Brian stands his ground and resists a bribe from Matt Crawford.

Radio Times: Will Brian come on board?

Characters: Brian, Christine, Ed, Jill, Matt, Shula

• This is a rare occurrence, Brian has been sent out to do some shopping at the village shop. His conversation with Shula about tomatoes and Ed about lawns is interrupted by a call from Matt inviting him to lunch.
• At the stables, only the popcorn is missing: Jill and Shula are being treated to a special showing of Drains, The Video, starring a mass of tree roots. They have gone now, after deep excavation of the kitchen floor; Shula has the chance to choose the new floor covering although she is more worried about the lingering smell, which Jill assures her will be short-term.
• The purpose of Matt’s lunchtime meeting soon becomes clear. He thinks Brian and Jennifer need a holiday, a real holiday. A 70-foot yacht, complete with crew, is at their disposal in the Bahamas for two or three weeks. As a director’s perk, the company would pay for the flights.
• Oliver is impressed with Ed’s work on the lawn. He has a new gate which Ed might be interested in installing. Ed is happy to get on with that tomorrow even though it is weekend: there is no prospect of a band practice with Fallon so absorbed in revision. Oliver observes wistfully that women these days want a different kind of life.
• Brian is not going to be bought off. If he took the holiday, the local press would have a field day. Matt will have to go back to the Board and tear up their Ambridge development plans. He admits that Brian has got him where it hurts and Brian has no intention of letting go: those plans have got to be scrapped or he will shop the lot of them.