When a workman named Sparks appears in Gary's shop, he announces that he's there to check on a problem with the time portal that could result it its permanent closure. Forced to finally make a choice between his two lives, Gary decides his his priorities lie in 1945 with Phoebe and his son. He leaves the shop to Ron, who promptly sells the entire stock on credit to a teenager from the future.

In 1999 Ron has been dumped by his girlfriend Flic and has become extremely depressed, but Gary is distracted by the bulling tactics of a protection racket in 1945 and his attempts to get them arrested. Meanwhile, Yvonne is preparing to accept her peerage, but on the night she is due to unveil her statue at the Millennium Dome, she receives a rude surprise.