As the family nurse Eve the female bear back to health, opposition to the zoo ratchets up when an animal is spotted on land close to Oakfield. Although the sighting turns out to be a false alarm, Webb and Camilla galvanise Upton into holding a community meeting to stop the zoo. George sees this as an opportunity to pitch their vision and win the village over with their passion and enthusiasm, but Lucy warns him against it. George leads his family into battle to convince Upton that a zoo is exactly what it needs. But despite his good intentions George is shouted down and ridiculed. The next day a despondent George is beavering away single-handedly on a new bear enclosure when he receives an unexpected visit from Gascoigne, a journalist from the Chester Herald, who is writing a piece on the zoo. Lizzie encourages George to see this as positive publicity, so George gives Gascoigne the grand tour of the chaotic grounds while the rest of the family race to get the new birds into the aviary in time. Meanwhile a reluctant June starts her first day at school, leaving Mew to feed and care for the animals, much to her distaste. But watching her dad in action she begins to understand what the animals mean to him and her barriers come down. The family are devastated when the newspaper article portrays themas misguided and incapable, but Billy brings a delightful surprise to Upton that may finally win over the hearts of the locals... a dozen penguins.
