Marty Murray sprints desperately across the Close in the direction of Mick Johnson's house. He's sprinting desperately for two reasons: he's out of condition and he's just discovered that Mick's son has impregnated Marty's daughter, so he's a man with a mission. Inside the Murray abode, Brigid, Diane and Adele hover by the front window, watching anxiously. Brigid suggests that someone should stop him, but she's largely ignored on this occasion. He reaches the Johnson front door and starts banging ferociously and shouting angrily at the top of his voice for Mick to come out and face him.
Inside, Mick enters his lounge to ask a worried Vonnie what all the commotion is about. As Mick had been about to visit the Murrays, himself, with the express intention of confessing Leo's part in this whole dilemma, Vonnie tells him that that 'knock on the door' he'd been expecting from the Murrays had come sooner than he expected. All of a sudden, Mick looks concerned and hesitates, Vonnie asking him what he's going to do. Pausing for thought, Mick realises that there is nothing he can do and goes to the door to face the Murray music.
Marty is still hammering at the door, when he sees Mick appear through the frosted glass and open the door. Marty comes straight to the point. Adele's pregnant and Leo's responsible. Mick, looking tremendously abashed (even more ashamed than Jerome has managed to look all year) quietly admits that he thought that might be the case.
This admission gives Marty more ammunition with which to fire. He's shocked to realise that Mick knew that Leo had had sex sith Adele. He queries as such: 'You KNEW about this? You KNEW he'd been messing around with her and you said nothing?'
Totally mortified, Mick admits that when he found out Leo had slept with Adele, he was all for frog-marching Leo around to the Murrays with a full confession, but - he tells Marty - Leo had assured him that he'd been careful and used a condom, and so Mick had thought it best to say nothing. 'Least said, soonest mended and all that.' (I find this TOTALLY out of character for Mick Johnson - it's almost seamy).
'But he didn't use one, did he?' Taunts Marty, even angrier. And didn't Mick realise that, condom or no, he should have told the Murrays. After all, didn't he realise that Adele Murray was underage?
Mick starts mumbling an apology, when Marty suddenly realises something else. Leo left the Close precipitously soon after passing out of his police training. Marty susses the reason - was that why Leo left Liverpool for London, virtually weeks after finishing his training? Yes, that made sense ... Mick knew and he bundled Leo out of town as quickly as possible because he thought the Murrays might find out about his dealings with Adele and make a complaint, since what Leo did was technically against the law. So they rode the lad out of town to save his career.
Vonnie appears behind Mick and starts frantically suggesting that they discuss the situation inside. The Murray women watch and Adele blurts out that she's going over there to try to sort things out. Diane stops her and decides to go herself. Adele wants to follow, but Diane shouts over her shoulder to Brigid to see that Adele doesn't leave the house. She joins Marty.
Marty soon apprises her of the situation. The Johnsons knew that their lad had slept with Adele, knew all along what had happened. But Leo lied, said he'd used a condom. And they still said nothing, in fact they bundled Leo off to London as quickly as possible after finding out, to save his career. As if to emphasise his point, Marty pointed asks Diane if she's clocking what he's telling her. Struck dumb by the enormity of the situation, Diane can only manage to nod her head.
Marty looks at Mick with disgust. 'And to think I told you about all this on the quiet over a drink,' he says contemptuously. 'And you still didn't have the decency to admit you knew.'
Vonnie is still urging everyone to come inside and discuss this. Mick, in the meantime, decides it's time he went to work in Leo's corner. He tells Marty that Leo wasn't entirely to blame in this matter, that Adele had been leading him on for ages - following him around, making herself available. Diane's mouth drops open a mile at the subtle accusation. Marty reminds Mick that the fact remains that Adele was a minor and Leo didn't have to respond. Mick was a parent -didn't he feel any responsibility? Mick murmurs something about Adele's pregnancy and telling Leo - but Marty interjects, telling him not to bother. Adele wouldn't be pregnant that much longer. She was having an abortion.
Diane speaks for the first time to say that nothing had actually been decided about that yet, but Marty repeats the thought vehemently: 'SHE'S HAVING AN ABORTION.'
Now Vonnie, Mankind's Great Liberal Thinker, steps forward to try to explain the Johnsons' actions in defending Leo, but she makes a typical dog's dinner of the charade. (Mind you, this woman is supposed to be a teacher and a communicator). Smiling nervously and subtly looking down on the lesser-educated working-class Murrays, she begins by saying that when they became aware of Leo's and Adele's 'one night stand, for lack of a better word', it was SHE who convinced Mick that the best course of action to take would be to send Leo away, as Adele might become too emotionally involved with the boy. Marty reminds her, with heavy sarcasm, that his daughter was emotionally involved - she got pregnant.
Still smiling nervously, Vonnie remarks that 'these things happen.'
(I can't decide if the writers were slack here or if they meant to show that Vonnie was patently ignorant. For a teacher to use such a pejorative term to describe a sexual encounter involving an underage girl to the girl's parents and to then qualify it with such a flippant remark, smacks of disrespect with regard to the Murrays in general. 'Oh, these things happen, so we've got to mollycoddle our little Leo and ensure that his career is unsullied.')
Marty, needless to say, goes ballistic and launches a verbal tirade par excellence at the hapless Vonnie. WHAT THE HELL WAS SHE ON ABOUT? SHE CALLS HERSELF A TEACHER! DID DIANE HEAR WHAT SHE JUST SAID! WELL, HE WAS CERTAINLY GLAD SHE DIDN'T HAVE OCCASION TO TEACH ANY OF HIS KIDS! And he ends with the solid rejoinder: 'YOU PATRONISING BITCH!' (Which is exactly what Vonnie is to a degree).
Mick immediately assumes the macho defender role, lungeing at Marty and shouting that he had no right to speak to Vonnie like that. The two begin a fistfight (the second that Mick's entertained this year - think of it: Mick's fought the decidedly middle class Dr Lurrve and the very working class Marty Murray, both in full view of the Close!)
Across the way and wrapped in a blanket, Max Farnham gazes with awe out his bedroom window at the brawl. He and Jacqui Dixon have just finished their first au naturel foreplay session. Max remarks to Jacqui that Mick Johnson and Marty Murray were having a barny in the middle of the Close. She should come to the window and see. Safely ensconced in bed, Jacqui reminds him that people aren't supposed to know about them as a couple and therefore, she couldn't risk being seen at the window. Max muses: 'To think Susannah almost married Mick Johnson.'
The barny continues, with Diane and Vonnie shouting from the sidelines for the pair of them to stop. Adele and Brigid rush from the Murray house at the same time that Plank pulls up in his Escort with Antony. (Sorry, but I thought Geoff was supposed to sort him out with a decent car?) Plank runs toward the fight, and using his status in life as a plank of wood, manages to position himself between his father and Mick, thus ending the entanglement. Antony watches from the pavement. As the two are pulled apart, Vonnie manages to get Mick inside as the Murrays retreat, en masse, to their home, while Marty aims a parting remark at Mick: 'I thought you were a mate. I thought you were a friend.'
As they walk across the Close, Brigid and Diane round on Marty, especially Brigid. What on earth did Marty mean by brawling like that in public, washing the family's dirty linen like that for all to see, what got into him, commonly fighting like that? Diane rubs her salt in too, and Plank, who doesn't know the full score even when the final whistle blows, starts to chastise his father for creating a public spectacle like that. What was he on about, fighting Mick Johnson like that?
Unable to restrain herself anymore, Adele turns to her brother and tearfully shouts, 'I'm pregnant and Leo's the father!' And treats us all to her specialty of running away from the scene.
Inside the Johnson house, Vonnie is also giving Mick what-for. What did he mean by attacking Marty Murray like that? Didn't he know he could be done for common assault? Jerome had told her Mick was a non-violent man and she'd believed him, but after this ... Just what was he trying to prove? Mick responds that he was protecting her. 'No one speaks to my woman like that.'
Vonnie succinctly reminds him that she wasn't HIS woman and she could look after herself. Mick doesn't agree. Why Marty Murray was being aggressively out of order with her. In fact, he was about to hit her. Vonnie scoffs at the idea, but Mick assures her that the man was on the verge of hitting her. Vonnie tells Mick that in the future, she'll fight her own battles.
Over at the Farnhams, Jacqui remains firmly ensconced in bed. Max brings her a mug of tea, informing her that the Johnson-Murray prizefight has ended. He wonders aloud what it could have been about. Jacqui laughs and says that Max sounds like her dad. Max misinterprets her remark and thinks it has something to do with his age. Jacqui assures him that it doesn't - that his remark is the sort of thing that Ron, in character, would make. Max is still unsure about the relationship, based on the difference in age. He tells Jacqui that he is 44 to her 25. When he's a wrinkly 62, she'll still be a young woman of 41, but Jacqui jokes that she'll keep him young and sprightly. Max admits ruefully that he wasn't so young and spritely a few moments ago when they were in bed together.
He looks around the room, saying that this was Susannah's house, her room with her tastes and her decor. Jacqui agrees that this was Susannah's house and the one in which she died. But they didn't need to make love here. She suggests that Max come to the flat for dinner the next evening.
(Sorry, I have to allow myself a rant here. Since when did Max Farnham age 4 years in one year (although that's understandable with what he's been through the past year)? Last spring (2000), when he was attempting to run a half-marathon and panting after Trona, he told Lance that he was FORTY YEARS OLD. Then later in the year when he was talking with Susannah, he remarked that he was FORTY-TWO YEARS OLD (to Susannah's forty); and now he's FORTY-FOUR! Is this just lax, or have Brookside intentionally aged him so as to make the age disparity that much greater between him and Jacqui? The mucking about with ages (Diane, Adele and now Max) as well as time spans (the Corkhill marriage) has been the silliest inconsistency about Brookside this year, and one that needs sorting out. Contrary to what Stephen Pinder and the Brookside crew believe, people do notice and remember these things).
When the Murrays enter their house, Brigid is still going at it hammer and tongs with Marty, castigating him beyond belief. What was he thinking of, fighting like that in the street, airing the family problems for all to hear? She might have expected that from him, she says shortly. Poor Adele sits at the sitcom table, looking increasingly more upset and sick. Brigid bangs on about everyone knowing their business yadda yadda yadda. Plank rounds on Adele, asking how she could be so stupid as to have sex with someone without protection. He had previously thought she was supposed to be the clever one. If so, how could this have happened?
Marty says it's going to be taken care of, because she's having an abortion. Diane is adamant that she's not, backed by Brigid. Antony is horrified, saying that abortion is a sin, tantamount to murder, to which Brigid agrees and begins to bang her gong again.
By this time, Marty is thoroughly fed up and gets to his feet, addressing Brigid in particular. 'Right, you,' he begins. 'I've had just about all I can take off you. This is none of your business so you can butt out right now.'
Brigid remarks in consternation that he couldn't presume to talk to her like that, but Marty continues. Oh yes, he could, especially when she took it upon herself to come around HIS home and impose HER ideas on his children. Antony interjects to tell his father not to speak to his Nin like that, but Marty silences the boy abruptly before continuing. Most men, he reminds Brigid, actively hate their mothers-in-law, but he actually likes Brigid;; however if she continues in this mode, he and she were going to have a proper falling-out. He suggests, in none too finer terms that she leave immediately.
Brigid looks at a tearful Diane for support, but Diane remarks that perhaps it's best that Brigid does go now. Brigid says she'll call Diane later. As she leaves the house, she pauses briefly on the front step to shed a tear.
Meanwhile, there are more relationship problems abounding in Bev's flat. Lance sits disconsolately on her sofa, Fred perched at his feet. Fred is still trying to argue the case for the pair remaining together, repeatedly apologising for his past infidelity and seeking to tell his side of the story in an effort to save their relationship. Leanne, however, is having none of it, calling Fred a scumbag and telling him to leave before Bev shuts her up and tells her to go to work.
Bev then tells Lance to listen to what Fred has to say. Fred profusely apologises for his infidelities, promising that nothing of that sort would ever happen again if he and Lance were to remain together. All his other partners were just sex, nothing like what he had with Lance. He loves Lance. Lance is hurt. He feels supremely betrayed by Fred, but Fred wants a second chance to prove his worth. Everyone deserves a second chance, and with Bev agreeing to have their baby, what better time to pursue that second chance. Fred reaches out and takes Lance's hand. Lance admits that he still loves Fred, who sounds more and more RADA as the scene and programme progress.
Back at the Murrays, Adele reiterates her desire to have an abortion, but the Antichrist takes up his Nin's gong for an attempt to dissuade her. He asks Diane if Adele is really going to have an abortion. Before anyone can answer, Diane tells Antony that nothing's been decided yet. Marty maintains that she is going to have an abortion. It's what she wants, it's best for her and it's all been arranged. Plank agrees that's the best course. Diane disagrees. Plank argues that Adele is only a fifteen year-old kid, with her whole life ahead of her. How can Diane contemplate disrupting all that by forcing her to have a child that she doesn't wan?
Adele says she never wanted Leo to know about her pregnancy, precisely because there would be the sort of reaction that occurred today and also because Leo literally didn't give a toss about her. Marty agrees, continuing his argument with Diane by citing the Johnsons' behaviour in all this - the fact that they knew what Leo did, knew it was an illegal act, yet they selfishly chose to camoulflage their knowledge of the fact that Leo had slept with Adele by removing Leo from the scene as far away as London, in order to protect his precious career.
Antony enters the fray, telling Adele she can't have an abortion, it would mean killing the baby. Again, Diane attempts to placate him by saying that she isn't going to have one, but Adele stubbornly maintains that she is. Of course, she is, says Plank, who tells Antony to shut up as he doesn't know what he's talking about. Antony maintains that he does and that Adele is killing her baby. Plank says Ant is soft in the head, he doesn't even know what abortion is.
Oh, yes, he does, says Antony. Sister Margaret came and talked to his class about it. It's murder. It's killing your own baby. Plank argues that it's not a real baby, it's just a mass of cells, not really life. But Antony argues that life begins as soon as conception takes place. He approaches Adele, taunting the girl to tears by asking her how she could live with herself by murdering her baby. He tells her he prayed for Diane's baby to die and it did, now he was going to pray for Adele's baby to live. By now Adele's been reduced to a blubbering mass of tears and she again performs her specialty act of running to her room, in hot pursuit by Diane. Marty orders Antony to his room. When he's alone with Plank, Plank tells him he has to be strong in his support of Adele, because once Diane, Brigid and Antony start spouting their propaganda at her, she won't go through with the abortion. She has to be supported in her decision.
Lance and Fred are still discussing their situation. Lance still can't forgive Fred for what he's done. Fred apologises yet again and admits to Lance that he misread the situation. He thought, when he met Lance that they were so much alike and had so much in common that he naturally thought that Lance would behave in a fashion similar to Fred when the two were apart - in short, if Lance weren't with the one he loved, he'd love the one he was with. But Fred realised now that he was wrong in that assumption and he promises Lance that he would never stray again. Lance asks him how many partners he had whilst the two were apart.
Fred hesitates and admits to one or two, but Lance doesn't believe him and asks that he tell the truth. Ashamed, Fred admits that there were considerably more than one or two, but reiterates that those encounters were purely for sex, nothing like the love he had for Lance.
Lance is even more shattered now. He loves Fred, but how can he trust him? Fred promises again and again to be completely faithful to Lance. Bev, from the sidelines is encouraging Lance to give Fred another chance. Fred suggests that they don't even have to stay in Liverpool (forgetting the fact that he and Lance had promised Bev that they would 'do their bit' in the event of Bev's possible pregnancy). They could go on the run, live abroad - why not Portugal? Fred had mates in Portugal who would welcome them both. Bev remarks, helpfully, that that sounds like a lifestyle that Lance would fully enjoy.
She can't understand why Lance won't give Fred a second chance, everybody deserves a second chance. Anyway, she doesn't know why Lance is getting so uptight about what Fred got up to - she admits that the thought of what gays do in the sexual arena turns her stomach, but 'you lot sleep with each other all the time!' She urges Lance to reconsider dissolving his relationship with Fred. Again, Fred tells Lance he loves him.
Lance affirms that he loves Fred as well, but he can't forgive or forget his infidelity. They are finished.
And so are Jacqui and Max ... for today. Jacqui comes downstairs, again immaculately dressed and ready to leave. Max stands in the kitchen. She confirms that he'll come to the flat for dinner the following evening. Max is still worried about their age difference, but for the umpteenth time, Jacqui says this doesn't matter to her in the least. She wants them to be together and she loves him. He kisses her gently and they embrace.
Diane Murray returns to the Murray lounge, telling Marty that Adele won't even talk to her now. Marty accuses her of frightening her with all her propaganda about killing the baby et al. Plank is still arguing the feasibility of Adele having an abortion. Diane can't imagine that his kid sister would be able to cope with a pregnancy, much less giving birth and raising a child. Marty reiterates that if Adele wants an abortion, that's what she'll have. Antony sits on the stairway in the foyer, head in hands and listens glumly. Upstairs in her room, Adele sits in the dark on her bed, sobbing and listening to the rucus downstairs, before shoving her entire collection of CD's off her bedside table.
Back at Bev's, Fred emerges, packed and ready to go. Bev asks him where he's going. Fred reminds her that he's being deported. He'll get the train to London tonight and tomorrow catch a flight back to Brazil. At first Bev finds this hard to fathom, remarking that he buggers off home and leaves her to face a maximum of seven years in jail. Fred sincerely hopes everything works out for Bev and in the end, she relents, hugging him and wishing him 'good luck, hubby'. He pauses before leaving and says good-bye to Lance, who's still sitting on Bev's couch lost in his own unhappiness. And another RADA grad exits Brookside - two down, one to go. Liverpool 2, Arsenal 0.
When Fred has gone, Bev sits beside Lance on the sofa, attempting to put her arm around his shoulder and encouraging him to let it all out. Lance pulls away from her roughly, saying he wants nothing more to do with her either. Bev is astonished. Lance explains she's let him down. Bev wants to know why. Lance explains that she reneged on her word to have a baby, to which Bev remarks that she DID marry Fred and now she faces the clink for it. Also, a baby is a bit of a moot point now that he and Fred have broken up.
Lance continues. Then Bev rides roughshod over his feelings, making a callous remark about 'you gays all sleep around'. Well, he didn't sleep around. She's just like everyone else. She thinks that just because he's gay, he doesn't have the same sort of feelings that other people have. Rising to leave, he informs her that he'll start looking for another job the next day.
At the Johnson home, Vonnie is seated at the dining room table, a pile of exercise books in front of her. Ostensibly, she's meant to be grading papers; but she sits, complete with red biro, appearing only to look at the name on the front of the book before ticking something on a piece of paper.
Mick enters with a mug of tea for her, which she accepts. He makes an attempt to explain his actions regarding the Murrays. Vonnie reminds him that Marty Murray could press charges for assault. Mick reminds her that he was defending her, but Vonnie says that he was the first of the two men to resort to violence. She also reminds him that the Murrays have every right to press criminal charges against Leo, which is a possibility. She asks Mick what he plans to do about the situation existing across the Close.
Mick admits that he first has to call Leo and tell him of the problem he's caused here. Then he has to try to make an attempt to assuage the Murrays - offer help with the child, money or support. Vonnie agrees that's the right thing to do. Sensing that Vonnie is on the verge of forgiving him, he playfully takes her red biro and examines an exercise book, remarking that perhaps she needed a break from the stress of grading papers, insinuating a sexual foray. With a stern look, Vonnie snatches back her biro and coldly reminds Mick that he was about to ring Leo.
Adele is in her pyjamas and has just got a mug of tea. She passes through the lounge where Marty and Diane are sitting and announces she's going to bed. Diane says good-night, but the girl ignores her. She says good night to Marty, who wishes her a good night's sleep. As she's about to go upstairs, she turns and asks her father if he'll accompany her to the clinic tomorrow for her preliminary appointment for the abortion. Diane stridently announces that Adele is going nowhere near that place. Shooting her a condescending glance, Adele repeats her request to Marty, who agrees to give her a lift and go with her to the clinic. Adele goes upstairs.
Diane immediately starts berating Marty for agreeing to go with the girl. Marty says it's what Adele wants. Diane goes off on another one, saying Adele had no idea what she wanted, especially after today - her emotions and her hormones are all over the place.
Marty pointedly reminds Diane through clenched teeth that that's exactly why she should have the abortion. And he fixes his hapless wife with a cold and threatening stare, aware of her own agenda.
Summary © 2001 Marion Watts
Brookside and all related materials are © Mersey Television 1982-2001