The following post contains a LOT of spoilers for Brassic Series 5
Reeling from the dramatic events of the series 4 finale, Vinnie and the gang face big repercussions from their entanglements with the dangerous McDonagh brothers and powerful drug buyer Manolito. With both criminal big-wigs now on his case, Vinnie needs to negotiate his exit strategy – and fast. But there’s a lot on his mind, especially as he’s still trying to figure out what the hell is going on between him and Erin. Can they ever actually be together, and does she really want to share this unhinged and dangerous life with him?
EPISODE 1 ‘EDDIE’ Guest starring Lee Mack as Eddie. When Adyhan Khan brings Vinnie six top-of-the-range cars on a plate, it’s an offer he can’t refuse. Besides, it might take his mind off Dylan who’s still missing. The plan is meant to be fool proof, only their inside man he gets gut rot and instead they’re faced with a man called Eddie who refuses to play ball. The gang are forced to take Eddie hostage after he swallows the keys to the car transporter and a chaotic 24 hours ensues.
Eddie is a busy man and has a number of bizarre engagements that he simply cannot miss, and so the gang reluctantly escort him while they wait for Dr Chris’ laxatives to work. They move a canal barge, attend a Bullseye-themed charity event, and organise a children’s birthday party. During all this it transpires that Eddie has a serious gambling problem which has landed him in a whole load of trouble. But after some enforced time spent with the gang, Eddie promises to turn over a new leaf.
EPISODE 2 ‘THE MISSING BODY’ The discovery of a WW2 bunker near Jim and Shirley’s farms gets everyone excited. It’s the perfect weed grow. But when the MacDonagh brothers come to sniff it out, Barry stands on an old land mine and BOOM – Barry’s in pieces. A distraught Davey and his fresh-out-of-jail psychopath sister, Donna, demand help arranging the funeral leaving the gang with no choice in the matter. So, when the hearse gets nicked with Barry’s body in it, Vinnie knows it’s a race against time to get it back.
Turns out a ventriloquist called Phil Brilliance has taken Barry’s body hostage. He’ll only give it back if Davey apologises for an old dispute – but everyone knows that’s like getting blood from a stone. After some skilled trickery, failed attempts and detective work, the gang finally get their hands on Barry just in time for the funeral. Only there’s one crucial part of him missing … Phil Brilliance may just have the last laugh, it’s an eye for an eye after all.
EPISODE 3 ‘HANS’ Guest starring Mani from The Stone Roses and Camille Cottin as Vinnies therapist. Tommo gets the surprise of his life when a young German man shows up looking for him. This isn’t any young German man, this is Tommo’s son, Hans. A brief dalliance with a foreign exchange student 18 years ago had bigger repercussions than Tommo could’ve ever imagined. Enlisting the gang’s help, Tommo tries to bond with his newly acquired son … but unnerved by Hans’ blind admiration, Tommo tells a few lies making out that he’s a successful entrepreneur and runs a thriving establishment – the Rat & Cutter.
But Hans soon finds out the truth about Tommo’s wayward life and that the Rat & Cutter fell into liquidation a long time ago. He hates being lied to and runs off to Tommo’s foster parents’ house. This is the last place on earth Tommo wants to go … he rejected their claustrophobic and suburban world a long time ago. But once Tommo is forced to face his past, some revelations are to be had and he vows to be as good a father as he can be. Meanwhile, Vinnie starts therapy and embarks on a journey that’ll bring him face to face with some of his oldest triggers.
EPISODE 4 ‘SWEET SIXTEEN’ The last time Erin saw her dad was 15 years ago, before he ran off for good. Now he’s dead he’s re-entered Erin’s life being as big a nuisance as ever. He’s left Erin his seaside flat and a 10 grand debt to the local honchos. Billy and Betty Baileaf are not people you want to mess with, they give Erin 48 hours to cough up and take Ronnie hostage until she does.
Stumped, the gang ponder how the hell they’ll get the money in time, when Erin has an idea. She used to work on the local amusement pier, the arcade racked in loads of cash, and she knows the place like the back of her hand. A plan is hatched, involving a clown and some giant gobstoppers. However, the heist collapses when they discover that a) there’s hardly any cash held on the pier anymore and b) the people who now own the pier are The Baileafs themselves … the gang are forced to run for their lives. Meanwhile back in Hawley, JJ gets in serious trouble with the police and makes a life-changing decision.
EPISODE 5 ‘THE RAT CATCHER’ Jim is mortified to discover that he has an attic full of rats. Luckily Adyhan Khan knows just the fella – Curtis Plum, a DJ turned anarchist ratcatcher with a dark past. In his heyday Curtis was pretty famous on the Acid House scene, and Carol was enamoured. So much so that she sent him a precious family heirloom ring as fan mail. But now the chance has arisen, she wants it back.
On discovering that Curtis is a serious hoarder, the gang offer to clear his house out for him secretly hoping to find Carol’s ring. Instead, they find a whole host of weird shit including a map made of vellum that sends Tommo on a drug-fuelled wild goose chase. Meanwhile Curtis confides in a reluctant Jim about his broken heart and is encouraged to right some of his past wrongs, and Vinnie finally starts making progress in therapy.
EPISODE 6 ‘CARAVAN OF COURAGE’ Carol & Ashley’s Great Gran’s battered caravan has been nicked and Francis is offering 10k for its return. The gang suspect that Francis must keep his cash stash on there, explaining why he’s so desperate to get it back (it can’t just be because Great Gran misses her cherished taxidermy cat). Now they’ve got double reason to find the heap of old junk before anyone else does.Turns out the McGuigans have it, a rival Traveller clan that mean business.
Uncle Doolan had recently jilted one of their own, practically leaving her at the altar. But when they came to seek him out, he chained himself to Great Gran’s caravan … so they just took the whole thing. And now they won’t give Doolan or the caravan up without one hell of a fight. Meanwhile, Erin and Vinnie are causing all sorts of havoc at a parents BBQ after they discover Tyler’s being bullied.
EPISODE 7 ‘ALBERT’ Manolito wants a white fluffy bunny for his Lola’s 4th birthday party, else there will be trouble. Cardi steps up to the plate, thinking he’ll easily be able to provide. And sure enough, he gets his hands on Albert, the biggest bunny anyone has ever seen. So far so good, until an altercation with Cardi’s longstanding enemy, Russell Hardwick, ends with Russell stealing Albert. The clock is now ticking on Cardi. If he doesn’t get a bunny to Manolito that night, there will be all hell to pay.
A bereft Cardi goes to Carol for comfort, only to discover he’s forgotten their anniversary and is in the doghouse. Cardi decides he must do something; he must get Albert back and prove to Carol that he’s the man of her dreams again. With the help of the gang, an epic adventure ensues which entails sabotaging Russell’s fancy gala and annihilating his golf course. Cardi eventually shows up to Lola’s birthday party with Albert, Carol forgives him and he gets the hero’s welcome. Only nothing is as it seems; Manolito’s been lying to Vinnie for months about what happened to Dylan, and Lola isn’t any old 4-year-old …
EPISODE 8 ‘THE LOWRY HEIST’ A classic Brassic finale that wraps up the various compelling strands developed over the series. After discovering that Manolito has been playing them this whole time, the gang set out to frame him by stealing some rare explicit Lowry paintings and planting them in his house. Davey and Donna MacDonagh are on board as a locked up Manolito suits them fine.
All is going well; they pose as fake art restorers and access the paintings without too much of a fuss. Only their luck runs out when Sugar goes into labour in the middle of the heist, and someone’s tipped the police off. It’s a high-speed chase across Manchester as Vinnie and Erin make off with the paintings. Miraculously, they manage to shake them, but is this just one close call too many for Erin?
Brassic Series 5 is coming to Sky Max and NOW on 28th September
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