With her son Trevor due back from the missions abroad for the first time in four years, Agnes wants to make sure that this Christmas is a truly special celebration, with her whole family together. Dermot finds himself under pressure to spend Christmas with his wife's family.

Dermot and Maria, have a baby on the way, and they are desperate for a place of their own to live in. Mrs Brown has a plan to help her son when they can not afford to move out. Agnes has to resort to desperate measures to keep Grandad out of sight and her dream alive after she promises them the money from Grandad's life insurance policy even though he isn't dead.

Agnes is not happy that Trevor has been called back to the missions in Africa, but she becomes determined to give him a huge send-off to before he leaves. Cathy's family counselling session ends up in chaos. Buster and Dermot end up having a run in with a circus lion.

Dermot and Maria's baby is due very soon and Agnes is looking forward to the prospect of having a new Brown as part of the family. She has to make do with a robot baby as the expectant couple have been given one to practise with. Agnes ends up offering to babysit the robot baby and seems to have the magic touch but uses some strange methods.

Agnes feels self-conscious about her weight when she receives some unflattering comments from her family. She ends up deciding to go on a diet but finds it hard sticking to it. Rory is feeling happy when he manages to secure a promotion as manager of the local hair salon.

After Spartacus the old family dog becomes ill, the Brown children reluctantly decide the time has come to put her in a home. When the children attempt to break the news to Agnes, she gets the wrong end of the stick, thinking they are going to put her in a home, so she attempts to make her children see that she isn\'t going senile.

There's a lot of arguing in the Brown household this week. Betty is not happy with Mark. Rory and Dino are arguing. Agnes and Betty also manage rub each other up the wrong way. Upset by all the unrest at home, Agnes ends up realising that she has an equally difficult relationship with Maria's mother Hilary.