
The motto of England and the Sovereign is. “ Dieu et mon Droit “. (French for ‘God and my right’). The motto was first used by King Richard I in 1198 and adopted as the royal motto of England in the time of Henry VI.
Scene: The Vatican Embassy, Vancouver – a few months before the World Cup
The Young Pope, in his immaculate white cassock, sits by a window overlooking the rainy city skyline. The North Shore mountains are hidden behind mist. Across from him, Russell Brand — barefoot, robed like a modern monk, eyes aflame with mischief and compassion — sips herbal tea.
The Young Pope (Pius XIII):
Brother Russell… you speak to the lost boys of this world in a language I cannot. They listen to your chaos, your humor, your vulnerability. That’s why I summoned you.
Russell Brand:
Ah, Your Holiness — or should I call you “Your Hipness”? You’re saying Vancouver’s about to be the new Rome of redemption, are you?
The Young Pope:
When the World Cup begins, this city will be a gathering place of nations… but also of demons. Some of the young men here — angry, lonely, radicalized — they think whiteness is holiness. They think supremacy is strength. They are prisoners of an illusion.
Russell Brand (leaning forward):
And you want me to have a little chinwag with these lads before they start carving swastikas into their souls?
The Young Pope:
Exactly. You’ve been to the abyss, Russell. Addiction, fame, self-destruction. You escaped. Now you must teach them that the only real rebellion is love — not hate.
Russell Brand:
Love as revolution… not bad, Popey. Though you know they won’t listen to sermons. They’ll listen to jokes. To truth wrapped in laughter.
The Young Pope:
Then wrap it well. The devil is clever — but not funny.
Russell grins, looking out the window at the neon reflection of the city below.
Russell Brand:
You know, Vancouver’s a funny old place. Got yoga studios next to fentanyl tents. Tech bros and lost souls. If there’s anywhere the new gospel could be written, it’s here.
The Young Pope:
Only you can stop the balkanization of hearts, Mr. Brand. Not with politics — with empathy.
Russell Brand (quietly):
Then I’ll do it, mate. I’ll walk into those prisons, those halfway houses, those YouTube comment sections. I’ll tell ’em that the kingdom of heaven’s not a race, it’s a frequency.
The Young Pope (smiles faintly):
Amen. Then let the World Cup begin.
I endorse the chivalrous Prince Harry as Prime Minister. God can only give back what is rightfully yours.