Archers thread #180: Burgeoning backstories! Continuity, what’s that? 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 it's a great idea for Helen and the boys to lodge with Tom, Natasha, Seren and Dippity*, 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/5244480-the-archers-spoilers-thread-10-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.)

*Can't remember who coined this, but it's genius.

I was strongly tempted to use one or both of the posts suggested for the title of this thread on the last thread, but went for something a bit briefer. However, they're brilliant and will kickstart this thread very nicely, so here they are:

@Sidebeforeself: Beavers, bridge, bunny boilers and busybodies - it's all a load of bollocks!

(I couldn't agree more!)

@DeanElderberry: I don't usually speculate much on the appearance of characters, but do wonder what it is about Miranda that is bringing out the chest-thumping silverback in Brian and Justin? One little bridge game and the course of Ambridge rewilding is set. The face that launched a thousand beavers.

Over to you!

Is the panto over or should I crack on with an audiobook today?

It’s all over.

George’s Other Mother - Felicity Jones is giving her ‘inheritance tracks’ on Saturday Live atm. She does have a lovely voice.

Hi,
I don’t post but do read - the thread is so fast moving I just can’t keep up. I listened to The Archers as a child (not through choice, just on the radio) and didn’t like it. I started listening in 1991. I can’t stand the recent episodes - what the hell? I am so pissed off I have submitted a complaint to the BBC. I have asked for a response. Has it now taken over from Doctors as a place for trainee scriptwriters and producers to practice their ‘craft’? I can’t think of any other reason for it all.

It really now does seem to depend who is the scriptwriter for a week whether that week will be utter drivel or not.

The Christmas Carol dreck in November, and last week's Panto garbage, were both written by Nick Warburton

HarlotOTara
Has it now taken over from Doctors as a place for trainee scriptwriters and producers to practice their ‘craft’? I can’t think of any other reason for it all.

I don't think it can be that...

Last week's SW Nick Warburton (aged 77 or 78, Wikipedia is unsure) has written a fair amount for the BBC, including On Mardle Fen and other award-winning plays.

Next week's writer, Sarah Hehir, started writing for TA only four years ago; the one for the week after, Naylah Ahmed, was working for TA as a director in 2010 and started writing for the programme in 2017; Keri Davies, the following week, has been working for TA, first as a producer and then as a writer, since late last century.

Trans Jack would be fun. I’d suspend my disbelief in an afterlife for that

I loved On Mardle Fen, hard to believe it's the same writer.

Has it now taken over from Doctors as a place for trainee scriptwriters and producers to practice their ‘craft’? I can’t think of any other reason for it all.

It's certainly feeling like that at times. There needs to be more respect for TA listeners who have been loyal for decades. It feels like they are forgetting that many people have such a long history with the programme. Or just don't care.

Thinking about it, TA was always (for me, in olden times) something my mother had on or (later) that I listened to in the kitchen while cooking supper. If I missed an episode, I sometimes caught up on Sunday but often didn't. I was out of the country from 1999-2013, though at some point I was able to listen online. I now listen online, often but not always live. These days, if I miss an episode, I often don't bother to catch up.

I suspect I am The Wrong Kind of Listener. But aren't we all?

I'm feeling less inclined lately to make the effort to catch up on every episode. Fridays are the only day of the week I ever manage to catch TA live. And even then it's not very often and I can't really hear it over the ruckus and clattering about. Without the catch up option I would never have become a listener. I romatisise the idea of having a nice routine, listening at 7pm whilst cleaning up the kitchen after a lovely home cooked meal. Or Sunday mornings, listening to the omnibus with a cup of tea, some crochet and a comfy chair looking out at the garden.

The reality is I'm always home late from work, my kids are feral and it's far more pleasant to catch up on my day off while the little darlings are at school. Or in the car after work. Basically whenever I'm on my own. I think that's why it stings a bit when TA goes through a phase of being rather shite as it's part of my "me time". 2025 so far has not been delivering.

I got into TA via my late husband who listened every day with his mother growing up. I knew about it in the way I knew about Hamlet without actually ever reading it. We listened to the omnibus sporadically at the weekend but got more committed once we moved to Australia: a link to really good radio. Saturday morning was The News Quiz and TA online.

I remember he could hardly bear to listen to the Rob and Helen SL.

After he died I listened every day, and still do.

Like so much in life, post-Covid has been turning point in crapness and cutting corners. Like shrinkflation.

Aw @echt that’s a touching story

I wonder who else listens as a kind of legacy from their childhood.

I loudly declared I'm stopping but actually it's something my Mum and I do discuss when we get together.

I'm worried about her cognition so this is our common topic. I find it reassuring when she remembers names and threads of storylines.

Bugger. I'm going to have to resubscribe aren't I?

Well yes - because if you don’t and there’s another week like last week you’ll be making a gp appointment thinking she’s hallucinating!

If anyone is interested this year's Academic Archers conference is going to be online (with some very special guests, and tie ins with a range of associated podcasts). The tickets are now on sale, more details at https://www.tickettailor.com/events/academicarchers/1552665?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR08x5fzkqWpPCLoThE09jfZ2YzjtX6qByhy-IfaDTuSyFOzcq7D0yRn2UUaemfigOZHiMRwzIV7hhqMmWmQ

It's lovely reading how others became Archers listeners. Like many others I began listening as a child with my mother, pre-primary school at lunchtime at first then in the evening, while we cleared up the kitchen after supper. I can see Mum now, leaning back against the sink, telling me for the umpteenth time, who Walter Gabriel was. I then had a lapse but began again at university and have been fairly faithful since. But not this last week. Utter shite, as a PP said, though I know this thread is generally no swearing.

I'm sorry about your DH @echt, that sounds really hard

I started listening on maternity leave over 13 years ago via the afternoon slot which matched the horror of the daily 'getting DD to nap' window.

Been a bit on and off over the years but have listened 100% since I started the habit of only listening via BBC Sounds a few years ago. I tend to listen in the car... on the way to the station for work or on way back from dropping DC to activities in the evening.

They all know not to disturb me if I'm listening to the last few minutes on the drive!

I've read the Joanna Toye books so have some grip of what happened up to 2000.

My friend listens too... we consider it one of life's little pleasures at just 13 minutes a day.

I have not been listening all week and it's really thrown my routine! I listen to it while preparing evening meals.

Because I've not properly engaged I am really not clear why the existing cast and pantomime couldn't have just moved to Ambridge? Surely that would have been easier than doing a play from scratch?

Like most of us the Christmas plays are the worst bit for me so I was very happy to have not had to listen to that over Christmas, so to have a pantomime now just felt cruel, ha.

I assume all will be well this week so shall resume listening and resume lurking here.

Oh and origin of my listening was that it was on in the background when I was a child. I was always annoyed that my parents didn't listen to radio 2 like the other parents.

Listened as an adult properly around the time of Nigel's deading. I heard it being discussed on More or Less when they were calculating the drop from his scream.

My parents listened to Radio 4 (previously the Home Service) but never listened to the Archers. I was never interested in Radio 1 as I was into more alternative music and Radio 2 was for 'old people' so I listened to R4 in my 20s and got into the Archers then. I stopped for a few years when it seemed to be always about Tom's sausages and I got bored. Then I accidentally caught a bit with Helen and Rob getting ready to go out, he was telling her what to wear I and thought 'Ay ay, something's going on here' and took it up again although I missed the beginnings of that storyline.

I'm an Army brat and before BFBS TV (one channel) we only had BFBS (previously BFN radio) if we wanted English programmes. We listened to a lot of German radio for music but news and the Archers were a daily thing (and waking up to The Shipping Forecast)

I suppose we need to be thankful for small mercies; I am seeing a fair few light operatic society productions advertised (Gilbert & Sullivan etc) for this time of year. At least Ambridge weren't singing (or were they)?

Growing up (mid-60's onwards), Radio 4 was a permanent feature of the kitchen (my DM was Jennifer on steroids without all the snobbishness). I definitely remember some bits of the Archers (and, once I returned to listening in my 30's, it gave us a common interest to chat about on our phone calls). I remember the theme tune to something called Waggoners Walk (though I have absolutely no memory of the plotlines).

I'm now a Sunday, or occasional 2pm, Archers listener so I do go through phases of missing chunks if I get busy. We tend to eat supper around 6:30/7pm so we tend to have the TV news on instead of R4 (though do make an exception if something reasonable is on at 6:30pm). When DD was a preschooler, bedtime routine was scheduled to be completed in time for the 7pm episode.

Back to Ambridge; will Josh be getting worried about Bird Flu? I am not he has much in the way of agricultural buildings to put his hens in.

I'm another one who grew up with Radio 4 in the background, but only when my Mum was working in the kitchen or on the odd occasion I was in the car with Dad, as he liked to have it on during short trips, especially going to and from work. My Mum listened to The Archers on what would then have been the Home Service from around the time it started, but she can't have been hooked as she stopped bothering as soon as there was TV to watch in the early evening. Thereafter she was in the camp of people who don't switch the radio off when Barchester Green starts up.

(I remember the comedian Arthur Smith saying something along these lines: he though there were two sorts of Radio 4 listener - those who would get out of a hot bath to switch I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue on and those who would get out of a hot bath to switch The Archers off. It's an overlapping category as before online catch up became possible I belonged in both groups.)

Anyway, I often heard bits of TA when I was growing up and when I left home I took a transistor radio with me (it was olden times) and enjoyed listening to R4 for a bit of background noise in my room. Eventually I found I was making the effort to swtich on to catch TA and that was that.

My DMum always had radio 4 on in the kitchen and she always listened to The Archers but I only started listening when I could pick it up on longwave when I lived in Northern Europe, for a year, and I was homesick.

Back in the UK, my boss and another colleague were also fans and we chatted about the Archers at tea break, so much so that another colleague started listening too so he could join in. My boss told us that his daughter was such a fan that she had saved up her pocket money and bought a cassette recorder with a timer so that she could tape episodes in case she missed them.

I was driving down the motorway one evening and my boss’s car overtook me (colleagues were passengers) and I saw one of them punch the air. The story line at the time was Brian and Caroline’s affair, and Brian had just said something smarmy like “what lovely lingerie you have darling” to Caroline. I just knew that they were also listening!

I knew about TA when I was small, but Mum used to listen to Mrs Dales Diary instead. When that finished she moved to Wagoners Walk, but I can remember conversations with her about Nelson Gabriel and Mrs Antrobus, and I can remember Laura Archer being found dead in a ditch,so she must have moved across at some time. Then I dropped out during uni and after, but came back intermittently when I married 40 years ago. I wouldn’t be such a committed listener without these threads!