We saw the beginnings of it in the last episode and we see more tonight - Faye unable to look at her baby. Anna confirms, ‘She’s barely looked at the baby.’ Anna is very anxious that Faye will not bond with the baby, despite Anna’s best attempts. Like most things it will take time. We need to walk in Faye’s shoes and try to experience how it must feel at the age of 13 to give birth and have a baby to look after. Cliché though it is, it fits here that Faye is a child looking after a child. As Anna says, ‘Poor Faye, life’s never going to be the same again.’ Her fear, as she expressed it, when she was giving birth, is that Anna will send her back. That is her deep-seated fear, no matter how many times Anna tries to reassure her otherwise.
Rita and David hold a conversation in the street and it is clear that Rita is genuinely worried. David tells Rita that at Faye’s age he was playing with Transformers. Rita reminds David of how great his mum Gail was when Sarah became pregnant at a very young age, which is a reminder to us all and hopefully, Gail will share some of her expertise. What’s more, right there, straight from Milan to the cobbles, are the mother and daughter team, not really doing too badly, at least not much worse than any other mother/daughter team.
When Craig sets off to visit Faye, with his balloon, Owen, doing his bull in a china shop impersonation sets about Craig, grabbing him by the lapels. HANDS OFF CRAIG YOU BIG BULLY! He believes Craig must be the father and demands that Craig confesses. Even if Craig was the father, nothing would be gained by the aggression that Owen displays to a gentle boy, who clearly is not a trained fighter. Owen just shows himself to be an idiot. What’s more Owen has assaulted a child and then his stepfather. Shouldn’t the police be informed? Naturally, on their way back from the hospital, Anna and Faye see Owen launching an assault on Craig and Kirk. Just what Faye and Anna need. Good job that Beth and Kirk are there though, to defend Craig’s good name. Beth probably had an idea that someone might have something to say to her son, so says to Craig, ‘You’ve been a really good mate to that lass. I’m not having anyone read anything into it.’ Beth is a good mum to Craig and praise too for Kirk who loves being Craig’s dad. Good too that Craig loves Kirk being his dad – 2 satisfied people. Nevertheless, there were a few shots of Craig appearing very worried and it wasn’t just because of the waste of £4.99 on a balloon.
Mary claims that she ‘would have made an excellent midwife – nerves of steel. Bring on the gas and air, one blast for the mother and one for me.’ Then from midwifery skills to Clint Eastwood. She says, ‘I’m not a smoker per se, but am partial to a cheroot.’ As was Clint Eastwood in A Fist Full of Dollars. She then talks of Clint Eastwood in Dirty Harry and attempts to imitate him. ‘Go ahead – make my day.’
Anna rages against Owen for losing his temper and accusing Craig and for grabbing hold of him. Owen should swallow his pride and apologise to both Kirk and Craig. Whatever the rights and wrongs of whether or nor Craig should have told Anna and Owen that Faye was pregnant, the right way to go about anything of such sensitivity, is not by using fists. Besides, Craig said that Faye had threatened to run away if he had told her parents. And anyway, Craig has been kindness epitomized.
That is just what Anna doesn’t need at this immensely challenging time. Beginning of the end for Anna and Owen?
The father of Faye’s baby is someone from school, who Faye liked and it seems she slept with him to make him like her. A steep learning curve here presents itself. She confesses that his name is Jackson and most of us will remember that we saw him at the school’s French trip evening. Faye and Jackson were sitting together and his mum was quite chatty, talking about them doing the cancan, around the Eiffel Tower with a string of onions around their necks.
It was an excellent idea that Sophie and Faye should talk. Such pathos that Faye slept with Jackson to make him like her. Afterwards he didn’t even look at her never mind speak about her. What’s more, he has another girl as his screen saver now. Such bad luck that their brief encounter, the encounter of 2 children should have ended in a pregnancy. But she’s here now and deserves the best as do all babies.
On a more serious note now, Anna tells Faye that Jackson has a right to know that his child is born. She tells Gary and Owen that she will go and talk to Jackson’s parents. A knock at the door brings the police into their house, clearly here for Owen. He is arrested.
Does Bethany have a kindred spirit in Todd? Judging from her winding up of Jason, it seems so. She has told Jason previously that Sarah has never got over him an that she has a shrine to him. Bethany continues on this theme telling Jason that Sarah is like love-sick puppy. Bethany admits that she’s winding him up, which amuses Todd.
Jason suggests that he and Sarah have a drink together so that he can let her down gently after Bethany told Jason that Sarah still has strong feelings for him. Confused at first as to why Jason is telling her he is sorry but he is in love with Eva, the truth comes out about what Bethany has been saying. In order to get their own back on her they arrive at the Platts and pretend to be together and that Jason is moving to Milan with them.
It is time for Eileen to meet up with Adrian, her date from a dating site. Could this be it? How many times have we wondered this? Sean tries to ease the embarrassment but rather increases it than reduces it. ‘Today is the first day of the rest of your life,’ he reminds them. They seem to enjoy dinner in the Bistro and I for one very much want them to arrange to see each other again. They click, both have a good sense of humour and are keen to see each other again. I hope Adrian doesn’t have any skeletons in his cupboard, but this is romance and Eileen, so surely it cannot be plain sailing, can it?
Ruth Owen
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