The A Word

In their idyllic Lake District home, the extended Hughes family reunites for Joe's fifth birthday party. But tensions soon rise among Alison, Paul and patriarch Maurice when newly-arrived Eddie and Nicola suggest Joe has communication problems.

Following Joe's diagnosis, Alison is keen to protect her son. Not wanting the community to know about his autism, she takes Joe out of school without telling Paul.

Alison gets a blast from her past when speech and language therapist Maggie arrives to assess Joe. For the family, it is time to face some uncomfortable truths.

An impromptu attempt to win Joe some friends leads to a breakthrough moment for Alison, but how long can it last? Maurice and Louise come to blows over Joe, while Rebecca turns to Eddie for relationship advice.

The family suffers a blow when police reveal that their ‘Polish' helper Maya is in fact Ukrainian, and is living and working illegally in the UK. As Maya faces deportation, it's a double loss for Alison: Maya's presence makes her panic less, and she's one of the few people Joe has really bonded with.

It's the launch day of Paul's gastropub, and the family gathers to open its doors. While Maurice gets to grips with the half-done décor, Alison determines to reconcile with Paul. As Luke's romantic gesture falls flat with Rebecca, Nicola has some shock news for Eddie.

Seeing Joe is in the way, Maurice takes him on a visit to Louise's – but within minutes the day has taken an unexpected dark turn.

Can the family join forces with the community to ensure the safety of its youngest member? And where will the crisis leave each of them as the day draws to a close...?