The Archers

Lynda tries to persuade Tom to step down as cricket captain. He soon rumbles her, and Lynda admits Freddie’s come forward. She’s been so busy her wires have crossed and now she’s in a tricky position. Tom’s relaxed, suggesting they have two captains. Lynda’s not at all sure it’s a good idea, but Freddie’s on board. He’d be flattered to share the position with experienced Tom. When they get down to business Tom makes no bones about the fact they need to cut some dead wood from the team now they’ve gone up a division. When uncomfortable Lynda suggests they discuss some of the administrative duties, Tom gives himself the hands-on role, leaving the paperwork side to Freddie. Lynda prefers them to share this workload, but Tom’s discouraged when he sees the size of the risk assessment.

Tracy spots Fallon’s distracted. Fallon admits she feels she’s stealing custom from Natasha. She wonders if she should speak to her, and later bites the bullet. To her surprise Natasha is full of sympathy for her, declaring she must be disappointed not to be able to fulfil her dream of a café at the EV charging station. She understands why Fallon feels bitter. Fallon protests, but Natasha thanks her for popping by and sweeps on. Fallon’s flabbergasted at Natasha’s entitled attitude. Tracy reckons the Tearoom took advantage of Fallon. Fallon agrees. If the Tearoom fails, so be it. She’s taking the shackles off. From now on she’s going to look after number one.

Azra’s organising food and her children indulge in some low level bickering. Khalil doesn’t understand why he still can’t participate fully in Ramadan. He leaves to take Monty for a walk. Lynda feels for him. Zainab tries to cheer Khalil with the news that the insurance will cover their damaged tech items. Khalil can’t get past being excluded from fasting. Zainab assures him they’re all just looking out for him. Khalil comments that at least at his new school he’s treated like everyone else.

Things aren’t getting any better for Natasha as she worries to Joy about both the Beechwood house and the lack of returning business at the Tearoom. She’s missing Fallon keenly. She can’t help thinking that if she was there, they’d get more support. Joy’s not so sure about that; and it’s not like Natasha could have done anything differently. Natasha thanks Joy for the chat.

Zainab bumps into Brad and asks if they can talk. After some initial awkwardness they agree they can’t avoid one another forever. They talk about the last time they met up; Zainab comments it’s actually a good idea to ask someone out early on. Brad thanks her for being nice about Chelsea’s previous matchmaking efforts. Both are happy to move on. Natasha approaches and Brad tries to escape but is forced by Zainab into admitting he can’t do the Tearoom promotional videos due to his workload. Zainab sweetens the pill by volunteering them both for the pancake eating contest. Natasha’s delighted.

At the Bull Joy mentions her trampled flowerbeds to Lilian, wondering if she saw anyone else hanging about yesterday. Guilty Lilian offers her lunch on the house. Natasha’s amused as Fallon sees off some customers who were deriding the Tearoom. Lilian raises an eyebrow at Fallon’s attitude but Natasha declares it’s cheered her up. However her mood changes once she realises the Bull’s doing breakfasts. She hopes they’re not trying to take advantage of the Tearoom’s downturn. Fallon reassures her, but Natasha knows what she’s seeing. Miffed, Natasha leaves.

Kirsty still hasn’t heard from Tom and Natasha about the house sale. Lilian ventures that their hesitation’s understandable given the sewage spill incident. Joy suggests giving them a nudge. Lilian’s intrigued to discover Joy and Mick are currently residing at Home Farm. Later she pays Joy a visit, taking Justin with her, on the pretext that she’s interested in an item in the garden. To Justin’s horror she’s soon asking if she might come in and see the Gills’ kitchen while she’s here. Joy cites the no visitors rule and relieved Justin readily complies. Lilian won’t be discouraged however, and pokes around the garden trying to get a view inside the house, setting off some garden sprinklers in the process.

Freddie’s spotted an opportunity he thinks might appeal to Vince for Casey Meats. It involves working with an academy trust to supply locally sourced produce to schools for their meals. After some persuasion Vince sees the benefits and agrees to Freddie getting the ball rolling, starting with inviting trustees for a tour of the abattoir.

Frustrated Natasha thinks Emma’s wasting her time pursuing the water company when she should be focusing her efforts increasing footfall at the Tearoom. Later she apologises for being snippy, admitting she’s worried. They’re losing money and it’s demoralising. She’s pleased to see Kirsty, joking she’s at least one paying customer. Kirsty wonders whether Natasha and Tom have had a chance to progress the house purchase. Natasha promises they’ll all sit down together soon. Her priority currently is getting the business back on a firm footing. Emma suggests a Pancake Day initiative, and after some debate they settle on a pancake eating contest. What have they got to lose?

Emma congratulates Fallon on her new permanent role at the Bull. Kicking her heels on a day off, Fallon admits to Joy that it’s hard to relax with Harrison away. Joy invites her over to the Gills’. Later as they enjoy wine, nibbles and playing with the various fancy gadgets at Home Farm, Fallon wonders what Brian would make of the Gills’ refurb of his old home. Mick returns and immediately sends Fallon away, insisting to embarrassed and annoyed Joy that no guests are permitted. However he goes some way towards making up for his brusqueness when he reveals there’s a sauna he and Joy can enjoy.

Robert is taking Khalil out to reward him for spotting Constanza the llama’s injury, and he has high hopes for a great day out. Zainab tags along to the annoyance of her younger brother. They arrive at Arkwright Lake and both are disappointed to find that the treat is birdwatching at the hide. Khalil particularly is unimpressed, and cold. He loves animals close up, but not birds at a distance. Zainab, however, gets more drawn in and enjoys herself. Robert says they’re welcome to visit any time. Zainab admits that this won’t be often, but doesn’t rule out another visit.

Jolene reports to Kenton that Wayne has been offered a regular guitar gig at a bar in Panama, which he visited when docked on the cruise. The two of them offer Fallon her dad’s job on a permanent basis, but Fallon feels she needs to think it over. Kenton realises that Fallon’s been hit with the news that her dad is moving to the other side of the world, and also that working in the kitchen of The Bull might well not be her dream. He talks to her again and offers more incentives; she’d be part of the management team and one day could possibly buy into the business. This is food for thought, and Fallon agrees to call Harrison to discuss it. Later, she has great news for her mum and Kenton – she’d love to accept. They celebrate their new partnership.

Helen visits Celia Sparrow about the milk deal with trepidation. Their last encounter was when Helen deliberately gave Celia’s cheese a low score at a food fair. Now Helen hopes for a fair price for their waste Montbeliardes milk. Celia makes Helen sample her cheeses, so that she can taste how the milk will be used. One of them is the Cordwell Cream that Helen marked down in the competition. Helen has to agree it’s excellent. Using this as leverage, Celia offers way below the recommended rate for the Bridge Farm milk. Helen pushes for more but has no luck and they agree on a disappointing price. Later, Helen and Tom reflect on the deal. Helen recognises that her previous behaviour has cost them dearly. Tom reassures her; it’s a short term deal and better than nothing. They both agree they need to come up with something big to get business back in the shop and Tearoom. Tom’s sure they’ll think of something.

At The Bull, Tracy and Fallon discuss Wayne’s valuable skills, and fear customers will go elsewhere when they discover he’s to be sacked. They ambush Jolene with a plan: a soufflé Pancake Day promotion. Wayne would be the perfect person to cook this difficult style. Jolene reluctantly agrees that he would – adding that she’d been hasty in her decision to fire him on his return. Still excited by the promotion, Jolene receives a text from Wayne. She’s furious as she reports to Fallon he’s not coming home – after all they’ve done for him!

Joy and Mick are dazzled by the opulence and tech at Home Farm. As they look round, closely followed by the robot vacuum cleaner, Joy marvels at the white and shiny kitchen. A bearded dragon in a tank freaks her out, but Mick promises he’ll take responsibility for feeding duties. Joy needs a cuppa, but everything in the house is operated from a master controller, which they can’t find… With no heating or cooking facilities, they’re forced to snuggle under a duvet with takeaway pizza. This isn’t quite what Joy expected.

Kirsty confides to Fallon it wouldn’t surprise her if the sale of Beechwood fell through. Fallon tries to reassure her. Fallon admits she’s starting to miss Harrison. She’s hoping to take her mind off it by focusing on getting her dad’s job back for him.

Clarrie can’t work out why Bridge Farm has failed its cleanliness tests. As far as she’s concerned everywhere’s spotless. She hints that the blame might lie with Chelsea, but later apologises to Pat for her meanness. She shouldn’t have said it. Pat tries to rally her; it’s been an awful time for everyone. Later Helen points out some dirt on a freezer to Clarrie. Clarrie’s affronted and they bicker. Pat interrupts them with the news that Summer Orchard has had a cancellation from a longstanding customer. This situation is destroying everything. Finally Helen receives good news; they have a taker for the waste milk. But then she discovers the offer’s from Celia Sparrow.