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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Spells &amp; Karma" data-source="post: 380660" data-attributes="member: 23">Episodes 226 - 230 26 December 1984 - 8 January 1985 New Year and new baby with the arrival of the Grants’ - as yet unnamed - fourth child. As you’d expect from Sue Johnston, it was wonderfully done. I’ve never seen a woman going through labour pains or giving birth, but everything about this looked well-researched and grounded in reality. There were no histrionics or going OTT with panting and screaming, but everything she was experiencing was transmitted to the audience, including a brilliant surprised look on her face as she realised she wanted to push. Even her ending up giving birth at home felt completely credible and held on to every bit of its reality.It was a nice touch that Barry was back for Christmas. He was smuggled back as a surprise by Matty and Teresa, the three of them dressed as the wise men - complete with a live donkey that promptly got loose and ended up being taken into the Jacksons’ living room by the twins. Marie’s face was a picture. I like that Brookie gives itself permission to delve into situational comedy. around Christmas. I recall a similar scenario with a live turkey a year or two later (with Bobby Grant singing “Paxo” at it).The Free George Jackson campaign is in full swing, with Betty from Emmerdale supporting Marie so actively she’s driving Michelle up the wall (she's called Betty here as well, and I like to think it's somehow the same character before she moved across the border to Yorkshire. Michelle and Terry - despite the problems between them - are fleeing on holiday to Malta to get away from it all. Terry even smiled for the first time since 1983.Betty’s nephew is writing a song - presumably the one that will end up being released In Real Life. But I’m too sad to think about this. George has lost 28 days probation because someone fought him and George ended up with the blame. And Marie is still thinking about moving to be closer. We’re heading towards the end of an era.Paul Collins scoffs wonderfully about Marie’s campaign, telling Annabelle he’s going to start a parallel campaign to Free Paul Collins’s Shirt (the one that ended up inside with George). He’s scoffing an awful lot these days, in fact. It’s very much the Paul Collins I remember (not surprising since I came on board in 1985), and it seemed he literally began really pushing in this area as the New Year began. Perhaps it’s a resolution.As well as scoffing at Annabelle’s catering business - he is justifiably irritated that his new garage is unusable because the old chest freezer she’s bought takes up just enough space to stop him getting his car inside - he’s scoffed at the idea of his wife taking up jogging.There’s a great scene where the Collinses are preparing to entertain colleagues and he’s furious because she’s out jogging when she should be getting dinner ready, leaving him to start preparations himself (it turns out she’s jogged too far, got breathless and had to walk back, huffing, puffing and sweaty. He comes out to find and chastise her but has locked them out and they have to run to the back door when they see their guests arriving. During the evening, Paul starts to poke fun (“Oh, Annabelle’s taken up a new hobby…”). He’s pleased when his guests chortle, but not so pleased to learn it’s because they, too, enjoy jogging and asks if they jog as a couple leaving Annabelle to get the last laugh: “Paul think’s jogging’s silly”.In another nice touch, Bobby was in Paul’s office, debating policy with him when he got the call about Sheila’s labour. After their butting heads over company policy, Bobby’s awkward look when Paul extended his hand to wish him luck rang very true. Seeing them switching hats in the space of a few seconds was fascinating.Kevin’s told Harry and Edna he wants Ralph to move in to keep an eye on them to prevent Edna going off the rails again. Since Ralph was the one who encouraged Edna’s gambling, I don’t buy it. Ralph moving in just doesn’t work for me. It just seems too impractical with three of them in a small bungalow. To me, it feels very much like the writers shoehorning in Ray Dunbobbin, and I’m just left with the question: why?One of the firms currently referenced in the series is something like Lynch & Woodward. I think it’s to do with the tenders at Paul Collinses workplace, though it could also be related to Heather’s work. What is certain is that it’s named after two of Brookie’s two most prominent writers at the moment.</blockquote>

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