Rab reaches his lowest point after being thrown into solitary confinement. Bad news for him, but even worse for the poor jailbird who was in there already. For when jail is overcrowded, solitary means two.

Rab decides to behave respectably on his release from jail. But with Burney adopting fascist tendencies, Gash on drugs, Mary at her wits end and a new Tory local councillor to boot, will Rab's fresh outlook escape the tarnish of a world spinning out of control?

Savage rhetoric from Scotland's string-vested, beer-guzzling sage. With Ella's biological clock ticking loudly and husband Jamesie less potent than a seedless orange, parenthood seems a pretty unlikely prospect. Fortunately, Rab offers to supply the wherewithal needed for such a delicate operation.

A strange new affliction is visited on the Nesbitt household. Rab's younger son Burney has been diagnosed as gifted and begins attending weekend classes for advanced tuition. But as his talent blossoms, so do the thorns of jealousy and resentment, as Rab and elder son Gash are left hungry in the emotional wasteland.

It's summertime and the living is queasy, with Mary at Death's door. Rab decides to take the kids to Blackpool.

Mary lands a job with a lecherous boss and Rab, fearing she may dump him, turns to his pal Jamesie Cotter for advice on improving his love life. At the pub, Norrie has employed a new barmaid, Davina, who is in the process of changing sex, and the guys are having confused feelings about her. Davina covers for Mary at work and the boss propositions her only to find out that she's a man.