Brookside

Bev needs to make Josh a detachable arm, and Josh wants to learn his lines so that he knows them off by heart. But then he realises that he has left the script behind at school. Ron has plans to cheer Bev up on her birthday, but faces a dilemma when she tells him that he will not be allowed to sell from the Moby outside the school unless he donates the proceeds to the school fund.

Ron apologises to Bev for taking her for granted, and Bev apologises to Brigid for giving her the wrong impression about her relationship with him. Lance discovers that everything that Ron is donating to the school is past its sell-by date - and, after seeing his performance in the play, becomes even more concerned about Josh.

Lance tells Josh that he left the play before the end because he was ashamed, and Josh's teacher advises Ron that Josh has behavioural problems, and should see an educational psychologist. But Bev is not convinced that he needs specialist care - can Ron persuade her? Steve is short of money and bored to death, but has Tim any ideas?

Ron tries to convince Bev that Josh's behaviour will improve if he sees the psychologist. Making a delivery of furniture to a strip and lap-dancing club gives Tim some money-making opportunities, but Jimmy reminds him that any robbery will need to be carefully planned. Steve is willing to help - but then discovers that the plan involves him and Tim becoming lap-dancers.......

Candy offers to be Tim and Steve's dancing teacher as they need to prepare for their audition in front of Dirty Don. But Steve is not convinced that he can cope with wearing a thong, or taking his clothes off in front of women. Jimmy walks in on the pair as they apply fake tan to each other, and doesn't believe their story that this is only a career change for them.

Steve and Tim find that they need to rely on help from Candy to steal the takings from the lap-dancing club. But Dirty Don discovers that the money is missing, and no-one is leaving until it is found - even if this means opening up and searching through every bag of garbage. Meanwhile, someone else has already discovered and claimed it.......

Tim is frustrated that he still needs to continue lap-dancing, although he suspects that Steve is actually enjoying his new career. Jimmy starts up a gardening services business, and soon gets his first customer. As he needs help, Debbie volunteers Stuart to be his assistant - but Stuart wants to be suitably rewarded.......

Jimmy needs to raise &pound

Jimmy urgently needs to off-load the fish he has stolen when he finds out exactly how valuable it is - but he isn't able to find a willing buyer. Eventually, a plan forms in his mind - but Steve and Tim need to be persuaded to dress up, and unfortunately Stuart is only capable of providing the stupidity.......

Jimmy and Debbie have both received letters from a company offering to buy their houses. Jimmy is keen to discover more, when Stuart reveals that he has stolen a theodolite from some surveyors in the woods. But none of Debbie's children have any intentions of moving with her - Ali is particularly keen to move out - and the decision to sell isn't one that she is ever going to have to make anyway.......

Ruth regrets not being more helpful to Debbie at times of need, and arguing with her on the subject of showing good judgement when it comes to relationships. Debbie is certainly correct about one thing - she has left it too late to help Ali with his drinking problem.......

Stuart regrets buying vinyls that Debbie specifically told him he couldn't have, and Kirsty regrets planning to travel again, as the Gordons realise that they will have to make more of an effort to look after each other from now on. Meanwhile, Anthony tries to persuade Adele and Steve to go out, so that they don't discover something he hasn't told them about his friend Jonesey.

Adele discovers why all her baby oil has been going missing, as Laura reveals what Steve's new line of work is. Marty is more concerned that Anthony now has a girlfriend, and believes that he ought to have a chat with him about the facts of life. But after a chat with Jan about keeping secrets in relationships, Anthony tells Elena the worst thing he has ever done.......

Elena wants to know all the details of how Anthony killed Imelda, promises not to tell anyone, and assures him that she still wants to go out with him. But soon everyone else in the school knows....... Adele finds something incriminating in Jan's wardrobe, which leads to a furious row between Jan and Marty. Jimmy discovers that the incinerator builders now only want to buy two of the houses on the Close.

Marty feels that Anthony will probably have to change schools again. Anthony dumps Elena, and blames Jan for giving him bad advice - and, although Marty withdraws his objections to her past promiscuity, she is still not happy. Mike's teacher-training information arrives, but he is more keen to sleep than read it - and Rachel badgers him to fix a dripping tap.

Jan leaves Marty, although Mike, her taxi-driver, tries to persuade her that she is doing the wrong thing by walking out on her family. Then she discovers that he is in the process of doing exactly the same thing. They both feel guilty, but end up in a B&amp

Marty apologises to Anthony for letting Jan come back and walk out on them again - while Jan and Mike talk about the mad ideas everyone gets from time to time, and he agrees to drive her on to Salford. But a shock awaits him when he returns to their bedroom in the B&amp

Mike tries to persuade Jan to go away with him - but she won't let him walk out on his young family, as his approach of taking the easy option is how she ended up missing out on eleven years with her children and husband. Jimmy reveals to Nikki new information he has discovered about Cinerco, but finds that Ron is not the only one who may take the company up on their offer.

Staying with Ron after Rachel throws him out, Mike is missing Beth - but Jan is back home with Marty. Jimmy discovers that Cinerco plan to demolish two of the houses on the Close and built a through-road. Nikki is getting ready for her graduation, but Margi is not pleased when she finds out that her new boyfriend has a child whose mother lives next door, and that Nikki has been sleeping with someone else.......

Ruth wants Sean to miss Nikki's graduation by looking after Luke while she goes to the dentist - not that she is being deliberately obstructive, of course. So Sean sends Jimmy to attend in his place, despite Margi's objections. But both Jimmy and Nikki try to assure her that he never led her on, and he would never ever do anything to hurt her - will Margi be convinced?

Jimmy holds a residents' meeting, which goes better than he expects in creating a greater understanding of the threat facing the Close. Ron, however, is accused of splitting the community down the middle by remaining keen to sell. Can Jacqui, visiting the Close to collect Matthew and Emily's trees and take them to their new home, persuade him to think again? Meanwhile, Margi meets Sean, and reveals something he didn't know about Nikki.......

Tim and Steve feel that they must undertake another job for Hookey - the clearance of a dead woman's belongings. But they are interrupted by a next-door neighbour, alleging that the woman's niece mistreated her. Tim fancies the girl, but Steve is not convinced that she is to be believed.

Kirsty doesn't want to stay at home to go through her mother's things, so Steve, wondering if Tim will be able to keep his mind on the house clearance job, invites her to join them. But Gladys's niece is not pleased, especially when she discovers that she has been left nothing in her aunt's will. Abby suspects, however, that Gladys may have hidden her money somewhere in the house.

Kirsty, Abby, Timmy and Stevie must solve the mystery of the missing money, and prevent Moaning Joan, the nasty niece, from getting her hands on it. But they are not going to be able to save the day without a little help from the ghost of Gladys.

Ruth is surprised to find that Ali and Stuart have gone out early in the morning, and even more surprised when she discovers what they have stolen and brought home. She decides to give them the family allowance money they ask for, but tells them that unless they pay for their board and food they will have to sleep in the garden. So a tent goes up.......

Luke wrecks Ali's attempt to steal sausages from the kitchen, while Sean sees the irony in Ruth having two brothers in the garden wanting to come in, and a sister inside wanting to leave. Jimmy catches Ali and Stuart attempting to steal the Farnhams' toilet, then has to make his escape with them because Ruth has called out the police.

Kirsty wonders whether all men are as deceitful as her father, Ali spents the last of his money on drink, and Ruth decides that it is time that she did something to address Stuart's toilet problem. Then the girls discover that they will need a favour from Jimmy, because something has disappeared from the bathroom.......

While Josh is keen to find out about sexually transmitted diseases and wind, Ron encourages Mike to go and see Rachel. However, she believes they should split up, she has already spoken to a solicitor, and she is resigned to being a single mother. Will sending Jan round to try to convince her that nothing happened between her and Mike help to change her mind?

Josh wants to get an allotment so that he can invent a new rose for Bev, but bringing manure into the house might not help to persuade Ron that he is serious. Mike goes to make his peace with Rachel, but finds the house empty. By following her, he discovers that she has moved to a council flat, and is more intent on divorcing him.

Rachel is admitted to hospital, and Mike isn't going anywhere until he is sure that she is all right. But will she think again about their future together? Christy is wanting to borrow money from Marty for a stag night, as he and Leanne are getting married - but Marty is not sure that his brother is doing the right thing.

Christy is preparing for a small, low-key wedding to Leanne - but there are going to be even fewer people at the registry office than he anticipates. Adele goes to find out her "A" level results - and Marty, about to start a new job, worries that if they are good, she will want to leave home to go to university.

Adele doesn't want the Murrays to move to Leeds so that she can still live at home when she goes to university. When Marty comes home in the morning, he finds Christy drinking - and wonders why Jan didn't stop him. . But Christy wants Lance to tell Leanne something important that she doesn't know - he is dying of leukaemia.

Brigid has made a collection for Christy, and Adele offers him her share of Diane's insurance money. But, although he persuades both Marty and Adele to re-think their plans regarding her going to university, Christy feels that he has achieved nothing over the years, admits that he has lied to everyone, and plans to commit suicide.

Nic is disappointed that he and Katie never seem to be able to find time to talk, sleep together, or have a night out, because Sophie is always crying and Sammy is always poking her nose in. He buys a breast pump so that they can go out for a meal for once, leaving Nikki to baby-sit. However, someone from Katie's past turns up at the restaurant, and Nikki has more bad news for them.

When Nic confronts her, Katie believes that he is just looking for a reason to leave. Sammy is forced to admit that she obtained the copy of the DNA test results, and Katie can't believe that her sister put her relationship with Nic at risk just to satisfy her curiosity, probably because she has never had as good a relationship with anyone herself. But will she put the pair out of their misery?

Stuart is keen to beat Ali and Tommo in a race to lose their virginity, but wearing aftershave that smells like disinfectant may spoil his chances, leaving the way clear for Ali....... Ruth asks Sean to have a word with Ali to try to convince him not to move out - but perhaps it is Sean that she needs more. [ Includes sex scenes and sexually explicit language ]

Ruth insists that Stuart cleans up the mess in the garden. Ali urgently needs to find a condom, but discovers the one he had earlier is already in use elsewhere. Kirsty tells Steve she is not ready to have sex yet. But 16-year-old Stella is - and then alleges that she has been raped. The lad accused panics and runs, and needs to be found....... [ Includes sex scenes ]

Sean's actions remind Ruth of why she originally loved him, and she tries to convince him to stay around. But he still wants to be with Nikki, who thinks Kirsty ought to consider the possibility that Stella is telling the truth. When Kirsty talks to Stella about her own experiences, Stella admits that she was not raped. But will she retract what she has told her mother and the police?

Josh wants a Viking sword, and is keen to have Mike as a father - but Mike's mind is on other things, and Ron thinks he is being too harsh on Josh. Jimmy tells Nikki he has enlisted Margi's help with his campaign against Cinerco, and holds a barbecue to foster community spirit. Sean is in for a tough time as he tries to get himself back in Nikki's good books.

Josh has a temperature, and Bev is worried. The doctor prescribes steroids, and Mike wants to follow her advice - but Ron supports Bev's opinion that they should only use them as a last resort. Rachel is concerned that the DSS will catch her and Mike out if he spends too much time at her flat. There is a proposal of marriage on the Close - but from whom?

When she discovers that Katie has asked Jacqui to be matron of honour at her wedding, Sammy wonders if her sister was even going to invite her to be there. Josh feels that Mike never has any time for him, and thinks that Bev and Ron will also ignore him if they get married and have other children. Could the solution be for Ron to adopt him and become his father?

Bev and Ron discover that they need Mike's approval in order to adopt Josh. Mike is nervous about facing a class of pupils for the first time in his teacher-training, and Jimmy offers him some advice. But when he returns to the flat and suspects that Christy is doing more with Rachel than teaching her to drive, it looks as if his marriage is over.

Rachel tells Christy that she and Mike are finished, as he doesn't want her to better herself. Christy is horrified to hear that Mike almost ran away with Jan, but promises not to tell Marty. While Mike finds it difficult to concentrate on his teaching, painful memories are reawakened for Rachel when she finds Jimmy digging up his patio.

Mike tries to tell Rachel how he is feeling, but she would prefer to revise for her driving theory test, and is determined that he will not mess up anything else for her. While Mike is appalled to discover Bev and Ron's adoption plans, Rachel confides in Christy about the abuse she has suffered in the past.

Katie and Nic try to sort out their wedding plans, and Katie feels depressed that she has only a few friends to invite, while Nic has dozens. Hearing that Jessie and Ray are now intent on selling the bungalow as soon as possible, Sean invites Nikki to move in with him. But it's a commitment that she isn't ready for - and, irritated by Ruth's jealousy, she tells him they are finished.

Sean blames Ruth for Nikki breaking up with him, and, following well-intentioned advice from others, his attempts to win her back become increasingly unsuccessful. When she finally finds him collecting her underwear for a surprise trip to Paris, she panics and seeks shelter at Jimmy's. Sean feels like a failure - and there happens to be one nearby, ready and willing to throw herself at him.......

When Sean falls off his ladder, suffering concussion and a broken arm, Ruth agrees to let him move in to recuperate. Although she is not impressed to hear that he was apparently beginning to work his way through all the ladies of the Close, soon she is remembering the good times, and even considers postponing a hot date with an imaginary boyfriend to stay in with him. Sammy has a peace offering for Katie, but will she accept it? Let's hope so, as it's the last time we'll see them!

Written by David Hanson

Written by Barry Woodward

Jimmy visits a pub, discusses the perils of smoking with another drinker who is prepared to defend it, and tries to make others aware of the effects of "passive smoking" by spitting his drink over them. But they don't entirely appreciate his efforts. Meanwhile, Margi goes shopping for clothes, and Nikki guesses that she is trying to impress someone. [ Contains strong language ]

Margi plans a romantic holiday abroad with Jimmy, but there is something he wants to talk about. Nikki and Margi believe he is going to propose, but they end up hating him when they finally hear what he has to say. Meanwhile, Bev is looking forward to marrying Ron, but wonders what kind of new neighbours they will be getting.

Nikki confronts Jimmy and hopes he is feeling guilty, but then discovers that he has received some devastating news which has changed his outlook on life. A new neighbour arrives, and their initial encounters with him make Sean and Ruth even more convinced that it is time for them to move away from the Close. [ Contains strong language ]

When Marty is not keen to chain himself to a bulldozer to protest against Cinerco, Jimmy wonders if there is any point in fighting on, and isn't sure that he even has any dignity left. Can Nikki reassure him? Stuart comes home to find Ali and Tommo smoking drugs, and Anthony has a new friend who seems likely to lead him into trouble. [ Includes strong language ]

Suzie convinces Anthony to join her in smoking dope. When Jimmy catches them, he tells Jan, who forbids Anthony from seeing the girl again. Sean and Ruth study details of some amazing houses with amazing prices, and Ali and Tommo believe they have found a handy new drug-dealer closer to home. [ Includes strong language ]

When Jimmy sabotages one of Cinerco's bulldozers, the owner of the company pays him an unexpected visit at home and warns him that he also knows how to fight dirty. Ali tells Ruth and Sean his cannabis smoking is just an "every-now-and-then" kind of thing, but they suggest it becomes a "never-again" type of thing. Bev is planning an exotic wedding, but Ron worries that it is becoming too expensive. [ Includes strong language ]

Michaelson discovers that Suzie has been smoking dope, believes that Anthony is a bad influence on his daughter, and makes his feelings known to Jan with his fists - so Marty, Christy and Steve miss Ron's wedding to Bev so that they can discourage him from a repeat performance. Stuart discovers that Ali has stolen money from him to buy more drugs - but there is a more devastating discovery for Ruth and Sean. [ Includes strong language and violent scenes that some viewers may find upsetting ]

At Bev and Ron's wedding reception, Jacqui and Bev attempt to wipe the slate clean, and Mike reminds Rachel of their own wedding, telling her he still loves her. But soon she has to be rushed to hospital to give birth....... Jan is concerned that violence never solves anything, and worries that Marty, Steve and Christy have made things worse - and Ruth and Sean anxiously await news of Luke.

On their way home from their wedding reception, Bev, Ron and Josh witness horrifying scenes of violence on the Close, as a Santa outfit is not a good enough disguise to prevent Michaelson from recognising Christy - and Bev is convinced that the Dixons need to leave the Close. Ruth fears that Luke will be taken into care, Steve spoils his chances with Kirsty, and Sean is determined to succeed where the Murrays failed. [ Includes strong language and violent scenes that some viewers may find upsetting ]

Jan discovers that Anthony has been admitted to hospital after overdosing on crack cocaine with Suzie, and convinces Marty that the Murrays need to leave the Close. Ruth also wants the Gordons to leave, and tries to persuade Sean to forget about Michaelson. And Lindsey wants Jimmy's blessing for another marriage - but where is he? [ Includes strong language, and scenes of violence that some viewers may find distressing ]

Lindsey thinks Jimmy will come and live with her in Newcastle, but he doesn't want to be driven out of his home by Cinerco or Michaelson. And Barry returns to the Close. Although he doesn't want to be involved in ridding the residents of their troublesome neighbour, he does have a thought-provoking story to tell Tim....... [ Includes strong language, and some violent goings-on ]

In a 38-minute extended final episode, Michaelson is dead - but none of the other residents seem to have seen or heard anything that might give the police any clues as to who was responsible. Christy and Anthony are both out of hospital, and the Murrays reflect on some of their unhappy times on the Close as they prepare to leave. The Gordons are also on the move - but Stuart has something to return to Jimmy, who feels that he should return it to Ron before the Dixons also depart. Tim agrees to drop Nikki off at the airport on his way to his new flat, and a new home also awaits Jimmy.......