Next week on Home and Away in the UK, Tane and Roo collaborate on a radical plan to keep Maia in Summer Bay, while Justin and Leah discover John’s plans to be their celebrant – and they’re not happy!
Roo (Georgie Parker) finds herself thrust into the spotlight next week when Tane (Ethan Browne) comes up with a radical solution to help baby Maia.
Having found the three-month-old on the beach a few weeks ago, Tane became attached to the baby he later nicknamed Maia, and refused to leave her side at Northern Districts Hospital. With a lack of emergency foster carers in the area, Tane had hoped to apply to become one himself.
The plan was scuppered however when social worker Harper (Jessica Redmayne) pointed out that Tane would need to be a permanent Australian resident.
Although Tane can apply for permanent residency, it would take at least three months to come through.
Estranged wife Felicity (Jacqui Purvis) had suggested she step up in the meantime and apply to be a foster carer, but Tane quickly put a stop to that idea, perhaps realising that Flick was doing it for the wrong reasons and hoping it would somehow bring them back together.
The situation was further complicated when Coastal News journalist Peter Rolfe (Roman Delo) arrived. After tricking nurse Dana (Ally Harris) into revealing information on Tane and Maia, he wrote a scathing article questioning Tane’s motives and criticising Senior Constable Rose’s (Kirsty Marillier) handling of the case.
After Tane found himself plastered on the front page of the paper, he wasn’t best pleased when Peter later barged into the ward wanting to (belatedly) get Tane’s side of the story.
The resulting confrontation led Rose to issue Peter with an AVO forbidding him from being at the hospital, but after Peter complained to her boss about why Tane was allowed to be there, the sergeant realised that he had a point.
When Sarge subsequently ordered that only hospital and social services staff were allowed to be around Maia from now on, Rose was forced to ask Tane to leave or risk being issued with his own AVO.
Next week, Tane worries about Maia being on her own, but Mali (Kyle Shilling) assures him that Roo has been spending time with her in his absence (yes, we’re confused about that too given Sarge’s orders that only hospital/social workers were allowed).
Alf (Ray Meagher) is concerned that Roo is burning herself out by spending so much time at the hospital, and when he later calls Rose and asks to meet, he wonders if there’s anything she can do to reinstate Tane’s visits.
Rose explains that it’s out of her hands—whether Tane was baited or not, as soon as he laid his hands on Peter then his fate was sealed. If Tane hadn’t lost his cool, then it wouldn’t be an issue.
Roo and Tane talk, and she asks whether he’d considered becoming a permanent resident. He explains the long wait time involved, as well as the subsequent wait for him to be approved as a foster carer.
Roo is sure there must be someone suitable in the local area, but she’s thrown when Tane suddenly suggests she could put herself forward.
When Roo later tells Alf that she’s considering it, he warns her that it’s not something she should enter into lightly.
Roo seeks advice from Harper, who is thrilled that Roo is considering becoming a foster carer. She reminds her that many foster parents can find it tough to give up the children when the time comes, which gives Roo food for thought.
The whole experience has already brought up painful memories for Roo, particularly after Tane lambasted Maia’s biological mother for abandoning her daughter.
Roo (then played by Justine Clarke) had given her own daughter, Martha, up for adoption back in 1988 after giving birth at the age of 16. Martha had been the result of Roo’s short-lived relationship with rich kid Brett Macklin (Gerry Sont) whilst at boarding school in the city, but after a chaotic pregnancy and Brett running off with Martha after she was born, the pair mutually agreed that neither of them could provide a stable environment for their child.
Roo reunited with Martha (Jodi Gordon) off-screen whilst living in the US following the death of her adoptive parents, with Martha later moving to Summer Bay in 2005 to live with Alf.
Martha left the bay in 2010, going on the run from the authorities with boyfriend Hugo Austin, mere months before Roo herself returned after a 20-year absence.
Back in the present, Roo has a heart-to-heart with Alf, unsure of whether she could look after Maia without falling in love with her.
Whilst Alf appreciates that Roo wants to do the right thing by Maia, he points out that he’s looking out for his own little girl.
Roo delves into further research, including reading numerous discussions on that well-known site ‘Yeddit’, and begins to wonder whether this is something that she needs to do for herself.
After a tense wait, Tane is approached by Roo who tells him that she’s in. She’s going to apply to be Maia’s emergency foster carer, and Tane better start on his paperwork as she’ll one day need a permanent home.
Will their plan come to fruition?
Elsewhere in Summer Bay, Leah (Ada Nicodemou) and Justin’s (James Stewart) wedding plans are in full swing, and so is John (Shane Withington), who has secretly enrolled in a celebrant course to get the qualifications to marry them himself.
Whilst Leah is all for a simple ceremony at Salt, Justin is hoping for something a bit grander—it may be Leah’s fourth wedding, but this is Justin’s first (and hopefully only) wedding.
When John returns from his course in the city, he’s shocked to learn from Irene (Lynne McGranger) that Leah and Justin are planning to marry in only a few weeks. It means John has to get a wriggle on with finishing his course, and for that he needs to record a mock ceremony.
It’s a resounding no from Irene as John asks whether she’d participate, and a visit to his friendly neighbours at No. 55 ends with Eden (Stephanie Panozzo) also turning down the opportunity.
As Leah and Justin come to discuss the celebrant, they agree to ask the one who presided over Tori (Penny McNamee) and Christian’s (Ditch Davey) wedding. But as Justin’s about to text his sister to ask for the contact details, Irene interrupts—have they spoken to John at all…?
Irene’s forced to let the cat out of the bag and explains to the stunned pair that John has been working on getting his qualification. They aren’t thrilled by the idea, but when they later meet with John in the diner, he’s so excited at the prospect of being their celebrant that they don’t have the heart to tell him their true feelings.
Leah looks over to Irene for help, but as John starts talking through the vows, it’s clear that it won’t be a simple task to turn him down…
As Leah and Justin debate who gets to break it to John that they don’t want him to be their celebrant, he comes into the diner to reveal that he’s been busy roping in Xander (Luke Van Os) and Dana (Ally Harris) for his mock wedding.
Justin gives Leah a nudge as John clocks their pained expressions, but she bottles out.
It’s a particularly awkward gathering in the Pier apartment, with Xander having friend-zoned Dana a few weeks back when she asked him out on a date, but as they film the ceremony it seems there could still be a spark between the pair…
As John heads back downstairs to find Justin and Leah waiting, he can’t wait to tell them how his assignment went.
But is JP about to be brought back down to earth with an almighty bump?
