Thread #106: Jim’s in a jam, Peggy’s made a pickle and Lexi is blooming - sounds like the entries are lining up for this year’s flower and produce show, but who will be on the organising committee?

[Gasp0deTheW0nderD0g]

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 for the title of this thread.

Holding episode tonight, I thought - not much progress on any current storyline. I was a touch surprised Natasha wasn't offended by the postnup idea but I suspect she's biding her time.

I'm in my mid 40s and still don't know what I want to do when I grow up :o

That's the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, isn't it, DDD? My daughter went there.

Re walking. I agree it’s not unusual or alarming, just unusual for it to be mentioned.

Oops; sorry, DDD, missed a page!

Walking: I thought what was said was Rosie was still not deciding to do it, which I suppose means standing swaying and holding onto something for balance, and then sitting down instead of moving off. I remember one of mine doing that for about three weeks and all of us wondering when she'd get round to her first steps, before she suddenly launched herself towards the far side of the room, didn't know how to stop and went face-first into the arm of a chair.

Where is everybody? No comment on here since 4 o'clock?

Amazing how Pat says "good old Natasha for talking Tom round". After Helen, you think she might at least pause to think if Tom is "under her thumb" (or insert own potentially sexist cliche here).

We haven't heard Justin in ages, but the duelling with Lillian was quite entertaining.

Poor Tom. Clueless.

Justin is alive! I was starting to think Lillian had buried him in the back garden or he'd run off with a younger woman. What was all that 'Mr Elliott', 'Mrs Bellamy' stuff? Was it just trying to remind us about the non-marriage?

I barely recognised his voice to start with. It got me thinking: there's loads of ex-regulars I wouldn't know if they came back now with the same actor. Not counting Jamie etc. whose voice would have changed. But I definitely wouldn't have a clue who Kathy was if she came back for a coffee with Pat and her name wasn't mentioned.

Good point DDD. But then again, I could not believe how oblivious Helen's family were to Rob's abuse. I know she hid it from everybody (not victim-blaming) but there were times when it just seemed so obvious that something was very wrong.

If my dp had behaved like that at our village quiz night he would be my ex by about 5 minutes after the results were announced. What an arsehole.

The SWs just can’t do comedy, can they?

Conscious as I am that I'm posting lots of pissed -off observations, but I find the Jolene on tour and Lillian filling in, the former more than the latter, entirely unconvincing. Or is it one of those things where an absence means the actor is very ill rather than acting elsewhere?

Of all the characters and their backstories that I find unconvincing, Lillian and Justin are the worst. Especially Justin. His transformation from hard headed Rob supporting evil cow-tycoon to cuddly life and soul of the quiz night is mega annoying. And what is happening with Amside?

You mean the Amside that formerly needed Pusscat, Tiger and LongLostBrenda working flat out into the night pretty much seven days a week?

Runs itself daaaahling.

Lilian only has to make one phone call a week, in the car, on the way to her nails appointment. What’sherface in the office (the woman Maurice admires) has either been let go or works from home ... I guess we should assume that Damara has rationalised the operation through robots and AI ...

Yep. That Amside. The Amside that nobody in Ambridge ever consults when looking for somewhere to live....

Couldn’t agree more about Justin Bert. I couldn’t help wondering if he and Lillian were there as some sort of compare and contrast to Tom and Gnasher (they hadn’t got married or had any sort of “nup” in spite of both having business interests) otherwise I’m struggling to understand what that was all about. Do we really believe the signet ring had been in the D Day landings - what was that all about?

Jolene on tour, did seem quite sudden. I don't remember any mention of it, before she went, so maybe the actress is ill, and they had to hastily write the tour into the script to explain her absence.

Tiresome episode. That's all I can summon the energy to say about it!

Yes the Carters and the Grundy's Lauder Susan would classify herself as ASPIRING (sorry for using caps I get get\find my italic tile) , lower middle !

I do know know of a few ruthless 'bosses' who put fun faces on in the right environment Bert

Given that Kathy - formerly a fairly regular cast-member - was just cast into outer darkness forevermore with barely a token mention, I'm surprised they bother with the fiction of sending Jolene 'on tour' (surely one of the most improbable SLs ever, given what we've heard of her 'singing'). But I suppose they think it might sound odd if she doesn't utter in any of the frequent pub scenes.

Usha seems to be going the same way as Kathy, if she hasn't gone already.

Yes I miss Usha , not so much Kathy, Roy mentions her sometimes in GG context though. Even Alan hasn't mentioned Usha recently.

Emma is a Parish Councillor and would probably be well within her rights to mention to Peggy about the wider village if the fund is really for the benefit of Ambridge as a whole

I doubt Emma's rudeness has anything to do about the village as a whole, more to do with Emma! Her newly found environmental credentials will take a battering when Ed's clandestine activites are exposed.

What happened at the Quiz Night, I seem to have missed an episode, bloody Wimbledon!

the fiction of sending Jolene 'on tour'…. given what we've heard of her 'singing'.

So true! All that facebook fandom yet she sounded like my mum doing karaoke

Another question for those of you who seem to have encyclopaedic historic knowledge (thank you and have you actually been listening since the very start?! I was very impressed with whoever answered the question about the cherry trees and think you must have compiled files complete with indexing and cross-references ). How did Jazzer come to be living in Ambridge?

Do we think he'll ever find (reciprocal) love?

Emma is a Parish Councillor and would probably be well within her rights to mention to Peggy about the wider village if the fund is really for the benefit of Ambridge as a whole

But it's a family matter so no more of her business than their childcare arrangements. It's as if she were to poke her nose into a Peggy's Will. I blame the SWs who have not thought this one out. Again.

Justin turned up unexpectedly and made up Team 'Village Idiot' with Pat, Tony and Johnny. There followed some bizarre badinage between Justin who was being pedantic, and Lillian who was keen to stamp her Quizmaster authority on proceedings. Then Tom and Natasha also made a surprise appearance and announced they will go ahead with the pre-nup. They have also decided they will put in a bid for Peggy's money but haven't shared that with anyone yet.

The SWs just can’t do comedy, can they?

I do still smile recalling Susan and Neil's chilli nights