🎭 Archers thread 125: Ambridge Mysteries! The Case Of The Missing Pandemic. Where Is Pat? What Is Lynda Snell's Kompromat? Follow the clues and 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’d love to be in the Mysteries, 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 for thread title ideas to @Roysnewshirt and @Witchwife. Apologies if I’ve forgotten anyone else.

Do we think the Mysteries replace the usual fun storylines around giving things up for Lent? Light relief while we wait to see if the SWs go for realism and tragedy when Alice’s baby is born, or bottle out (as it were) and go for everything being fine? Will Jazzer and Tracy get back together again? (No bookie in the land would take money for that, of course they will.)

Over to you!

Oh no. I forgot Hannah. Will she be the new tenant?
She's been strangely quiet.

It would be nice if Cursedy had gone for it and set up her own business, but we wouldn't have the Mystery Plays.

But Kirsty doesn't farm? Re-wilding is about all she'd be good for, and then only in a support role. (It pains me to say so, given how promising she was a few decades ago.)

She doesn't but there's no reason why she couldn't. Lynda got llamas with no previous experience. She's a keen gardener and has worked in an organic shop, and for a health club.

She could grow her own botanicals for a beauty product or something.

Tbh I'd be relieved if Kirsty were finally to grasp some permanent stake in Ambridge (or wherever the council farm is). I've felt constantly uneasy with such a long-standing and prominent character having nothing of their own in the area.

She's a catalyst. I like Cursedy, i think she is well acted and in contrast to some other well acted characters has a more natural accent.

It's beyond ridiculous to imagine that someone who had just effectively lost both their new home and their new husband would be running around bullying people into joining or leaving some pointless theatrical nonsense - but it strikes me, somewhat tardily, that I have known people do exactly that.

Just realised, hearing the announcement of Zara Phillips/Tindall's third baby, that, in my head, she is Alice. Looks/personality/interests wise. Although Alice isn't actually part of the royal family. Only an Aldridge....

Oh how lovely. i'm so pleased for them.

I did wonder when MT was criticised on here for a comment that he might have been pulling our leg.

Martha has two grandmothers, plus aunts Emma and Kate, uncles (opportunities for Martha to have playdates with Zander) cousin Phoebe, etc etc

True, Dulcinae. But being realistic (why? this is TA, and if the programme makers can't be bothered to be, why should we?):

JD is in her seventies and has already declined to do childcare for the baby dear Adam and Ian bought;
Susan works at two jobs;
Kate didn't do childcare much for her own brats, let alone anyone else's;
Emma has two jobs, plus potentially the parish council, plus her own kids;
Phoebe is no use to man nor beast as far as I can see, and really, why should she get involved?
Adam and Ian: hahahaha.(also, not actually 'Ambridge women', if you want to be technical about it).

While Brian is obviously a broken reed when it comes to hands-on child containment, I think that he is likely to react far more sympathetically than JD to Alice's predicament, and be less than impressed with Chris. JD, despite having been horrified at the marriage originally, will see Chris as being 'wonderful' with the baby and be disappointed/disgusted with Alice. [well, in my head, that's how it would be]

I missed that bit. Why only the grandmothers and aunts?

Alice has two half-brothers, Martha has two grandfathers. She has a half-cousin in Zander.

@PursuingProxemicExactitude

Sorry Asking - I wasn't talking about today. I was trying to recall whether Rex went ahead with the council application on his own or whether he had, in the end, graciously allowed Toby to join in. Because if the former, I'd be surprised if Toby hadn't himself put in an application. And if Toby applied, he'd have got it.

No chance. "I have literally no experience of farming and want a farm to put a gin distillery on" wouldn't get him the farm.

Oh dear, @Roysnewshirt, you're clearly a beginner at this ill-wishing malarkey. What Chris deserves is to be left holding this baby he thought he wanted and to discover in quick succession that he didn't actually want the reality of a child at all

Oh @theThreeofWeevils! Of course - you’re absolutely right! You can tell I am still a rookie! He would absolutely hate that...and would be hugely embarrassed that he had failed in his mission to have the perfect family with his beautiful Stepford wife. Got to get better at this...

No chance. "I have literally no experience of farming and want a farm to put a gin distillery on" wouldn't get him the farm.

.... in the real world.

Emma has two jobs, plus potentially the parish council, plus her own kids;

I've lost track of Emma's jobs. Is she still at the chicken factory, or did she pack it in when she was no longer saving for the house?

I suspect Toby may well hold the key to Rex's problems. Either he really talked up his unrivalled turkey farming experience to get the council farm tenancy, or he will use his profits from selling the gin business to buy land part of which he offers to Rex (maybe as a tenant) whilst he builds up his next venture with the rest.

Blimey that was a bore- and completely irrelevant to anything.

@Poppins2016

They already seem to be dragging this out longer than most productions... but if it goes on until June I think I might go on strike and stop listening!

I haven’t listened for a week - I just can’t stand the storyline. Or indeed several of the other storylines...

Oh bloody hell why can I never make the bold work

Oh, I dunno, MissBarbary - it was kind of hilarious to observe the Ambridge Re-wilding Project morphing into the Aldridge Clan Project. I wonder how much longer Rex will be even theoretically involved.

And perhaps Susan's new found core strength will save her life when she drives the horse to attempt motorway suicide.

*Nith
I suspect Toby may well hold the key to Rex's problems.

Yeah; he dragged him to Ambridge in the first place.

DeusEx, bold only works if the s are right up against the word you want in bold; if there is a space between and word at the beginning or the end, or a paragraph break in the middle anywhere, bold fails.

And my post there is what happens when you use * to demonstrate and don't notice there are two of them!

New here havmt really whole thread but isn't Rex's character morphing unrealistically? I thought he was the "nice" one??

I still can't reliably remember which of the Fairbrethren does what. Or whose voice is whose. I can usually work it out if I really put my mind to it. But I don't want to have to put my mind to it!

Toby is the charming, younger brother. Light hearted, optimistic, no strings attached father to a Brookfield heiress. Last time we heard from him he was just about to sell his artisan Scruff Gin business to a major firm - possibly for oodles of £££.

Rex is the other one.