Archers thread #148: Unseasonably, it's panto time in Ambridge. He's behind you, Pat! BANG. 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 think George Grundy isn't a psychopath, 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.)

Will Rob return, or are they playing with us? Will Pat run amok with her shotgun and wipe out half the village? (We can but hope ...) Will Oliver come to his senses and turf the Grundy clan out of Grange Farm? So many questions, so much time.

Over to you!

I thought the same!

We do seem to have a few gay men but no lesbians. I thought Stella was top of the possible list though, but maybe with Ruth.

I dunno. I'm not Catholic, I have been to Spain many times and seen/heard about Semana Santa celebrations, which involve all sorts of elaborate processions with crosses and Saints being borne aloft and people flagellating themselves in the High Street. I've never seen anything like that in the UK, or heard any reference to "Holy Week". My knowledge of British Christian festivals is limited to Christmas, Easter and Lent. Plus Kirsty was talking about a Spain-specific cake tradition, so it was specifically the Spanish version of "Holy Week" she was talking about.

(I also have a feeling that Annabel Dowler speaks good Spanish and has in the past doubled up playing a random Spanish tourist or the like, maybe she came up with the torta de abuela idea herself).

If I was off to the pub on Friday for a jolly night out, I would be very disappointed to find myself suddenly listening to an earnest Kirsty giving a talk on Holy Week traditions in Spain and eating Helen’s over-sweet pancakes. It wouldn’t quite be what I had signed up for. Kirsty has flashes of sounding like she lives in the real world and then does something like this…

I agree there is no way Lynda would boot out a long-term guest in this way. If I were Adil I would probably have been clearer that if I I were forced to leave on Thursday then I would never return.

I find it difficult to believe that Rylan would leave it to the locals to arrange accommodation anyway. If he expected to stay the night, surely he or his minions would have booked it as soon as he agreed to do the gig. But the chances are that he would be planning to travel straight on to Liverpool, it's not the most arduous journey, after all.

last night there was a moment where Kirsty actually mentioned her own fairly recent traumatic time (“the last time I watched this film it was with Philip”) and Helen COMPLETELY ignored her.

Five minutes later Helen was calling her the perfect friend 😂 It truly is one way traffic with her.

A lot of Christian feast days are celebrated in a more obvious public way in Catholic & Orthodox-majority countries, but you still wouldn't come home after a holiday and say things like 'oh, they had the most marvellous celebrations for Η Μεταμόρφωση του Σωτήρος, it was simply beautiful!' or 'Oo, there was a fabulous procession for L'Assomption, so many flowers!' Even if you didn't know the English names for those feasts, you would say something like 'some Catholic feast or other, something to do with Mary' rather than randomly throw foreign words (which have an English translation) into an English sentence.

Yes, I noticed that. I thought it could be a moment of bonding between the two women unlucky in love. But no. Even though the particular film probably brought back worse memories for Kirsty than Helen, she was the one having to tell Helen that they didn't have to watch it.

Someone else may have said this since I started composing the post, only for the laptop battery to die, but there's Anna Tregorran and those women who were immune to Jazzer's charms when he was a milkman (?egg man? some sort of delivery round). Lesbians being present and known but silent and not really talked about seems more true to life than much in Ambridge.

Kirsty could do so much better than Helen, anyway.

Lynda's eviction of Adil is bizarre. Also, I would have thought someone in charge of overhauling Ambridge's top hotel would have jumped at the chance to go and stay in the competition by way of a bit of market research. It feels like the whole Eurovision plot is being stretched to breaking point - I don't understand why it has been transformed into some sort of talent show? Do people actually do this sort of thing? I can just about understand dressing up and watching it together on a big screen in a room above the pub, but the rest of it not so much - especially the idea that one of the presenters might come along the night before to judge as a favour to a roady (?) he once met. Is there a massive crossover between Eurovision and Archers fans or are the BBC hoping they will create one? Apologies for the moan - I just prefer the Archers when it feels like we're eavesdropping on real life in an English village not trying the shoehorn in a guest appearance by a celebrity I've never heard of.

I expect they might have a snog but I don’t think they will become full-on lesbians. They will just recognise it as a reaction to being surrounded by hopeless/horrible men.

I don't understand why Kirsty/Adil has been left on the back burner.

Kirsty has been too busy chasing after Jakob's brother, who has (sensibly) vanished.

I can just about understand dressing up and watching it together on a big screen in a room above the pub, but the rest of it not so much - especially the idea that one of the presenters might come along the night before to judge as a favour to a roady (?) he once met

And furthermore, a roadie who’s now worried that Rylan won’t remember him at all. So who exactly contacted Rylan - or, more pertinently, his agent - and persuaded him to make this gracious appearance? What is his fee?

Slebs don’t usually turn up to random things at the back of beyond for the sheer love of it. Making personal appearances is, after all, their actual paid job. They get inundated with people begging them to come and judge the village cake show, or give out the prizes at the face-painting contest, and sorry, we can’t pay you anything but that’s OK, isn’t it??

What’s so special about this gig, I wonder?

She wasn't chasing after him, they were mutually having a casual fling for the few days he was in town.

No record of her having been in touch with him since and that was ages ago.

Do we actually know that Adil is single?

In addition to the sheer dullness of the euro show including presentations by Kirsty and Helen, it's an absolute racist stereotype fest waiting to happen, isn't it? People do it without thinking- we all do to be fair, let alone the actual racists.

Another thought. What happened to Pip and her old school friend I was convinced we were going to have a single white female situation going on.

Also...why I am in a refective mood why is Adil's employer footing the bill for his stay in Ambridge. I can't see why he can't do all of the Grey Gables stuff remotely at this stage.

@Fink I'm afraid that I literally have come home from a Spanish holiday and told people about the Semana Santa festivities, using the words Semana Santa. Why? Because to me it would have been weird to translate it to "Holy Week" as I had no idea that was a concept that had any meaning in English. On the other hand I would not have said "they had some amazing decorations up for Navidad" because I know about Christmas.

Yes, or - you know - rent a flat where he could cook for himself. I can't imagine living in a B&B for months (how long's it been) would be anything other than AWFUL. He's bound to be on a very decent wage and his employer will be paying for accommodation - even at a deal I shouldn't think he's at Lynda's for less than say £350 a week - £1400+ a month? In the midlands I imagine that could get you a stonking house let alone a decent flat. This looks nice:

Yes, it’s inconceivable, to my mind, that Adil would have done anything other than rent a swanky flat in Borchester.

Though I’m still waiting for the revelation that he is actually his own employer. Didn’t they do that once before with … maybe John Tregorran? First presented as a vagabond in a caravan, later revealed in full princely glory. (Well, something like that. Not near any books.)

It seemed to me that Helen was so rattled and preoccupied that she probably didn't hear what Kirsty said, and Kirsty is such a perfect and understanding friend that she saw that immediately, and cheerfully and uncomplainingly suppressed her own feelings so she could carry on being there for Helen, whose need is greater at the moment. Helen recognised this and that's why she thanked Kirsty a few moments later.

What does Joy know about Rob?

That's a charitable take. I still reckon Helen is fundamentally perhaps not selfish but not always taking other's feelings into account. We witnessed her not really thinking about Susan and Clarrie with the viewing window.

Hello you knowledgeable bunch, but in my hiatus, I’ve missed who the blummin heck Mick is. Sorry to ask again. I promise won’t ask again

I agree the Rylan visit is ridiculous but I’m still looking forward to hearing him? We will hear him won’t we?!

can I give a belated BOOP for Jim recounting his conversation with the J Lloyd interloper to Harrison. The self censoring of the expletives was nicely done I thought.

Joy's boyfriend. They met at a good/music festival when Joy went to help Pat out on a stand selling (I think) Natasha's juice, can't recall why Natasha wasn't there.

He was responsible for the introduction of a hot tub to Joy's back garden, into which Lee and Helen were invited, much to their horror.

Generally a good bloke, comes across as very extrovert and uncomplicated and good for Joy (they don't yet live together and not idea where he is from). He'll no doubt have a personality transplant to psychopath at some point when the plot demands it.