The fall-out from Leanne's divorce settlement continued to cause havoc. Martin refused to hand over Gail's money to his wife, because he is a pig, so she had to beg Leanne for a little leeway. (At one point Gail accused Martin of being jealous of Nicky and oh boy, let's not touch that). Leanne however thought she was being swindled, and said she'd go to the police to tell them she was pressured into admitting adultery when there was none. Gail panicked and apologised to Martin which she absolutely should not have done and he, out of the goodness of his heart, agreed to hand over the cash. Ashley got his birth mother's name off his birth certificate in the hope of tracking her down to attend his wedding. Fred lied that she'd moved to Australia and couldn't be traced. Alma let herself into Mike's flat and discovered Linda's underwear on the washing pile. When Hayley saw how upset she was knowing that Mike had moved on, she told Alma who he was sleeping with (as Audrey described her, "that one with a gob like a hippo's watering hole"). She stormed into Underworld and laid into him for taking up with a slapper. The factory girls felt betrayed that their co-worker was diddling the boss, and distanced themselves from Linda, while Deirdre wondered how it would affect her authority as the manager. Linda turned on Hayley for grassing her up. Now it was no longer a secret, she tried to chuck her weight about, demanding that Mike sack Hayley as revenge; he refused, because Hayley was the best worker in the factory.
TUESDAY - Episodes originally broadcast 30th July and 1st August 1999
Now that Mike and Linda's relationship was out in the open, she wasted no time in exploiting the situation. Deirdre tried to rein her in but soon realised Mike would always take her side in an argument. She quit her role at the factory. He tried to persuade her to stay over a drink but she was adamant. As the alcohol kicked in, Mike confessed he was grasping at happiness with Linda and worried that he was making a mistake. Jack struggled to operate his brand new mobile phone, accidentally calling Vera and meaning she could eavesdrop on his chat with Ravi. That night he had another of his attacks and they worried his condition was getting worse. Gail handed over the two grand to Leanne in fifty pound notes. She took it to the casino and chucked away every penny on the roulette wheel. She gleefully told Martin and Gail that it was all gone, feeling that it meant she could put Nicky behind her. (Until he next shows up on the Street of course). Ashley decided to ask Gary to be his best man, but Maxine objected... because he'd look like an oaf in the photos. Classy. He went ahead and asked Gary anyway, pointing out they'd been through a lot together. Since that was mainly Zoe, a dead baby and a lunatic cult, you'd think he'd want to forget it. And Curly and Spider made plans to go to Cornwall to see the solar eclipse. Remember that? Everyone stood outside with bits of smoked plastic over their eyes? What a time.
WEDNESDAY - Episodes originally broadcast 2nd and 4th August 1999
Maud asked to speak to Fred and Ashley. She had big news: she was getting engaged, the right old goer. They met her fiance, Sidney Templeton, and he admitted he wanted to live in the Far East after their marriage. Fred became convinced he was a gold-digger. Maxine stormed into the salon, furious that Ashley had asked Gary to be his best man. However, mid rant, Judy revealed herself to be there getting a haircut. She immediately banned Gary from attending the wedding, while Ashley threatened to make Boris his butcher's mate the new best man.. Curly agreed to take Toyah to Cornwall for the eclipse, but also invited Nita along. The locals became curious about their relationship so he hinted they were going out - only for Ravi to grass him up to Nita. Curly convinced himself it was Spider who'd spread the rumours and so told him he couldn't come to Cornwall. Deirdre applied for a job at a travel agent but they turned her down because of her time in prison. Janice begged her to come back to the factory, as Linda seemed to have taken over her job and was bossing the girls about.
THURSDAY - Episodes originally broadcast 6th and 8th August 1999
As there were now no wages coming into number 1, Ken took it upon himself to find a job. When he took the role of trolley boy at Freshco Deirdre was horrified. He told her he wanted something where he didn't have his brain taxed but she found it humiliating (she called him a trolley dolly!) - and it felt even worse when Blanche came to stay. Meanwhile Emily took over some of Deirdre's duties at the factory. Audrey and Fred took Sidney out to probe him about his intentions towards Maud - only for him to drop dead in the back seat. They broke the news to Maud and, while she was grateful they were looking out for her, she was upset to lose her chance of happiness. Natalie organised an outing to the races. Ravi showed off by taking Audrey into the member's enclosure, leaving Fred outside. On the plus side, that was the last we'll see of Ravi. Saeed Jaffrey was accused of being drunk and disorderly on a train and ITV took the opportunity to terminate his contract. Ravi really wasn't working; he was a strange, creepy character, with Jaffrey putting in a bizarre performance, and it was no surprise they wanted to get rid. Jack saw Betty's Hot Shot, the horse he owned as part of a syndicate, was running, so he put £100 on it out of nostalgia. He actually won and the excitement overwhelmed him... causing him to suffer a heart attack.
FRIDAY - Episodes originally broadcast 9th and 11th August 1999
Ken and Deirdre were horrified to realise Blanche appeared to be staying permanently. The viewers, however, were delighted. Blanche started back on the Street as the interfering old bat we know and love, telling Emily she should quit her job at Underworld so Deirdre could go back. Emily refused, but in truth, she was struggling with the computers. At the hospital, Jack suffered another attack, and was told he'd have to have a bypass. He fretted he would never see his grandchildren grow up. Vera was emotional as he went in for his operation, but it went ok, and he came round and told her he loved her. As they couldn't go to Cornwall with Curly Spider and Toyah set up a tent on the Red Rec to watch the eclipse. Their emotions soon overtook them and they missed the once in a lifetime event by having a quickie under canvas. Toyah immediately declared they were soulmates, which made Spider feel uncomfortable.
Delightful as it is to have Blanche back in the Street annoying Deirdre, it does make @merseytart sad that we've lost both Anne Kirkbride and Maggie Jones in the meantime.
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