In last night’s Survivors, the doggedly determined Abby went in search of the group of young boys that Samantha – nasty murderous politician lady with a Hitler complex – had told her were living at a nearby mansion called Waterhouse.

When she arrived at Waterhouse, she walked into the middle of a rather primal land dispute between the gorgeous Jimmy – an ex-Army officer who had an ancestral claim to the mansion – and an aggressive/scared group of teenage boys who’d taken up residence there. Jimmy was played by Neil Millson who was Sam in Peak Practice. I was in love with him in that too!

When Jimmy was injured in a stand off with the boys, Abby, the lucky moo, nursed him and the two quickly become close… extremely close, and rather wet when they indulged in a spot of skinny dipping and a game of under water up periscope. She’s very quickly getting over the death of her husband and valiantly coping with her missing son isn’t she? Greg, Jimmy… therapy indeed! However, despite her growing affection for Jimmy, when she discovered Peter wasn’t at the house, she decided to go back to the others. I was glad that the Peter who was at the house didn’t turn out to be her Peter; it would’ve been all together too convenient.

In her absence meanwhile, her surrogate family of survivors was in danger of falling apart. Tom, Sarah, Al and Najid decided to partake in the home comforts and questionable security that Samantha’s community seemed able to provide while Greg and Anya opted to stay at the house. Greg of course was anxious that Abby return safely while Anya just didn’t trust Samantha.

Meanwhile, Tom settled into the quasi-fascist regime very quickly and could see himself in a position of power in the new society, but Gavin – the heavy handed security guard – somehow intuited that Tom had been in prison and gleefully informed Samantha, unbeknown to Tom.

Things went awry rather quickly for Al though, as he was ejected from the community when Samantha decided he “wouldn’t fit in”. Al simply wouldn’t take orders and refused to jump when Samantha said so, and so after making him leave Naj with them, Tom drove him away from the compound and stranded him in the back of beyond. However, Al didn’t want to leave Naj there and went back for him. He somehow managed to evade the ever present guards and went into the dorm to collect the boy who willingly went with him.

However, Tom woke up and went in hot pursuit. He didn’t manage to catch them and they got away but afterwards, Samantha confronted him with the knowledge that she knew he’d been a prisoner and expelled him from the group. His parting shot was to half strangle Gavin but for some reason, he didn’t actually kill him. Could this mean that the brooding Tom has turned over a new leaf? He collected Sarah and they set off back to the house. They encountered Najid and Al on the way back and Tom apologized for his actions, which, though suspicious, Al accepted.

Back at the house, Greg and Anya had to defend themselves when two shady characters drove up to the house and generally menaced the pair. They got rid of them the first time but they came back and their intention to rape Anya was evident. It was actually a really tense moment and I was on the edge of my seat, but our lady doctor came through and battered her attackers before freeing Greg; one of them had tied him to the land rover. They drove the intruders away, hands restrained, and dropped them off miles from the house, hoping they’d take the hint and stay away.

So with our disparate group now all back to the house, could this mean that they’ll live happily ever after there now? I think not because next week, when ‘visionary spiritual leader’ John turns up at the survivors’ door – with a ragged group of passionate disciples – some of the survivors are suspicious of his motives.

Charming and eloquent, John’s a preacher with a unique perspective on the new world, but the group’s opinion of him is split. Is he as innocent as he seems, or does he have more sinister motives? Also, a woman in John’s group is pregnant and Abby allows her to stay until the baby’s born but Anya fears that she’ll be forced to reveal that she’s a doctor if there are any problems with the birth. Worse than that, she picks up on some unusual remarks by John which make her concerned for the group’s safety. Eeeeek!

I still love this series, even though I suspect that the level of violence and lawlessness would far exceed what we’ve seen so far should this ever happen for real, I do love the malevolence of Samantha and the deep, dark secrets of Tom. Great stuff!