This comprises two items: a 45 minute play and afterwards a discussion by experts on their stance.

Britain always has at least one nuclear armed submarine on patrol. In case of war, the British government would give its commander his orders whether to attack or not. But what if the UK had been laid waste and no government remained? In case of this eventuality the Letter of Last Resort system was devised in the early 1970s. This letter, written by the Prime Minister of the day, gives the captain his orders in these circumstances and is kept in a locked safe and is only to be opened in the event that the captain believes the UK government has been destroyed. Its contents are never revealed, and each new Prime Minister issues new orders.

In this play, it is after Midnight on a new Prime Minister's first day in office. What is she to write? If she orders attack, it becomes an act of revenge by a destroyed country and kills millions. If she orders no retaliation, what is the purpose of a deterrent which does not deter? She must tackle these moral dilemmas, guided only by a single civil servant. What will she instruct?