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Magic Moments > 1992 > The Martins' Arrival Episode 1726

Written by Jeffrey Truman, Directed by Gary Conway

At Todd’s funeral, Bob Landers is being led back to the car by prison officers when he grabs Helen and a gun and tells them to open the car. Helen gets in the front and Bob sits behind with the gun to her head and tells her to drive...

At number 30, Phoebe gets back and Dorothy asks how if she’s ok. She decides that she doesn’t want to go to number 26 for the wake. Dorothy thinks that she should, and says that when her mother died, they had a big Irish wake and celebrated her life, and it made her feel a lot better. Dorothy suggests that talking to Jim, Helen and Annette might make Phoebe remember the day more fondly. Phoebe thinks that Dorothy is right, but she says that this isn’t like when her dad died, and now, she just wants to be on her own for a while.

. . .

At number 26, various mourners get back and Paul thinks that they should be doing something. Jim disagrees and says that Bob has a gun, and there’s no sense in putting any more lives in danger. Paul is furious with his father for not doing anything. Annette comes in and says she’s not feeling too well, so Pam goes to get her some aspirin and tells her to have a lie down.

. . .

Meanwhile, Helen is driving the car down an old dusty track and she asks Bob where he intends on taking her. He says that he just needs to get away, and Helen suggests using the freeway instead. He says that he’s not stupid – the police will have all major roads covered. Helen tells him that he’ll never get away with this, and she can’t believe that he would do something like this at his own son’s funeral. Bob says that he didn’t want Todd to see him as a failure, but Helen points out that he’s never cared about Todd’s feelings in the past. Bob sits back and assures Helen that he did love Todd, despite everything that’s happened. Helen says that they just passed a phone box and suggests that Bob should stop and phone Cameron. Bob suddenly snaps back to life and tells Helen to carry on driving.

At number 32, Cameron is meeting with Jacqueline about her case, and apologises for being late. He gets straight down to business, and asks her if she can remember Paxton ever mentioning any friends or business associates, as they need another lead. Jacqueline can’t remember any names, but Cameron tells her to try harder, as this could be their only hope. She asks him why he’s suddenly so uptight, and he reminds her that he’s her lawyer now, and they need to be professional. He says that she could be facing a long jail term if they don’t come up with something. She reminds him that she’s innocent, but he says that it doesn’t matter if they can’t prove it.

. . .

. . .

Lost on a country road, the Martin family are driving to Erinsborough, and Julie is complaining that they’ve well and truly missed Todd’s funeral now. She wonders why Philip had to get off the freeway in the first place, and he says that he thought it would be quicker and the route would be better signposted. Hannah starts to complain that she’s hungry and Julie says that they’ll stop as soon as they find something resembling civilisation. They drive past a phone box and Julie asks Philip to stop so she can call Jim and let him know the situation. After Julie gets out, Hannah starts complaining that she needs the toilet, so she and Philip get out to go and find a bush.

At number 26, Paul is still complaining about the police taking so long to report back to them with any kind of update. Pam thinks that Bob is extremely good at keeping a low profile, and remembers the previous Christmas when he spent weeks hiding out at number 32. The phone rings, and Jim answers. It’s Julie, apologising for being late. Jim tells her that she’s missed the funeral and she says that they hope to be there before dark. Hannah then bursts into the phone box asking to speak to Grandad. She starts speaking to him, as Paul tells him to stop tying up the phoneline. Hannah asks Jim if she can speak to Granny Helen, but Jim says that she’s busy. Julie takes the phone and tells her father that they should get moving. Jim hangs up and admits to Paul that he couldn’t bring himself to tell Julie what had happened.

. . .

. . .

In the middle of nowhere, Bob makes Helen stop the car. He gets out and drags Helen out, telling her that she’s on her own now, and by the time she finds a farmhouse or another car, he’ll be long gone. She says that she can hardly walk any distance since her hip operation, but Bob doesn’t seem to care. He assures Helen that he really did love Todd, and asks her to arrange some kind of headstone so that his grave isn’t unmarked. He drives away.

At number 30, Phoebe is looking through old photos and love letters from Todd. Dorothy comes in and asks if she can help, but Phoebe says that this is something she has to do alone. Dorothy asks about the letter and Phoebe explains that this is the letter that she wrote to Todd when he was in Adelaide, and he almost didn’t get it. She says that it was amazing that he ever got it and they ever got themselves together. She says that she wants the baby to know everything about her father, and goes off to her room to find more stuff. Pam then arrives and Dorothy explains what’s going on. They sit down in the kitchen, and Dorothy admits that she’s worried about Phoebe’s decision to keep the baby out of devotion to Todd, as she feels that it’s going to destroy her future. Pam thinks she just needs some more time. Dorothy then asks about the wake, and Pam says that it’s been a terrible day.

. . .

Back in the Martins’ car, Julie is still sceptical about Philip’s sense of direction, but he assures her that he now knows where he’s going. Debbie and Hannah complain about being bored and Philip says that they’re lucky to be driving through such beautiful countryside. He starts pointing things out, and as everyone else is looking in the other direction, Hannah spots Helen trying to flag them down. She insists that she’s just seen Granny Helen, but Julie tells her it was probably just a farmer’s wife who looked like her. Hannah gets annoyed that nobody believes her, and Philip tells her to calm down or she’ll make herself sick again. He starts a game of I Spy, but Hannah continues to insist that she saw Helen.

At number 26, Paul is wondering why they haven’t heard anything. Jim tells him to go home and wait with Chrissie and Andrew, but he insists that he’d rather be at number 26. He says that he won’t be able to control himself if Bob harms even one hair on Helen’s head. Jim agrees, and says that Bob has been a mill stone around the Robinson family’s neck for years.

. . .

At number 32, Cameron gets off the phone from a friend who has some police sources. He tells Jacqueline that the police received an anonymous call tipping them off to Paxton’s location, so if they find out who made their call, they’ve probably got Paxton’s accomplice. Jacqueline then wonders why Paxton gave her name instead of the real accomplice. Cameron agrees that it’s strange, but he still thinks that they’ve found a good lead.

The Martins are still lost, and have decided to turn the car around. Julie is complaining, but Philip insists that it looked right on the map. Hannah asks if they’re going to find Granny Helen, and Julie says that they’re going to look for the person she spotted and ask for directions. Philip and Julie are then stunned to see Helen walking along the road towards them. They get out of the car and Hannah runs towards her. Helen is amazed to see them all, and Hannah asks her if she ran away from home. Helen happily tells her that no, she didn’t run away.

. . .

At number 32, Jacqueline still isn’t convinced that the anonymous caller was Paxton’s accomplice, and she admits that she doesn’t want Cameron to be disappointed if this lead gets them nowhere. She goes to leave, and thanks Cameron for giving up so much of his time to help her. She asks if it would be unethical if she gave him a thank you kiss on the cheek. He says that it wouldn’t, so she does.

At number 30, Annette has come over to tell Dorothy the news about Helen being found alive and well. Annette thinks that Helen should buy a lottery ticket, and they both agree that there’s no need to tell Phoebe about any of the events, as she’s still so fragile. Dorothy then goes to get Phoebe, as Annette wants to say goodbye before she returns to Katie in Adelaide. Annette promises to visit when the baby’s born and says that she’s glad she decided to keep it. They hug, but Dorothy doesn’t look too pleased.

. . .

At number 26, Paul is updating Chrissie on the phone and Pam and Doug decide that they should leave. As he opens the door, the Martins and Helen are standing there. Hannah starts telling Jim how she found Granny Helen, and everyone laughs about Philip’s poor sense of direction saving the day. Jim introduces Pam, Doug and Beth to the Martins, before various family members go to collect bags from the car and make some food. Helen is left alone with Julie and Jim and she says that she couldn’t really help the police very much as Bob gave nothing away. Jim hopes that it’s the last they’ll see of him.

. . .

At number 32, Pam and Doug have called in on Cameron to tell him the news. He apologises for having to leave the wake, but he explains that he had a meeting with Jacqueline. Doug comments that she’s a good looking woman, and Cameron says that they can’t really relax until after the trial. The phone then rings and Cameron is shocked by some news. He tells Pam and Doug that Jacqueline’s been arrested.

Notes: The roles of Julie, Philip and Debbie Martin have all been recast since the characters were last seen in 1985. Julie, then played by Vikki Blanche, is now played by Julie Mullins, Ian Rawlings has taken over from Christoper Milne as Philip, while Debbie, played by both Mandy Storvik and Katrina McEwan in 1985, is now played by Marnie Reece-Wilmore. Despite having never been mentioned, Julie and Philip have acquired another daughter, Hannah, who seems old enough to have been born before her parents ever met, while Philip, who was paralysed from the waist down when last seen, can now walk once more.

Summary by Steve