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