There is a harvest crisis at Home Farm and a ferret crisis at Grange Farm

Radio Times: Brian’s day goes from bad to worse and Joe is left in an embarrassing position

Characters: Adam, Brian, Ed, Emma, Joe

• While the rest of the country bakes, Ambridge has heavy rain, necessitating a break from combining for Ed. He comes home, to find Emma trying, under Joe’s instruction, to free Peppa’s head from the fence. Ed urges Emma to make the most of a free afternoon, but when Joe wants her to watch Daphne’s latest trick, kind Emma agrees.
• Adam is stressed; two pickers have called in sick and Timon is demanding extra wages. Brian wants to show Adam the land package he has decided upon to go with the house sale, but Adam has a supermarket deadline to meet. His problem is solved when Ed rings to say the combine has broken down; Ed, Debbie and Geoff are called in to strawberry pick instead of harvesting. Brian will ring the engineer.
• Daphne is not in the mood for party pieces and sulks instead of emerging from the dark depths of Joe’s trousers. Emma is anxious that Clarrie should not know that Daphne is in the house.
• Grateful Adam sends Ed home early. The supermarket order has been met and the combine fixed. Since there is still light, Adam and Brian decide to carry on combining. Brian counsels against agreeing to pay the pickers extra wages. They discuss Alice’s recent behaviour and the fact that Peggy now knows about the house sale. Then comes Brian’s bombshell; Ruth has resigned as Ruairi’s
• representative.
• Ed returns to find Emma trying not to delve into Joe’s nether regions to find Daphne. Ed offers to investigate while Emma turns away and the sleeping ferret wakes.