David’s on the badger warpath and Brenda’s on the slippery slope – again!

Radio Times: Brenda’s got high hopes.

Characters: Adam, Brenda, Brian, David, Jennifer, Ruth, Tom

• Jennifer and Adam are enjoying successful selling at the farmers’ market – Jenny modestly puts it down to their top quality product and professional marketing! Adam’s leaflets with low-fat recipes are a real brain-wave, venison being so low in cholesterol.
• Brian has called at Brookfield to commiserate with Ruth and David about the TB reactors. Housing and feeding all the extra calves that they’re not going to be able to sell will be a problem again. Third time in ten years – David wonders why they even bother … they get through Foot and Mouth and rock bottom dairy prices and then this happens. It’s going to be November at the earliest before they’re all clear again. But at least it won’t affect the Herefords. Ruth is more positive than David but it’s so unfair.
• Tom is unsurprised to see Brenda at nets, and continues in mild sarcastic mode, telling her that Adam is still harvesting and will be late. He suggests that Brenda should just ask Adam out if she’s that mad about him, but she doesn’t like the idea of being turned down flat. So Tom offers to help her out.
• Adam is enjoying his first harvest for years. Jenny reports that they made over £800 on the venison and Brian offers to chill a bottle of Chablis for a celebratory drink. But Adam wants to put in an appearance at nets and declines joining them. As he leaves, Brian teases him about the real reason – joining who? for a drink afterwards. Jenny is surprised Adam still hasn’t told Brian he’s gay and offers to do it for him. Adam says he doesn’t want to spoil their relationship, they work so well together. He’s got to choose the right moment, and will get on and grasp the nettle – it’s better if it comes from him.
• David has been ‘missing’. Alistair has rung to remind him about nets, says Ruth. Too late now though – but David’s been checking out the badger sets. The whole area’s infested. It has to be a Q.E.D. situation – it’s about time someone did something about it instead of messing about with all this research and argument. Or how long will it be before they get their next dose?
• Tom tries to persuade Adam to enter the wife-carrying contest. He hasn’t got a partner and anyway he’s going to be too busy with harvest. No excuse says Tom – they could soon find him a partner, couldn’t they Brenda? Oh, and by the way, Kirstie and he won’t be able to make the ‘pubbing’ next Thursday with Roy and Hayley, so it will just be a threesome, Brenda, sorry. Hey, why doesn’t Adam tag along – there’ll be room in Roy’s car? Adam hesitantly agrees and can’t we just see the grin on Brenda’s face? Oh, Brenda …