🦈 Archers thread #137: See left - have they jumped it? Discuss The Caseys - sorry, 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 Steph Casey is a wonderful addition to the programme, or similar odd 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/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.)

Too dispirited to add much else. Have we reached a new low?

I suppose the Archer twins will be born before we need a new thread. 👶👶
Any thoughts on names? Patrick and Antonia were suggested before - inspired! Peggy has to be a strong contender.

Over to you!

And, frankly, there has to be a reason for the rave. We haven’t seen one so far …

Agree, it was weird otherwise.

Finally caught up. Whenever I listen to the omnibus I wonder why I don't do it more often, but I know what the answer is - I'm not a patient person and I want to keep up with this thread.

I too would have sacked Chelsea. What a horror.

I am no mathematician but I know there's a lot more to maths than arithmetic. I hope the SWs aren't going to show themselves up here. If you bring in a new character who is a maths genius, FGS talk to somebody who knows something about maths so you can throw in more plausible details than being able to do simple mental arithmetic in your head! My Dad could have done what Brad did and he's 88, stopped studying maths at 16, but spent decades working in retail before electronic tills and keeps sharp by watching Countdown (recorded, so he can FF through the chat and just watch the puzzle bits .)

I had totally forgotten about Lily's vague plan to go back to university. I feel short-changed that we have heard nothing at all about the application process and I am also rather cross that once again Felpersham proves to have just the right course. Surely someone could leave Borsetshire for higher education more than once every decade! In recent times we've had Phoebe, who might as well not have read PPE at Oxford for all the use she made of her degree, and Ruairi at an unnamed London university doing an unnamed subject (in my mind it's either KCL or LSE and he's probably doing Law or something to do with finance/economics). Prior to that Alice managed to get away for undergrad, but was forced to go to Felphersham for her Master's.

George now has Susan over a barrel. This could be interesting (triumph of hope over experience, yes, I know ...)

Why did Katelyn refer to herself as 'Grandma' when she's Tash's 'Mam'?
It's quite credible that Lily would have chosen the nearest university. What doesn't make sense is renting a flat.
Why has CMR become 'dahn with da kids'?

Caitlin has two new grandchildren!

I’m guessing Scumbag has always felt himself to be dahn with the kids - it would have been his M.O. as ‘the cool teacher’.

I don’t think Ruairi can be reading Law. If you do it at any decent university your head explodes with all the weird new stuff you learn - so you talk about it all the time. And it would surely have been a subject of conversation with The Only Lawyer in the Village before he left! Also, Ruairi strikes me as a quick fix kind of individual, whereas Law is a long slog.

But the SWs’ nonsensical unwillingness to commit themselves to any particular subject doesn’t help.

Why can’t Lily see that Russ is poncing off her big time?

@MuddlerInLaw , Grin Caitlin has two new grandchildren!
She's d call herself Mam-gû.

She'd not She's. d.

Ah, I see what you mean! SW inconsistency, or simply using the word they felt would be better understood?

I reckon Ruari's doing economics or politics.

Inconsistency. I'm not saying that all Welsh-speaking grandmothers call themselves Mam-gû - far from it - but I am pretty sure that the improbably named Caitlin would.

Are all Peggy's great grandchildren going to get a window? What will they be replacing?Are the church windows broken? And is Peggy about to pop her clogs?

It all sounded very valedictory, didn’t it?

But let’s not forget, they’re the most speshul baybeees evah!

I haven't listened so don't know who Caitlin was talking to, but is it possible that she was translating for the other person? My son calls his grandfather by the Norwegian term Bestefar within the family (none of us speak Norwegian apart from Bestefar) but when he is talking to his friends about his grandfather he says "my Grandad". He's only 5, I was quite impressed the first time I overheard him doing it.

I fast forwarded all of that.

Shula and Alice were good tonight. They weren't doing anything special but 2 people in Ambridge talking normally and knowledgeably about their specialist subject is a rarity.

@HaveringWavering , No. She said something like 'Come to your grandma' not 'Come to your grandmother'. I think someone would be more likely to say 'Come to your Nan/Nana/Gran/Granny/Grandma/whatever you wanted to be called'.

Liked the Shula and Alice standing up to Justin. Shula and Alice are favourite characters of mine. Peggy is too, of course.

I don't like Peggy, Shula or Alice but I dislike Justin more and after the nonsense about blackmailing Jean (?) it was nice to hear 2 adults behaving like adults.

The baby stuff is boring. Babies are boring unless they are your own.

Everyone knows that Granny is Nain in Welsh!
A church window, seriously? I would have thought a cheque for their university fund to be more useful! Helen is going to be steaming.

The window is ridiculous. And very lady of the manor, what gives Peggy the right to design two village church windows?
I kind of hope Alan refuses.

Henwee will smash the window in a fit of jealous rage.

I was rather about the proposed windows, too.

I'm sure if it was a thing it would have already featured on AIBU.

Everyone knows that Granny is Nain in Welsh!

Or mam-gu. Depends on which area.

So Peggy has 8 (my calculation could be off) Great Grandchildren but no 9&10 get a stained glass window ?

I think this will cause trouble - showing favouritism to Tom once again .

I’ve only caught up as far as Tuesday but ahem, can I draw your attention to my amazing prediction? I can’t believe I care.

In a bizarre twist of fate, DD got ‘surprised’ by an olive stone when we were out for lunch yesterday and for some reason I decided to tell my family and friends about this particular Archers storyline. I’m clearly still out of practice with socialising thanks to covid 😂

Phoebe, Nolothandu, Sipho, Zander, Johnny, Henwee, Jack, Martha.

And Pinky and Perky.