A man, who is clearly under the influence of recreational drugs, dials 999. The emergency operator calmly asks if he needs help. The man talks nonsensically for a moment. The operator advises him to hang up if this is a hoax call. But the man while still inebriated insists not to hang up, he asks her to tell ‘the pigs’ (the police) she’s here. The operator tells him that he will be put through to the police and to provide a contact number. The man wearily states its too late. The man is approached by an Indian gentleman who asks why he was running away. The Indian man seemingly calms the caller down with gentle words before leading him away to home…mother calls him home. A deep, unearthly croak resonates before a horrific scream cries out. The man is eaten by something inhuman as the Indian gentleman wishes him a pleasant journey. The Indian gentleman picks up the phone and informs the operator the problem has been solved before thanking her and hanging up. He addresses the creature that ate the man and promises to find a more robust host that will carry the future of the world…
Litefoot is introducing an audience to a tightrope act. The tightrope walker in question? Jago! Jago is rather confused as to how he found himself in this situation. He realises that the audience is a full house, but he also fearfully realises that he above a fifty-foot drop and no safety net! He nervously begins his tightrope walk, as Litefoot goads him on. Eventually, Jago begins to lose his balance and he falls…back into the world of the living! It was all a dream!
Jago awakens in his dressing room with a start. His director, Aubrey, calls him to inform him the next session of recording will begin in three minutes.
Litefoot tries to give Jago a call but is unable to reach him. Disappointed, he resigns to spending the evening writing in his journal. Moments after putting the phone down, it rings. Litefoot immediately picks it back up believing it to be Jago. The caller is Ellie, who invites the Professor out for dinner. She reveals she has a table booked at an Indian cuisine restaurant called Nirvana. Ellie doesn’t shy away from the fact that its popular…so popular that it’s taking away customers from Higgies!
Jago is at a party with many celebrated entertainers, including a very chirpy Russian man and Andy Warhol. As he’s making acquaintances left and right, he’s approached by Aubrey – who Jago welcomes warmly as he’s the only face he recognises. They both briefly discuss the many successes of Jago’s TV show ‘Those Were the Days’ and the future. Aubrey reintroduces Jago to Guinevere Godiva and leaves to let them chat. Godiva insists that Jago calls her by her first name. With a sense of familiarity formed between them, Jago suggests they both grab something to eat from the buffet.
Litefoot and Ellie are dining at the Nirvana restaurant. Ellie is preoccupied with the amount of people in the restaurant that have defected from her restaurant. Litefoot doesn’t seem too worried, as most of the customers are youthful people. In an act of small talk, Litefoot talks about how everything in London moves so much faster than it used to. Ellie quietly comments that she envies Jago and Litefoot for getting to the 60s the easy way. While she had to cope with two world wars, the blitz, rationing and having to witness people dying around her. Litefoot thanks her for everything she’s done for him and Jago, such as giving them homes and businesses to keep themselves afloat. Ellie asks when was the last time Litefoot has spoken to Jago, as she hasn’t seen him in weeks. Litefoot jokingly states he sees him all the time on TV, but in person…not for a while.
Meanwhile, Jago and Godiva are feasting on the remains of the buffet. Godiva asks if Jago is related to a certain Henry Gordon Jago who was once proprietor of the Regency Theatre. As Jago dances around the question, Godiva assumes that Henry Gordon Jago was Jago’s grandfather. Jago plays along and adds that Henry Gordon Jago was his great grandfather and asks how she knew of him. Godiva states that her father collected all sorts of theatre paraphernalia, including billing posters from the Regency Theatre. Her father was a magician called The Great Godiva, an entertainer that Jago recognises. She is intrigued to know if Jago has any heirlooms to speak of and suggests they discuss further. Jago notices a strange Indian man dressed in fancy robes enter the party. Godiva looks on in disdain and identifies him as the Swami Sanjaya Starr, the leader of the Temple of Transcendental Revelation. He is apparently a regular face at all the high-profile parties. The man in question approaches Jago and introduces himself warmly. He claims to be a big fan of Jago’s TV show and notes that their paths were sure to cross eventually…
At the Nirvana restaurant, Litefoot is talking about all the guest appearances Jago has made on TV. But Ellie is more preoccupied with the whereabouts of their meal. Litefoot desperately tries to distract Ellie with tales of Jago’s success as she hollers for a waiter to check their food. In a last-ditch attempt to catch Ellie’s attention, Litefoot reveals he visited the Records House to check his and Jago’s personal records. He discovers that all of the details Ellie gave them were true – including the years of their deaths, but he is particularly reassured that he and Jago return to the 19th century. Ellie is furious at Litefoot going behind her back, but he defends his actions. He simply cannot be kept in the dark. The food finally arrives and the two diners look in disgust at what they’ve ordered. Litefoot notes that it looks particularly like frog spawn. Even more horrifying is the fact that their meal is moving! As if on cue, their waiter collapses to the floor. Litefoot immediately inspects the man to find out that he is dead…
At the party, Godiva is preparing to leave as Jago is more interested in talking to the Swami, but Aubrey tries to convince her to stay. She instructs him to give him her business card and to meet her for lunch at Higgies if he’s not too busy.
The Swami and Jago are engaged in a game, clearly enjoying each other’s company and getting along swimmingly. Clearly the Swami is just as proficient in alliterations as Jago. The Swami helps himself to some food and strangely pours a copious amount of salt onto his helping. The Swami questions Jago’s fulfilments in life. He deduces that despite his fame and wealth, Jago is not happy with what he has. Aubrey attempts to take Jago away to meet someone, but the Swami sharply dismisses him. He invites Jago to visit his temple where the great ‘Earth Mother’ will be waiting for him…
Litefoot is inspecting the dead waiter’s corpse, until he is instructed to not touch by Sergeant Sacker, who has arrived to investigate the crime. He mentions off-hand the deaths are becoming rather routine and isn’t shy about voicing his distaste for the restaurant. He starts by questioning Litefoot about what he and Ellie were doing at the restaurant. Litefoot responds that He and Ellie were dining and staking out the competition. Sacker doesn’t see the competition to Higgies, as he states the kitchens in Nirvana are disgusting. But the worse has yet to come, as Litefoot glimpses what appears to be a tadpole crawling out of the waiter’s shirt…then the corpse’s forehead starts to wriggle as if there were a collection of tadpoles eating the corpse from the inside!
Jago is dropped home by Aubrey. Aubrey warns Jago to keep an eye on The Swami, but Jago is dismissive and states he’s dealt with exotic people before. In any case, Aubrey reminds Jago that he has a duty to host ‘Those were the Days’. He presents Jago with Godiva’s card, stating he has a lunch date with her. Jago is delighted to meet with her again and is even more excited to eat at Higgies again. Aubrey tells Jago that Litefoot has been trying to call him, stating they haven’t spoken in weeks. Jago dismisses the request, stating he’ll have to wait. All the while, Jago has been belching loudly while talking to Aubrey. Aubrey asks if Jago is okay, Jago dismisses the belching as he did eat a lot at the party, but suddenly asks if Aubrey has any crisps…
Sacker visits Litefoot’s home and impatiently rings the doorbell. Litefoot invites him inside. Sacker informs Litefoot that the Nirvana restaurant has been closed, a number of customers have fallen ill, a large number of staff have disappeared and more mysteriously – the dead waiter was eaten alive by something growing inside his body. Sacker notes how Litefoot doesn’t seem phased by the revelation. Litefoot explains he’s been conducting an experiment. He took a sample of caviar from the restaurant and used chemicals to simulate the acids inside the human stomach. Upon reacting to the acids, the caviar starts to move and hatches a large swarm of little tadpoles. Sacker is disgusted and vows to get the food quarantined as soon as possible.
Jago and Godiva meet up at Higgies. Godiva reveals that she invited Jago to talk about Victorian stage magic as it is her passion. She goes on to reveal that her great-grandfather was Chinese and owned several items belonging to a certain man Jago remembers all too well…Li H’sen Chang. Jago tries to hide his unease and humours Godiva. He remembers ‘The Celestial Chang’. Godiva asks if Jago’s grandfather knew of Chang, as his final performance before his disappearance was at Jago’s theatre in 1892. Godiva tries to press Jago for more information, but before he can answer, the waiter delivers their food. While Jago tucks into his appetizer, Godiva mentions that Chang had a certain cabinet that he used in his act. Jago perks up at the mention of the word ‘cabinet’ but hides his surprise by dismissing Godiva as a collector. She reveals she managed to find it in an attic in a Chinese restaurant in Chinatown. As Godiva openly ponders how she wasn’t able to open the cabinet, even dropping alarming clues that rumours state that a certain crystal opened the cabinet, Jago isn’t listening and is strangely pouring salt into his soup. She asks Jago if he could help her find a way to open it. Jago, obviously missing all the clues beforehand, perks up at the talk of crystals and shows her the crystal he procured from his adventure on Venus with The Doctor. Jago briefly concentrates his thoughts and the crystal begins to glow, he playfully dismisses the trick as a stage magic trick. But Godiva is more than captivated by the crystal than Jago realises…Suddenly Jago begins to feel excruciating pain and starts to belch loudly. Godiva requests the waiter to bring some water, but Jago requests more bread, butter and salt. Jago begins to wolf down the salt. Godiva sees an opportunity and mentions to Jago she’ll hold his crystal but is stopped by a familiar man – George Litefoot. He quickly snatches up the crystal. The waiter brings the water and Litefoot forces his friend to drink it down – much to his friend’s protests as he begs for salt. While this was going on, Godiva has disappeared… Litefoot is successful in saving his friend and decides to take Jago home…
While sleeping, Jago receives a visitation from The Swami in his dream. The Swami tells Jago that he has received an invitation from the ‘The Great Earth Mother’. Jago seems rather taken aback but doesn’t hesitate as the Swami reveals that Jago is the Chosen One whose future lives inside him… Jago awakens in the middle of the night feeling rather hungry. He begins to rummage through the kitchen and feasts on whatever he can find…with plenty of salt of course.
Litefoot awakens and finds Jago rummaging through the kitchen. Litefoot questions if his friend has been drinking alcohol. Seeing his friend isn’t making a lick of sense, Litefoot decides to make them both sandwiches.
As the night wears on, Jago comes to his senses and begins to reflect on the 19th Century. He complains about how TV has ruined talented people and how clothes are practically disposable. He then wonders how long it will be before the public gets bored of him and his show… Litefoot tells Jago not to give up hope and that he’s working on a way to return. But he begins to question Jago’s sudden addiction to salt, he’s even putting some in his sandwich as they speak! Litefoot presses Jago about anything he may have eaten recently, but Jago is defensive and decides to return to sleep. As he opens the door, they hear a ribbiting noise…a large toad on the floor! Litefoot tries to shoo the amphibian away but gets bitten by the creature before it hops out of the window. Strangely, Litefoot is bleeding from the bite, which is even stranger as toads don’t have teeth…
Later that morning, Litefoot awakens and walks into the kitchen to see Jago feasting on breakfast with a guest…The Swami. The Swami warmly greets the Professor, Litefoot cautiously greets the strange man. Jago informs Litefoot that The Swami called to see if he was okay and decided to visit. The Swami states that Jago is adored by millions and must be protected at all costs. He indirectly instructs Litefoot into preparing some food for him and Jago while they talk in private. Litefoot puts his foot down and informs The Swami that Jago needs to rest as he’s not feeling well and tells The Swami to return another day. He then shows The Swami the door, much to Jago’s appal. The Swami calmly leaves the house but leaves Litefoot with a proverb, ‘Impatience never fries the rice’, but Litefoot cuts back ‘It didn’t boil the kettle either’. He warns The Swami to leave, but The Swami warns Litefoot he will pay for his insult. Just as The Swami leaves, Aubrey arrives and asks about Jago. Litefoot’s good graces return and he invites him inside.
As he walks away from Jago’s house, The Swami considers that if he can’t get to Jago directly, then instead he must coerce Jago to come to him instead…
Jago is upset that Litefoot kicked The Swami out of his house, even pettily thinking that he kicked him out because he ate his breakfast. Aubrey calms the two men down and informs Jago that he has news regarding the upcoming Christmas special of ‘Those were the Days’ – an anonymous patron has made the old Palace Theatre available for filming! Aubrey plans to hold a Christmas special in the style of a Victorian show. While Litefoot is delighted at the prospect of seeing the old theatre again, Jago is still feeling petty about the whole affair and even announces that he is quitting show business. After all, they won’t be happy! As if on cue, Jago begins to belch again and starts to pour a shaker of salt into his mouth. Litefoot tries to wrestle the salt out of his hands and instructs Aubrey to call a doctor. Jago angrily protests that ‘They like their food!’. Litefoot now realises a rather disturbing revelation – he’s not been eating something strange, quite the opposite. The food’s eating him! Aubrey walks back into the room with a look of shock on his face. The frog from the night before has returned. Aubrey tries to shoo the amphibious cretin away, but Litefoot watches as the creature instinctively hops over to Jago as if it’s a bodyguard. Litefoot deduces the cause of Jago’s strange behaviour – Jago is carrying something inside him that is precious to the frog – something that will eventually kill him! The doorbell rings and a band of hippies start to drop frogs through the letterbox that hop over to Jago to defend him, snapping their jaws at Litefoot and Aubrey. Jago barges past his friends to open the door, much to their protest. At the door is an army of hippies and frogs croaking an inhuman sound. Jago calls out to ‘Mother’ as he wonders off and the hippies and frogs follow him. Litefoot and Aubrey breathe a sigh of relief that the mob has dispersed but realise that Jago has disappeared. It’s only a matter of time before whatever Jago is carrying is about to hatch…
Elsewhere, The Swami and his cult of hippies are calming a creature that is croaking loudly. He promises the creature that the ‘favoured one’ will answer her call. The creature grows impatient and it promptly devours one of its followers, much to The Swami’s perturbance, who once again reassures the creature that Jago will arrive soon…
Litefoot calls Ellie to inform her of Jago’s odd behaviour. He informs her of his deduction – Jago has been impregnated with an alien spawn fed to him, like the caviar at the Nirvana restaurant, and that it will hatch and eventually eat its way out of Jago! They’ve informed the police, but strangely they won’t act because they fear a state of emergency. Many people have been hospitalised and there’s been one case of a person dying. Ellie then tells Litefoot to come to Higgies immediately…they may have a problem…
Jago is deliriously walking through the streets of London. He boards a bus heading towards Shepherd’s Bush. A passenger shrieks in horror at the toad in Jago’s top pocket. The conductor promptly sees Jago off of the bus, much to his disgust – even going as far as proclaiming that he is an expectant parent!
Litefoot arrives at Higgies to find it closed. Ellie reveals that the head chef has changed the menu and is beginning to serve the caviar from Nirvana. Several waiters have been sent home ill and the chefs are delirious. Ellie takes Litefoot into the kitchen to show him. The head chef is laughing insanely while painting his face with the food and eating madly. A toad suddenly pops into the kitchen and the mad chef begins to lick it. Litefoot now has another part of the mystery solved. The toads can secrete hallucinogenic substances, hence why the chef has gone doolally and how the hippies are being controlled by The Swami. Litefoot decides to call the police to instigate a raid on The Swami’s temple.
At The Swami’s house, the creature is getting more and more agitated. The Swami nervously tries to console the creature by telling it that all is not lost. They will find Jago soon…
Jago is still wondering deliriously around London, albeit this time he is showing signs of visible pain. He finds what he believes to be the road where The Swami’s house resides. He finds the door to the house and knocks on the door. It creaks open and Jago wonders inside, he finds nobody around aside from a lot of frogs. He is eventually greeted by The Swami and his hippy followers, who bow before him as the favoured one. They dress him up in robes and lead him to meet the ‘Great Earth Mother…’
At the hospital, Litefoot is on the phone to Aubrey, who is panicking more about the Christmas special and the loss of Jago. Litefoot is angered by the fact that the police refuse to do anything as they fear a national crisis. Litefoot hangs up when Ellie calls for him. She informs him that the chef has been quarantined as he has started to hiccup tadpoles. While he was out cold, Ellie searched the chef’s pockets and found a calling card for ‘The Temple of Transcendental Alignment’ and the leader is Swami Sanjaya Starr. They can’t decipher the address as the card is covered with what appears to be gravy (or so Ellie hopes). Litefoot comes to a realisation, as Jago was craving salt, the creatures inside his stomach must be saltwater creatures. They must make the stomach as unhealthy for the creatures to inhabit as possible. It just so happens that he has a solution! With the police unwilling to help, they must do it themselves.
The Swami leads Jago deeper into the house. They enter a room that is unbearably hot and dark. A monstrous growl echoes from within the dark. The Swami informs Jago that they are in the presence of The Earth Mother. Jago gleefully calls out that he has returned home. The Swami proclaims that they will eventually walk the earth to enlightenment. All Jago must do is sign over his worldly possessions and money to The Swami. Jago agrees to do so and reaches for his cheque book. The Swami invites Jago to join him and his followers to celebrate as the toads hop around excitedly. The Swami holds up a toad for Jago to lick. Jago does so and The Swami excitedly proclaims to The Great Earth Mother that he has finally arrived. With Jago under the complete influence of The Swami, her favoured carrier has arrived!
Litefoot and Ellie use what they could decipher from the card to find one street that seemingly fits the bill. But they don’t find any temples, but old Victorian residential houses. Without a house number, they must knock on every door to find Jago. Ellie finds a button carnation on the ground, which further solidifies their theory that Jago is on this very street somewhere…
The Swami is preaching about how the Great Earth Mother will reclaim the Earth and guide humanity to a brighter path before it destroys itself. Humanity will come to worship her as a god that saved them from themselves and that Jago is carrying the body which the Great Earth Mother will be reborn through. Henry gleefully thanks the Earth Mother for choosing him, while in pain as his alien spawn begins to eat at his vitals inside. The Swami gleefully reveals that Jago is just an appetizer, the Great Earth Mother will devour Jago with his spawn inside him, then his spawn will eat its way out of Jago then out of the Great Earth Mother – thus completing the rebirth. Jago, still high as a kite, is delighted to be of service to the Great Earth Mother and gladly offers himself to the monstrous creature. Suddenly, a loud crashing noise sounds out from the entrance. Litefoot and Ellie barge their way inside the house. Jago invites his two friends to the party, but The Swami commands the toads and hippies to protect The Great Earth Mother and kill the intruders. Surprisingly, Ellie begins to fight back against the brain-dead hippies and knocks each one out as they approach her. Litefoot gets hold of Jago and drags him away, much to his protests. The Swami pulls a gun on Litefoot and demands he free Jago, he darkly comments that they are all food for the Great Mother and she’s very hungry! Suddenly, a man on a megaphone shouts out to all the occupants inside the building. The police have the building surrounded. With The Swami distracted, Ellie tries to wrestle the gun out of his hand. In a last-ditch effort, Jago runs towards the Great Earth Mother to offer himself up to the monster. Sergeant Sacker enters the house and sees the monster for himself. Sacker destroys the heater in the room and the Earth Mother cries out in pain as the room’s temperature becomes unbearable. It quickly burns in reaction to the heat and eventually dies. Jago cries out in despair at the sight of his ‘mama’ dying. The Swami tries to attack again, but Sacker quickly restrains him and places him under arrest. But they still have the creatures inside Jago to deal with. Litefoot ushers Ellie to bring him the thermos he prepared - A concentrated concoction of rhubarb and vinegar. Jago tries to fight back against his friends, but they pin him down and force feed him the disgusting drink. Jago gags violently in disgust, but Litefoot is sure that this will work, otherwise nothing will.
That evening, Litefoot and Ellie are at the hospital. Litefoot reveals that Jago had the remainder of the alien spawn pumped out of his stomach. It was still alive and measured at four inches long! Thankfully, the creature hadn’t eaten anything vital inside him, but Jago doesn’t want anything to do with Litefoot as he still blames him for everything. Aubrey has pulled a few strings with Sacker to keep Jago’s face out of the media. He is also moaning about wanting to go home, which is sadly beyond Litefoot’s grasp at present. Ellie reminds him that what he means is that he wants to back home to his house, not to his time period.
Aubrey is preparing his actors to get into position. Ellie is wheeling Jago on a wheelchair, while the latter is moaning about wanting to go home. They meet with Litefoot, who Jago is still indignant about meeting. Litefoot is surprised that Jago doesn’t recognise where he is. Aubrey arrives and Jago is even annoyed to see him as well. Aubrey informs them that all is ready as a gentle melody sounds from the next room. The group wheel Jago inside a large auditorium with a huge crowd awaiting him. They proclaim “Welcome Home Henry!”. He’s at the Palace Theatre, lovingly restored to its former glory. Jago is overwhelmed with emotion, so much so that he jumps out of his wheelchair and dances through the aisles, while announcing a make up list of acts in his euphoria. Everyone cheers for Jago. Litefoot quietly confides in Aubrey about who really paid for the restoration, but he is mum about the details. If he said who it was, she’d kill him. Litefoot quietly agrees. For now, they celebrate that Jago has finally returned home…
