Season 9 Episode 29

Episode 385

 

Sky One Transmission Date:

Sunday 30th April 2006

 

Directed By

Mark Walker

 

Eugene, Lynda

 

 

The all-important peace-making scene

 

 

The seasonly minute’s silence

 

 

Ashleigh

 

 

Alex, Lynda

GS: DCI Burrows (Matthew Dennison)  Duval (William Travis)  DC Jameson (Ward Parry)  WPC (Connie Walker)

 

Alex is in a state of shock as Casper lies dead on the floor, and in a trance he leaves the room. As he makes his way down the hall, he encounters a tipsy Ashleigh coming in his direction, but instead of noticing him covered in ink, she walks straight past, and Alex's cover is safe. He makes it to his room, where Lynda arrives and tells him she wasn't entirely honest about the owner earlier. Alex tells her he knows it's Casper, and it’s then that Lynda sees the state he’s in. Eugene meanwhile, enters to find his brother lying motionless on the floor. Eugene phones for an ambulance, begging Casper to wake up. Lynda appears to check Alex’s story, and is told by DC Jameson that Casper is dead. Lynda takes Eugene downstairs where he says he has to phone Julie, but cannot do it, and asks Lynda if she will. DCI Burrows leads the investigation and Jameson hands him the photos of Ryan and Eugene with Birdman.

 

Alex is determined to tell the police what happened, but Lynda takes him into the bathroom where she washes the ink off him. Alex informs Lynda that Ashleigh saw him as he left, and Lynda goes to Ashleigh's room where she finds her sobbing to a policewoman. The WPC tells Lynda they're taking Ashleigh to sober up at the station. Lynda tells Alex they have to keep watch on Ashleigh. Ashleigh cries that she got so drunk she can't remember the last moments she spent with the man she loves. Alex and Lynda talk about how soon the police will discover how Cass was the owner, and the letters will lead them straight back to Alex. He tells Lynda he will go and confess in the morning. Duval phones to tell Alex the police have brought forward the reading of Casper's will. They arrive at the boardroom where Eugene and Chloe are already present. Duval begins by taking us back to after Cass was shot at Christmas:

 

In his hospital bed Casper and Eugene reflect on their feud, with Cass stating it was all down to Terry, and how he loved Eugene more. Eugene reminds Casper he was in the kids’ home for two years after his mother died, so how could he be jealous of him. Casper tells Eugene he is so sorry, and the two brothers shake hands. Duval appears at the door, and Eugene leaves. Duval tells Casper it makes him so happy to see he and Eugene back together, and Cass admits that buying the club was a stroke of genius. Duval says with the position Cass is in it would be irresponsible not to have a will, and hands Casper the pens and ink he likes to use. Duval continues reading, on how Casper left the major stuff to go into trusts for his and Eugene's kids… as well as Alex's. The room is confused, and none more so than Alex himself. Casper wrote that unless Alex didn't know by the time they read this, Terry “certainly knew how to sow the seed”.

 

We are shown Terry's funeral, which Duval attends, and Cass asks if Eugene came. Duval says no and sees Casper has a box in front of him full of newspaper cuttings of Alex and his achievements as a rising player. Casper asks why his dad kept all this, and Duval points out a letter addressed to Terry. Cass opens it and finds it is from Alex's mother, dated 1975. It reads that she gave birth to a son who looks just like Terry and she knows he is his. Alex can't believe it, and Duval adds that Casper managed to get DNA which proves Alex is he and Eugene’s brother. Alex asks does Peter Dempsey know and Duval replies he would have to ask him that himself. Continuing with the will, Casper says it looks like Terry was writing to Alex all of his life, and the letters stopped when he died... until Alex's injury that is. Casper and Duval are shown watching the coverage of Alex's injury on the TV. Casper says he will organise for Alex to be sent to Steadman. He also says he will start writing to Alex like his dad did, as their handwriting isn't much different. He tells Duval he will wait before actually revealing himself to Alex. Duval continues, that as Casper owned the club, this now means it will go to Eugene and Alex. One final thing being, Alex must take the Rose name.

 

Alex tells Eugene he can have it all, as he wants no part in it. Alex encounters Burrows and is about to confess all when Lynda stops him, and declares she is pregnant. Alex accuses her of saying this in order to keep her claim to the club, referring to Lynda as "The First Lady of Harchester”. Sully is told by Alex that he is no longer the manager, and the lads ask Duval if he can speak with Alex. Duval replies that as Eugene and Alex now own the club, they're entitled to appoint a new Chief Executive, but it won't be him. Liam tells Danny that as captain he will have to pick the team today. Lynda takes a pregnancy test before presenting it to Alex. Lynda convinces Alex to go to the game, and he turns up at Goodison informing the lads that Casper was not only the owner but his brother, too. The game begins with a minute’s silence for Casper. The team win and secure their place, and that night as Lynda sits in the darkened boardroom, Alex comes in and whispers that they're going to Cardiff, to which Lynda smiles.

 

Notes:

 

Last appearance of Casper Rose (Robert Kazinsky)

 

The Best: The team sit around and speculate on what could have happened to Cass, and Gavin breaks down as he recalls how Casper kept him going at the Charlton game.

 

Logic: With the scene where Lynda gets up and glances across the trophies lined up on the side, as she replays what Alex said about her being obsessed with the club through her mind, made her look unnecessarily scheming as it was true about her being pregnant with his child.

 

Quotes: Lynda to Alex (on the authenticity of her pregnancy test): "You should have come in with me to make sure. I mean maybe I found some pregnant woman and got her to do it for me!". Well Amy was right there with her!

 

Continuity: With Casper’s death and another mark added to the tally, Danny remarks on how many more this club is going to lose (thankfully no more player deaths for the rest of DT). The time of Terry Rose’s funeral would have been early 2003, as Alex’s injury by Liam follows in the flashbacks, and that occurred in the pre-season of the 2003-04 season.

 

Additional Info: Lynda mentions how Julie is “so far away”, which could imply she moved to Rome while Casper was playing out there.

 

What Was The Score?: Shay Given's best attempts to secure the Newcastle net are stopped when Tyson sends one to the back, and Harchester's place at the FA Cup Final is confirmed 1-0. He and the team dedicate the goal to Casper.

 

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