Lilian ‘s evening is spoilt by a rival. Kathy’s evening is spoilt by gossip.

Radio Times: Lilian gets a New Year rival.

Characters: Jim, Kathy, Kenton, Lilian, Lynda, Nigel, Robert, Shula

• It’s New Year’s Eve, and Ambridge is in celebratory mode. Lilian wears her new dress to the masked ball at Lower Loxley, and receives a lot of compliments. Her buoyant mood quickly evaporates when Matt spots Annabelle, and hurries off to dance with her. But even Matt can’t find out who Annabelle’s partner is.
• At Ambridge Hall, things are on a smaller but equally happy scale. Jim tells bad jokes and joins in the fun, to Shula’s irritation, Kathy is relaxed and Kenton is full of plans to take Kathy to New Zealand, following a call from Phil and Jill.
• Shula’s Jim-induced edginess spills over when she catches Kathy on her own, and tells her that she knows about the rape. Kathy is very upset, and immediately blames Kenton – but he is forced to tell her that Elizabeth was the source. It’s the final straw for Kathy, and she goes home, watched by a genuinely concerned Lynda.