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!

Some posters need someone to passionately hate at all times, whether that's the twins or Jazzer or whoever 😬 I just can't get as worked up about most of the characters.

Glad they finally found a use for Lil's cackle though. And it was nice to hear Kirsty being a competent worker in her chosen field (see what I did there) for a change, after years of towels.

Did you mean me, @GoldenCupidon ?
I love Frilly, Jazzer, Alice, Alastair, Johnny, ...

It's good to see that Kursedy is just wild about her new job.

All this hating fairly fills up a thread! Just over 70 posts left. Any thoughts about next thread title? At this rate, we might need one tomorrow. Depends on whether anything exciting happens tonight, I suppose.

“Can we turn the clocks back to a time when The Archers was good? Etc …”

Best I got. 🤷🏽‍♀️

But Gasp, you normally say the threads normally end with lots of posts were we all agree with each other.

We may dislike the SL, but we've talked a lot about it.

That looks like a good title to fall back on @TottersBlankly . Spooky innit.

I like the way your name has otters in it.

Where not were. Werewolves are for full moons

Jazza is a total sleaze bag
Just remember what he used to be like- you cant teach an old dog new tricks

Based on the young Jazzer I wouldn't be surprised if ancestry.com throws up multiple children from his many 1 night stands

Well, now you’ve put that thought into the creative team’s mind, @ManefesationofConciousness …

See I totally disagree with that.

Jazzer had a dysfunctional upbringing from what I remember.

Over time he has matured. He has had the pigs to care for, he's been 'civilised' by Alistair and Jim, he helped deliver Martha. He's friends with Fallon. All these things have taught him new ways of being.

I don't think he should be doing anything- ILoveShula thought he was great.

What he has been doing is interfering - e.g making ridiculous suggestions that Alastair should have told him that Chelsea spoke to Alastair.

Well said, @TeenDivided , his past is well behind him and he genuinely seems to care for Tracey. His past might have been mainly his imagination, we have very little proof that he was with all those women, and by today's standards, was he really that bad?

He's a total sleaze-bag.

hated the GG sex storyline but it doesn't make him a sex pest in my eyes, just someone who made a (SW-influenced) bad decision

Well you could use SW influenced excuse for all the characters.

He was using Jim's house to have noisy sex with Tracey with no consideration of Jim and Alastair.

Hadn't he previously been having sex in the cricket shed?

He turned up at Tracey's work- place and harassed her into agreeing to have sex with him. It was a horrible abuse of Oliver's trust. Anyone who was thinking with their brain rather than their penis would have seen that it was wrong and was a job risk.

Can't help but think that we seem to have lost some of the regular posters along the way. Are people like @DadDadDad lurking or have they switched off or namechanged?

To answer your question, @WhoppingBigBackside , I lurk, but I don't have much to say on The Archers because I no longer listen to it regularly - the main reason being I work much more from home (since you-know-what) and miss being in my car at 7pm when I would often catch an episode.

I've dipped in to listening occasionally, but I guess I have to accept that I can't be a part of these great threads the way I once was. I'll keep making a note of post counts, for old times' sake. Actually, I do note that the posting rate has gone up recently. For about a year, it's been dawdling around 20 posts per day, but since last month it's being doing more than double that rate, so don't give up on these threads yet!

Good to hear from you @DadDadDad . Hope you are ok.

Thanks. I'm fine - just battling the usual cares of life and the headwinds we're all facing from a world in crisis (or rather, crises).

It's good to see that Kursedy is just wild about her new job.

Something like..."As the nights draw in, cackle (or carp) along to The Archers with us"

‘David’ on PM right now talking about the art of voicing an audiobook … (Not his own … 👑)

I agree re Jazzer, @TeenDivided

Good to see you @DadDadDad , it pleases me that you’re still maintaining the spreadshit 😊

Having this "bairn" is a terrible decision. Wittering on about "never too late to change your mind" is terrible advice at this stage- especially given his now clear agenda. His agenda is simply to support Chelsea whatever she decides. He hasn’t tried to influence her.

when DS2 was wavering over uni, I told him “you can back out whenever you want, right up to mid Oct”. My intention was to make it safe for him to keep uni as an option. Jazzer’s intention was for her to keep the abortion as an option.

Jazzer made it clear when he spoke to Tracy about the issue privately that he cannot get his head around Chelsea having an abortion at this stage in her pregnancy.

He also clearly wants to be a dad.

I think he is very sad about the whole thing but I agree he is being very supportive and has concealed his disappointment when speaking to Chelsea.

Long-time lurker here. Just had to drop in to say that I bought DS a jumper the other day and was delighted to see it scan through the till as ecru! Had to share this as I have no-one IRL who would understand the significance! 😁

Croeso cynnes i chi @DysgwrCymraeg . Gobeithio bod eich mab yn gwrando ar The Archers hefyd. Dwi'n deall ystyriaeth y siwmper ecru. Gwell gennyf gardigan fy hun.