Archers thread #147: Spring is sprung, the grass is riz, I wonder how old Ambridge is. Discuss The Archers here.

[Gasp0deTheW0nderD0g]

Many thanks to @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 have the general public watching you work and asking questions, 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 comes from this poem, with which I drive my family to distraction at this time of year.

Spring is sprung, the grass is riz
I wonder where the birdies is.
The bird is on the wing.
But that’s absurd, the wing is on the bird.
Or so I’ve heard.

Ogden Nash

Apologies to @TeenDivided for ignoring her good ideas for the thread title. Here they are to kickstart our ruminations:
'window on the world of cheesemaking'
'how long until the intercom is fatal'
'will Brian settle in new pastures'
'Springing towards Easter with Widowers, Windows, and wails'

Over to you!

The Soil association inspector worked out what had happened because she found many empty feed bags and they were from an unapproved feed. So yes, the feed was in the pigs not in the post.

Did we definitely hear Rob urging Tom to go to Canada after he jilted Kirsty, or did I imagine that?

Lowfield reckons you are right; Tom rang him and got his help about where in Canada to go.

19th May, 2014
back at Blossom Hill Cottage, Rob continues in his efforts to persuade Helen that her parents have it all wrong, and need to get out of organic production. Helen is not sure, but Rob certainly is. Just then his phone rings. It's work, of course, and he leaves the room. Only it's not work; it's Tom. He knows what has happened and that he has messed up big time. He apparently needs more advice and help. From Rob, of course.

I don't think it was specified exactly what advice was given, but it was only after that Tom got the Canada (Ontario) notion

This was the post I basically came here to write so I won't bother - Lilian has said it all beautifully down to the "hello both of you!" which made me smile.

Publicising your own organic farm with cute twins and then getting the same recognisable cute twins to market a pesticide company really is extra stupid. Tom has never had any principles apart from his own pocket (since becoming an adult) and that's why he married Natasha and not Kirsty IMO!

Many thanks, that rings a bell. Of course, Tom came back a changed man (literally - re-cast during his months of absence).

I've been a bit behind, caught up now and I am intrigued by the bequest to Martha.

It seems so unlike Jennifer to so obviously favour one grandchild over the others with no explanation.

She has seen how Peggy changing her will causes issues between Peggy's children and on a separate occasion between her grandchildren.

She has mediated fall outs between her and Brian's children over shares in home farm.

I just don't buy that she would make a bequest to her youngest grandchild and not the others without good reason.

If it was Xander she'd left a bequest to it might have been understandable on the basis that he isn't Brian's grandchild so may not inherit from any other grandparent (I don't think we know Ian's parents situation). Martha however should be well provided for, Brian has no reason to disinherit her and Neil and Susan although not wealthy are comfortable and are likely to be able to leave money to their two children/three grandchildren.

I'm sure there'll be more - probably that the money is in trust til she's an adult in case her mum drinks away all her inheritance.

No doubt all the children will get something with the understanding that they'll pass it on to their kids (although lord knows I wouldn't be confidence of Kate at the very least) but this is a sort of insurance policy for Martha.

Will probably plunge Alice into a crisis of confidence knowing that her mum "didn't believe in her" even though she herself knows how fragile recovery is.

Maybe Jennifer has detected signs of FASD in Martha and is trying to make some sort of provision to help with support for that? Not that £15K will go very far in terms of special school fees or care costs.

Well quite if it was about Alice not being trustworthy then Kate was just as much of a risk plus Phoebe and Noluthando are adults so surely she would have left them their shares directly.

That would still be deeply unfair, what if Martha doesn't have FASD or is only mildly affected and doesn't require special support but Xander is diagnosed with say ASD and doesn't have £15k to spend on additional support.

If this was what she intended a good lawyer would have advised a trust for the benefit of any/all grandchildren who are under 18 to be used for their education. There could be trustees to administer it within specific criteria.

I know some of the grandchildren are adults but it's very common to leave all the money to the children on the assumption that some of that will reach the grandkids in due course. That avoids the issue of perceived unfairness between offspring if kids and grandchildren both inherit, where for example Kate has three kids and Adam only has one, so Kate and her "descendants" get tonnes more money than Adam and his.

That wouldn't be a great idea in the case of Kate, though, as she'd probably spend it all on woo and her three children would end up with less than the others, if anything at all. As indeed they probably will in any case!

The title is the best bit …

Ooh do I get a point for predicting it’ll be seen as an insurance policy for Martha? And that Alice would freak out about that?

BOOPs for Helen stuffily claiming that her boys would never use “gangster slang” in a family treasure hunt, and Susan asking for a pay rise.

Yes I loved Helen's line there!

Seen on twitter
The twins - Sarin and Novachok

What a cruel final message Jenny has sent to Alice.

Booty isn't exactly threatening to "put a cap yo ass mo fo" and wasn't Henry into rap or grime music or something?

It is bloody awful of her to leave an insurance policy for one grandchild and not another.

Adam should be raging.

Kate's kids are older and less reliant but Xander has less extended family support. What if something happened to Adam or Ian?

I hate this and I don't believe Jenny would have done it like this.

I don't buy the whole thing. The SL have really dropped the ball over JD's death. First not even indicating a song she'd like at her funeral? Nope nope. It would have been planned down to the last canapé for the wake (she'd have made and frozen them...) and her will? would have reasoning in it, or she would have written an explanatory letter to the others or Brian - at the time she made the change.

It is so out of JD's character it's making me Quite Cross.

LOVED Soosan asking for a pay rise.

Forgot to say: finally. Alice went to rehab, came out and expected the universe to treat her as though it was all a little blip and that she's completely cured. There have been one or two tiny wobbles but that is it.

She has never ever faced up properly, IMO, to the fact that she is and always will be an alcoholic

The word booty meaning bum has been around at least 20 years in this country. Helen isn’t THAT old and IRL someone of that age wouldn’t be shocked by it, but Helen is a stuffy old person in her heart.

I also noted that Henry has a phone now, on which no doubt he’ll be following the likes of Andrew Tate at the first possible opportunity.

Does the news article about future guest star count as a spoiler?

😆