👑 Archers thread #139: Who’s the Daddy? No ceremonial required to join us – 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 like the sound of Lilian’s Cinnamon Chicken, 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.)

I'm often struck by the time a thread ends how irrelevant the previous title has become to what's currently going on in The Archers. The Queen's death has only been mentioned very briefly in TA, of course, but I suppose that was to be expected in a time of budget constraints. In a few weeks when this thread fills up I wonder if we will still be thinking that, and about Chelsea and her pregnancy. That depends on what she decides to do, which at the time of writing is still up in the air.

As usual, I asked for title ideas and for various reasons then didn't use them. Sorry. Lillian Gish's was very witty - Will Chelsea stay mum about dad? Muddler made a more controversial one - Horrobins thread #139. As a new Great House of Ambridge emerges, come swear your allegiance here.

That's about all I can face saying about TA at the moment. I am expecting to have to travel north soon as my Dad is in hospital and I have to be with my Mum. (They're the same sort of age as Jill Archer, and up to now have been like her and Peggy, very active, managing very well with no help, but this may all be about to change ). So apologies if I'm more absent than present for a while. Will pop in when I can.

The Chelsea SL is starting to sicken me. I have a 17yo DD, if she were pregnant I wouldn't have her stropping around saying "I don't knooooow, leave me alooooone" at 15 weeks pregnant.

But what would you be able to do, SaltyCrisp? Teenagers are generally sturdy - you couldn’t drag her anywhere. If she refused to listen surely it would just be an escalating shouting match until someone shouts either “Get out!” or “I’m leaving!”.

If it was my 17 year old, I'd be telling her to see a GP to discuss her options and get some healthcare one way or the other.

I assume a miscarriage. I can hear Tracy’s extended sympathies now and Chelsea’s crying followed by it wasn’t meant to be and Jazzer’s ‘henning’ everyone left, right and centre.

Then we’ll hear protected moping and moaning from Beth before we find out she’s pregnant. And then Vince, vincing.

Vince, vincing. Oh I love that. I made me chuckle.

Utter drivel.

Oh pass the sick bucket- Jill's sentimental drivel was nauseating. What on earth does Jill see in Bore?

And Alan, please, please, please tell Lilian you do not support Peggy's hideous vanity project.

Oh dear, Jill.

Awks.

There was a lot I could complain about tonight (Jill's monologue on the beauty of Ben and Beth's relationship was dire), but for me as a Christian the most heinous was the ridiculous conversation between Alan and Shula. Hint to the SWs: the phrase you're looking for is 'trust in God', NOT 'trust in myself'! I get that they're probably not churchgoers themselves, but have they literally never even met one? Alan doesn't know what to do about a 'tricky' situation (grow a spine apparently not being an option), yet doesn't seem to think that he might PRAY on it!

Puke. All of it.

Goodness me - Ben must have done more crying this year than all the other Archer men combined in a decade. But he does do crisis well! I don’t think he’ll dare raid the hospital medicine cabinets now. He can’t afford to screw up again.

Presumably Alan will be giving a tub thumping sermon on Sunday? Such that Peggy slinks away from church chastened and ashamed.

How was Jill travelling between Brookfield and the Stables. Not driving, or cycling. How far is it to walk?

We've had the pregnancy story dragged out far longer than it should have been and almost every other character is hanging around being ignored. That’s the difference between TA as I remember it from about 20 years ago and TA now. They used to nudge along several stories by a tiny bit, and each episode had a variety of characters. Now they nudge one story, nudge another, come back to the first, then the second, then the first. … as if they’re trying to get every story done and dusted in two weeks max.

The thing is like a series of standalone short stories, you lose the overall coherence.

Jill’s talk was so embarrassing. Really ill-timed. Glad Beth has come back, though. Not because I like Beth but because I like Ben

Ben must have done more crying this year than all the other Archer men combined in a decade.

I'm sure no-one on here thinks "boys don't cry" but , goodness Ben is such a cry baby- grow up.

Ben’s only 20 isn’t he? Not sure why Jill would be so convinced a relationship at this age would be so likely to stay the course.

Pass the sick bag, Alice.

Not that one, the Private Eye one.

Quite. It's not even as if she herself married particularly young, to give the impression that she's of a generation who think people should be settled down by their early 20s. She was in her late 20s and I think Phil might have been pushing 30 (which I suppose isn't bad going for a second marriage).

I haven't listened yet as it's so infuriating it's not even entertaining any more. Is Saint Shula of Sunderland still in Ambridge? As a listener in Newcastle even I've been insulted by the talk of Sunderland being a third world country.
I do think the scriptwriters are behaving like we're all complete idiots. Why is nobody (Tracey?!) mentioning how pregnant Chelsea is? Why? Why? Why? It's like Ambridge is a different universe (which it obviously is) where women are pregnant for 9 years not 9 months. It's so bad I'm missing Helen. And Pip.

It was even bilgier today.

Just... urgh

Jill presumably doesn't know about Chelsea but I found her words of wisdom to the golden couple and their golden future,taken along with Peggy's self- aggrandising vanity project, a bit distasteful.

This is absolutely ludicrous but I now have a mental picture of The Archers replicating that scene in The Company of Wolves - A woman (Chelsea) is "done a terrible wrong" by a rich, young nobleman (Ben) and turns up visibly pregnant at his wedding party "to put wrong to right". She calls out the nobleman and the rest of the nobles for their bigoted actions, and denounces them by declaring "the wolves in the forest are more decent". She then reveals that she is a enchantress and magically transforms the groom, the bride, and all the other nobles into wolves. They flee into the forest as the enchantress laughs; but afterward, the enchantress commands that the wolves "serenade" her and her child each night.

I mean, come on, it's better than anything we've had for weeks.

Well, exactly. It's insane to start doling out family heirlooms to your grandchildren's girlfriends unless you're happy to see them disappear if the relationship doesn't last. DD was with her last boyfriend for quite a long time and I liked him, but it never occurred to me to start giving him heirlooms; which is just as well as they've broken up permanently.

@fink I entirely agree it was trust in myself/ what I've learnt/ my life experience, like they couldn't bear to actually let her say God/Jesus/the Lord/ the Spirit!

I'm afraid I liked Jill's words..

How long have Ben & Beth been an item?

My DS is 20 & has been with his lovely girlfriend for 3 years. No-one (least of all them) would make any long-term assumptions about the future however ... and I certainly wouldn't be passing on any family jewellery just yet.

Plot twist. Chelsea finally decides to have an abortion, and goes to the doctor, only to discover that she's a month further on than she thought. She was already, unknowingly, pregnant at the rave.

Ben is not the father!

Because unless there's going to be some plot twist like that, making Chelsea drift along like this makes no sense.

She's savvy enough to "always use a condom" and the one time she didn't, she took the morning after pill.

She knows how much of a struggle single motherhood is.

This storyline - 15 weeks pregnant and still no decision - makes no sense.

Ben met her at Steph's wedding in September 2021

haharchers.blogspot.com/2021/09/out-with-evie-in-with-beth.html?m=1

Ben’s got something on his mind, or rather someone - he’s fallen for Beth Casey and can’t deal with it as he’s still going out with Evie, his girlfriend of nearly a year now

His brother Josh wisely counsels him not to rush into something he might regret. Pip picks up on his mood too and it turns out that Josh has already spilled the beans on his younger brothers’ love life. He’s tormenting himself as he can’t decide what to do and pleads with Pip to make the decision for him. While she doesn’t exactly do that, she says that if Ben’s having doubts about Evie then maybe he should follow his instincts. He doesn’t even know how to break up with her so gets Pip’s advice on that too, and then wastes no time in going off to do the deed. It goes as well as expected of course, with a tearful Evie taking it very badly. Ben other the other hand is straight on the phone to Beth.

I vaguely recall that.

Goodness knows why Jill is so smitten with Bethly Bore.

I suppose Jill was won over by the birthday cake Bore baked for Jill (and made such a big show of, having been the new girlfriend for less than a month)

I don't remember Evie, but from that synopsis Ben seems a right little shit and Evie is well rid of him