Shape Up or Ship Out!

Constable Jo Parrish is given a no-nonsense ultimatum when she defies her new boss,

Sergeant Tess Gallagher. And be warned - sparks will fly!

Ever since Sergeant Tess Gallagher (Caroline Craig) walked into the Mt Thomas police

station there’s been nothing but trouble between her and Constable Jo Parrish (Jane

Allsop). And while Senior Sergeant Tom Croydon (John Wood) has been happy to let

this clash of the titans run its course, he’s forced to intervene this week when Jo and

Tess’s dislike for each other leaves Jo wondering whether she still has a job in the police

force.

"There’s a big personality clash between Jo and Tess because they have very different

ways of communicating. They keep misunderstanding each other and one another’s

intentions, so there’s a lot of tension in the office.They just keep getting up each other’s

noses," explains Jane who won the Best New Talent Logie at the TV WEEK Logie

Awards 2000.

Always one for going with her instincts, this week Jo finds herself the subject of an

internal investigation after she ignores Tess’s orders and investigates a case of her own

accord.

When Tess reprimands Jo for disobeying orders, she tells her to either shape up or ship

out - a remark Jo takes personally. After accusing Tess of wanting to kick her out since

arriving in Mt Thomas, Jo soon realises that if she wants to stay in the job she had better

toe the line.

But when PJ (Martin Sacks) convinces Jo to continue with the investigation, Jo finds

herself embroiled in all sorts of trouble after the case leads to her snooping around a

warehouse after dark. When she suspects a burglary is under way, Jo bursts into the

warehouse only to confront the owner with a loaded gun. Crying police harrassment, the

owner presses charges.

With Inspector Monica Draper on her way to Mt Thomas, both Tess and Tom tell Jo her

job is on the line, despite the fact that she later solves the case off her own bat.

"Jo has a tendency to do her own thing, and ignore everyone else’s advice," Jane says.

"She’s certain she’s got everything right, and this can get her into lots of trouble.

"Jo gets her second admonishment notice and if you get a third, you’re out, so she’s

walking on thin ice. She doesn’t want to leave Mt Thomas, but she’s very stubborn and

thinks she knows best."

While Ben (Paul Bishop) and PJ also suspect Tess has a vendetta against Jo, the

consensus of the station is that Tess is the sergeant and Jo must play by the rules.

"I think there are mixed feelings towards Tess," Jane explains. "I think some people feel

she’s not the sarge we’re all used to. The police procedure is a bit foreign to everyone,

but on the other hand, Tess is right most of the time. They all have different ways of

policing. Some people go by the book, and some play it a bit more by heart. And I think

even Jo realises that mostof the time the sergeant is right - she just doesn’t like it."

And while Tom has been largely uninvolved in the bickering between his two female

officers, it’s finally time for him to step in and try to dissolve the office tension, agreeing

that Jo needs to toe the line.

"Tom’s been standing back and trying to allow Tess to do her job properly," Jane adds.

"He fully backs her in what she says. She is the sergeant, after all, and Tom is a fairly

by-the-book police officer, so what he does makes a lot of sense."

But where does Jo stand without Tom’s support? Tess believes that Jo could make a great

police officer, but after this latest stunt pulled by the young constable Tom needs more

convincing. And even though Tess goes in to bat for Jo during her meeting with Inspector

Draper it’s clear the tension in the office will remain until matters between the two

women are resolved.