The Archers #109: Pulp Fiction! Hammer Horror (Tracy), Carry On (Brian & Neil), Call the Midwife (Adam, Ian, Lexi) - but no political thrillers, Ambridge remains Brexit-free. Nitpick here!

[Gasp0deTheW0nderD0g]

Thank you, @PseudoBadger, for kicking off this long, long series of Archers threads.

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. grin

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 Bucking Frolics and LillianGish for the title ideas, which I had to edit down a bit to get under the character limit.

I wonder if Lily will have gone back to Manchester by the time we've filled this thread.

Campion. See TeenPlusTwenties's pp.

Of course, since this is TA, something will happen the night (always a night in TA? Not sure about that) Lexi goes into labour and whoever she’s chosen as a birth companion won’t be available. I’ve not been paying attention but who other than Ian and Adam are supposed to be there? Jenny will of course want to be there. I hope she’ll be told to F off. I’m wondering if in fact Roy will end up being a great support person. Or Ambridge’s only midwife, Amy.

Oh yes! Particularly as we’ve been told about the dedicated plans Adam and Ian have made to be there.

Either Roy or Jenny would be excellent. Or, perhaps, Lynda?

Nonetheless they had a genuine altruistic offer and turned it down.

That certainly wasn't a genuine offer - it was motivated by Kate's passing fancy for swanning around for 9 months claiming sainthood, to say nothing of taking large wodges of Adam's money. She's never done anything altruistic in her life.

Jenny might be good as a birth companion - I’m less sure she’d be good as Lexi’s birth companion.

I doubt that they'll go down the disabled child route again after Bethany.

I seem to have missed how Lexi ended up staying with Lynda, can someone explain? I thought Lynda handled Jennifer beautifully.

UnholyStramash
Of course, since this is TA, something will happen the night (always a night in TA? Not sure about that)
Nic's waters broke while she was waiting at the bus-stop for the school bus to arrive! Emma had to collect her children for her and take them home.

chemenger
I seem to have missed how Lexi ended up staying with Lynda, can someone explain?
She didn't want to stay with AdamanIan and so they booked her into a B&B.

Lexi was feeling suffocated. Jennifer said to Lynda that she was getting plenty of rest, because she was being waited on hand and foot, and Lynda replied that that may have been the problem.

Sorry but have to come back to this

'basically you think the only people who should be able to have children are fertile heterosexual couples and women in general'

Women yes, only women can have babies. Infertile couples can try IVF but as shocking as it may be, why not? To clarify, a child of their own that is? As someone who has been in long term lesbian relationships I would have adopted had I not married a man, or I have friends who have had babies, two gay couples coparenting together. Adoption is the obvious answer though isn't it? There are plenty of children in need of a home, of love and attention you don't need to pay a stranger to make your own one to the detriment of theirs and the child's wellbeing and I do think removing a newborn from the mother who carried them is detrimental to their wellbeing.

Everyone seems so focussed on wants now. You wouldn't give a child everything they wanted. I want to eat pudding everyday and be a size 8 but hey ho.

Anyway no disrespect to anyone of other opinions and apologies to the thread police. PP whom tentatively likened surrogacy to prostitution, I agree entirely.

*every day dammit

If I had to choose a birth partner from the likely candidates I’d go for Lynda.

I'm wondering if Lexi might give birth at the Flower and Produce Show and win the prize for the most unusual bun (in the oven).

Lexi wants to avoid anyone with a farming background as birth partner. When I was very pregnant at a graduation sherry do as a lecturer a sheep farming parent offered to drive me over some rough ground in a land rover to “get things moving”, apparently it works for ewes. I also heard a story of a dental student who grew up on a sheep farm who had to observe a couple of babies being born as part of her course. She was on the point of expressing alarm when the head was coming first, which is good in humans but bad in sheep, but managed to stop herself in time.

Same here Chem. I certainly wouldn't want Jennifer there. She already thinks the baby is hers to look after, if she's at the birth, that would just reinforce that.

Perhaps it should be Eddie, he is very good in a crisis, definitely not Will though.

I've dutifully scrolled back Mike and I can see lots of posts by TeenPlusTwenties. I assume you mean the one about which aspects of a storyline we can discuss on here.

My own comments have just about kept within the parameters of what is actually going on in Ambridge.That's what this thread's about,obviously. But if there is an 'ishoo' building up slowly into a potentially major storyline,it seems fair enough to me to discuss it.

The editorial team know that this is a divisive topic and it's just possible that there may be an agenda,especially given the current government consultation on surrogacy.

Flower and Produce, Pip'nJosh, Jill's cakes, lambs to the slaughter etc etc also all worthy topics.

@AskingQuestionsAllTheTime - another daytime birth was Ben’s. There have been a few.

I should add though that the majority of baby mammals are born at night - helps the endorphins- so that’s possibly the case in Ambridge too.

I was thinking when you all began discussing surrogacy and its pros and cons that maybe that’s what the writers want. It is a hugely contentious subject. Getting the listeners discussing the ishoos means they don’t have to. A bit like the disabled child SL being avoided which annoyed so many of us when Bethany moved to Brum.

didn't Lexi say her other kids were getting interested in the baby
it must surely be very odd if your mum has a baby and then gives it away?
I'm hoping she gives birth and instantly realises this is the new sibling her girls have wanted...

I’ve checked back over my many posts today and only one talks about surrogacy generally, with no reference to TA. Mostly I was commenting on Kate’s utter inability to be altruistic, Ian and Adam’s ages and my feeling that the SWs will not go down the all-too-predictable route of Lexi not handing over the baby/running away. However I thought she and Roy had a bit of a rapprochement in that recent episode and my money is on them getting back together when the dust has settled, possibly to the slight consternation of Adam and Ian who has thought she would be further away- she mentioned one of her daughters had got fond of the baby so maybe that daughter will want to come over and the other one will be old enough to go to university or something? (Hmm, but of course Brexit...maybe not)

Regarding the birth plan, I missed an episode I think where that was discussed. I would be very surprised if a surrogate automatically assumed that the adopting couple should be there at the birth. That is a very very intimate thing for a woman who does not have an intimate relationship with them. I think she’d be perfect rly within her rights to draw the line at having either of them there. After all, it’s not that long since it was not even standard for Dads to be at the birth of children borne by their sexual partners. If I were Lexi I’d be asking them to pay for a good Doula for me, and wait outside till it was all over.

I think it was originally meant to be a Brexit Babeh - Lexi giving birth in Bulgaria after Brexit and heartbreak and difficulties getting the baby back to UK. Events have meant lots of story-rejigging required.

Thank you Asking for the LL acreage.

They have a treetop walk and a vineyard that nobody mentions (excellent job for Freddie in due course), but I can't remember any mention of sheep/cows/tractors so it is presumably lawn/grassland? In a few years time they could have shepherds huts and safari tents with minimal outlay and Ruari/Ben/Freddie could drive the guests round in safari vehicles.

If only Lily took some time to have a drink with Phoebe.

Personally I'd prefer to surrogacy debate to wander off to AIBU or something. Alternatively maybe we need a "Mumsnetters review the Archers Threads" thread.

On the plus side I found an Archers book on (free) google books. I'll try to post a link later tonight.

So, David has suggested the co-op buy the abattoir. Wonder if the SW saw me suggesting that a couple of weeks ago?

Tracy pulled a fast one on Elizabeth!

Actually I stand corrected ...Kenton made me laugh out loud recently when he checked that Shulas announcement about going into the church didn’t mean she was popping into St Stephens!