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

Ah, thank you R4 and thank you Zero. I had missed that link and am up to speed now, more or less.
Did the affair with Alan come after this? (I'm not dreaming that, am I?)

I love that Usha gave his furniture away!

Google tells me that:
Shula and Alistair got together in 1998
Alan didn't come to Ambridge until 2003 and got together with Usha in 2005

I don't think that Shula and Alan got together. They were close friends due to parish duties but nothing more than that.

YY to what Lilian said above about Alastair. That episode was total rubbish - very clunky.

I know the Grundies are there partly for light relief but the whole Joe/ferret/lost property clothes thing is getting right on my nerves. Joe/Ed/Eddie are like the flipping Chuckle Brothers at times in this storyline.
I like to see the characters treated as real people, not caricatures.

And for Ed getting into debt. I don't find that realistic either - surely Eddie wouldn't push Ed into it when he's just seen his son come so close to the brink of disaster. And Ed wouldn't be so stupid.

I would just like Ednemmur to get married without incident! Doesn't seem likely though now he's broken their promise to discuss everything.

Yes, I'm upset that the SW have done that to Ed.
I don't think that you get a cooling-off period on business finance agreements.

No, me neither. I was thinking exactly that whilst listening: distance-selling regulations won't apply.

Thinking of the car-buying process, I guess there's an outside chance he will be turned down for finance by the loan provider

At some point earlier in this or a previous thread, didn't someone mention the price of 2nd-hand tractors, and how this was out of Ed's reach? Ed needs a tractor to do contract work, so borrowing wd have been his only way, so quite realistic?

Although my heart dropped too when I heard about the new debt.

But ohtheangst he had already found a perfectly serviceable one that he could afford without debt!

How much more "Adam's firm hand on Charlie's twitchy joystick" innuendo must we endure?

xpost with florence, sorry - just catching up!
I agree that Eddie might be more sensitive, and Ed more sensible, than to blow the tractor budget in that way. And yes, I can't see sturdy Shula borrowing fragile Elizabeth's dresses either.
Quite interested to see how Richard L works out. Maybe he and Alastair will run away together.

Phew just caught up with TA and you lot (no time with the family here).

Did anyone notice why Susan was doing a Prunella Scales at Fawlty Gables noticing ferrets ? I must have missed the reason.

Dr ? Locke sounds just like Harrison, I predict that Lizzie nicks him off Shula .

Must have missed that re affordable tractor (but in the light of the speculation re tractor prices, was it only affordable because sprinkled with Ambridge fairy dust?). (I have skipped a few epis)

Yes, I wondered what Susan was doing, suddenly appearing at FG.

Susan was there to give Clarrie her mobile phone, after Clarrie had left it in the dairy.

Shula definitely never had an affair with Alan. They were church chums (she of course was delighted to get a proper man-vicar after Janet ) but then she disapproved of him marrying Usha. Which was a bit rich given that she'd been responsible for Usha's split from Richard.

Besides which, I can't imagine Alan having an affair. He's got more sense.

Her disapproval of him marrying Usha was more to do with Usha not being Christian than anything else. I think Usha wasn't too happy about Shula having anything to do with Alan, even just for general vicaring, given her history with Richard.

Sure, that was her reason for disapproval - but IMO it took a heck of a brass neck not to keep that entirely to herself under the circs. Beams and motes, first stones.... (of course that did make it more entertaining)

I agree with Lilian (comme d'hab) re the alistair/shula/dres scene

Of course the missing Clarrie, in all senses, thanks ebear. You'd think that she'd have had quite a bit to say about Daphne's escapades, and Joe's fashion sense.

I thought that Roy was very sweetly reasonable about it all! Whether feebs will like the company of ferrets in his house is a moot question.

Chopper what's happened to your floral moniker? I almost didn't recognise you there! Waves to chopper.

Roy was incredibly nice about it... maybe he's so lonely he really likes the idea of snuggling up with a ferret. Was he just taking Daphne or the whole business of ferrets. (that's the collective noun, I looked it up. Or a feysning.)

i fancied a change! and it was related to a conversation about tree surgeons

Just listening for first time in a little while. Bloody hell Heatherpet sounds like she's forgotten to put her teeth in!

Dr Locke "helped Shula with her IVF"... How much "help" did he give I wonder?

Argghhhh HP is making me cringe.

I like Helen standing up to Rob, has anything happened to spur this on?

Git.

Oooooh, Knob's starting to turn the screws now. Revenge for Hellin standing up to him I reckon. He's going to ramp things up now.