>>212838043 (OP)Something very Irish about this encounter. The absurdist nonchalance of it all. The outright malice masquerading as light-hearted humour. The absolute flat-out refusal by Harland to be in any way serious with Sam, the earnest Englishman. It's like a microcosm of Anglo-Irish relations over the past 8 centuries. The eyebrow raises, the sheepish twitching back and forth, deflecting Sam's attempts to pin him down. Nick, the Frenchman that he is, looked absolutely mortified by it all. The only one to ride the wave was Charls, a fellow Irishman, to be sure. Unbelievable stuff.