True to the nature of the original character, Lou was back to being his good old wheeler-dealing self this week, albeit in a struggle to make ends meet. Having approached Rocco for financial aid, Lou was given a case full of dollar bills, totalling $50,000. ‘Advised’ by Rocco not to use the bank to store it, Lou decided to keep it safe in his compost bin at No.22, quite oblivious to the rotting nature of compost, obviously! Lou used his contacts to secure other forms of income too by trading in illegal mobile phones and accepting Rocco’s offer to sell on excess music speakers. Trying to flog them at the pub caused Max to step in with a warning to Lou about neglecting his other duties. However, the entrepreneurial Carpenter did manage to sell a few sets of speakers to the neighbours, and very few other Erinsborough inhabitants it seemed!

Rocco, meanwhile, was revealed as the secret married lover of Sindi, only by the time she’d come to admit to him that she felt their relationship should end. However, the Italian stallion persuaded her to stay with him as he continued to cheat on his wife. Another member of the Cammeniti family was struggling in love as Carmella returned from her Italy trip with one thing in mind – Connor. Sadly, for her, Connor was still reeling from the scare tactics of her father and tried his hardest to avoid her, yet he was drawn out of hiding and the couple wasted no time in sealing their passion. Again. What Connor didn’t bet on was the surprise return of Michelle the same day! Michelle, who despite having cheated on Connor when she first arrived in New York was heartbroken that he had found someone else, and he later admitted that despite their unfaithfulness, she was the one he wanted to be with. The return of Kate Keltie to the role of Michelle has been a welcome one. Despite only twelve months since her departure for New York, it does highlight Neighbours’ new direction in keeping tabs on past characters and looking for ways to integrate them into the current cast and stories. Michelle’s return wasn’t the only joy for the Scullys, when Jack revealed he’d been accepted onto the coveted draughting course.

Paradise was still troublesome for Sky and Boyd in this batch of episodes, as the latter continued to behave oddly around his girlfriend. Things were complicated further when Serena used a confidential conversation Sky had with her to try and suss out what was wrong with Boyd. It took a cruel jibe from Izzy towards Sky for the couple to buck up their ideas and realise what they really needed to do was to talk things through to work them out, and that their new found sex life should be practiced so as to avoid further embarrassment. Serena, meanwhile, found herself at the unwanted end of Scott’s affections when he caught sight of her walking home, as he was performing crash stunts on a stolen skateboard. Serena was flattered, but irritated by Scott’s hyperactive nature, and bemused when the following day he raced through No.24 chased by Stuart. The newest arrival of the Rebecchi dynasty had challenged Stuart to a fitness test by stealing his belongings and forcing a cross-Ramsay Street race. Stuart, though annoyed by Scott, got some form of revenge when the youngster inadvertently smacked his head into a lamppost when he was being cocky. Although the residents of Ramsay Street have been so far unimpressed with Master Timmins’ seemingly bad-boy nature, most Neighbours fans will be aware that the reason behind his constant highs and attention seeking scams is that he suffers from Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, and Ben Nicholas’ performance must be commended. It’s not easy for such a young actor to play what is a pretty challenging role with many requirements.

Also continuing was the saga of Karl and Susan. Punishing Lisa Jeffries for handling cigarettes was the spark Susan gave her to play a cruel joke. Summer’s ‘friend’ sent a bouquet of flowers to No.28 supposedly from Karl, with a note announcing ‘utter’ regret at having broken up the marriage. Although totally contradictory to his behaviour the past few weeks, the ‘development’ was backed up in Susan’s mind by a conversation she overheard between Karl and Toadfish where her husband had confessed he still had some feelings for Susan and often wondered if he’d done the right thing. However, any hopes of reconciliation on Susan’s part were quashed as soon as she went to Karl’s. Through the window she spied him sharing happy times with Izzy. In a rage of fury, Susan rapped at the door and threw the flowers at Karl, whilst letting Isabelle know exactly what she thought of her. Summer, feeling guilt on behalf of Lisa, later confessed to Susan about the pseudo-note, and her teacher was forced to apologise to Karl, but the doctor was less than understanding of the misunderstanding and the two parted on harsh terms. The Kennedys’ story is gradually winding down now as the couple realise that there is little hope for them as a partnership in the future, and it remains to be seen whether Karl and Susan as separate entities can excite the viewers as much as they did together.

Finally, the Bishop household wasn’t spared the drama this week as Harold continued to offend people. The unlucky recipient was Lyn, when the café-owner snapped at a crying fit by baby Oscar, who has mastered the art of screaming without moving his lips and still smiling at the camera… Thankfully for Erinsborough, Harold was aware of his outbursts and agreed to see the neuro-psychiatrist, who warned Harold he’d have to rediscover his former self, which worried new Harold, who didn’t want to become a stuffy fuddy duddy again. Meanwhile, Liljana’s opinionated nature finally landed her in serious trouble, when the email she accidentally forwarded to the Medical Centre’s computer network was discovered by Karl, who promptly announced she had failed her three months trial and had a month’s notice to leave her job. How David will react to the loss of a much needed bread-winner in the family is anyone’s guess.