Culvert operations in Ambridge - discuss The Archers here. It's not his baby by the way.

[PseudoBadger]

Is Ed's wedding very soon?

Pretty sure Pip was catching, but I think Adam said something to David about they might give Ed & Jazzer the Home Farm shearing next year, because they'd done the crutching last year, and that had gone okay.

it would be a cracking best mans speech though...

Yes ... Listening again I also definitely heard "catching". Heads will roll in BBC blog land ...

And yes again, why are they making Clarrie and Joe sound so idiotic? No one on earth would consider asking Will to be best man in these circumstances.

ebear is correct. Crutching at HF. Catching at BF.

Culvert - so do we think Rob didn't bother with one culvert to go for lunch. Or dumped stuff from one into the other? Or deliberately blocked it?

David's not going to let it go is he?

Another question they should be asking though is wtf did they design the culverts / dairy at Berrow so that the culvert would bring water to it in the event of a flood in the first place

I thought the implication was that he blocked it on purpose to protect Berrow farm with no thought of the consequences

The Culvert should have been blocked for quite sometime - if its going to explain why somewhere had no water and other areas were getting waterlogged.

I really hope someone has taken the time to map these culverts, streams, ditches and drainage - so it actually does make sense.

Also, of rob blocked it after November that would imply he knew the flood was coming. Unlike everyone else in the area.

I love the way that everyone is getting het up about these culverts. Since we know that the SW know the square root of diddly squat about anything practical (Helen's AI baby, how long it takes to fall off a roof, the logistics of moving to HH, I could go on ...) why do we even care? Just accept that something culvert-y happened and let them drone on about it.
For all we know, it will be another non-plot that never comes to a conclusion.

Does this explain Rob's strange behaviour of the night of the flood?

When he knew the water was rising he got rid of Helen quickly. That's reasonable enough.
Then he tried to break into the village shop saying he was getting supplies but refused to help Harrison and David. He was extremely agitated.
Then he grabbed the boat and disappeared.

Did he make a watery dash to Berrow, realised it was still clear of water but blocked the culvert with anything he could find to make sure water wouldn't flow to Berrow and then jumped into the boat again?

It was out of character to go rescuing people but maybe he got lost in the dark, called out because he was panicking and got a reply so had no choice but to rescue 'your sister and aunt'.

I'm afraid R4 is right and we'll never arrive at any proper, technically accurate, satisfying resolution to the culvert question. (Just look at the confusion they've caused by scripting "catching" but putting up a blog on crutching ...) Even if they decide to blame someone the explanation will be wrong.

Were it not for learned pessimism I'd say enoch's suggestion makes perfect sense.

(I am unsure whether I should be remonstrating with myself for taking a radio show too seriously when there are more important things to worry about or retreating entirely into Ambridgeland and refusing to come out for five years ...)

I bow to your learned pessimism, zero, but I do like fiction to make sense even when RL makes no sense at all.
The long-awaited come-uppance of Rob would cheer me up no end right now.

If I were a SW I would have David pay a visit to Shula and enquire about Rob's demeanour that night & which direction was he rowing from. Also the purchase of riding gloves would jog David's memory to ask her what really happened with the hunt saboteur.

Also....
How much time had elapsed?
Rob took the boat when the village was beginning to be flooded. By the time he appeared at the stables the water had risen enough to trap Christine et al in the upper floor.
Isn't it reasonable to expected him to have rescued other people in that time?

But SOC has written at least one book on true life crime - he shouldn't need us to send him copies of Agatha Christie or Dorothy L. Sayers!

Talking of crime.....
If Rob is found to have blocked the culvert (the thread title gives me licence to bang on about this!) then has he committed a crime?

Wilful endangerment?

I think it might be fineable? Not sure how much of a legal obligation maintainjng drainage is.

My recollection was he said Berrow would be fine before Hellin/ shop incident. They were warned in afternoon. So posdibly he worked all that out earlier. Only Rob's not that clever.

Neglecting maintenance is fineable but deliberate blockage would be more serious, surely.

Doing it in the afternoon is plausible and would explain why he was so agitated. Perhaps he seized the boat to go check if it had worked.

Enoch that's my assumption about what happened.

Have finally caught up. Don't believe for a moment pip would be politically disengaged. Flirting was cringey and sexist

Sorry I meant enoch's post of 11.21

Enoch I love your plots. Get a job as a SW right away! It was never entirely clear to me how Knob had ended up with a boat - there must be some clues even if all the stuff that was blocking the culvert has been conveniently cleared away. Knob will be threatening Ed next no doubt.

HapShawl. It's possible that he had already blocked the culvert in the afternoon as mink suggested. His really obnoxious behaviour when they came out of the pub and saw the water rising might have been shock at the volume of water, hence his urgent need to get over to Berrow and see what was happening there. That would explain why he refused to stay and help when David and Harrison pleaded with him.

What I can't work out is why he was trying to break into the shop. He's just not public- spirited enough to have thought about supplies for villagers.

What I'm certain of is that he's guilty as hell.

Yes agree, lots of options and he was clearly up to mischief (sorry, was just trying to make clear I wasn't responding directly to your post before mine)

Why, thank you, Lillian!

I suspect Charlie has worked it out and knows Rob's responsible but has had Ed clear up so that nothing sticks to BL. But Ed works for Charlie and I don't think Rob has any leverage on him (Ed). He does have some blackmail material on Charlie though even if Charlie doesn't know that yet.

Ed will tell Charlie that he has concerns, Charlie will ten be contacted by the extraordinarily tall lady and figure out ed must have told someone.

Ed will then be sacked and other bad stuff will happen to him, I don't know, maybe the day before his wedding?

I suppose the only thing Rob could do is try to prevent Ed getting any more BL work

X-post, similar outcome