The Archers No. 94: Freddie’s doing porridge, Tom gets his oats, but will Home Farm be toast? We’ll have to wheat and see ... Serial production is in full swing in Ambridge

[witchmountain]

Thanks to LilG for the title, and DDD for starting the last thread and the tradition of the thread starter nominating the next thread starter

Lurkers are always welcome to unlurk and join in, including asking questions of the many very knowledgeable posters with a long Archers-listening history.

Don't post spoilers based on forthcoming plot synopses that you've read, there's another thread for that (and we'd love to see you over there). Once an episode has aired then it's fair game.

True. It was probably Ben who savaged Jill’s chickens.

That was a pretty small thud for a badger........

I expect he targeted a badger cub, Bert. That’s the sort of murderous maniac David has produced.

Of the three siblings, I'd be far more worried about Pip having homicidal traits.

Last night’s was ridiculous on so many levels.

David’s memory lapses alluded to on ?Wednesday’s programme... A Sign? Or just a filler of 30 seconds. The Ambridge health fairy deserves a visit from her evil sister surely, and it would be A Thing for a new editor to do?

Pip has a very short fuse (just like her Dad)
And a very deeply rooted sense of entitlement.

Sounds like a dangerous combination, that does.

I wondered if Josh had filled up the vehicle but following last night’s episode it was presumably Ben.

Does anyone else every imagine a short season of experimental episodes? For instance one where there is no dialogue at all and we just hear the sounds of what’s going on. Or one where we hear only the inner voices of characters. Or one featuring only silent or rarely heard characters. Or one entirely from the point of view of the child characters. Etc etc.

Yes ...

Wow witchmountain I can just imagine your ideas being debated round the table in W1a with the gorgeous Ian Fletcher chairing .

Do go on...

That was to Quater!

www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/mediapacks/w1a/hugh.html

Though I'd rather they didn't repeat 'voice of deceased father' ...

Once in a while they do try.

I think it would mean bringing in guest SWs - who would need an in depth knowledge of Ambridge relationships to do anything worthwhile. Might be cool.

I certainly think it was more subversive when Tom Forrest narrated an introduction to the omnibus. There's no reason at all why a different character couldn't do that every Sunday morning. Not revolutionary but might be entertaining. Susan particularly!

I've longed for conversations between the off-grid characters ...

There was one episode, that I've referred to often, involving Maurice and Jazzer ... Mindblowingly surreal. They've never done anything like that since.

Sorry, spamming you all now but - the most subversive thing they could do (going back to a conversation here yesterday) would be to have the characters acknowledging that they have an invisible audience. I'd like to hear that.

I'd like an episode populated only by the silent characters using no speech at all and only sound effects

Bring back ‘Unheard of Ambridge’, I say.

I had to look up Tom Forrest. Did he shoot somone by accident?

Maybe they could invite submissions.

Imagine some of them though if they knew they had an invisible audience. Bad Lynda would want us in her play and Susan would keep whispering gossip to us.

Could we have an episode from the point of view of the animals.

Snapshot here witch.

Thanks!

I wondered about that birds but my imagination immediately turned it into something Beatrix Potter might write.

I could be imaging it, but I have a dim memory of a Christmas special involving the animals of Brookfield talking to each other on Christmas Eve night, with all characters voiced by Archers actors. I can't find anything about it on a quick Google search. Does anyone else remember this? It would have been in the 80s or early 90s, probably.

Wasn't there a Christmas panto a few years ago where the entire cast were silent characters?

How quickly one forgets!

Sounds like you were having a good Christmas Tiger