Siobhán surprises Brian; she is going back to Ireland for good.

Radio Times: Siobhán gets her own back.

Characters: Brian, Clarrie, David, Heather, Kirsty, Lynda, Siobhán

• Lynda has returned and thinks the Christmas trees on the green are an eyesore. Now she is organising her Hogmanay party and she wants Jazzer’s address.
• Heather has taken her son-in-law for a drink; she wants a quiet word without Ruth. David immediately assumes that she has noticed something about Ruth’s health, always a worry. But no, she just wants to know if they have money troubles. David treats her to a run-down of the economics of farming.
• Clarrie is working in The Bull, since the Grundy World of Christmas was not quite the money spinner it was hoped to be. Kirsty bemoans the little time Tom has spent with her. Sausages, it seems, come first; now he is too tired to go out.
• Brian has finally got round to seeing Siobhán and his son. Ruairidh’s present of a panda produces a smile. Siobhán gets a Victorian locket, which seems to go with the Victorian situation in which she finds herself. Now Brian wants to talk about how and when he is going to see them.
• Heather has been talking to Chaba, so is able to tell Kirsty that he is quite smitten with her, certainly more so than with Fallon. She is of course ‘spoken for’ but Chaba is probably not going to let that stand in his way.
• The question of access is difficult. Siobhán has given it a lot of thought (mostly on Christmas Day) but she lets Brian ramble on with his ideas first. Then comes the bombshell. She is going to Ireland next week and she cannot ring him when she gets back because she is not coming back. A fresh start with Ruairidh would be for the best; Brian does not want her and a clean break is the only way she can bear it. Brian has made his decision, now Siobhán has made hers.