The Good Mother Doctors

JIMMI: Life is suffering...

No, no. They won't risk going to the High Court.

Listen, I'm back in Edinburgh tomorrow

so let's sit down first thing and nail down the contract.

..and the cause of this suffering is desire.

Yeah, we can seal the deal by the end of the week.

I'm smelling a six-figure bonus.

A grasping desire that's born of ignorance.

We can only avoid suffering by eliminating this desire...

There are plenty of normal, decent blokes that use online dating.

And the ones who post nasty comments,

well, they're just a tiny minority,

spiteful saddos with way too much time on their hands.

Don't let them spoil your fun.

..and seeking true enlightenment.

Those are what Buddha called the Four Noble Truths.

It's the starting point for all his teachings.

I think I'm rather fond of my ignorant desires.

It's an ongoing process.

Theravada Buddhists try to follow the Eight-Fold Path,

it's the path set out by Buddha.

What does that involve exactly?

Lots of reflection, meditation, a constant awareness

of the selfishness of desire and a much greater regard for others.

Oh. Is that all?

-Yeah, it's easier said than done, isn't it?

-Sounds very noble.

It's more than noble.

A practising Buddhist will try to take those truths

and apply them to their own life and act accordingly.

What good is a belief system if just theoretical?

It's like Al says. Maybe it's just "smug navel-gazing".

Well, I wouldn't worry about Al. He's just trying to wind you up.

Best to cut my losses, I think,

before I'm subject myself to any more global humiliation.

What about Pete?

Didn't you arrange to meet up already?

Yeah, I'll break it off.

He'll get over me.

No! You could at least check him out.

I have checked him out.

In the flesh. Anyway, I thought you had an amazing connection?

Yeah, but that was only in the virtual world

and via text messaging.

Well, then, maybe you'll connect in the real world, too.

Mum? Dr Clay's here.

How are you feeling today?

Not so good.

I didn't get much sleep.

Liam said you were sick a couple of times.

It wasn't just that.

I was scared of falling asleep.

Scared I might not wake up again.

Look, you need plenty of rest, so try not to worry.

I'm not worried about dying.

I just don't want to go yet.

Not before I've seen April.

There are some loose ends...

..things we need to discuss.

Favourite band, Dire Straits. Favourite film, Titanic.

-That bodes well!

-Does it?

Yeah, didn't you say yours was Sense And Sensibility?

Yeah?

Also starring Kate Winslet.

Oh, yeah.

What are the chances? Maybe it's kismet!

I've got a date later.

Who's the lucky fella?

Pete Dinsdale, 45, divorced father of two.

Here's his profile.

Aw, wow! He's got a lovely smile.

A proper twinkle.

What does he do for a living?

He works in insurance.

OK.

He looks the type, yeah.

Yeah.

I was brought up Catholic.

I lapsed a long time ago.

Still, some of those ideas have a way of sticking with you.

Heaven, hell.

Do you believe in anything more?

Or is this as good as it gets?

I think life carries on, for all of us.

I think maybe, when someone dies, maybe their spirit,

or their energy passes on into another form.

I see.

You're a Buddhist, then?

Maybe I'm not the best person to talk to about spiritual matters.

Would you like me to arrange a minister or a priest?

So they can read me the last rites?

No.

I'm not quite ready for that.

KNOCK ON DOOR

April's here.

Hi, Mum.

Have you met Dr Clay?

My Buddhist GP.

SHE LAUGHS

He is such a card!

Look what he's gone and put now.

That is saucy!

I know. It's enough to make a girl blush.

How do I reply to that?

Well, you've got to go one better, haven't you?

Double entendre, less is never more.

Oh. So, you mean I've got to up the ante?

-Beat him at his own game.

-Exactly.

But what do I put?

I've got an idea.

He's been asking lots of questions, you know.

Ever since my diagnosis.

What did you tell him?

Not much.

Nothing he didn't know already.

We can't go on like this, April.

I'd like you to tell him today.

Today?

I don't know, Mum.

It'll be painful for him to accept.

But he'll come to terms with it, in time.

Then you'll both be happier.

I can't think about it now, not with you like this.

So you'll wait till I'm dead?

Only then you might convince yourself he's better off

not knowing.

It's so much easier not to tell him.

I will tell him.

I promise.

Then do it today.

-Is that it?

-Sorry?

I thought you'd want a longer chat.

I've got all day.

She asked for you.

So, how are things?

Beyond Mum, I mean.

There isn't much beyond Mum.

I sometimes go to the pub on a Friday night,

see the one mate who hasn't gone to uni.

Right.

Did she say much, just now?

No, not really.

Just asked about work and so on.

She's stubborn to the end.

Won't breathe a word about my dad.

No?

It never used to bother me.

I didn't want to meet him.

I still don't.

But now I'd like to know a bit more.

More than she's prepared to tell me.

Well, I don't think she knows much herself.

It was just a one-off, I think.

Did she ever mention him to you?

It makes me think the worst.

I mean, what if it was more complicated than a one-night-stand?

What if...

..he was a bad person?

No, I'm sure he wasn't.

How can you be sure,

if she's never mentioned him to you?

Her breathing is very shallow. What time is the nurse due back?

Not till three.

Maybe we should ring her, see if we can get her back sooner.

It might be a good idea to say your goodbyes to your mum now.

She's getting weaker by the hour.

It would be a good time now, while she's still conscious and lucid.

OK. Thanks, Dr Clay.

Should I go first?

OK, we look forward to seeing you on Friday, Mrs Newton.

Bye-bye.

Still nothing.

I think we went too far with that last text.

-Maybe he's busy?

-No, he said he was off all day.

I think I've scared him off with my brazen innuendo.

Your brazen innuendo.

Hey, don't go blaming...

PHONE BEEPS

Hang on.

Oh, my goodness!

He really has upped the ante with that one.

That is pure filth!

How do I reply to that?

Oh, no, no, no!

-You can write your own saucy banter.

-OK.

Everything I've achieved, it's all down to you.

If you hadn't encouraged me to work hard...

..given me the chance to go to uni...

..my life would've been unrecognisable.

The sacrifice you made...

..I think about it every day.

Mum?

-Have you told him yet?

-No. Not yet.

-I want it to come from you.

-I know you do, and it will. It's just...

I want to know that he knows.

Will you tell him now?

He's had to deal with so much recently.

I'm worried this is going to send him off the rails.

I'll speak to him now.

Tell him to come in.

It's OK, it's OK. Don't strain yourself.

Liam will be here in a moment. You can save your words for him.

Liam's not my son.

He's my grandson.

It's OK.

It's OK.

I trust you.

Oh, are you lunching already? What about your date?

Oh, yeah. No, I'm just having coffee with him.

-I want to take things nice and slowly.

-Fair enough.

Plus, The Icon Bar's food isn't always conducive to romance.

I remember sharing a Mexican platter with Ashley once

and later finding some cheese still attached to my face.

He never looked at me in the same way again.

-Am I all right like this?

-Yeah, you look gorgeous.

-Yeah, it's perfect, very you.

-Oh.

Do you know? I'm not even nervous now, I'm more excited.

-This feels like the start of a new chapter.

-Good.

Just try to enjoy it, but go with an open mind.

He might look a little bit different in the flesh.

Middle-aged blokes sometimes use ten-year-old photos

on their profiles.

What, you mean he might be in his 60s?

And the rest.

No, seriously, if he's a weirdo, just send me

a one-letter text message and I'll come and get you.

Oh, OK.

What letter shall I use?

P for psychopath?

On the other hand, if it goes well and this Pete's a nice bloke and

one thing leads to another, I don't mind covering your afternoon stint.

No! No, no, no, no.

Don't even think about going back to his place.

-Not on a first date.

-Right.

She's gone, I'm afraid.

She was very peaceful at the end.

Did she say anything?

She told me how proud she was of you.

So that's it, then.

Valerie?

-You look just like your photo.

-So do you!

What can I get you? Red? White? Tequila slammer?

Oh, just another latte for me, thank you.

Really?

You sure I can't entice you?

It's a bit early for me. Maybe next time.

Right. Next time.

Garcon.

One latte and a bottle of your finest Shiraz. Two glasses.

Just in case you change your mind. Got to cover all the bases.

So, you're a receptionist?

Yes, that's right, at The Mill Health Centre

and The Campus Surgery. We have a sort of rota system.

Sorry.

We've only just met and I'm already blathering on about work rotas.

-Dullsville!

-Don't apologise.

I'm no stranger to the intricacies of office life.

15 years with the same company.

You're a loss adjustor?

That's right.

I spend quite a bit of time on the road, interviewing claimants,

sizing up the damage.

That's the part I enjoy the most, meeting new people,

finding out what makes them tick.

What makes you tick, Valerie?

I thought I might feel...

..relief.

Not just because her suffering's over.

A more selfish reason, too.

Now that she's gone, I'm free to live my life,

go to uni, whatever.

Those feelings are normal. You shouldn't feel guilty.

I don't feel guilty...

..and I don't feel relief.

I just feel...

..angry.

It's all part of the grieving process.

Try not to bottle it up.

It's more that I'm angry with April...

..for not doing more.

And angry with Mum, for not telling me what I wanted to know.

I'm sure she had her reasons.

Yeah.

That's what worries me.

-KNOCK ON DOOR

-Yo.

-Hi.

-Hey, dude. What can I do you for?

A five-letter word, beginning with S and ending in Y.

Slimy? Satay?

I'm sorry...

..for being a cow.

Maybe I didn't discourage that complaint against Emma.

In any case, you were right to challenge me

and I shouldn't have flown off the handle.

You were really there for me when my mum died

and you were a proper mate.

I hope you still are.

Yeah, course I am and always will be.

The air is officially cleared.

You can get back to what you were doing.

Or, if you want, you can read me out that middle list.

Actually, there is one thing.

-I need a teeny favour.

-Oh, right.

So you want something from me,

so now's the time you bury the hatchet!

-No, I was going to apologise anyway.

-Yeah, course you were.

Fine, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything.

Actually, it's not to do with me, it's to do with Valerie.

She's gone on a date.

8 Chapel Road, Letherbridge.

Yeah, three o'clock.

Thanks, bye.

I'm off now. So, my condolences again.

Thanks for all your help, Doctor.

Are you heading off home already?

Yeah, in a bit.

I'm sure it'll take a while to sink in, for you, and for Liam.

Of course. But my work doesn't make many allowances for bereavement.

Anyway, I like to think that Mum was proud of everything I've achieved.

She wouldn't want me to curl up into a ball.

No. But she would want you to spend more time with Liam.

Yeah, well, we'll be in constant touch.

You know, I plan on helping with the funeral arrangements.

Even so, it'll be tough on him, he'll be here on his own.

I don't see how my movements are any of your business.

-If you're so concerned about my brother, then...

-Your brother?

Your mum told me something, in her final moments, about Liam.

Right.

You don't have to explain.

You know, Mum said some strange things to me as well.

She was so confused towards the end.

The drugs I think played havoc with her mind, her memory.

She seemed pretty lucid to me...

..and it seemed important to her that Liam to know the truth.

The truth?

Yeah, well, like I said, she was very confused.

Now, I think the best thing to do would be to ignore it.

I'm sure I can rely on your discretion.

She's a lawyer so she'll sue me if I say anything.

Morphine is a very powerful drug.

Are you sure Mrs Compton wasn't delirious?

No, I'm not sure, no.

"I trust you." That was the last thing she said to me.

It was the last thing she said to anyone.

-She trusted you to keep a secret?

-Or she trusted me to tell Liam.

Look, if what Mrs Compton was saying was true,

the onus is on her daughter. It's not your secret to share.

Yeah, but April's not going to tell him.

-She made that pretty clear.

-That's her prerogative.

-Is it?

What about Mary's wishes?

Why didn't she tell Liam herself?

Maybe she didn't think it was her place to.

But it is yours?

I think she wanted Liam to get the truth from April.

But if that didn't happen, then at least the secret

had been handed down to me.

-Doing nothing's a cop-out.

-It's better than making things worse.

Al thinks that I'm too passive, that I don't do enough to help people.

Maybe this is a case in point.

You don't want to change someone's life just because of what Al says.

No, you're right.

Jimmi...

..what would Buddha do?

Oh, steady on! I'll be slurring at afternoon clinic.

Another glass won't hurt, might help to get you in the mood.

So I noticed that your favourite film is Titanic.

Good choice!

I'm in bits every time I see Jack pouring his heart out

in the freezing water, and Rose floating away on a door.

I only have to hear Celine Dion's voice and I'm inconsolable.

Not so keen on the ending, myself.

The first hour, bit slow.

But as soon as the ship hits the iceberg

and those doomed passengers run for their lives...

..cracking entertainment!

Course, now some smart aleck is saying it didn't hit

an iceberg after all. Puts a damper on it.

Is nothing sacred?

Something wrong?

Oh, no.

Just doing my facial exercises.

It prevents wrinkles.

I'll call you when I get home.

I wouldn't bother.

I'll be down the pub.

Is that a good idea?

All right, well, let's talk tomorrow, then.

Could I have a quick word?

What? Why? I have a train to catch.

Just leave the meter running, please. Just hear me out.

What's going on?

I need to have a word with your sister in private.

I think your mum wanted Liam to know what she told me

and, ideally, I think it would be you to tell him.

I don't care what you think. This has nothing to do with you.

Mary was my patient for ten years.

I'm just trying to ensure that her wishes are followed.

Her wishes?

What do you know about her wishes?

She loved being his mother.

It suited her perfectly.

One way or another, she convinced me I wasn't cut out for it.

She's gone now, so her wishes are irrelevant.

What about Liam?

Doesn't he deserve to know the truth?

He knows that he's been lied to.

What's going on?

Nothing.

I have to go.

Do you want to tell me what this is about?

I was hoping I wouldn't have to.

Mum told you something just before she died.

Yeah, come on, let's grab a seat.

Your dad wasn't a bad man.

He was just a kid, like me.

I didn't know I was pregnant until it was too late.

I wanted to tell you so many times, it's just...

I did tell you once,

when I first came back from uni.

You just thought it was a silly game.

You knew that Mum was your mum and I was your sister.

How could it be any other way?

Mum said I should focus on my degree, on my career,

until you were old enough to understand.

I didn't know how to look after you. I was 14!

I didn't know at 18.

I don't know at 33!

Well, I hope we can do this again.

I've had a lovely time.

You're not going already?

Needs must. That reception desk won't woman itself.

Didn't you say your colleague was happy to cover for you?

Well, I shouldn't have mentioned that. Karen was only joking.

I thought this was a date.

It is a date.

Well, it was a date.

But now it's finished, till next time.

My place could do with a bit of a spring clean

but I'm happy to go back to yours.

-You're joking?

-What's to joke about?

We both know that sex is the bottom line.

Why else would I ask you out?

I am not in the habit of sleeping with men I've just met.

Don't look a gift horse in the mouth, love.

You're a kooky, middle-aged woman with a boring life.

-You should probably take what you can get.

-I beg your pardon?

I sent you all those texts, forked out for a coffee

and a bottle of wine, all for what?

The pleasure of hearing you drone on about your sad, little life?

Now it's your turn to do something for me.

Leave if you want. But now I've got your number, I'm going

-to keep haranguing you till you make good on my investment.

-Hello, chum.

-Who are you?

-Me?

I'm your worst nightmare - an overprotective ex-boyfriend.

You see, Valerie here, Valerie was my first love. Hey, Valerie.

Hello.

I slept a summer by her side and she taught me so much.

But, in the end, she wouldn't put up with the overbearing jealousy

I would feel if another man so much as looked at her.

He would end up eating his dinner through a straw.

-Oh, my goodness!

-You threatening me?

No, I'm just offering some a bit of free advice -

if you really are looking for the next Mrs Dinsdale, you need to

look elsewhere, because she is far too good for the likes of you.

Perhaps we've done enough talking, and it's time for some action.

What do you say?

You're not worth the hassle.

Neither is she.

JIMMI: Life is suffering...

..and the cause of this suffering is desire.

A grasping desire that's born of ignorance.

Never again.

We can only avoid suffering by eliminating this desire...

..and seeking true enlightenment.

OK, all right.

See? Almost there, baby.

Who knew that beneath all that corduroy

and knitwear beats the heart of a hero?

All right, chill out.

You're coming today, Dr Carmichael.

DI Stanton. I've taken over the case.

-Come on, you don't mean this.

-OK, all right.

Don't make things worse.

Worse? Like what?!