- Josh likes cleaning
- Little Drummer Boy is “seriously weird”
- Now Henry looks like someone else …
- Pat finds out about John’s son
Josh likes cleaning
But only the dairy.
[Josh] “This is proper work. And you get paid for it … well sort of paid, I get an allowance”
He reckons he needs proper wages at Christmas time.
Josh seems to gate school, as he wants to be doing more about farming. Like Pip.
She recently did a project about Brookfield’s Herefords which her tutor, Tim Wainwright, reckoned was a good, efficient model. But Josh just gets stuff like poetry.
[Josh] “But it’s so boring. Why can’t poets just say what they mean?”
As David said, don’t let Bert hear you say that!
I’ve said it before, but there will be more to Brookfield’s future than just Pip. Time for David and Ruth to be working out inheritance.
Little Drummer Boy is “seriously weird”
According to Josh. Eddie always listen to music when milking, and
[Eddie] “The girls like a few carols this time of year”
Josh doesn’t concur.
And David doesn’t seem to think it does much goo neither. The girls still aren’t producing enough.
Now Henry looks like someone else …
Pat really is on one.
She’s looking after Henry while Helen has a night out with Kirsty (here’s hoping Kirsty doesn’t give Helen’s number out to another bad ‘un like Leon).
Tony is trying to get pat to agree for them to also have a night out, but she’s too busy watching Henry’s expressions.
First, she thinks Henry looks like Tom when he’s concentrating.
[Tony] “His hair still amazes me. None of ours had a flop like that at his age. Sometimes I wish … be interesting to see what his father looks like, you know, to put all the piece together … you can’t help wondering”
But he wouldn’t, of course, ever say that to Helen.
And when Henry falls over, pat thinks he’s the spit of someone else.
But she doesn’t say (before the hidden microphones are moved on elsewhere).
Oh dear. Wonder who Pat is going to pin Henry on?
Pat finds out about John’s son
Despite Tony saying just the other day that they shouldn’t call Sharon. And despite knowing how badly this affecting Helen, and worrying Tom, Pat calls Sharon.
[Sharon] “What do you want?”
[Pat] “I’ve seen a photo of Kylie’s brother”
[Sharon] “Oh”
[Pat] “He looks so like … he’s John’s son, isn’t he?”
[Sharon] “I’ve been half expecting you to call since Kylie went to the funeral”
[Pat] “Please, is he?”
[Sharon] “Biologically yes …”
[Pat] “The moment I saw him I knew!”
[Sharon] “… in every other way, no. Eamon’s his father”
[Pat] “But he’s John’s son!”
[Sharon] “Eamon’s been there for him since he was a baby. He’s brought him up as his own. Rich calls him dad. He loves Eamon’s parents. He’s a very happy, sorted out young man and I’m not going to let you or anyone else change that”
[Pat] “I don’t want to”
[Sharon] “No? Then why you calling?”
[Pat] “Does he know about John?”
[Sharon] “He knows his birth father died before he was born. And he knows that Eamon is the only father he needs. He’s perfectly happy with that … “
[Pat] “And he’s never asked?”
[Sharon] “No. Is that all you wanted?”
[Pat] “Why didn’t you ever tell us?”
[Sharon] “Why do you think?”
[Pat] “I know things were difficult between us …”
[Sharon] “Difficult!”
[Pat] “Because John was so young when you got together. You seemed to have so much power over him”
[Sharon] “He knew his own mind”
[Pat] “There’s no sense in going back over it”
[Sharon] “No, there isn’t, so if that’s all …”
[Pat] “But when John died, why didn’t you tell us you were carrying his child?”
[Sharon] “Because you and your husband always treated me like dirt. You did everything you could to split me and John up. And it worked”
[Pat] “We felt you were driving a wedge between us”
[Sharon] “And then I heard he’d been killed. And you didn’t even have the decent to tell me … you knew what we’d meant to each other … I didn’t want to have anything to do with you after that”
[Pat] “We were going through hell!”
[Sharon] “And I wasn’t? I wasn’t going to tell you or anyone in Ambridge about him … “
But there’s worse to come. Sharon tells Pat that even when she was angry with them, a “little voice” kept nagging at her that she should tell them she was pregnant by John. She also wanted to say her goodbyes to John, and see his grave. So, she want to Ambridge to do so, and to see if John dying had change Pat and Tony:
[Sharon] “Made you kinder. Someone who’d treat me and my child with decency …”
She was terrified in going back to Bridge Farm, but made herself do so:
[Sharon] “You looked disgusted as soon as I went into the shed … ‘why’ve you come here?’, you spat at me … all your husband said was we don’t want any trouble … one word of kindness then, that’s all I wanted … ‘I’ve nothing to say to you, Sharon’, I’ve remembered that all these years … you didn’t want to hear”
So, because Pat told Sharon to go away:
[Sharon] “You decided for me. You didn’t deserve to know that I was carrying your grandson … you made your choice back then. You didn’t want us to be part of your family and we’re not”
Sharon tells a distraught Pat to never get in touch with them again.
So – if Pat had treated Sharon as someone else who had lost John, Sharon would have told her everything.
But, because Pat treated Sharon so badly, she didn’t get to know then, and she’s not welcome to be part of John’s son’s life now.
Ouch.
Hate to say it, but Tom (and Helen, Tony and Kathy) was right. Pat should have left well alone.
But – in her shoes – would any of us have left it without knowing?
3 comments:
I thought the Sharon v. Pat phone call was fantastically written and it made me cry buckets. And so unexpected - my sympathies were all with Sharon (even though IMO Pat is one of the best people in the village). But yes, any one of us would have had to find out for sure, wouldn't we ?
And ooh, yes - who does Henry look like ? Is this going somewhere ?? (Borsetshire probably does only have one sperm donor these days - I've read there's just one bloke in Glasgow now :-)) Or maybe Pat just caught a look of John in him too ?
P.S. Isn't it amazing to realise that the John's son story must have been planned at least 13 years ago ? Makes me think there is hope for exciting developments from Nigel's death years down the line, as promised !
Hello Caroline!
Sorry about the delay.
I think it is difficult all round - Sharon was being a bit spiteful in not telling them in the first place, but they treated her badly AND now are thinking of themselves rather than the kid.
Yes - it probably was just John that Pat saw in henry. Am hoping it'll be someone like Jazzer ...
Part of the joy of Ambridge is the slow burn, isn't it? Wonderful stuff. Though The Archers Are Real, so not sure any of it can be planned ... ;)
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