14 August 2025

Lleucu arrives at the shop

Colin is putting the finishing touches to a packed lunch when Lleucu comes into the shop;  “Are you ready to go?” He asks, “I’ve got sandwiches and a packet of custard creams, thanks to Eileen.”

“Are you sure she will be all right that we’re closing the shop for the day?” Lleucu wonders.   

"I'll tell her I had 'the runs'!"

Colin informs her that she and Siôn are away;  “And if she does find out, I’ll tell her that I had ‘the runs’!” he continues, 

"That's gross!"

which Lleucu regards as rather gross.   “Yeah, if you want to stop anyone asking you awkward questions, just tell them you’ve got ‘the runs’ – 

"It works every time"

“it works every time!”

"I just want everything to be perfect"

He can see that Lleucu is looking rather worried and she admits that she just wants everything to be perfect.   

"He'll be over the moon to see you"

Colin assures her that Cai will be over the moon to see her.

"Did you talk to Tom about the wedding?"

Hywel comes into the pharmacy to speak to Gaynor;  “Did you talk to Tom about the wedding?” and she replies that she has not done so yet.   He appreciates that it is best if she does not do anything rash, 

"I still don't feel right about it"

but Gaynor still does not feel right about the whole thing.

"Don't worry, Gaynor"

He predicts that she will come to be excited about it, so she should not worry.   

Ffion comes into the shop . . .

Ffion comes in for one item 

. . . and purchases one item

and quickly pays for it contactlessly.  “We were just talking about the wedding,” says Hywel, with Gaynor adding, rather unenthusiastically, 

"During the winter at some point"

that it will be during the winter at some point.

"You need a cheerleader"

When Ffion has gone, Hywel suggests that what Gaynor needs is a ‘cheerleader’, or at least that is what Esther says;  “We all need a cheerleader sometimes – and you need bridesmaids to help carry the load.”

"But who?"

“But who?” snarls Gaynor, “Lois has refused and Maya is still looking after her grandmother.

"What about Ffion?"

“What about Ffion?” Hywel remarks.

Cai gazes into the distance

Cai is gazing into the distance as he is brought a cup of coffee by Colin;  

"Proper coffee"

“Proper coffee – much better than that tar you’ve been having in the hospital.”

As they sit on the bench looking out to sea at Barry Island, Lleucu comments that it is nice there, but her father does not say anything, 

Cai refuses a custard cream

refusing a biscuit from Colin.

"We don't have to be until five"

Lleucu proposes that they could go down to the beach, but Cai says that they can perhaps do that later.   “We don’t have to be back at the hospital until about five o’clock” Colin adds.

"Do you remember playing mini golf at Aberystwyth?"

“Do you remember playing mini golf at Aberystwyth?” Lleucu asks her father, “We played for hours – Mam was on the beach, shouting at us to come and get our lunch.”   

"I can't remember the golf"

Cai can remember Aberystwyth, but not the golf.   

Dai and Diane are also having a day out

Elsewhere along the seafront, Dai and Diane are also having a day out, with Dai equipped with a battery operated mobility scooter.   Diane is telling him to stop complaining.   

"I look like an idiot on this contraption!"

“I look like an idiot on this contraption!” he moans, but she points out that a lot of people use them.   “A lot of old people!” he snaps.   

"You said you couldn't walk far"

She reminds him that he said that he could not walk far so they agreed to hire one of them.   

"I hope I don't see anyone I know"

Dai just hopes that he does not see anyone he knows, but Diane cannot imagine anyone is going to know them there.   “You’d be surprised – when I was on the rugby committee, a lot of WRU boys lived here.”

"They've forgotten about you – or they're dead!"

“That was twenty years ago – they’ve forgotten about you – or they’re dead.”   

"Thanks a lot, Diane"

He most definitely did not appreciate that last comment and drives away.

"You should be proud of her"

Colin tells Cai, “We have a lot of fun in the shop – you should be proud of her.”   

Lleucu is rather concerned that her father cannot remember the mini golf in Aberystwyth, then wonders if he is angry with her.

"Why are you being like this?"

“Why are you being like this?” she asks and her father wants to know where the toilets are.   

"Don't you want to 'go', Colin?"

Lleucu enquires whether Colin also ‘wants to go’, “After all that coffee you’ve had.”

"They said not to leave me on my own"

“What she’s trying to tell you, Col,” Cai explains, “Is that the hospital’s told you not to leave me on my own in case I do something stupid.”   

"Holding it in doesn't dot the kidneys any good

Now Colin maintains that ‘holding it in’ does not do the kidneys any good.

"Dai – fancy seeing you here!"

On their way to the toilet, Colin is very surprised to see Dai – and Dai is equally surprised;  

"Lampeter – what are you doing here?"

“Lampeter [where Colin originates from] – what are you doing here?”

"Having a day out in the sun"

“Having a day out in the sun,” Colin replies.   Dai is surprised that they have let Cai out of the hospital, not appearing very happy about the fact that so many people from Cwmderi are there.

"A Harley Dickinson, is it?"

“I like the wheels – a Harley Dickinson is it?” Colin comments, 

"I always said I'd rather kill myself!"

with Dai groaning that he always said he would rather kill himself than be seen in one of them.   

"Is it petrol or diesel?"

Then Colin rather naïvely asks, “Is it petrol or diesel?” and is informed that it runs on batteries.

"Like a Sunday School trip!"

Diane returns with her coffee, having just seen Lleucu and remarks that it is like Cwmderi there.   “Like a Sunday School trip!” Dai snarls.   

"I'm pleased to see you out of hospital, Cai"

Diane is pleased to see Cai out of hospital.

"I can't get comfortable in this 'charabanc'"

Dai is not comfortable in his ‘charabanc’, so Diane suggests that they could go for a walk to the beach.   “What for?” he demands 

"So you could feel the sand between your toes"

and when she says that he could feel the sand between his toes, 

"Do I look like a camel to you?"

he again complains, “Do I look like a camel to you?   

"The only thing I want to feel is beer going down my throat!"

“The only thing I want to feel now is more beer going down my throat!”

"Is Jason still in jail?"

Cai and Colin return, passing a sign pointing to the mini golf;  “It was nice to see Dai and Diane, wasn’t it?” remarks Colin.   Cai asks whether Jason is still in jail;  “Yes, poor dab,” answers Colin.

"Stupid idiot!"

Cai’s reaction is different, “Stupid idiot!” but Colin points out that it is very hard on the family.   

"We can have a game of mini golf"

Lleucu appears with a couple of golf clubs, but Cai does not want to do that, 

"You go off and play"

so she sadly goes off to play on her own.

"I've let her down"

Colin sits on the seawall and tells Cai, “She’s a good girl,” and her father sighs that he has let her down.   

"Every parent feels that way sometimes"

He is assured that every parent feels that way sometimes.

"Not every parent tries committing suicide twice!"

“But not every parent tries committing suicide twice,” stresses Cai.

"I was not there for the girls"

Colin appreciates that he was not there half enough for the girls when they were growing up, “Especially Izzy, poor thing – that’s why I’ve enjoyed having Kylie’s company, but now she’s leaving us.   

"Lleucu definitely needs you"

“You can only do your best for those people who truly need you, Cai.   Lleucu definitely needs you.”

"Do you fancy some candy floss?"

Then he asks whether Cai fancies some candy floss.   Cai will stay there and look after their stuff while Colin fetches it.   “I’ll be all right.”

"That's better"

Dai enjoys another pint and comments, “That’s better.”   

"I could watch you drinking at home!"

Diane complains that she could watch him drinking at home, 

"I'm ready for another one now"

but he announces that he is ready for another one now.   

“Well, don’t!” she instructs him, “You’re wild enough on that scooter as it is.”

"I can't be breathalysed on this"

He is quite confident that he cannot be breathalysed on one of those, 

"You're not having any more!"

but Diane is still adamant that he is having no more.

"What's wrong with you?"

“What’s wrong with you?   I was joking.   You wanted to come here,” Dai grumbles.   

"I wanted to go to the beach"

She explains that what she wanted was to go to the beach, not to watch him ‘knocking them back’.

“Come on – I’ll help you down the steps, if that’s what’s worrying you,” she offers, 

"My bucket and spade days are well behind me"

but he just does not want to go, arguing that his bucket and spade days are well be behind him.

"I remember coming here when Jason was a little boy"

She reminisces, “I remember coming here when Jason was a little boy – it can’t be too much to ask – I miss him.”

"He isn't a little boy any more . . ."

“He isn’t on the beach, is he?   And he isn’t a little boy anymore, complaining about sand in his tomato sandwiches.   

". . . he's in jail for selling drugs!"

“No, he’s a middle-aged man who is in jail for selling drugs!”

Diane is not standing for this

This is the last straw for Diane, so she picks up her bag and stalks off, leaving Dai on his own;  he does not look too happy about this.

"Where's Dad?"

Colin returns with the candy floss and meets Lleucu coming back from the mini golf;  she wants to know where her father is.   

"I went to buy these"

“I don’t know – I went to buy these and he said he’d stay here.”   

Lleucu looks frantically along the beach

Lleucu is frantic to know where her father is.

Gaynor emerges from the pharmacy . . .

Gaynor comes out of the pharmacy 

. . . and meets Ffion

and meets Ffion, who is looking at the non-operational shop;  “Hywel said that it’s closed today – I don’t know why.   How’s the headache?”

"Period pain – Arwen's"

Ffion enlightens her that it is ‘period pain’;  “Arwen’s.”

"You know with this wedding coming up . . ."

Gaynor wanted to ask her something;  “You know with this wedding coming up?   We’ve known each other for years, haven’t we?   

". . . I don't know how to ask this, but . . ."

“I just thought – I don’t know how to ask this – will you be my bridesmaid?   You can say no if you want to.”

Ffion is taken by surprise

This has come as a complete shock to Ffion;  Gaynor continues, “I know it's weird as we’ve both been married to Hywel Llywelyn – but if you don’t mind that . . .”

"Are you sure about this?"

Ffion has been put on the spot here and wonders if Gaynor is sure about this;  “How about Lois?”   Gaynor says she would rather have Ffion, so she feels that she has little choice but to agree.   

"We can celebrate in the Deri later"

Gaynor suggests that they could go to celebrate in the Deri later.

"Why did you leave him on his own?"

On the seafront at Barry Island, Colin tries to persuade Lleucu not to panic, predicting that her father will have gone for a walk.   “Why did you leave him on his own?” she demands 

"He said he would be OK"

and Colin explains that he said he would be OK.

"He's suicidal, Colin – of course he isn't OK!" 

“He’s suicidal, Colin – of course he isn’t OK!”   Colin proposes to ring the police, but then discovers that he cannot find his phone.

"You haven't seen Colin, have you?"

Meanwhile, Cai has gone in search of Colin and finds Dai on his own;  “You haven’t seen Colin, have you?   He went to buy candy floss and left his phone behind – I didn’t want him to queue up and then find he couldn’t pay.”

"Sit down for a minute, Cai"

Dai grumbles that things were easier when people paid with cash and he invites Cai to sit down for a minute.   “I’m sorry about earlier, when I went on about you coming out of hospital – 

"It's old age"

“I didn’t mean it like that – it’s old age.”

"Dai, you had a big mouth 20 years ago!"

“Dai, you had a big mouth when you were rugby club chairman 20 years ago – I don’t think you can blame it on old age!”   

"You were a good little player"

Dai agrees, recalling that they used to fall out even then – but he was a good little player;  “Not as good as you thought you were – and a show-off on the pitch, but you were a good player and could have been first class.”

"All of a sudden, you're middle-aged"

Cai remembers when they won the cup;  “It seemed so important at the time – and then, all of a sudden, you’re middle-aged.”

"It's touch and go to see the bottom of my pint"

“Middle-aged?” snarls Dai, “It’s touch and go for me sometimes to see the bottom of this pint.”   

"What would that show-off tell me today?"

Cai says he knows how that feels;  “What would that show-off of a rugby player tell me today?   Yeah, that’s how things are now – we need to realise that we need help.   I’m in a mental health hospital and you need a mobility scooter to go for a walk.”

"A bed downstairs next . . ."

“Mobility scooter, wheelchair, stick – it will be a bed downstairs next – 

". . . and then a coffin"

“and then a coffin,” Dai predicts, but is told to stop complaining.   

"Diane's probably buying you fish and chips"

He has a pint in his hand, wheels to take him around – and Diane is probably buying him fish and chips – he has a lot to be thankful for.

"Onward to Canaan!"

Dai agrees that he is right, picking up his pint, with the words, “Onwards to Canaan!”

Cai will continue his search for Colin;  “Why are there so many places selling candy floss?”

"Diane – of course it's me . . ."

Dai picks up his phone and dials Diane;  “Yes, of course it’s me – who else?   Look, I’m sorry about earlier – all I’m doing today is apologising.   

". . . I'm going to get some fish and chips . . ."

“Look, I’m not in the best of moods, but what I’m going to do is go and get us some fish and chips – 

". . . yes – and mushy peas . . ."

“and mushy peas – then I’ll see you on the top and you can help me carry them down the steps, OK?   Plenty of salt and vinegar, yes – 

". . . see you in a minute"

“I love you – see you in a minute.”

Hywel is looking at some maps

Hywel is looking at some maps in the Deri when Gaynor comes across and tells him that she has a ‘cheerleader’.   

He could not manage a sale

He rather gloomily tells her that he has just had a meeting with a possible client, but no luck.   She wonders what he is selling.

“One of those plots next to the dam – it’s a bargain for someone with a bit of imagination.”   

"Will there be views of the lake?"

She enquires whether there will be a view of the lake and he replies, “Yes – eventually.   Would you and Tom fancy a project after getting married?   You could build a huge house there.”

"If we get married"

“Well, if we get married,” is her gloomy response.   Now that she has a bridesmaid he is sure that she must feel more positive, but that is certainly not how she is looking.

"When I came back he was gone"

At Barry Island, Colin is explaining to a police officer that when they came back he was gone.   

Cai approaches

Lleucu looks up and sees her father going towards her;  

"Dad, where have you been?"

“Dad, where have you been?” she shouts.

“Looking for Colin – he left his phone,” is the answer;  

"Sorry to waste your time"

Colin apologises for wasting the officer’s time.

Lleucu realises that she should have trusted her father and has overreacted;  

"I understand that you're going to worry"

“I understand, no matter how many times I tell you I won’t do anything stupid, you’re going to worry.”

"I haven't had a stick of rock for ages!"

Colin interrupts, “Do you know what I haven’t had for ages?   A stick of rock.   I think I’ll get us one each to remember today.”

"I shouldn't have dragged you here today"

“I shouldn’t have dragged you here today,” says Lleucu, “You’re obviously not ready.”   He knows that he has not been a lot of fun, 

"We're here – and that's all that's important"

but they are there and that is what is important.

She proposes that they will try again soon and he suggests the weekend, 

"I was going to the cinema"

but she was supposed to be going to the cinema and shopping with the girls.   She is more than happy to reschedule, but is encouraged by Cai to go and enjoy herself.   

"I'll be all right"

“And never change your plans for my sake – I’ll be all right – 

He hugs his daughter

“come here!” and he hugs her.

Ffion enters the Deri

Ffion comes into the Deri 

"Water for me, please"

and will only have water to drink;  she goes over to where Hywel is sitting 

"Congratulations"

and he congratulates her on the honour of being bridesmaid.   Ffion is obviously having second thoughts about that, not really wanting to do it.

“Sorry, I only suggested your name because you’re old friends,” he tells her 

"So you were responsible!"

and she responds angrily that he is responsible.

"Those plots you're selling  – I'm interested"

Gaynor returns at the table with the drinks, announcing, “Hywel, you know those plots you’re selling – I’m interested.”   

"You can see the place next week"

He will be pleased to organise for her to see the place next week, as she continues, “Yes, spend the money now on something exciting for myself, rather than leave it to an ungrateful child.”

"A happy and fruitful marriage"

She proposes a toast, “To a happy and fruitful marriage for Tom and me.”

"I'll phone you later"

At Barry Island, Lleucu is speaking on the phone, “No, I’m OK, but I’ll phone you later,” 

"That was just a friend"

then tells her father that it was just a friend who wanted a chat.

"This is the life, isn't it?"

Diane is passing and comments, “This is the life, isn’t it?   Make the most of it.”   

"Dai's by the café"

She is told that Dai is by the café, 

"He has bought fish and chips"

but tells them that he has bought them fish and chips to eat on the beach, which Lleucu regards as cute.

Colin is rushing towards them

Suddenly, Colin comes running along the Esplanade, calling to Diane, “Come quickly!”   

They immediately follow him . . .

They all rush after him, as he continues, “He was cornering too fast!” 

. . . to where the scooter lies on the ground

to find the mobility scooter on its side, 

Crikey Moses!

with Dai motionless beside it.   Lleucu immediately calls for an ambulance.