Archers thread #146: They did fall apart. Can they put themselves together again? 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, and of course we are always delighted to welcome back former or occasional listeners/posters. We don't all agree on all points, although we do mostly try to be civil about it. Most of us are posting tongue in cheek a lot of the time, so don't worry about revealing that you'd like to donate your time as a guide at Lower Loxley to save the Pargetters paying someone else a living wage, 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.)

Thanks to @Impostersyndrome for the thread title suggestion Buses and trains are sorely lacking, canals might be nearby, but all roads lead to Ambridge, picking up on transport discussions in the last thread. In the end I didn't use it, having in mind the character limit. @TottersBlankly contributed an early draft title Wreathes, wrath, writhing (Jennifer, Lilian, Ruairi). Both good starting points for the new thread, which I hope will last till Jennifer's funeral, surely not too far off now. So, over to you - whither the Aldridges? Also, does anyone care if Lee goes to the US? Is anyone even slightly interested in the Brookfield B&B venture?

Although tbf to Ben the skill set of working with difficult service users takes time to hone. Same with teachers. You don't walk in day 1 knowing everything, it takes time to establish your own style.

I'd like to see them use Ben to show more of the workings of a care home. I always thought they might do that with Lee but an actual carer role would show the common problems more effectively.

I'd like to see it show the work involved in caring - not just the volume but the complexity and challenges.

That's a good idea about Jazzer picking up some care shifts. He'd be great especially with the men (plenty of practise of crabby old men at home!) and with teenagers who have carers to take them out and about. Blake might also be good.

@AskingQuestionsAllTheTime can you put us out of our misery about what kind of business/charity arrangements LL has?

I haven't heard last night's yet but I quite like that Kate so admires in her mother the facets she doesn't have (at all!) herself.

I know none of us want to hear her but the most unlikely thing (even more unlikely than Debbie not being here) is that Phoebe hasn't come home. Her sister is there fgs, and Jenny and Brian were like a second set of parents to her. Amazed that Kate hasn't whinged about it if (for example) she is too busy to come, as she should be a support for her (Kate) in Kate's mind.

A very belated thought on why I've been enjoying the Ruairi stuff over the last few months - it's nice to see a more chaotic, typical "young person finding their way" type story involving non-hetero behaviour. I may be too young to remember this but AFAIK Adam did any youthful dating far from Ambridge and has been settled down ever since he came back on air? (Did Iain come to Ambridge with Adam or did they meet there?) So in a way the gay/bi side of things has been quite sanitised for the Archers, until now. I know there was an affair but I think that manifested as a quick fumble outside a NY party not e.g. shagging in the woods a la Em N Ed.

I think that it would be feasible for Phoebe to have been for a visit in the immediate aftermath and gone back to work again until the funeral- they have not featured her on air but they haven't said that she has not come home, IYSWIM. She does have a job and you can't get that much compassionate leave for a grandparent. Perhaps the family said she should save her annual leave to do something nice in the summer. Though I imagine she could work remotely from Ambridge for a good while.

No comments in my prediction that Ruairi will end up doing the eulogy?

@GoldenCupidon , Phoebe and Noluthando are half-sisters and were not brought up together, so I doubt they are particularly close.

Adam was 'out' before Ian turned up, IIRC, sleeping rough in The Lodge's garden.

@NeverApologiseNeverExplain , I don't think so. Maybe Tony or Lillian will do it.

It would be lovely if Peggy did the eulogy, and if we get to hear it.

On Phoebe's character page it literally lists her one "dislike" as "not seeing enough of her half-sister Nolly".

I agree she works in tech, she could work from home for a few days. When I was in her situation my boss was very understanding and I duly went home for a few days to comfort my parents, get loads of hugs and also help sort the practical stuff. I then went back to work and then came back for the funeral. I just think it's weird she's not been mentioned let alone turned up.

Hadn't realised how close in age the sisters are - Phoebe is 24 and Nolly is 22.

It's weird because in my mind it was quite a different Kate who was a teenager (edit: apparently not, she was 20) giving birth to Phoebe and a comparatively settled grown up having Nolly.

I imagine they must have grown quite close during the period (a school year?) Phoebe spent in South Africa. I remember how Kate’s invitation exploded in the Carter household, and how sure Phoebe was that she wanted to go. (What I don’t remember is whether that was the SA period covered by Ambridge Extra - I missed quite a bit of that and have never properly caught up.)

Did you mean the Tucker household, @TottersBlankly ?

I thought Phoebe worked in algae?

I guess it's some sort of bio tech, and I'm sure her job is more about business plans and press releases, and doesn't actually involve going anywhere near the actual algae, but it's not "tech" as such I don't think.

I too thought that Phoebe worked for a biotech company.

I thought it was rewilding/environmental stuff on a larger scale. Building up the cases, selling the idea, getting support etc.

It sounded a bit vague to me at the time -presumably intentionally so.

Didn't Kate say that Phoebe is going to do a reading? Excellent prediction that Ruairi may do the eulogy. I'd like that. I can't see June Spencer doing it, but who knows.

I didn't get confused about JC and Vince, but that's probably because I knew from the spoiler thread that JC was going to be in the cast this week so as soon as I heard him speaking I knew who he was. I don't think the voices are very similar, though.

She's a PPE graduate. I can't see why she would be working directly with the algae.

I said that she wasn't!

Yes, sorry, didn't read it properly. I'm typing very slowly at the moment and end up cross-posting sometimes too.

How is your hand feeling @Gasp0deTheW0nderD0g ? I hope you’re not in too much discomfort.

How's your hand Gasp, and how are the Gaspparents?

Thanks! Not in pain and far better in the mini cast, if that's the term, than the plaster cast, but some things are tricky, and typing is one of them.

Gaspfather not too bad and currently hoping to get his driving licence back, which I think is a huge mistake, but the GP has no qualms, so not a lot I can do. Gaspmother seems to be coping well. Indomitable is the adjective that comes to mind. Got my brother to turn the mattress when he was there recently, apologising that she (90!) wasn't sure she could manage it now. Cannot remember the last time our mattress was turned ...

I know it's biotech but that is a kind of tech, isn't it? I'm sure she'll be doing something like market analytics or business development, not going out with a big jug and seeing what she can find in the sea.

Maybe she's making petfood... www.petfoodprocessing.net/articles/13561-scottish-startup-raises-13-million-to-grow-microalgae-business but I got the impression it was going to be more "green" e.g. using it to produce energy.

Not keen on fried food. The smell of fried bacon is horrible. A dane I know said that the Danish bacon we have over here is not the same as the bacon they have in Denmark, as it is bred for a different market.

We get Tulip bacon here (Germany) and usually it's only streaky which i have come to appreciate. But now they occasionally get back bacon, and it's marketed as English Style bacon