Neighbours: Sheila VS Susan

(Tuesday 26^th May – Monday 1st June 2020)

The Kennedys found Sheila in their back garden, grieving for Gary the Pigeon but once they got hold of Kyle (and she accused them of killing Gary all over again, they realised that he wasn’t dead, just drunk on fermented berries and he was soon restored back to life. But sadly, things between Sheila and Susan were not restored.

When Claudia brought Aster to see Elly, she let slip her long terms plans for custody, prompting Elly to suggest to Chloe that she did indeed sell her The Island and agree to work with her in order to find out what she was really up to. Just as an aside, Elly seems to be living it up in jail! In one day, she saw Claudia and Aster, then Chloe and then Susan. I mean, that’s more people than most of us have seen in months recently! Aaron immediately caught Chloe snooping on Claudia but ever the innocent, approached the monster directly about what his sister had found, meaning she was able to easily explain it away rather than allowing Chloe it gather it as evidence!

With The Island plan going ahead, Aaron set up a focus group of Harlow, Hendrix and Mackenzie to help them with ideas going forward. While the kids were happy to help out, especially for some cash ahead of Mackenzie’s 18^th birthday, Susan was not happy to see them spending time with new nemesis, Claudia. Meanwhile, things at home between Karl and Susan were not improving. In fact, they seem to be getting worse! After a row, Karl stormed out, resulting in him staying out all night and chatting to former fling, Olivia Bell from days gone by (and exchanging numbers), although not before asking Dee to go and support Susan at home. He then suggested that Dee move in with them, which Susan readily agreed to. Just as an aside, if Karl cheats on Susan again, I will not be in a forgiving mood!

Dipi was just as unhappy as I was about Dee wading in on Sonya’s turf with Toadie and the kids, as if Sonya never existed. She was also worried about being pushed out herself, when she has been so involved in the kids’ lives for so long. But there’s a really sweet moment with Nell, which makes her thaw, alongside Dee assuring her that she isn’t trying to take Sonya’s place. When Toadie and Dee visited Elly and were informed of Andrea’s plans to get custody of Hugo, Dipi was actually the first person to comfort Dee who felt guilty about letting Andrea back into their orbits. I’m still not sold on Dee myself but it was sweet moment of friendship.

Elly’s life behind bars got somewhat more intense when she realised that her warning for Toadie and Dee had put her firmly on the wrong side of Andrea and that is not where she wants to be! Andrea began consistently bullying Elly, including having her beaten up, although she knew better than to tell anyone the truth about her injuries. Not that the Kennedys believed her lies anyway.

Andrea is gunning for Elly…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

With Sheila’s obsession with Gary the Pigeon spiralling out of control, Kyle made an urgent call for help and within moments, who should waltz through the door but Naomi?! I am so excited! I adore Naomi! I was so sad when she left and I hope she is back for a good long while. She is like a breath of fresh air to the show from the moment she appears.

Naomi Canning returns…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Thankfully, Naomi does not hold Susan responsible for Gary’s death, which is a good place to start in healing her mother’s pain. Kyle hasn’t been able to make any progress really because a) he is in too much pain himself and b) he blames Susan at least in part for what has happened. Naomi’s argument is that it wasn’t just Susan who was responsible for ‘rehabilitating’ Finn and Toadie agrees – if Susan is to blame then everyone is. She talked to Susan directly and was concerned that she blamed herself as much as Sheila blamed her. Then she did some most excellent plotting with Paul and Terese, locking Sheila and Susan up in the Willis house together and forcing them to talk. When Karl got wind of it, he immediately objected but by the time he arrived, the two women were genuinely connecting. They finally achieve peace!

With that resolved, Naomi was immediately distracted by Party Boy Pierce. She rushed home to tell Kyle that she thought she had met the one, a guy she clearly has a complex history with. While swooning over and old picture of ‘Party Boy Pierce’, Naomi then had a meeting with Chloe, with whom she has just scored a job, taking over her duties temporary at Lassiters while she works on The Island project with Claudia. I mean, that’s not going to be awkward at all… Thankfully, at least Naomi didn’t reveal all her cards before Pierce turned up to the meeting. Kyle begged Naomi not to be responsible for Chloe getting her heart broken.

Chloe and Naomi bond…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Meanwhile, Mackenzie was freaking out about her birthday party, which Kyle and Roxy had been thrown together to organise. However, all went well, including a big romantic gesture from boyfriend, Ritchie. It even survived Kyle ditching to go and get the cake but thinking he was going to see Jess, Roxy ditched the party as well. Aware that Mackenzie was upset over her Dad’s neglect of her birthday, Shane called him on her behalf.

Neighbours has returns to filming, while observing social distancing

Episodes air on Channel 5, Monday – Friday, 1:45pm and 6pm

Home and Away: Destruction of the Self

(Monday 25^th – Friday 29^th May 2020)

Willow and Dean returned early from their trip away after Willow’s stand in got her shifts mixed up, leaving the gym shut for a morning. Although Jasmine wasn’t bothered in the slightest, Willow was furious and ended up firing Stella for her mistake. Ouch! She then threw the little Manager sign that Alex had made for her, away. Sad times.

The truth about Maggie and Marco came tumbling out, as Maggie confessed in order to end Marco’s bid to blackmail her. Ben was understandably devastated. She has been lying to him for over twenty years and for their entire marriage. While Marco played the victim, insisting that Maggie was the one to blame, sleeping with him when she knew he had feelings for her, personally, I’d call into question the ethics of sleeping with a girl who was drunk and utterly heartbroken.

Of course, there were more revelations to come after a deliberate ‘off-hand’ remark to Ziggy about the timing of her birth, prompting the question over whether Ben is really her father. Already distraught over her mother’s lies to her father, Ziggy was distraught over the idea that Ben might not really be her Dad. Dean was a tower of strength to his girlfriend and certain that Ben would always be her Dad, no matter what, pointing out that blood wasn’t essential to family. Together, Ziggy and Ben decided that a paternity test would settle things once and for all so next week, we should have the results. I so want Ben to be her father! I would be so sad if they destroyed that bond. I love Ben and Ziggy as a father/daughter duo and I am so annoyed by this whole storyline. Can no couple be left untouched by the Summer Bay curse?

Ben and Ziggy support each other…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

With Douglas pleading guilty, Leah was asked to make a victim impact statement for sentencing, which at first, she refused to do, not wanting to relive it all or face him in court. But when, on her first day back at the Diner, she freaked out over a customer complaining about an order and calling her ‘sweetheart’, she decided she needed to make the statement in order to get closure and attempt to put Douglas behind her for good. With Justin by her side, Leah made her statement and was heartbreakingly honest about the impact the experience with Douglas has had on her life, including that she can’t even have her boyfriend touch her anymore and she doesn’t know if that will ever change.

Leah makes her victim impact statement
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Colby was upset to discover that Mac has moved on with Ari and took his grief out on Dean, feeling that he told him to move on for Mac’s sake, not his. Dean has quite a profound argument – he ended up in jail because of Colby whereas he came out of jail the person he is now because of Ari.

Colby is heartbroken to discover that Mac has moved on with Ari…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Nikau and Bella had a rather amusing first date, fleecing a couple of cocky lads at a game of pool! These two do genuinely seem to make a lovely couple so what happens next is very sad. And it’s done pretty well. I was genuinely emotional. I have made no secret that I’m not a huge Bella fan but she broke my heart during Friday’s episode, as did Nik.

Having got closer to Nik recently, Bella asked Willow for sex advice. Concerned, Willow decided to be honest, telling her that she would know when the time was right and not to rush into anything. She pointed out that to sleep with someone, you have to completely trust them. What she didn’t realise was that she was giving such immediate advice and that that very afternoon, Bella decided to get all dressed up and invite Nik round for some alone time.

It’s worth noting that Nik was extremely hesitant and he asked her multiple times if she was sure. He was so worried about doing the wrong thing, aware of what she had been through with Tommy. But she insisted that it was what she wanted. Unfortunately, when they got into bedroom, Bella panicked and threw him out. The bewildered lad panicked, more for Bella than himself and ran off to find Ryder to get Bella some support. When Ryder found Bella locked in her room, he found Colby and Willow who eventually burst in and found that she had self-harmed, cutting up her arm.

Nik ran scared to his mother…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

While Ryder automatically blamed Nik, Bella was quick to exonerate him. Terrified, Nik heartbreakingly begged his Mum to help him run away. Gemma was brilliant though, pointing out that if he liked Bella enough to sleep with her then he liked her enough to visit her at the hospital. She took him to see Bella where the poor lad was so frightened that Colby would blame him. Thankfully, he didn’t, although he didn’t think it was appropriate for Bella to have visitors, having just been told by Tori that with it having been her second incident of self-harm, she would advise admission to a mental health facility. Australian health care must have a lot more funding than here in the UK!

That aside, this was a really significant episode and the pain and the anguish surrounding a really difficult subject was covered really well. Everyone involved goes through all different emotions, from Bella, to Colby, to Willow, to Nikau, to Ryder and the episode dealt with them all. It’s not an easy subject. I do hope though that it’s not a case of patching Bella up and she’s fine. Self-harm is so much more complex than that and I hope Home and Away are ready to represent that now that this is the storyline they have started.

Meanwhile… John and Marilyn began to get things back on track again, both apologising to each other and Marilyn beginning to explain how she felt about everything she went through during the siege. It looks like early days but it’s definitely a start. Hooray! Jasmine was extremely peppy, overwhelmed with joy at her pregnancy as she settled back into work at the hospital. She plans to call the baby Ryan if it’s a boy. Aww. Sadly, I don’t think this is going to go as well as she thinks…

Home and Away has returned to filming & airs five days a week, Channel 5, 1:15pm & 6pm

There is a sneak peek episode on 5Star at 6:30pm on the same days

These reviews are based on the Channel 5 episodes

(Mondays 25th & Tuesday 26th May 2020)

Sharon returned from Australia, seemingly ready to take her life back. She reunited with Phil and confirmed with Linda that it was alright for her and Phil to buy the pub. She also firmly sent pathetic Ian into the ‘friend zone’ by informing him that she loved him like a brother. I have no sympathy after what he has done. How he can lie about his role in Denny’s death after the loss of Lucy, I have no idea.

Speaking of Denny… he provided Sharon with her Damascus moment from beyond the grave when she discovered a gift he had bought for the baby, prompting her to realise that she did want to keep him after all. The only problem is that it’s unlikely that Phil will want him and she wants to be with Phil. Also, Ian has paid Karen off to move away and she’s just about to get packing. Well, let’s hope that Sharon gets moving on getting her baby back! Mostly because I want Karen to stay.

Sharon finds a gift for Kayden from Denny…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

As for the rest of the Taylor Family, Keegan ended up in yet more trouble when he declined to sell drugs from his van and Tiffany mouthed off to the guy who asked. Subsequently, the guy returned with his gang and held Keegan back while they absolutely trashed the van, destroying his business (which has no insurance) and stole Shaki’s trainers, which of course were extremely sentimental. Keegan blamed Tiffany for everything, further jeopardising their marriage. Perhaps Keegan should pop over to Casualty where Shaki is now an ED nurse. He’ll probably have a spare pair of trainers he can keep…!

Things continued to fall apart, concerning Jean, as she lived alone in the house, believing that Daniel had returned for her. Kush did what he could but the mental health team, who Ash had advised him to call for help, refused to do anything unless she was a danger to herself or others. Brilliant. So very helpful. But sadly, the result of no funding and a lack of resources.

Jean became more and more desperate to bring Stacey home, eventually getting dressed up and throwing herself at Phil, thinking that sleeping with him might persuade him to let her daughter return. Confused and awkward, Phil phoned Shirley to take her friend home. Shirley demanded that Kush contact Stacey but the moron assured Stacey that Jean was fine when he spoke to her. Why?! He is not coping. He needs help from someone who can handle Jean when she is in crisis. Kat is ‘away’ and he can’t even get through the front door!

Jean’s misguided attempt at bringing Stacey home…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Max was not impressed when Ruby hired Martin to work security at the club. Ian was also not impressed, as it meant he quit he job on the stall. Max stopped Dotty and Vinny selling drugs at the club. Phil and Ben continued to waffle on about this ‘job’ their going to do and Ben continued to treat Callum like crap. So, all in all, a very cheerful visit to Walford this week!

Ben begs to join Phil in raising cash to buy The Vic
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Eastenders will resume filming in June after shutting down for the Coronavirus Lockdown

It currently airs on only on Mondays (8pm) and Tuesdays (7:30pm) on BBC1

Hollyoaks: Crash and Burn

(Monday 25^th & Tuesday 26^th May 2020)

It’s been a really powerful couple of episodes from Hollyoaks this week, tackling mental health and addiction in a very serious way through Kyle, who has massively evolved as a character, both through the writing and through Adam Rickett’s portrayal. He began as such a cheeky, naughty guy, always there with a quip or two. He misbehaved and really held as much water as a colander before but Hollyoaks clearly knew what they had with the actor and the character and have developed him into someone so gripping to watch. His battle with depression, his dependency on weed, his desperation to be loved by Nancy and devastation at rejection is breaking my heart.

Nancy can be quite a harsh character at times but ultimately, she is a very kind character too and retrospectively, I think she’ll be shattered to look back and think of the way she has cut him down and spoken to him over these past weeks, knowing how far it has pushed him and added to his dark thoughts. At a time when she would have wanted to love and support him, she has only pushed him away, deeper into his sadness and sorrow.

Kyle makes some bad choices…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

This all came to a head this week when Nancy completely dismissed the idea of him looking after Oscar but after Charlie rather astutely picked up on how he was feeling (and was feeling rather grateful that he didn’t dob him in over the drugs), Darren intervened. Unfortunately, the writing was already on the wall. Kyle had already arranged to buy from Jordan and he couldn’t resist the temptation to smoke before he got into the van – with Oscar. He then ended up in an accident, with none other than Jordan himself.

Kyle crashes into Jordan’s car…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Of course, Nancy was absolutely furious with Kyle, which of course is understandable, as he had put her son in danger. However, she was compassionate enough to take the blame for the accident (despite not even being there at the time) so that he wouldn’t get into trouble with the police for driving under the influence. She took a very hard line with him – weed or her and tragically, he didn’t choose her. Later, in a truly heartbreaking moment, he left her a voicemail attempting to explain himself and begging for help. Now, I just hope that next week, Nancy will step up and support him and help him find a way through this darkness. There are some things that Hollyoaks do really well and this is the kind of story that really hits the mark. Well done to all involved.

Things come to a head between Nancy and Kyle…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Leela was on duty at the time of the crash and helped to free Jordan from the car. At the crash site, she discovered that the usually cocky lad has been sleeping in his car, forming a bond with him and inviting him to move into the house. How many bedrooms do they have exactly or will he just be flitting between her room and Peri’s?! I think they’ve got eight people living in that house now (Leela, Peri, Daniel, Leah, Lucas, Sid, Juliet and now Jordan)!

Speaking of Peri, she too was in the car but Jordan sent her away from the scene as they weren’t meant to be together at the time. She arrived back home, pretending she didn’t know anything that had happened. The irony was that she truly was oblivious to the fact that she had just interrupted a near-kiss between her boyfriend and her mother. Oh well, she’ll be snogging Juliet by the end of the year!

Tom proved himself to Misbah and she agreed to go away on her trip, leaving the kids unattended at home. Mercedes was suspicious of Sylver’s odd behaviour, prompting him to admit that he had arranged a surprised wedding vow renewal. Little does he know, his long lost daughter is lurking round the corner!

Due to the Coronavirus, Hollyoaks has had to suspend filming

Hollyoaks now airs Mondays & Tuesdays, 6:30pm on Channel 4 (sneak peek on E4, 7pm)

These reviews are based on the E4 episodes

In place of normal episodes, Hollyoaks airs ‘Hollyoaks Favourites’, Wednesdays-Fridays, 7pm on E4

Coronation Street: Jokes Are Supposed to be Funny

(Wednesday 20^th – Monday 25^th May 2020)

The focus shifted to the Bailey Family this week and they really proved their worth as relatively new additions to the Street. Now, we already know that Lorna Laidlaw is incredible, having previously played St Mrs Tembe in Doctors but the rest of the actors in the family have also proved to be pretty awe inspiring, particularly in Friday’s episode, as Ed finally stood up for himself and his loved ones against vile Ron. I mean, where the hell did this guy even come from anyway?

Ed had been putting up with remarks for days while working for him and Ray. Eldest boy, Michael, just couldn’t understand why he was just taking the things he was saying. When the Street turned out for the Bistro launch, Ed finally had enough, overhearing Ron making a vile racist joke. All I can do here is applaud the writing of what is an amazing speech, as well as Trevor Michael Georges for his perfect delivery. I would recommend that everyone watches this episode and particularly this moment. It’s as emotional as it is challenging.

Ed had some powerful words to share…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

When the horrified partygoers filed into the Rovers, it led to some really interesting ‘woke’ discussions on racism, particularly between Dev and Kev(in). It also forced Ed to confront his own homophobia and he finally, properly supported his son in time to not give up football.

In the locker room the next day, when James received some hassle from one of his teammates about his sexuality, not only did others stand up for him but, inspired by his Dad, he was able to stand up for himself. It’s a proud moment.

While Leanne and Steve kept a vigil by Oliver’s bed, the rest of the family were dutifully worried. Tensions flared between Leanne and Nick when he lost his temper over her and Steve’s determination to be positive about the situation, despite the likelihood that their son has a very serious, possibly life limiting condition.

The pressure is on when it comes to Oliver…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Thankfully, they did sort things out because really, who needs to be fighting with their partner at such a crucial time? Steve, Leanne and Nick were by little Oliver’s side when he finally woke up but unfortunately, he was largely unresponsive, sending Nick rushing out to track down a Doctor for help.

And Julia Goulding has returned from her maternity leave! We saw Shona at a progress appointment at the hospital, not seeming herself at all, what with her memory loss and all that, demanding to go home to Clayton. Seeming not for the first time, she has to be told that Clayton is in prison, to which she demanded to see him there. But of course, when she met her son, she freaked out, not recognising the man he has become. Well, it’s probably not the first time she’s felt like that.

Shona doesn’t recognise her son…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Meanwhile, news of Shona’s latest ‘progress’ hit David had and off he went to the park to start another fight with some kids. Very mature,

Sean suggested that Gemma created a vlog about her post-natal depression and he and Cathy helped her create her first post but she was very hesitant to post it. Although, it looked to me like she had actually posted it. I’m not sure… I’ll keep you, um… posted.

Coronation Street intends to resume filming in June

For now, it airs on ITV on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 7:30pm

Doctors: #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek

(Monday 18^th – Friday 22^nd May)

The week began with a hilarious episode and the perfect tonic to the lockdown as Valerie decided to foster kittens. You just cannot not love Valerie. She came in as a part time character and her charm, humour, individuality and compassion just stole everyone’s hearts. She can make you weep with stories such as her cancer diagnosis and she can make you absolutely howl with episodes like this one where she had nobody to look after the kitten so she carried ‘Snowy’ into work in a tiny little bag (possibly the cutest things I’ve ever seen in my life) and roped her colleagues into helping until Ayesha could come and collect her.

Cue the hilarity as Valarie attempted to cover the kitten’s mews in front of Zara as a squeaky shoe, confused everyone when Zara then suggested talcum powder for the squeaky shoe and then ended up letting the ‘squeaky shoe’ wee all over Jimmi!

One of my favourite moments came when Jimmi was expecting Valerie back with his jacket but Daniel appeared and he asked if ‘it’ had come out. Upon his confusion, Jimmi panicked.

“Um… the sun!”

Later, when the truth came out, Zara attempted to cover up her mortification that she had been duped into believing Valerie’s lame story about the shoe and demanded to know how Daniel hadn’t realised.

“Well, you didn’t notice either, Cagney!” he shot back.

All in all, this was another fabulous, quirky, Valerie story. More please! I am always torn in Doctors as to whether my favourite character is Zara or Valerie. I genuinely cannot decide but I think Sarah Moyle, who plays Valerie is an absolute superstar.

The truth about the kittens comes out…
(photo credit: WhatsOnTV)

Meanwhile, Al had problems visiting his mother who suffers with Alzheimer’s when she went shopping and returned home, having forgotten who he was. She called the police on him, thinking he was a stranger in her house. Well, to be honest, if he hadn’t behaved like a complete slob, lying around the house in his pants, eating all her food, playing video games, and refusing to do anything useful, then perhaps it wouldn’t have happened. She probably only went shopping in the first place to get away from him! What respectable adult goes to visit their mother (with or without Alzheimer’s) and behaves like that? Honestly!

Al isn’t exactly the perfect house guest…
(photo credit: WhatsOnTV)

To his credit, he did make up for it during the rest of his stay. First, he threw a party for her and her friends in order to help her spend time with people she loves and helped her every moment she needed him. They took a lovely selfie to put in the frame she had been saving for his wedding day. They then went to a pub quiz, hosted by a very rude drag queen who turned out to be a boy who bullied him at school and continued to bully him during the quiz. Now, I love a drag queen. As a gay woman, I have seen my fair share of drag acts. But I love that we have reached a point where soaps can write LGBTQ characters just as people. They don’t all have to be sympathetic characters.

Meanwhile, Auntie Em had another radio appearance, only to comes to blows after being set up to appear with Su Without an E. That rather unpleasant student who hosts the show, deliberately left them on air so everyone heard Emma laying into Su but thankfully, the two women worked out that they were being deliberately goaded. They endeavoured to work together for the rest of the show. But they are not friends and never will be!

Karen’s marijuana is discovered when she stupidly bakes it into brownies for Jay and leaves them casually in a tin and goes out, assuming that Rob won’t be back until later. Obviously, he eats two and gets stoned out of his tree. It’s actually very funny. But when he comes down, he is absolutely furious with his wife. He draws the line at arresting her but it’s hard to say where they go from here.

Doctors have been brilliant at covering Mental Health Awareness Week, not least with a really harrowing suicide story during Thursday’s episode. Valerie desperately tried to track a woman down, talking to her on the phone, finding her address and eventually sending the police round ahead of her rushing to her house, trying to stop her from killing herself. I won’t lie. I had tears in my eyes as she said goodbye and left a note for her mother. This story really broke me. It was so well written and portrayed.

Other Mental Health stories this week have included: self harm, alcoholism and post-natal depression. Also, in a rather random story at the end of the week, Sid got himself involved with a lady who was being screwed over by her very strange estate agent. It was very peculiar!

Next week, despite Doctors ceasing filming due to the Coronavirus, the show does appear to still be airing every weekday on BBC1 at 1:45pm

Neighbours: The Battle for Aster

(Wednesday 6^th – Monday 26th May 2020)

Things went rapidly wrong for Elly after she took the plea deal but was sent to jail anyway. For three years! Of course, what she and the others don’t know is that devious Claudia has blackmailed the judge. Things backfired when Elly opted to take Aster into prison with her so once inside, Claudia used fellow inmate, Andrea Somers to scare the poor woman into giving her up. She then used every tactic possible to take the baby legally out of the custody of the Kennedy Family.

Elly is sentenced to three years…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

During the custody hearing, she revealed that old enemy, Sam Fitzgerald was her lawyer and Sam ripped Susan to pieces, not that Susan did herself any favours, especially as Claudia had just witnessed her having an unnecessary go at Mackenzie. Although, how anyone decided that the woman who left her son to be tortured so badly that he became a psychopath should be declared a fit parent is beyond me! Sky did warn Toadie about Claudia’s scheming before she and Mark returned to their wives but she played her cards too quickly for it to be any use. (Just as an aside, wouldn’t it just be the best if Sky and Lana returned to Erinsborough for good?)

Susan laid into Mackenzie…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Back in prison, Elly became suspicious of Andrea for whom she had facilitated visits with Dee, as after she got a picture of baby Hugo, Elly began to see quite a different side to her. Only when she attempted to warn Dee, she quickly found herself on the wrong side of Andrea which doesn’t seem to be a place she wants to be!

Now, can we all just take a moment to appreciate the genius that is the creation of Andrea? She is one of the most complicated, insane characters soap has ever seen. I just adore her! Usually with a soap villain, even when the other characters don’t know they are being lied to, the audience can read the scene but this woman is so complex that it’s impossible to tell apart the stories she’s telling.

Andrea is ready to stir things up…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Dee on the other hand, is a bit limp for me, which I know may be an unpopular opinion. I didn’t watch Neighbours back in the day of Toadie and Dee round one and perhaps if I had, I would feel differently but I just adored Sonya and I watched their entire relationship. I’m not saying I don’t want Toadie to move on and be happy and in fact, in soap terms, waiting over a year to get together with someone else is like waiting ten years in the real world. But I feel like hippie Dee is a mediocre version on Sonya. She’s the imitation. The B-side. (Do people have B-sides anymore?) I mean, she’s nice enough but she’s not… Sonya. But because of their history, she seems to be overinflated into something more exciting than she actually is. So now, suddenly, a couple of snogs and she’s moving in! I mean… really?

Toadie is ready to move on with Dee…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Anyway, not content with stealing Aster, Claudia then put in a bid to buy The Island from Pierce and Chloe (who have just rejected a bid from an Escape Room company who basically want to recreate Murder Island). She claimed she wanted to create a summer camp in Shuan’s name for disadvantaged kids and wanted Chloe and Aaron to help her run in. Aaron was very excited while Chloe was worried about hurting Elly.

So, not only did Paul put Aaron in a terrible position by leaving his illegal swag in The Shed but he also made him miss his and David’s first fostering appointment because he had to turn everything into the police. David was absolutely livid, especially as he had just wasted a lot of time persuading Harlow to give Paul another chance. Paul ended up learning quite a lesson in not treating your family however the hell you want and assuming everything will be okay. By the end of this week, he has had to sign over The Shed to the boys and agree to letting Harlow spend two nights a week at Hendrix’s house, as well as attend a sexual health appointment with her to prove he is supportive of her choices.

Kyle and Roxy hit the rocks again due to Kyle’s grief and their general miscommunication, sending him into the arms of fellow grief group member, Jess, who I can’t quite read yet. Roxy was heartbroken to hear of the hook up, being that she really does like Kyle. And it really does seem a shame as they were on their way to making a very sweet couple but once again, Roxy has had her heart broken. Their relationship was further shattered when Roxy bluntly told Sheila that Gary was not a pigeon. Yes, you read that correctly.

Kyle ignored all Roxy’s attempts to make things right and reconnected with Jess instead, who I am starting to think might be a little bit too perfect. Poor Sheila, meanwhile, found that Gary the Pigeon has died. Understandably, she was heartbroken, feeling she has lost her son all over again.

Ned was suddenly promoted from a bellboy to running an entire pool party but pushed and pulled between Pierce and Paul’s ideas, the event didn’t quite go to plan, although to his credit, he really did try his best. He quit the job very quickly, which I don’t blame him for! He was thrust into a position he didn’t really want, had no experience of doing and was provided with absolutely no support! But let’s also take a moment to appreciate just how lovely Hendrix has become. Forget the brash boy he started out as; he is just so sweet to Harlow. When she admitted her lack of body confidence, he jumped into the pool fully clothed to enable her to feel confident to do the same. He so clearly adores her. These two have the makings of becoming one of those legendary Neighbours couples that will be remembered forever, I think. I like that the show didn’t rush their relationship, even though the pairing was very obvious from the start. I really do like them together.

Neighbours has return to filming with episodes airing on Channel 5, Monday – Friday, 1:45pm & 6pm

Home and Away: Ben’s Birthday

(Monday 4^th – Friday 22^nd May 2020)

Firstly, many apologies for how long it’s been since I updated my Home and Away blog! No excuses really. But here’s about three weeks all in one go. Woosh!

So, what started as a lovely party for Ben’s birthday and a celebration of his achievements in overcoming his depression, turned into a complete nightmare for Maggie as Ben’s brother, Marco returned. The story always was that Marco hit on her, Ben punched him and Marco had him arrested. Cue: a big split in the family. As it turns out, what actually happened was that Marco and Maggie had a one night stand. Marco always had feelings for Maggie and having split temporarily (as it turned out) from Ben and feeling heartbroken, nineteen year old Maggie got drunk as a party and ended up in bed with him. Now, Marco has turned up in the Bay claiming to want to mend things with Ben but really, he is blackmailing Maggie into buying into his business. At the last minute, Maggie changed her mind and decided she needed to confess all to her husband. Should be an interesting week next week!

Maggie has a confession to make…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Worried about the state of John and Marilyn’s marriage and her family’s possible role in their split, Gemma succeeded in befriending John and helped the couple at least get talking again, even after he stirred the pot after Ari and Mac hooked up. Oh! Ari and Mac hooked up! No, I didn’t see that one coming either. And nor will Colby when he finds out as he was very much looking forward to getting back together with Mac! Well, he has messed her about rather too much for too long really. Dean should set up a side business as a fortune teller…

Ari and Mac are new, hot couple in town!
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Speaking of Colby, he reluctantly agreed to allow Bella to abandon school and take up photography at TAFE – on the proviso that she continued her counselling (the course being paid for by Dean who only recently had to borrow money from Mac). Of course, she lied and didn’t attend counselling and of course, she was found out. During this time, Bella also became close to Nikau and despite well-meaning but meddling Ryder (who completely crossed the line of confidentiality and friendship) telling him about her experience with Tommy, the pair decided to make a go of things. I can’t say I’m a huge Bella fan but then whose to say how anyone would behave if they had the upbringing and experiences that she has suffered? I do like Nik though I hope that having some joy in her life might calm down this whole Bratty Bella thing we’ve had on repeat for such a long time.

Bella and Nikau get together…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Not that Willow is leading by terribly good example at the moment, not that I blame her either! Utterly shattered by her breakup with Alex (as am I!), Willow took all her heartbreak out on all her friends until Dean couldn’t take it any longer and persuaded her to go away with him for a few days to clear her head. He and Colby couldn’t resist asking if she was ‘gay now’, to which she wasn’t sure why it mattered. The only thing she knew was that when she was with Alex, her life had direction. Well, I’m pleased that the show hasn’t just completely forgotten this story and the relationship, as it did with Charlie and Joey back in 2009. And with Zoe Ventura apparently back based in Sydney, perhaps there is hope yet for the return of Doctor Alex Neilson, now they know just how popular this pairing has been!

For now though, Tori has returned to work with Jasmine by her side mostly seamlessly. However, before long, Jasmine realised that she was very overdue her period and without so much as doing a test, announced to the world that she was pregnant! I feel like this isn’t going to be that simple…

Leah suddenly twigged that she had seen nothing of Mason since her return, prompting Justin to have to break the news that he (and Robbo) had passed away. As if the whole thing had been storyboarded perfectly, that was the week that Mason’s ashes arrived, allowed an emotional private ceremony for Justin, Tori and Leah to say goodbye. So private that not even Brody or Raffy were invited. Charming!

Mason’s family bury his ashes…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

After an epic row where Leah accused Justin of being just like Douglas, thanks to him caring about so much and therefore crowding her while she tried to recover from her ordeal, Justin promised to back off and have some space. But thankfully, they seemed more together than ever before. I’m relieved. They really are a lovely couple and I do hope that Justin is ‘the one’ for Leah after such a ‘colourful’ romantic history.

Home and Away has returned to filming & airs five days a week, Channel 5, 1:15pm & 6pm

There is a sneak peek episode on 5Star at 6:30pm on the same days

These reviews are based on the Channel 5 episodes

Emmerdale: Pants on Fire

(Monday 4^th – Monday 18^th May 2020)

Again, apologies for taking so long to update my Emmerdale blog! No excuses!

So, the ongoing feud between Arthur and Archie came to a head at Rishi’s 70^th birthday when the whole family (including Jimmy, Nicola and the kids for some reason) had a camping event in the garden. Now, don’t get me wrong, I adore Laurel and I think she’s an amazing Mum, especially with everything she has been through, losing Ashely the way she did and everything. I have never been able to fault her or her love for her kids. But the way she has pushed Arthur away recently has been so sad to watch. This kid has behaved atrociously. He’s been a serious bully towards a smaller, vulnerable child. But he owned up to it and he asked for help. Since then, it’s like Laurel doesn’t like him anymore and is completely favouring Archie. The whole reason this started was because Arthur felt shut out and pushed aside. So how is deliberately pushing her son away ever going to help the situation? Arthur needs love and compassion and care right now, not the hard line.

So, after a day of being shut out and pushed away and treated like an outsider and still having the situation with the cabinet and the football tackle where Archie lied about him, playing on his mind, Arthur wound Archie up about starting the campfire they were told not to touch. Of course, it got out of hand and nearly set the tent alight that little Dotty was sleeping in and everything got very intense very quickly. Arthur got into serious trouble, to the point that Laurel contacted the police to frighten him and it was only Gabby that really took the time to listen to him properly and believe that Archie has been telling lies and giving it back to him since the truth all came tumbling out.

Laurel calls the police on her son…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Thankfully, when the police were called, Archie did actually confess to the lies he has told but I worry that the damage has been done to Arthur and Laurel’s relationship. And it really is sad because they were so close and he was the glue that held that family together when they lost Ashley. They have found a genuine little star in Alfie Clarke, who plays him. He’s so earnest and so engaging. Even when he is doing the wrong thing, you can’t help but want the best for him.

Now, I was hoping we had reached the end of ‘Emmerdale goes Gangsta’ as Cain and Billy went out on their ‘job’ for Malone but sadly, it doesn’t seem to be the case. On their way back, they were stopped by the police but thanks to Will managing to send Dawn out to collect the drugs, the police found nothing in the car. Of course, this has major consequences as a) Dawn and Harriet were furious to finally discover what has been going on and b) Malone easily worked out that Will warned the boys and therefore had him beaten to a pulp. Ouchy.

It was left to Harriet to send Malone packing. Well, if only they’d let her in on it at the beginning, we’d have all been saved a lot of hassle. Well, I say that, by Monday of this week, it became crystal clear that the history between them was ready to come rushing to the surface, so to speak. In a move that makes no sense whatsoever, Harriet ended up bedding Malone in the church. So, she’s mad at Will because he is liar and a criminal but this is something that turns her on in Malone? Right. Okay. That must follow someone’s logic somewhere but it’s missed me completely. But that aside, the bad news is that the boring plot is clearly going to continue forevermore.

Harriet gets up to no good with Malone…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

In a more engaging plot, hopefully, Charity and Vanessa have turned a corner at last. When Tracy discovered that Vanessa has overthrown both her and Charity and chosen Rhona to be Johnny’s legal guardian if the worst happens, she royally kicked off and couldn’t understand why Charity wasn’t doing the same. But Charity just seemed uncharacteristically numb until she finally burst out that the reason she hesitated was because she couldn’t bear to consider the idea that Vanessa might die; it was nothing to do with not wanting Johnny. She loves him and considers him to be her child. After a night of not speaking and both of them feeling bad, Rhona looked set to knock their heads together and they set about planning for Charity to adopt Johnny.

Unfortunately, while Sarah brought Diane round to give Vanessa support over suffering with cancer, having survived it twice, Charity hit a snag over the adoption. She can only adopt Johnny with Kirin’s permission and Kirin hasn’t been seen for years, having run off to South America after knocking down Pierce’s wife Tess and killing her. She tried and failed to get information from Priya, who doesn’t know anything. Then Charity opted to lie to Vanessa about her progress, not wanting to disappoint her, although Rhona caught her out, claiming her pants were practically on fire! Charity looked into a private detective to help. I’m intrigued as to where this story is going.

Charity is desperate to track down Kirin…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

In other storylines: Chas supported Paddy over his anxiety regarding Eve, Andrea fought for Jamie, Victoria took a job as Head Chef at the Outdoor Pursuits Centre, Jai caught Al and Priya at it, Cain and Moira began to settle their separation/divorce, Leanna was a brat, Vinny turned out to have a lovely singing voice and why have I never noticed how cute Kyle is before?

I’m not sure Cain and Moira will ever be truly over…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Emmerdale plans to resume filming in June

For now, it airs on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays on ITV1 at 7pm

Coronation Street: I’ve Just Killed My Husband

(Monday 4^th – Monday 18^th May 2020)

Many apologies for the lack of update on Corrie. I have no excuse. I mean, I haven’t exactly been out gallivanting! Emmerdale, Home and Away and Neighbours will follow shortly.

So, we continued to witness Yasmeen’s utter trauma in the wake of stabbing Geoff as Monday 4th’s episode opened. In state of shock, she hardly knew what to do but did eventually do the right thing and call 999. Convinced Geoff was already dead, she didn’t even know what service she needed and brokenly told the operator that she had killed her husband.

The locals in the pub were pulled away from their gossiping when two police cars and an ambulance flew into the Street, straight over to Yasmeen’s. It seems clear to me that Eileen and Peter had been quite troubled by the evening’s events, something not quite sitting well with them about Geoff and Yasmeen’s behaviour that they couldn’t quite put their finger on. However, Cathy and Brian should, quite frankly, be ashamed of themselves. Even after Geoff was taken to hospital and Yasmeen was arrested (by the kindest policewoman ever), they gave a really unhelpful representation to the police about Yasmeen and her relationship with Geoff.

Fragile Yasmeen attempts to explain what happened…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Tim was devastated over what has happened to his Dad and cannot understand why Yasmeen would have attacked him. While he kept a vigil by his bedside (at this point it was touch and go as to whether he would survive or not), Sally was also puzzled as to what has been going on. I’m pretty sure she has been puzzled for a while, again, not quite able to put her finger on what was wrong.

Meanwhile, at the police station, the police took the awful red dress from Yasmeen and gave her a tracksuit to wear. And I’ve never been happier to see Imran before in my life! Ryan had contacted Alya to call her home and also sent Imran over to the station to represent Yasmeen, who panicked that she couldn’t pay him. He was so gentle and so kind to her, reassuring her about the money and begging her to be careful about what she said to the police to not get herself into further trouble. He was exactly what she needed. I am so desperately worried about Yasmeen now. My only hope is that she phoned the police on Geoff’s phone because of course he had confiscated hers so perhaps they will have to take that into evidence and they will discover the evidence of abuse on it…

Yasmeen continues to suffer…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

While Yasmeen suffered terribly in her cell, trying to clean it after the months of control and abuse from Geoff, SOCO examined the crime scene at the house, unaware that they were being filmed by Geoff’s secret camera. Tim and Sally kept a vigil by Geoff’s bed but when he woke up, claiming that Yasmeen tried to kill him, it was clear that Sally was troubled by his version of events. When Alya turned up, having first tried and failed to see her Gran, insisting that Geoff is a liar and an abuser, I am certain that Sally was wavering in her commitment to Geoff. Please follow your instincts, Sally!

Geoff lies, physically and verbally in his hospital bed…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Geoff claimed that they were arguing about her drinking. Yasmeen hit him and he has no idea why she stabbed him but that she has hit him a couple of times before. At the station, Yasmeen was still clearly in shock. She was desperately worried about Geoff (even after everything) and begged to see him (no!). She struggled to explain what happened except that Geoff had a knife. Thankfully, the police officer seemed to be beginning to piece things together and questioned Geoff not only about Yasmeen but also about his ‘violent’ ex, with whom there was the pub incident and also about his ‘violent’ ex, Tim’s Mum. Interesting that he has had so many violent exes with drink problems. Unfortunately, Yasmeen is unable to give her enough to prevent her charging her with attempted murder and the judge refused bail. Honestly, this is more upsetting than that time Diedre went to prison!

While the locals all tried to get their heads around what happened and Yasmeen’s friends begin to realise the truth, Alya made no secret of the abuse Yasmeen has endured and the way people have let her down. Roy has to break up a row between her and Tim in the café. But let’s take a moment to praise Evelyn and Rita who can clearly see though Geoff and know that Yasmeen must have been pushed to the brink to do what she did. If anyone thought this was going to be the climax of the story, they were wrong; I think we are just at the beginning of a long, heartbreaking road.

Evelyn knows exactly what kind of man Geoff is…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

Meanwhile, Oliver was rushed to hospital with another seizure and then again with a third, this time landing him in intensive care. While most of the family are sure that he must have epilepsy, it turned out he has a condition called Mitochondrial Disease. So, I went against the Doctor’s advice and Googled and this is going to be a seriously heartbreaking story. Be warned.

Leanne and Steve attempt to wrap their heads around Oliver’s diagnosis…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

While Ed and Michael endured those kind of ‘backhanded’ racist comments as they completed the building work at The Bistro (Danny has moved down south for a new job), Tim had to intervene when James was the victim of homophobia. So, not a great day for the Baileys. Not a great day for society, really.

Ed and his family are due some difficult times…
(photo credit: Digital Spy)

In other storylines: Nina protected Asha from bullies and attempted to show her how beautiful she is – I think this could be a really lovely direction for both these characters; Gary persuaded Paul to allow Kelly to continue living with him, Billy and Summer despite her awful behaviour; David continued his reckless behaviour and let Max down; Craig very sweetly reached out to David; Chesney took Gemma to a post-natal depression group, making her realise that she isn’t alone and finally; Evelyn and Arthur went on a date.

Coronation Street plans to resume filming in June

For now, it will air on ITV on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 7:30pm