Brandt East Berliner goes to the Stasi. 'My parrot's escaped.' Stasi: 'We don't do Lost and Found - we're the political police.' 'Exactly. I want it put on record that I don't share the parrot's political views.'

Guillaume — He loves jokes. Particularly East German ones. — Why do the Stasi go round in threes? One who can read, one who can write . . .

Brandt . . . And one to keep an eye on the two intellectuals.

Kretschmann - You'll need fresher ones than that.

Guillaume - I'm out of touch! Rush me the latest!

Brandt My speech. Has it been typed?

Wilke I'll send a messenger across.

Guillaume I'll go! - And here I am! Fetching Willy's speech for him!

Brandt Guillaume?

Ehmke Günter Guillaume.

Guillaume - I think I've caught his eye!

Brandt He looks like the manager of a pornographic bookshop.

Wilke He was in fact the manager of a photocopying shop.

Guillaume Herr Chancellor . . .

Brandt Thank you. Run off a few copies, will you, Reinhard?

Guillaume I'll do it, Herr Chancellor.

Brandt Oh yes. Your speciality.

Guillaume Virtuoso of the Xerox machine. Confidentiality assured.

Kretschmann - So we've got our foot in the door. Well done. Mischa's very pleased.

Brandt I don't think I shall be able to stand very much of Herr Guillaume's company.

Ehmke Willy, it's not good for you to be surrounded by professors and politicians. You need to keep some contact with the grass roots. You need some ordinary human being around who can tell you what people are thinking.

Brandt Herr Guillaume, however, carries ordinariness a little too far. Find me someone else, will you, Horst?

Kretschmann (with Guillaume) Now, here's how we're going to work. We're living in a goldfish bowl in Bonn - and if one of the goldfish keeps vanishing from sight people are going to notice. So we'll carry on meeting like this, quite openly, in the restaurants and bars where everyone goes. Two old friends having a drink together, where everyone can see us. Nothing passing between us. All photographs or photocopies of documents you'll hand over to your wife. She'll be your courier.

Guillaume Poor Christel. She was the star of the show, not me!

Kretschmann She did Very well.

Guillaume A job in the Hesse State Chancellery in Wiesbaden! What more could anyone hope for?

Kretschmann One in the Federal Chancellery in Bonn.

Guillaume Pure blind chance, Arno! A gift from the gods!

Kretschmann Even the gods are working for Mischa.

Guillaume It was her life, you know.

Kretschmann Nevertheless, all written material to Christel. What Mischa really wants from you, though, is all the things that politicians and civil servants don't write down. The gossip. The background. The smell of things. The way they think. Who's in, who's out. Who's got their knife into whom. Copier and camera, certainly. But, above all, eyes and ears.

Guillaume Willy keeps saying he wants to open their working procedures to public scrutiny.