Holby City: Hospital terrorised by baking powder

(Series 23, ep. 45 by Ciara Conway 22.2.22) Pop over to Metro to see what I made of this episode. But before you do that…

I loved the scene between Fletch and Jac, where he was turning detective to catch the mole and said it was like the TV show ‘Moonlighting’ – Bruce Willis, Cybill Shepherd, unresolved sexual tension. ‘And you’d be Bruce Willis in this scenario?’ said Jac.

Lockdown situations are great for characters getting right to the heart of their problems, aren’t they? Who could forget that episode with Jac and Joseph trapped in an operating theatre? Obviously not me, but then in my dreams Joseph has never left Holby.

I’m wondering now whether, rather than Joseph coming back for Jac in the final episode, they’re setting the scene for a Fletch/Jac reunion? There was that scene already mentioned, and then Fletch’s face when he discovered that Jac was in the middle of the ‘anthrax’ incident. He still loves her.

But he’ll only ever be a super-sub in my eyes.

Jac’s love for Emma is fierce and wonderful.

Line of the week: (Billie is a fan of the Hanssen/Russ combo)  ‘I’ve been totally shipping you guys.’ (Hanssen) ’Have you? Shipping? What is it?’

But Russ turning against Hanssen when he found out he’d been keeping Billie’s pregnancy a secret was far too predictable and boring.

And the mention of Elliot Hope! Either that’s the reddest of herrings or Prof. Hope is currently dusting the doughnut crumbs off his shirt ready to come to the aid of his good friend Jac. Hurrah! (If it happens).

Holby City: We stay and fight

(Series 23, ep. 41 by Rebecca Harrison 25.1.22) Head over to Metro for my review of this episode. But before you go…

Line of the week: (Jac) ’We stay and fight.’ (Fletch) ’I’ve got no fight left in me.’ (Jac) ’Then find it, because I need you.’

Not in front of Ange (or any woman) line of the week: (Russ) ‘About the only woman who’s worth talking to in this hospital is Jac Naylor.’

Wishful thinking line of the week: (Dominic)’I’m not here.’ (Donna) ‘Well neither am I. I’m on a beach in the Bahamas.’

I didn’t mention the Dominic/Sacha scenes in my Metro review, but they were precious. Sacha’s tie-dyed lab coat was a thing of hideous beauty.

I’m still not feeling Hanssen and Russ, but I can totally picture Hanssen as a stepfather to Billie and a granddad to her baby. He’s a lovely granddad.

Nicky’s last scene, as she looked out of the window at Amelia and Juliet outside, reminded me that we don’t get so many classic ‘window of regret’ scenes any more. Will there even be any more? *crying face*

Holby City: The one with the pert liver

(Series 23, ep. 38 by Isla Gray 4.1.22) Happy New Year! Please pop over to Metro to read my review of this episode.

I watched it before Christmas, so apologies in advance if my Further Thoughts are even more muddled than usual.

Jac! I am seriously worried about her.

Scrambled Simile Corner: (Eli) ‘Surgery is like riding a bike. Nobody wants to fall off, so you never forget.’ Especially if you’re an elephant. Who also does surgery. While riding a bike.

‘You’re willing to turn up looking like you got dressed in the dark’ Madge tells Ange because she has baby sick on her clothes. But then Ange turns the tables when Madge’s uniform has a stain on it: ‘Looks like you got dressed in the dark.’ She’s witty, that Ange.

But what’s with all of Madge’s scars? Is she being abused by someone?

Chat up line of the week: ‘I have a deliciously pert liver in my theatre with no one to put it in.’ Oh Russ, you charmer.

Are we feeling the Russ/Hanssen relationship? I’m not sure, but enjoying seeing how it goes.

Communicator of the Week: (Donna tackles sign language in her own special way) ‘And more signs would be a lobster – no, snail – a lobster, aaaand my personal favourite, booty call.’

Kylie puts her foot in it: (to Nicky re baby Juliet) ‘Do you think she looks more like you or more like erm…’ Erm would be the man who blew up the hospital after killing assorted people.

Holby City: This is far from over

(Series 23, ep. 26 by Kellie Smith 28.9.21) Please have a look at my full review of this episode over at Metro. But before you do that…

It was very nice to see Evie in something that wasn’t that dreadful Pulses uniform she’s had to wear ever since she got the job. Whoever thought that putting the staff in a shirt the colour of a mattress that’s been left on a skip would induce people to buy more coffee?

Ange and Josh really are relationship goals, aren’t they? I never believed in Fletch and Ange as a couple, but I find Ange and Josh very convincing. They look at each other with such affection, it’s adorable.

Donna’s reaction to Evie is understandable – her daughter has been abused in the most awful way, so naturally she’s going to be full of anger and lashing out. I hope she’ll realise in time that Evie was as much a victim as Mia and the blame lies entirely with Jeni and the men who abused all those young women. I hope Donna doesn’t turn into a seething revenge engine like Stevie on Casualty.

I also hope that Rich gets arrested, if he’s still alive.

Alex Walkinshaw, though. He is so brilliant at evoking ‘normal bloke in abnormal situation’ emotions, isn’t he?

Holby City: If the police do not lock her up I will kill her myself

(Series 23, ep. 25 by Katie Douglas 21.9.21) Head over to Metro to read this week’s full review. But before you go…

Blimey! We knew that Fletch and Donna would blow up when they found out about Jeni, but that was powerful work from Alex Walkinshaw and Jaye Jacobs. I especially loved Donna’s reaction. She’s a mature mother these days and her conversations with Mia were kind, sensitive and compassionate. But when she’s angry she’s the tough scrapper that she was when she was first on Holby and Fletch (‘If you’d have bothered to parent your kid instead of making eyes at some sexual predator then none of this would have happened’) and Evie got both barrels. Heaven help Jeni if Donna gets hold of her.

Ange being sore and hormonal was realistic and quite sweet. And she seems to have found a prince of a man in young Josh. As I said in my Metro review, I hope this doesn’t mean something terrible is going to happen to him.

Line of the week: (patient Nicola) ‘Do you believe in crystals?’ (Jac) ‘I believe they exist.’

Fanboy of the week: (Jeong-Soo is thrilled to be working on Darwin with Jac) ‘I may be just a faceless drone but you’re the queen bee, so consider me pleased just to be up here.’

Brother of the week: (Dominic delivers his opinion on his new siblings) ‘Squashed up, wrinkly balls of skin. But nice ones.’

Holby City: You did a beautiful, beautiful thing

(Series 22, ep. 15 by Becky Prestwich 2.6.20) It’s back! And I’m back on Metro reviewing it so please have a look. But before you go…

– I absolutely love John Michie as Guy Self and I’m really glad they keep finding ways to bring him back. Despite everything he’s been through, despite the little mention of Zosia and his grandchild, he’s still an ego on a stick and I love that.

– I love Kian too, but as always when Jac embarks on a new romance I find myself conflicted because as far as I’m concerned Joseph is the only man for her. Though of course we wouldn’t want her to waste her life pining and waiting for Faye to get bored of him again.

– Sacha is adorable. He warmed Essie’s socks on the radiator!

– When Essie asked Fletch to come dancing with her I found myself pondering for far too long over what kind of dancing that would be. A techno rave? An American Smooth under a glitterball? A side-to-side shuffle around Essie’s handbag to Kajagoogoo at a retro disco at Albie’s?

– But I am worried about Fletch though.

– Was getting Donna to delete Zav’s message the wormiest thing that Cameron has done so far? Has the man no shame? Luckily what he lacks in shame he also lacks in knowledge of how mobile phones work.

– Hanssen’s face in response to mention of the Kardashians!

– Fraser Ayres was brilliant as Alan, Selfie’s patient. The pain and distress he was in looked absolutely real.

– Jason so often knows the right thing to say or do when people are grieving. He doesn’t overthink or second-guess how people are feeling and how they’ll respond, he just goes with what he thinks will help and it almost always does. ‘You did a beautiful, beautiful thing,’ as The Radiant Donna told him.

Wentworth Prison: Forking Hell!

Series Two Episode Three
You know when you have been away from home for a while, perhaps on a holiday or work trip, and you return back to hugs and good wishes? It was kind of like that in Wentworth last night, when Simone returned to the prison for another stretch. Except she was welcomed with a sexual assault, a fork in the stomach and a vicious beating that nearly ended up in a knee capping courtesy of a cue-ball wielding Boomer.

Yep, this is the crazy world of Wentworth. Once an ally of the fearsome (and much missed, as far as I am concerned) Jacs Holt, Simone was on Franky’s radar the moment she set foot back in the prison. With the drug supply emptier than Boomer’s head, the prisoners, particularly the gloriously crazy Sky, looked to Simone for their fix.

Fearing that her leadership was under threat, a desperate Franky subjected Simone to various violent attacks in order to ensure she held on to the coveted Top Dog role. This culminated in a night-time ambush in the library where Bea stopped Boomer going too far in the nick of time.