Station 4

Instructions for candidate

You are interviewing Mr Jones, a 22-year-old man detained under Section 136 of the Mental Health Act 1983. He was detained after a member of the public reported him acting bizarrely and appearing extremely agitated and distressed. He is now calm, but still showing some bizarre behaviour and seems to be having hallucinatory experiences.

Instructions for actor

You are Mr Jones, a 22-year-old man. You were detained by the police earlier when a member of the public contacted them as they were worried about your behaviour. At the time this happened you were very distressed and hearing a single male voice telling you ‘The time has come’. You are not sure what this means, but have been hearing it frequently recently and recognise it as the same voice each time, although you are not sure whose voice it is. You first heard it 6 months ago and it is getting worse. The voice also tells you to ‘Make preparations for a journey. You will know what to do’ but is not overtly derogatory or threatening. You believe it but do not feel actively controlled. As a result of this you have packed a bag with belongings that you carry at all times. You are very scared that something bad will happen if you disobey the voice, but are not sure what this would be. You also sometimes feel that comments on the television or radio are signals from the voice, and have packed specific belongings you have seen in television shows as you think they will be necessary for the journey. You are not sure what the source of the voice is but believe it must be some form of higher power.

No one else around you appears to have similar experiences. Your family think you are acting oddly and tell you that you are mistaken or making it up. As a result you have stopped talking to them about your experiences as you feel that it must be a secret mission as they do not seem to understand.