🍾 Archers thread 123: Goodbye & good riddance to 2020 – to Philip too? The Archers is 70 on New Year’s Day – celebrate or vent about it 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 wish we heard more from Shula, 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.)

So! 2021 beckons. Big anniversary next Friday, 1.1.21 (and to mark that we have episodes Tuesday-Friday next week). What would we like to see happen? I may be in a minority of one, but I'd like a nice gentle character-driven episode. I don't think we'll get that, but I really, really hope they don't kill someone else off, just for the headlines.

[Title edited by MNHQ at OP'S request]

I would far rather have Brian and Jenny as neighbours rather than Kirsty monitoring my recycling. I’m not surprised Brian had a go at her - she is always on her high horse and unless you are a close friend or a regular listener, it really is hard to believe she knew nothing. Also he was cross after the encounter with Harrison and she was simply in the firing line. I doubt he would have gone that far if he hadn’t just got a ticket.
I agree with this but can't agree about Harrison. H has decided that he has failed to spot crimes because he was too soft on his neighbours. The sensible thing to do would ask to be transferred to another patch but H decides instead that the best plan of action is to start persecuting them for minor infringements. He has already been deposed as cricket captain; how much more social opprobrium does he want?

Let me think...

Live next to Brian and Jenny, get invited in for drinks, nibbles and lovely meals.

Live next to Kirsty, get lectured about recycling, asked to join in litter picking, sign petitions about stuff, (none of which I would find objectionable, but I'd rather have a nice G&T and a smoked salmon vol au vent).

And also I won't have a word said against Brian.

@Trumplosttheelection

The aspirin was mentioned twice. I fear it may be as a preventative measure, anti miscarriage, after she lost that baby some years ago. Poor Kirsty, with that and the biscuits, up the duff I fear. How tedious.

They'd have signalled it more if she were up the duff. I was taking aspirin for a headache yesterday and I've eaten more biscuits than I should today, and I'm definitely not pregnant.

@Chemenger

And also I won't have a word said against Brian.

I find myself far more forgiving of Brian. Smooth voice, usually good manners, generally generous ...

@Ratched

Oh God, I hope Kirsty isnt pregnant, that would be so lazy, so obvious. I love Brian and was cheering him on when he was winding Kirsty up I am afraid😁

Any Archers episode is improved when Brian is in it😉

Me too, I'm afraid. Kirsty is quite dreary. Remember the terrible fuss she made about the noise from Brian and Jenny's dinner party when they first moved in?

I noticed the shoehorned in comment by Helen about Kirsty having put her own money into the house. I'm sure this is the first we heard of it. No doubt in finest Ambridge tradition , where no- one ever takes legal advice, Kirsty won't be on the title deed and will lose it all.

Absolutely, and I'm really hoping we get to hear Jennifer remind him of this when he proudly tells her about the encounter with Kirsty in the shop

Yes that is what I'm hoping.

Kirsty is (was) a wildlife worker - hardly surprising that she was angry with Brian whose greed and illegal activities resulted in pollution and damage to a large area of the environment and polluted the river.

find myself far more forgiving of Brian. Smooth voice, usually good manners, generally generous ...

Oh sure, Brian would be the better guest to meet at drinks and he is one of my favourite characters.

But smooth voice, good manners and a healthy bank account etc enable the Brians and Justins of the world to get away with blue murder. The Grundys would likely have gone to jail whereas Brian got away with a fine.

I really enjoyed last night's episode. I thought Brian's outburst was very much in character, given he was seething after being stopped by Harrison. Jim and Brian don't like each other and Kirsty and Jim enjoy birdwatching so it wasn't surprising he defended her.

Brian would be much more fun as a dinner party host than Kirsty but Kirsty is better on the environment.

Kirsty is better on the environment.
Is she, though? She's very good at carping from the sidelines but she hasn't done anything big. She's only a litter-picking volunteer at the Trust, not local Lead. She's all mouth and no trousers (eg she let Philip get away with all his plastic, energy-guzzling Christmas tat; she didn't stop him).

Good point R4!
I’m really enjoying the current episodes.

C8H10N4O2
Brian can bluster all he likes but the reason he lost his house and a sodding great chunk of money was because he knowingly broke the law.

He absolutely did not. At the time he was retrofitted as having not asked what was being used to fill in a stagnant pond on his land, point a, it wasn't illegal and point b, he didn't know what had been done.

Kirsty was absolutely vile to and about both Brian and the innocent Jennifer when she assumed (before there was any evidence) that Brian had deliberately polluted her newly-invented "Ambridge tradition" of going swimming in the Am on New Year's Day. She then mounted a campaign of vilification against him, and took advantage of them moving in next door to her to complain about the noise they made having a party at eight in the evening and persecute them at every possible excuse.

She's oh so caring -- so long as it isn't about people she dislikes.

And yes, it was Brian's crops she and Tom destroyed when she had just been heard of, back at the end of last century.

I can't remember: did Kirsty put in a bid for Peggy's money?

He absolutely did not. At the time he was retrofitted as having not asked what was being used to fill in a stagnant pond on his land, point a, it wasn't illegal and point b, he didn't know what had been done

He was found guilty, despite expensive representation.

It was his responsibility as landowner to ensure responsible use of land. He made money by allowing a group known as dodgy in the area to dump stuff. He admitted as much when he was talking about not looking too closely as they needed the money.

And yes, it was Brian's crops she and Tom destroyed when she had just been heard of, back at the end of last century

But it was ok for Brian to risk Pat'n'Tony's livelihood by threatening their organic status? Which was one of the key issues for Tom.

She's very good at carping from the sidelines but she hasn't done anything big.

Very true R4. And it was Jill not Kirsty who threw the Protest Flapjack. Next time Kirsty says anything about the environment, I shall mutter 'all mouth and no trousers' in a derisive way!

Well I have sympathy with Kirsty as she was the village resident most directly affected by Brian's pollution - as she discovered it whilst swimming in the Am. Did Brian ever apologise for putting her health at risk?

C8H10N4O2
He was found guilty, despite expensive representation.

Erm, no; he pleaded guilty to a specific offence of which he was accused (owning land which had in the distant past had chemicals dumped on it) because he did own that land. There was no trial (apart from that by his wife and her son) at which he was found guilty of anything else; no other charge was brought against him.

There was no trial (apart from that by his wife and her son) at which he was found guilty of anything else; no other charge was brought against him.

He pleaded guilty. and his baristers pled various mitigations which kept him out of jail. He admitted to David (or was it Eddie?) that he knew the dumping brothers were dodgy and Phil had refused to let them dump on Brookfield precisely because of their dodgy reputation.

He took short cuts and turned a blind eye to make money. That resulted in pollution of the local area. I'm not sure how he is innocent.

I'm not feeling a lot of love for Kirsty on here,all of a sudden!

Despite Brian having just come from his encounter with the pompous Harrison, his unprovoked tongue lashing of Kirsty didn't ring true for me. It just felt staged. He has impeccable manners usually so wouldn't have started on Kirsty without provocation from her.

Not saying she didn't deserve it though.

I think even a riled up Brian would have been more considered in his attack on Kirsty, so I agree it was uncharacteristic. I do think he would have said something quite calculated and cutting rather than that rather brutal and clumsy assault.

I love Kirsty too.
but I can't stand Pip

I think Kirsty might find her bank account is a)frozen in case it's profits of a crime or b) emptied by philip.

I also think she's going to try and rescue the lads.

She probably does have Gavin's phone number, and he might answer the phone to her when he wouldn't to his mum in case she got the cops on him.