This was quite a good episode, because there was a feeling that something was actually moving forward. The ground is being prepared now, and we can see progress being made. In a show rife with Daddy Issues and Mummy Men, the Father's Day episode came together pretty well, especially linking together the fathers who are and the fathers who aren't.
By the Pricking of My Thumbs, Something Wicked This Way Comes. Stacey and Martin are the heart of EastEnders. They're the ubiquitous couple for whom everyone roots. We've seen such pairings before - Sharon and Grant (and I was never as big a fan of Sharon and Dennis or, indeed, Grant and Tiffany); Ricky and Bianca; Stacey and Bradley; Alfie and Kat.
The show has cried out for such a pairing for a long time. Had the actors not taken lengthy breaks and/or decided to leave, Michael Moon and Janine would have been a formidable couple, and Tamwar and Nancy also had that vibe.
But everyone loves Martin and Stacey and their blended family, even if Martin is treated like a bit of a dolt this time around. I especially like the way they've incorporated Kush, as Arthur's natural father, into their extended family - allowing him to bond and spend time with the child and allowing him access on Father's Day. Martin seems totally accepting now, and even bought a Father's Day card on Arthur's behalf. That was wonderfully generous of Martin, but I do wonder if he would have been so accepting and open were Stacey not pregnant with their own baby.
However, the episode, with its Father's Day scheme as a backdrop, served as the means by which Lily was told about the pregnancy and also how the rest of the Square came to know about it as well. Martin and Stacey thought Lily had overheard them talking about the new baby and may have felt, in a childish way, as if they wouldn't care about her anymore. The resulting misunderstanding meant that Stacey told her about the coming baby, when what Lily was worried about was not having sent a Father's Day card to her father, Ryan King Drip.
Ryan is the perfect example of the father who isn't. Although he vowed that he would support her financially, it's debatable that he does. When he was last in Walford, last November for Whitney's wedding,he didn't even take the time to see her. And Whitney never made a place in her wedding party, not even for her niece. Whitney rarely sees the child, and she lives on the Square. Ryan never sees her. The pièce de résistance is the fact that Lily uses Martin's surname. What would have been a nice gesture would have been Stacey reminding Lily that Martin was there for her, instead of leaving her with a vague picture of some spoiled brat criminal living at the other end of the country, most probably on the proceeds of his wife's living, instead of making arrangements to visit his daughter regularly. There's no chance of Martin adopting Lily either, because King Drip would throw a massive hissy fit, and Whitney would cry; but at least Lily's attention was deflected by news of the new baby, which she promptly blurted out to the odious Carmel, when Carmel made a saccharin thank-you to Lily for "allowing" Carmel to spend the day with Lily's baby brother.
And here's where the rubber meets the road: We've known for a long time what Carmel's ulterior motive was - ultimately, to regain "for Kush" full custody of Arthur. She made that quite apparent in that monumental row over Rebecca and Shakil. Carmel even used Stacey's bi-polar issues against her parental abilities. The Fowlers were, rightfully, angry about this, and Kush was embarrassed; and I also think that it's been through Kush's efforts that he's managed to get Carmel to keep a lid on this issue until now, even after Stacey was persuaded by Max to allow Carmel access to Arthur once again.
Now we see her true motives emerge again. Of all the people reacting to Stacey's and Martin's news in the pub, Carmel's was the only face like sour milk. She readily voiced her opinion to Kush that it was too soon for Stacey to be pregnant again, that in the hubbub of a new baby, Arthur would likely lose the maternal attention he would need so much and be literally pushed aside, and she even alluded to what had happened to Stacey previously after Arthur's birth. Kush was, rightfully, appalled; because he knows the extent of his mother's grasping behaviour; and Carmel wants nothing more than custody of Arthur, not so much for Kush as for herself. This needy, passive-aggressive childwoman has to be the centre and focus of attention, the guiding light in someone's world. Her sons are growing and grown. Shakil is indifferent to her, Darius got as far away from her as he could, and now Kush risks growing in a different direction again.
Watch this space. This woman will begin to cause problems for Martin and Stacey as sure as eggs are eggs. She's in with the Council now and probably knows the right buttons to push for Social Services to be all over the Fowlers at the least little provocation. She won't rest until she has Arthur.
I Want My Maypo. The crisis with Louise is the herald call for Phil to return, in raging bull mode, to Walford, but I feel that this storyline, rife with the never-ending bullying tales and chock full of totally unlikable characters, with the rape allegation, was another one of Sean O'Connor's "replacements" - replace Pam and Les with Ted and Joyce Murray, replace Lee Carter with Keanu Taylor and replace Linda's rape with Louise's faux rape.
The latter story has almost all the same ingredients that Linda's rape had, except the inevitable conclusion has been reached off-screen and sooner. In today's episode, Louise was informed by the police that, after her statement and her physical examination, as well as Keegan's statement, there was simply not enough evidence to pursue a rape investigation. It's basically the same conclusion that was reached with Linda. One month after the alleged incident, a victim claiming that she was raped whiilst wasted on booze to the point that she never remembered the assault, but only once she was gloatingly told the fact by the perp and the accused strenuously denying the accusation, but saying that his propagating the lie was a massive joke intended to intimidate, frighten and humiliate the girl in question. As far as the police are concerned, it's yet another case of he-said-she-said - which is actually what Linda's case eventually became, and that showed how a large percentage of rape cases end in an acquittal for the rapist.
The only thing this storyline proved was how inconsequential this police force seems to consider this allegation, and that looked totally bad - not just for the way the police were portrayed,but in the manner that the story was written. Linda's investigation took months, and there were no witnesses to the fact, except herself and her rapist,Dean. There were actual witnesses to this accusation.
Consider the facts about this allegation - a young girl was present at an impromptu party which occurred at her house, not at her bidding but by two of her so-called friends advertising the "event" on social media. She was a non-drinker, the child of a recovering alcoholic, and someone spiked her drink. A month after the event, a boy present at the party tells her they slept together, upstairs in her house, during the party, and that she was inebriated to the point that she was totally out for the count when this happened. She can't remember anything that happened at the party because of her drinks being spiked, but two of the people who were there - Sniggle and Snaggle - verified Keegan's account of her "being all over him" and that when she returned from being upstairs alone with him, according to them, she was "in a right state."
Those are two people, who should have been mentioned as being at the party, if not by Keegan, then certainly by Louise.They would have been hauled into the police station and made to give statements. They would then have been faced with a real dilemma to tax their integrity - to tell the truth about what really happened or to lie. One way, they incriminate themselves; after all, they were the ones who spiked Louise's drink, and their behaviour consisted of them plying her with drink until she could no longer stand and egging Keegan on to film what occurred. Revealing that would have meant Keegan's phone would have been confiscated as evidence. The truth would also probably have landed their arses in trouble, but it would have exonerated Keegan. On the other hand, they could have lied, and that would have resulted in him actually being charged with and tried for rape.
The storyline is as much about announcing Phil's return - as evidenced by Sharon admitting to Michelle that she was tempted to tell Phil everything and let him return in order to administer a little rough justice (only to be dissuaded from that by MiddleClass Michelle) and Louise's plaintive whine about wanting her dad - as it is about Keegan's eventual redemption, giving us a picture of his background life as a clue as to why the character is what he is.
There was one significant piece of cognitive dissonance when Keegan emerged from the police station, cocky and self-assured when his silly, insipid sister (the weak link about the Taylors and the only one whom I find offensive) sneeringly smirked and asked if he'd got off scot free, only to be confronted aggressively by his mother to remind him that he had received a juvenile warning, meaning that he's in the radar of the police, and pointing out her shame she felt that he would lie about sleeping with a girl, fabricating a situation that was actually a rape scenario. Ironically, when he reminded her of her assault charge,her response was to wallop him and say her assault had been in his defence. Actual physical abuse is so much a part of her dynamic with this child, she isn't aware of what she's doing. That was made apparent from her subsequent voice mail message, expressing concern about his whereabouts and the fact that she hadn't heard from him.
Of course, there's the confrontation between her and Sharon - and perhaps between Sharon and Keegan - left to see, which will probably result in Sharon, ultimately, making contact with Phil. But there's a curious hole that's gaping in this story.
Where is Ben in all of this? Indeed, where is Lisa? Ben is Louise's brother; in the days that have passed, he'd surely have been told about what happened, about the on-coming investigation, and he'd have been concerned about Louise in particular; and Lisa is Louise's mother. She most certainly would have been and should have been apprised of the situation.
And whilst Louise is most certainly the victim in all of this, her naivete is incredible. Of course, she's angry, she's traumatised and frightened and she truly doesn't know what to do or think. She's been believably told by not one, but three people, one of them the perpetrator, that when whilst she was totally inebriated beyond functionality, she slept with this boy; she's been told that she was all over him, and this has been passed frivolously around the school.She feels humiliated and betrayed,and she cannot understand the result of the brief police investigation.
Sharon is right. Something as traumatic as this, even if it turns out to be true, could psychologically and emotionally damage this girl for life. Louise feels that Keegan must have raped her, because she cannot figure out how he knew about her birthmark, but she isn't thinking straight, or she would remember that it was Sniggle and Snaggle who told her that Keegan had been telling everyone about this curious birthmark.
That's it: the two girl bullies told her this. They told her Keegan was putting it about re the birthmark, she didn't hear that from Keegan, himself. If she bothered to begin to think calculatingly, then she just might put two and two together and realise that a lot of rumour and innuendo have been aiding and abetting Keegan's boasts by her so-called best mates.
At the end of the day, it's Sharon who steps up to bat in Phil's place. Now the next step will be Phil returning to save the day.
The Misfits. How much more obvious could it have been made to Steven that he's totally second-best?
First Lauren gives him a hand-made Father's Day card addressed "To the Best StepFatherin the World" - even though Steven's been more of a dad to Louis than Peter has been, even though Louis, in his toddler mind, considers Steven his father and has bonded with him. Lauren, by this single tactless action, has clearly defined Steven's role in Louis's life.
Meanwhile, Ian lies sulking in his bed because none of his "real" children are there to celebrate Father's Day with him. He's like a big, petty baby, and his treatment of Steven is callous and disgusting. I totally get it about what happened between Steven and Ian a decade ago, and he certainly didn't have to allow Steven back into his life again, but Steven has striven to earn his trust, making himself indispensable at the restaurant and to Ian.
Time was, as well, Ian totally considered Steven as one of his own, but his behaviour today was totally callow - refusing to allow Steven to make him a special breakfast and literally refusing to accept Steven's present of a framed photo of himself and Ian in front of the Beales' sign. Ian's poor excuse about the picture making him look fat wasn't lost on Steven. In fact, it was tantamount to a repudiation of Steven's part and role in Ian's family dynamic.
It was rejection. Even the insidiously stupid way Ian went about correcting Ted Murray's assumption that not only was Steven not Louis's father, he wasn't even Ian's son, that rather, he felt a duty toward Steven via his dead first wife, further drove home the awful truth to Steven.
Meanwhile, Abi is also made to feel the odd person out. She's invited Max for a special breakfast for Father's Day at the café, only to be confronted with the fact that Max had invited Lauren. They were planning on meeting at the pub, but Max included her in Abi's invitation, much to Abi's annoyance.Then he proceeded to compare her unfavourably as a baby to Lauren's infancy, deeming her a drama queen from birth and sharing Lauren's joke about nothing ever changing.
It was bad enough that Max reacted more favourably to Lauren bringing another hand-made Father's Day card for Max from Louis - when the purpose of Abi's breakfast with Daddy was to plan her 21st party - Lauren had already arranged for Jack to collect Oscar that morning to spend Father's Day with Max. Jack must drive a Formula 1 racecar, to be able to get down to Devon and back within a morning.
Abi resented all of this being kept a secret and storms out of the Vic just at the moment Steven has stormed off in a huff. Not only had Ian insulted him, but Lauren was so engrossed in the messages Josh kept sending her on her phone that she had no interest in anything.
Briefly, back at the empty restaurant, Abi and Steven bond over their poor self-esteem- Steven living in Peter's shadow and Abi surmising that she's always lived in Lauren's-which isn't entirely true, as Abi was once not only the much coddled youngest child, but a particular favourite of Max's. When Steven refuses to hear any criticism of Lauren and deems her the one good thing in his life, Abi can't resist the coy riposte that Steven has no idea what Lauren is really like ... and shortly after, she drops the clanger about Lauren aborting Steven's baby.
Watch psycho Steven emerge. Abi's birthday party is at the end of the week. What could possibly go wrong?
The Rest. The Murrays are emerging bit by bit, and I was perplexed about the unseen daughter who never seems to arrive - Judith, is it? I wasn't sure, but the dialogue seemed to suggest that Judith was Joyce's daughter. Although Christopher Timothy tries to convey that Ted is somewhat of a curmudgeon, I can't imagine someone of his ilk not enjoying grandchildren, however wimpish and particular they might be, but Joyce made the pointed remark about her daughter feeling more welcome if Ted showed nice to the grandchildren.
It was all a bit weird - the visit called off at the last moment, the daughter sounding more than a bit pretentious in her tastes. This is a couple whose children might be near, but who never visit for one reason or another, and you begin to wonder what secret they are inevitably hiding.
Also, inevitable Denise appearance klaxon ... the producer has to have her figured into a scene in almost every show. Overkill is not the word.
By the Pricking of My Thumbs, Something Wicked This Way Comes. Stacey and Martin are the heart of EastEnders. They're the ubiquitous couple for whom everyone roots. We've seen such pairings before - Sharon and Grant (and I was never as big a fan of Sharon and Dennis or, indeed, Grant and Tiffany); Ricky and Bianca; Stacey and Bradley; Alfie and Kat.
The show has cried out for such a pairing for a long time. Had the actors not taken lengthy breaks and/or decided to leave, Michael Moon and Janine would have been a formidable couple, and Tamwar and Nancy also had that vibe.
But everyone loves Martin and Stacey and their blended family, even if Martin is treated like a bit of a dolt this time around. I especially like the way they've incorporated Kush, as Arthur's natural father, into their extended family - allowing him to bond and spend time with the child and allowing him access on Father's Day. Martin seems totally accepting now, and even bought a Father's Day card on Arthur's behalf. That was wonderfully generous of Martin, but I do wonder if he would have been so accepting and open were Stacey not pregnant with their own baby.
However, the episode, with its Father's Day scheme as a backdrop, served as the means by which Lily was told about the pregnancy and also how the rest of the Square came to know about it as well. Martin and Stacey thought Lily had overheard them talking about the new baby and may have felt, in a childish way, as if they wouldn't care about her anymore. The resulting misunderstanding meant that Stacey told her about the coming baby, when what Lily was worried about was not having sent a Father's Day card to her father, Ryan King Drip.
Ryan is the perfect example of the father who isn't. Although he vowed that he would support her financially, it's debatable that he does. When he was last in Walford, last November for Whitney's wedding,he didn't even take the time to see her. And Whitney never made a place in her wedding party, not even for her niece. Whitney rarely sees the child, and she lives on the Square. Ryan never sees her. The pièce de résistance is the fact that Lily uses Martin's surname. What would have been a nice gesture would have been Stacey reminding Lily that Martin was there for her, instead of leaving her with a vague picture of some spoiled brat criminal living at the other end of the country, most probably on the proceeds of his wife's living, instead of making arrangements to visit his daughter regularly. There's no chance of Martin adopting Lily either, because King Drip would throw a massive hissy fit, and Whitney would cry; but at least Lily's attention was deflected by news of the new baby, which she promptly blurted out to the odious Carmel, when Carmel made a saccharin thank-you to Lily for "allowing" Carmel to spend the day with Lily's baby brother.
And here's where the rubber meets the road: We've known for a long time what Carmel's ulterior motive was - ultimately, to regain "for Kush" full custody of Arthur. She made that quite apparent in that monumental row over Rebecca and Shakil. Carmel even used Stacey's bi-polar issues against her parental abilities. The Fowlers were, rightfully, angry about this, and Kush was embarrassed; and I also think that it's been through Kush's efforts that he's managed to get Carmel to keep a lid on this issue until now, even after Stacey was persuaded by Max to allow Carmel access to Arthur once again.
Now we see her true motives emerge again. Of all the people reacting to Stacey's and Martin's news in the pub, Carmel's was the only face like sour milk. She readily voiced her opinion to Kush that it was too soon for Stacey to be pregnant again, that in the hubbub of a new baby, Arthur would likely lose the maternal attention he would need so much and be literally pushed aside, and she even alluded to what had happened to Stacey previously after Arthur's birth. Kush was, rightfully, appalled; because he knows the extent of his mother's grasping behaviour; and Carmel wants nothing more than custody of Arthur, not so much for Kush as for herself. This needy, passive-aggressive childwoman has to be the centre and focus of attention, the guiding light in someone's world. Her sons are growing and grown. Shakil is indifferent to her, Darius got as far away from her as he could, and now Kush risks growing in a different direction again.
Watch this space. This woman will begin to cause problems for Martin and Stacey as sure as eggs are eggs. She's in with the Council now and probably knows the right buttons to push for Social Services to be all over the Fowlers at the least little provocation. She won't rest until she has Arthur.
I Want My Maypo. The crisis with Louise is the herald call for Phil to return, in raging bull mode, to Walford, but I feel that this storyline, rife with the never-ending bullying tales and chock full of totally unlikable characters, with the rape allegation, was another one of Sean O'Connor's "replacements" - replace Pam and Les with Ted and Joyce Murray, replace Lee Carter with Keanu Taylor and replace Linda's rape with Louise's faux rape.
The latter story has almost all the same ingredients that Linda's rape had, except the inevitable conclusion has been reached off-screen and sooner. In today's episode, Louise was informed by the police that, after her statement and her physical examination, as well as Keegan's statement, there was simply not enough evidence to pursue a rape investigation. It's basically the same conclusion that was reached with Linda. One month after the alleged incident, a victim claiming that she was raped whiilst wasted on booze to the point that she never remembered the assault, but only once she was gloatingly told the fact by the perp and the accused strenuously denying the accusation, but saying that his propagating the lie was a massive joke intended to intimidate, frighten and humiliate the girl in question. As far as the police are concerned, it's yet another case of he-said-she-said - which is actually what Linda's case eventually became, and that showed how a large percentage of rape cases end in an acquittal for the rapist.
The only thing this storyline proved was how inconsequential this police force seems to consider this allegation, and that looked totally bad - not just for the way the police were portrayed,but in the manner that the story was written. Linda's investigation took months, and there were no witnesses to the fact, except herself and her rapist,Dean. There were actual witnesses to this accusation.
Consider the facts about this allegation - a young girl was present at an impromptu party which occurred at her house, not at her bidding but by two of her so-called friends advertising the "event" on social media. She was a non-drinker, the child of a recovering alcoholic, and someone spiked her drink. A month after the event, a boy present at the party tells her they slept together, upstairs in her house, during the party, and that she was inebriated to the point that she was totally out for the count when this happened. She can't remember anything that happened at the party because of her drinks being spiked, but two of the people who were there - Sniggle and Snaggle - verified Keegan's account of her "being all over him" and that when she returned from being upstairs alone with him, according to them, she was "in a right state."
Those are two people, who should have been mentioned as being at the party, if not by Keegan, then certainly by Louise.They would have been hauled into the police station and made to give statements. They would then have been faced with a real dilemma to tax their integrity - to tell the truth about what really happened or to lie. One way, they incriminate themselves; after all, they were the ones who spiked Louise's drink, and their behaviour consisted of them plying her with drink until she could no longer stand and egging Keegan on to film what occurred. Revealing that would have meant Keegan's phone would have been confiscated as evidence. The truth would also probably have landed their arses in trouble, but it would have exonerated Keegan. On the other hand, they could have lied, and that would have resulted in him actually being charged with and tried for rape.
The storyline is as much about announcing Phil's return - as evidenced by Sharon admitting to Michelle that she was tempted to tell Phil everything and let him return in order to administer a little rough justice (only to be dissuaded from that by MiddleClass Michelle) and Louise's plaintive whine about wanting her dad - as it is about Keegan's eventual redemption, giving us a picture of his background life as a clue as to why the character is what he is.
There was one significant piece of cognitive dissonance when Keegan emerged from the police station, cocky and self-assured when his silly, insipid sister (the weak link about the Taylors and the only one whom I find offensive) sneeringly smirked and asked if he'd got off scot free, only to be confronted aggressively by his mother to remind him that he had received a juvenile warning, meaning that he's in the radar of the police, and pointing out her shame she felt that he would lie about sleeping with a girl, fabricating a situation that was actually a rape scenario. Ironically, when he reminded her of her assault charge,her response was to wallop him and say her assault had been in his defence. Actual physical abuse is so much a part of her dynamic with this child, she isn't aware of what she's doing. That was made apparent from her subsequent voice mail message, expressing concern about his whereabouts and the fact that she hadn't heard from him.
Of course, there's the confrontation between her and Sharon - and perhaps between Sharon and Keegan - left to see, which will probably result in Sharon, ultimately, making contact with Phil. But there's a curious hole that's gaping in this story.
Where is Ben in all of this? Indeed, where is Lisa? Ben is Louise's brother; in the days that have passed, he'd surely have been told about what happened, about the on-coming investigation, and he'd have been concerned about Louise in particular; and Lisa is Louise's mother. She most certainly would have been and should have been apprised of the situation.
And whilst Louise is most certainly the victim in all of this, her naivete is incredible. Of course, she's angry, she's traumatised and frightened and she truly doesn't know what to do or think. She's been believably told by not one, but three people, one of them the perpetrator, that when whilst she was totally inebriated beyond functionality, she slept with this boy; she's been told that she was all over him, and this has been passed frivolously around the school.She feels humiliated and betrayed,and she cannot understand the result of the brief police investigation.
Sharon is right. Something as traumatic as this, even if it turns out to be true, could psychologically and emotionally damage this girl for life. Louise feels that Keegan must have raped her, because she cannot figure out how he knew about her birthmark, but she isn't thinking straight, or she would remember that it was Sniggle and Snaggle who told her that Keegan had been telling everyone about this curious birthmark.
That's it: the two girl bullies told her this. They told her Keegan was putting it about re the birthmark, she didn't hear that from Keegan, himself. If she bothered to begin to think calculatingly, then she just might put two and two together and realise that a lot of rumour and innuendo have been aiding and abetting Keegan's boasts by her so-called best mates.
At the end of the day, it's Sharon who steps up to bat in Phil's place. Now the next step will be Phil returning to save the day.
The Misfits. How much more obvious could it have been made to Steven that he's totally second-best?
First Lauren gives him a hand-made Father's Day card addressed "To the Best StepFatherin the World" - even though Steven's been more of a dad to Louis than Peter has been, even though Louis, in his toddler mind, considers Steven his father and has bonded with him. Lauren, by this single tactless action, has clearly defined Steven's role in Louis's life.
Meanwhile, Ian lies sulking in his bed because none of his "real" children are there to celebrate Father's Day with him. He's like a big, petty baby, and his treatment of Steven is callous and disgusting. I totally get it about what happened between Steven and Ian a decade ago, and he certainly didn't have to allow Steven back into his life again, but Steven has striven to earn his trust, making himself indispensable at the restaurant and to Ian.
Time was, as well, Ian totally considered Steven as one of his own, but his behaviour today was totally callow - refusing to allow Steven to make him a special breakfast and literally refusing to accept Steven's present of a framed photo of himself and Ian in front of the Beales' sign. Ian's poor excuse about the picture making him look fat wasn't lost on Steven. In fact, it was tantamount to a repudiation of Steven's part and role in Ian's family dynamic.
It was rejection. Even the insidiously stupid way Ian went about correcting Ted Murray's assumption that not only was Steven not Louis's father, he wasn't even Ian's son, that rather, he felt a duty toward Steven via his dead first wife, further drove home the awful truth to Steven.
Meanwhile, Abi is also made to feel the odd person out. She's invited Max for a special breakfast for Father's Day at the café, only to be confronted with the fact that Max had invited Lauren. They were planning on meeting at the pub, but Max included her in Abi's invitation, much to Abi's annoyance.Then he proceeded to compare her unfavourably as a baby to Lauren's infancy, deeming her a drama queen from birth and sharing Lauren's joke about nothing ever changing.
It was bad enough that Max reacted more favourably to Lauren bringing another hand-made Father's Day card for Max from Louis - when the purpose of Abi's breakfast with Daddy was to plan her 21st party - Lauren had already arranged for Jack to collect Oscar that morning to spend Father's Day with Max. Jack must drive a Formula 1 racecar, to be able to get down to Devon and back within a morning.
Abi resented all of this being kept a secret and storms out of the Vic just at the moment Steven has stormed off in a huff. Not only had Ian insulted him, but Lauren was so engrossed in the messages Josh kept sending her on her phone that she had no interest in anything.
Briefly, back at the empty restaurant, Abi and Steven bond over their poor self-esteem- Steven living in Peter's shadow and Abi surmising that she's always lived in Lauren's-which isn't entirely true, as Abi was once not only the much coddled youngest child, but a particular favourite of Max's. When Steven refuses to hear any criticism of Lauren and deems her the one good thing in his life, Abi can't resist the coy riposte that Steven has no idea what Lauren is really like ... and shortly after, she drops the clanger about Lauren aborting Steven's baby.
Watch psycho Steven emerge. Abi's birthday party is at the end of the week. What could possibly go wrong?
The Rest. The Murrays are emerging bit by bit, and I was perplexed about the unseen daughter who never seems to arrive - Judith, is it? I wasn't sure, but the dialogue seemed to suggest that Judith was Joyce's daughter. Although Christopher Timothy tries to convey that Ted is somewhat of a curmudgeon, I can't imagine someone of his ilk not enjoying grandchildren, however wimpish and particular they might be, but Joyce made the pointed remark about her daughter feeling more welcome if Ted showed nice to the grandchildren.
It was all a bit weird - the visit called off at the last moment, the daughter sounding more than a bit pretentious in her tastes. This is a couple whose children might be near, but who never visit for one reason or another, and you begin to wonder what secret they are inevitably hiding.
Also, inevitable Denise appearance klaxon ... the producer has to have her figured into a scene in almost every show. Overkill is not the word.
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