Prisoner: Cell Block H - episodes (286) to (290)

EPISODES (286) TO (290)

286 * 287 * 288 * 289 * 290

EPISODE 286

Broadcast on Channel 5 Friday 05 June 1998 04:40 Chrissie must flee the state having broken her parole. A friendship blossoms between Meg and Steve.

Phil Sutton ~ Neil Melville

Chief Insp. Finlay ~ James Taylor

Mrs O'Reagan ~ Christine Calcutt
Policewoman ~ Lesley Caust

Policeman ~ Gary McConville

Male Clerk ~ John Ramsay

Written by Ray Kolle

Directed by John Duncan

Brenda clearly does not deserve custody of Lizbuff just on the grounds of buying those frightening Fraggle Rock style stuffed toys

Helen is indignant when Bea and some of the other women wonder if she might not be better off taking her solicitor's advice: she points out that once you have drugs on your record the police never leave you alone. Chrissie's boss at the bar offers to let her stay with him rent free when he hears she is having accommodation problems (though you sense he will demand payment in some other form). Meg takes a casserole round to Steve's expecting to find the invalid still in bed, but he's up and about and working on his boat. Bea suggests to Helen that she ought to write a follow-up article on her. A customer in the bar called Phil chats Chrissie up: he's supposed to be a travelling salesman (but looks more like a trucker) and offers to take her with him on his next trip. They make a date to meet later, and Chrissie resigns and collects her wages, as she does so making a mental note of her bosses safe

and security arrangements. Chief Inspector Finlay of Internal Affairs arrives to question Helen in connection with his investigation of Det. Insp. Ryan. Colleen goes to collect her from Bea's cell where she makes a snide remark about Bea's journalistic abilities. Helen tells the investigators she wasn't in the room when Detective Ryan "found" the drugs and is positive they weren't there before. Chief Inspector Finlay tells her it fits with other evidence they have against Ryan, so suggests that if Helen were to apply for bail he would make sure it was granted. The other women are pleased for Helen, but a bit dubious about the prospect of there being an honest cop. Steve invites Meg to come sailing with him

when his boat is fixed. Helen is released on bail and mock-generously offers Colleen a job if she ever needs one - though, she adds, it would have to be in "the bargain basement". When Phil calls round to collect Chrissie and finds she is intending to bring Elizabeth with her, he angrily tells her to forget it and leaves. Chrissie looks surprised and mutters (guess!...) "Bastard!". Steve returns to work and delicately enquires of Lizzie and Judy how the extinguisher got to be full of alcohol: Lizzie suggests that the contents were so old they must have fermented. Chrissie phones her old boss to beg for her job back: he suggests she comes to the bar after closing time to "talk things over". Judy and Lizzie are put on kitchen duty and plan to call in on the boiler room to collect the remaining booze for Susie's leaving do, but Lizzie drops the key into the mince for the meat loaf. They have to wait until it is cooked and skewer it thoroughly to search for it. Unfortunately, Lizzie has just found it when Mrs O'Reagan commandeers the meat loaf to cut a piece off for Erica's lunch. Lizzie volunteers to deliver the tray and Erica is astonished to catch her cutting up her dinner when her back is turned. Chrissie books a flight to Darwin for the following morning under a false name. Erica's tray is brought back to the kitchen. Unsurprisingly, she has barely touched her meal, and Lizzie has to cram the whole lot in her mouth to stop it getting thrown out. Helen comes back to Wentworth with an armful of presents for the women.

Colleen insists that they must be checked and Erica backs her up, but promises Helen the women will get them in the evening. Lizzie knocks back the booze at Susie's farewell party, and the women unwrap their presents: Lizzie gets a voluminous pair of pink knickers, Bea a book on journalism, and Susie a new outfit for her release. Chrissie keeps her date with her boss, but there is no time discuss matters, so they get straight to the main business. Lizzie has another nip of the booze she has smuggled to her cell.

Bea warns Susie not to look up to her as a role model and tells her it would be better if she forgot everyone she knows in Wentworth. Chrissie sneaks out, leaving her boss still in bed, and helps herself from the safe in the next room. Brenda wakes up when Chrissie comes back in the middle of the night to collect Elizabeth. During the inevitable argument, Brenda gets a glimpse of Chrissie's air ticket and after Chrissie leaves she phones the police and reports that a parolee is leaving the state. Two police officers arrive at the airport: Chrissie tries to hide from them but Brenda points her out. Chrissie is arrested and Elizabeth is taken from her.

EPISODE 287

Broadcast on LWT Thursday 5th March 1992; Channel 5 Saturday 06 June 1998 04:40. When Lizzie notices the friendship between Meg and Steve, the rumours start flying. On her release, Susie goes to a hostel but finds the regime stifling.

Phyllis ~ Reylene Pearce
Faye ~ Anne Lucas
Mrs. Beamish ~ Carmel Millhouse
Amanda Cole ~ Antoinette Byron

Written by John Mortimore

Directed by John McRae

When she sees Lizzie suffering from a hangover, Bea makes her give up the key to the boiler room to prevent her sampling the brew again. Wendy tells Steve she's split up with her boyfriend. Susie is apprehensive about her release: Bea warns her not to come back. Meg comes to collect Susie from the dining room and the women say their goodbyes. To Meg's surprise, Chrissie is brought back to Wentworth. She asks if the laundry still pays the highest wages and wants to start work there immediately. Susie goes to the hostel run by Mrs Beamish. Chrissie doesn't get much sympathy for her sob story. Susie loosk around her new room, which with its two beds looks very like a cell in Wentworth. Doreen puts a bet on for Chrissie, who seems to have a lot of cash. Steve invites Wendy out for dinner and a show. Chrissie's horse wins. Lizzie overhears Steve and Meg discussing his date with Wendy and spreads a rumour that it is they who are going out. The alcohol Lizzie has hidden in the laundry is found by Steve and Meg while they are looking for something to clean some correcting fluid off his jacket: Erica orders a cell search. Joan Ferguson arrives as a new officer, and offers to take part in the search. She immediately finds the hiding place in the heel of one of Chrissie's shoes, but the money is not there. Faye asks Doreen to be her runner, and Bea insists that Doreen gets a larger cut. Joan asks Meg about discipline, and finds out that Bea is top dog. Chrissie is horrified to be told that Brenda is looking after Elizabeth and says she'd rather she was in a home than that. Everyone bets on the same outsider as Chrissie after her luck with the previous race. Erica asks to send Bea's latest article for The Stir to the Dispatch. While the women are listening to the race results, Joan makes a special tour of inspection to have a look at Bea. As she leaves, she turns the radio back on to let them know she knows what they were up to. Faye is cleaned out when the outsider wins. Chrissie leaves the laundry to find out about her visit from Elisabeth: Joan is waiting for the first person to leave the laundry and accuses her of being the bookie's runner. Faye gives Doreen the payout money to take round with the laundry trolley: Joan catches Doreen, and gives her the first black glove body search.

Joan eventually finds the money in the laundry skip.

EPISODE 288

Broadcast on LWT Tuesday 10 March 1992; Channel 5 Sunday 07 June 1998 04:40 Susie starts her new life working in a pizza house, and Chrissie discovers that Brenda is trying to get custody of her child.

Phyllis ~ Reylene Pearce
Faye ~ Anne Lucas
Mrs. Beamish ~ Carmel Millhouse
Amanda ~ Antoinette Byron
Lil ~ Judith McLorinan
Jack Baxter ~ Jeremy Kewley

Greg Bourke ~ Joseph Donghia

Written by Coral Drouyn

Directed by John McRae

Joan keeps part of the take and gives a token amount to Erica. Doreen is surprised to find how little Joan has handed over, but says nothing and is sent to solitary for two days. Hannah Simpson is brought in on remand for armed robbery: Joan takes a fancy to her. Faye is bashed by a group led by Lil and Phyllis

for not paying up. Joan leaves Lizzie a miniature of whisky in return for her information on who is running the book: she then goes to Faye and returns the payout money

to her, minus a ten per cent cut. Faye is able to offer the women a chance to win back their "lost" money. The women are not slow to pick up on Joan's lesbianism. Joan makes a move on Hannah: Colleen suspicions are aroused when Hannah makes a sarcastic remark as Joan leaves. Lizzie asks Judy for a loan to place a bet, but when Judy goes to her cell, she finds her money has been stolen. Chrissie tries to seduce Joan by trying to get Joan to give her a neck massage

, but is rejected. Joan makes Faye suspect that Hannah is the thief. Lizzie tells Chrissie about Steve and Sandy Edwards. Joan comes to Hannah's rescue when Faye and Chrissie try to bash her. Hannah rejects her, but is told she will have to submit eventually. Chrissie tries it on with Steve, and threatens to expose his relationship with Meg. Joan gives Chrissie a letter from Brenda, telling her that she has applied for custody of Elisabeth. Susie goes to a disco with Jack, and is caught by Mrs Beamish letting herself in late. Chrissie tries, and fails, again with Steve after lights out.

EPISODE 289

Broadcast on ATV Channel 10 Tuesday 6th July 1982 20:30; Channel 5 Tuesday 09 June 1998 04:40 Bea's latest article is published, and the editor offers her a regular column. Meanwhile, Susie's social life gets her into hot water in the hostel.

Meg ~ Elspeth Ballantyne
Judy ~ Betty Bobbitt
Lizzie ~ Sheila Florance
Erica ~ Patsy King
Bea ~ Val Lehman
Doreen ~ Colette Mann
Off. Powell ~ Judith McGrath
Steve ~ Wayne Jarratt
Susie ~ Jacqui Gordon
Wendy ~ Helen Noonan
Chrissie ~ Amanda Muggleton
Joan ~ Maggie Kirkpatrick
Hannah ~ Julieanne Newbould
Faye ~ Anne Lucas
Mrs. Beamish ~ Carmel Millhouse
Benny ~ Peter Ford

Frank ~ Doug Bowles
Amanda ~ Antoinette Byron
Mr Walton ~ Clive Hearne
Solicitor ~ Hardy Stow

Policeman ~ Steve Mahaffey

UNCREDITED

Jack ~ Jeremy Kewley

Written by Dave Worthington

Directed by Lex Van Os

On the way to the showers, the women admire Bea's new hairdo, which has materialized overnight (apparently with help from Doreen, who's in solitary?) Chrissie tries it on with Steve once again but Steve tells her he's still not interested. He says if she wants to see Elizabeth she must see the Governor. Colleen catches the tail end of the conversation as she brings a uniform for Chrissie to wear, as her parole has now been revoked. Amanda warns Susie to get permission if she's planning to go out again tonight. Meg collects Judy from the laundry to go to her appeal. Colleen ask Chrissie what she was talking to Steve about: she hints that she will charge Chrissie with blackmailing an officer to push her into making an accusation of sexual harassment against Steve. Bea hears enough of this to work out what's going on and warns Chrissie she'd better not get Steve into trouble. Colleen tells Steve that Chrissie has made an official complaint against him. Erica suspends Steve until the complaint can be fully investigated. Jack invites Susie out again. Joan tells she she doesn't much care if he is having sex with Chrissie, but that if she's giving him trouble, she will "fix" it. Bea demands that Chrissie tells her exactly what she's done to get Steve suspended. What Joan overhears confirms the gossip about Steve and Sandy, and she arranges to walk past Bea to let her know that she was overheard. The charges against Judy are dropped, but she has to return to Wentworth to wait for her parole to come through. Joan goes to Erica and tells her she was on night shift with Steve and he was never out of sight, so he couldn't have raped Chrissie. Erica mildly reprimands Colleen for not getting all the facts before reporting Chrissie's allegation. Colleen takes Chrissie out of the laundry to solitary for making a false accusation against an officer. Meg goes to tell Steve his suspension has been overturned. Mr Walton of the Dispatch tells Erica the paper wants to offer Bea a regular column: Bea at first can't believe it, but accepts if she will be able to write without Departmental censorship. Hannah's solicitor gets no co-operation from her when he visits her before her trial. Wendy is taken aback when she comes to keep a date to see Steve's boat, but finds Meg there in overalls helping to paint it. Doreen is released from solitary and apologises to Faye for losing the money, but Faye says she started the book again and Doreen can still work for her. Susie apologises to Mrs Beamish and gets permission to go out, but only if she is back by eleven o'clock. Hannah tells Joan she isn't interested in being "friends" and threatens to tell the Governor when Joan strokes her leg. Joan tells her not to waste her time, as Chrissie is in solitary for complaining about an officer: she puts on the leather gloves again and twists Hannah's ankle to show her who's boss. Lizzie hears about Joan giving Steve an alibi, and tells Bea it must be a lie, as she was alone with Steve for quite a while when he got her tablets for her headache. Doreen adds in her story about Joan keeping most of the take money she confiscated. This convinces Bea there must be something in Chrissie's allegation if Joan is going to such lengths to cover up. Susie decides to go back to the hostel and sneak out again. Mrs Beamish is watching for her and wants to know who drove her home and why he's still waiting outside: she waits a while then follows Susie to her room, catching her in the act of climbing through the window. Meg is called to the hostel next day to try to talk some sense into Susie. Joan and Meg have to accompany Hannah to court as the police are occupied with a demonstration: Joan cynically comments it must be in support of "civil rights for gay bikies". Bea tells Steve she can prove he was alone and had enough time to visit Chrissie. Hannah takes no notice of her counsel in court, and seems to be looking round the court room over his shoulder. Suddenly two men enter the court room and draw guns. Outside the courtroom, Joan hears a gunshot: she goes back in to see the gunmen have shot a policeman and taken Meg hostage to snatch Hannah from court.

Thanks to Peter Rayner for sending me scans from his treasured copy of "TV Week" (Victoria edition, dated July 3, 1982). As well as a feature with capsule biographies of some of the major characters, the episodes broadcast in this week appear to be (289) and (290)

EPISODE 290

Broadcast on ATV Channel 10 Wednesday 7th July 1982 20:30; Channel 5 Wednesday 10 June 1998 04:40 Hannah makes an escape bid with the help of two gunmen, and Susie's birthday brightens up when a parcel arrives from Wentworth.

Meg ~ Elspeth Ballantyne
Judy ~ Betty Bobbitt
Lizzie ~ Sheila Florance
Erica ~ Patsy King
Bea ~ Val Lehman
Doreen ~ Colette Mann
Off. Powell ~ Judith McGrath
Steve ~ Wayne Jarratt
Susie ~ Jacqui Gordon
Wendy ~ Helen Noonan
Chrissie ~ Amanda Muggleton
Joan ~ Maggie Kirkpatrick
Hannah ~ Julieanne Newbould
Faye ~ Anne Lucas
Wendy ~ Helen Noonan
Jack ~ Jeremy Kewley
Benny ~ Peter Ford
Frank ~ Doug Bowles
Jackie ~ Catherine Lynch
Donna ~ Arkie Whiteley

Mr Strachan ~ Gerry Thomas
Police Sergeant ~ Evan Zacharia

Written by Graeme Foreman

Directed by Lex Van Os

Wendy appears twice in the credits.

Here are the house rules of Mrs Beamish's establishment and the plans of the halfway house . Surely the former seem far too brief and the latter too extensive?

Another unconvincing headline in The Despatch, with the Letraset not even aligned properly which leads to an unconvincing "Letter from Wentworth" which begins "The State Government yesterday announced a new employment program for disadvantaged people"

Joan foils the attempt to snatch Hannah from court by grabbing Hannah and making the gunmen release Meg. Steve visits Chrissie in solitary, and she offers him a deal: she will tell the truth if he arranges a visit from Elizabeth. He refuses. Meg thanks Joan for her quick thinking, but admits that there was a moment when she thought she might really break Hannah's neck. The women hear about the attempt to free Hannah on the radio. Doreen hides her money in her tissue box and finds the money already there has been stolen: Bea realises Hannah could not have been the thief, as she was in court at the time. Joan tells Hannah she's been asked to keep a special eye on her: Colleen interrupts to bring Chrissie to share with Hannah, which seems to throw Joan off her stride - obviously she realises it will be more difficult to get to Hannah if she is not on her own. Steve wants to know why Joan lied to cover up for him, and points out that Bea has access to the press and can write anything she likes: Joan tells him not to worry about that. Bea makes Chrissie admit that Steve didn't rape her, but finds out that the alibi Joan provided was also a lie. Chrissie claims that she did have sex with Steve as her part of a deal to get a visit from Chrissie, but he'd tricked her and gone back on his word. Joan interrupts Chrissie's story to point out that anyone would think she'd be fair game anyway. Bea decides to write her next article on sex in prison. Judy suggests to Hannah that her stay in prison would be more bearable if she tried to make friends with some of the other women. Mrs Beamish gives Susie a present, as she'd been made aware that it was her birthday when Meg brought a present from Lizzie. She is offended when she sees that Susie prefers the homemade pincushion from Lizzie to the gold neckchain she bought herself. Susie goes to visit Lizzie but is refused permission to see her by Joan: Erica sees her instead and tells her she is likely to be released from her status as a Ward of the State soon. Hannah asks Colleen for permission to work and see her solicitor. Meg sees Erica about a proposal for a halfway house and a craft shop, and suggests Judy to run it. Judy is told she will have to have approval to associate with ex-prisoners. Chrissie discusses escaping with Hannah, and Hannah offers her money to arrange it. Steve has Wendy over for dinner. Doreen gets hold of Bea's article about Chrissie's "rape". Both Hannah and Doreen are amazed that Chrissie doesn't seem very happy that it has been printed. Faye accuses the women of stealing her money, and seems to be most suspicious of the "new girls" Hannah and Chrissie. Susie is shopping for clothes from the bargain rack in a dress shop when she meets Jackie, who takes her for dinner to celebrate her birthday. Erica sees the newspaper article and demands to see Steve immediately. Colleen phones him at home and is surprised when Wendy answers the phone as they are having breakfast together after she has stayed overnight with him. While Susie and Donna are in the restaurant, Donna Mason arrives. She is also a prostitute and sees Susie's "potential": she gives Susie her address and says she can stay with her if she ever needs accomodation. Joan tells Faye she's off the book and will be transferred to another block. Susie asks for overtime but her boss expects sexual favours in return. Steve explains himself to Erica and Joan backs up his story. Joan is sent to fetch Chrissie to the Governor's office: on the way she threatens Chrissie that Elisabeth will suffer if she does not do what Joan wants.

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Updated ~ 18 June 2008