Hollyoaks: Finally!

Monday 3^rd – Friday 7^th February 2020

Azim has been left feeling very fragile after Mitchell tirade of homophobic abuse. She confides in Sami, who is furious. Mitchell, meanwhile, is disgusted with himself for his behaviour and confesses to horrified Martine.

Deciding to ramp up their campaign against Martine, Toby and Celeste arrange a party and invite the family and various members of the village. Word spreads that Toby and Celeste have an open marriage, prompting Cindy and Lisa both to flirt with Toby. Hang on… aren’t Toby and Lisa related? Well, I guess Hollyoaks isn’t a stranger to that sort of thing! Stuck up Mandy is embarrassed by most of her friends’ behaviour in front of her new friends who don’t even like her. Walter casually mentions to Toby that he basically raised Mitchell. But then disaster strikes when the police arrive and arrest him for a hate crime; Sami steps forward and tells the whole party what he did to Azim. And it’s all in front of Scott. Toby and Celeste enjoy themselves as Martine lays into Walter for the values he instilled in her son.

While the party couldn’t have gone better as far as Celeste is concerned, Toby is annoyed that Mitchell stole his thunder. Together, they plot their next move – to out Mitchell. Afterwards, Celeste makes a play for smitten Romeo but when she returns to the flat and finds Lisa making a move on Toby, she embarrasses her and sends her packing.

Scott visits Azim to ensure he is okay but Azim is hurt when he defends Mitchell’s behaviour. Together, they go to the police station and Azim drops the charges against Mitchell, who sincerely apologises for what he did. However, Scott makes it clear that Azim is the person he wants to be with and their relationship is over.

The next day, Mitchell discovers that Scott is planning to move to London with Azim. Martine begs her son to be brave and tell Scott how he truly feels. Mitchell breaks down, only to be found by grieving Courtney, who advises him not to waste time being sad and to take every opportunity he can to be happy. Mitchell tracks Scott down and publicly tells Scott that he loves him! Hooray! Celeste watches the whole thing. It promises to be an amazing moment. Scott is clearly in love with Mitchell. The only thing he asks is that Mitchell be brave enough to kiss him right here, right now. Their song, ‘Finally’ plays… but he can’t do it. It’s done. It’s over.

Lisa is embarrassed about cracking onto Toby but he confuses her by flirting with her the next day. They spend the afternoon together at her place where he attempts to get as much information on Walter as possible but of course, she didn’t actually grow up with the family so he’s barking up the wrong tree. And as they’re about to kiss, Walter walks in on them and furious throws Toby out. But not before Toby carefully leaves the picture of Scott and Mitchell in Walter’s Bible. I mean, that is harsh! Walter’s eyes hone in on it as they are serving dinner and it feels to me like Toby is having regrets. Celeste doesn’t seem to have that capacity. Walter is seething with righteous anger, demanding an explanation. And while Lisa is bewildered, Martine desperately tries to support her son who… lies. He tries to say that the photos were faked. Yeah, right.

Walter finds the photo of Mitchell and Scott…

At first, Walter blames Scott. Mitchell lies again that he was drunk and it just happened once. Again, Walter sees through him. He throws Bible quotations at him like knives and eventually, we get to the core of his grief. His brother was gay. And he killed himself. Walter decided from there that he wouldn’t lose anyone else to that kind of sin. However, it is quickly pointed out to him that he his brother had genuine love and support, he would probably still be alive! Walter demands that Mitchell come to church with him to repent of his sin, which the poor lad agrees to, prompting a big row between Walter and his daughter. Walter says some horrific things to her before she and Lisa walk out. Back in the flat, Mitchell is upset over the way his grandfather spoke to his mother. He wonders if that how he spoke to his brother for being gay. He accuses him of controlling everyone and therefore decides to break away from him and be honest with himself – he’s gay and his grandfather cannot change that.

Celeste reports to Toby that the plan worked and the family have been ripped apart. Toby is pleased. He seemed to have recovered from his momentary guilty conscience. They go to bed in separate rooms.

Scott admits to Damon that he’s having second thoughts. He also admits that he doesn’t love Azim but he still loves Mitchell. He does the right thing and lets Azim down and to his credit, Azim is absolutely lovely. He concludes that Scott still loves Mitchell and is compassionate about it, although he tells him that he deserves better, which I tend to agree with.

Walter throws Mitchell out and with nowhere to go, he turns to Scott. They kiss. Then Thursday’s E4 episode begins with the best opening sequence of any soap opera ever! It begins with Scott dreaming of dancing through the village with Mitchell, happy as can be to ‘Finally’, everyone celebrating their love, dancing around! Oh my goodness! It’s so camp and so amazing! I loved it so much I had to watch it twice! Nana McQueen does backflips! Fabulous! All that drama of Mitchell trying to come out was worth it just for that!

In reality, Scott and Mitchell are together but Mitchell and Walter are very much broken. Lisa and Martine end up arguing with Walter in the shop on Mitchell’s behalf with Martine accidentally outing Mitchell in front of half the village. Mitchell is furious. To be fair, walking around clinging to Scott does make it kind of obvious.

While Celeste seduces Romeo, Toby begins to struggle under the strain of their plan. Conflicted over the idea of adultery, Romeo attempts to back off, especially when Celeste openly flirts with him in front of Toby. But it’s not long before they’re back at it again. However, Romeo is left hiding behind the curtains in the lounge when Toby arrives back home! But I’m not convinced Toby and Celeste are even a couple. They sleep in separate rooms. I don’t think we’ve seen them be intimate with each other. And the way they speak to each other isn’t romantic. It’s odd. Very odd…

Diane arranges to go on a proper date with Tony but he panics and can’t go out, arranging for her to go with Edward instead, completely unaware of their fling. While Diane is more than a little awkward, Edward enjoys showing off and eventually, the pair do have a nice time together.

Diane continues to feel broken over the state of her relationship with Tony. Edward pressures Tony to make an effort, telling him he is being a drain on Diane so he arranges a special afternoon with his wife. Things go well until a plate fall off a table, causing a flashback to the pig farm, sending him into a spiral of panic all over again. He rejects the idea of professional help. That night, Diane confides in Edward while Tony weeps alone in his room.

Having overheard Diane confiding in Edward that she is at breaking point with him, Tony decides that he has to change. He makes breakfast for the family in the morning and then heads to The Hutch to prove to Diane that he can cope. Setting his son up for a fall, however, Edward overfills the restaurant and panics him. In the kitchen, making a meal from Edward and Diane, Tony struggles and panics alone. With the food taking longer and longer, Edwards acts more and more frustrated but really he is pleased. Knowing her husband is fighting a losing battle, Diane leaves. She doesn’t want to see him fail. Shortly afterwards, Tony runs out in a state.

Channel 4 at 6:30pm or a sneak peek 7pm on E4

These reviews are based on the E4 episodes

Eastenders: I Spy With My Little Eye…

(Monday 3^rd – Friday 5^th February 2020)

Linda’s drinking continues to spiral out of control. This week, she is absolutely vile to Chantelle who panics and runs away. My only criticism really is that she leaves Ollie with Linda. She knows she is drunk and out of control. Despite her own anxiety, she should have protected the little boy. But she did the next best thing and went to find Mick, although this seems to take ages. Because in that time, Linda has passed out drunk upstairs alone with Ollie (who is just so heartbreakingly cute) while cooking his dinner. Not even the horrific sounds of the smoke alarm can wake her up, nor his panicked attempt to shake her. Frightened and distressed by the alarm, Ollie covers his ears and takes himself up on to the roof!

Linda gets the shock of her life when she finally wakes up. Shirley tells her in no uncertain terms what has happened. She throws her in the baths and hoses her down with the shower. Then she tells her about Ollie, letting her believe for just a moment that they hadn’t been able to save him. She is forced to confront her issues and agree to get help. It’s a hideous but powerful scene. Mick takes her to an AA group but she refuses to go in when they spot Stuart there. Shirley drags her to the next one but Linda comes home angrier than ever, taking everything out rather violently on Mick. After a chat with Sharon is genuinely seems like she wants to make things work but by the end of the week and in homage to Den and Angie, she serves him divorce papers.

Unfortunately, Denny is just fine after being pushed over by Bobby, who is overwrought with guilt. He sincerely apologises to Denny who behaves like a six year old… actually, that’s unfair. I have six year old nieces and nephews and they would never behave like that. Anyway, Denny’s nasty response is to pour a whole can of drink all over Bobby in the middle of the café. Sharon is horrified and clearly feels protective of Bobby. She is genuinely really sweet with him and clearly has more of a connection with him than her own child. It’s sad really. Sharon’s son is horrible but she loves him. Bobby wants his Dad to love him but there’s no connection there either. I just hope Sharon and Bobby’s relationship remains mother/son and he doesn’t end up with a weird crush on her or something!

When Iqra overhears Ian, the Councillor making offhand remarks about Muslims, she makes it clear that he isn’t coming over well, especially considering just how many Muslim constituents he has. He decides to celebrate Bobby officially converting to Islam by holding the ceremony in the restaurant and while at first, Bobby is thrilled and feels it means he and Ian are drawing closer, he is soon disappointed to realise that the press will be there and it’s really just a moment for promotion.

While Sharon reaches out to Denny with tickets to a football match (I think… sport of some kind), he uses the moment to fiddle with Bobby’s computer and report to the police about web searches for Islamic Fundamentalism. The police return Bobby’s laptop and he is in the clear but he and Bobby argue and Ian refuses to attend the event but Bobby is thrilled with the turnout for the day, including Kathy, Max, Ruby, Iqra, Habiba and Ash. When Max brings Bobby home to work things out with Ian, another argument ensues and this one is absolutely earth shattering. It’s like Ian has been holding all this pain in for years and he finally throws it out, shouting at Bobby for Lucy’s death. It’s awful. Absolutely awful. Essentially, it doesn’t matter if Bobby is trying to rebuild his life and do good and repair the damage he caused. He killed Lucy. He hurt Jane. He ruined Ian’s life. It’s done. There is no coming back from that. Well, I hope there is. I really do.

Meanwhile, Suki gathers her family around for her birthday, pretending to them all that it will probably be her last. A misunderstanding means that Iqra attends the meal and Suki makes it quite clear that she is not wanted, either as a Muslim or a woman dating her daughter. When the girls have left, she informs her sons that Iqra has to go. She is quietly terrifying.

Karen cannot cope with Bernie’s desperation to find Keanu and confesses that he is still alive but needs to stay away. She spares her the details. Bernie admits that she stole her phone and texted him to say that Phil has left Walford but Karen believes he isn’t stupid enough to come back while Ben is here. Wrong! Clad in a beard that will clearly make him invisible to the naked eye, Keanu returns, begging Sharon to go on the run with him! Well, for starters, she wouldn’t be able to fly right now, mate. What are you going to do? A coach trip?

Denise returns (I hadn’t actually realised she’d been away until I noticed she hadn’t stuck her beak in over Sheree’s return) and immediately sticks her beak in over Sheree’s return. Patrick discovers that Isaac is his son. I mean, I am absolutely on the edge of my seat with this story. Can you tell?

Whitney admits to Kat that Leo has her log book and as things stand, Kush is charged with GBH. Desperate to save her friend, Whitney meets up with Leo who drags her to Tony’s grave. In a particularly hideous scene, Leo hurls all kinds of abuse at her while she is forced to kneel at her abuser’s grave and apologise to him and declare herself a liar. Deciding that that’s not enough, Leo takes Whitney to the Vic where she announces to the whole pub that she lied about Tony abusing her for attention. Leo looks on as nobody believes her and everyone stands up to protect her, including Mick, Sonia and Kat. Leo is forced to leave but as it turns out, he doesn’t go far. While poor Whitney thinks her bedroom is a place of safety, actually Leo is living in the loft above her with a small hole cut into the ceiling for his beady little eye to peer through. Honestly, it’s one of the creepiest scenes in soap. Just thinking about it gives me shivers!

Eastenders is on BBC1 on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays (7:30pm/8:00pm)

Doctors: Bring Your Own Bun

(Monday 3^rd – Friday 7^th February 2020)

It’s a very issue led week in Doctors this week with some big stand-alone episodes that are all particularly interesting. We have chronic illness, redemption for prisoners, post-partem psychosis. Different characters take centre stage in each episode such as Ayesha, Al, Daniel Ruhma and Rob.

Ayesha begins her Chronic Illness coffee morning (BYOB), which proves to be a big hit. I’m pretty sure a lot of people with chronic conditions who tune into Doctors wish their own surgeries ran like The Mill, myself included! Anyway, there’s drama galore when Ayesha discovers one of the ‘patients’ in the group is actually a fake. He spends his time at various groups, picking up women who are vulnerable and therefore he feels confident in talking to them. Unfortunately, in Ayesha’s group, a couple of his ‘girlfriends’ come face to face and obviously are not very happy when the truth comes out.

Al takes it upon himself to cure Bear of his fear of blood but ends up making him extremely unwell. He earns himself a telling off from Emma as he utterly traumatises Bear. At the end of the working day, he frightens Bear so much that he faints, knocking Al out in the process. But when Bear comes to and finds Al injured, his Manager/rescuer mode takes over, despite the blood and rushes Al to the hospital. He is extremely grateful and of course Al takes credit for the cure!

There’s a moment of jealousy when Daniel spots Zara (who has become extremely patronising every single time she opens her mouth at the moment – have you noticed?) complimenting Sid. However, he takes her to lunch and tells her that he forgives her for everything, he’s learning to forgive himself and he thinks she needs to forgive herself too. She accepts what he says but finds the whole thing awkward and uncomfortable, as do we.

There’s an interesting episode completely set in the prison, although nothing to do with Jimmi. I suppose there are limited scenes they can film with him just sitting there looking miserable. This time, Daniel spends the evening attending a dinner completely run by the prisoners, as they attempt to open a restaurant within the prison. Daniel dines with the grumpiest, least compassionate pastor ever. She has no faith in the redemption of any of the prisoners and is convinced they will fail. She seems to actually want them to fail. Comments from her actually lead to tensions exploding in the kitchen and the chef burns his hand. Daniel helps to sort things out and the chaplain unexpectedly mends her ways, helping the men out while Daniel fixes the chef’s hand.

Rob is on a stakeout for a drug raid and spots a couple of lads from the talk he did recently. He bumps into one of them who turns out to be completely innocent and oblivious to what is going on. Dragging him into the room he is spying from, he manages to keep him safe while he and his team bring the other lad and the other drug dealers down.

Ruhma is under pressure when one of her new Mums becomes convinced that she was given the wrong baby to take home. It’s not completely impossible as she had the same name as the woman in the bed next to her. However, Ruhma investigates and they didn’t give birth at the same time and one had gone before the other had even gone into labour. However, Ashley is convinced, to the point that she tracks the other woman down at her home and attempts to take her baby. Ruhma and the woman’s husband race to the house to stop her and I have to say, the woman whose baby is nearly stolen must be a saint or something. Ruhma explains that Ashley is suffering from postnatal psychosis and it’s causing delusions. She is perfectly within her rights to call the police but she doesn’t. She is so kind to her and so understanding. It’s a genuinely lovely moment.

Meanwhile, Al is horrified when Zara dismisses a school invitation to a course on protecting children online. Zara and Daniel are certain that their parental controls are enough but Al thinks they are being very ignorant. And typically, that night, while Daniel is right there in the house with him, Joe starts talking to a random ‘girl’ online and invites her to his birthday party. He even gives her his address.

Doctors is on BBC1, weekdays at 1:45pm