Franny is one of those people who cannot admit defeat. Whatever he's up against, he'll keep going, until it breaks him in two. And if he decides that a course of action is right, then he pursues it, no turning aside, no consultation. No matter what the cost.

He's a cook in the Mackintosh canteen. Nice enough bloke, good at his job but something of an unknown quantity. Franny doesn't let people in, not even his wife Imogen (Jane Slavin). They are trying to conceive a baby, but he won't talk about it. He just repeats his mantra that everything will work out in the end.

Then his troubled sister, Terri (Clare Kerrigan) commits suicide. Distraught, Franny discovers that she has had a child, now in foster care. Franny tracks down the father, an arrogant young copper called Jason Woods (Marc Warren). When he doesn't seem interested, Franny decides to try to adopt the child himself. Imogen is taken aback by the lack of discussion, but she wants a child too - maybe this is the only way. But whe