🐴 Archers thread 124: And they're off! Pip on a high horse, Kirsty champing at the bit to find the lost ‘horses’, Alice on the wagon (or is she riding for a fall?). Discuss The Archers 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 Shula would make a brilliant vicar, 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 @PoulePouletteEternellement for the equine theme to the new thread title. I wanted to work in Rex being a dark horse and lots of others too, but (you may feel fortunately) there's a character limit for the title.

I wonder if this thread will see us through to the end of February. The last one filled up in under a month, which was like old times. All depends on what delights are in store for us in the coming weeks, I suppose. I'm hoping that Gavin has spilled the beans on Victoria, she's also arrested, and the lads are found. Having said that, I'm not confident that in the real world they would get the support and care they need to turn their lives around and get proper jobs. It was good to hear on the last thread from @Trickyboy, who has professional experience of investigating this vile crime. Any comments on how things turn out in the long run for those rescued?

Wasn't Philip asked to quote or whatever, but didn't get it because of poncy townie guy - Christian? Crispin?

I'm warming to Natasha but given that she's never shown any interest in Kirsty (I don't recall her ever even mentioning her in passing) last week's episode was a bit odd. I hope there isn't an Big Reveal connecting her to the Moss family. I can't get rid of a nagging feeling about the Welsh connection.

I'm warming to Natasha but given that she's never shown any interest in Kirsty (I don't recall her ever even mentioning her in passing)

Didn’t Tom and Gnatasha go over to the new Beechwood house soon after Philip and Kirsty moved in? I seem to remember them having a slightly strange evening pretending to all be good friends.

Gnatasha is deeply flawed but I would be surprised if she is a gangmaster too...

My recollection is that no building work on The Bull has been done since the aftermath of the flood, and Philip didn't exist when that was going on.

The revamping consisted of a new pub sign, as far as we ever heard, and some cocktails.

I thought the consultant was merely a consultant, not someone who would sully himself with actual hands-on work.

I remember Philip walking around the Bull with a tape measure and Kenton and Joelene and Lillian all hissing at each other. J and L wanted to implement the consultant’s changes and K kept telling Philip he wasn’t needed. It was all a bit panto and desperately dreary so I’m afraid I can’t tell you what the upshot was.

I remember the tape measure scene but didn’t think they did any actual building work in the end - I was trying to remember if Philip was wielding said tape measure but it escapes me and given that, as @AskingQuestionsAllTheTime says not much seemed to change other than the name, I came down on the side of “unlikely”

I agree @Roysnewshirt that it was both dreary and ludicrous so clearly it induced some collective amnesia in its audience

Yes, there was a painful evening when Tom and Philip met. I don't think Tom liked Philip much.

Yes Have remembered they didn't do anything because something made Lilian realise it was all nonsense... OH of course, wasn't it the GG fire and Lynda being in a coma, Lilian went straight round and said they could change the name back to The Bull from The B?

Yes the Tom and Philip scene was awful - and was one of the reasons I always saw Philip as a baddy. He waited until Kirsty wasn't there and then was very aggressive/bullying to Tom.

But then again I'm the type who cringes at certain boyfriend/girlfriend poses.

Oh yes molly I vaguely remember. That was the only time that we'd seen Philip's other side. Oo I'd like to hear that episode again now.

I'm warming to Natasha but given that she's never shown any interest in Kirsty (I don't recall her ever even mentioning her in passing) last week's episode was a bit odd

No reason why she should be interested in Tom's ex unless there was an ongoing attachment. I don't find it odd that she saw a need an acted on it - that is consistent with her and one reason why she and Tom will either fall apart or end up being a "ying and yan" pairing.

Buried, Langsdestiny, completely and inexplicably buried.... And no witnesses, so no one else around to raise it now. Such a waste of energy to set it up and then have no repercussions ... For CMR, anyway. This. What is the point of CMR? Are we supposed to forget how they got together or are we supposed to think that such relationships can work out and Elizabeth did the right thing all along by not interfering? Or are we waiting for CMR to go off again with a younger, more adoring model than Lily. I can understand how someone like Lily might have had her head turned by an older, more experienced man. I can't understand how the relationship can continue to run its course now he is basically an underling in her family home. It doesn't ring true. It feels like CMR is there for dramatic effect - the initial drama of their romance, his turning a blind eye to Freddie's drugs and so being instrumental in his downfall, a dramatic device to stop Lily settling at university and ultimately keep her rooted in Ambridge and for comedy (?) effect with his pretentious artistic babblings (though how someone who is pragmatic enough to take a job selling kitchens to make some cash can have any time for this is a compete mystery).

I hope there isn't an Big Reveal connecting her to the Moss family. I can't get rid of a nagging feeling about the Welsh connection.

Wales is a big place with a reasonably large population, and there's never been so much as a hint of any prior connection. I can't see it, really.

It works well for Russ. Free accommodation and food in a stately home, where he can swan around pretending to be an artist/artistic director. I don't doubt he'll be swanning off as soon as he gets a better offer,but it's going to be hard to beat this for now. I wonder how often Lily wonders how she got saddled with him, and what else might be out there, though.

I wonder how often Lily wonders how she got saddled with him, and what else might be out there, though

If I were Lily I might even be tempted to ask Freddie for Stef’s number..

It really is odd, when one thinks hard about it. Of all the young Ambridge / Archers women Lily had the greatest opportunity to go out into the world and fulfil her potential.

Pre-covid (and admittedly she might have returned for lockdown) she should have been living her best life, having a wildly studious time in Manchester or on a year abroad as part of her degree. Countless boyfriends, endless new experiences, really learning how to navigate the world as an independent human.

Instead ...

Just think - apart from that school trip to wherever it was (France / skiing somewhere??) that she was given when Freddie got ... a pony (?) - I cant recall if she's even left the UK under her own steam, ever. Extraordinary when she's the young woman other young women would long to be. (Apart from dead dad, obvs.)

She got involved with Russ just at the time most others her age would be planning gap years and so on. And then her mother had severe depression and her brother was in prison, so I can see she felt she had to keep all of them going rather than go and find herself elsewhere.

Wales is a big place with a reasonably large population, and there's never been so much as a hint of any prior connection. I can't see it, really.

Wales is the same size as Surrey and consists of Cardiff, some valleys, Barry Island and Anglesey, and some mountains with sheep on. That's it. Everyone from there speaks like them off Gavin and Stacey. Nobody speaks Welsh unless they spot a stranger. Fact.

Only joking.

Same size of Surrey in terms of population?

Pat's welsh too, isn't she?

Land area.