Neighbours: The Third Death

(Monday 23^rd – Tuesday 24^th March 2020)

Monday and Tuesday’s episodes were kind of like a coda to last week’s #endgame so I thought I’d review them separately to the rest of this week. The first episode doesn’t have the usual Neighbours credits. It’s more like a film as JACKIE WOODBURNE, ROB MILLS and NEIGHBOURS appear on the screen for what is an absolutely fantastic two-hander episode. The second episode has the usual credits, having ruthlessly removed Gary Canning (RIP).

So, Susan is surprised when Finn arrives home alone. He tells her that Bea has gone to the Snowy Mountains and he needs her to go with him to see her as she is very upset. Always one to drop everything to help, Susan gets in the car with him, letting Karl know what she’s doing, not that Karl proves to be useful at all.

Travelling in Elly’s car, they head towards the Snowy Mountains where she updates him on the Wedding Expo. He wonders who ended up with the Rome Honeymoon Box. Clearly nobody has discovered Prue yet…

Finn admits that he had been hoping to make a future with Elly but he now knows it was a mistake. He then grills Susan on how she coped with Karl cheating on her and whether she has completely forgiven him. She says she has but the experience changed her; a part of her heart has turned to granite. Finn is full of compliments over the way she loves and cares for people. Then Susan realises that Aster is hidden in the back of the car. Finally, she realises that something is wrong.

Finn insists that Elly can’t look after Aster at the moment. He has clearly transferred his affection from Elly to Susan. Essentially, this is what it has been about all along. His mother never loved him. He wants Susan to be the mother he never had. He has now decided that Karl isn’t good enough for Susan and Elly isn’t good enough for him. He wants him and Susan and Aster to run away and be a family together.

Admitting that his memory has been back for a few weeks, Finn takes Susan to the cabin in the Snowy Mountains, ready for a new life with his new family. He shares some upsetting childhood memories with her and is clearly angry with Elly for giving him hope and then letting him down, even after he went to the trouble of removing all the ‘obstacles’. Susan is gentle with him and holds him while he falls asleep, just as his mother never did. He wants to know how much she hated Karl when he cheated on her. He wants to find some common ground. He wants Susan to empathise with his own heart having turned to granite as he admits that the only thing that makes him feel better about people hurting him is when he hurts them back.

When he is asleep, Susan seeks her escape but she is caught. She makes an excuse and soon has the opportunity to knock him out but she can’t do it. She persuades him that they need to go and buy milk for Aster. When he is getting ready, she spots his phone but he catches her with it and all hell breaks loose as he realises she was about to call the police for help. He is enraged, announcing she will never be a mother to him as he ties her to a chair. He informs her that Elly and Bea will be dead by now and that he killed Gary. He is upset that he won’t get to see Xanthe’s face when she finds out.

While Finn goes outside to dig Susan’s grave, soaking the earth with water to soften it, Susan cries out for help. Aster cries with nobody to soothe her. Susan tearfully apologises to the poor little baby who has been through so much.

In the next episode, water pours into the grave. Finn is clearly getting carried away! Meanwhile, in the cabin, Susan has fallen backwards in her chair and Aster is still crying. Suddenly, Elly bursts in and saves the day. Hooray!

At the hospital, the Island gang are being rushed in. Harlow is critical and Bea is in a bad way. Paul hurries into the hospital with Toadie. Bea tells Karl about Finn. Karl can’t get through to Susan on the phone. Well, she is a little bit busy.

Finn finishes digging what has become a rather watery grave. As he climbs out of it, he slips and falls and the water and the mud suck him into it so he can’t get out. He calls Susan for help. Faced with a moral dilemma, Susan decides to take Elly and the baby and run, leaving Finn behind to die. However, at the last minute, Elly turns back for him. She turns the water off and finds him dead in the grave he dug for Susan. Standing over him, she tells him how much she hates him and that she hopes his last moments were awful. The police arrive, just as she begins to bury him. I mean… she must have known the police were coming. And even if she didn’t, there was no need to touch the scene. Why on earth try and bury him? What the hell is wrong with her? Well, if she hadn’t been messing around with him behind Bea’s back in the first place… Perhaps to answer my question, we should start there!

But anyway, I can’t even tell you how disappointed I am with Finn’s death. Firstly, Neighbours said the third death would be someone unexpected. Finn was the first person on my list. Of course, Finn was going to die. This was his ultimate storyline. It would have been a shock if he hadn’t died. Secondly, what a weak, weird death. It was just… odd. He slipped and fell and drowned in a grave he dug for Susan? I mean, I get it was supposed to be creepy and symbolic. But it was just weird. It didn’t… fit. And it’s such a shame because this whole story, from his previous reign of terror, to being pushed off a cliff, to his redemption, to this whole #endgame story has been incredible. It’s been one of the best Neighbours storylines ever. I’ve loved every single second of it. But I wasn’t impressed with the death of Finn. He has been one of the best characters the soap has ever produced. He deserved better.

Moving on… Chloe and Pierce give their statements to Mark at the police station. (I am very excited to hear a rumour that Sky Mangel is sticking around to take charge of the case, by the way!!!) They explain about Finn, Harlow and the fire.

As for Paul… he found Toadie and flagged Harry down for help, only to end up being taken hostage by him, using a gun from Finn’s storage locker. Harry had been on his way to collect Finn to take him to the cabin in the Snow Mountains. Toadie and Paul managed to explain the truth about Finn (and Elly) to him and he let them go, informing them of Finn’s attack on Bea. Paul explains everything to David while Harry gives his statement to Mark.

When Paul arrived on The Island, he sent Chloe and Hendrix off with Toadie to get help while he, Pierce, Kyle and Roxy went to find Harlow and Bea. By that time, Elly had also been thrown in the mine. Elly had to break the news to Kyle about Gary. There’s a particularly moving scene where Paul comforts him as he breaks down over the loss of his Dad. Everyone ended up having to hide in the mine to protect themselves from the flames, waiting for rescue. Elly drove off as soon as she got to the mainland.

Kyle arrives home and breaks the news to Sheila that Gary is dead. They are both are utterly broken hearted. Kyle must then break the news to Xanthe that Finn murdered her father.

Paul hasn’t been able to contact Prue (may she rest in peace) since it all happened. He lays into Hendrix and kicks him out of Harlow’s hospital room. Roxy promises to keep him updated.

Elly, Susan and Aster arrive at the hospital, reassuring Bea that they are safe and well, although Susan is suffering exhaustion from her encounter with Finn. Elly breaks the news to her sister that Finn is dead. Mark arrives and calls Elly in for questioning over Finn’s death.

Due to the Coronavirus, Neighbours did temporarily suspend filming but currently, they do seem to have resumed so no changes to schedule so far

Neighbours airs on Channel 5, weekdays 1:45pm and 5:30pm

Neighbours: And I’m Gonna Let it Burn…

(Friday 20^th March 2020)

Down in the mine, Bea manages to get the snake safely out of harm’s way but Harlow is in a bad way, having already been bitten. Above ground, Finn stalks Gary with a bow and arrow as he searches for Harlow but is interrupted by Pierce and Hendrix, who are also out searching. He stashes his weapon and quickly misdirects them.

In that time, Gary locates Harlow and is shocked to discover Bea with her. Unfortunately, while he is attempting to save them, Finn shoots him dead with the bow and arrow! Not Gary! He’s so lovely! I mean, worse characters could have gone but I do like him. He always had a bit of the Joe Mangel about him. Finn throws the rescue rope completely down the mine, which suddenly looks a lot deeper than it did before and jubilantly leaves them to die.

While Finn is busy murdering kind Gary Canning, Chloe attempts to broach her concerns about him to Elly who will not hear a word spoken against the man she has fallen in love with. Finn returns to the site and eagerly sets about departing The Island with Elly and Aster. As they walk down to the beach, Elly mentions that Finn snapped at Chloe, which he denies. He also shrugs off the fact that his arm is bleeding. Then he lets slip a memory he shouldn’t have about their previous relationship. Elly stalls pretty well, sending him off with a task while she digs around in his bag and discovers both Bea and Toadie’s phones. She grabs her baby and runs!

Having got nowhere with Elly, Chloe turns to the others about her worries. The group try to work out what Finn is up to, misdirecting Hendrix and Pierce, his aggressive behaviour with Chloe and Gary and his response to his and Bea’s breakup. They also discuss the fisherman (Harry) who randomly brought Hendrix and Harlow to The Island.

Meanwhile, Toadie washes up on the beach, away from The Island. Paul just happens to be coming by at that exact moment, presumably on his way to The Island to track down Harlow, and spots Toadie on the beach. He rushes to help, as Toadie does his best to explain that Finn attacked him and told him that he had hurt Bea and is in love with Elly. Paul attempts to get Toadie to hospital and who should be passing and offer them a lift? Harry Sinclair!

Finn gives chase as Elly hides out in the woods, desperately trying to keep herself and Aster quiet. However, it’s not Aster that gives the game away. She lets out a blood curdling scream when she stumbles upon Gary’s dead body. Feeling utterly betrayed by Elly, Finn snatches Aster away from her. He sails away from The Island having set it on fire.

Now, the preview for next week declares one more death and shows a preview of a two-hander episode between Finn (Rob Mills) and Susan (Jackie Woodburne) which looks to be incredible. However, if they dare kill Susan Kennedy, I will never forgive them. That would be utterly unforgiveable. I read an article that stated they were killing two characters who had run their course and that the third death isn’t a name that anyone will be expecting. Nobody had really got the chance to know Prue and as lovely as Gary is, he has been stuck in a rut for a while. For the next death, Finn would be the obvious answer. This must be the end of his story now. He’s been in it as a psycho three times now. They can’t do it a fourth time, especially after they’ve done this third time so fabulously well. But if he’s the obvious answer, it surely cannot be him? However, they MUST NOT kill Susan! I don’t trust them though. They already killed Sonya.

However, back to the presents… Finn has just set a massive fire on The Island so perhaps let’s not rule out one of those people: Chloe, Pierce, Hendrix, Harlow, Bea, Elly, Kyle and Roxy. Pierce (the only character to have been in the anniversary episodes without actually being in them), Hendrix and Roxy haven’t been in it long enough to qualify for the description of the third death. Harlow would be a shame, just because she is party of a big family dynasty (and she is Jason Donovan’s daughter) but no, she still doesn’t qualify. Bea and Elly haven’ finished their stories yet. So… Kyle or Chloe? That would have a pretty big impact. Although with them teasing this Susan and Finn episode… I’m worried. I’m very worried… This show is getting as ruthless as Hollyoaks!

What does Finn have in store for Susan…?

Channel 5, weekdays 1:45pm and 5:30pm

Plus Neighbours Late: Endgame 10pm, Channel 5

Neighbours: Golden!

(Friday 20th March 2020)

Susan is becoming increasingly concerned about Bea, who hasn’t been heard from apart from a text or two to Elly since she left The Island and hasn’t yet reached Liz, who she is supposed to be going to stay with. She hasn’t been able to get in touch with anyone and is concerned that a huge storm is heading towards The Island.

Mackenzie drags reluctant Ritchie down to the Wedding Expo. He is not thrilled. They are awkward when they bump into Terese who wants to know where Harlow is and it’s not long before the truth comes tumbling out; Harlow and Hendrix have gone to The Island. Paul is too busy trying to resolve the fact that both Des and Jane have asked him to be their best man and left him to decide who to choose. He has no space in his head to even listen to his wife.

While Jane is sad that she has nothing of her Nan, Mrs Mangel with her on her wedding day, Dipi suggests Nell, her namesake be her flower girl, which is just a beautiful touch. She is such a cutie. Rather than being Jane or Des’s best man, Paul has secured acting as their celebrant so he can be there for both of them equally. And finally, after goodness knows how many years, Des Clarke and Jane Harris are husband and wife!

After the wedding, Paul overhears Terese discussing Harlow sneaking off to The Island with Hendrix. He is not amused, especially with the storm breaking contact so they have no idea whether she is safe or not. And she’s not. She’s stuck in a mine with Bea and a dangerous snake!

Meanwhile, Clive and Sheila are uncomfortable all day, encountering signs that they should get married, starting with Sheila winning a wedding dress worth several thousand dollars. Eventually, they are honest with each other. Neither of them wants to get married. Sheila intends to sell the dress and take Clive on a fantastic holiday.

Jack solves Mark and Paige’s prayers when he announces that he has got a job in Adelaide! The family can all move to Adelaide to be with Mark, Tyler, Piper and Faye and be one big happy family. Hooray!

Also, just as an aside, the background music of Queen Kylie’s ‘Golden’ just made this episode even more fabulous. Thank you, Neighbours. Thank you.

Channel 5, weekdays 1:45pm and 5:30pm

Plus Neighbours Late: Endgame 10pm, Channel 5

Neighbours: Trapped

(Thursday 19^th March 2020)

The storm begins to set in on The Island and the party begin to batten down the hatches in preparation. Gary expresses his concerns about Finn to Elly but she is dismissive. She cannot see beyond her feelings and it hasn’t occurred to her that he might have turned into a psycho again. Finn overhears their conversation and warns him to keep his nose out. Well, that makes me worry for Gary…

Down in the mine, Bea is still hopeful that there is still some reasonable explanation for her boyfriend pushing her into a hole and telling that she is in the way of him running off into the sunset with her sister. Well, that is some level of optimism there, Bea. Harlow feels guilty as she recalls the moment a few days ago when Finn remembered something he shouldn’t have when he visited her. She should have flagged it. Yes, probably but it wasn’t her fault. Bea insists that all of this is down to Finn and neither of them should blame themselves. Harlow explains to Bea that things were becoming more intimate with Hendrix and when she was unsure, she felt patronised by him so she got angry and left. She can’t bear the thought of dying without making things right with him.

Finn makes plans to meet with Harry. He awkwardly mentions that he is bringing Elly and Aster with him. The phone signal cuts out as the storm sets in. Chloe tells Finn that she knows about him and Elly and that’s why it would be better for her to go and find Bea instead. He accuses her of still wanting Elly for herself and warns her to focus on her husband. He then persuades Elly to stick to their original plan. The tension between Finn and Gary continues. Gary expresses his concerns about Finn to Kyle. He is trying to forget about Prue (RIP) and hasn’t listened to any of her voicemails. Kyle ditches Roxy in order to spend time with his Dad.

Hendrix arrives at the site and is alarmed to realise that Harlow isn’t already there. Everyone scatters to look for her, with Chloe staying behind to wait for Elly and Finn who have gone out to locate a boat to leave on. When Finn and Elly return, Finn panics that everyone is searching The Island and may come across Bea and so delays his and Elly’s departure in the guise of looking for Harlow himself.

In the mine, Bea and Harlow’s hopes are raised and then dashed when they hear noises above and call out for help: it’s Finn. He gleefully throws rocks at them. Then he flicks a snake into the mine! He is genuinely enjoying the cruelty he is inflicting upon them. There is no humanity left in him now.

Gary returns to the site, having found nothing. He and Chloe confide in each other over their Finn fears. Gary heads out to search the area Finn headed off to. But I’m worried his downfall may come when Chloe mentions this to Elly who mentions it to Finn. One minute he is satisfied that he has solved the Harlow/Bea problem and he’s ready to leave with Elly and the next, he has picked up the archery set and he’s set off after Gary.

Pierce and Hendrix are out searching for Harlow together. Hendrix is honest about his argument with Harlow but promises that he never put her under any pressure. I hope Harlow survives. I really like her relationship with Hendrix. Also, surely they wouldn’t dare kill off Jason Donovan’s daughter?!

In the mine, Bea and Harlow are being seriously harassed by the snake. They attempt to trap it but one of them gets bitten…

Channel 5, weekdays 1:45pm and 5:30pm

Plus Neighbours Late: Endgame 10pm, Channel 5

Neighbours: At Last!

(Thursday 19^th March 2020)

In my favourite episode of the week so far, Des is rushed off to hospital, escorted by Paul, Terese and guilty Jane. Jane is still feeling angry with Paul and Terese makes things even worse by admitting that she too read her emails and it does not matter a jot that they were only trying to help.

Jane and Des finally talk and realise that the last time they were together, they both had feelings for each other but she had to leave suddenly to look after her Nan, Mrs Mangel. She feels she cannot take the risk to be with him because of her terrible decision making re: Richard the Catfish. She doesn’t want to get her heart broken all over again. However, good old Dipi gives her food for thought when she suggests that everything may have happened for a reason – to bring Jane and Des together. Jane changes her mind at last, prompting her and Paul to have to chase Des on his way to the airport. Jane and Des decide to make a go of things. Hurrah!

Meanwhile, Sky and Lana’s wedding venue has effectively been ruined. Just at that moment, Dylan shows up, surprised to find Erinsborough full of wedding fever. Evidently, Sky always told him that she never wanted to get married. As she delicately tries to explain, he gets the wrong end of the stick and thinks that she has finally changed her mind about their relationship, something he has been hoping for during their entire separation and now wants to marry him. He is crushed when he realises that she is actually preparing to marry Lana.

When Terese asks to push Sky and Lana’s wedding back a day in order to fix the venue, Sky suggests halting the wedding completely. She wants things to be perfect and all the while Dylan objects, it won’t be. I think Lana is pretty patient about the situation, to be honest. But then, she’s loved this woman for how long? Sixteen years? However, it’s Paul Robinson, of all people, who sorts the situation out and gives him and pep talk, helping him reconcile the situation in his mind. He tells him that Sky has cancelled the wedding because he is so upset.

Dylan puts a brave face on and gives Sky his blessing. The wedding is back on! It’s relocated to the tram café and with Susan now busy, Jack officiates, which is a particularly beautiful touch – a Catholic Priest officiating a lesbian wedding. It’s a beautiful ceremony that long term LGBTQ Neighbours fans who all those years ago could only ever have dreamt of seeing Sky and Lana end up together, finally get to see them united. And I hold my hands up, I am one of those fans. I loved this episode. I don’t even have anything sarcastic to say. It was just brilliant and I am so happy that Stephanie McIntosh and Bridget Neval (who I gather doesn’t even act anymore but loved the character and the story so much that she couldn’t say no), agreed to return for this.

The women look beautiful as they walk down the aisle together. Dylan even comes to the wedding to support them, as do the locals, including some of Sky’s loved ones. Lana’s vows are particularly beautiful as she tells Sky, “You were my first kiss; I’m so happy you’ll be my last.”

Sky and Lana get their happy ever after…

At the reception, Jack empathises with Dylan, having been through something similar recently with Mark and Paige. He tells him that Sky will always remember the support he gave her on her wedding day. Jane, Des and Paul finally show up to the wedding, having missed the ceremony and Jane accidentally thinks Des is proposing to her and accepts so he proposes to her for real! Cue the next wedding, guys!

Channel 5, weekdays 1:45pm and 5:30pm

Plus Neighbours Late: Endgame 10pm, Channel 5

Neighbours: Boom!

(Wednesday 18^th March 2020)

Finn hurriedly cancels Toadie’s boat and contacts Shane from his phone to say that he will be staying on The Island for a new more days. He then spends the rest of the episode ignoring calls on Toadies’ phone. He reassures Harry that the strangers on The Island are kids that he knows. He is confident that they aren’t a problem. He checks on Bea, who pays dead.

The kids have a misunderstanding about getting physical. Upset, Harlow storms off and gets lost in the forest, stumbling across Bea in the mine. Before Bea can stop her, she climbs down the broken ladder and falls into the mine herself; now they are both stuck. She gives Bea some water as Bea explains that Finn pushed her in and tried to kill her; he wants to be with Elly and told her that she is in the way. Obviously, there is no phone reception in the mine and the only way out is up – but they can’t reach. Poor Bea is certain that Elly knows nothing of Finn’s intentions towards her.

Back at the camp, celebrations are getting underway for Elly’s birthday but she walks out of her own party, overwhelmed with guilt at Bea leaving The Island. Susan hasn’t been able to get hold of her, making Elly feel certain that Bea knows the truth about her and Finn. She decides that she needs to go and find Bea herself. Finn decides they should leave The Island together. Everything is working out as he had hoped. All he can think about is kissing her.

Elly confesses her guilt to Chloe, who has missed her brother’s wedding to throw this party for her. She tells her that she and Finn are going to find Bea but Chloe points out that if Bea does know the truth, the pair of them showing up will only make it worse. Good point! The girls hatch a plan to leave The Island together instead, which now makes me worry for Chloe’s safety. What if Finn thinks she is in the way now? Chloe is the best! She can’t die! But this is a show that killed Sonya Rebecchi. They could murder anyone at this point.

Roxy and Kyle continue to deny their attraction but it’s not long before they fall into bed. When they emerge from their tent, they get a shock to find that Gary has arrived on The Island. He is desperate to make up with Kyle and informs everyone that the wedding is off. He also lets the group know that the winds have risen and nobody will be getting on or off The Island today. Later, we witness a moment of very strange, intense eye contact between Gary and Finn. Will Gary rumble Finn? Will he become Finn’s next victim? I’ve had a theory for a while that Gary may sacrifice himself for Kyle or maybe even vice versa. We’ll see.

Meanwhile, Prue is tearing across the country in her car towards The Island, desperately trying to track Gary down. She leaves him tearful messages, telling him how much she loves him and wants to make their marriage work, that she doesn’t want to be in The Order anymore. She gets lost and overwhelmed and leaves a message for Harlow, telling her how much she loves her and how much she wants her to be happy. Then she decides she needs a drink, opening the honeymoon box she grabbed on her way out, thinking there will be champagne in there and… boom! The box intended for Lucy, which passed to Paige was eventually passed to Prue. I mean, it’s quite fitting that nobody wanted to go to Rome at this point but still… The whole car explodes. Prue is dead. The killed Denise Van Outen! How very dare they?!

Channel 5, weekdays 1:45pm and 5:30pm

Plus Neighbours Late: Endgame 10pm, Channel 5

Neighbours: I Love You More

(Wednesday 18^th March 2020)

The 35^th Anniversary episode begins with the original theme tune playing as none other than Des Clarke steps out of a taxi. He looks around as Shane and Dipi frolic in a sprinkler, another throwback to the olden day credits. A voice over, which blends into Susan and Karl reading through her wedding speech for Mark and Paige, throws out so many of the old lyrics we know and love. And I’m sure there are loads of ‘Easter Eggs’ I will have missed throughout the episode but I’ll mention the ones that I spotted.

Des visits Paul who is thrilled to see him and explains the story of the Catfish and that Jane is still in love with him. Des is sceptical. Jane broke his heart and dumped him on the telephone. The last time they saw each other, he was in a bad place and starting to fall for her again and she just vanished without explanation. He isn’t sure that Paul is correct. However, persuasive Paul convinces him to attend Paige and Mark’s wedding to at least create the opportunity to meet up with Jane again and see what happens.

Jack brings Gabe to Erinsborough for the ceremony. My favourite moment of the whole episode comes from the bridal party trying to decide on a wedding song. Ned (son of Beth, played by the legendary Natalie Imbruglia) suggests, ‘Torn’, which Yashvi has never even heard of. Young people!!!

“My Mum used to sing it all the time,” he says.

Mark and Aaron both wear kilts to the wedding (and Aaron has stolen Mark’s underwear!) as the wedding must be in theme with the wedding they’ve replaced (Tom and Ian – a holler to Tom Oliver and Ian Smith who of course, played Lou Carpenter and Harold Bishop). Gabe walks Paige down the aisle and Aaron films everything for Chloe. Paige and Mark are shocked when the wedding goes smoothly. They are just a normal, happy couple, celebrating their wedding day. One particularly cute moment during the ceremony comes from Aaron and David, mouthing to each other:

“I love you.”

“I love you more.”

It melts the hearts of #daaron fans everywhere, including mine.

Afterwards, Paige, Mark and Gabe gather to open their honeymoon box and Terese can only tut when she realises that Paige has swapped the box so that they are going to Palawan instead of Rome. So… who has got the bomb now?

Jane is pleased to see Des again but becomes embarrassed and angry when she realised that his appearance is due to Paul’s meddling and that Paul has read her private emails to Richard. When she tries to walk away from the two men, her heel gets caught and she pulls down a canopy, which topples down on Des, knocking him to the ground!

While Susan is worried about not being able to get in touch with Bea, Shane reports that Toadie has decided to stay on The Island for longer. Susan and Karl inform David of ‘events on The Island’, presumably of Bea and Finn’s breakup.

Jane lets slip that Sky is in Erinsborough for her own wedding, just as her fiancée, Lana Crawford arrives and introduces herself to Shane and Dipi. They explain that as teenagers, Lana had been desperately in love with Sky but Sky hadn’t understood her own feelings. They bumped into each other again and it now feels like they have come full circle. Having been dating six months, they want to get married. The only problem is that Sky’s ex, Dylan has always hoped that he and Sky would get back together. Sky had hoped that Toadie would be able to support Dylan when she broke the news but now, he is on holiday. (Actually, he is potentially dead or dying).

Kind Shane (who has been playing classic cricket on the Street with his family) offers to take on Toadie’s role in supporting Dylan if it means that Sky and Lana can go ahead with their wedding plans and they gratefully accept, phoning Dylan who immediately books a flight to Erinsborough. The girls worry that Dylan has got the wrong end of the stick and thinks that Sky wants to give things another go. Surely nothing is going to get in the way of the love story that the LGBT youth (now LGBT adults!) were denied so many years ago?

Channel 5, weekdays 1:45pm and 5:30pm

Plus Neighbours Late: Endgame 10pm, Channel 5

Neighbours: All at Sea

(Tuesday 17^th March 2020)

Finn returns to Elly, informing her that it’s all over with Bea and she has taken the dinghy back to the mainland to get some space as she was understandably upset. Elly then receives a message from ‘Bea’ assuring her that she is fine and heading to see their mother. Elly is worried and guilty but Finn encourages her not to abandon Chloe (who wants to leave anyway because of Mark’s wedding) when she has put in so much effort for her birthday. That night, Finn slips into Elly’s bed without her realising.

Roxy and Kyle continue to flirt up a storm, resulting in going skinny dipping together but remain certain that there is no sexual attraction. Yeah right. They will be at it by the end of the week if one of them isn’t dead first! (My prediction for that is that Gary might die for Kyle).

Alone in the forest, Hendrix and Harlow camp out together and it’s sort of going well. Harlow is very distracted, worried about her mother and Gary, knowing that Prue is lying to him. Hendrix is struggling not to be irritated. Eventually, Harlow texts Gary with the truth (which we saw in yesterday’s lunch time episode) but still, Harlow cannot settle.

The next morning, while Toadie shows off over his supposed fishing success, Finn plays the role of heartbroken boyfriend in the wake of his breakup with Bea. As soon as he is alone, however, he goes skinny dipping (a very gratuitous shot of his bottom) to celebrate his newfound freedom and the success of his plan. When he exits (another gratuitous shot of him covered in nothing but a small towel!), he is surprised to find Harry waiting for him. There is very little explanation as to how he is out of prison. Harry worked out from his visit that Finn has recalled his memories. Having tracked him down to the island, he filmed his attack on Bea. He also went to the storage locker and he is very concerned about the bomb materials.

Finn isn’t fazed and easily plays him, explaining that he is desperately trying to remain a good person (um… explain attacking Bea then!) and insists that he really cares about Harry and wants to keep him in his life. Harry requests that he proves it and the next scenes show them both putting their clothes back on and looking rather intimate. Finn then manages to persuade Harry to delete the footage of the attack when he gets back to the mainland. He also warns Finn that their party aren’t the only ones on the island.

Poor Toadie’s day goes drastically wrong…

Toadie prepares to head home via water taxi but on the beach, he spots the dinghy that Bea is meant to have returned home on, hidden in the bushes. He hurries to tell Finn who makes excuses but Toadie urgently wants to tell the rest of the group. Finn requests that Toadie show him the boat. Big mistake! On the beach, Finn bashes Toadie over the head with a rock. He apologises, admitting that Toadie has always been good to him and confesses to attacking Bea. Then he bashes him again, puts a hole in the boat and sends it out to sea. I mean… it seems unlikely that they would kill Toadie off but those are hard injuries and circumstances to recover from. But I guess this is a soap that brought both Dee Bliss and Harold Bishop back from the dead so anything can happen!

Down in the mine, Bea sobs alone and in pain, desperately calling out for help.

Channel 5, weekdays 1:45pm and 5:30pm

Plus Neighbours Late: Endgame 10pm, Channel 5

Neighbours: The Order

(Tuesday 17^th March 2020)

Mark B and Paige and family are excited about the upcoming wedding and honeymoon to Rome. Mark asks Aaron to be his best man. Off screen, Jack talks Brad and Lauren round when they worry that Paige and Mark are moving too fast and he also offers to bring Gabe to the wedding. Aww, he’s so lovely. I do much prefer Jack to Mark. I really need to get over this. I feel like I am the only one who isn’t delighted that Mark and Paige are back together. Am I missing something here? Well, at least Paige is a little nervous about how they are going to make a long distance marriage work!

Gary too, is very excited about his own wedding. He is disappointed that Prue and Harlow haven’t made things up and that Harlow isn’t coming, although Prue doesn’t seem very bothered. Sadly, his world comes crashing down around him when he receives a text from Harlow, informing him that Prue was forced to leave The Order; she didn’t leave of her own accord as she has claimed. Prue admits that she couldn’t pay up so she was thrown out of The Order and now they are chasing her for money. Heartbroken at being the consolation prize yet again, Gary walks out on her. He shares a heart warming moment with Sheila, which makes me worry for both their lives and then heads off to The Island to makes things right with Kyle. When Paul gleefully informs Prue that Gary has left her, she grabs a honeymoon box and hurtles after him.

Things remain tense between Terese and Paul after he used her wedding vows to write a letter from Richard to Jane. She is particularly unimpressed with the way he goads Gary. She forces Paul to admit to Jane what he did, prompting Jane to feel very guilty but also to stand up for Paul and remind Terese just why she loves him so much. Paul attempts to make things right with Terese and sincerely apologises to her. Privately, they renew their vows in place of Gary and Prue’s wedding, although it doesn’t count as one of the Big Five. Terese admits that she read some of Jane’s letters to Richard and she and Paul begin to hatch a plan to help her find happiness for herself.

Sky reconnects with the Rebecchi family but they notice that she is very cagey about her life and Dylan, from whom she has separated. She asks Jane to keep quiet about her upcoming wedding. Lesbians everywhere desperately look forward to the arrival of Lana!

Channel 5, weekdays 1:45pm and 5:30pm

Plus Neighbours Late: Endgame 10pm, Channel 5

Neighbours: Goodbye

(Monday 16^th March 2020)

So, it’s the first night of Neighbours Late: Endgame and Finn, Bea, Elly, Baby Aster, Kyle, Roxy, Pierce, Chloe and Toadie charge on over to Pierce and Chloe’s island, which is all set up with tents and invisible staff. And it’s more like the first bit of the island they reach in Bear Grylls than the one they finally settle at.

But anyway, while Roxy flirts up a storm with Kyle alongside insisting that she has sworn off men, Finn is a man on a mission. He winds Elly up by being all over Bea. She pushes him to stop stringing her sister along, not realising that a) when he’s getting intimate with Bea he’s literally visualising her, b) he has already set up a bomb to go off back home and c) his memories have returned and he has some sinister plans in mind.

Feigning the need to nap, he sends the others off to the beach to swim and play cricket in order to lay his trap – an old mine in the forest. He then dives back into his tent, pretending he was asleep the whole time for when Bea returns. The couple then head out for a walk and what do they find? The old mine! He pretends to have forgotten his old phone and wants to take a picture of her, thus needing hers. Getting her to the edge of hole, he tells her goodbye and shoves her in.

Poor, trusting Bea calls out for Finn, frustrating him. He returns to the top of the mine, explaining that he had hoped it would be a quick death. He hadn’t wanted her to suffer. He reveals that he is in love with Elly and she is in the way as Elly would always be loyal to her while she is around. Now, they will think she has gone missing and they’ll find her, having fallen in the mine and died of dehydration.

Meanwhile, naughty Hendrix and Harlow have sneaked onto the island. And who should bring them ashore but Harry Sinclair, Finn’s former accomplice? But isn’t he supposed to be in jail…?