Aldridges Assemble! Await the return of the prodigal daughter to Ambridge with the rest of The Archers audience

[PseudoBadger]

I can't resist alliteration

I think Peggy's gift will be used as leverage by Rob to hasten another pregnancy. He'll want to use it to fund an extended maternity leave, from which Helen never returns.

I don't understand Rob's agenda at all. Why wouldn't he want her to look fabulous at the ball (where surely everyone would think how lucky he is to have her)? And if she's a SAHM, he's funding a nice lifestyle for a child that isn't his. Apart from a nice dinner on the table when he comes in, how does it benefit him to be married to a drippy doormat with no life of her own?

It benefits him because he's a control freak. He gets a kick out of having women totally under his control. Conversely, if his wife isn't fully compliant it makes him feel bad and he cannot tolerate that.

It is about ownership. He owns her. He keeps her. He dresses her.

The standard creepy jealous control freaks don't actually think their partners are off with other men, they just use it as an isolation technique. Ruin social occasions. Stop them going out. Keep them away from friends and then they won't see that normal people don't behave like that and there are other men out there who are not control freaks. Plus constantly accusing their dw of things deflects attention from their own behaviour.

Obviously he hasn't unveiled the full armoury yet but now they are married she is that bit more trapped. If only he coukd get her to stop working... i bet when he does full on flip it will be over some alleged incident with another man.

The flipside is the cocklodger who relies on their dp working so they don't have to.

So many people have said Helen looks "well" it won't be a surprise when the pregnancy is announced

I guess I'm looking at it as a sane person who would want an outgoing, confidant, happy partner (and not as a controlling nut-job).

All those clumsily referred to texts suggest they've been at it like a pair of randy rabbits

Sw not been very good on the last few days. Good acting has saved it but Helen is overacting imo

Re MinkGrundy's alleged incident.... It will be Charlie, won't it?
"First he blames me for flooding the village, then he says I'm cooking the books, and now he's trying to steal my wife! How could you do this to me?" etc when she, I don't know, says hello when they pass on the street.

It's funny how the writing goes through such variations. If I bought the Radio Times I could work out which script writers I like and avoid the others. Where is Dad^3 when you need him?

Lurking, as usual.

In case anyone was wondering, I looked up Helen on the Who's Who. She is, apparently, 36 years old. She's behaving like an immature early-twenties.

Hester is a friend of Carol's from wherever-she-was-before (?Bristol direction). Either she or her DH have died; the autopsy will show the cause to be eye of newt and toe of frog. Not sure why the SW are making such a big deal of it.

Hopefully it means that Carol will be moving back to Bristol.

Also, Kenton is jumping the gun again, ahead of the insurers decision re payout.

Or it means carol is bringing the surviving spouse back to am bridge (hope not!)

Oh god no!

The Snooping Jenny SL re John Tregorran's death seems to have been dropped, at all events.

Ah ... Thank you BOW - I was puzzling over the significance of widowed Hester (all the more puzzling since my brain tends to wander off when Carol wanders in.)

It's certainly time for Ms Bron to find herself very busy elsewhere - having found that Carol's role in Ambridge has failed to develop as expected. ("The Tiger Defence" with so many interesting changes happening in Ambridge now seemed a good time to disappear ....)

So Jill could move back to Glebe Cottage; Heather can be dragged to Brookfield kicking and screaming and this whole sorry Northumberland crisis can be brought to a close.

my brain tends to wander off when Carol wanders in.
time for Ms Bron to find herself very busy elsewhere
this whole sorry Northumberland crisis can be brought to a close.

As Churchill the Insurance Dog would say, with feeling, "oh yes."
(unless it involves Kenton, in which case it is "oh no!")

YY Gruach - looks like they are abandoning planned longterm storyline. Unless, of course, Carol brings Hester back with her, sets up some sort of Wisewomans' Collective and Heatherpet also moves in.

"The Tiger Defence" . Perhaps they could abandon that SL too and bring him back to where he belongs.

The Widow Hester has a certain 17th century New England witch trial feel to it, I kinda like it!

Yes! Bring on the Witch Trials

• Would be fine if there was anyone capable of writing it Pipperoo but, beyond fiddling with their wills and baking for their grown up children, they can't really seem to find anything interesting for elderly Ambridge women to do.

Anyone else betting that Kenton's returning good spirits are going to be dashed by the realities of the insurance payout, which won't fund his improvements. This will probably happen just before his birthday party.