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!

I can think of lots of times when Helen was irritating but few positives. She was dreadful to Greg's daughter when they lived in the flat above the village shop, she was underhand having an affair with Rob, lying to Pat about the jewelry making course, she was horrid to Tony when she was thinking about getting pregnant. When has she been nice?

The last year or so has been the only time I've ever felt even a modious of affection or sympathy for Helen. She was a dreadful person before. Self absorbed, self centred, humourless, self righteous..all self self self.

I wonder if this experience with Knob will make her a bit more empathetic. Although I doubt it.

modicum

Talking of Helen's worldly goods and the fact she's still married to Knob, have we all forgotten that she's in line to inherit Peggy's cottage?!

So if anything should happen to Peggy (although I can't see them getting rid of the actress that easily) Knob will be straight in there with Henry under one arm and Ursula driving the moving van for him.

Not any more. Peggy changed her will again after Tony's near-death experience with Otto the bull. Much to Rob's annoyance.

I'mNotYourHunny, as June Spencer is 97 years old, I should imagine they'll let nature take its course with Peggy

Oh, did she, Vango? Good on her! So how much "inheritance money" of Helen's from Peggy did Rob go through in the past few years, do we know?

The only money they've had, as far as I know, is the £10K wedding gift (probably all spent by R by now).

Helen has been called consistently awful - a monster created by her own family as a result her being afforded special snowflake status since time immemorial. Her experience with Knob (which lets face it no one would have wished on her however irritating she was before) will no doubt ensure her special snowflake status continues And becomes even more special so I think it's safe to say she'll be even more insufferable in the future. Of course ironically it was her special snowflake status that meant her family didn't dare express or pursue their misgivings about Knob - it was one of the most frustrating but also believable aspects of the plot.

That's what I thought, Vango, thanks for confirming it!
Didn't Rob actually cause the incident with Otto by calling to Henry when Tom was dealing with the ? Or is this just a product of my fevered imagination?

I don't remember that Tuktuk. I don't think Rob was there? Helen was calling to Henry while he was on the ground.

But I thought Helen was driving Peggy to the hairdressers' when it happened? Hang on, will go and check!

You're right, Vango it was Helen who called to Henry, I think, not clear from Lowfield exactly what happened but Helen and Peggy were present.

Helen saw it all going on as she drove back, afair. She was screaming at Henry to keep still. Just realised that's another near-death traumatic event witnessed by Henry!

I think what is irritating about the Grundies of Grange Farm plot is that it has been so contrived. Their original eviction years ago was heartbreaking, true to life and well done - the tragedy of it encapsulated in the killing of Joe's ferrets. What happened to Grange Farm afterwards was pretty realistic - gentrification for a rich hobby farmer. Caroline and Oliver's concern and care for the Grundies over the years has been realistic - Caroline is Will's godmother, Oliver has become a mentor to Ed. What has been much harder to to believe has been the contrivance required to move the Grundies back in. The flood, their long stay at Grey Gables when they were cast in the roles of village idiots, Caroline and Oliver's upping sticks for Italy and then installing the Grundies in their expensively refurbished home knowing they had been recast as village idiots, the trashing of Grange Farm and its mysterious destruction now making it unsellable, C and O suddenly finding another source of income. If Caroline and Oliver are being shifted off set to Italy I'd almost rather they'd been killed off and left the farm to the Grundies - I would have found that more believable than the shenanigans we've been forced to endure.

YY re Will having given some of the coercive control storyline a dry run a few years ago. I vividly remember listening to some episodes driving through countryside back from work one Summer and he was very much coming across as annoyed at her having a job. He always used to sound like he wanted her barefoot and pregnant. I was sure (and think I said so on a thread at the time perhaps) that I thought it was going to be a slow burn story line and he'd eventually hit her. Nic got very meek and subservient for a while at that time.

Agree that Emma has improved a lot over the last few years, she's very practical and pragmatic nowadays and much less whingey.

The writing of Joe and Eddie is really irritating at the moment, they did some beautiful stuff a while back when Joe was ill and Eddie was scared he'd lose his dad. They're not even the comedy yokels now, just grasping ingrates. They've behaved despicably towards Caroline and Oliver every step of the way since the fall at GG and the flood.

Wasn't there also a storyline about Nic smacking George? Or have I made that up to.

I thought that was going to go further than it did.

Maybe Helen has been nice off air? I'm still amazed that Kirsty and Ian are speaking to her let alone defending her considering her behaviour.

I love it, Gherkinsmummy! We are so desperate for there to be some logic to the story development that we have to imagine a further backstory to the one we hear already in order for it to make any sense at all!

Yes tom, Nic slapped George.

Yes tomtherabbit. Nic and Will split up over it but eventually all was forgiven and it was put down to a momentary lapse/extreme stress. I think there was an element of Will expecting Nic to step in and look after George without realising how much her hands were already full with her own two.

I remember the Nic smacking storyline, tomtherabbit.

Ian and Kirsty are much nicer people than Helen, which makes it all the more strange that they are her friends.

On the Otto incident, does this help - transcription I made at the time:
(H=Helen, P=Peggy - these two had just pulled up in the car at the farm, presumably H needed to speak to someone; T = Tony; E = Ed; J = Johnny)

H: (in car) We won't be late, I promise (car door opens). I know exactly wh-

T: (distant) Johnnnny!

E: (nearer) No, oh-

P: What was that?

E: Nooooo!

H: Oh my God! (mooing)

T: Aah! aah! (falling? gate clatters?)

H: (moving away) Dad! (Henry screams)

E: Move!

J: Henry!

E: Move!

H: Henry! Darling, stay still, absolutely still (louder mooing, distressed? mooing, human gasps of pain?)

Cheerful music

CA: And Ed does the right thing tomorrow night. [What's that? Shouts "Don't move! Sorry, got it wrong when I said 'move'!"]

Thanks, TripleD There's dedication! Have you got something similar for the stabbing?

In fact, Helen did exactly the right thing in that situation, firmly and clearly instructing Henry so that he stayed out of danger.