💥 Archers thread #119: Has the Bull reopened? Will Ambridge pull through? We’ve all dozed off and haven't a clue. Moan about the monologues 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 think we should have monologues all the time from now on, 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/3853783--The-Archers-spoilers-thread-5-Cant-wait-for-7-02pm-Join-us-here, 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 PPE on the last thread for the title suggestion, which I tweaked a bit.

As for the current state of affairs: here's how it could have been done. www.youtube.com/channel/UCvRSVdfQWAjNhNu1AtABYjw Nigel Pargetter returns, albeit in spectral form. I loved these.

I don't love the current set up. Very, very hit and miss for me - but I am too much of an addict to give it up. Looking for a silver lining, maybe the rather clunky trot through the Aldridge family tree last night was helpful to newer listeners. It is rather convoluted. In 12.5 minutes they managed to explain that Adam and Debbie are Jennifer's children by different fathers, that Debbie's father Roger Travers-Macy adopted Adam, that after he and Jenny divorced she married Brian and that he (secretly) loves Adam and not nearly so secretly adores Debbie. I don't think they explicitly stated that Kate and Alice are Brian's children with Jenny, but they did manage to squeeze in a mention of Siobhan and Ruairi, and explain that Xander is Adam's son by a surrogate and has no genetic connection to either Brian or Xander's other father Ian. Phew!

They don’t seem to have had any minimum standards for these monologues. Or perhaps they do and some absolute horrors have been binned?

I loved hearing him talk about Xander's first steps. His delivery grates but I can out up with it.

I agree that first steps and playing farms is at least 18 months apart in development.
Alice drinking due to boredom made me think of Vilanelle in Killing Eve (only just discovered but watched series 1 and 2) who is bored with life so murder is a bit of excitement. So it could be worse!

@LaureBerthaud, because that's how they said it.

I

I keep checking in on this thread to see if I should start listening again, But it sounds like I’m doing the right thing in staying away.

I think the Alice story is good actually @MrsGrindah

I think it is too. It didn't take long for Kristiffur to find the empty vodka bottle.

The surprise is that he found only one, empty bottle. I thought she was storing her booze-cellar in the shed.

I agree that first steps and playing farms is at least 18 months apart in development

True but Adam's over 50 and he was the one playing. Its definite PFB parenting though - lovingly setting up the toys which are at least a year too old for the child, who gaily stomps right over it to play in the box

Pobblebonk Depends on the school, doesn't it? I grew up in a town full of independent schools - 3 were big, well-respected school, and had facilities better than the local grammars, and bit 6th forms. Then there were another clutch whose raison d'etre seemed to be to cater for girls who'd failed the 11-plus whose parents didn't want them to go to a secondary modern. Understandably, their academic standards were lower and their sixth forms were small.

I think the starter marriage is over. I suppose they could limp on a bit longer but Alice is being buried alive.

Didn’t Alice get a new horse recently to go back to competing? What happened there?

So sorry for second post in 15 mins but it occurs to me that Alice needs to talk to Kate. She would understand Alice’s feelings of suffocation and encourage her to follow her inner spirit to find true happiness and contentment. I have never thought of the two of them as likely sisters (and have always thought Alice was more like Debbie than Kate) but actually I can now see some parallels. And Kate would totally support Alice in taking a stand against being steam-rollered into a job-share with Adam.

Kate would probably tell Alice to take a gap year and go backpacking- which is probably exactly what she needs.

Boop to the SWs for finally pulling a rabbit out of the monologue hat!

Alice is getting strangely interchangeable with Kate. That sense of entitlement is very familiar, as is the way she can work herself up into massive self-righteous indignation at being accused of something that she has in fact done.

Obviously all of that could be accounted for by family resemblance and upbringing, but Alice has always been portrayed as much brighter and much more grounded in reality. I know alcoholics can deceive themselves massively, but I wouldn't have thought Alice is far enough down the road to alcoholism to have reached that stage.

I have never thought of the two of them as likely sisters ...

Oh, they're two peas in a pod! They sound alike, and as if they've grown up together. Remember the recent (pre-monologue) episode with the two of them at Peggy's house?

and have always thought Alice was more like Debbie than Kate

I've said it before, but for me the Aldridge sisters' relationship is one of the greatest joys of TA. They just work so well together. I treasure the memory of their conversation on Debbie's last (?) visit.

Alice’s feelings of suffocation ... being steam-rollered into a job-share with Adam
Welcome to the Aldridge world view! Emma would love to have a well-paid job land in her lap due to a bit of nepotism.
Adam is a rubbish manager. How did he ever think that "Brian and I have discussed, and we have decided ..." was the way to sell the job to Alice?

The job thing is much too Eastenders/Corrie for me. Walk out of your job at 2.15 pm? Oh, look - cajoled into new job at 2.17 pm.

I was wondering what Chris will do now. Who are his friends? Who can he tell that he suspects his wife of drinking in hiding during the day?

Could he speak to Roy? I really feel for Chris.

The job thing is much too Eastenders/Corrie for me. Walk out of your job at 2.15 pm? Oh, look - cajoled into new job at 2.17 pm I completely agree. The descent into alcoholism is realistic, the job thing is an utter contrivance.

I think the job is mainly a plot contrivance for Alice to fall spectacularly.

She certainly seems to expect to fail, which I should think makes it more likely that she will.

And did she actually get permission from Brian to pay Ed double?

Brian expects her to succeed. She's his golden girl. Adam is a control freak and permanently at odds with Brian. Alice will be stuck in the middle. This is the worst job offer she will ever get.