Archers thread #150: For whom the sausage rolls: George over a Berrow, Fallon & Harrison seek new lease on life, is it all a Fête Accompli? Discuss The Snivelling Simpletons, sorry, 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 people frequently miss their own weddings because of a morning quickie while in a plaster cast, 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 for title suggestions. I basically took @OverArmour's excellent suggestion and managed to shoehorn in snivelling simpleton, gloriously coined by @Eastie77Returns to refer to Lee in the first instance.

@WitcheryDivine suggested Recharging, Red Kites and The Man They Call Ron, is Ambridge becoming an earthly paradise or a hell on earth? which seems as good a place as any to kick off our discussions! Ron = Rob, a fortuitous typo on a previous thread. It does feel a bit as if we're marking time before he turns up again. Odd to do what could be a high profile storyline over the summer holidays when a lot of people will be away, but depending on your point of view, maybe that's a blessing!

Whither George? Is he shaping up to be Andrew Tate mark 2?

Everybody looking forward to Ferret Fun at the Fête? Me neither.

Over to you!

Christine moved to The Laurels in Autumn 2018, by the way. She no longer lives at The Lodge, whatever her website page may claim.

Ha! My remaining parent is over 90 - and not a trace of arthritis. Plenty of other frailties, but not that one.

I, however, receive warnings of rain via my knee and shoulder …

wow, @TopOfTheCliff !

That is incredibly impressive, @TopOfTheCliff!

I’m sure I remember Jill having to have a procedure on her eyes she thought she was losing her sight. She had to stop driving and there was endless talk about who was having to ferry her about.

I’m sure Lillian would be a candidate for COPD. But no coughing or clearing chest.
no one goes ooof when they move around.

They should bring in John Shuttleworth to have a drink at The Bull just to go “ooof”!

See my post upthread ^

Was Christine swizzed out of money by someone or have I misremembered? Matt Crawford maybe? I thought Peggy was paying for The Laurels because of that, but just told everyone is was because of her cat.

I read an interview by the Peggy actress where she said she had to keep telling the scriptwriters that although Peggy was rich she had to remind them not to “give away” more money than she would have.

That's what I remember, too.

Is anyone else hoping that the Grundy's pull off the best fete ever? I know it's unlikely but I'd like it if it was a success - more ferrets and fewer celebs but maybe Lynda will be reminded of one of the more bucolic fetes of yore from her research and the village will be charmed by the whole thing?
As for Helen and her mozarella... Ugh.

Finally listened to the ominbus (but have been keeping an eye on this thread throughout the week) and yes, I'm glad so many people think the same as me on a lot of things (feel relieved that it's not just me then😅).

If the ominous ad they ran a few months ago was anything to go by, i envisage a Rob-kidnapping-the boy(s) (maybe even Helen?) scenario as 'I'm taking you all with me' one-way trip to hell, although who survives remains to be seen. I can't see Rob's involvement with Henry go any other way so we'd better brace ourselves for more soul-crushingly depressing performances ahead as this will be the final curtain for Rob and in true BBC soap-style they'll want him to go out with a bang (splattering the audience in the process).

As for that George, he's already filling Henry's ears with rebellious talk (which will definitely work tenfold with Helen's paranoia and stress from Rob) so we'll just have to see how much manipulating and grooming he'll twist Henry and use him for his own means (before, during, or after the Rob debacle). I'm still keeping my fingers crossed for a massive reality-check or comeuppance, I'm already past fed-up of the little scumbag and the trucking tanker he's fast growing up to be. At least he was pretty accurate describing his parents as "three idiots" because you'd have to be to not realise that the overprotection and bias towards him has had a detrimental effect on him and cultivated a sense of entitlement.

Will's naivety toward the whole moving in together whilst kicking Hannah out was beggar's belief. How did he NOT see that was a bad move nor see how that was related to George's pettiness?? Even after George lied to him about apologising to her, he took it in without flinching. Gullible doesn't even come close. At this rate he'll end up a cropper by sticking up for and siding automatically with George without ever realising how his offspring is manipulating the 'father-son' bonding for his own nefarious means.

Also i was just think, the 'distant/absent father' narrative has been done a lot recently, what with Adam and his biological Irish father (after Jennifer's death), Lee and his daughters in the US, and now with Rob/Henry. Wouldn't be surprised with Adam has a convo of 'i wish knew my father before he died etc.' with Henry sometime in the future.

@euroseb11 Although Rob is not technically Henry's father I think. It's Jack who is Rob's biological son. I think Helen had Henry via anonymous sperm donation?

Me neither.
What worries me about George is the him claiming that he's popular with girls and sexually experienced. It really gives me the creeps.

Hannah will be rescued by the Ambridge housing fairy. Maybe there's room on Rex's houseboat, The Bungalow, or at Willow Farm, or Jazzer's old room at Greenacres.

Hannah, Neil and Tracy seem to have got the measure of George.

I quite enjoyed the cheese pitching scene though Helen sounded like she is taking GCSE business studies instead of an experienced businesswoman.

Ardil has no loyalty to Bridge Farm so given that H hasn’t contacted him for months to discuss the mozzarella it’s not surprising her buffalo offering slipped his mind. If Borsetshire Blue is such an award-winning cheese then it’s unlikely to be omitted from the GG cheeseboard but she really should have been badgering talking to him on a monthly basis to nail the order down. Her lackadaisical approach to networking is symptomatic of her belief that the world revolves around Helen Archer.

@changementdenom1 ah yes, sorry i meant Adam having that conversation with Jack. It's clear Henry is going to be a pawn in the final game Rob will play so I'm dreading for the messy fallout that it will entail 😞
@FallonsNewCoat as for that lackadaisical approach, i think it runs in the family as Tom doesn't seem very bothered to extent Fallon's lease despite Tony being very on boars with her ideas to branch into the charging station lots as THE cafe being an extension of the tea room. I found it quite facetious of him inviting her for a go on the bouncy castle but dimissing her multiple messages and calls after she mentioned it and having one of her marvellously huge cakes fall flat! I hope Tony really backs her up.

*on board (not 🐗 !!)

It must be a bit quiet for Lizzie at LL now, perhaps Hannah can move into Lily's room.

Brian might have a spare room at Blossom Hill Cottage. Maybe Hannah could move in as a lodger and ... 💘
She'd make a great stepmother for Kate.

I can't remember how many bedrooms BHC has these days, but the Ambridge housing fairy bequeathed an extra one a few years ago. I haven't forgotten Baspofald Ruairi.

She'd make a great stepmother for Kate.

Oh let it be so 😆

Highly doubt Hannah accords with Brian’s preference for ‘ultra-feminine’ women! Jenny, Caroline, Betty … She’s neither glamorous nor motherly (motherhood not a prerequisite).

(I don’t like her, since she isn’t written to be likeable, but she’s a neat contrast to other Ambridge women.)

I noticed Helen declined Tom’s offer of a sandwich.

I don't picture Hannah as the glamorous, beautiful, house-proud, hostess-with-the-mostest type that Brian would go for, but the dynamic with the heirs step-children would make for an interesting storyline.

Not sure what Debbie and Adam would be. They are Brian's step-children, so maybe step-children-in-law?

Would make for interesting posts in Step-parents, AIBU? and Relationships. Perhaps a post or two on how to become groomed and polished in Style & Beauty, and a few posts in Food/Recipes on how best to make a game pie or roast a haunch of venison.

when Tom was shagged up (pun intended) with Hanna there was a lot of ready meals, take aways and mess being mentioned.