Thread #105: Curtains for Emma, Hilda - Joe? Red carpet for June Spencer on her 100th birthday, we hope! Discuss the rich tapestry of Ambridge life here.

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Thank you, @PseudoBadger, for kicking off this long, long series of Archers threads and @DadDadDad for being our resident statistician and keeping the ball rolling when Pseudo stepped back a bit.

All views on The Archers welcome here! New blood welcomed. We don't all agree on all points and most of us are posting tongue in cheek a lot of the time, so don't worry about revealing that you'd like to be Susan's best friend or other unusual views.

Spoilers: not on this thread, please. We don't wait for the omnibus to discuss the weeknight episodes, but we do try our best to avoid cross-contamination from www.mumsnet.com/Talk/radio_addicts/3439443-keep-it-to-yourself-the-archers-spoilers-thread-4, where spoilers are positively welcomed!

For newer listeners, lurkers or those who just have no idea what we're talking about, DadDadDad has created this useful thread: www.mumsnet.com/Talk/radio_addicts/3557323-For-Archers-fans-a-guide-to-acronyms-on-the-long-running-discussion-threads-and-any-other-meta-thread-questions-you-may-have BOOP point for him! (See thread for explanation.)

Thanks to LillianGish and BuckingFrolics for ideas for this thread title. I went with the less Rabelaisian of LG's ideas!

On 14th June it will be the 100th birthday of June Spencer, who has played Peggy Woolley since 1951. I hope the BBC has a lot of special tributes lined up to celebrate this remarkable achievement.

🔮 And that Alistair is actually the other man’s bio-son?

🔮 says Jim has always suspected this. It will all come out now and eventually Jim will realise it doesn't matter any more, but not before lots of angst.

Might explain Jims hostility to Shula (doesn't trust women) and distant relationship with Alistair growing up.

Yes. But the 🔮 says it's likely to be St Smugula with her hitherto-unsuspected counselling skills who will get Jim to spill the whole story.

It's not sure on this point though.

Maybe Jim suspected but now evidence proving Alistair is his son will be discovered? It somehow doesn’t feel like a doom story - it needs a happy ending.

(I need a happy ending after the latest ep of Years and Years ...)

But there was a pointed comment comparing younger Jim in photos of yore with Al at the same age. Shula said they looked the same.

I wondered if Jim was reason man was in wheelchair - will listen again.

Suggesting, surely R4 that Jim’s fears are unfounded?

If that’s the case Lil’G then one would imagine the man hasn’t come to Ambridge overflowing with love ...

Speaking of which, wasn’t Tim’s villain voice ridiculous?

What Fiona says is “He’s the son of a friend of granny and grandad’s - I’m not sure who he’s come with” - suggesting she wasn’t entirely sure who he was or why he was there I thought.

But the 🔮 says it's likely to be St Smugula with her hitherto-unsuspected counselling skills who will get Jim to spill the whole story. Oh yes - that explains all that rubbish from Freddie about Smugula being easy to talk to.

What Fiona says is “He’s the son of a friend of granny and grandad’s - I’m not sure who he’s come with” - suggesting she wasn’t entirely sure who he was or why he was there I thought. Which suggests that Jim has recognised the mysterious friend and that's why he's running away.

Jim definitely knew who he was and presumably why he had come - the spectre at the feast.

Husband reminds me it’s not real life...but a surprise party never seems like a good/ kind idea < it could just be me >

Can someone remind me what these dodgy chemicals are that Ed's delivering - are there barrels of stuff that are worth people getting all mafioso about?

Pesticide, according to Willyum.

I'm wondering if we could have an abuse story with Jim, and the family 'friend.'

Assuming the friend of the grandparents is roughly the same age as the grandparents (who must be long dead) then the son would around the age of Alistair’s parents - so around Jim’s own age. Maybe the man in the wheelchair is someone who used to bully Jim. What is curious is that Fiona and Alistair don’t seem to know him while Jim clearly does. Is there some significance in them both being packed off to boarding school. Very curious as Jim was clearly distressed by seeing the man. I can’t remember how the guests were selected and invited.

If neither Alistair nor Fiona invited the man then he must have invited himself - having heard about the party on the local grapevine.

Perhaps it’s Fiona who may not be Jim’s biological child? (She’s a phenomenally busy actor - I’ve been wondering what the attraction of thruppence a week TA was. It would be amazing to have her in the regular cast - but unless Fiona marrries or becomes pregnant by an Archer next week ... I must admit I was weighing up every character she was introduced to, as potential relationship material.)

If neither Alistair nor Fiona invited the man then he must have invited himself If they invited him by phone or letter/email they wouldn't necessarily know what he looked like although you would have thought he would have introduced himself when he arrived.

I must admit I was weighing up every character she was introduced to, as potential relationship material me too George - and also thinking thank goodness it wasn’t a repeat of the ludicrous episode with Camilla.

Of course the grandparents friends could have been significantly older or younger than them and so the man in the wheelchair could be be correspondingly older or younger than Jim. I feel the wheelchair is significant - you would be likely to know if someone used a wheelchair and want to ensure that everything was accessible for instance. I’m just imagining if I had been organising such a party for my own father - overthinking as usual...

Fiona was lovely. Normal, friendly, sympathetic and empathetic. She stands out because when was the last time a new character was any of those?

We've had Camilla, Hannah, Jakob, Gnasher, Tim Oatey Aneesha- all of whom you'd run a mile from.

Fairbrother père was lovely but with a hint of cartoon villain. Poor, forgotten Lee probably was too but he had the ever- present threat of will he turn out to be a bad 'un hanging over him.

Very true Lass - she felt like a real person who you could easily believe was Alistair’s sister rather than a new character introduced for dramatic effect - the kind of Casualty casting referenced earlier in the thread where the character has an immediately obvious built-in flaw which sticks out a mile.

Poor old Lee was never going to be a bad 'un, he was just bland and uninteresting.

Unlike Fiona. I hope that whatever it is that's upset Jim, it results in her hanging around for a while. Academics sometimes have a bit of flexibility during the summer.

Sorry, that was ambiguous- I meant Fiona isn't bland and uninteresting, not that she's likely to turn out to be a bad 'un!

Agree that Fiona's sheer normalness came as a blessed relief. Funny you should mention Casualty, though - Adjoa Andoh played quite a major character in it for a number of years (nurse Colette Griffiths) and duly took her fair share of sensational/unlikely storylines.