Follow the subtle trail towards the Christmas storyline climaxes in Ambridge - discuss The Archers here

[PseudoBadger]

So many possibilities.... A visit from the Titcheners Snr? Baby of the wrong gender? A ruined wedding? Re-housed Grundys? RuthRex?

(sigh. 500 quid would be nice. Over here Harmony costs 5000 and you have to go to auckland to get a private referral, meaning it actually costs more like 6000)

What are Rob and Helen doing for money?

wow - that is crazy expensive

couldn't you fly to London for less than that!!

If baby has something odd wrong with it then they will go to amnio, this is just in time for Christmas climax. Knob will do something like blame Helen for overdoing it as a reason for trisomy (he is dim, after all).

yes. I did consider the London option (but it all became moot anyway)

It's a good question Bertrand there can't be much coming in from the cheese business in the absence of the shop and Peggy's £10k must be dwindling given all these pub dinners and private scans.

I'm sorry to hear that -

I thought Pat was going to start snogging Rob when he was going for the job interview. Blergh.

Knob is so convinced it's going to be a boy - if its a girl at what point will he come round to the idea, immediately, never or somewhere in between? Has he brought the scan forward so that if it is a girl there's more time to arrange an abortion? Surely not? (Though I reckon Helen was contemplating it herself a few weeks ago)

Really pisses me off when he talks about paying for things as if he is the one with money. The only money they have is Helen's income, and her GM's "dowry", so him "treating" Helen to a new dress or an early scan is not on.

Well we don't know his financial situation. Maybe he has big savings

(Or he's earning on the side through intimidation jobs/drug dealing/disposing of unwanted kittens/insert suitably evil job etc)

Um, by the way - M's Bron in today's Guardian:

These days, she’s been – much to the delight of its fans – in The Archers, playing Carol Tregorran, Jill Archer’s old pal. She’s not entirely sure if she’ll be reappearing – “I haven’t been in for a while, and they’ll call me when they need me.” She herself loves the show. “I think it’s a sort of virtual Moral Maze, except much better because it puts people right into a moral situation and asks them to make judgments about behaviour. At the moment, it is raising some quite difficult problems. Such as men bullying women – isn’t it amazing how it’s grabbed everyone?” She is referring to the most gripping storyline of the moment, Rob Titchener’s fiendish controlling of his wife, Helen Archer.

(And no, only my stupid phone thinks there's an apostrophe in Ms.)

Perhaps the 14 week scan will inaccurately think it is a boy and when it's born it will be a girl - is that possible? So glad you haven't let last week's events put you off Teeny

Yes, I also thought he may try to get Helen to have an abortion.

He will turn up at the wedding and reveal that Adam & Charlie snogged. When Helen says " that's not very nice Darling " he will try to explain it away as being the "right" thing to do. And Helen being so wet will swallow it. She really is pathetic and should deserve my sympathy but I really wish she would grow a backbone. I remember when he went back to Jess and Helen was devastated. There was at least one scene where she was with her little son in the park and Rob was there. She was pleading with him and he was utterly nasty and said absolutely dreadful things to her. At this point she would have realised what a shit he was. Anyway there have been plenty of instances where Rob had shown his real side to Helen but she turns a blind eye to it.

The storyline re Jess and the baby and the DNA test. Was there any ambiguity there as to whether Rob was the father. I may have missed an episode or two but did the result not come in a letter, which Rob didnt show to Helen. She took him at his word. I wouldn't be surprised it we find out that he was the father and has been paying Jess off all this time. I wonder if this will rear its head and then the scales will fall from Helen's eyes - maybe if her in-laws come to visit? They will reveal that they have contact Jess's child, who is also Rob's.

I wonder if Ruth will have an affair on her trip to NZ and she & David will divorce. Or maybe she won't come back - no great loss there.

We heard Jess admit it wasn't his baby so no ambiguity

That sounded like soc wrote that for Elinor bron

And he opened the letter in front of Helen and let her 'see for herself'

Have you seen the teasing tweet from Keri Davies?

ambridgeobserver.blogspot.co.uk/2015/11/ruth-less-brookfield-car-less-helen-and.html?ns_mchannel=social&ns_campaign=bbc_the_archers&ns_source=twitter&ns_linkname=radio_and_music&m=1

Why can't how move in with one of his grandsons? I'm sure George and Keira could share? Or there must be room chez will?

Ooohh, Freda - a pre-Christmas episode he says? I hope Rob is killed off.

I noticed tonight he didn't want Pat going to visit Helen, and he didn't sound happy when he got home and she was there - that is, he said her name in that special way he has of saying anyone's name who dares to be visiting Helen without his permission. I'm finding it very chilling.

I agree it sounded like Rob disapproved of Pat being there, but it's a bit odd given that he's got her so thoroughly under his thumb.

Well this is poor; nearly 24 hours and no one has enlightened me regarding Pseudo's song lyric. (I have a cloth ear for this sort of thing.) Is it a show tune or children's TV?

(Glad it's not just me stalking Archers writers freda )

Fireman Sam

Ah.

I knew I'd look foolish if I asked ...

Well I only know because it was exactly what I was thinking when I wrote Cowman Sam (who is always Welsh in my memory)

Ds was obsessed as a toddler so it will be seated on my brain for life...