He toughens his fists by plunging them into buckets of sand, gravel, and rock. Although Godber suggests he toughens up, Barrowclough's gentile nature makes him refuse to do so. The mother eventually dies and her body toughens and becomes a cyst. At this, Brian finally toughens up and helps the women pack up Tiffany's things. He was the promoter of a law that toughens conditions of political asylum in France. With the help of Yvonne Atkins (Linda Henry) she toughens up and beats Maxi up. Meanwhile, Robert toughens up on sea duty and in time becomes a petty officer. The addition of ferrovanadium toughens the steel making it more resistant to temperature and torsion. It quickly toughens up and can withstand drought even whilst in forestry tubes.