''The Night Watch'' is a dark, 2006 historical fiction novel by

Sarah Waters Sarah Ann Waters (born 21 July 1966) is a Welsh novelist. She is best known for her novels set in Victorian society and featuring lesbian protagonists, such as '' Tipping the Velvet'' and '' Fingersmith''. Life and education Early life Sa ...

. It was shortlisted for both the 2006 Man Booker Prize and the 2006

Orange Prize The Women's Prize for Fiction (previously with sponsor names Orange Prize for Fiction (1996–2006 and 2009–12), Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction (2007–08) and Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction (2014–2017)) is one of the United Kingdom's m ...

. The novel, which is told backward through third-person narrative, takes place in 1940s London during and after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. The storyline follows the fragmented lives and the strange interconnections between Kay, Helen and Julia, three lesbians; Viv, a straight woman; and Duncan, her brother, whose sexuality is ambiguous. The war, with its never-ending night watches, serves as a horrifying backdrop and metaphor of the morbidity that surrounds life and love.

Plot summary

The novel begins in 1947 with Kay Langrish, a woman broken by the war. She spends her days locked in her room in London, her only human contact being with another lesbian, Mickey. One night, Viv appears and hands Kay a gold ring. Viv works as an assistant to Helen, who runs a match-making agency near Bond Street. When Helen's girlfriend Julia doesn't come home one night, Helen is overcome with worry and jealousy. After work, Viv has dinner with her brother Duncan and Duncan's roommate, an older gentleman named Mr Mundy. Helen and Viv receive an unexpected visit from Robert Fraser, Duncan’s old cellmate. Viv dismisses Fraser, feeling as though he thinks she and her father haven’t done enough to help Duncan’s situation and explains that he simply doesn’t know everything. Duncan accompanies Mr Mundy, or "Uncle Horace," as he refers to him in public, to his Christian Science doctor at Lavender Hill. After having dinner with his sister, Duncan works at the candle factory. When he leaves work, Duncan is surprised to see Fraser waiting for him at the gates. He invites Duncan to a pub by the water, and Duncan reluctantly agrees, mainly because he doesn't want Mr Mundy to worry. Fraser makes several calls at Duncan's for dinner. One night, however, he doesn't show up, and Duncan is quite upset, while Mr Mundy is relieved. Duncan decides to find Fraser, leaving Mr Mundy home alone. The novel moves back three years, to 1944. Duncan has been imprisoned in

Wormwood Scrubs Wormwood Scrubs, known locally as The Scrubs (or simply Scrubs), is an open space in Old Oak Common located in the north-eastern corner of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in west London. It is the largest open space in the borough, ...

for three years now, and Viv and her father visit him once a month. Viv is working as a typist and lodges at a boarding house with some of her co-workers. She meets Reggie, who is married, at anonymous hotels once every five weeks, whenever Reggie is permitted leave from Wales. When her "friend" is late, Viv realizes that she must be pregnant, and hesitates to tell Reggie. Kay works as an emergency response ambulance worker, cleaning up after air raids. One night, Kay and her coworker Mickey are sent out to take a woman to the hospital as she miscarries. On the same night, Kay learns of an air raid that occurred on her street. Kay panics and runs to the rubble to where her flat used to be, and cries thinking Helen is dead. Helen works for the government in a division that assists those who've lost their belongings in the war. By chance she runs into Julia, a woman who was once acquainted with Kay. On her birthday, Helen is restless and alone at home, and decides to leave for Julia's flat. They take a walk, and when another air raid alarm sounds, they run and hide from the chaos. Nights later, she realizes she's late to go home from Julia's, and they hurry back to Helen and Kay's flat. The action shifts back another three years, to 1941. On a crowded train, Viv meets a soldier named Reggie, who tells her he is stuck in an unhappy marriage. Duncan and his friend Alec are angry at their families and the government when Alec receives his service papers. They decide to make a statement with deadly consequences. Kay and Mickey respond to an emergency call.

Awards

* Man Booker Prize for Fiction (shortlist), 2006 * Orange Prize for Fiction (shortlist), 2006 * Lambda Literary Award for Lesbian Fiction, 2007

TV-movie adaptation

On 25 November 2010, BBC2 network announced the cast for the 90-minute television adaptation of ''The Night Watch.'' It was adapted by Paula Milne and directed by Richard Laxton and was broadcast on 12 July 2011 on BBC Two. Cast:Programme page on BBC Online
/ref> *

Anna Maxwell Martin Anna Maxwell Martin (born Anna Charlotte Martin; 27 May 1977),Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1984–2006 listed birth name as ''Anna Charlotte Martin''; Registration year 1977; Registration District Beverley, Yorkshire som ...

as Kay Langrish *

Claire Foy Claire Elizabeth Foy (born 16 April 1984) is a British actress. She is best known for her portrayal of the young Queen Elizabeth II in the first two seasons of the Netflix series ''The Crown'' (2016–2017) for which she won a Primetime Emmy Aw ...

as Helen Giniver *

Jodie Whittaker Jodie Whittaker (born 17 June 1982) is an English actress who is best known for portraying the thirteenth incarnation of the Doctor in ''Doctor Who'' (2017–2022) and as Beth Latimer in ''Broadchurch'' (2013–2017). She came to prominence ...

as Viv *

Harry Treadaway Harry John Newman Treadaway''Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1916-2005.''; at ancestry.com (born 10 September 1984) is an English actor known for his performances as Victor Frankenstein in the horror-drama series ''Penny Dr ...

as Duncan Pearce *

Anna Wilson-Jones Anna Wilson-Jones (born 8 October 1970) is an English actress. She is known for her roles as Juliet Miller in the television series '' Hotel Babylon'' and main character Tim Bisley's ex-girlfriend Sarah in the series ''Spaced''. Acting career ...

as Julia Standing * Tom Weston-Jones as Jack Brown *

JJ Feild John Joseph Feild (born 1978) is a British-American film, television and theatre actor. He started his television career in 1999. Feild played Fred Garland in Philip Pullman's ''The Ruby in the Smoke'' and ''The Shadow in the North'' television ...

as Robert Fraser *

Liam Garrigan Liam Thomas Garrigan (born 17 October 1981) is an English actor. As a youth, he attended classes at Kingston upon Hull's Northern Stage Company and was a student at Wyke College, Kingston upon Hull. His first television role was as Nic Yorke in ...

as Reggie *

Claudie Blakley Claudie Blakley (born 4 January 1974) is an English actress. She trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama. In 1998, she won the Ian Charleson Award for her performance in ''The Seagull'' at the West Yorkshire Playhouse in Leeds. She is ...

as Nancy *

Kenneth Cranham Kenneth Cranham (born 12 December 1944) is a Scottish film, television, radio and stage actor. Early life Cranham was born in Dunfermline, Fife, the son of Lochgelly-born Margaret McKay Cranham (née Ferguson) and Ronald Cranham, a London-bor ...

as Mr Mundy

References

External links

Book description at Sarah Waters' official webpageSmoother than velvet:
Book review at The Guardian

Book review at the New York Times
Great book on London during the Blitz
Book review at Nishita's Rants and Raves {{DEFAULTSORT:Night Watch, The Historical novels Novels set during World War II 2006 British novels English novels Novels by Sarah Waters Novels set in London Fiction set in 1941 Fiction set in 1944 Novels set in the 1940s British novels adapted into films 2000s LGBT novels Virago Press books 2006 LGBT-related literary works