Continued...........

Later while Ron and Anthea were out they had an intruder when Ricky returned and trashed the Dixons house with Mike helpless in his wheelchair. Tim offered to help Ron protect his family by giving him a gun and although reluctant to accept he decided to keep the weapon.

Meanwhile Robbie and Jacqui had spilt up, but he was determined to find a way to see Jacqui and so decided to set off the alarm at the club. When Jacqui arrived at the pool to investigate he tried once again to convince her to give him another chance. When she refused Robbie became very aggressive, but Jacqui was saved from harm by the intervention of Tim and Jerome who arrived just in time. Ron and Katie turned up soon afterwards and during a heated argument between Ron and Robbie, Ron lost his temper and pushed Robbie into the pool.

Robbie out for revenge, later broke into the Dixon house, Clint followed in an effort to reason with him. Ron woken by the noise downstairs decided to defend his family with the gun. He panicked and shot at a figure in the shadows, but hit the wrong target, Clint, killing him instantly. Ron was devastated that his actions had cost Clint his life, while Robbie hid out of sight, making his escape before the police arrived. After being interviewed Ron was taken away by the police for further questioning, but the stress brought on an angina attack.

The outlook for Ron looked grim when after recovering from his attack, he was arrested for the murder of Clint Moffat. When he was questioned about the events leading up to the shooting, Ron lied about what really happened. Luckily Anthea decided to stand by Ron and back up his story, but the police were not convinced and Ron was charged with Murder. Anthea was distraught when Ron was initially refused bail and worried about the effect on his health.

Ron later appeared in court and was released on bail, but his relief was short lived when he had to face the trauma of returning to the scene of crime. He received a mixed reaction from the neighbours. Jessie believed his actions were justified, while Katie was furious to see Ron outside the petrol station and despite his cheery greeting, soon let him know how much she resented him being released on bail. After his run in with Katie Ron realised that life on the close may never be the same again, particularly when he received started to receive threatening phone calls.

Concerned about the safety of his family he asked Tim to look after them when they went out to Nikki's engagement party. His worst fears were confirmed when Anthea was almost knocked down by a car on her way home, she was saved from injury by Tim who pushed her clear just in time. At first Ron convinced Anthea that it must have been a drunk driver, but later admitted receiving a threatening phone call.

Both Rachel and Anthea decided to defy their husbands and go to Clint's funeral, although Anthea suspected that Robbie would be somewhat less than pleased to see her. Her worst fears were confirmed when he became violent and threatened to hit her.
Meanwhile a wreath had arrived for Ron Dixon, and realising that it must have come from Robbie he feared for Rachel and Anthea's safety.

The situation at Clint's funeral rapidly deteriorated as Ron and Mike arrived just as Robbie was about to hit Anthea. Robbie soon diverted his hatred towards Ron and his anger intensified when Mike claimed that Ron gave Clint a warning before firing the gun.
Anthea knew that no such warning was given, but when Ron later tried to pressure her to back up his story she confided in Jimmy that her relationship with Ron was suffering as a result of the tension between them.
Ron began to doubt whether he still had Anthea's support, especially when he saw her talking to Katie. He was worried that he could end up in Jail as she was his only witness and seemed unwilling to lie for him.
There was more upset in store when Anthea told him about about Jacqui's involvement with Max. Jacqui tried to explain that she and Max were in love but Ron was disgusted and said she would bring shame on the family.

Ron was distraught by the thought he could be sent to prison, which made Anthea decide to stand by him and give evidence in court that he shouted a warning before firing the fatal shot. However when Anthea learnt from Rachel that Ron intended to lie in court about who supplied the gun, she began to have second thoughts.

On Bonfire Night, the anniversary of Susannah's death Anthea was frightened by the evenings events, but it wasn't the fireworks that scared her. Anthea and Ron took Beth along to the school bonfire and were horrified when Robbie turned up and warned Anthea not to lie in court about what happened the night Clint was shot. Back home there were more horrors in store when they went to bed and found a picture of Clint on the pillow. Realising that Robbie was trying to terrorise them Anthea pleaded with Ron to phone the police, but he wanted to keep the police out of it. Anthea was furious with Ron and told him she had enough and may not back up his story in court.

Anthea was horrified by what Robbie had to say when he accosted her in the street. He told her that he was there in the room when Clint was shot and knew she was lying about Ron giving Clint fair warning. As Robbie related in detail exactly what did happen that night and said that Clint was only there to try and make him leave, Anthea realised he was telling the truth.

When Anthea told Ron about Robbies version of events he realised that he really did kill an innocent man but remained adamant that Katie shouldn't be told. Both Rachel and Anthea believed that Katie had a right to know, so while Ron and Mike were discussing what to do next Anthea called on Katie and told her what Robbie had said.

Rons freedom hung in the balance as his court case began. He feared that Anthea wouldn't support him and that her evidence would result in him being sent down. Although Ron was relieved when she backed up his version of events, the prosecution soon reduced her to a nervous wreck.
Robbie was furious that Anthea intended to lie in court and decided to incriminate himself by stating that he broke into the Dixon house. He told the court that Clint followed him into the house and tried to persuade him to leave, but Ron came into the room and shot Clint before he had a chance to explain what he was doing there.
Ron was was horrified by Robbie's admission, as it was bound to cast doubt on his statement that he shot Clint in self defense. Despite making an emotional plea in the witness box Ron was still convinced the Jury didn't believe him and decided he couldn't return to court for the verdict.

Mike and Jacqui were frantic with worry over the whereabouts of Ron when he went missing after giving his evidence. Later they were relieved when Ron phoned from the ferry terminal, but their relief turned to horror when they found him and he admitted that he had wanted to end it all by throwing himself in the Mersey, but instead decided to run away to Ireland. Eventually Mike managed to persuade Ron to return home, but he had one more shock announcement when he told them his marriage to Anthea was over.

Just when Ron thought things couldn't get any worse, two men from the loan company turned up demanding Mike repay his loan or else. Ron was horrified to discover Mike and Rachel were in so much debt, but instead of being sympathetic to their situation, he annoyed Mike further by deciding to hand over the running of Great Grannies to Jacqui if he went to jail.
Ron returned to court, but as he listened to the prosecution summing up their case the stress proved to much for him causing an angina attack. When he recovered and returned to face the verdict, he was found not guilty of manslaughter, but guilty of possessing a sawn off shotgun and sentenced to four months in prison.

While Ron was in prison, he was happy enough for Mike and Rachel to live at No8. However during one of his visits, Mike confessed he had damaged the house by causing a water leak in the loft.
Ron was delighted when he had served his sentence and finally released from prison, but was very disappointed when there was no one outside to greet him. Meanwhile Mike and Jacqui who were on their way to collect him had been held up and arrived too late. They had planned to tell him about his new lodgers Ray and Jessie, who had been living with Mike and Rachel since the fire at the bungalow. Instead he found out for himself when he got home before them.

Ron was not exactly overjoyed to be sharing his home with two more people but accepted the situation without making an issue of it.
His family meant a lot to Ron and he was determined to make a fresh start, but soon discovered that putting past events behind him may not be that easy. While out for a walk he met Katie who made it very clear she wasn't willing to forgive and forget.

During his time spent in Prison Ron became very depressed and lonely and looked forward to his release. Later he tried to cheer himself up by going to the reopening of Bar Brookie. This had the opposite effect though as he saw other people enjoying each others company, which made him feel even more excluded.
Bev took pity Ron and invited him up to her flat for a drink and a chat, but he got the wrong idea about her offer of friendship and made a clumsy pass at her. Bev was horrified and rejected his advances, so Ron returned home feeling even more dejected.

Unable to face the world, he decided to stay in bed as he sank further into a state of depression. He managed to force himself from under the covers to help look after Josh, but his good will soon evaporated as the unruly child made him lose his temper. Being unable to cope with Josh made Ron feel useless so he returned to bed where he could wallow in self pity.
After spending the best part of a week in bed, Ron finally shook off his depression and was soon making his presence felt. He was unsettled in his own house and decided to head for the Farnham’s where he annoyed Max by making himself at home.

When he heard that Jacqui and Max were planning to move to a bigger house, he had what he thought was the ideal solution, and suggested that he and Jacqui could swap houses. Jacqui was quite keen on the idea, Max wasn't quite so enthusiastic, while Mike was furious at not being consulted. Despite having reservations Max agreed to the idea, but the day of the move he discovered he had a couple of sitting tenants, Ray and Jessie. Jessie refused to move back to the bungalow, and it took some time for Ron to change her mind.

Having decided to set up a laundry business in his new house, Ron took delivery of some second hand washing machines. He soon realised that the machines would use a lot of electricity, but got round this problem at Max’s expense by tapping into his electricity supply. This must have put Ron in a good mood as he agreed to give Mike a job in the new business.
The stress of running a business put a strain on Ron's heart, and when he encountered Jimmy in Bar Brookie, he saw something that made him feel a whole lot worse. Jimmy was wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with a picture of Ron and Bev naked, and the shock caused him to have a heart attack.
The drama continued with DR Garry Parr trying to save Ron his life. Mike arrived, and wasn't’t too impressed when he saw Garry treating Ron, as he still blamed him for his misdiagnosis of Beth's illness.

When Ron’s condition started to deteriorate Mike and Jacqui were told the only way to save his life would be for him to have a triple heart bypass. Ron was adamant he didn't’t want an operation, particularly as it would probably mean going private for an early operation.
Ron made the decision to change his will, leaving everything to Jacqui, while the choice of going private for his operation wasn't’t an option any more as his condition rapidly deteriorated.
After discovering he was no longer a beneficiary in his will, Mike decided to make a few changes to Ron’s laundry business in an effort to impress him.

Back home from hospital, Ron soon realised he couldn't’t manage on his own and was heavily dependent on his family. While Jacqui didn't’t mind looking after him, Mike wasn't’t quite so keen when it came to his turn to care for his grouchy father. However Brigid was only too happy to take his place, even though Ron wasn't’t too pleased, particularly when he had an embarrassing accident.
Ron and Brigid got on well together and he later invited her to move in.

As Christmas approached Ron decided to set up a mobile shop on the parade, something Max found particularly annoying, as he was parked outside his restaurant.
There was rivalry between Ron and Christy when he also set up a stall selling Christmas gifts. Ron had a few tricks up his sleeve to outdo his adversary and decided to dress up as Santa. Unfortunately Christy had already set up his own grotto, and before long the season of goodwill was forgotten as the two started fighting over who was the best man for the job.

The Farnham's found themselves with a full house at Christmas, after Ron invited Bev, Josh, Mike, Rachel and Beth to join them for dinner. The Christmas cheer soon evaporated when Max discovered that while had he been paying Ron to do the Restaurant's laundry, he had been tapping into his electric to run his machines.
Max was annoyed with Ron over his electricity bill, but Ron persuaded him to settle his debt by playing a round of golf, after telling him he was now a probationary member of the golf club. Ron made sure Max couldn't possibly win though, so he conceded defeat and told Ron he could forget about paying the bill.

There were problems for Mike and Ron concerning Josh, after he bullied other pupils at his school.
Bev, Ron and Lance ended up having an argument as to who was to blame for Josh behaving the way he did. Ron blamed Bev for not looking after him properly, while she blamed both Ron and Mike for not taking enough interest in Josh. Eventually they all calmed down and Ron offered to take Josh off her hands, saying he could help him on the "Moby " his mobile shop.
The next day Ron returned with Josh after a enjoyable day out together. Ron was pleased about how well behaved Josh was, and said he could come with him again.

However the next time we saw Ron and Josh, Ron was in a furious mood after Josh had removed labels from dozens of tins. This had left Ron with no way of knowing what was in the tins, and so he would be unable to sell any of them. During the ensuing row he told Bev that Josh wasn't right in the head, which only infuriated her, so she threw him out of the flat.
Ron was in for further arguments one day when he arrived back on the close with a pizza, ready for a meal on his own. He saw a For Sale sign outside the Farnhams house. After banging on the door, Max answered and tried to calm him down when he started arguing about them putting the house up for sale. The situation wasn't helped when Max assumed Ron bought the pizza for them all, and started to tuck in. Despite Max explaining that he only wanted the best for his family, Ron was still annoyed that he would be taking Jacqui away from the close, and told Max that moving to a new house may not be that easy.

Realising that Ron would be lonely without Jacqui, Max believed that if could get Ron and Bev back together, that would solve the problem. First he told Bev that Ron was keen on rekindling their relationship, before trying to convince Ron that Bev felt the same way.
Ron arrived at Bev's flat bearing gifts, several cans of food without labels. During a heart to heart he told Bev about how he didn't want Jacqui to leave as he would be left on his own, and later suggested that maybe he and Bev should get back together. Bev wasn't too keen on the idea though, saying the last time they had a relationship there were too many problems. However when Josh made it obvious how much he liked Ron, and would relish them living together, Bev agreed to move in for a trial period.

Jacqui and Max were delighted when they saw a house, as it was better than any they had seen before. When Max discovered that an offer has already been made on their dream home, he put in a counter offer of £375,000 to secure the house for themselves. Ron was clearly upset by the news and Jacqui tried to reassure him that they wouldn't be moving too far away, Max though was furious when he saw a brochure on the house they had just seen, and it became obvious that Ron had forced them to pay more, by putting in an offer above the asking price.
Ron finally realised that he shouldn't stand in the way of Jacqui's happiness, and told her what a great daughter she had been.

Bev had arranged for Tim and Steve to move all her possessions, but Steve had to do everything on his own as Tim was still recovering from the gunshot wound. Jimmy helped Steve moving the heavy furniture, including Bevs bed. Ron instructed them to put this in his room, saying he would have his bed in the spare room.
Bev was a little suspicious of his motives at first, but Ron assured her that the only reason he wanted her to use his room, was because she would be more comfortable. Ron wasn't too happy though about Jimmy helping Steve, suspecting that he still had an interest in Bev.
Despite Ron telling Bev that he still loved her, and that he believed they would be good together, she was adamant she only wanted to be friends and stay on as a lodger.

Josh decided to put on a special performance of his school play for Bev's birthday and made her very proud as he managed to remember all the other players lines as well as his own. Bev told Josh she would be the proudest mum in the school when she saw him on stage.
After Josh's performance, Ron made a special meal for Bev to celebrate her birthday, but Lance told him that instead of trying to impress Bev, he should make more of an effort to help her control Josh. Ron still hoped that Bev would relent and that they could become lovers again, but when he tried to kiss her after they had had an enjoyable evening together, Bev was furious and told him there is no chance of them getting back together.
The next morning Ron apologised to Bev for making a pass at her, and promised that it would never happen again, and offered to take Josh to school.

As the time approached for the school play to begin, Josh started to get agitated, particularly by the fact that Lance wasn't there. Although the rehearsal in a classroom went well, things soon went wrong soon after the play began on stage.
One of the other boys forgot his lines, which resulted in the play ending before Josh had finished saying his lines. Josh was furious and tried to continue on his own, but as the curtains closed in front of him, he shouted out in a rage.
Bev felt very embarrassed, and worse followed when Ron later told her that Josh's teachers had suggested that Josh needed specialist help.
At first Bev refused to accept that Josh is in need of special help, but after Ron explained that it would be in Josh's best interest if she would accept that he needed extra help, Bev reluctantly accepted the situation.

Ron was happy enough living on the close with Bev and Josh, but decided to sell up and move when he received a letter from the developers of a incinerator, who seemed very keen on buying his house. However Ron later changed his mind about moving, after listening to what Josh had to say about living on the close, and decided to stay put after all.

When Josh complained of feeling unwell, Bev and Ron were not too concerned at first, thinking that he had probably eaten to much at a barbecue. When he showed no sign of improvement and his temperature rose, they decided to call out the doctor.
Ron becomes annoyed when he was questioned by the doctors answering service about whether Josh was really ill, as they seemed reluctant to come out.
However his attitude changed when the emergency doctor, a pretty young woman arrived.
After examining Josh she told both Bev and Ron that it was probably just a virus, and that he would soon get better. Ron wasn't convinced though, so the doctor agreed to prescribe some steroids, to help Josh fight the infection.

Bev was worried about the possible side effects of using steroids, so they decided to see if his condition improved overnight, and sure enough by the next morning Josh was feeling a lot better.
When Josh told Bev how much he loved Ron, Bev realised that she did too, and made the decision to ask Ron to marry her. Ron was stunned when Bev suggested marriage, but when he realised that she was serious, Ron arranged for Jacqui and Mike to come over for a celebratory meal. They decided not to tell Josh until after they have told Jacqui and Mike, and although they were not exactly delighted by Ron's announcement, both Mike and Jacqui wished them well.
Surprisingly Josh didn't take the news well at all, and stormed off to his tree house. When Ron asked why he was against him marrying Bev the reason soon became clear. Josh feared that they would have their own baby together, and that he wouldn't be wanted anymore, as Mike already ignored him now that he and Rachel were having a another baby.

He reassured Josh that wouldn't happen, but was surprised when Josh asked Ron to adopt him. Ron was overwhelmed that not only was he marrying Bev, but Josh also wanted him to be his dad.
Bev insisted they do things properly, even if it meant paying out for a decent solicitor. After making a couple of phone calls Bev found out more information, she told Ron that before they could go ahead, Mike would have to give his permission. Ron reckoned that could be a problem, as Mike wouldn't be too keen to let him adopt Josh.
Ron and Bev had decided to tell Mike together about Ron adopting Josh, but when he arrived Josh let slip about the adoption before they had a chance to tell him. Mike was furious and despite Josh saying he wanted Ron as his new dad, he said he would never give Ron permission to adopt him.

On the day of the wedding as Bev was getting ready, Josh was excitedly chatting about the important part he would play, by standing in as father of the bride. He made Ron laugh when he said that he might need to help carry Bev over the threshold. Jacqui arrived with Bev's wedding bouquet, which looked rather expensive. Ron was worried about the cost of it all, as Jacqui told Bev all about the Flamingos champagne and special security arrangements at Bar Brookie, where the reception was being held.
On the Parade Ron and Bev arrived at Bar Brookie, where Bev continued to tease him about the Flamingos. Before they went in Bev blindfolded him with her garter, and when the blindfold was removed Ron was relieved to discover Bev was only joking about the birds.
Later on their way home from the reception, Ron and Bev watched helplessly as their new neighbour Jack Michaelson attacked Christy Murray. After carrying Christy inside their house, Bev told Ron she didn't want to live on the close with Jack living next door. Ron pleaded with her not to be so hasty, and blamed Max for selling his house to a drug dealer.

Later Jack was killed in mysterious circumstances, but by this time Ron and Bev had already sold the house to Cinerco, and so a few weeks later moved away from the close for good.

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