What's going on here?
The Port Devine Pigeon Club are twinning with another club from France.
Oh. I didn't know Barry kept pigeons.
No, he doesn't. He used to a long time ago.
How's it going, Barry?
Well, it was going all right, but Hugh is late!
Hugh-who?
McCoy - the president of the club.
He was supposed to have made his speech by now.
I am absolutely mortified! Hugh McCoy has let us down a bucketful!
Belle, let's just give him a few more minutes, OK?
He's 15 minutes late already!
As club treasurer, you'll have to step in.
HE CLEARS HIS THROAT
Er, excusez-moi?
Vous...
..pigeons Francais.
Sorry, what is that? He just called them French pigeons.
We here in the Port Devine Pigeon Club,
we are delighted to be twinned
with the Pigeon Club of Bellenord.
And I would like to present your President,
Monsieur Philippe Chapeau-Noir,
with a little token of our international friendship.
Here we are!
Stop! Stop! Stop!
Hugh? What's wrong?
My pigeons have been stolen!
What happened last night,
you need to understand,
your dad's under a lot of pressure at the moment.
He needs your patience and your support.
He's always been there for you when you've messed up.
How about you do the same for him?
Have we run out of milk?
I'll go and get some.
I just got home from a walk and found the pigeon loft empty.
My birds are all gone.
Could someone have accidentally let them loose?
No, they're homing pigeons, cub.
If they'd been released they would've come back. Right enough.
And how valuable are these birds?
As breeding stock they're worth a fortune.
My champion racer's worth £10,000.
£10,000?!
What time did you last see them?
Just before 8am.
And what time did you discover they were gone?
About ten to nine.
There have been a lot of thefts recently,
things going missing from gardens.
The backyard burglar that was in the paper?
Yeah. I mean, this could be related,
but we'll need to examine the crime scene.
Just one second. Callum...
..I can't go to Hugh's pigeon loft.
I'm allergic to birds.
That's not what I heard.
It's cos of my allergy that Barry had to get rid of his pigeons.
I'll tell Al to meet you there, OK?
Dad, you're not going to give Jake that police info he asked for?
Don't worry about it. How can I not?
He wants to pass it on to a criminal gang.
If it's traced back to you, you'll go to jail for a very long time.
Honestly, sweetheart, it's going to be OK.
I need to get to work.
Concepta, how's Finn?
I haven't seen him yet.
He stayed with Clint.
Can you keep an eye on him today, Al?
Sure.
Is this an identity ring?
Yeah, we put it on the pigeon's leg when it's a baby.
This belonged to Flossie.
She had an infected leg. I had to cut it off.
The leg?
No, the ring.
It's the only way to remove them.
This is my wife, Susan.
Do you have any idea who took the pigeons?
We're working on it.
The harbour race is today.
My champion, The Real McCoy, is about to make the record books
for winning it more than any other bird in history.
Hugh's seriously ill.
He's got pigeon fancier's lung.
That's my business, Susan! Would you stop telling the whole world?!
You need to see a doctor. I'm going to give her a ring.
Find something, Cal?
Yeah, an earring.
That's Susan's.
She feeds the birds sometimes. She must've dropped it.
Do you think maybe this backyard burglar took the birds?
It's too early to tell.
The doctor's on her way.
That's quite a collection of trophies, Mrs McCoy.
Oh, there's no better pigeon breeder or trainer than Hugh.
You're proud of him? Naturally.
Were you here when the birds were taken?
No, I was at my t'ai chi class.
I go every Friday morning at eight.
And what time do you get back at?
About 20 past nine.
Are the birds insured?
Yes, but that'll be of no comfort to him.
I can't believe you left your bike outside!
Only now when I came back from getting milk.
You should call Dad.
After what he did last night? No way. What happened?
Someone came this close to getting his features rearranged.
By Finn?!
Whatever you said it must have been really bad.
I can't afford to replace that bike.
You may call your dad and report it.
Report what? He got his bike stolen.
Ach, you didn't leave it unlocked again, did you?
I can't believe you lifted your hand to one of our kids.
I didn't hit him.
Yeah, but you wanted to.
Carry on like this and you'll end up pushing us all away.
Well, maybe a bit of space is a good thing.
I've got a wee place of my own.
I'm just here to pick up my stuff.
HUGH COUGHS UNCONTROLLABLY
Look at the state of you, Hugh!
It's a blessing those birds have gone!
Don't talk rubbish, Susan!
Sorry, he's not usually that rude.
Is something burning?
Oh, that's Hugh's lunch!
The wife let slip that he has pigeon fancier's lung?
I've never heard of it.
The dust from the birds' feathers causes breathing difficulties,
and in the most severe cases it can be fatal.
I'll go and check on him.
Whoa!
Wait a second.
These things are deadly.
I've just saved your life.
All right there, Clint?
I heard about the pigeons.
Have they been found yet?
No.
What are you doing here, Siobhan?
Hugh's not very well. I'm going to assess him now.
Right, well ...
..tell him I was asking about him, will you?
How is Shay?
Bad-tempered and unforgiving.
Oh? I wonder who he takes after?
His mother's side of the family.
And to make matters worse, Shay's bike's been stolen.
Yeah, some opportunist has been taking
a lot of things from gardens and yards recently.
You know, I've seen a red truck parked behind my house a few times.
No idea who owns it.
All, right OK. Thanks for the tip.
And try not to worry about Finn.
I'll keep an eye on him whenever I can, OK?
Marlene! Oh, hi.
Er, Concepta have you, have you met my cheesemaker...
..I mean, er, my friend Ash? She's a cheesemaker.
Nice to meet you.
Good strong grip you have there.
Oh, years of milking.
Ash has a dairy herd.
Er, so, we still on for tonight?
Tonight? Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Do you want to walk with me? Yeah.
See you, Concepta.
I was thinking maybe The Commodore?
Again? No.
Why don't we meet somewhere else? What about the...?
Erm, the Giddy Kipper? That is miles away!
I was hoping for somewhere a bit closer to home.
Is there a problem?
You are, out yeah?
Yeah. Yeah, I am.
It's recent.
Look, I'd better get back to work.
How about I call you later, yeah? Yeah. OK.
Come on, mate, it's only eight digits.
Yeah, but it changes every month.
Hi, guys. All right?
Sorry I'm late.
I had to do a bit of making up with the family.
Is there any chance that the backyard thief stole Hugh's pigeons?
He's more opportunistic.
This bird theft was planned.
Yeah, we're thinking the birds were stolen to sell
or taken by a rival.
Hugh and Belle Robinson are mortal enemies.
They have been for years. And, do you know what,
she wasn't at breakfast this morning with the other pigeon fanciers.
Well, it sounds like we need to speak to Belle.
We heard that you and Hugh McCoy weren't on the best of terms.
Oh, please, take a seat.
Whatever friendly rivalry there was between me and him
was forgotten when I heard he'd pigeon lung.
I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy.
How did you know about the illness?
Well...
..the coughing, the wheezing.
I thought everyone knew.
With Hugh's champion bird out of the big race,
it seems your pigeon is odds-on favourite to win.
Winning today is the furthest thing from my mind.
OK.
Can I ask you where you were when the pigeons went missing, Mrs Robinson?
I was getting ready for the ceremony.
I left here, oh, about 8:45.
Have you been up to Hugh McCoy's pigeon loft recently? No!
Only I found an earring there similar to the pair you're wearing.
Oh, my style, but it's not one of mine.
Perhaps it belongs to Susan.
We've checked - Susan's ears are pierced and she can only wear gold.
Really?
I'd no idea.
So, I was thinking we paint the nursery yellow and white.
And then when we find out if we're having a boy or a girl,
then we can add in either blue or pink accent colours.
Or we could go plain white and then...
Yellow and white. Perfect.
Our Shay's bike's been stolen.
If you hear that one of your dodgy relatives is selling one,
you'll let Finn know, won't you?
Here, what do you think of Marlene's new friend Ash?
Ash?
There's something going on between them.
Something more than cheese.
Oh, that Ash!
Speaking of romance,
I saw Al and Siobhan earlier, looking very friendly.
Then you need your eyes tested.
But I heard that... Then get your ears tested as well.
There's nothing going on there!
Believe me, if there was, I'd know.
What can you tell us about the rivalry between Hugh and Belle?
Well, it's been bad at times.
She once accused him of feeding his birds performance enhancing drugs.
Any truth in it?
Not at all!
Belle is a ...
..passionate, headstrong sort of woman.
She had a wee notion of me at one time.
Who's that you're talking about?
Belle - short for Jezebel - Robinson?
The way I remember it is
you chased after her, she made an eejit of you
and dumped you for a flash Harry with a Jag.
Belle is a bit high maintenance.
With very low morals.
When she stops to cross the road, cars pull up and ask how much.
I know you're not one to spread rumours, Concepta, but
you must've heard something on the grapevine.
Well, as it happens,
Doreen the lollipop lady was on duty this morning,
and she saw Hugh McCoy go into Belle's house just after
eight o'clock and leave before nine,
looking flushed and dishevelled.
Hugh and Belle? Getting jiggy with it?
I don't believe it!
It'll be over the second she finds someone with a bigger wallet.
Mark my words, Hugh will be kicked to the kerb, just like you were.
Thanks, Barry.
You're welcome.
Mr McCoy?
Oh, hello.
I was just wondering,
are the insurance payments on your birds up-to-date?
Yes, they are.
I just increased them recently.
Can I ask why? It was for the trip to France.
What's the nature of your relationship with Belle Robinson?
Were you at her house this morning?
Yes, I was with Belle at her house this morning.
She probably lost her earring last week
when she was up at my pigeon loft.
Since the trip to, France we've become...
..close.
MOBILE PHONE VIBRATES Excuse me.
Right. OK.
Mr McCoy, where's your wife now?
Ah, she just nipped out to the shops.
She'll be back any minute.
Do you have the pedigree certificates for your birds?
Yes, they're in here.
They're gone!
Does your wife have a key for this box?
Yes, she does.
Oh, hello.
Mrs McCoy.
I've just had a message from your t'ai chi instructor
saying that you were at the class this morning,
but you left after ten minutes.
Can you tell me where you went?
KNOCK ON DOOR Yeah?
Dot Harper said the red truck is parked up on Back Hill.
Would you come with me?
Er, in case we find the pigeons.
Yeah, of course.
Here, and if this red truck is the backyard thief,
he might have Shay's bike. Hopefully.
I need to build some bridges with him.
This is the truck my ma was talking about.
No sign of Shay's bike. No.
But he must be nearby.
GATE CLOSES
Looking for these?
You're under arrest for theft.
You don't have to say anything, but it may harm your defence
if you don't mention when questioned something you later rely on in court.
Anything you do say may be used as evidence.
What were you doing with these pedigree certificates in your handbag, Susan?
I was making copies...
..for the insurance claim.
Why didn't you tell your husband?
I didn't want to upset him.
Did you take the pigeons?
We will find out, Susan.
Yes! I took them!
I couldn't bear to watch Hugh choking to death any more!
I found somebody who will look after them properly. Who?
Where are the pigeons now?
In an old loft...
..not far from our house.
Lunch together! Like the good old days!
Only now you're the married lady and I'm the single one.
Lock up your sons!
And what's that supposed to mean? Ignore him.
I'm just glad you're starting to look and sound like yourself again.
Well, after the lumpectomy, I completely lost my mojo.
Finn was no help in getting that back.
Lucky for me, Al turned up when he did.
Hmm, he has been paying you a lot of attention recently.
Yeah.
You know, and the flirting with him makes me feel attractive again,
but there's nothing going on there.
Besides...
Besides what?
I see the looks.
I hear the whispers.
Branded for life like some scarlet woman.
Oh, I know what you mean.
That smug show-off Claudia Preston was in here droning on
and on about her new twins.
Harper and...Tulliver.
Anyway, she got this look of pity in her eye
and changed the subject.
What if Clint and I never have children?
What will our future look like then
I really hope the surrogacy works out, Nicole.
Ignore the looks.
Yes.
And you ignore the whispers.
Life's too short not to be happy. Amen to that!
And if they're going to treat me like a scarlet woman,
I've got just the dress for them.
SHE CHUCKLES
We went to the loft, Susan.
The birds are gone.
They can't be!
All their identity rings have been cut off.
What did you do with them? Nothing!
Did you want revenge?
Revenge for what??
You can stop pretending.
We know about the affair.
What are you talking about?
I'm not having an affair!
We can rule out the backyard thief.
He was caught on camera on the other side of the town
stealing garden furniture at the time the pigeons went missing.
These are Susan's phone records.
There are a lot of messages between her and Belle Robinson.
They were planning something.
First we find that Belle is having a fling with Hugh.
Now she's best friends with his wife?
Come on, Callum.
Did Belle come up with the plan to take the birds, Susan?
The thing is, we know that Belle couldn't have taken them.
She was with Hugh, at her house.
What were they doing there?
Are they the ones who've been having the affair?
SHE SCOFFS
There must be some mistake.
Belle wouldn't do that to me.
How come nobody knew she was your friend?
Why was it a secret?
Because of her rivalry with Hugh.
We didn't want him spoiling it.
There's a lot of texts between you.
It seems like she was coaxing you to get rid of the birds.
She was helping me find somebody to take them!
Belle wasn't helping you re-home them.
Do you know what I think?
She was selling them.
Belle was only pretending to be my friend?
Where are you meant to be meeting her to hand over the certificates?
PIGEONS COO
Oi!
Are those Hugh McCoy's birds?
No, they're mine!
No leg rings.
There's really only one way to find out who owns them.
Callum, open the crate.
They are homing pigeons after all.
Your house is that way, isn't it, Mrs Robinson?
Susan was worried about your health.
Belle convinced her to steal the pigeons
by pretending to be her friend.
I was taken in by her too.
I feel like such a fool.
I think Susan feels foolish too.
Belle took both of yous for a ride.
What about my pigeons?
If they're taken to France for breeding...
..they'll clip their wings.
They'll never fly again.
WINGS FLUTTER
My pigeons! They're home!
Oh, Lord...
What's wrong?
Erm...
..I...
I have aller...
Allergies.
MOBILE PHONE VIBRATES
Marlene?
Well?
Have they arrived yet?
Belle Robinson, Philippe Chapeau-Noir, I am arresting you
for the theft of Hugh McCoy's pigeons.
You do not have to say anything but it may harm your defence
if you do not mention when questioned something you later rely on in court.
Anything you do say may be given in evidence.
I was helping Susan to save Hugh
by giving Philippe the pigeons.
Not according to Mr Chapeau-Noir.
As soon as you handed over the pedigree certificates,
he was going to transfer the cash into your bank account.
The money was going to be transferred from my account to Susan's.
And nobody can prove otherwise.
You told him Susan was selling the birds for Hugh to have
experimental treatment for pigeon lung.
Susan took those pigeons, not me!
You know, Susan really tried to protect you.
She believed you were her friend.
Hi.
What do you want?
Oh, you found it!
Try not to sound too surprised.
HE LAUGHS DELIGHTEDLY
No way! Thanks.
Shay...
..I'm really sorry about last night, mate.
Yeah, erm...
Look I'm really sorry too, Dad.
I was drunk and totally out of order. Come here.
I shouldn't have lost my temper with you.
That will never happen again, OK?
I love you to bits. Yeah.
Shay's bike! Well done, Finn.
Do you two want to have dinner with me later, Commodore?
We'd love that! Yeah, we would.
I'll finish up work in about an hour and I'll see you round there, yeah?
Finn, wait!
Are you sure you're going to be all right?
I mean, living somewhere by yourself.
Yeah, I'll be fine.
Being here with you, while we split up, it's too stressful.
It's for the best.
Yeah.
That's all I needed to know.
HORN HONKS
HE EXHALES DEEPLY
Oh, Hugh, you're not supposed to be here.
You shouldn't be in contact while Susan's out on bail.
I just wanted to make sure she was OK.
She's just collecting a few things.
Where are you going?
To our Peggy's.
Why did you never say that you hated the birds?
I didn't hate them, but they were making you sick
and I was afraid of losing you.
I didn't know that I already had.
I swear, things with Belle never went that far.
It was just a bit of a kiss, that's all.
When I got my diagnosis, I just lost my head.
I was scared...
..and I was selfish.
I didn't think how it was affecting you.
Your wife put herself in danger of prosecution
for the sake of your health.
I realise that now.
Susan...
..can you ever forgive me?
I honestly don't know.
Yes, love, what can I get you?
Erm, a pint of the black stuff, please.
Here...
..I'm meeting someone here for dinner. First date.
Which table would you recommend?
That's a cosy wee corner over there.
Ah! Are you Marlene's mate, Ash?
Wow! The grapevine round here is faster than the 5G.
Yeah, I think you'll find you can't keep a secret in Port Devine for long. I'm Clint.
Here, take a seat and I'll bring it over when it settles.
And Marlene's a mate, so it's on the house.
Oh cheers...Clint
You're welcome, Ash.
So, what's going on between you and Marlene?
If it's any of your business, we're dating.
Well, it is my business. Marlene is having my baby.
Oh, I knew there was something up!
I thought maybe she wasn't out, but I never imagined anything like this!
I'm sorry.
If I'd known Marlene was in a relationship
I wouldn't have got involved.
What have you done now?!
Will we see you at The Commodore?
Yeah, I'll catch you later for a pint.
Oh, and Callum, good work today.
What's wrong?
We have to tell Finn you're being blackmailed by criminals and it's all my fault.
It's not and there's no need to tell Finn anything, all right?
I figured out a way to sort it.
Promise me that whatever it is, you won't get caught.
There's no way to trace it back to me, all right? I swear.
OK?
I'll see you later.
Hi, Finn.
Finn, about last night...
..I'm sorry.
It should've been me on the receiving end, not Shay.
Just forget about it.
Jake...
..I've got that information you wanted.
Hello. Susan, you know I said a wee prayer to St Anthony
that your birds would be found safe.
Thanks, Concepta.
Barry, I was thinking it over and because of my health, I was wondering...
..would you like to have joint ownership of my pigeons?
If you could race them and look after them,
they could stay in my loft, I can see them out the window?
Oh, thank goodness!
I thought you were going to suggest keeping them next door to me.
You know, Barry's birds used to use my washing for target practice.
Hugh, I would be delighted.
Tough day at work?
No.
I was supposed to meet someone here but I...
I think I've blown it.
What, you had a date? With who?
Ash.
I really like her.
But I've been acting like a mad woman,
and I haven't told her about the surrogacy yet, and...
..now she's stood me up.
I'm sure she hasn't.
I've called her twice.
She's not picking up.
Well, whoever she is, she clearly isn't good enough.
Here, can you smell something.
Ah, it's your pants, they're on fire.
I'm afraid I'm going to have to arrest you.
That dress you're wearing is causing a disturbance.
SHE CHUCKLES
Is that right?
We've always been attracted to each other, right?
But never...
..unattached at the same time.
Until now.
What are you saying?
The house is empty.
So I'm going to finish this drink and go home.
And in a few minutes, you're going to follow me.
Are you serious?
SIGHING: I'm starving.
What's keeping your dad? Has he answered your text yet?
No, no. He, erm... He said he'd come straight from the station.
Sure, Niamh's gone to see what's keeping him.
Dad?
Are you drinking at work?
How long have you been doing this?
Please, Niamh, you can't tell anybody.
You can't tell anybody, OK?
Are you going to stand in that doorway all night?
Are you sure about this, Siobhan?