🌟 ⭐ Archers thread #138: Two new stars on the Ambridge firmament, but will Peggy’s retirement leave a black hole? 🕳️ Join us here for a window on The Archers.

[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 commissioning a stained glass window for two of your great-grandchildren and nothing for all the others is a sensible thing to do, 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/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.)

Thanks to @LillianGish and @MuddlerInLaw for title ideas, which I have played around with a bit. I'm sad to have heard the last of Peggy. An era starts to draw to a close.

What a relief to be out of the Steph Casey phase, which I hope was an unfortunate blip, not to be repeated. [Triumph of hope over experience there ... ]

@BoreofWhabylon has asked the 🔮 about Adil and it predicts that he is actually the Mysterious New Owner of Grey Gables but won't be revealed as such until he has won Kirsty's heart (or some similar Mills & Boon level tosh - apols to the 🔮 but it does seem to have a mushy side). I still cling to the idea that the mysterious silent and invisible Gills who now own Home Farm may have some role at GG, but why not name them?

No mention of the heatwave in Ambridge, but budget constraints probably severely limit their scope for topical inserts these days. IRL I believe this has been a tricky time for farmers. Perhaps the SWs will catch up with this over the winter and start putting in some farming chat about diversification away from oats to olives, or similar. We already have at least one vineyard in the Ambridge area, at LL. (I understand there was another, in the heart of the village, decades ago, but the SWs have now forgotten all about it, sadly.)

Over to you!

Been away for a couple of weeks and have come back to the most ridiculous storylines. I know Tracey probably can't see the wood for the trees at the moment but she's had a brain transplant!

Private prosecution!!!!!! Do the SW's have any idea how much they cost and how unusual they are!? what a load of twaddle.

And FGS Eddie

I did like hearing Ed all fierce and (step)fatherly.

How Times Change. 😂

But yeah - not Eddie’s most impressive grandfatherly intervention. I would very much rather Brad stays out of any trouble.

I thought Ed's acting was poor, which I don't normally.
Brad will either go crooked or find a place to read Mathematics at a top university and end up being the next Marcus de Sautoy Jim Lloyd.

Damn. She didn't drown.

Can Mick please just be a nice, ordinary, decent bloke? I don't want anything bad to happen to Joy.

A nice ordinary decent bloke …
with better jokes.

I was on holiday last week and, for various other reasons, haven't been able to listen to TA much for the past couple of weeks. I would like to say thank you to this thread for keeping me on track with the stories so I feel no need to make time to listen to the omnibus.

Thanks for pointing me in this direction Murder in law.

Pat was clearly picking up bad vibes. However, she probably isn't the best judge, given that for ages she thought Rob was absolutely wonderful.

I am hopeful Mick is a decent bloke but dull and with duff jokes, still Joy seems to find him funny.

Mindful though but dull and decent was how I thought of Kirsty s slavemaster husband (once again brain fog means name alludes me).

Philip - but they surely can't the nice man turns evil story again. They did that with Rob and Phillip.

Lee's was nice, sensitive bloke turns out to be just that so they could run normal bloke turns out to be normal again.

All I hope is he leads us to Rochelle.... or to her grave.

Has Joy got a patio?

No but her previous house had one

I'd forgotten all about Lee! Yes he's dull as I guess is Roy. Not sure I would want to be partnered up with any of the menfolk in Ambridge.

Oh wow - were you all listening to Feedback?

Roger Bolton is leaving the show after next week. “The BBC” he said “has decided the programme should have a new presenter”.

What has he done to piss them off?

TA connection - really hope they’ll have something about TA in the last of this series next week. Though it’s sure to be as disappointing and infuriating as Archers discussions always are.

Have they named the new presenter, or shall I predict that it will be someone younger, speaks eshjeray, and is not white, and not heterosexual. (I am assuming that RB is white, male, straight and middle aged)

I was going to suggest Amol Rajan but I suspect that he might be straight and a tad busy

He's got the University Challenge gig, though I assume that won't start keeping him busy till next year.

Aye, so I heard.

Amol is ubiquitous- can a person be ubiquitous? I daresay the gig is his!

Actually I quite like him but he can be a bit casual - a la Radio Five Drive - some days…

I find him a bit lightweight on Today.

I actually don’t think I agree Amol is a lightweight. He is very well-researched (better than Martha for instance) and his lines of questioning show he is an excellent print journalist as he often delves deeper than the others in his interviews. He is also very good when talking to ‘ordinary’ people.

(Apologies for non-Archers-related post)

Actually, I must add I enjoyed hearing Brian on the Media Show about soaps and whether they have had their day. He’s just brilliant and can never retire, of course…

Hmm, can't say I really listen when he's on any more.
I enjoyed Brian on the Media Show.

I can't say I feel at all enthused about the fact that the SWs seem to be lining up George to be Joe's replacement. I don't understand why they think we all love storylines about Grundy get-rich-quick schemes, I find them incredibly tedious.