Archers thread #140: Changing rooms at Brookfield with Leonard Llewellyn-Bowen, or saving souls with St Smugula in the heathen wastelands of the North? 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 think a stained glass window marking the birth of newborn twins is just what Ambridge needs, 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/4636789-the-archers-spoilers-thread-7-cant-wait-for-702pm-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.)

Title composed in haste, making use of @Octothorpe's lovely coinage of Leonard Llewellyn-Bowen and @TheLassWiADelicateAir's terrific description of St. Smugula's mission to the heathen wasteland of far flung Sunderland, both from the last thread

I've abandoned the use of an emoji in the title, having been alerted by another thread recently to the fact that it makes it difficult for people with visual problems to use assistive software.

I won't say much more about The Archers, as I'm still feeling extremely jaundiced about the programme at the moment. Fingers crossed it takes a turn for the better over the next few days. It was good to hear Helen, Lee and Joy again tonight. Less delighted to hear the loathsome George. What a numpty not to recognise pheasant chicks! His Dad would be far from impressed.

Over to you!

I can just about sit through Love Actually but cannot understand why it regularly comes up lists of people’s favourite films. I actually don’t think Clarrie would have much time for Hugh Grant.

I think her favourite film would be Top Gun (mark 1). I bet she has a soft spot for Mr Cruise. Or may be Richard Gere?

I've not seen Love Actually. I didn't think it was a film I'd enjoy. I did enjoy 4 Weddings and a Funeral.

I find it quite plausible that Leonard is a good painter and decorator. He was a syrveyor so probably picked up a few tricks and tips over a lifetime.

The hairdresser is Fabrice not Pierre.

Jill's levels of good health are beyond remarkable. I wouldn't want too many ill health storylines, but David is over 60, surely he'd be thinking of slowing down before long.

The Chelsea Upduffed story line is too spectacular for my liking.

funnelfanjo must have found that quite cathartic! I enjoy a good rant about the Archers to anybody who will listen.

FWIW I seem to remember that Jim had a broken leg when he arrived.

Long ago I concluded that most of the SWs have no caring responsibilities (of adults or children). Perhaps they are too busy writing in a garden office to notice real life.

I seem to remember that Jill got elderly/vulnerable, moving back to Brookfield a decade(?) ago, but then took over all catering and childminding responsibilities a couple of years later.

I didn’t like Emma saying that Clarrie Love was upset at Jolene not being threatened by Clarrie. Jolene doesn’t feel threatened by Clarrie because the kiss was years ago and she is a happily married to Kenton - not because Clarrie is a tired old frump.

Just noticed I wasn’t clear above - I meant the original Dan Archer, (Phils’s father) who became the owner of Brookfield in 1954 after decades as a tenant farmer there.

(I’m beginning to realise most people on the thread won’t have been listening with me in the 1960s! And also that I can’t rely on what I think are my memories of Ambridge events back then - half of them might be stuff I’ve dreamt or invented since I was a small child. So now I have to rely on printed material to re-tell me what happened.)

Lol, yes, thank you for tolerating me everyone! I’ve still not been brave enough to catch up since Friday. I gather from the comments up thread there was a PCC meeting that was inexplicably in favour of Peggy’s window and I’m afraid it would trigger another ranting session.

I’m a former church warden and veteran of multiple church committees. In my experience these kind of requests are really really strongly discouraged refused to stop egos and personalities running riot and causing feuds that last generations. People who have been moved to make a generous donation to the church in good faith are usually handled with discretion. One one occasion someone paid for a needed bit of new carpet (agreed by PCC) and all we knew of the donor was that it was a gift from a member of the congregation; no names but prayers and thanks. Alan’s suggestion of funding a youth worker for the summer holidays would be a good one too.

Old/pretty churches are particularly susceptible because people see the old plaques and memorials and think they can have one too. Generally the new windows or memorials etc come from a desire of the congregation/PCC to mark a significant event on behalf of the whole parish. A vanity project would never get the Faculty (application) past the Diocese.

Jill and Leonard feels very Last Tango in Ambridge (and not just because of Paul Copley) - the difference being the couple in LTIH were in their 70s while Jill is about 20 years older than that (not sure about Leonard). Old age has always sounded very comfy and cosy in Ambridge - even The Laurels sounds like a care home one might aspire to.
@funnelfanjo please don't relurk - good to hear you telling it like it is.

I’m a former church warden and veteran of multiple church committees which somehow makes your nickname even more hilarious.

Lol, it was taken from an old thread discussing knicker gussets and how they’re in the wrong place for a lot of women.

I was a lot younger than most of the other people I served with. Reality is that the people who have the time to commit to that level of volunteering are retired. I was in the small minority of younger people without children who stepped up. Wore jeans at a Sunday service while on duty, the horror! 😁

I guess the lack of interaction between this thread and the TA spoilers thread means most people here won’t have read that the Kevin Ambrose actor used to play Mark Hebden. (Courtesy of another poster on the spoiler thread.)

He sounds so much older.

And I’m wondering if Lily’s success means she’s slated to take over the LL Gallery. Though I don’t see how she could do that full time on top of her degree.

Good grief! I utterly failed to recognise him. Having said that, it's a long, long time since he was killed off. 1994, I see. www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thearchers/entries/7d25dfe4-5858-3ebf-8666-419f488f0724

Welcome, @funnelfanjo! Great rant. I think this week is better than last, so far. It might be safe for you to dip a toe back in the water.

I wouldn't say Love Actually is one of my favourite films, but I always enjoy it. Odd to watch it in October, though. I think of it as a Christmas film.

My favourite film(s): The Godfather and The Godfather Part II (I think of them as one film in two parts). Not perhaps the films of choice for a romantic night in.

PS I have a Classics degree and I can confirm that prodosia is the Ancient Greek word for betrayal. Not a goddess as far as I know, just an abstract noun, but they do tend to overlap (see also: Nike). I'm surprised that Russ would choose a Greek word here, but he was always pretentious.

@Gasp0deTheW0nderD0g , excellent choice. I'd argue that The Godfather II was better than the first.
I wouldn't have recognised 'Mark', but it has been a long time, and he is an actor.

Can we hope that now Clarrie and Eddie have had their romantic evening that Kenton's teenage diary can now be discarded as a story line? I can't bear to think of the forthcoming 'feud' between Jolene/ Kenton and the Grundy clan simmering for ages yet.

I thought Lily's scam was every bit as distasteful as Eddie's attempt to use the diary to get free beer off Kenton.

Glad to hear Russ lauded as the genius Lass and I always knew him to be.

Farewell Russ 😪

Kenton's teenage diary - was surely just filler while Chelsea dithered?

I was astonished to hear that The Artist’s work was going for so little. Even if it had no artistic merit at all £1k can barely have covered the cost of materials and his time. I’d be surprised to hear that many art school students are selling their work for such tiny sums.

I don't think Lily was really scamming the art collector (who was possibly a bit of an idiot anyway since his opening bid was double what Elizabeth had paid for it on the open market), she didn't say anything that was untrue, she just hammed up her emotional response to it a bit. And presumably he was buying it for the perceived artistic merit rather than the backstory. I think that's different from Eddie, who made up his emotional response just to get free stuff. The last time we heard from Lily before yesterday she was genuinely very upset about the breakup. I'm glad to see she's moved on so quickly (somewhat improbably), but I still don't think it was a scam.

On the subject of Love Actually, this review never gets old for me: jezebel.com/i-rewatched-love-actually-and-am-here-to-ruin-it-for-al-1485136388

A local well respected street artist (but not especially famous) charges just short of £4k for a 12 x 16 inch in oil.

Did they not do any googling on Artfinder/Etsy etc?

I am always surprised when they decide on a niche storyline but don't bother to check whether any of the writing team know anything about it.

I wonder how Ian and Adam are getting on with the pizza van - it can't be cheap to run in what must be a fallow couple of months before Christmas.

I know. I liked that too.

They're apparently hiring a replacement to run the gallery. That'll cost them.

I wonder how Ian and Adam are getting on with the pizza van - it can't be cheap to run in what must be a fallow couple of months before Christmas.

This is such a ridiculous story too. Ian would have used the redundancy money to open a restaurant. In the short term he could have come to an arrangement with Fallon. The tea shop could have opened for fine dining in the evening.

Chelsea is too stupid to be allowed to continue with this pregnancy.

Must say her research skills are not the best. How has she ever passed any exams?

Didn't listen to the episode yet, but:

• you don't need research skills for GCSEs
• Chelsea is doing a Hairdressing course, I can't remember her GCSE grades but she could have got onto a Level 2 course with something like 4 grade 3s

If they (script writers) screw up her hairdressing I'll be upset.

Oh my goodness Natasha made me so cross, fancy gossiping like that!

To be fair to Chelsea, she wouldn't be the first person to need pregnancy dating spelled out. She could easily have read stuff on the internet that was a bit vague.

Natasha is an absolute piece of work. That was awful of her.

@Fink , thanks for the review link. I watched the clip and not even Egg (no, not Eggy) could stop it from being nauseating bilge. And I say that as someone who has a soft spot for Leonard Berry's lad - no not Tom.

Well, there you go the whole of Hambridge will hear soon the there's a little Trazzer on the way, until Radio Carter lets slip that they got the wrong Horrobin.