Archers thread #181: Panto Week's behind you! Was that the nadir? 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 enjoy playing badminton with Derek Fletcher, 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.)

Will it be onwards and upwards for TA now, or do we fear even more of these special weeks (Martin and a Christmas Carol, Scam Week, Panto Week) and sudden reinventions of long-established characters (Neil)? I for one have had enough of all that. I want a quiet period of change counting in the village shop, farming talk with suitable sound effects and village gossip over coffee at Terum or a pint in The Bull. Slowly developing storylines featuring the full cast, not a subset for a few weeks with no mention of the others, and all behaving in character. Not holding my breath we'll get any of that, though!

Over to you.

Home Farm was sold in 2018, a quick google tells me.

Here we go: Home Farm described by the BBC (complete with induction hob): www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/1RRK20l21SbhrVkBX6CHSc6/good-bye-to-home-farm

We've had an induction hob for 16 years; don't most people have them?

In other news, I just popped into M&S to buy some frozen puff pastry -£4.75!!!!

But ushas attack was ages ago - more than 20 years?

I just worry they are going for a PSA which means it will be written badly (or perhaps it will end hear with the badly written Laurence)

Quite. I refuse to believe that JD would have an all white kitchen. Surely they are only for people who don't actually cook.

"We've had an induction hob for 16 years; don't most people have them?"

We don't and I don't know anyone who does. Or at least among the people who's kitchen I've been in, no one has an induction.

It was always drilled into me not to rely on one fuel source in the kitchen.

I despise induction hobs and almost weep with frustration if I have to use them in other people’s houses …

I have an Aga (in my F&B hand made wooden kitchen) and imagined Jenny would too.

I wonder when it was "decided" that the Gills were Asian (apparently it is a popular Sikh surname as well as British)? Please tell me it wasn't because somebody sat watching an old DVD of Goodness Gracious Me:

I don't even know what an induction hob is, that's how out of touch I am. Gas for me all the way. Cook, cook, cookability, that's the beauty of gas! (One for our older listeners there.) Electric ovens, though. I too like to have two different fuel sources in case of problems.

A glossy all-white kitchen sounds like an operating theatre.

It’s quite amusing, but perhaps a bit sad, that whenever an ‘ethnic’ character is introduced on TA that there is almost always a debate amongst listeners about whether or not it’s part of a PSA or some kind of virtue signalling. Someone upthread commented on Ben and Zainab and said if they had a relationship it would be a tick box exercise for a mixed race relationship. I mean, it could just be a storyline about a boy who likes a girl. There was quite a fuss on a much earlier thread when it became apparent that Denise is black. I think some listeners are uncomfortable with it because it seems unrealistic but if Ambridge is supposed to be relatively close to Birmingham is it not likely that there would be perhaps a handful of non white residents?

Perhaps it’s because I grew up in a very diverse area and my friendship circle is equal part white and non-white that I cannot understand why there is such a fuss made when there are Muslim/Asian/West Indian characters and endless debates about them (some of the comments about Zainab, her faith and her possible headscarf made me chuckle).

And yet the sewage that was swilling about the whole village when the Am dramatically overtopped its banks in 2015 had no long-term effect at all; the furniture that had been flooded, and the food premises that had been flooded, were hosed down and good to go. Nobody got so much as an infected cut from it.

There was one sideboard which (probably because it belonged to Clarrie) was a write-off, and that was it for casualties among the objects, apart from Kenton having flooded The Bull cellar on a previous occasion and had a bad effect on the foundations, which invalidated their insurance.

I'm getting a kitchen refit and don't want an induction hob for the same reason. If we have a power cut I still want to be able to cook .

I disagree @Eastie77Returns

I’ve always been in ethnically diverse places and grew up in places where white people were a minority so I don’t really have any preconceptions. Afaic Joy could well be black for eg.

I think the problem is the way the writers introduce and deal with new characters. They have rammed it down our throats that the maliks aren’t white and introduced a superfluous character just to have a bit of racism. It feels forced

And I quite like being able to have people with pacemakers in the kitchen if they want to be there, which an induction hob makes difficult.

Our gas hob won't work unless the electric ignition is functioning, though, so we still wouldn't be able to cook if there were a power cut. It might be worth checking that "safety feature" on yours so that you can plan round it if necessary.

About Jennifer's kitchen: I think it was fairly gadget-heavy and complicated, because Brian was unable to operate any of it at all when she left him to make his own supper on one occasion. He'd always been able to in the old one except when (for plot purposes) he was obliged to eat out on account of Jennifer being on strike because she wanted a new kitchen because one drawer started to stick.

I didn't know about the pacemaker thing at all although I don't know anyone who has got one at the moment. I'll check the hob can be lit by matches. I have used the one we have now in a power cut lighting it with matches.

"Our gas hob won't work unless the electric ignition is functioning"

Not even lighting it with a match? That's a backward step.

I promise that even a match doesn't help; if the ignition doesn't click, the gas to the burner cuts off. It is a safety feature to prevent gas from getting into the room and suffocating us all, or something, though that doesn't explain how it makes things safer if for some reason the gas flame blows out after it initially lighted.

It works on my current hob but that's 19 years old maybe its a recent 'improvement'. I still don't like induction hobs though my daughter used to have one and now has a ceramic hob, I don't like using either of them.

I'm not so sure about the Gills and how they've been treated. The cast characters have said they don't talk to anyone etc - but maybe that's an undercurrent of othering them? Beyond the obvious joke of a silent not talking.

I'm happy to add Pav and Jaswinder to the cast of silents! Quite a few of them must be getting on a bit, beyond the Button sisters.

Who was going to look after the dragon before they asked mick?

@Bruisername I agree with you, it’s the clumsiness that irks.

The fact is that people of Pakistani, Indian and for that matter South East Asian descent are very few and far between in rural villages and I think the SW handle the whole issue in a way that just isn’t recognisable to those of us who have always lived in small rural villages.

Also hate the way everything is so last minute in TA, who on earth sorts out a house sitter, especially when pets are involved just a few days before you go on holiday.

Maybe the Gills had a house-sitter sorted out but that person suddenly got appendicitis. We don't know.

Did I mishear, or are/were there some Gill children?

They'll need to be back at school soon. Even private schools have to take registers for the LA now.

Presumably The dynamic duo of Alistair and Khalil will save the life of the bearded dragon.

I reckon they’re being depicted more as classic second homers who would probably be seen in the organic shop etc if they’ve run out of milk but otherwise notoriously have an Ocado delivery waiting every time they come down and try to ignore the inconvenient locals that come with the scenic location. (No problem with that per se but they also usually bang on about how they’re supporting local businesses.)

Back at the beginning of 2019 they were said to be teens who played loud music; maybe they are over school age all this time later. Or maybe they are at boarding school(s) and have not gone skiing with their parents.

I think induction hobs are good for small kitchens where space is at a premium as they cool down as soon as pans are removed meaning they can then be immediately used as counter space with no risk of anyone (or anything) getting burned. They also make it very easy to control the heat in an instant. I inherited mine from previous owner, but grew to love it so much I replaced it either another one when we needed a new hob.