SoapWeekly: Tim and Eden get close in Home and Away

Soap highlights for the coming week from Neighbours and Home and Away…

Aaron has sage words of advice for Paul this week in Neighbours

Just as Andrew is about to discover the mystery intruder, he’s interrupted by Dex and JJ arriving home from New York and the intruder manages to escape. Dex is looking forward to Andrew staying over, and JJ is rapt to be reunited with Nell. But that all changes when they stumble on the unknown house guest, who turns out to be their Uncle Taye, Remi’s brother. He explains his reasons for escaping Apollo Bay and that knowing the Varga-Murphy house was empty, he decided to lay low there.

The housemates are surprised when they learn that Vera is finally considering a move to Eirini Rising. With Sadie’s support, she tours the facility and decides it really is the place for her after all. Terese helps with the financing and Vera happily signs the contract. In typical Vera style, she quickly gets the other residents’ noses out of joint, being labelled a gossip and a troublemaker. But Vera leans into the conflict, suggesting it’s time the place had a shake-up. Look out Eirini Rising, Vera Punt has arrived!

Nell remains standoffish with Paul despite the effort he makes to break the ice. When he learns JJ is home from the States and Nell will be busy reuniting with him, he turns up at Terese’s house, looking to distract himself from the approaching anniversary of David’s death with some romance. But Terese turns down his advances, refusing to break her promise to Nell that the Willis house is a safe space for her. Paul reluctantly agrees to leave but not before seeing one of Nell’s sketches of the Rebecchi clan when Terese was married to Toadie.

Later, Terese discovers that Nell overheard her discussion with Paul and apologises. She then learns Nell found her old tracksuit pants at the Foundation and brought them home, which leads to them deciding to have a movie night, bringing the two even closer. But when Terese tells Paul about the tracksuit pants, he becomes certain Nell is manipulating Terese in order to turn her against him. He confronts a shocked Nell, coldly warning her that he’s on to her, and if she keeps interfering, things won’t end well for her.

When Aaron brings Jane some lunch to school, she reveals she’s supposed to be going on a lunch date with Clint. Although she’s thinking of cancelling, Aaron encourages her to go. The date goes well, until a protective Byron passes by. Clint invites him to join them, and despite Jane’s initial wariness, she’s soon pleased to see that the men get along. When Clint leaves, Byron gives Clint his seal of approval and Jane is relieved, admitting she’d like to see him again.

Nell updates Terese about her run-in with Paul and an angry Terese confronts him. Although Paul insists that Nell is trying to break them up, Terese disagrees, saying he should have come to her with his concerns and not Nell. Later, Paul downloads to Aaron, who points out that Paul’s annoyance has nothing to do with Nell and everything to do with distracting himself from the upcoming anniversary of David’s death – something Paul can’t deny. He talks to Terese about the reasons behind his issues and she forgives him even if Nell just pretends to.

Later in the week both Jane and Clint are startled by each other’s roles at Erinsborough High, Jane the principal, Clint the cleaner. Feeling awkward, Jane consults with Aaron and Nicolette, adamant she can’t have a relationship with an employee. But Aaron and Nicolette wonder if this is really about Jane being Clint’s boss, suggesting she’s judging Clint’s lower-status occupation. Elsewhere Leo encourages a despondent Sebastian to think of uni prospects in Sydney after his recent sacking, although tensions between the men heighten when Sebastian sets his sights on a job at the hotel. Unbeknownst to Leo, Sebastian tells Krista his theory that Leo got Nicolette to fire him from Harold’s. Krista can’t fathom this and insists Seb must have the wrong idea.

When Paul fails to appear at the celebration of David’s life on the first anniversary of his death, Terese discovers him home alone, unable to forgive himself for David’s demise. Terese encourages him to share the day with his family, so he doesn’t have any regrets, and despite the gathering getting off to a shaky start, everyone finally pulls together to remember David in a loving, meaningful way.

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The trial of Perri begins in Home and Away

In the wake of her tensions with her sister, Abigail is doing well in counselling. She’s in a good place with Levi, and she tells Tim that her brother made her realise she’s been too harsh with Eden – she’s the one who stuck around after all. As they walk on the beach together, Abigail tells Tim she wouldn’t even know how to broach things with Eden, and he suggests she crystalise her feelings in a letter. Then they can start working through them.

Eden has an awkward run-in with Cash, and she’s shocked to hear that he now plans on leaving the Bay tomorrow. It all feels too fast for her, and after confiding in Levi, she presses Cash to ensure it’s really what he wants. When he stands by his decision, she feels she has no choice but to accept and readies herself for a life without her great love. Later Tim shows up at Salt to catch up with Eden and offers to walk her home. She welcomes the company and feels at ease around her sister’s counsellor. As they crack a beer at home, Eden admits she’s had a tough day. But when Tim asks if she wants to talk about it, she answers no, and pulls him into a kiss instead.

Marilyn is delighted when Alf returns from Merimbula unannounced, but she soon notices something has changed – he’s quiet, and he seems out of sorts. Alf says he’s just tired, but Marilyn can’t help but be concerned. When she catches him in a reserved, lonely moment at home, she asks him directly – is everything OK?

Kirby is attempting to wrangle Mali for the Manta Ray Boards photoshoot, but he’s dismissive. When Mackenzie gets across this, she puts the hard word on her housemate – don’t let Kirby take on all the work promoting his business. Mali quickly gets on board, but his early confidence gives way to a full-blown panic attack moments before the shoot – can he get through it for the sake of his business?

A betrayed Bree rages at Remi after finding out he talked to Xander about her issues – she thought she could trust him! Remi can’t even defend his position before she’s thrown him out of her house. When Levi overhears him warning Xander they’ve been sprung, he decides to pay a visit to Bree himself. Finding her obsessively cleaning the sink, he’s gentle even after she makes it clear he’s not welcome. She gradually opens up – if she asks for help, she’ll become the doctor who lost it. It will follow her for the rest of her career. Levi has one question for her though – if she’s not seeking help, then what is she doing?

Tane is consumed by worry when he confides in Harper on the beach – Perri’s lawyer hasn’t found witnesses to Carl’s abuse. He’s going to need a miracle. It’s fraught at home when Tane gives Perri his dad’s ashes, and Perri says he needs time alone to process. After being reminded of his own brush with the law, though, Tane questions whether the teen really wants to spend what could be his last day of freedom cooped up by himself.

When Leah notices that Alf is still clearly struggling, she decides to act. She tells Justin it’s time for them to do something. John visits Alf later for approval of some pressing surf club business. When he asks if Alf’s alright though, he cops a spray as he’s shown the door. When John reports back to Leah, she decides there’s one person who might know what’s going on with Alf – she’s going to call Martha.

Mackenzie and Levi are enjoying a romantic moment when hurricane Abigail interrupts – she’s cooking them all a family lunch today, just like their mother used to. When Levi goes to tell Eden, he finds her unusually upbeat. When he tells her their little sister is cooking for them though, she balks – surely, she’s not invited.

Leah has spoken to Martha, and she’s confirmed her own fears for Alf – something’s not right with him. Marilyn and Leah go over with leftovers from the Diner, hoping he’ll open up. But when he spurns them in favour of a nap and shows no signs of talking, Marilyn decides to call in the big guns – she makes a phone call at the Diner before announcing to Alf’s worried friends that Roo is coming home.

Home and Away airs 1:45pm on Channel 5, Monday to Friday and at 6pm on 5STAR with first-look screenings of the following edition at 6:30 pm. The series also streams on My5.

River City is on a break until February, catch up with previous episodes on the iPlayer