Seasons & episodes

Upon learning Aaron’s involvement in the fire, Tyler is stung to discover Mark wanted to stop Aaron from confessing to the police. Mark explains it was a temporary measure to protect Aaron until the real culprit was found. However, Tyler’s hurt; when he was in trouble with the chop shop, Mark didn’t want anything to do with him, but now Aaron gets special treatment?

Steph searches in vain for a phone that might have been playing ‘Greensleeves’, and is sprung by Belinda who’s instantly worried by Steph’s obsessive behaviour. Steph calms down and reassures Belinda that she’s fine and not about to have another breakdown, but Belinda remains unconvinced.

After waking in Tyler’s room, Amy’s first instinct is to escape, but she’s quickly caught out on her walk of shame, first by Paige, then by Kyle and Jimmy. Faced with questions she just can’t answer – and confronted by her own hypocrisy after setting boundaries for Kyle and Shay with Jimmy – Amy finds herself at odds with Kyle and at a loss as to what actually happened.

Sheila is shocked when she realises she has struck Ben with her car. It is a worrying wait for her at the hospital until Ben is deemed to be suffering only a couple of fractured ribs. A lucky escape but facing Ben’s distressed grandfather only makes Sheila feel guiltier. Karl is furious at Sheila for not heeding his advice to rest and warns her that next time someone might be seriously injured.

Piper’s guilt over her mother’s burns comes to a head when she learns Ben has confessed to starting the school fire. The pressure of knowing she’s also responsible becomes too much and in the face of kindness offered by Lauren, Piper finally purges herself of her guilty secret. A shocked Lauren advises honesty is the only solution – Piper must tell her parents no matter how difficult it will be.

Karl and Susan are rattled to learn that Ben has run away. It’s quickly revealed that Piper has gone on the run with him. Lauren kicks herself for not raising the alarm, and is confronted by the depth of Brad and Terese’s bond as they come together in the quest to find Piper. A further blow, when Brad announces that he’s moving back home while Terese recovers from her burns.

Steph is feeling shaky, uncertain whether the strange things she has been experiencing lately are a sign that she is starting to lose her grip on reality. Tyler does his best to buoy her, but when a customer denies that she ordered extra work that Steph did on her car, Steph has a minor meltdown. She starts to doubt everything.

Aaron goes into investigation mode after learning that Paul received a dead rat at the penthouse. Upon learning that Sheila was the person who took the mail up to Paul’s apartment he confronts her. Sheila is insulted he’d think it was her, but she did see the culprit and is able to point him out to Aaron.

Steph keeps her fears about her mental state to herself as she continues trying to rebuild her life in Erinsborough. But she’s knocked for six when she runs into her ex-girlfriend Belinda, who thinks their break-up was a mistake; she wants Steph back, and she’s prepared to move to Erinsborough herself if that’s what it takes.

Steph is reeling from the revelation that Vanessa has been investigating her. And while Toadie is similarly taken aback, he convinces Steph they need to give Vanessa the chance to explain herself. Meanwhile, Sonya is not happy that her friend is being accused of harassing Steph, and indeed, when Vanessa arrives, she denies any wrong-doing.

Desperate to reconnect with Amy, Kyle invites her for an after work drink. But in a comedy of errors, each thinks the other isn’t interested and they go their separate ways. While Kyle heads off to the Waterhole for a boys’ night, Amy throws herself into helping Steph get her job back. But when Sonya refuses to help her, saying she believes Vanessa is right to doubt Steph’s sanity.

Lying in each other’s arms post passion, Kyle and Amy barely have time to register what they’ve done when it’s action stations as Sheila arrives home and they have to cover their tracks. However, they’re perhaps too successful as, watching them avoid each other’s eyes, Sheila senses an unresolved tension between them.

Amber is not sure she can trust Josh with Matilda after he rolled on her in his sleep. And she’s not sure she herself is capable of giving the baby all she needs – particularly on the breast-feeding front. Lauren assures Amber that no harm was done; it won’t be the last mistake the young parents make, but things will get easier.

Doug returns to Erinsborough to acquaint himself with his great granddaughter, determined to make some memories while he can. Knowing his Alzheimer’s is progressing, he’s come bearing gifts and advice, wanting to get his family back on track.

Paul is trapped after the car accident and Steph appears unstable without her medication. Steph tells Paul he’s not getting any help until he tells her the truth about why he has her pills. Finally, Paul confesses to everything; how he made her think she was going crazy and then how he actually made her crazy by switching her medication.

Lou is disturbed to learn from Lauren that a man, claiming to be his friend from Cambodia, has been looking for him. Finally believing that her father’s crazy story might actually be true, Lauren encourages Lou to call the police, but Lou refuses, firmly believing that if he continues to lie low, the problem will eventually go away.

Feeling the pressure over Paul’s financial difficulties, Daniel encourages Nate to buy into the Freestyle Estate. Nate wavers but Daniel wins him over with mention of the recreation area and outdoor pool, only to learn that Paul’s money troubles mean that the rec area won’t be built after all. Imogen presses Daniel to tell Nate before he signs the sale contract.

Imogen confronts Daniel over his decision not to tell Nate that the pool and rec area of Freestyle has been pulled. Daniel defends his actions, saying those features were never the main selling point for Nate. But a disappointed Imogen isn’t convinced and seeks out Nate. When he waxes lyrical about the advantages of the pool and rec area, she blurts out the truth.

Amber, despite some doubts about Josh’s parenting skills, leaves Matilda with him for a few hours so she can run a few errands. Amber doesn’t confide her doubts to a supportive Karl, but she does confess to finding it tough to sift through all the advice she gets. Karl counsels her to listen to it, but to trust her instinct – it’s really the greatest asset a mother has.

Rattled after Amber has stipulated he can’t be alone with Matilda anymore, Josh tries to avoid a planned outing with the baby and Doug, suggesting alternate plans, but Piper calls him on it. Doug realises Joshua is low on confidence and points this out to Amber. Not realising how badly her edict had affected him, she initiates a heart to heart talk.

Amber struggles with whether or not to take the job she’s been offered in Queensland, seeking advice from Amy on what it’s like being a single mum. Amy’s advice is pragmatic and encouraging, and Amber is left with substantial food for thought. When Josh discovers the job advertisement in her baby bag, he’s stunned to learn she’s not only applied for a job in Queensland, she’s been offered it.

It’s Christmas Day on Ramsay Street. Amber keeps the news of her job in Brisbane a secret from the family – this is the first Christmas since Matt died and that’s enough to deal with. However, Josh reveals the news to the Willises and when an upset Brad comes looking for answers, Amber’s forced to explain herself to everyone.

Having found the threatening note, and smashed Buddha statue, Lou knows he has to do something to get the “drug cartel” off his tail. He enlists help from Karl, Susan and Sheila, telling him he’s come up with a grand plan to fake his own death! As preparations for the fake memorial service get underway, Susan goes to Lauren and tells her of Lou’s plan.

It's the day of the big operation - but Toadie is distracted by the unresolved tensions with Belinda and Steph. Though Sonya attempts to make Belinda believe Toadie didn't blow the whistle on her, Belinda is not willing to listen. Steph advises Sonya to keep Toadie away from Belinda for 24 hours, to give her a chance to calm down...