The Archers - It's not about the money, money, money, think about Jill's honey, honey, honey, Justin wants to farm by satnav, forget about the prize tag.

[PseudoBadger]

Will The Dopeys have buggered off by the end of this thread?
Will Tom finally reach home, after weeks of trekking through the tundra?

Theory #1 sounds rather plausible Araminta

I'd expect Prague to be booked out by now for this month. Tis v popular and I'm sure JD wouldn't want to slum it in anything less than 5*. It was a good epi and hard to see how I will be resolved. Lots of tension and uncertainty = good drama if well-written.

BUT I do wonder at JD in one breathe lamenting that Tony isn't turning the corner 'yet' (it's only been 3 1/2 weeks, I think - so very early days really for his kind of multiple injuries, I'd have thought) and then still thinking of heading off abroad on a non-essential trip (even or especially for the GC - Ruari will be wanting to get back to the 'normality' of home after a term at Hogwarts: won't Phoebe be wanting to see Brum and her mum and sis. and other GPs too. Utter bollocks from the SW, no?)

Gah! it not I - line 2 .

Ruairi will have been at home every two / three weeks (and probably finds school life very normal indeed.) I wouldn't find it odd for them to take him away from all the hospital misery for a coupla days. It would be odd for the adults to go on their own right now.

I suspect tonight's SW threw in Prague as Brian's excuse for pestering, without thinking of the implications.

clearly I wasn't concentrating as I heard nothing about Prague!

Been lurking recently, DH has tired of my over- infestation and Brookfield plot stupidity has led me to seek solace in the company of others, rather then simply shouting at my radio(s). I am a long time TA listener (Nigel courting Shula, ice cream van antics, gorilla suits etc).

can someone help me out with HWMNBN, mentioned a couple of pages ago? I gather it referred to Darryl?????

Yes Araminta, I like your thoughts.

Maybe the road really is a red herring (was that the council's idea or Damara's?) After all, Lynda and Jim's investigations suggests there's no real need for a road, the current road is coping fine.

So maybe there is something going on in the Brookfield neck of the woods geologically that only Damara know about....

I think you could be on to something. Justin Elliott knows something about the Brookfield land that means he's desparate to buy it. He knows the dopeys would never sell so somehow pulls strings at the council to get them to plan a raid through the middle of the farm. Then he makes D&R an offer they think they can't refuse....

*road not raid!

Shh mumdroid. We are not allowed to mention HWMNBN or else pseudo gets v cross. She worries that we might raise banished spirits but, yes, you were right.

mumdroid I liked him...

I liked him too.

Out and Proud.

I think he was an early example of an unnecessary new character.

I have only one word to say. Fracking

apologies to all (pseudo particularly), I just got the acronym.

zero, can't say I agree entirely but at least he could never be confused with any of the other cast members.....( nostalgia for a brummie accent heightened by the silence of Vicky and the absence of Hayley)

will retire to my lurking forthwith

I was talking about this on facebook earlier with some old school pals

Oh, don't go. You have such a cool name.

What I loved about - him was how nervous and inept most of Ambridge became in his company. Really exposed the dark underbelly of middle class selective blindness. Alan, Shula, Kenton, even Lilian were all useless. Only the Grundys and to a lesser extent Neil were willing to see what he needed rather than what they wanted to provide.

He was unique. And his family had such possibilities...

Mini Wash Out your mouth!

Please let it not be that. Anything else. Just not the whole of the North of England falling in on itself ...

What IS ironstone then?

Ironstone is an iron ore, but I don't think it's commercially mined nowadays.

I just read the BL blog linked upthread. When Pat & Tony bought Bridge Farm, in 2008, the amount they had to find down the back of the sofa was £825K?

But 6 years later Brookfield is worth at least 6 times that? How realistic is that I wonder?

Just found via wiki that Bridge Farm is 168 acres & Brookfield is 469 acres, so not even 3 times the size.

Has agricultural land really doubled (or more) in value in 6 years?

I entertained the idea for a while that Justin really did want a country pad. DD rents a student flat in London and the place opposite has gone on the market for an eye-watering amount so my idea of property values has been shaken to the core!
However Justin is sure to know the value of land, or have a man on the payroll who does, so that's not it.

I don't know a great deal about fracking but mini's got me wondering.
If the plan is to extract shale gas then the extraordinary price does make sense - and so does a nice new road where a pipeline can be conveniently laid while it's being built.

A local journalist like Brenda used to be is needed. Maybe she's been languishing in ARSE long enough.

I know nothing about agricultural land values, but I think I dimly remember that the Bridge Farm Archers had to be given first option on the farm and/or a big discount on the market value because they had a protected agricultural tenancy.

Lakey Hill to be bulldozered to make way for fracking. Hmmm. I think that would change David's mind.

I think, in order for us to find out what's really going on, Charlie will have to switch sides. He's already weakening, just needs Adam to bring out his face ...