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Episode Summaries > 1985 > Episode 98

Written by Chris McCourt, Directed by Peter Andrikidis, Produced by John Holmes

Channel Seven: 31/07/85, BBC One: 16/03/87, UK Gold: 17/03/93

Recap
• Danny tells Jim that number 24 has been robbed
• Daphne and Terry discuss whether Des should tell Eileen about the engagement
• Richard Morrison asks Maria out to dinner
• Des gives Joan a sapphire engagement ring
• Julie breaks down on Jim's shoulder

No 28 - Dining Table: Des and Daphne are having breakfast, and she's pestering him about when he has to leave for work, clearly nervous about something. He says that he's glad that everyone liked Joan so much, and also says that he'd do anything for her. Daphne asks if she'd do anything for him - as her watch is broken and she won't have time to drop it in to be mended. Des reluctantly agrees to do it, meaning that he has to go and get ready and leave a bit earlier.

No 26 - Kitchen: Maria and Helen are talking about Des's engagement - hoping that he'll make it to the altar this time. They sit down, and Maria says that Des's relationship does seem to be made in heaven, unlike most of her's. She says that she was happy with Max most of the time - Helen asks how he's doing, and Maria says that he hates the bedsit, and only lives there as he knows it makes her feel sorry for him. She says that she does feel a little guilty - but not about the bedsit, or about seeing Richard. Helen asks for details about the date with Richard and Maria says that he's charming and he's divorced, and he didn't once tell her that his wife didn't understand him.

. . .

No 28 - Lounge: Daphne is tidying up and putting out some refreshments on the coffee table, when there's a knock at the door. She answers to Eileen, and invites her inside, and asks her to take a seat. Daphne starts to pour some tea, but Eileen wants to know why she's been asked to come. Daphne says that there are two things - firstly, she'd like them to start afresh with each other, as she doesn't believe in holding grudges. Eileen admits that she was hasty in judging Daphne for her 'unusual' profession, particularly as you can see more on the beach than in one of Daphne's performances. She agrees that they can continue to be on speaking terms. Daphne then breaks the news that Des is engaged, and Eileen is very hurt that he didn't tell her. Daphne thinks that Des wanted to tell her, but he's just very stubborn. Daphne explains that his fiancee is a lovely girl called Joan, but she'll have to ask Des if she wants to know anything else - and she suggests that Eileen should come to dinner. Eileen doesn't think it's a good idea, but Daphne manages to convince her, and says that she should just pretend that she knows nothing about the engagement.

No 24 - Lounge: Maria is lounging on the couch, reading the newspaper, when Max walks in, without knocking, and complaining about her leaving the door unlocked again. He says that he came to check his tools, though he doesn't think the bloke sounded like the type to steal someone's tools. Maria realises what he just said, and asks how he knows who the robber was, and he explains that he phoned, but he mistook the robber for one of her fancy men, accusing her of being out all the time. She tells him that last night, she was only next door at Des's engagement party - and Max is disappointed to hear that he wasn't invited. He goes off to check if his tools are still there. Maria says that the only good thing to come out of the robbery, is that there are now less possessions for them to fight over in the divorce settlement.

Ramsay Street: Helen is outside, collecting the post, when Joan runs over to her, apologising for coming over unannounced. Helen hopes that it wasn't too overwhelming last night, meeting all of the neighbours en masse, but Joan says that it wasn't, and she's actually come over to thank Helen for the party last night. She also asks if Helen is sure that she's happy to look after Rodney and Susan whilst she and Des are on their honeymoon. Helen insists that it's fine, but the only condition is that Joan returns to reclaim them after the holiday.

. . .

No 24: Richard has arrived with flowers for Maria. He asks if she'd like to go for lunch, but she's a little distracted, and explains that he husband is outside. Richard offers to leave, but Maria tells him that it's fine, and they go into the kitchen, just as Max walks in. Maria introduces the two men to each other - with Max refusing to shake Richard's hand - and then Max mistakenly accuses Richard of giving Maria the flowers in order to butter her up for a lower insurance assessment. Richard tells Max that they've already agreed on an amount, and that he'd be happy to talk him through it. Maria tells Max that Richard has come to see her on a personal visit, and she thinks that Max should leave - he tells Maria not to come crying to him when she gets a low payout. Once Max has gone, Maria apologises for his behaviour. Richard asks if things are definitely over for her and Max, and Maria says that they are, but Max sometimes forgets that. They then leave to go and have lunch.

No 28: Des is trying to get his chequebook to balance, as Daphne comes in with some bags of groceries. He follows her into the kitchen, noticing some interesting ingredients, and she explains that they've having someone over for dinner - his mother. At first, Des thinks she's joking, but gets annoyed when he realises that Daphne has really invited Eileen. He thinks she's going to try and ruin the engagement when she finds out about it, but Daphne believes that she has the right to know about it. She thinks that Des would just have regretted it if he'd left his mum out, and that he'd feel the same way if he had kids who'd treated him like that. Des reluctantly backs down from the argument, but he's clearly still unhappy about his mother's visit.

No 26 - Back Garden: Max walks around the side of the house, and finds Helen reading a book. He tells her that he feels like an idiot, and then sits down to explain that he just found out and Maria and Richard. Helen wonders if he's jealous, and he says that he's beginning to feel like he's the last to know about everything. He asks if Maria brought Richard to the engagement party, and Helen insists that she hasn't met him, but she also says that they didn't invite Max because they all felt that he could do with some time away from Maria. She asks Max to stay for dinner, to make up for the party, and he tells her that he doesn't want any charity. Helen just laughs, and says that if he does decide to stay, that she doesn't want to see him peeking through the curtains and spying on Maria.

. . .

No 28: Des, Daphne and Eileen are finishing dinner, and Eileen says that Des will have to learn to cook soon, as Daphne is bound to find herself snapped up by a man. She continues to drop hints, but Des gets annoyed at her interference and goes to the kitchen, while a frustrated Eileen goes into the lounge. Daphne follows Des, and asks if he's going to tell his mum about the engagement. Des doesn't see any point, as Eileen hasn't changed and never will, but Daphne then forces him to do it, threatening to do it herself if he doesn't. Des goes over to Eileen and tells her that he's met someone and he's going to marry her, whether Eileen likes it or not. He's shocked as Eileen says that her greatest wish was for her 'Desmond' to find a woman and settle down, and how her wish has come true. Eileen hugs her son, and Des smiles.

Langdon House: The next morning, Des is telling Joan about his mum's surprise reaction to the news, and Joan says that she can't wait to meet Eileen, as she certainly sounds interesting. She also thinks that it was very nice of Daphne to go to all that trouble. Des then says that he needs to get to work, but he gives Joan a key to his house, and suggests that she should go over that morning, as he told Daphne to look over the furniture and decide what she wants to keep. Joan says that, if nobody's home, she can look through all of Des's old love letters.

Ramsay Street - No 26 Front Door: Eileen is banging on the door, trying to get someone's attention. She's about to give up, when she spots Helen down in the garden, trying to hide from her. Realising she's been spotted, Helen comes over and asks how Eileen is - Eileen says that she's delighted to hear the news about Des's engagement. Helen is then forced to invite her inside.

No 26: Eileen follows Helen into the house, talking about how wonderful it is to have moved on from the bad patch she went through with Des. She explains that she was going to call in at number 28 and have a look around, and try to get some ideas for a wedding gift, but she appears to have mislaid her key. She asks if Helen has a key, and Helen explains that she does, before reluctantly handing it over.

No 28: Eileen lets herself in, and immediately starts snooping through Des's personal documents.

. . .

Ramsay Street: Joan, Rodney and Susan walk up the street, and they spot Basil outside number 26. The kids start fussing over him, and Joan leaves them and tells them to come into Des's house when they've finished.

No 28: Eileen continues to snoop, but stops when she hears someone coming in. She goes over, thinking it must be Terry, but then Joan introduces herself, and Eileen is delighted to meet her. However, as Susan and Rodney come into the house, and Joan introduces them, Eileen's face suddenly drops.

Regular Cast Credits

Featured Regular Characters: Max Ramsay, Maria Ramsay, Helen Daniels, Des Clarke, Daphne Lawrence

Guest Cast: Myra De Groot as Eileen Clarke, Catherine Lynch as Joan Langdon, Peter Flett as Richard Morrison, Glendon Vernon as Rodney Langdon, Nerolee Vernon as Susan Langdon

Trivia Notes
• First appearance of Myra De Groot as Eileen Clarke since episode 24

Summary by Steve