Well, that was a turn-up for the books: Molly wasn't Big Bob's bird after all, but his rather scary mother. And indeed the mother of Scarlett, and what appears to be whole tribe of O'Haras.
Scarlett's face was a picture when she saw her mum plonked on her sofa. Molly seems to be a handful, judging by the grilling she gave Nicki and then Deek in The Ship. Let battle commence!
Lenny and Lee are getting in deeper and deeper with their lies, and Lydia is on a mission to help her prodigal son, so she can only see the good in Lee. We think it's unlikely that this set-up can have a good ending, but for the moment Lenny knows on which side his bread is buttered, and being back under Lydia's roof is too good to be true.
Oooh, it was all go at the Murdoch's this Christmas, eh? Lenny made Lydia's year by producing her long-lost son, the handsome Lee. In response a clearly delighted Lydia invited Lenny to stay, for more than sherry and wafer-thin mints we reckon. But going on the exchange between Lee and Lenny at the end of the episode, it looks like Lee IS too good to be true...
Meanwhile it was disaster at the Mullen's as Jimmy managed to accidentally roast all of little Madonna's presents. But the arrival of Scarlett's mysterious brother Bob, in Santa garb, complete with knock-off kiddies' gifts, sorted out that dilemma. Who'd have thought Big Bob and Scarlett were brother and sister, eh? Can't wait to see what he gets up to!
It's not often we feel sympathy for Jo but she faced a lonesome Christmas and poor wee Romeo; we felt really sorry for them both.
It was good that Eileen got through to Gina, as she spoke from the perspective of a mother who'd lost a child. It made Gina open her heart to Jo, just as the grief over Franco really hit home. Christmas can be a heartbreaking time...
After tonight's show I really feel in the mood for a mince pie and some show tunes! The Shieldinch panto turned out okay in the end, and even notoriously hard-to-please Liz had a smile on her face.
It looks like the frostiness between Hayley and Gordon was beginning to thaw as well - enjoying the show together, as father and daughter, was a start. Robbie and Jack were certainly relieved!
Innes knows how to stir up a storm. After Amber gave him the heave-ho it was rubbish of him to out Jennifer. Thankfully Jen's brother is more of a gentleman than he'll ever be: Charlie was so understanding, though will their mutual admiration for Amber cause problems?
And in the Murdoch clan more skeletons fell out of cupboards, as the truth about Lydia's mystery son was revealed. It will be interesting to see what Lenny's uncovered...
You may have spotted the TV trail for our Christmas panto after Tuesday's River City! It'll be on BBC One Scotland a few times between now and Tuesday, 15 December, but we won't make you wait by your telly on the off-chance it comes on. You can watch the trail online right now and get a glimpse of Johnny Beattie at his very best.
Let us know what you think :)
Awwww! A great lesson from River City tonight: look after yer ma. It was quite heart-warming to see Scott making up with his mum but he does look rather nervous about returning to Lewis. And what about wee Eilidh? Isn't he meant to be her daddy? Hope he comes back soon to pick up his paternal duties.
Maternal duties, however, are clearly lacking in one Shieldinch resident. What are you up to, Jo?! After everything she's been through it must be terribly hard for Gina and Ruth to turn their back on her but she really did overstep the mark tonight. Maybe Lydia will get her back on her feet.
What d'you think of Stella? She seems to fit in pretty well round there... well, she does now that Nicki has given her the seal of approval... but let's hope she really does pursue a fresh start cos that Deek's too soft for his own good and can easily be taken advantage of.
How could you, Innes?! You stole Amber from under poor Charlie's nose, and you knew fine well that it would upset Jen too. Bah. Amber looked suitably ashamed - let's hope she'll see sense soon. Did anyone realise Jen was hankering after Amber? It's no wonder she enjoyed that game of spin the bottle.
Innes and Amber's coupling wasn't exactly romantic but who knew that Lenny Murdoch could be a hearts'n'flowers man? Lydia's too smart to fall for it though... or is she? Please, PLEASE, don't let those two renew their wedding vows!
On the subject of rekindled romances, what d'you think about Jo and Ewan? She seems to be going right off the rails... you'd think that Ewan learned his lesson the last time.
