Sharon visits Tracey's luxury house, 'Dalentrace', in Chigwell and meets Dorien for the first time. Meanwhile, their husbands, Chris and Darryl, take part in an armed robbery and are later jailed for twelve years. Sharon moves from her high-rise Edmonton flat to stay at Dalentrace with her sister.
Sharon and Tracey try to come to terms with the husbands' imprisonment—and to explain the situation to Tracey's son Garth.
Whilst Sharon revels in the joys of moving up in the world and joining Dorien to sell clothes,a depressed Tracey finds that her credit card is being refused and goes back to her old job as a supermarket check-out girl,though she feels unwelcome and is not keen to persevere.
Sharon has a new man in her life; Tracey discovers that she may be pregnant.
Sharon gets an evening job selling unofficial T-shirts at Wembley; Tracey is having money worries; and Dorien has her eye on a new man.
Marcus and Dorien's temporary lodger finds favour with Tracey, causing her to contemplate being unfaithful to Darryl.
Tracey is preparing for her first Christmas without Darryl, when something in the post heightens the prospects of enjoyable festivities.
With their husbands still in prison, Sharon and Tracey turn to their man-hungry neighbour Dorien for help when their central heating breaks down.
The bills are coming in thick and fast, and in an effort to raise some cash, Tracey wonders about selling Darryl's old car. Meanwhile, Sharon becomes a saleswoman, determined to flog hundreds of bottles of ""Heaven Scent.""
The Essex sisters go green in an effort to save the rainforests, but Tracey becomes distracted and increasingly concerned about her son Garth's sexual inclinations when he brings home a handsome older boy from boarding school.
Tracey decides to experience Darryl's ordeal behind bars by creating her own prison in the attic, with Sharon as her cellmate.
Sharon and Tracey witness a friend of their husbands', Vinny Hutchins, making a speedy getaway from a post office raid in which a pensioner has been injured. While Tracey wants to turn him in, Sharon vehemently disagrees as it's against criminal ethics. After visiting Darryl and Chris, they change their minds. When Dorien is round, they see an appeal on 'Crime Busters' and Dorien recognises Vinny. Sharon and Tracey, after hearing about the reward money, decide to tell the police but Dorien rings first, and uses the money to buy a kitchen from her toyboy Luke, who has been threatened with a move to Northern England unless he sells more kitchens. Tracey, however, blackmails Dorien to give her the kitchen so Vinny's wife can sell it to fund a new life abroad.
Tracey's plan to hold a perfume-selling party hits a major snag when Sharon discovers some furry gate-crashers.
A beautiful friendship begins for Sharon when she sees off a mugger who is attacking a businessman in Chigwell railway station. A chance encounter later in the evening reveals he is, in fact, Dorien's husband's financial adviser.
Sharon isn't registered to vote in Chigwell, but when election fever hits the constituency, she wants to make use of Darryl's vote. Since Tracey insists she pay for the privilege, she sets about raising the readies.
Tracey kicks smoking with the help of weekly psychotherapy sessions, realising that her nicotine addiction was due to her husband Darryl. But can Darryl trust her with the handsome shrink Gerald?
Sharon is approaching her 30th birthday but is unable to see a bright future ahead of her—merely one which matches up to her past. Tracey would like to throw a party for her, but has problems with the guest list when she realises that their successful friends with families will only remind Sharon of ""all the things she hasn't got.""
Darryl has been taken to hospital with appendicitis, and plans to escape and spend the night with his wife. Meanwhile, Sharon sees this as an opportunity to do some entertaining of her own.
Sharon fears that blood is truly thicker than water.
Sharon is faced with an impossible choice when her husband Chris tells her he is seriously ill.
Sharon and Tracey want spending money for Christmas, so start looking for extra work. Sharon is confident that the people of Chigwell will be crying out for her pet care services, while Tracey starts doing a spot of typing from home.
Inspired by Dorien taking her antique silver samovar to the Chigwell Antiques Roadshow, Sharon and Tracey decide to search through their mother's belongings for their own undiscovered treasure. Unfortunately, their search yields more than they could ever have bargained for. Perhaps Aunt Sylvie can shed some light?
Sharon is about to go on the dating show, Second Time Lucky, and wins, so she visits Chris to discuss their divorce. But when Chris asks her for her help to pay off a gang who Chris indebted to, she must choose to go to Germany for her prize in order to bring back a German car that belonged to Chris. Tracy accompanies her to Berlin, where she helps find a mechanic who can fix up the car. Trouble is, Tracy takes a shine to the mechanic. Meanwhile, Dorien is told by Sharon that she saw Marcus at the airport with another woman, so Dor moves out... right into next door.
Chris wins the premium bond, so Sharon tries to force his signature to keep the money for herself. Meanwhile, when Tracy visits Daryl, she finds him to be unkept and unclean. When Sharon comments on this, Tracy kicks her out.
When a man, Charles Fitzroy, knocks on the door one evening asking for some water for his car, Sharon tells him all about Dorien and her relationships, which he seems interested in. After visiting Chris in prison, Sharon suspects that Charles may have been a police spy interested in the proceeds of Darryl and Chris' crimes. Soon after two policemen come round and they ask about the whereabouts of Dorien and Marcus, who needs to be questioned about a major fraud case of which he was the accountant. Sharon tells them they are on holiday in Zurich. When Dorien returns she finds that a Sunday newspaper has an article on her private life, and Sharon and Tracey feel guilty.
Sharon bumps into Dave, her ex-boyfriend from shortly after the boys were sent down. This brings back all the feelings she had when she had the abortion with Dave's baby. But now she feels ready to settle down, and Dave could be just the right man. All she has to do is tell him that she never had a miscarriage. Meanwhile, Tracy gets all motherly when Garth comes home for the weekend.
Darryl's parents, Les and Olive Stubbs, get into touch for the first time since his trial. Despite always hating them, Tracey invites them round for dinner. Dorien insists on coming round for the evening and helping with the cooking - although it later turns out she did this as she was expecting a boyfriend to call her on their number. A few days later Les and Olive write a letter to Darryl saying that Tracey's house is depraved and he suggests they move their from the prefab in Poplar. Tracey and Sharon are horrified by this. When Darryl's parents and Tracey all visit him in prison, an argument soon occurs and he finds out what his parents are really like.
With money tight, Sharon has taken a job, but Tracey seems reluctant to follow, despite Sharon and Dorien's encouragement. Tracey admits to having little confidence, having never been allowed to work during her marriage, but Sharon volunteers her to do some voluntary work for Siobhan, the editor of the prisoners' dependents newsletter. Sharon then goes with Tracey when she goes to apply for a receptionist job but is worried about the application form, which makes her realise how few qualifications and little experience she has. Sharon gets the job by lying on the application form.
It's Thursday night. Dorien's date has been cancelled, and Sharon and Tracey are bored. When the VCR blows up, Dorien generously offers to pay for an activity weekend for the girls. Sharon is unsure about the activity on offer which is hang gliding, later it turns out Dorien has had an accident so the activity weekend is cancelled.
Dorien suggests a car-boot sale, and the girls are keen - Sharon can get rid of some of Chris's old stuff, and Tracey will sell things that son Garth has outgrown. However, while clearing out possessions, an old photo is found with Darryl at a party, under the table with someone else. Sharon is chucked out of the house by Tracey for keeping it a secret.
Chris and Darryl are temporarily in Albany prison on the Isle of Wight. Sharon cancels her visit for Dorien so she can interview Chris about sexual deprivation for her OU dissertation. But while Dorien becomes the centre of attention, Tracey becomes a victim of food poisoning after eating at a motorway cafe.
Desmond, an 'old prison friend' of Darryl's, turns up at Dalentrace. With a squash injury keeping Marcus at home - and curtailing Dorien's amorous adventures - Sharon suggests that the accident-prone Desmond acts as temporary chauffeur.
Sharon's flat is now housing belligerent squatters Cedric and Egbert; her neighbour has also been acquiring mail-order items using Sharon's identity. Chris offers to sort things out - with the aid of 'Batty' Harold and his mates, who specialise in GBH.
Sharon warns Tracey that her son will be a "mummy's boy" if she isn't careful. Sharon has also taken to dressing up and going out a lot, claiming she is going for job interviews. In fact, she is having lunch with the up-market Mark and they're now on their sixth date. However, her hopes of happiness are dashed when discovering Mark is an over-grown kid controlled by his mother.
Sharon and Tracel fall out over an inheritance.
Sharon and Tracy are given the use of a holiday villa in Majorca by an old friend of the boys. Garth, who's working for Dor's husband, manages to get them and Dor free tickets over there. But he fails to mention why. That becomes obvious, when they step into the villa and see Daryl and Chris, who have escaped from jail while doing a music performance.
With the café doing great business, Sharon's in the money, but Tracey is unhappy at being a kept woman.
Tracey disapproves of Garth's decision to enrol at catering college.
Sharon's husband Chris wants to dump her for another woman, and take the café away from her. Meanwhile, Dorien is leaving her husband and everything she owns for the youthful charms of lusty Luke. But how will she cope in his sleazy flat in Walthamstow?
Sharon wants a man and submits a video tape of herself to a video dating agency. She meets laddish Mike,who takes her to a Rolling Stones concert and claims to know all the big names in rock but is exposed by Garth. Tracey thinks Sharon would be better off with shy,stammering Jimmy and organizes a meeting but she had forgotten that Dorien had also submitted a tape.
Auntie Sylvie,just out of hospital,comes to convalesce with Tracey and Sharon and proves to be very demanding,as well as encouraging Garth to buy a motor-bike against his mother's wishes. They consider putting her in a home but feel unable to go through with it though fortunately she has a mind of her own.
Sharon has a new man in her life, Gil, and this time it could be the real thing as far as she's concerned. The only trouble is that he wants her to move to Norfolk with him and Tracey is not happy. Oddly enough though it's Chris,who is having problems in prison, who persuades her to stay.
Fed up with her slobbish Greek customers, Sharon decides to make her cafe more upmarket and orders from a Jewish caterer suggested by Dorien. She is ostracized by the entire Greek community and the cafe looks like closing until she visits a Greek Orthodox priest who saves the day for her.
After Darryl comments that she has put on weight Tracey goes on a diet,suffering but losing ten pounds in the process, but when she goes back to see Darryl he is now worried she looks too alluring and needs her reassurance. Dorien cannot fathom why Brett,her hunky young builder,does not want sex with her and assumes he is gay but Sharon gets to find out otherwise.
Dorien is depressed because she has reached the menopause but hormone replacement treatment soon puts the smile back on her face. Tracey is annoyed because she feels Darryl fails to give Garth sufficient praise but all is sorted out on a visit. But can Sharon and Chris' little problem, his infertility, be solved by adopting a Bulgarian orphan?
Tracey's lecherous new boss is causing problems. Luckily, superwomen Sharon and Dorien are at hand.
Dorien's life story, complete with steamy revelations, is about to go into print, and suddenly she's got cold feet. But can she persuade Sharon to impersonate her?
Sharon and Tracey are desperate for a holiday, so a karaoke competition seems to be the ideal answer.
The future of the café hangs in the balance as Tracey decides whether to put up her house as collateral. Surely something as insignificant as a husband isn't going to come between the two sisters?
When the case against Darryl's associate Trevor Mimms is thrown out of court due to unreliable evidence from Inspector Tatum - who arrested Darryl and Chris - the sisters wonder if their lads might have been fitted up by Tatum and start a campaign to free the Chigwell Two. Tracey goes on daytime TV and finds a lawyer to fight the case but she comes to realise that she may be kidding herself. Dorien is unsympathetic until Marcus is arrested as a suspected drugs baron. When Trevor gets sent down for another robbery the sisters realise the truth but he does give them a Christmas bonus,as do Tatum and,after Marcus' name is cleared, Dorien.
Sharon is looking for a man, but the one she likes is attracted to Tracey.
It's an explosive time in Chigwell, with upheavals for Sharon, Tracey and Dorien.
Dorien tries, and fails, to sell her unwanted furniture, and Sharon badgers Tracey into giving her driving lessons; after one of Sharon's disastrous driving tests it doesn't take long for Tracey's nerves to go bad. Eventually, Sharon's driving errors lead to her crashing into the van taking Darryl and Chris to a new prison, and the girls are suspected of organising a jail-break - before making the joke spot on the news.
After a spate of burglaries, the sisters find themselves on the agenda of a Neighbourhood Watch meeting at Dorien's house. But is there a connection between the crimes and the anonymous letters and calls Tracey has been receiving?
Dorien's husband goes missing, and she's later seen digging a suspiciously man-shaped hole in the garden, prompting Sharon and Tracey to fear their man-hungry neighbour has taken to murder as a sideline.
A family tragedy wins Sharon's husband leave from prison—but he takes the opportunity to do a runner.
At last it seems as if Sharon has found romance, but the path of true love is rocky. For Tracey, a business venture with Dorien has its own hazards.
Sharon has toothache, but won't go to the dentist. When Dorien tries to help, the result is chaos.
Love is in the air for Tracey's son, Garth, but the course of true love runs anything but smoothly—particularly when Dorien takes a hand.
A mystery pension fund payment leads Tracey, Sharon and Dorien on a voyage of discovery which ends with a big surprise.
When the police want to use Tracey and Sharon's home for a surveillance operation, the girls suspect a new neighbour, but the solution proves closer to home.
Sharon faces a crisis in her relationship with Colin, Tracey has a new friend, and Dorien feels left out. In Chigwell, feathers are ruffled.
Tracey manages a boys' football team, while Dorien finds a psychic who will change her life. In the end, the two worlds collide.
When Sharon And Tracy find out that their real father could be actor George Hamilton, Dor takes them on a trip to Hollywood to try and find out for sure. But chaos ensues when they sneak onto the backlot of George's new movie.
Someone famous is moving to Chigwell. She's guarded by heavies, and her children are called Harry and William. It's no wonder Tracey, Sharon, and Dorien draw the obvious conclusions.
Garth is dating an older divorcee, while Chris has turned his hand to creative writing.
Tracey ponders her contribution to society; a radio phone-in offers one answer.
Dorien's spending sprees are ever-more lavish - but why?
Chris's cousin seems intent on turning the café into a drinking den.
After a heated argument, Sharon and Tracey agree to change places for a week.
Tracey considers a move to the country, as Garth settles into the flat above the café.
Sharon is furious: Chris has applied for home leave!
Sharon thinks installing a swimming pool will be easy, since she has a café full of builders.
Sharon struggles to run the café alongside the pool business.
There are surprises all around when Dorien and the sisters trace their first loves.
Prospective client Monty Kray wants a pool installing - within days.
Sharon's order book is empty, and Dorien has had her credit card limit slashed.
After over-indulging, Sharon nods off and dreams of a different life...
A Phone call brings exciting news; Darryl will be out in a fortnight, followed by Chris.
With Darryl on the way home, Sharon's time with Tracey is coming to an end.
After his release, Chris swiftly finds himself back inside- this time in a hospital bed.
Dorien has moved in with her mother after being kicked out by Marcus, but then discovers her husband has been leading a double life. Darryl throws Sharon out of his house after a heated argument leaving Sharon with no choice but to move in with Chris.
Sharon is frantically trying to keep Chris out of her bed, and is prepared to go to any lengths to get a home of her own. Dorien is determined to win custody of the house and, posing as a barmaid, tracks down Marcus’s mistress in order to find out some home truths.
Tracey is anxious to make up for lost time, and heads out on the pull - but whatever happened to uncomplicated sex? While Garth is baffled by his mum's behaviour, Sharon gets on the TV to appeal for Chris's release, but ends up fighting the channel’s mascot - a man dressed as a dog.
Dalentrace is in jeaopardy as Sharon and Tracey sink into debt; Dorien's generosity cannot be a permanent solution. Tracey is becoming a decisive woman, and is taking matters into her own hands. Garth, meanwhile, decides to move in with his girlfriend Kimberly.
Tracy and Sharon are now living in their new house, as Dor comes to visit after her recent trip to Monaco. She comes back with the news that she slept with Ralph Gardener, head of Central Water, who is currently all over the media. She comes up with the plan to cash in by making up a story about being pregnant. Meanwhile, Sharon decides that she wants to have a baby, and gets Dor to hook her up with someone, while Tracy is completely against both of their plans.
Dorien is holed up in a Lake District hotel, devising juicy titbits with journalist David Kane. Sharon has started thinking about adoption, while Garth is worried about his dad. The sisters set off to visit their husbands in their new prison, Slade, while Dorien is pampered in the hotel.
Sharon is still assessing men for their reproductive potential making Tracey feel rather uncomfortable. 'Nouveau destitute' Dorien suddenly recalls she has a very rich mother-in-law, while Tracey drops the bombshell that she is pregnant and isn't sure it's Darryl's.
Sharon and Tracey are working at a casino and agree to take part in a publicity stunt in which Sharon 'appears' to win a million pounds. The sisters are unaware however that they have been set up as thieves by the owner.
When Sharon wrecks Tracey's bed, it is the final straw. She promises to get a job and make a contribution - especially with Tracey's baby on the way. A stint in an abattoir ends when she is sacked for stealing meat, but Dorien is looking for a cleaner.
Tracey and Sharon hit on a name for their new cleaning business: 'Maids of Ongar'. After a strenuous day's work though Sharon begins to feel ill.
The girls are short of money, and go to see bank manager Martin Mann. But they suffer a bout of giggles after Tracey calls him 'Mr Mann', and he refuses to lend to the wives of bank robbers - particularly as he was the bank manager Darryl and Chris robbed.
Sharon and Tracey attend a school reunion. Margie is still a bully, and Poxy Loxy is as leery as ever - though he does give Tracey a perfect chance to play a wicked prank. Meanwhile, Dorien meets someone from the past.
Chris comes up with a surprise, while Sharon's contentment is shattered by the medical advice all women dread—she's got to lose weight
Tracey receives an endowment policy for Garth in the post, and finds herself facing a dilemma—should she hand the money over or take Sharon's advice and squander it on herself?
The heavily pregnant Tracey is fed up with Sharon's slobbish habits - in particular her tendency to leave all the kitchen drawers open. But Sharon insists she didn't leave them like that, and when things start to go bump in the night, Tracey becomes convinced they're sharing the house with a poltergeist; thus, the girls and Dorien hold a seance.
Tracey is shocked to hear that Garth has apparently abandoned pregnant ex-girlfriend Kimberley - "typical male behaviour", according to Sharon. Meanwhile, Dorien needs to get to her boyfriend Richard’s before he returns home to find the malicious answer message she has left him.
In pursuit of a wedding present for Garth, the girls visit an antiques market which is being held in an old warehouse. On their arrival, it looks as if they might be in for a long night.
Sharon attracts interest from an unexpected quarter, while Tracey pays a surreptitious visit to a clinic.
The day of Garth's wedding arrives, and Sharon finds herself having to adopt an unfamiliar role.
Sharon and Tracey receive a solicitor's letter from Ireland and, with Dorien also having business there, the three girls embark on what could be a very important journey.
Mouthy Sharon’s living in an Edmonton tower block and is clearly down on her luck, her older sister Tracey’s still living in Chigwell with son Travis, while man-eating Dorien has repackaged herself as Foxy Cohen, author of the sex blockbuster Sixty Shades of Green.
Now that Sharon has given up work, Tracey is the only one in the house bringing in a wage, and it's not nearly enough to pay the bills, so Dorien kindly offers to dip into her savings to help out. However, when she calls the bank it emerges every penny she had has been spent on legal fees. In desperation, the sisters take their old friend to a car-boot sale and sell her beloved collection of designer clothes, right down to the shoes on her feet - which are snapped up by former TOWIE star Amy Childs.
Tracey can't ignore the fact that Garth and Marcie aren't getting any time alone - so she decides to change the bedroom arrangements to give them space and privacy. After failing to sleep in the lounge, Sharon tries to bed down in the loft, where she makes a discovery that might solve all their problems.
Tracey, Sharon and Dorien become involved with three very different men, while Travis has romantic troubles of his own. However, everyone's relationship hopes take a knock when Garth and Marcie organise a pop-up restaurant evening at the house to fund the refurbishment of their new pub.
Tracey has Botox injections and Travis gets a tattoo, but how will his mum react? Meanwhile, it looks as if Sharon might need a hearing aid.
Sharon's estranged husband Chris gets in touch asking for a divorce so he can marry his new girlfriend Angie, but Tracey has her doubts. Later, at the happy couple's engagement party, Dorien meets a handsome blind man who takes a shine to her.
Tracey, Sharon and Dorien lose their jobs and face a financial crisis, leading to a big argument in which several home truths are revealed. However, Garth and Marcie's pub has launched successfully, thanks to a mystery celebrity endorsement, which could help solve their problems.
Sharon and Tracey get a glimpse of a possible future when they see two elderly sisters in the supermarket and it worries them. Dorien's court case comes to a conclusion – but what will the verdict be?
Dorien is treating Sharon and Tracey to a Christmas trip to the Canaries, but with Tracey's fear of flying, Sharon's hopes for adventure, and Dorien's eagerness for anything in trousers, will it be plane sailing?
Sharon amazes the others when it turns out that she has a high IQ, and Dorien, under pressure to find a heroine for her next book, decides to push her towards a surprising career. Tracey however, has got her hands full with a despondent Garth, but the household joins forces to put Sharon through her paces and make sure she is the man for the job.
When Sharon and Tracey discover that Dorien has been keeping a secret for over fifty years, they decide to get involved, but Dorien is reluctant to confront her past. Meanwhile, Tracey finds motherhood is not all that it's cracked up to be.
Tracey and Sharon are both been nominated by Auntie Vera to take over her Pearly Queen title. It's war as they try to outdo each other – and Dorien has a daunting engagement herself.
Dorien's Book Group is convening to discuss Crime and Punishment – which turns out to be rather applicable to the events that unfold in Tracey's household.
Sharon has been knocking the household into shape in Tracey's absence, and meanwhile Dorien is spending money like it's going out of fashion.
Sharon makes plans to take Tracey and Dorien on a madcap 70s weekender, but there is no dressing up the news that Tracey is about to receive.
Tracey and Sharon take a trip to a Spa to cope with Tracey's shattering news and try to make plans for the future: and Dorien prepares to say a long goodbye to her daughter.
Tracey’s ex-husband dies and she has to decide what kind of a send-off to give him. Sharon wants the funeral to be right for her boys, Dorien’s got the perfect outfit, and Chigwell’s criminal fraternity want to make it extra special.
Tracey’s house has been burgled during Darryl’s funeral. The family decide it’s up to them to track down their possessions and set out on a trail involving a snooker club, a pawnbroker and the infamous Theydon Boys drag club.
Sharon’s disapproval of Tracey dating policeman Barry and apparently overlooking Garth’s feelings for his dad lead to a major quarrel between the sisters. Is it one that Dorien, in her new role as Agony Aunt for GetA-Life Magazine, can solve?
Tracey’s had enough of Dorien entertaining gentlemen callers and Sharon not bringing in a living wage, and throws them both out. Holed up in Sharon’s old bedsit, the two of them take a united stand…or do they?
Auntie Vera’s got problems with her hips and her block’s defective lifts and tells Sharon and Tracey she’s moving in with them. But Tracey’s only got one room available: it’s Dorien’s… and Dorien is dismayed to be told that family comes first.
A surprise visitor in the form of the attractive Emma turns up at Tracey’s house. Sharon’s suspicious, Tracey is welcoming, and Dorien is shocked to the core. Travis, on the other hand, is over the moon.
Travis has serious school news that he’s scared to break to his mum. Sharon decides she’ll pass herself off as Tracey and sort out his problems, but her efforts land the family in a mess that only arch-seducer Dorien can get them out of.
Sharon and Tracey suspect that Dorien is fast approaching “The Big Seven 0”, and decide that, whether she likes it or not, the event calls for celebration.
At the end of a 2020 no-one could have predicted, we catch up with the inhabitants of our favourite Essex address... and find big changes in all their lives. Tracey and Dorien have been getting right on each others' thruppennies, while Sharon has escaped to the other side of the world and is stuck on a Covid-cruise... Who can fill the Sharon-shaped hole in their lives this Christmas?
The sisters revisit key moments of the past six years (using clips from the series).
When Travis goes missing in Morocco, Sharon, Tracey and Dorien move heaven and earth to track him down and bring him home for the holidays. On their three-woman mission, the Chigwell pals journey by aeroplane, ferry, car and camel, meeting old friends and making new enemies along the way.
Christmas Special: Tracey has plans that could upset festive harmony, Sharon finds a novel way to do Christmas shopping and Dorien has a mystery to solve.
