Archers thread #168: Near to the Maddening Crowd? 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 hear more of Harrison's strange little moaning noises, or other unusual views.

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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 @OverArmour for the title suggestion!

Over to you.

I agree with @AskingQuestionsAllTheTime that there's no plausible explanation other than the obvious one for how a drunk and her car got where they did, even though the listeners know that the obvious isn't true in this case. How could Alice even persuade anyone otherwise unless she starts to remember what actually happened?

I don't think we can rely on Alistair or Denise, because right at the end Alistair went looking for George and that's when he saw Alice, by that time in the driver's seat, from which we can assume that her car was out of sight from where they originally were.

I wonder whether Mick will have dash cam footage (certainly a lot of interest in his other vehicle recently, I suppose he's still got the car somewhere). The only other plausible line I can think of is that, when all the witnesses are questioned, someone starts asking how and when George got there and it's realised that his story doesn't add up.

I really hope it isn’t a dramatic court confession. I hated the Helen court case

George will crumble I think

I don’t think the glove box was the defence, it’s a niggling part of a wider issue. She knows she didn’t do it and that feeling is getting stronger and stronger, hence unable to plead guilty despite the consequences. and her intention to do so. She just could not get the words out.

I think someone will take her seriously if only to help her prove conclusively there was nothing else going on and come to terms with actually having done it, to help reassure her.

I just think it negative and unrealistic that everyone close to her would just treat her like a piece of useless dirt without at least one listening to her, properly listening to her. I think the view they would all just ignore her paints a very bleak picture of family. Ironically it could even be Fallon or Harrison that unlocks it for her, and Chris is very supportive, he was definitely questioning the fruit cider, it didn’t fit for him at all.

She may start having flashbacks or using hypnosis might be a very effective solution. Especially as she was engaging with George during the drive, and the intense need to get out of the car, and feeling trapped. Deeply buried memories currently as inaccessible as George’s message to Will, but something there.

À la recherche du temps perdu

À la recherche du temps perdu

I make a nice madeleine (they're not particularly hard to make, as long as you have the mould and eat them fresh). If I had an address, I could post some to Alice to help jog her memory. Unfortunately, I don't think I could do fruit cider flavoured ones. They'd probably be as nice as peanut butter lasagne.

Especially as she was engaging with George during the drive, and the intense need to get out of the car, and feeling trapped. Deeply buried memories currently as inaccessible as George’s message to Will, but something there I agree @VoxPop. She wasn’t unconscious with drink so she may well have some residual memory - it just needs jogging somehow.

I should imagine interviews with her legal team may well do that.

I wonder if it will all get too much for George now, as he knows a court case is on its way. I can’t imagine him opening up to Emma as she’s so proud of My Little Hero, but maybe Eddie? Who will convince him to keep schtum, possibly on the basis that “Alice would have drunk drove (drink driven?) at some point so George had actually done her a favour by getting her arrested and charged before she hurt someone”.

I can hear the wheedling now!

We know that she already had drunk driven at least once: the time she realised what she was doing, pulled off the road and rang Harrison to collect her. She had been on the road, in a car, driving, and drunk.

If she had not been drunk, I very much doubt she would have made the sexual pass at him as he was doing up her seat-belt.

So any suggestion that "I would never do that" is so much flapdoodle.

Synopsis for Thursday 15th April, 2021
Alice has rung Harrison, and says she is sorry, and is a total mess. She's drunk and is afraid to go home. He tells her to listen: he needs to know where she is. She has pulled the car off the road into Leader's Wood, and he tells her to stay put and not touch the keys or go anywhere: he is coming to find her.

I’d agree if it was risky decisions vs lack of confidence, friendliness vs surliness etc but he seems to vacillate between a definite bad-un with sustained behaviour (like manipulating Will so Hannah’s evicted etc) to being quite nice at times.

Maybe George will crumble while giving evidence.

Delicious!

I cannot be sure but did she not get drunk in Leaders Wood and then realise she shouldn’t drive, calling Harrison after she’d sunk a bottle. That would back up the I can’t drive after drinking theory.

Oh yes good spot @eish

Asking posted the synopsis from that night and it says she pulled the car over - so she was driving drunk

I think the one thing everyone is told when they live with an addict is that you can not trust them to do what they say or think they will do. It’s probably the most destructive part of the addiction because it damages relationships

Pulled the car over when though?

Oh sorry now read it properly

They just had the Nigel scream on BH and I still can’t get over how ridiculous it was and no one thought - hang on, it sounds like he’s falling from the Shard

I was just coming to post that!

BH ?

Broadcasting House. On R4 now. They just played it again too

Alice pleading Not Guilty because she is convinced she would not have driven drunk doesn't make any sense. If she didn't drive the car, the only logical conclusion is that someone else drove it (unless they have introduced driverless cars in Ambridge without mentioning it). However, she doesn't seem to have made this logical step and is simply relying on her feelings without anything to back them up.
At least we can be sure that Brian will pay for her to have the best possible legal team - unlike George if he ends up in court over this.

George will plead guilty though. I wonder who will act as character witnesses

🤣 I heard it too but didn't catch why they played it.

It was about Ian McClellan falling off stage so they played the clip of another famous ‘falling’.

Ah yes. Makes sense. Thanks.