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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Spells &amp; Karma" data-source="post: 426194" data-attributes="member: 23">Episodes 631 - 657* 14 November 1988 - 13 February 1989The doorstep to Brookie’s Number Ten** has yielded some of the series’ most memorably tense, dramatic or plain dysfunctional confrontations. Despite her long association with the other side of the Close, a surprising number of these have involved Sheila: from her initial exchange with Marie Jackson back in the legendary episode #124, to putting Doreen firmly in her place when the Corkhills were newcomers themselves; to the slap from Bobby that drove a nail into her marital coffin. Another is added to the list in this run when Sheila forcibly ejects Julia from Number Ten after discovering Julia has lied about Doreen returning home for Christmas. It’s every bit as entertaining as I would expect from these two. Julia is such a broad character, it would be easy to criticise her for being a caricature, far removed from the series’ original vision. The fact is, though, that Gladys Ambrose brings such a sparkling energy to every scene she is invariably a sight for sore eyes, and Julia/Sheila scenes are particularly entertaining, going back at least to the “I could fill a book with what I know about the Corkhills” scene almost two years earlier.Thinking about these earlier exchanges has really brought home to me just how much Sheila is truly on the other side of the fence these days. In her exchange with Marie, Sheila was critical about the Jacksons living in Number Ten “like a load of gypsies”, bragging that her children had “a home they can call their own”. In her first showdown with Julia, Sheila had disclosed her knowledge of the black market bricks used to build the Corkhills garage. Now Sheila and Claire are, to all intents and purposes, homeless and staying in that very garage. Driving her frosty exchange with Doreen was the fact that Doreen had used knowledge about Sheila to get at Bobby. This time round, her outraged fury appears to be largely driven by a kind of protectiveness towards Doreen’s husband. In this current exhange, there is a pleasing undercurrent of ambiguity to both Julia and Sheila’s motives.Julia argues that she lied about Doreen’s return to protect her grandchildren from Billy’s new girlfriend, Linda (the writing leans into making her rather strident and unlikeable, not primarily because she is a threat to Rod and Tracy, nor even to the hope of Doreen returning, but because thanks to groundwork that has been laid for a long time, we unconsciously recognise that she’s a threat to any potential there may be between Billy and Sheila. And so we’re kind of relieved when she goes). Sheila is quick to point out, though, that Julia was aiming to get two birds with one stone: Doreen’s return meant Sheila felt obligated to hastily arrange new accommodation, which would leave the path clear for Julia to claim the vacant “granny flat” in the garage of Number Ten she feels is hers. And this is where there’s some ambiguity in Sheila’s own motives. She arguably sees through Julia’s scheme because she herself is thinking outside of the box and has her own hopes, if not plans. She is clearly outraged because of the impact Julia’s agenda will have on the Corkhills, but also because she herself has been greatly inconvenienced. Which angers her more isn’t always clear. All the same, there’s something a little heartening about Billy witnessing her anger about the situation without her initially realising, blinded by the ongoing heated row she is having with Julia. Given the groundwork mentioned above, this feels like a step in the right direction. And Billy comes through for Sheila. When she decides she will move out anyway as she’s already paid a significant deposit, it’s Billy who asks questions to find out her payment method, then simply shrugs and suggests she should cancel it. It’s very low key, but something has changed and it quietly tells us that the arrangement is changing, and Billy is happy with it. Then comes the Twixtmas event which I believe marked the first time more than two half hour episodes were shown in a week. In fact it jumped to five episodes**, with the fifth culminating in Billy and Sheila’s kiss. The awkwardness - and chemistry - immediately following and especially leading up to this moment had me invested. The Sheila/Billy pairing has been quite a ride for me as a viewer. When I began this rewatch, my vague memories told me that it didn’t work for me - that it felt a forced and rather clichéd way of keeping Sheila on the Close. Watching this time, with the benefits of knowing what’s coming, of having over three and a half decades more life experience (then I was at school. Now I’m older than either Billy or Sheila) and of discussing it in this thread, I was surprised to find this storyline working for me. With the groundwork for this story laid well ahead of time, I was rooting for them to get together. And not just a little bit.Then it happened, and very quickly I found myself beginning to view it the same way I had before this rewatch. continued…* It’s with Brookie’s five day week - where a couple of episodes repeat the same number with an “A” or “B” suffix - that the episode numbering stops being simple and linear. There is a confusing <a href="https://brookside.fandom.com/wiki/Brookside_Soapbox/Episode_Numbers" target="_blank">divergence between the official and unofficial episode count.</a> If you think the Dallas season numbering is a headache, it’s nothing compared with this. I may regret this, but I’m going with what the website classes as the official count, as opposed to the (unofficial?) one STV are using. For reference Episode 657 in the header is STV’s Episode 660. ** Perhaps I’m overthinking but, given the many overt criticisms of the country’s leadership the series has made, I find myself wondering if Brookie’s Number Ten being its most dysfunctional household is symbolic. And it’s only taken me over six years’ worth of episodes to twig. </blockquote>

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