Pat’s worries burst out and, temporarily at least, Helen eats. Debbie meets Ian.

Radio Times: Pat’s dinner-time frustration.

Characters: Adam, Clarrie, Debbie, Helen, Ian, Pat, Tony

• A trouble shared …, Pat and Clarrie both have worries about their children – Helen’s eating, or lack thereof, and Ed’s imminent departure for Hungary, about which he has yet to inform Tom.
• Adam has been delayed, not unusual for a farmer, so Debbie has the chance to chat to Ian alone before he arrives.
• Not so much quiche, about half that, and no potatoes: Helen claims to have had a big lunch. Pat can contain her worries no longer and explains her outburst on the basis that she cannot bear to lose another child. It has an effect, for now, as Helen accepts a modest increase in her meal this evening.
• Adam tries to relate a conversation with the captain of a rival cricket team but he has an unreceptive audience in Debbie and Ian, neither of whom appreciate the finer points of the game. Debbie admires Ian’s designs for Emma’s wedding cake; Ian proves that he is no stranger to poetry, although they can’t really help William out with his choice of a poem for the wedding.
• As evening falls, Tony catches up with Pat. She is sorry about her outburst but cannot help feeling that way. Does Helen realise what is happening to her? How can they get her to see someone? Pat cannot make a scene like that every night just to get her to eat a child’s portion.