You can't just go and buy a big horse like that!

[TheOriginalSteamingNit]

Shula! What a cow!
Love the passive aggressiveness of 'now how much spaghetti shall I cook' though.

CuttedUpPear.....I believe that had a fling before he took up with Dreadful Lizzie tis all so incestuous!

And I too am sure that Bert H hasn't had a speaking part before now.

What's the Alastair and Erin plot?
I refuse to listen to the ambridge extra, it would just feed my addiction, so a quick synopsis please...

choccy - Daniel started going out with Erin (repeating lower 6th due to having glandular fever and changing schools or something). She wants to be a vet so Alistair took her out on work shadowing a couple of times, Erin turned out to be a bit of a slapper, made a pass at Alistair and then threatened to tell everyone he'd tried to come onto her the innocent teenage girl when he wasn't having any of it.

She tried to blackmail him a couple of times, he decided to confess to Shula who got quite huffy about it for all of 3 mins then accepted the texts on his phone as proof of Erin's sluttiness and Alistair's innocence and it all blew over.

Daniel found out, took a bit more persuading it was Erin who was evil not Alistair and they broke up. That was about it I think...

Thanks Acekicker, that's a great summary; I will refer to you every time I need an update on AE.
It must get a bit difficult on the Archers proper to not mention these things out of the blue. I can't help thinking it would be more like Alistair to enjoy the ego-massage and get into a rather more of a mess with it all.
So how long is Tony going to last? I'd give him 6 months weeks. But will he have time to change his will so that Rich can inherit at least a third of the debts business?

I am puzzled by the sudden appearance of Gary - it is sudden , isn't it? I love the non speaking parts in the Archers (eg Freda Fry, brilliant) but is it me or has Gary never reared his ugly head before?
How can he have been living in the village for 30 odd years with his Star Trek wallpaper and Wayne&Waynetta living style without it being picked up on?

Or have I been wearing my cloth ears.....?

It's not just Gary, though, it's the whole Horrobin clan who seem to have found their voice since Ivy died. I think they are being lined up as the 'comedy mechanicals' in place of the Grundys.

Yes Ace It's odd how Alistair's personality changes quite radically; if he'd been sooo unreasonable for their whole marriage would Shula 've put up with it for so long? I also thought why doesn't mean old Lizzie buy Topper or at least Shula could've asked her to go halves or whatever.

I should get out more too!!

I always got the impression that Susan didn't have any relatives in the village...and wouldn't Uncle Gary have featured at any of Emmur's weddings?

True Cutted and R4 It's funny how suddenly Neil's got a FIL and BIL both total wastes of space you'd 've thought he might 've complained before about them, I hope they don't get rid of the Grundys I like them all .

THANK YOU ppeatfruit I thought I was going insane. I've only been listening for 22 years, obvs I could have missed Susans' whole family living virtually next door, what with them not getting involved in ANY of the family disasters and dilemmas over the years.....

CuttedUpPear and Ppeatfruit (nice juxtaposition of NNs there)
Maybe you are going mad Because there have been previous references to Susan's embarrassing family: Jennifer was worried about them spoiling the wedding party, and there were Susan's Christmas drinks parties (with canapes) when the Horrobins turned out to be quite fun.

there have been lots of references to the awfulness of the Horrobins - but I think they have been silent characters up until now. Characters come and go according to whether they can be bothered to employ an actor. I knew someone who was Helen Archer as a child/teenager for about a year.

Oh yeeeeeess...
The Horribins....of course
Thank you choccyp17, now I get it.

But I did think that JennyDarling was just referring to Clive Horrobin and that the rest of them lived somewhere way away.
Why didn't Cloive ask Gary to hide him when he was on the run then, not Susan?

They seem to be bringing in a lot more random one-off speaking parts recently. For example, some of Brian's business meetings, then the project manager for the market development, the man who came to look at the slurry tank had a lot to say for himself, considering we'll probably never hear from him again.
I think in the past these peripheral characters would have been silent.

Mind, as they are killing the main characters by the handful, they need some others to fill the gaps.

PS I think the police were watching Clive's family home.

I once auditioned for a non speaking part on The Archers but they said my look wasn't quite right

Lol cutted at yr audition !! But choccy It's only since the JOINING of the 2 families IYSWIM (that marriage was certainly one in the eye for the Aldridge clan!) that there have been many references to the Horriblebins .Probably heralding the death of Ivy and 'warming us up' for entry of the entire (hopefully without Clive) WOS family.

OMG I just thought there are MORE 'bins' aren't there?

The Hoorobins were all mentioned at various point in the past, when the stories centres on Susan. The project Manager for the market project was in yesterday with the protestors, they don't seem to have twigged that they are using facebook/twitter, and it will soon be rent a mob there. I am wondering if something will happen to Brian.

Shula went out with Nigel on and off for ages, then her little sister grew up, Shula got married and so Nigel went after Elizabeth (I knew someone who went out with both of a pair of sisters once, but he then married someone totally different).

I've missed quite a few deadly dull essential eps recently so can someone fill me in - do Sooooosan and the ever long-suffering Neil know yet that evil Sharon has had the tenancy of her Dad's house made over to her?

I know, I should get out more

Brine was hilarious today. Asking Adam to keep him informed on what he hears via the 'Jungle Drums' (otherwise known as the internet).
They really have Brine playing a comedy turn this week, what with this and him packing veg boxes, what a treat.

Salteena do you mean Tracey? (Sharon is in Leeds with her husband.)

(My biggest complaint about the archers is the fact that in RL Brian's actor is married to Shula's; just seems very wrong).

Gaah, yes, Tracey is indeed who I mean
Tbh I'm a big weary with it at the moment, and especially with Ruth's stomping and flouncing. I'm finding it quite easy to 'accidentally' forget to listen every now and then

In answer to your question Salteena: no, there has been no more mention of the tenancy. It sounds like a slow-burn plotline. Should be interesting: the website says that there are six Horrobin siblings. Imagine the family feud when the others find out!

I'm waiting for Brookfield to decide to discontinue their herd and then Brine, in his most evil and smarmy way, puts cash-strapped Rooth in an difficult ethical position by offering her the job of manager at the factory BL dairy.

OMG R4 He wouldn't would he?? Anyone heard Brine's actor on Just a Minute? it's weird hearing his voice in something so completely different from TA IYSWIM.