part of Philip's machinations. Soon the day of the puppet show arrives. Melanie appears on stage in a white dress. Philip has arranged for Melanie to play Leda as she is raped by the god Jove in the guise of a monstrous swan. However, the play is not successful, as Melanie struggles to beat off the swan. As she scrambles to escape the swan puppet, Finn calls for the end of the show. In a rage, Philip slaps Melanie and accuses her of ruining his show. Shortly after the show, Uncle Philip goes on a business trip, taking Jonathon with him and leaving the rest of the family alone at the house. Finn decides to destroy Philip's puppet swan and buries it in the park next to the fallen Queen Victoria. He returns home and crawls into bed with Melanie. She comforts him and arrives at the realisation that they will someday marry and have children, leading a poor, constrained life together. Finn reaches a sort of epiphany about his life and decides to wash and not tolerate Uncle Philip's hegemony any more, something exemplified when Finn sits in Uncle Philip's seat at the dinner table. After a somewhat drunken evening, Melanie learns that Margaret and Francie have been having an incestuous relationship. Suddenly Uncle Philip returns, discovering the infidelity of his wife and the rebellion of his household. In a tremendous rage, he sets the house on fire. Margaret finally speaks as she urges Finn and Melanie to escape. They do so just in time, running outside the house and turning to watch the floors of the house collapse in fire. They realise now that their old world is destroyed and, for better or worse, all they have left is each other. Film adaptation The novel was filmed in 1987. It was produced by Steve Morrison and directed by David Wheatley. It was adapted for the screen by the author, Angela Carter, and starred Tom Bell, Caroline Milmoe, Killian McKenna, Patricia Kerrigan, and Lorcan Cranitch. Her collection, The Curious Room: Plays, Film Scripts and an Opera, contains Carter's script for the adaptation. The script and the film are discussed in Charlotte Crofts' book, Anagrams of Desire, drawing on an interview with director, David Wheatley. Theatre Alan Harris has adapted The Magic Toyshop into a stage play. It had its world premiere in Cardiff, directed by Sita Calvert-Ennals, in May