Wentworth Prison

Australia's most famous correctional centre opens its gates for the first time in 27 years in an edgy, sexy and graphic re-imagining of the popular drama series, Prisoner: Cell Block H. Featuring both new and original characters, this no-holds-barred drama charts their struggle to survive in the violent, pressure cooker environment of a contemporary women's prison. The series begins with Bea Smith, who arrives at Wentworth while on remand, charged with the attempted murder of her abusive husband. Traumatised by what has happened to her, Bea is easily manipulated by the temporary top dog, the beautiful and charismatic Franky Doyle. Caught by canny prison governor Meg Jackson carrying a package of crystal meth for Franky, Bea refuses to betray her fellow inmate. This earns her a spell in solitary but also the respect of her unit, especially young mum Doreen and peer worker Liz Birdsworth. Worse is to come. To pull Franky back into line, Meg releases Jacs Holt, the smart, ruthless matriarch of a criminal family and Wentworth’s reigning top dog, back into the compound. Jacs loses no time in testing Bea's mettle, but her main concern is Franky. Knives are drawn and the prison yard is divided as the rivals send their terrifying hench women into battle. By the end of the day, Bea is in far deeper trouble than she could ever have imagined.

After last week's riot, tensions are simmering between top dog Jacs Holt and young pretender Franky Doyle. With his wife's body barely cold, Will Jackson is back at work and determined to find her killer. Bea Smith, who was found standing over the body and covered in blood, is the obvious suspect. When Bea is cleared by the police, however, Will takes matters into his own hands. It is young Kaiya's third birthday and Doreen has got her a cake. Her daughter means everything to her and she is doing her best to protect the girl from the harsh reality of prison life. However, she is caught off-guard when the usually kind Will Jackson rips up Kaiya's drawing in front of her and snarls, "Who killed my wife?" He then issues an ultimatum which shakes Doreen to the core. "All it takes is one drug bust and the kid's gone, Doreen," he threatens. "You start with Bea Smith. You've got a day to give me some answers." Bea is taken by surprise when a desperate Doreen holds a knife to her neck, but has nothing but sympathy for her when she finds out why. She also learns that Kaiya is not Doreen's daughter, but her junkie cellmate Toni's. In flashback, we learn that Doreen lost her own unborn baby due to a crash caused by her driving under the influence of drugs. She has never forgiven herself. When Toni shows up in the yard spaced out on smack, Doreen can no longer bear what this is doing to Kaiya. Her next move will break her heart, but, as always, she has the child's best interests in mind. Meanwhile, Bea's heart is also breaking because her manipulative husband is preventing her from talking to her 16-year-old daughter Debbie. "You'd rather everyone think you tried to top yourself than find out exactly what type of guy you really are," she spits at him during a prison visit. She is also very aware that Will thinks that she killed Meg. The strain on Will is telling and he punches fellow guard Fletch, who is trying to get him to calm down and go home. Will discovers that Meg's bracelet is missing and insists on a prison ramp (dog search), which traumatises Kaiya and leaves him no closer to finding his wife's killer. The murder has left all the officers on edge. "You try walking the compound knowing there's no guarantee it won't happen again," says one to Vera Bennett, who is struggling as acting governor. Taking advantage of Vera's weakness, Erica Davidson loses no time in impressing general manager Derek Channing. She wants the top job and self-promotes at every opportunity, but whether she possesses the necessary moral fibre is questionable.

Franky Doyle, one of Wentworth's most charismatic inmates, comes under the spotlight this week. We discover why she is in prison and how she has been affected by her troubled childhood. In the present day, she receives a visit from her long-lost father. She also walks a dangerous tightrope as she continues to needle top dog Jacs. Flashbacks reveal Franky's terrible temper, unleashed when a reality show host goads her beyond endurance during a cookery competition. Franky lashes out, throwing a couple of punches and a pan of boiling oil in his face. It is only later, when she agrees to a prison visit by her father, that we see the damaged little girl behind the bravado. Franky's father Alan saw the media coverage of his daughter assaulting the TV host, and has been writing to her for some time. It is only when he accosts the new governor outside the prison, however, that Franky finally agrees to see him. She is unprepared for a declaration of love and repentant tears, and vents on him all her pent-up hurt and anger. "Your mother was difficult," he tries to explain. "Was that when she was drunk or when she was off her face?" Franky retorts, adding that she was regularly burnt with cigarettes. Meanwhile, Jacs asserts her authority in the laundry room when Bea tries to take over the sewing from Doreen. "I decide where everyone is stationed," says Jacs. "When someone else has an opinion the whole system falls apart." Franky defuses a tense situation when a reluctant Bea is ordered to take over the press, but both she and Bea will pay later. New governor, Erica Davidson is also busy putting her stamp on the prison and instigates a new procedure after an incident with Toni in the wet cell (solitary). Her officers can only see the drawbacks. "Since when is the prisoners' welfare more important than ours?" objects Linda Miles at the staff meeting. Erica, however, is more concerned with ensuring that Toni never advertises the fact that she got her drugs from officer Phelps. She was quick to get rid of him last week – has she anything else to hide? Bea is looking forward to a prison visit by her daughter Debbie, but the teenager is forced to endure a strip search when the sniffer dogs detect an illegal substance. Debbie is clean, but it means that her controlling father must be told. Bea begs a favour to get to the phone before the prison authorities, and Jacs is quick to take advantage. A veiled threat to Debbie's safety throws Bea into a panic, but will it be enough to ensure her compliance when Jacs orders her to bring the steam press down on Franky's hand?

Visiting time at Wentworth seems destined never to pass without incident. Though everyone gets through the security checks this time, Ronnie Katsis's young daughter collapses soon after. The women are furious that a child is being used as a drug mule and assume that Jacs is responsible, but she is too powerful for them to exact reprisals. Bea fears that Jacs plans a similar fate for Debbie. As Liz looks on horrified, a similar incident from her own past comes flashing back. Her son once collapsed after unwittingly drinking spirits that she had hidden in a soft drinks bottle. Liz has a long history of alcohol abuse, although since inaugurating the peer worker programme she has scarcely touched a drop. Liz has been asked by Erica to help organise a VIP event at the prison. She, Franky, Doreen and Boomer will be speaking, and success will count for much at her next parole board. "The thing I'm most proud about is the peer worker programme. I remember when I first came here, there was nothing like it," she writes, as she plans her speech. "It's helped me as much as the other women, and the women really listen to me. After six years, things have changed... I’ve changed." Sadly however, Liz has not changed as much as she thinks she has, especially when stress stirs up some tragic, long-buried memories. Meanwhile, Will Jackson is still hunting his wife's killer. "What makes you think it was one of us?" Franky asks him, which sets him scouring the surveillance footage. A meeting between Fletch and Meg in the car park sparks his curiosity. Jacs is looking forward to a visit from her husband Vinnie – until his release is covered on the television news. It is obvious that he is having an affair with a young blonde – as Franky is quick to point out. Guests this week include former Neighbours stars Anne Charleston (Madge Bishop) and Carla Bonner (Steph Scully).

This week's episode deals with the fallout from the VIP visit and reveals a dark side to prison governor Erica Davidson. Although Liz's outburst received the most press coverage, Franky's contribution attracted good reviews and now Channing is keen to use her as the poster girl for prison reform. "Do whatever you have to to keep her in line," he tells Erica, unaware that the prison governor has been having erotic dreams about the sexy inmate. Erica is forced to tutor Franky, who uses the opportunity to proposition her. "Isn't that the best bit - when it's new, scary, a little bit dangerous," she taunts her, leaving Erica hot and bothered. Erica declares that Franky does nothing for her, then jumps on her fiancé Mark the moment she gets home. In the heat of the moment, she shocks him by asking him to be rough with her. "Sex, Mark, it's supposed to be dirty sometimes. It doesn't have to be so... nice all time!" she tells him. A flashback reveals the roots of Erica's frustration – an interest in the darker side of sex. While she worked for her father's law firm, she had to visit The Velvet Curtain, a club catering for fetishists. She was fascinated then, and Franky is arousing similar feelings. Now they are coming between Erica and her fiancé, but when he gives her an ultimatum, what will she decide? Franky is not the only object of desire in Wentworth. Officer Will Jackson becomes the subject of ribald speculation among the women after Bea tells them that he is quite something with his shirt off. Meanwhile, Liz's drinking problem spirals and she alienates the women. Despite her anger, Doreen turns down the peer worker role to avoid hurting her friend, so she is surprised and upset when Liz lashes out during an argument. "You wouldn't last five minutes in the job... because you're dumb and you’re black, and people are never going to come to you and talk to you in the same way they talk to me!" Liz has gone too far and they both know it. Can their friendship survive after this? The jibe prompts Doreen to become the women's new peer worker, while Jacs ensures that Liz feels the full force of her demotion. When Liz collapses in the exercise yard, everyone thinks that Jacs is behind it, but even Franky is shocked when she finds out the real cause.

This week, we learn more about deputy prison governor Vera Bennett's past and present home life. As she attempts a new, more made-up look, hoping that it will catch the eye of prison officer Matthew "Fletch" Fletcher, we flash back to her teenage years. Vera's mother catches her applying lipstick and tells her not to bother, cruelly implying that there is no point in Vera trying to glam herself up. Present-day Vera tries to flirt with Fletch as they chat about a forthcoming volleyball game, but he is wary – doesn't her boyfriend mind? Again, she slips back into the past and remembers kissing a boy at the end of a teenage date. "Vera!" her mother shouts from the porch. "Will you get inside and stop making such a fool of yourself?" In the exercise yard, Toni appears, now out of solitary. When she sits with a different group, however, the women realise that she has been moved to a new unit. "Remember who your friends are, mate," cautions Franky discreetly. Later, Jacs sits Toni down for a chat. "Anyone over there going to look out for you? Keep your secrets?" she asks. What Jacs really wants to know is who supplied Toni with the drugs that caused her recent relapse, and she has a kettle of boiling water that may help... Doreen catches up with Toni later in the canteen and returns some of her belongings. She apologises for causing Toni to end up in solitary and separated from her daughter Kaiya. "You set me up," Toni points out. "I didn't want to – I didn't know what else to do," Doreen replies, devastated. As Franky's law tutoring with Erica continues, Franky keeps bringing the conversation back to Toni, now vulnerable without her support network. Franky feels that restoring Toni to her former unit is the right thing to do, but Erica insists that, with Kaiya gone, Toni has lost her privileges. As their conversation becomes more intense, Vera overhears and thinks that governor and prisoner are becoming too close. A television report by Hayley, the journalist who has been hanging around the prison, claims that a source has cast aspersions on Erica's integrity. The unnamed speaker has accused Erica of using the governor's job as a stepping stone to a political career and of employing unorthodox methods. Erica suspects Fletch, but Vera quickly defends him and suggests Franky as the possible culprit. Will Erica track down the real source of the claims? What is Vera hiding from her colleagues? And what is Jacs' plan for Toni?

Jacs plots a chilling welcome as Franky returns to the unit.

After learning that her husband wants a divorce, Jacs makes a final move to break Bea.

The women rally round Bea, as tragic news reaches the unit.

Bea discovers that Jacs caused her daughter's death and Meg's killer is revealed.