😱 Archers thread #130: The Fall of the House of Aldridge. 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 look forward to Shula's first sermon, or other unusual things.

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/4197199--The-Archers-spoilers-thread-6-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.)

I went for the obvious thread title this time. Poor Ruairi! We've had a good go on the last thread www.mumsnet.com/Talk/radio_addicts/a4289334--Archers-thread-129-Casey-Macy-Lily-Alice-Decent-types-or-full-of-malice-Discuss-The-Archers-here?msgid=109858475#109858475 at trying to work out where he's going and what he might be studying, as the SWs have not seen fit to tell us.

Whither now for Alice? Will Jennifer talk to Peggy soon? Good hint from Lilian the other day that at Peggy's age it's not wise to leave feuds bubbling on.

It's been a long time since we last heard from a certain Archer whose name I am not going to mention in case it acts as a summoning charm. Long may she remain unheard in the dairy or out in the fields, or better still somewhere near a sinkhole. That was a storyline that looked promising years ago and wasn't exploited as it could have been. Pah.

Over to you!

There was - Lexie. Lots of seasonal veg pickers from Ukraine and other parts of Eastern Europe. Brexit will have put paid to all of that.

Also, He Who Must Not Be Named was improbably married to an Albanian woman.

The SWs have given themselves a Get Out of Jail card by naming the silent family who now live at Home Farm Gill. This could be a Sikh name, I believe.

Aeons ago, Jean-Paul was the chef at Grey Gables. He was French. There were ties to various parts of the Commonwealth in the early decades when the BBC was attempting to sell TA to other English language broadcasters, hence the arrival of Lilian's first husband, who was Canadian, and Aunt Laura Archer, who was from NZ. Marjorie Antrobus had lived in Kenya.

Also, the vet who was involved with Rex Fairbrother was of Asian heritage (but grew up in Scotland). Anisha?

Jakob's family are Swedish.

Lexie the Pop Up Surrogate can’t have been around much more than a year though.

Surprised the Gills haven’t turned Home Farm into an air bnb in their absence.

Oooh think it must be a bit dusty in here [dabs eyes]

Usha waves a sign for help feebly from the cereal cupboard whilst Ruairi shuffles awkwardly past Jamie, Cathy and Brenda to take his place at the back next to Aunty Cardboard and Carol Tregorran. Pat looks on nervously as the SW's gaze falls on her.

Thank you for the new thread. Today is one of the days when I’m very grateful for it as I clearly dozed off towards the start of the episode & I’d never have known without the thread.

Is it just me or can anyone else only ever picture the ‘at home with the Aldridges’ scenes taking place at Home Farm. I know they’ve moved, but I think because we’ve never been back to the farmhouse - which might as well have been demolished for all the mention made of it - I can’t move on in my mind. Plot-wise I still don’t really understand why they had to move out at all - it was another case of huge drama leading nowhere. They’ve been put into storage in Willow Cottage, but I still don’t really believe they live there.

I still don’t really believe they live there.
Me neither. I suppose we haven't had any fabulous parties recently but, then, who has? I don't understand why there has been no effort to find somewhere else, somewhere owned. They could have bought some previously unheard-of cottage and employed Eddie to do it up for them - so many opportunities for hilarious bodges by hapless Grundys.

Hey, @Gasp0deTheW0nderD0g, no fury here! The fact that MN have merged it all into one thread means my spreadsheet can continue on seamlessly. Panic over...

Phewwwwwwwwwwwwwww.

Hello all, I'm a long time lurker on these threads. I live in the US so normally only listen to the omnibus, but I'm in England at the moment and enjoying a nightly family listen, so it seemed like a good time to come out of the closet (or the cereal cupboard).

Radio 4 was always on in the house as I grew up and I found The Archers wildly irritating, but in my twenties I got back into listening and now I can't imagine life without it, even when it's absolutely ludicrous.

Ruari is also my absolute favourite and I'm hoping he isn't really gone for a long time. He and Ben make up for having to listen to Helen and Pip wanging on.

Anyone else wondering where is alice is getting the money for her drinking,... Savings (though her & chris put the 1st detox on the credit card) ? Statuary maternity pay? (Would she be getting that if shes not caring for her child) overdraft? (how long is that going to last) and why doest she move back into her cottage

Mumsnet are stars, aren't they. Two threads reunited! Thank you both.

I had a feeling that it was Siobhan's family that urged B&J to send Ruari off to a (catholic?) boarding school. I wasn't really listening regularly in those days.

It sounds as if many decent Unis are going to have more 1st years than halls again this Autumn so I hope Ruari gets a roof over his head.

I do like Ruairi, it's a shame that he has gone. He would have disappeared anyway in the autumn but this was too soon. I wonder if the grass truly is greener in the Emerald Isle - that side of the family don't get mentioned much so I wonder what sort of relationship R has with them. He may decide that 'home' is Ambridge after all.
However, I think the last episode overegged the pudding a little. Both R and JD were a bit too good and reasonable to be true. R is far too self-composed for an eighteen year old.

@Atichen

Anyone else wondering where is alice is getting the money for her drinking,... Savings (though her & chris put the 1st detox on the credit card) ? Statuary maternity pay? (Would she be getting that if shes not caring for her child) overdraft? (how long is that going to last) and why doest she move back into her cottage

Yes. I am.

SMP won't be affected. Assuming she was entitled in the first place.

I assume Chris keeps a separate business account for his work and presumably there is a personal joint spending account which she will still have access to.

Or she could be running up credit card bills.

@Gh0stontoast

Any guesses for the celeb lawyer/scarecrow statute expert?

I vote for either Amal Clooney or Nancy Dell’Olio!

On the other thread both Rob Rinder and Jackie Weaver were mentioned.

I like Ruari too. He comes across like a decent human I might actually know, which you'd think wouldn't be that unusual in a decent quality drama but...

Interesting re the boarding school history of the Aldridges, I started listening when Kate was a teen and was def not away at school (poss already expelled then) and I remember Alice being at "St Mag's" as a day pupil. I'm not personally anti-boarding, though accept that my use of "packed off" suggested that, but I do remember thinking that it was quite a neat solution for all involved (including the SWs) but which was perhaps a bit risky given R's history. I have a feeling that Bridget et al wanted Catholic and Brine came up with the boarding bit, perhaps due to lack of Catholic day schools locally.

Oh and my guess for the ce leb lawyer- only one lawyer could provoke that level of breath less admiration from La Snell- it has to be Lady Hale!

I do wonder whether the Irish side of the family may not all welcome R’s sexuality (if he tells them). That could precipitate a return maybe. Or maybe he could realise he’s in love with Ben (not that I think he is, I reckon a nice Italian student with a spare villa is more his style).

@HaveringWavering

Oh and my guess for the ce leb lawyer- only one lawyer could provoke that level of breath less admiration from La Snell- it has to be Lady Hale!

Oh I hope so!

I do like Ruari but he's obviously not quite mature enough to understand what an amazing thing Jennifer has done in not only bringing him into the household but actually really bringing him into the family. She does love him as a son.

Hope he doesn't make a saint of the mother he barely knew.

Also, while acknowledging he isn't a blood relation of Jennifer's, he is a blood relation of Alice and Kate. The Aldridge family tree is a complex one and I think Jennifer deserves credit for holding all the disparate members together.

Hello, @noodlezoodle! Welcome, and do hang around.

Thanks R4 and Gasp0de for the welcome. I feel that I already know lots of thread regulars, which is making me feel a bit stalker-ish

Yay! Normal service has been resumed: thanks, Gasp0de and MNHQ.

It was definitely granny's wish that Ruairi be sent to a Catholic school. Not that a decent Catholic education had much evident impact on her daughter

Welcome @noodlezoodle. The 🔮 told me you'd be delurking

Thanks Bore, am honoured to be recognised by the famed crystal ball!