Archers thread #159: Sad news as 2023 draws to a close - RIP Ian Pepperell (Roy Tucker). 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 more of Gagriculture, 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.)

We start this thread with the very sad news that Ian Pepperell, who played Roy Tucker from 1995 without a break, has died at the age of 53. There's a lovely tribute to him in this article from Jeremy Howe, the current Editor. https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2023/dec/23/the-archers-actor-ian-pepperell-dies-aged-53-roy-archer-eastenders

Graham Blockey, who played Robert Snell, died just over a year ago, also far too young (66). https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/surrey-news/much-loved-surrey-gp-archers-25524449 As yet, Robert survives in Ambridge.

I do hope they don't re-cast Robert, but it might work for Roy, I suppose, after a suitable interval. They've re-cast Tony, Tom, Kate, Pip, Clarrie and Emma, mostly successfully. I still wish Tom and Pip hadn't been re-cast. New Tom is a good actor but so was Old Tom.

Meanwhile, several very elderly members of the cast survive, and long may that continue, although not necessarily on air. I think most of us would say that the time has come for Jill to become a silent character, following the precedent of Peggy and Christine.

So! Christmas next week - will it be the best Christmas ever at either Brookfield or The Stables, or both? Then it's 2024. What does the New Year hold for The Archers? Over to you!

The mini-break in Prague was indeed the July event. She hasn't been mentioned as seeing him since.

Tom asked her about it and she told him about the city, ho ho and serve him right the prurient little git.

Helen. She left him in the food store to keep him out of the rain while she was at school, and after that he could no longer be ridden. In the end (after another incident that involved gorging himself on rich new-season grass) he had to be put down by the vet because he was in so much pain and could no longer walk.

Yikes, I never knew that. It must have been in one of those times of my life when I (whisper it) didn't listen

Is two quite young to be riding? Or to get a pony for. As expected Alice is doing all the work!!

so will Chris and Alice get back together - long term I mean

why does Mia have Grundy as a surname?

Why, why, why do people who hardly ever phone me always manage to pick 7.03pm as the ideal time for a chat?

I'm late to the pony debate but assume Chris has flattered his vanity/jealousy by imposing an expensive gift on Martha Alice just so he can compete with Harry. Imagine giving someone a walking vet's bill.

@Bruisername , why does Mia have Grundy as a surname?
Mia and Jake wanted to have the same surname as their mother, who had changed her surname to Grundy when she married Will.

@TottersBlanklyIntoBimboCore , because they know you won't be chatting to anyone else at that time.

Martha will be three on 9th March; Alice has simply forgotten how old she is.

If Chris can manage to take as long as he did tonight (this morning) to drive Alice from The Nest to Ambridge View, a trip which must be measured in tens of yards not even in fractions of a mile, we are clearly having how well they got on together and understand each other thoroughly rubbed in, aren't we. sigh Poor old Harry.

Did Alice say Martha was three? I thought I heard two. Either way, as a non-horsey person, I find it terrifying to think of putting a tiny child on a horse.

Alice said two; for mine I would probably have said "two-and-a-half" at that age, or more likely "nearly three" because of indignant comments from said sprog, who would very likely have resented "two" like billy-o.

Pat Smythe got put up onto a larger animal than a Shetland at about Martha's age, though this isn't the picture of her on Bubbles from her book; I think these are her children. https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-1948-will-they-be-as-good-as-mum-pat-smythe-who-is-the-chef-dequipe-89845148.html?imageid=8AA92328-F346-4A75-8174-801C0F314B8C&p=151045&pn=1&searchId=65749af7aa5527505356bfa3e5058db8&searchtype=0

Mine was about Martha’s age and initially loved it. Then because of arsing around with the carrot and irritating a generally equable pony, she quite rightly got bitten and rather went off the idea.

Absolutely YES!

I rolled my eyes at "sore feet". EVERYONE knows (and lives in dread) of horses with laminitis (which can also come about from repeated hoof trauma literally puling the laminae apart or toxicity in the body as a result of infection or sometimes pregnancy) because we have it drilled into us from early on just how serious it is. It is so often farriers that pick up the first signs - in fact, many of us turn to a farrier before a vet for hoof issues unless it's clearly a vet job - so Jakob would hardly need to educate Chris!

Alice’s daughter is two if she’s three in March ….. so Alice describing her as a two year old feels rather accurate to me especially in the context of a lighthearted conversation about their behaviour. Or I suppose she could use the classic MNer “my 32 month old”

just realised I’ve NCd again since last time I posted. I’m a regular lurker and semi reg poster.

Rising 3 in horse land.

Yes, this. And in human terms too; at two years and ten months my children were not just a blanket "two", they were "nearly three".

Even if you were just passing a jokey comment about being a young child? She was talking to the father of her child and lightheartedly commiserating over Martha’s slightly irrational moods and made a joke about her being two. I’m sure if some stranger had officially asked her how old her daughter was she may have felt the need to be more precise but in that context…. Wouldn’t you feel a bit pedantic insisting on being very accurate about how long your shared daughter has been two for? 😂

Their father and I were both aware that one third is a fair chunk of a child's life and there is a big difference in development between a person of just two years old and one of almost three years in age. So no, on the whole we didn't make silly jokes about "the terrible twos" about children at the top end of the age-group.

OK!

Mind you, I’m a paediatrician who specialises in developmental assessments of under 5s and I was generally happy to call my two year old a two year old when she was a two year old so perhaps I’m a little biased towards Alice being correct to call her two year old a two year old.

Agree that calling her a two year old is totally reasonable. Given she was talking to the child’s father it really doesn’t matter what she used though as he’s well aware

@JayAlfredPrufrock , wouldn't she have turned 3 on January the 1st

Only if she is a TB

She's two and was referred to as such, some of you really over think TA sometimes. (And I say that lovingly as a fellow over thinker of parts of TA).

Terrible twos most definitely bleed into the threes ime!

Well, in Ambridge Henry said nothing but "awrigh" for several years, and never once asked "why?", so the place clearly has a strange effect on people under ten. Isn't Martha meant to be a victim of FASD, or something? That might explain a lot.

A lot of us expected Martha to have problems caused by Alice's alcohol consumption when she was pregnant, but the TA team have not yet indicated that there are any concerns about Martha's health or development. Maybe that's all to come when she starts school.