This episode is about the pending departure of Dr. Martin Ellingham from the crappy town in which he lives and his move back to London. Because of this a lot of issues arise. First, Pauline is in a snit because she received only a satisfactory recommendation from her. She also is upset because he was remiss in telling her as well as his seeming indifference to her. Considering how awful a receptionist she's been at times, I could certainly sympathize with the Doc! Second, folks in the town are dealing with the loss by saying how much they hated him and how much better they'll be without him. A fun town, huh, that Portwenn?! Additionally, Joan has decided to run a B&B to make ends meet--and her first customer is a disgusting git! In the midst of all this, Ellingham is being pressured by Dr. Montgomery to get his butt to London ASAP for a big conference and a chance to shmooze with some big-wigs.
This is a good episode of the series. It's not a great one but it certainly is enjoyable and gets to the heart of the Doctor's ambivalence towards leaving the hellish town of Portwenn....though exactly why is hard to fathom.