Ted decrees that the family is going to spend the evening together - however, his plans change when Barney pays an unexpected call.
Ted becomes concerned about Gary's preoccupation with his girlfriends, so Gary brings home an older woman from university with the intention of shocking his father.
Ted comes home in the middle of the day and finds Dot absent. She has taken a job in a supermarket, and Ted is not impressed when he has to fetch his own breakfast on Saturday morning.
When Ted doesn't get his Sunday roast due to Dot's job commitments, he plans a devious strategy to make her give up work.
Gary wants to spend a cosy evening at home with his girlfriend. His problem is how to get Ted and Dot out of the house.
When Ted runs a slight temperature, he is convinced that he is dying. Gary resorts to some shock tactics to snap Ted out of it.
Ted is impressed with Gary's latest girlfriend - until he finds out that she is an Italian Catholic and her father barracks for Essendon.
A visit from Dot's brother Mark throws the Cook household into turmoil. Ted dislikes Mark, and Dot resorts to a devious strategy to change Ted’s attitude.
Concerned that Gary's studies will be affected by his interest in girls, Ted issues a 'no sheilas' decree.
Ted bans Gary from involvement with any girlfriends because of the negative effect on Gary’s studies. In order to get the ban lifted, Gary retaliates by convincing Ted that the ‘no girls’ decree is turning him into a 'poof'.
Ted looks forward to his old mate Barney returning from Perth, but when he arrives Ted is shocked by Barney's total personality change from a hopeless drunk to a teetotaller.
Ted undertakes to mow Mr. King's lawns while he is away on holiday. Chaos reigns when the lawnmower breaks down and Mr. King returns a few days early to find the task yet to be done.
Ted complains to the media when he is kept awake by the noise from a new discotheque in the neighbourhood. He regrets his action when he discovers that his boss is the owner of the new nightspot.
Ted is worried when Barney fails to make his usual visit to the pub. Barney later turns up with a female companion and announces their new relationship is serious. But is Vonny only interested in Barney because she thinks he has money?
Ted is not impressed when Dot decides to help an amateur theatre group with their costumes.
Gary meets Bob Hawke at a university lecture and brings home home to meet Ted and Dot. And who better to play Bob Hawke than Bob Hawke himself?
Ted feigns illness in order to take a sickie so he can watch the cricket on the TV. However, many interruptions spoil his plans including a visit from the greengrocer, a vacuum cleaner salesman and a garrulous gardener.
Faced with beans for tea, Ted takes over the household management to teach Dot a lesson. He soon finds he has bitten off more than he can chew, and enlists the aid of Barney to help him sort out the mess he is creating.
There is chaos and confusion in the Cook household when it appears that everyone has forgotten Dot's birthday. Steps are taken to rectify the situation, which only results in more chaos.
Ted applies for a job as a senior storeman with the firm McKenzie and Sons which puts Bluey's nose severely out of joint. Ted ends up rejecting the job when he finds out that the owner of the firm barracks for Essendon.
Gary takes a stand on principle and defends his father when his university colleagues plan to ridicule Ted's forthcoming concert at the RSL.
Ted and Dot become concerned when Gary is required to spend a weekend away with his university debating team.
Ted is faced with the prospect of a showdown with an apparently fierce Italian man who disapproves of Gary seeing his daughter. Bluey organises some of Ted's mates to come to his defence.
Ted's ego grows out of proportion when he appears on television in a talent quest and starts to forsake his friends for more 'elite' company. However, his mates are there for him when he comes crashing back to earth with a thud.