The Archers: Tally-Ho for the Hunt Ball! Will Justin return from Scotland with the Gay Gordons? Will Adam feel a right Charlie? Discussion #81

[DadDadDad]

Thanks, R4, for the title (again!).

I'm your temporary host while PseudoBadger is on her sabbatical / prison term / secret mission.

Old hands and complete newbies all welcome.

Spoilers (eg Radio Times descriptions of future programmes) not welcome.

When will Matt reappear? Before / during / after the wedding?

The floor is yours...

I think it was Nic.

Do we know that Matt is dead?

Cromwell, just been looking at Philippe Ferrandis - some very nice pieces. l like some of the earrings much.

I listened again, not sure what to think really - there’s Adam being urged to ‘take the car’ by lan. Matt stoating about pished but exactly where? At the Bull but not at the dance. I think it’s not Nic. She was leaving earlier and will be well away, l hope. Justin and Alistair are missing. I hope it’s not the young people. It did sound like Matt groaning and Adam in the car breathing or sighing.

Mystic Bore™ predicts:

Matt is not deaded but will be in hospital for long enough for Lillan to realise that she lurves her Tiger and he lurves her. Sorry Justin.

As for whodunnit, the Crystal Ball 🔮 is very murky at the moment.

I am inclined to think it will turn out to be shroom-related.

It sounded like a car being driven fast - that would make you think Justin in his anger although he has just spoke to Kenton, can't imagine Adam would have needed to drive that fast back home , could be Nic rushing to see Poppy but I can't imagine she would walk away from hitting someone.

All I am sure about is that Matt is not dead just badly injured

I think it was Justin. Nic or Adam will be witnesses.

Lillian and Justin will still be planning their wedding in December or we will miss out on another Lower Loxley drama.

Just listened again. Justin said to Kenton that Matt needed to be taught a lesson and then stormed off.

This means he will be the one under suspicion. Means! Motive! Opportunity!

Matt will be unconscious for some time...

Does Nic drive/ have a car?

I don't think he is dead unfortunately. Is the pub not right next to the village green. That is where Kenton told Justin that matt might be. Why would Justin need to get into a car, surely he would just walk to look for Matt.

Can I just say a big BOOP to the BBC for the lack of trailers and spoilers. So much better than SOC's interminable build-up to HellRob.

And another thing!

All that fuss about Matt's suitcases, which are now languishing in the bottle store. There will be something in them, and I don't mean clothes and shaving kit.

Otherwise no need to mention them at all.

So - the CA said ...

I can't bear a protracted whodunnit though. Would rather columbo than Christie in this instance

Okay then, if not some hired hitman then Justin. And Matt will wake up on the morning of the wedding.

Why would Ian and Shula be discussing , on the night, the time to serve the survivors' breakfast? That would have been organised long before the actual night.

So we know Justin was in The Bull. Would he have driven there? How far is The Bull from Lower Loxley?

Surely it was Adam?
He'd better be dead, not just injured, otherwise it was just an excuse to keep him around for longer!

Justin would have gone on foot
Nic left well before then
Shroomed up teenagers should be at the ball
Random person wouldn't have looked and left, definitely got to be Adam...

There has to be a twist surely? The obvious is that Matt is hurt & Adam the driver. Due to the pointers about you take the car and see you in bed, etc. But it has to be an other. Justin has a motive (and might be a thug at heart - l HATE him so he must be wrongun). Kenton is daft enough to ‘sort things’ but Jill would be sighing for England if K were involved so we don’t want that. Ian would know if their car was damaged, and he doesn’t love Adam that much surely? Alistair might be sick of Shula’s woes but is he daft enough? He seems quite clear on his professional role in Ambridge life and his career would be over if he got caught in something like this.

So Justin then. That fits better. One Romeo tries to bump off the love rival. Or two silly old men fight over Fagash. I wish it wasn’t a serial as l just want to know. l really don’t have a life.

Map of the village (scroll down).
Honeysuckle Cottage (where Adam was headed) is the opposite side of the green to the Bull but I suppose that Matt might have wandered off over there.

Sorry Grey Gables not LL and it is walkable.

I think you were right the first time Lass. Wasn't Elizabeth hosting the ball?

Not hosting, but the event was at LL.

It could, very prosaically, be Graham who is on-call for Alistair tonight who was driving the car. And Matt will be damaged enough to require Lillian's ministrations for quite some time.
I don't think the accident happened on the Green because the driver had their full beam on. It will have been on a quiet road and Matt has fallen down a ditch. He won't be found for some time, and no-one will realise he's not simply gone off to Equador until they discover his bags in the bottle store.

Poor Lilian, seems as though she might have gone from two men to no men. One in heaven (!) and one in clink. She does appear to have a penchant for multilayered relationships that end in tragedy. remember Paul?

On another point was there ANYONE at the ball who wasn't an Archer by marriage , blood or inclination? I don't know why Shula was making such a hoohah about it all, it was nothing more than a larger than normal family get together, even the top raffle prize was won by Aunty Chris. And why a raffle? most posh events like that do their prizes as an auction, you raise a lot more money than a raffle.

I presumed it was the Taxi what done it - clearly I have no imagination although DH kept chatting to me, so I did miss half of some sentences. I must LA tomorrow.