Is that a ferret in your (Gr)undies or are you just pleased to see me? Discuss The Archers vermin (so many possibilities!) here.

[PseudoBadger]

I'm not sure that ferrets cannot through a thumb sized hole - rats can, and mice can fit through a pen sized hole. But I know the SWs will have researched such a statement carefully

And if Dr L was in Felpersham, then everybody would have known about it straight away. Another totally stupid SL.

oK- the only possible explanation for the Shula/Dr L thing is something to do with Rob. Might he be indiscreet about the DNA test?

What's happened about her lying to the fuzz about the sab and Rob, by the way? Is anything due to happen?

Perhaps DocDelicious will be the one who persuades Shula to tell the truth to the police?

Whatever happens with Shula and the Dr, there must be no slurping. OK?

Some top-notch acting there from NewRoboPip.

Perhaps they've decided that the only way to deal with newpip is to keep her either stressed or drunk till they can pack her off abroad to find herself (and find her real accent in the process).

Errol

So Shula's going to be sitting in a coffee shop with the Doc. in full view of all the Carter radio types of Felpersham (how close is it meant to be to Amb.? )

Re NewPip: there must have been a mix up after the auditions. SOC and the others involved in the casting could have said 'OK, let's put all these young actors in order of preference based on their acting ability, ability to do a consistent accent from one end of the sentence to the other, resemblance to OldPip'. They write out a list that goes:

1 Maisie Mole
2 Felicity Ferret
3 Tamsin Toad
4 Cora Cow
5 Daisy Badger

However, the person taking the list to produce the offer letter assumed the scores meant DB had got 5/5 and so offered her the part.

Only credible explanation.

yes squeaver I too enjoyed Jolene's sausage tasting!

Really, really hoping that that dreadful performance from NewPip means she'll be going away for a while so she can do all things she can't do a Brookfield. Hopefully she can return several (or more!) years hence as an entirel new person (or at any rate she will at least be the age she sounds like or possibly even have had a sex change if her manly tones continue).

Pretty sure I've never used the word "nadir" before - but I feel we reached it last night. Poor NewPip's voice sounded as if it was taking even her by surprise.

I thought the Pip thing was quite a nice harking back actually. Phil went and worked elsewhere for a bit as did David - he worked for Brian for a while!

Do we think Alastair is gambling again?

Shula contacting Richard is very much out of character. Like lying to the police really.......

Shula sounded so guilty ringing Dr Sperm Locke! Almost as though she was already envisaging kicking Al into touch.

Shula is so going to have an affair as Alistair is pushing her away (for whatever reason) I do think that her phoning her old flame is out of character for her but then I've only been listening since August and may not be fully aware of her character.

They should have let Pip get drunk. She might have used the same accent all through then instead of the mishmash she currently uses!

Shula may want an affair but I'd bet everything I own that an expensively fragrant Elizabeth will breeze in and swipe the Doc from under her nose.

FWIW - and although it's a long time ago - I had the distinct impression when they married that Shula was "settling" for Alistair. She said all the correct things but was never wildly excited.

That's the thing ... Thinking back it wasn't Mark's death that turned her into the staid, would be pillar of the community that we hear now; it was her second marriage. The Shula who stole Richard Locke was just the same person as she had always been both before and during her time with Mark. Tempestuous, indecisive, jealous ... One of the most memorable episodes for me was when she found out that Mark's new practice partner was a woman. The very same Usha whose domestic life she later broke up. It's as if she decided to put her old self behind her when she got back together with Alistair.

... And then of course once Alistair got into serious gambling trouble she had to be the sensible one in the relationship. Which was contrary to her natural personality.

Excellent summary zero and spot on (as ever).

I agree with a lot of that, Zero, but I think Shula has always been torn between wanting to be a pillar of the community and giving way to her deep-seated longing for fun. She had lots of boyfriends (including Nigel) before settling for the rather dull Mark and their married life was hard going at times - not just because of her fertility problems, I'd say.

The pillar of the community stuff was there early on when she joined the Young Tories but of course that was also a good way to socialise and let her hair down.

It was before my time, but according to The Book of The Archers Shula had her sights set on being a showjumper when she was young and nearly made it. Then she lost her virginity more or less on air in a cornfield with a journalist on the Borchester Echo. Later she went to Bangkok with another boyfriend. All very different from the humdrum life she went on to live in Ambridge, working for Rodway's, struggling through her surveying exams or whatever it was, then slogging away at The Stables supervising thousands of little girls learning to trot or whatever it is that little girls do on their ponies.

That is all very true. I do remember Jill being a bit hmmmmm about the marriage because it was right after the affair and Shula being very much 'oh it's FINE'. Looking for a father figure for Dan of course and now he's off her hands......Yes actually might be more in character than I'd thought.
Of course she was pretty nasty about Alan marrying Usha too but concealed that under a faith based argument.

Whatever happens with Shula and the Dr, there must be no slurping. OK?

Absolutely. And no heavy breathing either.

There should also be a conversation between Usha and Ruth about it all. Ruth seems to put very little into their friendship until she wants something.

I'm also longing for the Richard / Alan loitering in the churchyard chat.

Good grief, I never knew all that history with Usha and Shula. First Shula tries to bugger up Usha's career by objecting to her being a partner in her husband's firm, then she sleeps with Usha's partner, then she bloody dares to go all sanctimonious about her marrying a vicar. Usha must have the patience of a saint, in her place I'd want to slap Shula round the head every time I saw her.

Shula's plan in life when a teenager was to become a vet. Listeners had to point out that she was doing the wrong A Levels - no amount of Archers fairy dust would have got her into vet school with Arts A Levels. So she ended up in Rodways but always seemed to be more the secretary there rather than a land agent (but that was back in the late 70s/early 80s when listeners would tolerate that type of scenario).