Pick of the Plots: Thursday, April 17th

Today’s storylines from the UK and Australian soaps…

Avoiding her mum, Avani hides out in the launderette. Yolande tries to get Avani to open up.

Meanwhile, Nicola warns Zack to keep away from Barney, but he ignores her pleas. Nicola enlists the help of Tommy and Joel who antagonise Barney during his training session, but believing Zack is to blame, Barney flees. Incredulous Zack rushes after Barney.

Elsewhere, Jean attempts to reach out to Nigel, but he continues to remain quiet about his dementia diagnosis and dismisses her concerns.

EastEnders, BBC One, tonight at 7.30pm or watch on BBC iPlayer now

Caleb continues to investigate his suspicions.

Meanwhile, John is awkward when he is put on the spot.

Elsewhere, Jacob and Kammy butt heads over Sarah.

Emmerdale, ITV1, tonight at 7.30pm or watch on ITVX now

Roo takes Eliza out for a stroll to the coffee cart, introducing her to Justin and Leah. Eliza’s not very chatty though, and as soon as she’s handed her hot choccy, she asks if they can leave. On the beach, Roo asks Eliza more about her experience with school, and Eliza opens up a little about her struggles in the past. The cogs turn for Roo, perhaps there’s a solution. She offers to homeschool Eliza, in the hopes that it would be more engaging. For her part, Eliza seems unenthused either way.

Roo announces to Alf that she’s going to homeschool Eliza, but he’s not a fan of the plan. How is she going to make any friends that way? When the adults try to engage her at dinner, she ups and leaves, plate of food untouched. Roo chases her, determined to find out what’s going on. Eliza snaps at Roo, telling her to stop pretending that she likes her. Eliza, close to tears, asks Roo if she has any idea how many people have made the same promises as her. Sooner or later, Roo’s going to get sick of her. Just like everyone else.

At dinner with Mali, Rose unpacks her anger and sadness over Xander leaving. Afterwards, Mali encourages Rose to take the time without her brother to focus on what she wants. She hugs him goodbye, and in that moment, Abigail walks past and can’t believe her eyes! Her boyfriend’s hugging his ex, on the night that he cancelled her dinner plans?

Back at home, Abigail tells Levi she just saw Mali with his ex, and they were all over each other. In stark contrast, Mali’s telling Rose how much his new girlfriend means to him. Buoyed by her ex’s encouragement, Rose tells Mali she’s made a decision – she’s going to go for it and become a detective. He’s immediately supportive, and they both appreciate that they’ve managed to keep a strong friendship. In protective-brother mode, Levi pays Mali a little visit. He’s oblivious to the scale of the hurt he’s caused, but admits it was easier to tell a white lie than explaining his history and friendship with Rose. That doesn’t matter to Levi, because now Abigail thinks she’s being cheated on. So, what is Mali going to do about it?

Levi dresses Eliza’s burn wound as a favour for Roo. Eliza asks him what kind of doctor he is, and when he explains that he’s a heart surgeon, this catches her attention. She asks him about his experience with full-on surgeries and Roo butts in to tell her about his operation on a baby while it was still in the womb. Eliza’s eyes light up – something about this is very interesting to her…

Home and Away airs 1:45pm on Channel 5, at 6pm on 5STAR with first-look screenings of the following edition at 6:30 pm. The series also streams on 5.

Leo’s still reeling acer Stan’s verbal attack, when Byron delivers some crushing news – they’ve lost the expert witness who they thought would be testifying in Leo’s defence. Even worse, the expert has now decided to side with the prosecution. Feeling as though the walls are closing in, and jail is inevitable, Leo insists it’s time for Byron to take over all his duties at Yorokobi. Krista’s worried about Leo’s diminishing hopes and tries to boost his spirits; Leo however, insists that he needs to be realistic about his chances.

Little does Krista know, Leo’s making a desperate plan to escape…

Remi tries to dissuade Taye from moving out, but his mind is made up – it’s time for him to strike out on his own. Needing to find a new place to live ASAP, Taye accidentally interrupts Holly and Max during an intimate moment… He doesn’t let the awkwardness get in the way of his pitch, however, as he offers himself up as the new flatmate for the Share House… Max is all for the idea But will he be able to get Byron across the line?

Wendy and Cara both sympathise with each other over their respective career woes. Wendy’s feeling depleted and disheartened by her relief teaching stints, and wishes she could get a full time position that she could make her own. Cara, meanwhile, is overwhelmed by the workload of the compliance officer job and finding her satisfaction rapidly dwindling. Andrew, however, suggests an alternative career path idea for Cara, and it’s a lightbulb moment for her… Cara excitedly tells Remi that she’s decided to become a cop.

Amazon Prime, from 7.30am

Obsessed by the memory of Gillian threatening to kill him, Jonathon opens up to Mikey. Insisting he’s got it wrong, Mikey suggests Jonathon is over tired and needs some sleep.

At work, Mikey asks Gillian about Jonathon’s accusation, leading her to reveal she doesn’t regret saying it. Gillian urges Mikey to be careful but he deflects, insisting Jonathon’s a changed man and would forgive him, no matter what.

Back home, Mikey downplays Gillian’s threats saying they were made in the heat of the moment after Jonathon assaulted him. Encouraging Jonathon to focus on their future together not their past, Mikey is stunned when his husband threatens to call the police on Gillian, forcing a shock confession.

Elsewhere, Carly is elated to discover she got the job – starting next week. Dean is over-the-moon for his friend and urges her to tell her dad her good news. Worried he won’t want her to move away to England, Carly’s stung when Tommy urges her to grab the opportunity, assuming he doesn’t value their relationship as much as she does.

Conor and Chloe go for lunch with Amber and Angus, enjoying their shared experiences as excited parents-to-be. However, when the conversation turns to the costs of raising a child, Conor experiences a terrifying reality check and ends up feeling completely overwhelmed.

River City tonight at 7pm on BBC One Scotland and across the UK on the iPlayer. This episode was first shown yesterday on the BBC Scotland channel