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?

Oh god. Freddie's going to seek out someone in an attempt to make reparation, isn't he.

And which ageing Irish actor will play the long-lost daddy Paddy Redmond? (after Ian tracks him down)

Did Jennifer really keep an old coat (that hadn't been to the cleaners, so a dirty old coat) for more than 50 years, including through the downsizing move? Seems terribly odd. If only for the absence of moths.

It was probably a Mary Quant plastic mac

Knowing how names stay in families I checked out Patrick Redmond in the Irish 1911 Census and there were 232 of them, all with the potential to be THE Paddy Redmond's father or grandfather. That's without checking Pats, Paddys and Patsys.

Quite a few in Dublin, but mostly in Wexford and adjacent counties (including Wicklow, Siobhan was from Wicklow).

Even as we all discuss this, Ian is rescuing the letter from the bin and planning his next move. Which should be talking to Peggy.

Surely an uncleaned 55ish year old plastic mac would be very cracked and sticky by now?

I thought Paddy Redmond and Adam had met? Years and years ago he returned briefly to Ambridge and I’m sure I recall him attempting to engage with Adam, though they were never formally introduced. I think Young Adam feigned ignorance but may have guessed who he was. (I’d be very disappointed to find I’d imagined this!)

The LL business was disappointingly bland. I assumed she would have recognised something in the painting that could only have come from South Africa - meaning something nefarious. The actual story was strangely vague. And odd - since they must surely have had countless historians passing through the house - why did none of them notice the offending vessel?

@DeanVolecapeAKAelderberry
According to this glorious archive, which I have just discovered, Paddy is a "piano-playing Ulsterman, who had failed to qualify as a vet"
umra.fandom.com/wiki/Peter_Hesketh%27s_Chronology_of_The_Archers
So that narrows the field a bit

Really Totters? I missed that. Obviously it occurred in the years when I had A Life.

I thought Adams’s dad had died of covid and it was one of the awful covid monologues we endured. Maybe that was another of Jenny’s good time boys.

Oh that narrows it a lot, there's one in Belfast, two in Down, and two in Monaghan (that's if they really mean Ulster rather than Northern Ireland).

I think it was Debbie's father, Roger Travers Macy, who had Covid, and survived it but was stricken (as was the ghastly Hazel).

Oo, he could be played by Liam Neeson!
Or Adrian Dunbar.

Or Kenneth Branagh. 😆

No, Ken's way too young.
Liam and Adrian are a bit too, but closer in age.

And Liam OR Adrian could take over policing of Ambridge from wet Harrison Burns

Actually, if one of Liam/Adrian is Paddy, the other could be Paddy's brother, who could also come along to meet little nephew Adam!

Alan! Freddie will try to make reparation to Alan because Alan has a mixed-race daughter so that will make total sense in Freddie-world.

I expect he'll give him the massive painting.

Hah! preening my self ridiculously about being right about the painting.

The painting isn't Freddie's to move around so he does need to wait for his mother to get back. I'm amazed more isn't known about the painting -possibly one of the crusty old volunteer guides who Freddie thinks are so last century will shed light on it.

How old is LL meant to be? Hard to imagine anything 19th C or before isn't tainted by slavery money.

@BoreOfWhabylon No, Ken's way too young. Liam and Adrian are a bit too, but closer in age.
It makes no difference on the radio, though. I'm 103 but could pass for 40 if you couldn't see me, and I'm sure the reverse applies.

@echt the 🔮is v impressed with your prognosticationary (?) abilities.

@Gonners The most important factor is that Ken is not fanciable (imo, obvs). Unlike Liam and Adrian - although Adrian is only fanciable as Ted Hastings, otherwise he's just a bit too luvvieish.

@BoreOfWhabylon - I find them all equally unattractive (though I had to look up Adrian Wossname, because I'd never heard of him, but he didn't disappoint in the unappealing department). But it's radio - it doesn't matter!

Adam really should have given Susan that scarf.

I thought that too. She's helping him and she appreciated it..

Oh that is a blast from the past - Peter Hesketh and Charles Hankel both collated all sorts of stuff from the umrat collective. Both long since departed, I'm surprised its still extant but quite happy to see it still there.

I think they said start of the 18th century? So yes, surely slave connotations for an estate of that size would be very likely.

It just turned up in Google, @C8H10N4O2. I've saved it to have a good read later.

God, I hope this Paddy thing is short lived. I can mostly ignore Adam’s hammy acting when he’s not the centre of the storyline, but this makes me very worried.