Brian reacts predictably to Siobhán: they must finish the affair.

Radio Times: Brian backs off.

Characters: Brian, Jennifer, Siobhán, Tim

• Brian and Jennnifer are having a drink (Hungarian red?) while she sorts out jumble. She’s putting aside books, including spare copies of her collaborative work with John Tregorran – she really enjoyed working with him. She brings up the topic of costumes for the fancy dress ball, but Brian is distracted and really can’t be bothered. The phone rings … someone keeps trying to get through apparently. He answers it – its Siobhán sounding quite desperate. As soon as Brian picks the phone up in the study she drops the bombshell – Tim knows! Brian is obviously shaken, but relieved that Tim’s not on his way over to Home Farm. He turns, as we all knew he would, from romantic into flinty hearted pragmatist – they’ll have to end it, they always knew this might happen.
• Tim returns from Felpersham, where he has been pampering himself at the Crown Hotel. Siobhán has a go at being wifely – offering to sort him out a clean shirt, but is savagely rebuffed. He throws the infidelity in her face – What DOES she see in Brian? Not his youthful good looks obviously. How good is Brian in bed? How many times did they do it? Where – in their bed?, in the 4×4? … or what about the Merc? Oh yes, (don’t read the next bit if you’re of a delicate disposition) its a First rate car for a Third rate shag!!! Does Jennifer know? No, Tim really can’t see Brian giving up everything – farm, Jennifer, Alice – just for Siobhán. Most importantly – does she love Brian? She doesn’t know. Tim would love to go over and beat Brian up, but he’s just too respectable. Sobhan’s really got him over a barrel, and she has no idea how humiliated he feels. Siobhán, somewhat unwisely, counters that with her humiliation when a ‘certain lady patient’ paid him too much intention. Tim is incensed – he never slept with Janet, and that’s the difference.
• Brian, not surprisingly, is finding it hard to settle to sleep. Jenny’s keen to tell him her latest idea – she wants to write an Ambridge scrapbook, an archive of the village as it is in 2002, to celebrate the Queen’s Jubilee. It would include photos of all (?) the residents of the village. Brian is as unenthusiastic as always and she remarks that he’s been very quiet all evening, is something wrong. Well, he always feels jealous when she talks about John Tregorran (sounds of choking all over the land).
• Tim is pacing and Siobhán is uneasy, she is tired and suggests they call it a day. But he wants to know ‘What about me? What about us?’ He needs to know if she still loves him. She says she does, that they’ve shared a lot, but that Brian gave her something different, something exciting. Tim wants to know where that leaves them, does she think the marriage is worth saving? He still loves her, so will she tell Brian it’s over? ‘Yes’