Hugo Buxton, Jeff's former head of department, comes to the camp to try and persuade him to go back to Cambridge. His visit coincides with the preparation of the Maplin float for the town carnival which features Gladys as Joan of Arc. Things go very awry when the fire on the float gets out of hand and it has to be pulled into the swimming pool. Hugo cannot understand why Jeff prefers such chaos to the academic life, but Jeff replies that he has met real people who are now his friends.

The hospital could still be built next to the camp so Maplin sends Jeff a thousand pounds with which to bribe officials. Ted tricks Jeff into letting him do the hand-over but he is pursued by a policeman who wonders why he has so much money and he drops Jeff in it by saying it is a pay-off to a girl impregnated by Jeff. The news comes that the hospital will be built elsewhere. Maplin will donate nine hundred of the thousand pounds to the hospital and Ted hopes to pocket the remaining hundred for himself. However he gives it to Fred, who needs to pay the vet when his horse gets ill.