Episode 451

Australian Air Date: 10th January 1990
UK Air Date: 9th November 1990
Writer: Ysabelle Dean
Director: Michael Sergi

Tom avoids a confrontation with Pippa. Adam faces great danger.

Extended Summary

On the beach, Adam stares resolutely out to sea. “This is for you, mate,” he comments before heading out to sea on his board.

Alf gets Pippa a cup of tea and tells her that the rumours have been hard on Tom. Pippa says she’d be unhappy if she thought Tom was having an affair and realises Alf still thinks it’s true. Ailsa arrives home and Pippa is even more angry to find she believes it. She reiterates that she isn’t having an affair with Zac. Alf looks uncertain what to believe.

Carly serves Andrew a coffee at the Diner. Andrew notices Martin sitting glumly nearby and Carly explains about him getting rid of Celia but getting Marilyn as a partner instead. Martin says it’s the worst business move he’s ever made and Marilyn’s already planning to repaint the van in pink and yellow stripes. Steven arrives and tells them about Adam’s plan to catch the shark himself. Andrew and Carly follow him down to the beach, leaving Martin to mind the Diner. At a nearby table, Zac looks worried. They find Adam’s gear shortly before Adam comes back in on his board; he has dropped a bait out at sea, attached to a fishing line. Andrew is worried that if the kids see what he’s doing they’ll try and catch the shark too whilst Carly tells him catching the shark won’t bring Rory back. Adam refuses to be dissuaded by either of them so Carly storms off.

Pippa is upset when Ailsa tells her that Carly and Bobby thought she was having an affair as well. She wonders why no-one came to her instead of just making assumptions and says she’s going to go and talk to Tom: an open, honest discussion should sort it out and she’s surprised Alf and Ailsa didn’t realise that. Once she gets home, she tries to talk to Tom but he isn’t interested in discussing it, not even to hear Pippa’s explanations, and says they need to forget about it and learn to live with what happened. They are interrupted when Sally returns home, having been dropped off a day early because Louise was sick. Pippa gives her a cap that Rory’s sister Rosemary dropped off while she was there, that Rory had promised to buy her. Pippa sends Sally upstairs and tries to talk to Tom again, but this time they are interrupted by Steven telling them what Adam’s up to.

In the mobile home, Marilyn is cooking a stew to try and soften Martin up to the news that she’s moving in; she can’t afford to stay at the Sands anymore now she’s put all her money into Café de Waves. Martin arrives home and, while he isn’t impressed with the stew, he tells Lance and Marilyn that they’re all in the business together and need to look out for each other…only to realise he’s shot himself in the foot when he hears about Marilyn moving in. Carly finds Adam at the Diner and thinks he’s given up but he tells her he’s just on a meal break. Zac approaches and tells him he should leave the shark catching to the experts. Adam says that if the positions were reversed Rory wouldn’t have waited for Zac to catch it and heads back out there without waiting for his food.

Tom is watching TV late at night when Pippa comes downstairs and tries to persuade him to come to bed or talk to her. Tom doesn’t seem interested in saving their marriage, saying there’s nothing he can do, and heads out for a walk, telling her not to wait up. Carly follows Adam down to the beach and brings him a snack. She asks to stay with him.

Next morning, Tom goes to see Alf at the store, having been out for a jog. Alf realises he hasn’t spoken to Pippa but Tom once again dismisses the idea and says there’s nothing he can do about it. At the mobile home, Martin finds Marilyn unpacking a large amount of her possessions, littering the front room with strange ornaments. He remarks the local gossips will have a field day when they find out she’s moved in with Lance but assures her he’ll stick up for her. Marilyn begins putting her stuff away again, saying she needs to protect her reputation, and Martin looks triumphant. His mood changes later, however, when he comes home to find Lance and Marilyn unpacking everything again. Lance explains he and Marilyn are going to sleep in separate bedrooms…and Martin is going to sleep on the couch.

Adam is preparing to drop another bait when he and Carly see Zac deliberately drive through and sever Adam’s fishing line in his boat. Adam heads out to repair it. Both groups sit down to wait, with Carly bringing Adam a coffee while Zac drinks alone on his boat. Adam gets a bite and Zac looks on worriedly through his binoculars as he prepares to reel it in, then smirks as the line breaks and Adam ends up flat on his back.

Tom is looking for his car keys, since he’s taking Sally to Kim’s. Pippa tries to talk to him but, although Tom is superficially pleasant towards her, it’s still obvious he doesn’t believe her. Sally comes in and Pippa tells her to wait outside. Tom, however, says Pippa will take her and storms out. Sally wonders why Tom’s grumpy but thinks it’s to do with Rory.

The shark grabs hold of Adam’s bait again and Adam grabs hold of the fishing rod. He tells Carly to go and get help, since he won’t be able to drag it in by himself. He begins reeling the shark in but the line gets tangled. Unclipping his safety harness, he tries to untangle it but gets it caught around his foot in the process. The shark begins swimming out to sea with the line still attached. Adam is pulled off his feet and dragged towards the sea…

Guest Cast

ANDREW FOLEY (PETER BENSLEY)
MARILYN CHAMBERS (EMILY SYMONS)
ZAC BURGESS (MARK CONROY)