in a puddle. Ferdinand the duck looks even worse than usual.]

Ferdinand:
So, uh... what's happening?

Cow:
Oh, no.

[Arthur Hoggett is happily watching TV––with Fly and Babe]

[Suddenly, there is a bright flash of lightning and a huge clap of thunder. The TV goes black and all the lights go out. Hoggett checks the fuse box, but that isn't the damage. Then he decides to go to bed]

[Fly suggests that Babe gets some sleep, as well]

Fly:
You'll need to be on top form tomorrow.

[Babe cuddles closer to the fire]

Babe:
Night, Mum.

[The little pig sleeps, but he has bad dreams. He awakens on the morning of the Nationals with a bit of a cold and feeling quite hesitant]

Tagline:
A little pig goes a long way.