All language subtitles for Wife.on.Strike.S01E02.1080p.HDTV.H264-DARKFLiX[eztv.re]_track4_eng

NARRATOR:
In these enlightened times,

we might like to think
housework is a shared endeavour.

You could literally eat your dinner
off these toilet seats.

I mean, literally.
But...

...in Britain, on average,
one member of each household

does two thirds of the chores.

That's it.
Literally, I do everything.

What time you gotta be back, Sean?
No major rush.

He doesn't cook. He doesn't clean.
He doesn't hoover or make the bed.

Oh, for God's sake.
Are they taking the mick?

I'm not gonna do it any more.

Those carrying the heaviest load...

Right, that's it. I'm off.

...have had enough.

She said that she's on strike.

Who's on strike?
Oh, gosh.

I can't believe you're doing this.
Am I...? Oh, my God.

We'll get to see
how those left behind...

I don't really know where to begin.
..cope...

MAN: Oi, oi.

NIKKI: And now it's stuck.

There's no food.
BOY: I thought you was cooking.

Don't you understand?
There's nothing.

...and finally negotiate a deal
to come home.

I wanted you to stand in my shoes,
but you didn't do that.

Like, I will try anything
if it means that you come home.

PRODUCER:
Who does the most in this house?

GIRLS: Daddy.
I thought it was me.

No.
Never.

Definitely me.

The Barwell family are Dave,

his daughters, seven-year-old Titty
and nine-year-old Poppy...

...and husband Luke.

We'll make a move
cos it's just gone ten past.

Excellent, you ready?

The girls live with their dad
part of the week

and their mum the rest of the time.

Family life is pretty hectic.

One of me many loads of washing.
That will keep me busy for a bit.

The washing, the cooking,

cleaning, the hoovering...

In about five minutes,
I'll be leaving

to go and pick Luke up from work
and then come home

and then continue where I left off.

Dave's a baker,

and Luke is a team leader
at a supermarket.

They both work early shifts.
It does get very tiring.

I get to rest
mainly when I go to bed.

Are you gonna come shopping with me?
I don't really want to, babe.

Husband Luke has a unique approach
to helping out.

I like to chill while Dave...
does everything.

You're lazy, is what it is.

When I'm gone, can you
at least hoover, or something?

Save me doing it later on.

I mean, the floor looks pretty clean
to me.

Oh, my God.
I just find it so boring.

I can't get motivated
to do it at all.

I just hate it.

But Luke reckons that some of
what he does around the house

doesn't get the recognition
it deserves.

It annoys me

because I feel like Dave discredits
some of the stuff that I do do.

If you are washing up,
I entertain the girls

and keep the girls out of your way.

That's not just me doing nothing.

The girls find Luke the fun one
and me the boring one.

When Luke's at home,

cos he's not doing any housework,
he can relax.

He can have fun with them, whereas
I'm obviously running round,

so I don't get to spend as much time
as I would like with them.

When the girls aren't around,

Luke has no problem
filling his time,

and it's not on the chores.

I probably clock up
about eight hours on my phone a day,

sometimes more.

If he just paid less attention
to his phone

and more time helping out,

then we'd have a much better
quality of life

as a family doing things.

I feel like
he puts his phone before me.

I might as well just go and wash up
and sort the kitchen out, OK?

OK.

When the couple started
living together three years ago,

it was a different story.

When I first moved in,
I would help hoover,

wash up, do school runs, shopping,

get the kids ready

until we were comfortable
with each other and in love.

And then once we were there
and I know he wouldn't leave me,

I could be my true self.

Babe, what you doing?
I'm getting stuff ready for dinner.

Can you get me a drink, please?
Oh, for God's sake.

Dave takes some share of the blame

for home life ending up like this.

Here you go, your Royal Highness.

I've sort of allowed it to happen,

where I should have put a stop
earlier on into the relationship.

I think I've bit my tongue
for so long cos... I love him.

Why don't you hoover?

Oh, my God.
You're like a broken record.

I wanna go for a nap.
See you in an hour.

Right, I love you.
Love you.

But Dave is reaching the end
of his tether.

I am very fed up.
I've had enough.

It's getting to a point now where...

there's only so much
asking Luke to help that I can do.

Someone has got to do the housework,
the cooking, the cleaning...

erm, and I don't see why
it's always gotta be me.

CHEERING

Just ten minutes away
live team Barrow...

Oh, nice.
Oh, shot.

...Stuart, Nikki, and their children,

15-year-old Christian,

14-year-old Lake,
and 12-year-old Sienna.

Come on now. Whoa!

FAMILY LAUGHS
Quick! Quick! Quick!

Stuart and Nikki met each other
16 years ago.

It's been a roller coaster.

We got together really quick,
and we had a family really quick.

We got married five months
after we met.

Got stronger as time's gone on.

We love each other more
than we ever have. Absolutely.

It's just downhill from here on in.

When Nikki had her hands full
with three kids under five,

there wasn't time for housework.

Stuart probably did everything
when the kids were younger.

Of course, I've done more and more
over the years.

But like many couples,

they no longer agree
about who's doing the lion's share.

I probably pick up...
70% of the work.

It's a 60, 40 split.

60... 40.

I dust every couple of weeks.

She will actively start many jobs,

not necessarily seeing them through
from start to finish, and...

I have good intentions.
So we have jobs that we both do.

Nikki has jobs that she wants to do.
I have everything that's left.

That's not 100% true...

because you do the kitchen,
that's your bit...

True.
..like the cooking, the washing up.

As far as Stuart's concerned,

that's just the start
of his routine.

I like to have a clean kitchen,
but I'll also pick up a hoover,

wash the cars, put the bins out,
cut the grass,

help with the laundry.

Nikki, she won't food shop.

She panics about food shopping,
so it's my job to do.

Thank you very much,
have a good day. Thank you, bye-bye.

I don't feel like I stop.

There just always seems to be
a list of jobs

that I need to be getting on with.

And I sit back sometimes

and notice the rest of the family
are chilling out.

Nikki has her own explanation
for the jobs she avoids.

I don't do the washing up correctly,

and I don't load the dishwasher
correctly, and he does.

He does that right.
You want coffee?

Yes, please.

Right now?
Yes, please.

It's amazing that you can't do this.

Right, there you go. You're done.
Mmm.

Why am I gonna deny him
the opportunity

to make something really great
when he can and I can't?

There are certain things
that he just doesn't do.

"Laundry, hoovering, dusting.'

Guys, dishwasher needs doing!

And when it comes to her chores,
Nikki's got it covered.

Do the kids help dust?
Yes.

Do they help with making the beds?
Yes.

The washing?
Yes.

It's good for their independence.
Good. That's fine.

I was just clarifying that
they were your jobs, that's all.

Well, they're the jobs that I...

.facilitate.
Oh, I see.

Dad can do that.
THEY LAUGH

Nikki has another reason
for delegating tasks.

There you go, Lake. All done.

"Both of the boys
diagnosed as autistic.

'It's a difference.'

It's not necessarily
a negative thing.

There's a lot
of positive attributes, too.

Can you do Dad's?
CHRISTIAN: Yep.

Cool. There you go.
On it.

I just think it's so important to...

you know, to teach them how to live

so that they can look after
themselves when we're not about.

Oh, thank you.
Was that in your pile?

Yeah.
Thank you.

It's a cop out. You just want them
to do all the work.

Now I'm gonna hit you.

You're an arse.

Both parents work full-time.

Have a lovely day.
Right, bye-bye.

Nikki is
a performing arts teacher...

...and Stuart's
a senior fire safety officer

who works from home.

I probably do more household chores
whilst I'm working,

which is probably why
Nikki doesn't see it.

The house is just magically
kept clean and tidy.

And if I need to,
I can work into the evening

to make up that time that I've had
to kind of pause during the day.

In this house, it's not just about
who does the most jobs.

It's about when to do them.
Happy?

Yep.
Cool.

During the week, I am forever
noticing things, tiding something,

doing something.

Thank you. Housework can wait.

Most of it just gets left to Sunday,
and to be honest,

whatever doesn't get done

just has to wait
until the week after.

Now this is a nice dish to have
on a Sunday evening. It is.

You like to collapse
after a day at work,

and you're more than happy
to leave it until the weekend

to do all the housework.

I look forward to the weekend.
It's the reward at the end.

Why haven't you ever mentioned it
like that before?

Cos I haven't mentioned that,
like, a million times?

Stuart's frustrations
are coming to the surface...

I don't think the amount that I do
in the house is acknowledged.

...and he's finally decided
to take radical action.

The work that I do around the house,
if that was taken away,

it would clearly be noticed when...

you know, when things started to go
a bit wrong.

So I'm gonna go on strike because...

apparently, I don't do much anyway,

so it'd be interesting to see
whether that's true or not.

Back in Folkestone,

Dave is also taking matters
into his own hands.

I don't think Luke is gonna...

take me seriously
until I do something about it,

so I will go on strike
until I see some form of improvement

and he does more around the house.

For Dave,
the stakes couldn't be higher.

I'm praying to God
that this strike does work

because I just can't cope any more.

If I don't see him make a change,

then this could be the end
of our marriage cos I've had enough.

Nikki's gonna be shocked.

This is massively out of character
for me.

I'm a little bit concerned
about how the children will be

and about how Nikki will be,
but at the same time...

I'm hoping that we'll actually
become stronger through doing this.

It's starting to feel real now.
It's for the greater good.

VIDEO: 'I'm going on strike.'
Like, genuinely?

Oh, my God.

NARRATOR: It's nearly half past two,

and Luke is home from
his early shift at the supermarket.

Babe.

Husband Dave is normally back first.

But today,
he's not cleaning their flat.

He's checking into a hotel...

and he's sent Luke a message
explaining why.

VIDEO MESSAGE: 'Luke,
I've been banging on at you now

'for nearly two-and-a-bit years
for your help.

'I'm fed up, tired, and exhausted.

'I can't keep going on like this.

'No matter what I say to you,
it's like talking to a brick wall

'and I'm done with it.

'I'm going on strike.

'I just need you
to start appreciating

'what I do in this house.'

PHONE RINGS

LUKE ON PHONE: 'Hello?'
I just got your video.

'Oh, yeah?'

Are you actually not coming back?
'No.!

And you're actually not
getting the girls today?

'No. If I wasn't comfortable leaving
them with you, I wouldn't have.'

What do I need to do
for you to come home?

'I wanna see you doing more chores
around the house.'

What if nothing changes?

'Then I honestly don't see it
working for us.'

Like, genuinely?
'Babe, honestly, I'm struggling.'

I'm very annoyed.

Makes me not wanna do anything
just to annoy him back.

He'll probably be back by tonight.

LUKE SIGHS
I better go and get the girls.

For the first time ever,

Luke has to do the school run
on his own.

Can get a drink and a snack
if you want, girls.

And he's got some explaining to do
to Titty and Poppy.

Luke, where's Daddy?

Erm, I need to talk to you both.

TILLY: OK.
OK, you're not in trouble.

OK.
OK.

Daddy's going on strike...

because I don't help him out enough
around the house.

Daddy will come back home...
Mm-hm.

...maybe in a couple of days.

But just cos he's gone...
Mm-hm.

...doesn't mean he doesn't love us
all, cos he does.

He does love us.
Of course he loves us.

He loves us.
So... are you willing to help?

Oh, yes.

Dave's left... the washing up...

rubbish... the washing...

...50 I don't really know
where to begin.

Over in the small town
of Hawkinge...

...Stuart's wife, Nikki,
is also arriving home.

Hey! Hey, oh. Hello.

OK.

Something weird's going on.

No car outside,
no Stuart at his desk.

Stuart is busy setting up
a new home office in a local hotel.

STUART: 'Hi, darling.

'Just wanted to leave you a message
to let you know

'that I'm gonna go away
for a few days.

'We both contribute
to the stuff around the house,

'but you are still of the opinion
that you're doing more than I am.

'And so I'd like to kind of put
yourself in my shoes for a while,

'try to get the jobs that I do done
around the house during the week.

'The decision to strike
is obviously not an easy one,

'and I'm not entirely happy
about leaving everything onto you,

'but I think it's the only way

'that we can shift this balance
moving forward

"and make our relationship stronger.

'Hope you understand. Love you.'

I love you too, you arse. Pfft!

Have I gotta get everything done
during the week, then?

Am I...? Oh, my God.

I didn't expect this.

This is very out of character
for Stuart.

What the hell am I gonna eat?

It's not that I can't cook anything,
I just hate cooking.

I could eat your scallops,
I suppose.

I wouldn't even know
how to cook them, though.

And it's in German.

ATTEMPTS
TO SPEAK GERMAN

Yeah, that's not English.

Oh, hello!
SHE WHISTLES

Come on.

Oh, even the dog's abandoning me!
SHE LAUGHS RUEFULLY

Hello!

It's not long
before Lake, Christian...

Hi!
Hello.

...and Siena are back from school.

Have you seen Dad?

NIKKI CHUCKLES

First thing you ask me.

Yeah.
OK.

So, Daddy's gone away
to stay at a hotel.

Ah, right.
He's not gone forever.

So, Daddy wants me to do
all the jobs in the house. OK.

Is that OK?
Yeah.

What, so you don't want me
helping out at all?

I do want you helping out,
very much so! OK.

I'm not gonna lie,
I freaked out a little bit.

But... I'm OK with it now.

I think it would be much easier
for Daddy if you went on strike,

because I think you do less jobs.

Fair enough.

Okey-dokey.
Right, I've gotta get on.

At Dave and Luke's flat, the morning
gets off to a slow start.

Luke is still upstairs sleeping.

You OK?
Yeah.

Do you miss Daddy?

I miss Daddy.
I don't.

I better wash up soon,

otherwise you'll eating Weetabix
out of a saucepan.

Kitchen looks like a bomb site.

I need to wash up some bowls.
I've got one bowl.

HE LAUGHS

I don't have a clue
when Dave's coming back.

It's... It's still a bit of a shock
that he's not back yet.

Luke?
Yeah?

I'm hungry.

The girls would usually have
eaten breakfast by now.

HE SIGHS

Just gotta... I've gotta
go to the shop, get some milk.

Why are we going shopping so early?

I've gotta get some milk
if you want some cereal.

Daddy left us no milk, no bread.

Let's go.

Oh, that breeze is so nice, Tills.
Yeah! Nice.

'I am still annoyed,
but I am worried

'that he's gone,
because we've never had a day apart.

'So it kind of shows to me
he has had enough.'

Thank you. Thank you.

Say bye, girls.
Bye! Bye!

Go on in, girls.
We forgot the rubbish bag.

Oh, we did. We was meant
to take that down. Oh, no!

Oh, well, we'll do it later,
when we go out.

At the Barrow family house...

Do you know how
to do the dishwasher? No.

...Nikki's on a steep learning curve.

That one?
No.

Luckily, Siena's here to help.

BEEP
Oh, look, there's a light!

And now what do you do?

On.
It is on.

What do you mean, it is on?

Close it.
What, just close it?

Oh!
Oh!

Bye!
Bye!

Mwah! Have a great day. I love you.

Bye.
See you later, dude. Mwah.

I miss you!

There's nobody to make me a coffee!

Stuart will definitely put coffee
in first.

Then I have, like,
a little shot of salted caramel,

and I have quite a milky coffee,
as well.

And that's his process.

SHE SIGHS
OK. Here goes nothing.

Let's see.

Oh, crap.
SHE LAUGHS

It doesn't taste of anything!

SHE GROANS

I miss him even more now.

SHE STRAINS

Nikki's set a day aside
to catch up with jobs.

I might as well get on
with some cleaning today,

seeing as I've got
a little bit of time on my hands.

So, Stuart going on strike,
I'm just gonna do

what I would normally do
and maybe get a few extra bits done.

But I'm not pressurised
by that situation.

I'm not... I'm not gonna rise to it.

I'm just gonna put this
on the floor,

and then it's gonna do its thing.

Right.

And now it's stuck.

They're away from their families,

but strikers Stuart and Dave
are getting together.

It's been lovely
actually meeting you.

Obviously someone in the same
pair of shoes as me. 100%.

Right, let's go.

Neither family knows
they're both keeping a close eye

on what's happening at home.

Lift the bin bag, plonk it down.

That is the sort of stuff
that really angers me. Yeah.

Something so simple.

I know.
But for Luke, it's a mission.

Put that phone down!

You've got more of a relationship
with your phone

than you do me at the minute.
Yeah.

I am gonna clean the bathrooms.

This isn't a Stuart job,
this is a me job.

This was disgusting this morning.

Gave it a little rinse,
but it needs a scrub.

Stuart will kill me for doing that.

There's no way that he'd want me to
put the dog bowl on top of the hob.

I need to get the rest of this stuff
done at some point.

Oh, wow.

Did you see her list of jobs?
Yeah.

All four of 'em. All four.
Yeah!

And the jobs that she
would normally do. Yeah.

And then she'll start all of them
and not finish any of them.

I wouldn't say that Nikki was lazy,

but she's particular
about what she will and won't do,

which leaves one person
to pick up the slack. You.

Tonight would normally be
fish and chip night, but, erm...

I'd probably usually cook it,
but I'm not gonna bother tonight.

I'm gonna take them out
for a nice fish and chip takeaway.

SON: 'Oh, look!

'The boat we had last winter!
'I know, right?'

Is this nice?
Yep.

Yeah.

Be nicer with Daddy, though,
wouldn't it?

It looks beautiful out there,
doesn't it, today? Yeah.

Do you know what's upsetting?
Is that...

these are the things I want to do.

I want to go out with the kids,
go out and have something to eat.

But I'm always told
that we can't afford it

or we haven't got time
or there's too much to do.

Yeah, of course.

I do feel like there are things
that I do, and I do pull my weight,

and I just... I just do the jobs
at different times.

I hope he's realising that...

you know,
I like appreciation as well.

I do appreciate her,

and I am grateful
for the things that she does.

I just want her to rethink
how she does things,

prioritising what jobs need doing
and when.

Luke, I'm hungry!

LUKE: Dinner's coming.

I've got the microwave pizzas.
It's better for me, quicker.

Properly would've been easier
to get a takeaway.

Oh, my God.

Girls...

would you like it
if me Daddy had another baby?

Oh, God.

I don't really know.

Would you want a little brother
or sister if we had one? A sister.

Brother.

What would be call him?
Barry.

Barry?!
Barry!

Do you think I'd be a good dad?

Mm, yeah.
Yeah?

STUART LAUGHS
Oh, my God.

He keeps saying to me
about having another child. OK.

But I don't think he's mature enough
just yet,

because he needs to prove to me that
he can do things round the house.

You're gonna need more support,

otherwise another child is just more
work for you then, isn't it? Yeah.

He's a brilliant stepdad, you know,
and it was tough on him,

obviously, coming from the outside.
Yeah, course.

Absolutely fantastic.
I can't fault you.

Just... the house work.

Go and do the washing up.
Yeah. Yeah.

Just do that washing up
that's sitting there for three days.

Do that, you know.

So, it's very important
for this to work for me

because, at the minute, for me,

it's like coming home
and looking after three kids,

rather than two kids
and one grown adult.

But I've seen small glimpses
of what Luke can do.

I don't think Nikki's
fully understood

the reason for the strike.

What I'm looking for is just
some acknowledgement of what I do.

But it's also made me realise

I hadn't really thought of it
from her point of view.

Dave has seen some footage.

He's given me a list of tasks.

Nah-ah.

NARRATOR: After seeing
what's been happening at home,

Stuart and Dave aren't convinced
their partners understand

what needs to change
before the strikers will return...

...50 they're bringing in
reinforcements.

Luke's sister Kim...

Hello.
Hello... What are you doing here?

...and Stuart's mate Phil

Hello.

You know he's not here, right?
Yeah.

I've come to see you on his behalf.

Better come in, then, I suppose!

Been chilling all day?

Yeah, finished work at two.

Well, Dave has seen some footage.

Great (!)

You're not washing up.

He's sick of seeing you
always on your phone. Yeah.

I've got a list of things
from Dave...

LUKE LAUGHS RUEFULLY

...that he does every day...
OK.

...that he would like you
to start doing. Yeah.

You haven't hoovered today,
I can tell. No.

It's the motivation. I just...
I have no motivation.

I am trying, though,
but it's like breaking a habit.

It's gonna take a lot
to get you out of it,

because you have always been
a bit of a spoilt child...

Yeah. ..and never had to do
a lot for yourself.

As a child, my older siblings
were raised to clean, cook, tidy.

And then the youngest three,
which I fall into,

were very much brought up
getting what we want,

not having to clean and tidy.

So I think I've just gone through
life with that mentality of,

"I should be the one that sits down
and don't have to do anything."

NIKKI: So, what does he want?

He's given me a list

of tasks he wants you to try
and fulfil around the house.

Nah-ah. No, but just hear him out.
OK.

Use the dishwasher.
Right.

Complete a food shop.
Mm-hm.

Cook your own meal from scratch.
OK.

Then he wants you to be responsible
for putting the bins out.

It's not hard.
You've only gotta move your legs

from the back garden
to the front garden.

Yeah, all right!
I've got little legs, just like you.

What's next?
Learn to make a cup of coffee.

Oh, my God!

Commit amount of time to do
household jobs after work each day.

I don't know how I feel
about that one.

You're knackered
by the end of the day.

Mine and Stuart's upbringing
were very, very different.

His mum was a stay-at-home mum,
and their house is always spotless.

My upbringing wasn't like that.

So it was one day at the weekend
that was kind of blitz everything

because we were
a two-parent working family.

KIM: Luke!

Rubbish down the side of the bed.
Food on the floor!

That's from my pizza.
Why are you eating in bed?

It is like a teenager's bedroom.

Is that all dirty?
Yeah.

Why is this left out?
You could put this away, no?

Make your bed.
HE LAUGHS

Go on, straighten it up.
Oh, my Lord!

You could help!
I'm not helping. It's not my house.

See? Two minutes.

You gonna make that coffee?
Yep.

Right.

SHE SQUEALS

There you go.

How does it make you feel
that you're doing it, and not Dave?

LUKE LAUGHS
Annoyed!

So now you know how Dave feels.

There we go, a wash is on.
Perfect.

While you're motivated,
you might as well keep going.

Where's the hoover?

Have you actually put the milk in?
Yes, I'm just psyching myself up.

The art to making a decent coffee
is, when you put the milk in...

Mm.
..stir it.

I've tried every way of doing this,
and nothing works.

I'm only trying
to give you some advice!

Do you know... No, I appreciate that.

LAUGHING: I've got it jammed!

This is why I don't do things!

You can tell you don't hoover a lot,
Luke. Yeah, I know.

There we go.

Are you learning from this, Luke?
Yeah, I'm learning that...

I'm learning
that you should move in!

OK.

That's actually all right.
Yeah?

I'll give you that.
Oh, wow!

So, other people like my coffee.
It's just me that doesn't!

So, if you get through this list
and stick to what's on this list,

I think Dave will come home.

Yep, I'll do it.
OK, good.

Now that I've done it -
the hoovering, the washing -

I've definitely seen...

just how easy it is
to help Dave out.

Remember, less time on your phone.
I-I know.

I think he realised,
"I've gotta change this now,

"otherwise Dave ain't coming back."

Definitely the first time I've seen
Luke take something serious,

so fingers crossed.

All he's asking for is the effort.

Yeah.

He feels like he makes you
feel appreciated... Yeah.

...but he doesn't feel like
he gets that in return. OK.

See you later.
See you later.

Bye!

There are certain things on here
that I've got no issues with.

Prioritising the jobs
that, like, need doing

and completing one job
before another,

I've already recognised that
that's a major issue for me.

But it's kind of made out
that I don't do anything,

and actually, that's not the case.

So maybe I need to go on strike
and put my own list together.

Who knows?

Call me once you're done, OK.

I'm gonna go carry on with dinner.

At Dave and Luke's place, there's
none of the usual lounging about...

You put my drawer back.

...everyone is pulling their weight.
Yeah.

So I washed up last night,
I've hoovered the whole house,

I've done all of the laundry.

So I've ticked off four of them,
which is...

I think a good start.

My fan...

It's been
a bit of a punch in the stomach,

realising just how much Dave does
so that my life is easy.

It's really opened my eyes.

And it's kind of made me realise
it's not fair

that Dave has to be the one
that does everything.

Doing spag bol today.

I've come a long way
since putting pizza in a microwave.

I still don't like cooking,
but if it's something I've gotta do

to keep my family together,
then I'll do it.

I'm going to start my bed.
I might do my bed.

Oh, my God.

It tastes really good.

I'm quite shocked,
it's up there with one of Dave's.

You're gonna be here for two weeks?
All done, girls? Yeah. Yeah.

It looks awesome!

It looks really good, girls,
well done.

There you go.

'Me becoming a stepfather,

'I think has contributed
to me wanting to be the fun dad.

'It should be both of us
that are seen as the fun dad,

'it's not just one of us.'

Did you make this?
I did make this one.

You have done
a very, very great job. Thank you.

We'll get Daddy back, won't we?
Yeah.

We've all done good jobs.
Your room looks amazing.

I think Daddy'll be really
pleased with us all.

'I have come a long way,'

but my phone
is gonna be the struggle.

And I'm not quite sure if I'm quite
willing to give up time with it yet.

'That is the one big habit that is
gonna be the hardest to break.'

Three miles out of town...

Hotdog rolls, peppers...

...Nikki is knuckling down to
some of Stuart's usual jobs.

I hate shopping, with a passion.

It needs to be done though, so...
I guess I'm going shopping.

I'm lost in the supermarket.
CHUCKLES

Oh, where is bread?

'Stuart always does the food shop.'

It's really bad, actually.

I'm really glad that it's not busy,
because that...

...that's not good,
that freaks me out.

SHE GASPS
Oh, there's a packet.

Right,
that's Siena's mac and cheese.

That's barbecue sauce.
Thousand Island.

Peppers. Mature cheese.

Cool. I think we're done.

I could probably do that again,
I think.

Thank you very much.
Thank you.

"I wouldn't wanna
take it on completely,’

but I think, definitely sharing it
is a good way to go.

Now all I gotta do is cook it.
What are we having again?

Steak fajitas.

I think this is something that
I could potentially do for Stuart,

and...
maybe surprise him a little bit

with... my culinary skills.

I got avocado everywhere!
CHUCKLES

I'm really making a conscious effort
to do the job,

like, one thing at a time.

I do appreciate more
the things that he does,

and I think
it's definitely important

that he feels
that I appreciate that,

and that he knows
it means a lot to me.

That is good!
Right, so, that is done.

Christian,
do you wanna try some fajitas?

Grab a tortilla, mate.

'We're here with him,
and we're here for him.'

It's not just him,

he's not got to take it on
all on his own.

Mmm! What do you think
Dad would think of this meal?

I think he would love it.
He would be amazed.

Yeah? He'd be amazed?
He'd love it, though.

You think he'd love it?
Mm-hm.

I need you to prove yourself.

Do you feel like
you do EVERYTHING around the house?

NARRATOR:
After a week away from home,

Dave is about to find out

if his strike has done enough to
change the habits of husband Luke.

I'm feeling quite anxious
to see Luke today,

because... I need to
make sure that he's listened,

and he's gonna finally
left his finger, and help out more.

'I'm quite hopeful,
but has Luke taken me seriously?'

I'm sure we'll soon find out.

I missed Dave so much.

From the minute
I found out he'd left, I just...

I miss him, I want him back.

HE LAUGHS TEARFULLY

HE SNIFFS

THEY LAUGH

MUFFLED: I missed you.
I missed you too.

You leaving me, I was angry.
HE SNIFFS

Yeah.
It did annoy me.

But as much as I was angry,
I also understood. Yeah.

I know that I could help more...
Yeah. ..and I haven't.

And I am willing to change

because I don't ever wanna be
in this situation again. And I...

I pray to God that you do change.

I will do it.
I-1-1 really hope so.

I've allowed it to happen,

and let it go on so long that you've
just got comfortable with it.

I don't want you to
blame yourself...

...but, if I do help you out,
like hoovering, washing up... Mm-hm.

...you will say to me, like,
"Oh, you've not done that properly.”

I-I do get that, and obviously
I have had a lot of thinking to do,

and somebody said to me before,

I never really appreciate what
you do when you do help me. Mm-hm.

You spoke about...

having a third child.

I need you to prove yourself
because, at the minute,

it feels like
I'm looking after three children.

Coming home, I might see that you
have changed, and... You will.

So it could be something that
we could talk about in the future.

The phone is gonna be
my biggest challenge. Mm-hm.

But... I feel like
I could get there.

I mean... No, I would try anything
if it means that you come home.

I'm gonna do the one thing...

...that we do when you know
I'm serious. What's that?

I pinky promise.
You're gonna mean it?

That... I mean it.
That... I'm gonna do it. OK.

And you promise? I promise.
Because, like, if I do...

if I see you
slip back to your old ways,

then there
might not be a second chance.

I-I promise you, it's gonna change.

Yeah? Yeah.
Give me a kiss.

Love you.
I love you.

Striker Stuart is meeting Nikki,

to learn if the time is right
for him to come home.

I'm feeling a little bit nervous.

There's been so many things
that have not felt right,

just because of his absence, but...

hopefully, today is the day
where that all changes.

'Going on strike, I think
it was the right thing to do.'

But I'm nervous,
I'm not sure what to expect.

She's either gonna be very happy
to see me or very angry with me.

Hi.
SHE GIGGLES

Hello, hello, hello. All right?
Ooh!

I've missed you.
Ah!

Yeah, I forgot a little bit
what you look like.

Touch you. I've missed you so much.
I'm glad you're not angry with me.

I can't be angry with you,
I just miss you.

I see how you don't feel...

like you were
as appreciated as you should be.

And that's... I'm gonna...

That was the bit,
that was the thing.

TEARFULLY: I know. And I got that
from when you wrote your note.

I just want to know that

it's not gonna
go back to how it was.

And now, what I need you to do is,

if you feel like
things are falling back,

just sit down and talk to me.

And I-I promise, hand on heart,
I will listen. OK.

I've always known
that you do a lot around the house,

and I've reflected this week,
and I realise that...

and, actually,
am I making enough fuss of you?

And I'm really grateful that you've
kind of thrown yourself at it.

Mm. And, honestly,
it's not just about me,

it's gonna give us both
more time together,

and quality time together.

The balance needs to shift,
and I understand that now.

What I've learned is that we just
gotta work at this together. I know.

Yeah, I really wanna
do stuff together. Good.

I understand that more.
Good. Good.

OK, let me ask you a question...

Do you feel like you do
EVERYTHING around the house?

Yes. No.

LAUGHTER
Of course I don't.

We both do the most, yeah?
Yes.

We both do the most.
Definitely, I love that.

After his crunch meeting with Nikki,
and a week away from his family,

Stuart has come to a decision.

I'm so ready to be going home now.

After hearing Nikki say
that she understands now,

and that she's willing to
work with me

so that we can improve the way
we do things moving forward,

now it's just
the ideal time to be going.

Dave is also calling off his strike.

'I'm excited to go home.

'Anxious, a little bit,'

because
I really hope Luke has listened,

'and then the strike will
have worked. Let's see.'

Two, three...

Today is a special,
Dave's coming home today,

so I want everything
to look amazing. There.

It looks really good, girls.

Going forward, I will do
a lot more around the house.

Daddy"ll love these.

I'm excited to see Daddy later on.
Me too.

We've missed him, haven't we?
Yeah.

When Dave comes back today,

our family unit
will be a lot stronger,

'because we all understand
each other a little bit more.

'And I think, once he realises how
much effort we have put into I,

I think he will just be
so proud of all three of us.

"Dear, Daddy,
I miss you so, so, so, so much.

"Lots of love, Titty."

Hi. Hi.
Hi, hi, hi. All right? Mmm!

Hi. You all right?
Yeah. Not bad, not bad. Come in.

Hi. Hi, hi, hi.
Oi! You all right?

NIKKI LAUGHS
Hi. Someone's missed you lots.

LAUGHTER
No, you're fine.

I've missed him so much.
And it's just, I...

Like, I don't... I can't let go.
LAUGHTER

SINGSONG: Guess who's home!
Hello, Daddy. Hi.

Come and give him a hug.

'Do you know, I think, by striking,

'it may well have
made our relationship stronger.'

"Just... knowing that
we can communicate a lot better.

'You know,
we don't need to bicker.'

Nikki has invested in it, and
I don't think it would have worked

if I had of done it any other way.

KNOCKING ON DOOR

It's Daddy.
Daddy.

Hmm. Daddy.
Hello, monkeys.

Daddy's crying.
Hello.

Daddy's crying.

Crying?
Daddy's crying.

Dad.
You OK? Yeah.

Have you missed me? Yep. Yeah?
HE SNIFFS

It's very nice and tidy.
I thought you'd like it.

I'm very happy. Very happy.

To be home is lovely.

'You know, just to come home,
see Luke and the girls,

'walk in, it be tidy,

it's literally all I ask for.

Beautiful. What's all this, bubs?

This is proof how much I've washed.
Oh, my life!

Let's go to our room, Daddy.

Look how clean it is!

Girls... the room
looks absolutely brilliant,

and you've made me super proud.

High ten for that, high ten!

Boom!

The house looks immaculate,
considering how I left it,

'so it was nice to see
that they can do it

and there's no need for
any excuses no more.

'I'm proud of them.'

Look.
Oh, wow.

Daddy,
there's a message right there.

There's 37 kisses.

Thank you. There's 37 kisses.
Thank you.

Going forward from here,

I'm hoping that Luke
will keep up with the chores,

and that
I might be able to be the fun dad.

So I've got you a little gift.

LUKE CHUCKLES

Let me guess, this is for my phone.
You are correct.

What, does it get locked in there?
Yep.

It's on there for two hours
and one minute, by the way,

just so you know.

Is that a joke?
I feel like my phone's on strike.

Yeah.
LAUGHTER

Absolutely filled to the brim.

I'm a little bit bone idle,
I suppose.

Sitting there watching his TV...
Typical!

I am going on strike.

LAUGHS NERVOUSLY
Wow.

Jesus Christ.

'How would you rate Sarah's
cleaning?' About five over ten.

Oh, my G...
Are you flippin' having a joke?

I feel so drained.
Welcome to my world, darling. Whoa!