Starlings

The Starlings are a normal brood getting on with life in Matlock, Derbyshire, tackling obstacles as and when they come, and they've got a fair few in this first episode. Terry and Jan have just moved Grandad into their already-crammed home - following an unspecified incident at the retirement home - to share with none-too-pleased teen Charlie, and now they're preparing for one more arrival. It's only small and due any minute as daughter Bell goes into labour via a birthing pool in the living room. Then there's Grandad's illegitimate son and, erm, interesting artist Loz, Jan's nephew and returning traveller Fergi out in the caravan and Bell's ex-boyfriend Reuben, who's determined to make things right and get Bell back. Throw in Terry's suspicious phone calls and oddball son Gravy losing one of his friends of the "four-legged and four-armed" variety, and it's fair to say that our weekly visits to the Starlings nest are going to be pretty eventful.

Terry and Jan are very much the loved-up couple in this series two opener, but a boat-rocking appearance from a creative writing tutor with an extracurricular interest in Jan doesn't bode well. Daughter Charlie, meanwhile, puts on a brave face as she reconsiders her future following an accident on a building site. It's not all doom and gloom, though, and Gravy and Grandad keep themselves entertained by looking for gold in the garden. Their luck seems to be in when they stumble upon a buried treasure chest, albeit one containing valued, if not valuable, items. The episode's high point, however, comes courtesy of Reuben. Roping in Fergie and Uncle Loz - who is now working as an art teacher - the youngster has to overcome his fair share of obstacles in order to ask Bell a very big question.