Alistair’s partnership with Anisha looks to be in peril.

Radio Times: Anisha will not back down and Adam is out of his comfort zone

Characters: Adam, Alistair, Anisha, Helen, Henry, Ian, Shula

• Shula manages to persuade Alistair to have a bit of a lie in. He apologises for how things have gone recently. Shula says that she’s with him all the way, but he really must speak to Anisha and tell her the whole truth. He can’t help feeling that it will put their partnership at risk. Shula insists that he must take control of the situation rather than be driven by Matt Crawford.
• Helen, Ian and Henry prepare for a spot of kite making to go along with their picnic. As an excited Henry goes to get ready, Ian tells Helen that he is now the official caterer for Lilian and Justin’s big day. Helen is pleased that Lilian is out of Matt’s clutches. Ian is happy that they have found each other in their later years.
• Anisha traps Alistair before his visit. He thanks her for covering for him but still gives no indication of his “meeting.” To his total surprise, she jumps into the car in readiness to go with him. A real “captive audience.” She wants to know his story. Meanwhile, Adam joins Helen’s picnic as Ian and Henry are playing. As they are on the proposed building plot, talk turns to the meeting to be held on Wednesday; Lynda is fully armed. Just for a few moments, Helen joins in the play, leaving a bemused Adam literally holding the baby Jack.
• Anisha is shocked by Alistair’s revelations about his gambling past, especially with regard to how close he came to losing everything. She’s worried that he may be relapsing and wonders what’s brought on his recent problems. When he mentions Matt, she’s even more perplexed. At Bridge Farm, Jack has gone to sleep and Helen looks back to where she was a year ago… in the mother and baby unit awaiting trial. Adam congratulates her on a job well done with the children. Last night she saw a hint of Rob in Jack’s features, but other than that, she hadn’t thought of Rob all day.
• Anisha is totally taken aback by Alistair’s story. His gambling and horse doping have shocked her to the core. His portrayal of Matt as the manipulator in his past cuts no ice with her. The fact that Matt bought Alistair’s debts and that he and Shula had to remortgage to buy him off is apparently of little consequence. As far as Anisha is concerned, Alistair is the law-breaker and the gambler. She feels that she’s been drawn into a partnership under totally false pretences. Partnerships are built on trust and she has clearly lost all faith in him.