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?

Thanks for the new thread!

Has there been a whisper of Phoebe yet? Who was close to her grandmother…

The only reference I heard was Roy emptying out her room - and nothing said there either as to how she was taking the bereavement. Or when she was planning to catch up with her bestie, Nolly.

Agree, the cars is a ridiculous waste of money. The Aldridges/Archers all have fancy cars (and perfectly good legs to walk across the green).

@AskingQuestionsAllTheTime I was really thinking of ‘mentally approaching’ retirement - in the sense that they’ve been working at the dairy too long to be interested in taking on Helen’s role.

Finally, a chance to combine TA with a thing that takes up too much of my time - Love Island! Fabulous FT (not new) article just linked on the LI thread about one of the contestants, a youthful farmer named Will Young. Apparently he has 900,000 TikTok followers for his farming based videos.

www.ft.com/content/b9b45855-e74d-4e10-837f-f49cb131b121

This is exactly the sort of thing I would have expected Josh to excel at. I know Ambridge farmers have some social media presence (we hear a bit about Bridge Farm’s endeavours) - but nothing earth shattering. It would be quite fun to hear David shaking his head over one of his offspring gathering a global online following. Or finding the farm suddenly full of endorsed products. But maybe Ruairi will go down that route, once he calms down.

I would have though a burial to be much less common these days, which is why I am assuming a cremation. St Stephens will have limited space in the churchyard. I haven't heard directly them talking about burial plots etc unless I've missed it?

For my DGM who was 100 and had outlived her peers, we had a family cremation service but then went to her local church for a thanksgiving service so her local contacts could attend too, and thereafter to the church hall for sandwiches.

See, I don't think they're incompatible at all. They are both dull as shit and always have been.
However, H has never loved Lee and they are a completely passionless pair.

They are a bit dull aren't they. I quite like Lee, he seems quite stable, which is probably good for the boys. Henwee's 12 I think, isn't he? How old is Jack?

Henry was born on 2nd January, 2011, and Jack on 22nd May, 2016 and is not quite seven.

The stabbing was 7 yrs ago? Thanks, Asking.

Susan's got her good points hasn't she.

I only remember Henwee's age because Helen and Emmur were pregnant at the same time.

It's behind a paywall Totters. Thanks for the link otherwise.

Love Soosan, always have.

She's a sort of rustic, working class version of Margo from The Good Life. Snobbish, aspirational, gossipy but very very kind hearted and fiercely loyal.

And she's beautifully played.

Sorry, @ILoveShula! Photo of headline here:

(I can rarely fathom gift links even though I have a subscription.)

Thanks Totters. This link should work.
Not read it yet, but doesn't this sort of thing give a rose-tinted view on farming?
Not a bad way of diversifying though.

Not that I have an opinion, as I've not read it yet, just scrolled down a bit.

Well, for me its value is that Will seems more appealing in the article than he does on Love Island!

I love that you are the Love Island/The Archers crossover. I've never ventured into it.

"dull as shit and always have been" is a cruel but probably fair assessment of them. They're kind of what I imagine the bulk of "ordinary" Tory voters are like.

Well, I've never watched LI but just looked at a video of Will.

He seems rather... camp to me. A bit of a Ruaruariii?

I can imagine the annoyance of random followers turning up for selfies too.

I live in a village similar to Ambridge
All new plots are cremations but if you have a family member they will squeeze you in on top (or between linked graves).

Most people who get buried in a new plot bought a double plot when a spouse died 30 years ago.

Oh and no-one has professional funeral caterers- the village do it- WI etc

Not as I imagine Ruairi - winningly fey and sardonic and pseudo-jaded.

Young Mr Young does seem rather self-consciously camp and performer-y. But I like the sound of his relationship to the serious side of farming.

@GoldenCupidon - it’s infuriating … I used to scoff for England when the young of the family disappeared at 9pm to watch the thing. When I took a glimpse it seemed full of strangely inflated individuals forever ‘pulling’ each other for chats that were exactly the same as everyone else’s chats on the show. But I wanted to join in the conversation … Now I’m hooked on the ridiculous nonsense and suddenly no one I’m related to is watching it any more. If it weren’t for the MN thread I’d be texting myself 😳🤬🫣emojis between 9 and 10 pm every day …

watching silent witness: is the new lab assistant blake?

Speaking of random Archers voices popping up - I made the (perhaps ill-advised) decision to listen to Revenge by Tom Bower from the library and weirdly, Adam is voicing it.

I dunno but Justin is reading Psmith in the City on 4 Extra and that's very confusing.

I keep expecting him to be asking Psmith about his escorting activities.

Poor @TottersBlankly ! If you stick at it long enough I expect it'll become cool again...