- Date First Aired: 18/10/1990
Chris and Darryl have been moved back into the same cell, but Darryl is beginning to get worried about Chris, what with Sharon not visiting him and all. Meanwhile, Sharon encounters a man stealing from an older man. Although she is unsuccessful in retrieving the man's wallet, the older man thanks her nonetheless. Some time afterward, as Sharon is wallowing in her misery at a restaurant, she bumps into the man again. She finds out that his name is Don Sheridan and that he's Marcus' financial advisor and they end up getting well together.
Dorien is also not doing well - she's recently learned that her area code is 081, which apparently doesn't signify wealth, and she's considering moving to another area in London with 071 as an area code. Sometime afterward, Sharon's and Don's relationship begins to blossom into something more, although Tracey is somewhat concerned, as the relationship in question is an Age-Gap Romance. However, Dorien has decided not to move, after all, having arranged for British Telecom to change their area code to 071. Unfortunately, this cost £2,000 so she has decided to avoid Marcus for a while. Later on, it is Don's last night in Chigwell, as he's only there on business, so he and Sharon decide to take drugs together. However, before they can do so, the police come knocking, so Sharon is ordered to flush them down the toilet. This proves to be pointless however as the police were only there to return Don's wallet.
Tropes in this episode:
- Accidental Truth: Sharon lies about going out with a fella so that she can be miserable on her own. However, whilst she's out, she encounters Don and they go out for a dinner, meaning that Sharon ended up telling the truth in the end.
- Age-Gap Romance: The 29-year-old Sharon dates the 53-year-old Don Sheridan, to Tracey's horror.
- Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking: Sharon, explaining the reasons why she's getting rat-arsed, cites having no money, no career, no nice house, no prospects, and not being able to find any size 16s in C&A's sale.
- Auto Erotica: Chris apparently shagged Lisa in the back of his Zephyr the night before he was nicked. Dorien's response is simply surprise that he would do so in a Ford car than anything else.
- Bad Habits: Darryl's fellow prisoner would disguise himself as a priest as part of his schemes.
- Blackmail: Reginald would get people to confess to him, then use his newfound knowledge to blackmail them.
- Brief Accent Imitation: Don does a Humphrey Bogart impression when he quotes Casablanca.
- Con Man: Reginald, who posed as a priest so that people would come up to him and confess, then proceed to blackmail them.
- Continuity Nod: Chris' affair with Lisa in "Nicked" is brought up by Sharon.
- Deadpan Snarker:
- Sharon when a beggar asks her for money despite her giving him some earlier that day.Beggar: Scuse me, have you spare change?Sharon: Yes thanks, plenty.Beggar: Give us some then, you stuck-up selfish cow.Sharon: Well, if you ask as nicely as that, 'ow could I refuse?
- Sharon's response to Dorien when she expresses surprise that there's crime in Chigwell.Dorien: Chigwell?!Sharon: Yes it can happen, Dorien. Muggers can catch trains, y'know. Dreadful riff-raff can get into Chigwell. There ain't a checkpoint keeping the 'oi polloi out.
- Sharon when a beggar asks her for money despite her giving him some earlier that day.
- Drowning My Sorrows: Sharon, depressed over her situation in life, decides to go get rat-arsed at a restaurant at the beginning of the episode.
- Flush the Evidence: When the police appear, Sharon and Don's reaction is to flush the drugs down the toilet in a bid to get rid of the evidence. This turns out to be pointless when it turns out that the police only wanted to return Don's wallet.
- Hypocritical Humour: A beggar chews out Sharon for not having the decency to give him change, then refuses to stop a mugging because it doesn't involve him.
- I Take Offense to That Last One: Sharon has no problem with being called a cow or a slag, but a Tory is where she thinks a line's been crossed.Beggar: Oh, that's typical of t'Tory trash 'oo live 'round 'ere, innit? Won't even spend a bit of change for someone 'oo's 'ungry and 'omeless. And wha' about a bit of social responsibility? Tight-fisted slag!Sharon: 'Oo are you callin' a Tory?!
- It's a Small World, After All: The elderly man who Sharon saves from a mugging turns out to be the financial advisor for her friend Dorien's husband, leading her to comment upon this.
- May–December Romance: Between 29-year-old Sharon and 53-year-old Don Sheridan.
- One-Shot Character: Don Sheridan.
- Really Gets Around: No one knows who the father of Lisa's son Wayne is.
- Serious Business: Dorien considers legitimately moving out of Chigwell over her area code being 081 (since apparently, it's fancier to have it be 071).
- Shout-Out:
- The title comes from the film Brief Encounter.
- Several to The Beatles. Darryl mentions that the B-Wing of the prison were singing "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds" and Sharon uses the name of the song when talking about marijuana, Don mentions getting a "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" LP for his 30th birthday and later gifts one to Sharon and finally Don claims that the release of "Please Please Me" is what started the swinging sixties.
- Don quotes a line from Casablanca (complete with imitation of Humphrey Bogart) on his and Sharon's second encounter.
- Single Malt Vision: An incredibly pissed Sharon tells Tracey that both of her are looking nice.
- Skewed Priorities: Dorien is more shocked that Chris would have sex in a Ford than the fact he cheated on Sharon.
- Status Quo Is God: Dorien plans to leave Chigwell, but never goes through with it.
- Take That!:
- Sharon is more angered at being called a Tory than a tight-fisted slag.
- Dorien is disgusted at the idea of having sex in a Ford of all cars.
- Dorien can't stand sharing an area code with Harringay, Chingford and Frien Barnet.
- Sharon has a low opinion of Samantha Fox.
- With a Foot on the Bus: Dorien considers moving away to get a nicer area code.
