“My dear young man… Please excuse the manner of this message, but I have a lot to say and my health puts me in a position where I feel that writing it all out might take too much of a toll on me. I have many people to reach. And I do have to admit that these cameras are rather fun.

In short, yes, please do indulge me while I attempt to lay out the situation in which I find myself. Necessity forces me to be brief, but there is only so much I can omit for the sake of haste. Nonetheless, I apologise if this account leaves you feeling somewhat overwhelmed.

I’m also sincerely sorry for the burden that I am about to lay at your feet.

This, dear Christian, is the tale of my life as a result of Dr Samuel Whittaker…”

Dr David Bradbury was a man running; from himself, his life choices, from the people he’d left behind, and from the dreadful encounter in West Africa in 1912 with his erstwhile mentor, Dr Samuel Whittaker which started everything.

Over the time that Whittaker and Bradbury worked together, it became ever more apparent that the highly-respected philanthropist and doctor of medicine, Whittaker, had gone quite, quite mad. In offense to everything that he outwardly embodied, he had fallen from a path of healing into despair, and from there into the service of Decay and Disease and worship of a god called Pestilence.

The two went their separate ways after a violent confrontation which left Bradbury forever tainted; Whittaker’s madness was hushed for fear of what it might do to their Alma Mater’s reputation. Bradbury fled and travelled the world, seeking to find evidence of hope and healing in science, faith and magic. Hope he found, but healing came too late until, finally succumbing to Whittaker’s curse, he died in February 1928.

After his quiet funeral shortly after, Bradbury’s worldly possessions – at least, those not bequeathed – fell to his solicitors to resolve. His attentive house-staff were dismissed and the house at Deeside which had been the Bradbury family seat for over a century fell quiet. So it was that a house clearance auction was organised through Layton and Shawe auctioneers of Kendal.

On the morning of the 12th of April 1928, Dr Samuel Whittaker and his cult of insane, lost cultists descended on the house, killing Mr Francis Shawe – the auctioneer – and the staff he had hired. As Whittaker and his cultists assumed the role of the auctioneer and the household servants, the unsuspecting arrivals congregated and shook the hand of the man who would looked to use them all as offerings.
It was through the exhumed body of David Bradbury that Whittaker sought to bring his Plague God to this world: the avatar of the Bloated Man. As for the auction goers? They would make truly excellent incubators and spreaders of Pestilence’s vile will.

Through writings, film reels and other more esoteric means, the assembled had to piece together a cure for their sickness and a way to stop the arrival of Pestilence or else they, and indeed this world, would be lost. By blending science, faith and magic they created a panacea to forever close and lock the door, and finally allow Dr Bradbury to rest… .

• Event Date: Friday 12th April until time-out Sunday 14th April
• Event Location: Deeside House, Dentdale
• Ref Team: Lucrecia, Jonno, Mew, Kari, Dany, Rich
• Number of Players: 17/18

Event Pitch

The date is Friday the 12th of April, 1928. Earlier this year on a cold February night, Dr.David Bradbury, a reclusive anthropologist and philanthropist, passed away in his home after battling chronic illness. He was not known to have any living relatives and was cared for throughout his remaining years by his attentive household staff and the local community. Dr. Bradbury saw to it that those closest to him were rewarded for their kindness and his ample fortune was separated out between them and the charities and organisations he had supported in life.

After a spot of legal housekeeping behind the scenes, what remained of his estate fell to the auctioneer company, Layton & Shawe of the Kendal Auction Rooms to square away.

Given the varied and somewhat unusual nature of some of the lots, Layton & Shawe have opted to run the auction as a house clearance from the late Dr. Bradbury’s home, Deeside House, before it is gifted to the National Trust in accordance to his wishes. As the firm are keen to see new relationships forged, no expense has been spared in ensuring that all those attending are suitably wined and dined ahead of the auction itself on Saturday.

Players will be taking the roles of auction attendees and security hired to keep watch on proceedings.

Expect plenty of schmoozing, politicking, opportunism, and unfair play. It’s up to individuals what they come to place value on, and everything must go…