2025 Season - UK Episode Discussion

[Red Ranger 1]

Alf's episode count this week:Four.

I don't know if Channel 5 put much thought into it beyond "We want to keep going for another two weeks", but there were definitely pluses to ending it there rather than ten episodes earlier. It's a less memorable last image than Theo lying prone in the middle of the road, but in some ways it could be a better stepping on/stepping off point since it seems we're at the beginning of a new storyline rather than a high point towards the end of one. Harper looking for her parents gives us a decent hook, rather than the anti-climactic "Oh yeah, he's dead" return and Wendell being caught in the second week. And the repercussions of Theo's death will probably carry on next year, so best of both worlds!

When Eden was hassling Mali near the start, I was thinking that Levi's taken a very long time to tell her, given he promised to do so four episodes and about two days previous.Still, at least he got there fairly early, even if Eden had to come to him.It probably wasn't smart of Mali to let Eden pressure him into making that call and even less smart of Eden to hijack it. The conversation sounded fairly calm to me despite Eden's later claim that Mackenzie was yelling.

I can see where Dana's coming from but it feels like she's jumping the gun a bit. It's fair enough if she has no interest in seeing their parents again and won't give Harper her blessing, but all Harper's doing at the moment is finding out what's happened to them. The way Dana and Tane are talking, it's as if they expect her to turn up on their doorstep with Archie tomorrow. I'm also not sure why Dana equates Harper doing what she said she's going to do as "Going behind my back." As it is, Harper went to Cash and, despite his concerns. it looks like he's going to help her.

[H&Alover]

 

We certainly found out more about Harper and Dana's parents, they were drunks/junkie's as been hinted at before.   Maybe Cash shouldn't have told Tane  but Archie is his son too so of course he'd be worried, if it was the other way around  she would be concerned. I'm glad he's backing Dana on this.   Their names are as we can see on the BTTB page are Warwick and Kerrie so those who thought the dad could have been Steven were wrong.  We did see the promo but I'll keep schtum this time.  Anyways before that,  Harper's comment to Cash about wanting to find out about what his parents were up to was uncalled for,  they were decent folks and they  had both died. 

Harper did have both heads on, her SW one and one as a child of drunk/drug addict parents so may not being able to see it clearly.  Dana did concede as a recovering addict herself she can see where Harper is coming from but she is an adult and doesn't have to see them but Archie is an innocent in this.  Could Harper meet them away from the bay to test the waters and not tell them she had a child. 

I think from Dana's pov Harper doing what she did was going behind her back as she hadn't given Harper her blessing to proceed.

Not going to give anything away - promise -  but I'm glad I recorded Friday's episode as I was able to freeze and read something important. 

Good to hear Wendell had been denied bail as it was thought he'd be a flight risk - the law does get it right sometimes. 

Days do tend to fly by in the bay sometimes, people do get caught up in things.  Anyway Mali did well there by not divulging what he knows, it wasn't his secret to tell, and he did give Levi the heads up that Eden was coming to see him and Mac.  It needed to be face to face to break news like that. I'm glad she was there for him even if she said he should have told he at the Wedding or even not be there. As an aside is Tane still in the dark about it? 

Mali was rather heavily pressured into ringing Mac as she wasn't answering any calls that were from the Fowlers. Eden did snatch the phone off him and stalked off. Maybe it is none of her business but her brother's hurting and she wants  to help him.  Not surprising he's scared it could break them up. 

Maybe not as dramatic as some 'endings' have been in previous years but a good one nevertheless. 

5th Jan 2026  isn't that  long a wait.   

Edited Sunday at 15:07 by H&Alover

[James Martin]

@Dan F

What are the rules in terms of discussion going forward in light of the Channel 5 axing, ie when is it "safe" to discuss an episode?

[Medea Fleecestealer]

3 hours ago, James Martin said:

@Dan F

What are the rules in terms of discussion going forward in light of the Channel 5 axing, ie when is it "safe" to discuss an episode?

I would guess it's still not until that episode has been shown.

"Home and Away returns to UK screens on Friday 2nd January 2026, with the return episode – Episode 8601 – available to stream from 6am.

That evening, 5Star will air a repeat of the UK finale (Episode 8600) at 6pm before the return episode (Episode 8601), airs at 6:30pm."

Thank  you C5.    Now I can't watch Home & Away at all.  Wonder what crap they're going to replace it with.  

[CaptainHulk]

22 minutes ago, Medea Fleecestealer said:

I would guess it's still not until that episode has been shown.

"Home and Away returns to UK screens on Friday 2nd January 2026, with the return episode – Episode 8601 – available to stream from 6am.

That evening, 5Star will air a repeat of the UK finale (Episode 8600) at 6pm before the return episode (Episode 8601), airs at 6:30pm."

Thank  you C5.    Now I can't watch Home & Away at all.  Wonder what crap they're going to replace it with.  

I'm not surprised. I stopped bothering with C5 a long time ago and watch elsewhere. No ads thanks to my Brave Browser.

Sucks for those who watch linearly.

 

[James Martin]

26 minutes ago, Medea Fleecestealer said:

I would guess it's still not until that episode has been shown.

"Home and Away returns to UK screens on Friday 2nd January 2026, with the return episode – Episode 8601 – available to stream from 6am.

That evening, 5Star will air a repeat of the UK finale (Episode 8600) at 6pm before the return episode (Episode 8601), airs at 6:30pm."

Thank  you C5.    Now I can't watch Home & Away at all.  Wonder what crap they're going to replace it with.  

I'd use the app with a VPN (assume you're in Holland?)

[Red Ranger 1]

I'm not the definitive word by any means, but my preference would be for this thread being for the 6pm showing and the other one staying for the First Look.

[James Martin]

2 hours ago, Red Ranger 1 said:

I'm not the definitive word by any means, but my preference would be for this thread being for the 6pm showing and the other one staying for the First Look.

See the argument for that.  I'm not sure how many watch linear?  Interestingly on one of the Facebook groups somebody posted about still using 5 because of the bad 5 Star picture quality and quite a few people have said "I can't tell the difference" (although I imagine a lot of people on Freeview still don't use 101-105 for the main channels)

[Medea Fleecestealer]

19 hours ago, James Martin said:

I'd use the app with a VPN (assume you're in Holland?)

Switzerland, but luckily turns out that the latest batch of new channels added to our Swiss TV listing include 5Star though it's a long way down the list.  

[H&Alover]

16 hours ago, James Martin said:

See the argument for that.  I'm not sure how many watch linear?  Interestingly on one of the Facebook groups somebody posted about still using 5 because of the bad 5 Star picture quality and quite a few people have said "I can't tell the difference" (although I imagine a lot of people on Freeview still don't use 101-105 for the main channels)

I record the 1.30pm episode on 5 and watch it in the evening and  I still watch 101-105.  Is it definite Channel5 won't be showing H&A?  It says in my TM mags it'll be returning in January.  If it isn't returning  to 5 I can still record it anyway.