Cold turkey at the Grundy’s field as Eddie plans the annual fowl ritual.

Radio Times: Caroline has a breakthrough.

Characters: Alan, Amy, Caroline, Clarrie, Eddie, Joe, Shula

• As Caroline prepares to help Shula at the stables and get in some practice with young people, she remarks that Oliver seems to be keeping something back; he won’t get on with filling in the forms for Social Services. They laugh about Lynda’s ill-fated rehearsal on the Green; both Oliver and Alistair were paralytic when they got home.
• Joe gets an earful from Clarrie because he was holding forth on Radio Borsetshire instead of taking down the pole-barn. But the turkeys have got to have shelter in the last few weeks of their lives, haven’t they? And even the Snell woman hasn’t had a word to say on the subject recently … they are interrupted by Eddie, who is going to treat Clarrie to a gas-heater in the shed for her turkey-plucking marathon on the 17th. Then they’ll hang the turkeys all round the pole-barn to chill, suitably camouflaged by army netting.
• Caroline’s first encounter with a young rider requires all her diplomacy. Amy has had a scare riding Boxer, and Caroline thinks Boxer’s behaviour might have been caused by his witnessing the attack on Moonlight. But she manages to restore Amy’s confidence.
• Eddie is all for the turkey-plucking being a Grundy family event, but Clarrie is adamant that the boys should not have to take part; they are both busy with their own lives – yes, sneers Eddie, Ed’s busy tugging his forelock to Oliver Stirling. Clarrie can’t wait to see Ed in hunting pink at the next meet – which gives Joe a brainwave. He’ll come in his Santa suit, to drum up custom for the turkeys.
• It looks as though Lynda’s hurt silence is a thing of the past. She is anxious to recruit a new stage manager now that Robert is to take a part in the play. But that’s not all. She feels the original ending to the plays – the slaughter of the innocents and the triumph of evil – is too negative, so she is planning to write an authentic C14 finale. Alan takes it all quite philosophically. Every village needs its Lynda, he says.