As doors slam shut in Rob's face and behind SOC, a new door opens for the next Archers editor. Are we expecting some New Tricks, or just Archenders?

[PseudoBadger]

Welcome one and all. No spoilers please!

Cromwell Teasers from the BBC website about yet-to-be-broadcast-episodes fall into the definition of spoilers.

Nah.

TheAntiBoop

We've been given absolutely NO knowledge of Dorothy's race/colour. Why would she be black? Presumably black actors play parts of white characters all the time on radio not to mention on stage and screen.

What I don't understand is why it matters to us as listeners what colour skin Dorothy has. We never see her. It hasn't been considered relevant to her (or any other persons) character to have mentioned it and yet here we are all speculating. Seems strange. What relevance does it have to the character or the SL what colour her skin is?

My memory is very hazy here, but isn't part of Amy's/her mother's back story linked to racial abuse experienced? I may be misremembering. But if it is, then skin colour is relevant to the family story.

Cromwell1536, you may not agree about the spoilers, but OliviaMN, who posts here regularly, has made her position on this ultra-clear and we have to abide by it. Teasers from the BBC website, Radio Times etc etc all have to go on the other thread. We can speculate about what hasn't been broadcast yet but we can't back it up with published info that has come from the BBC.

OK. Speculating that Jenny and Brian will each approach Ian about the estrangement from Adam and I am really hoping that Ian gives them each an old-fashioned talking-to about the compromises they have made. Or perhaps it will be Shula's marriage (Whoah, Diamond!) that attracts attention and kindly advice? Can't see Shula and Brian having that kind of conversation though. More Caroline's bag.

Susan would mention it if Dorothy was black, I think - remember years ago when she though Christyfurr had an Indian girlfriend, because her name was something forrin sounding like Geeta, and she liked curry, and her brother was called Basti? Then it turned out they were actually (something like) Marguerite and Sebastian and actually they were really posh, not really Indian, and we all had a jolly good laugh?

And I seem to remember Brian's discomfort around Lucas and Jenny desperately over compensating.

Neesha (Venetia), was it, Seek?

I think it's more a point that they made the reference to where her name came from and whether or not that was a hint. And if hat was a steer towards her ethnicity why make it so mildly?

It only matters because you would think it would draw some comment from certain villagers.

On radio it is totally irrelevant what the actor looks like but they made a big deal of the fact the actress is a prominent lesbian activist and then made her a lesbian.

That's it Lancelottie thank you!

Is it just my dad who always says 'you know, Jazzer is blind in real life! But his character is not blind!' Mind. Blown.

Can't see Shula and Brian having that kind of conversation though.

No, neither can I, Cromwell, but I love it on the rare occasions when Shula and Brian do talk on air because I always remember that the actors are married to each other.

I did not know that! Do you think they bring their characters into domestics in real life - 'don't be so bloody Shula!" etc?

I would!

Checking back in post-catchup. GO IAN!!

Also, how smug is Alan? "I've got a big job on my hands to heal the whole community" or something similar!

That made me have a bit of sick in my mouth as well...bloody insufferable smugness. I'm surprised Usha, who has keen sense of sarcasm, didn't rip the piss from him for that.

I sort of understand (I think) but can someone explain in simple terms why Usha "couldn't do anything while Dominic was involved with the trial"? I know she knows him but what's the working relationship?

Also, how smug is Alan? "I've got a big job on my hands to heal the whole community" or something similar!

But he can't just ignore what has happened, and to the regular churchgoers, what he says about it will have an effect, be it losing congregation because they don't agree with how he's handled it, or making people feel guilty about not feeling forgiveness for Rob if he says they should forgive him, and then he's mininizing rape and coercion if he goes that way, and if he hints they should run him out of the village, then there's the whole thing about "let he who is without sin cast the first stone," and...

Whichever way he goes, it probably is one of the more tricky situations a vicar in a small community has to deal with. That doesn't excuse any smugness, but I'don't be worried if he were saying, "oh, it'll all blow over in a couple if weeks, so I'm just going to ignore it."

Dominic and usha are partners at the same law firm I think

I think it was a misjudgement on the part of the script writers to give Alan a self-aggrandising line about 'healing the whole community." I think genuinely humble and charitable ministers (which I think is what Alan is intended to be) would never portray their role in that way. For one thing, the congregation is a minority in any community; for another, it's not obvious that the Ambridge community is actually agonised and split and warring with each other about the court case. So the line actually makes Alan seem as if he's bigging up his role in a very conceited, self-serving way. Yuk.

I saw that line of Alan's as a quick way of telling us the community is upset about it. Short of devoting every scene to Shula/Rooth/Clarrie etc etc talking about it what else can the SWs do? Did make him sound like a twt though - although mild in comparison to the BS he spouted up to them.

Surely it would be more of a problem of both parties were from long standing village families. As it is, rob is an outsider who has only been around a few years so there shouldn't be that many people on his side

The only reason anyone's colour or ethnic background would matter in TA is to avoid Borsetshire being accused of the same unrealistic whiteness as Midsomer County exhibited till recently. But difficult to convey naturally on the radio if there isn't an obvious name or accent like Amy's granny. It simply isn't something the younger generation would think to mention, and someone like Shula would consider it impolite (which attitude can betray latent racism). I was thinking that it would be someone of Peggy's generation who might say to eg Christine something about 'Dan's girlfriend, you know the nice coloured nurse.'

Thanks Anti, but that alone (since Dominic was acting for Helen) shouldn't have prevented Usha from evicting him sooner, should it ?