The Borsetshire Blue mystery remains unsolved and Alistair seeks refuge from Jim’s attempts at lifting his spirits.

Radio Times: Helen is on a mission

Characters: Alistair, Hannah, Helen, Jazzer, Jim, Pat, Tom

• Jim tries to make Alistair see that he needs to stand up to Shula over the divorce. None of it is Alistair’s fault so why did he move out when Shula has relatives with spare rooms all over the village? Alistair retorts that all he wants is a decent financial settlement. He’s only too well aware of all the local gossip.
• Tom is what passes for excited where he is concerned, about the imminent visit of Natalie, whose Nuffield experience helped her to move out of cosmetics into a spectacular fruit drink success. He tells Pat all about Natalie’s amazing marketing skills, hoping she will spread her magic dust on Bridge Farm. he is brought down to earth by the arrival of Hannah, bringing his phone, and teasing him about the saintly Natalie.
• Jazzer arrives home to find Jim practising for a lesson with Kiki. Jim asks him how he thinks Alistair is coping. He is concerned that the joint efforts of Shula, Anisha and Lavinia might tip him into gambling again. Jazzer quickly changes the subject, saying that he’s always willing to take Alistair to the pub. He might even offer to teach him the bagpipes. This gives Jim an idea and he rushes off to make a phone call.
• Moody Helen returns from a trip to the adventure playground, which Henry called boring. She asks Tom to help her taste her cheese, but Tom has nets, veg boxes and the arrival of Natalie to cope with. As tension between the siblings rises, Pat steps in to offer help. She is forced to admit that the cheese has indeed lost its depth and tang. What can be the cause?
• Despondent after an attempt to persuade Shula to allow him to bring the divorce petition, Alistair returns to Jim’s, where a spirit-lifting surprise awaits him – a piano lesson with Kiki. It is not a success, and despite assertions to the contrary from Jim, Alistair calls the lesson absolute purgatory. He and Jazzer set off for several large drinks.
• Attending her first cricket nets, Hannah is not pleased that Tom should arrive late. She learns that Ed’s ram has won another rosette and that he has had an offer of 4K for the animal. This leads neatly into a full-scale rant from Hannah about Emma, Neil, Justin and the lack of affordable housing