Archers thread #182: The Shit hits the Am! 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 be delighted to oblige your employer by cleaning up sewage spills without proper training or equipment in place of your normal duties, 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 https://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.)

Credit for the title goes to @echt. Can't think of anything much to say about current storylines. Credulity is strained to its limit on many fronts, unfortunately, but there are a few nuggets in the slurry. I did enjoy hearing Natasha's outrage that Fallon is doing obvious, sensible things at The Bull even though it might hit Terum. I thought Natasha was supposed to be an entrepreneur!

Over to you!

For all that the Archers actors are now endlessly roped in to pontificate about their characters/storylines in interviews, podcasts etc, their job is to perform. And I very much doubt that they have any input into continuity, even if they can be arsed to remember the earlier crud.

They are. Jim has taken on Brad as trainee umpire.

No- Jim and Brad are doing the scoring

Not much happened in the last episode but I was wondering if Carrie was planting the lettuces in a poly tunnel, as round here it's still frosty inthe morning. Wouldn't want them to lose the lettuces. I think the onion setts will be OK. Almost farming though which is what TA is supposed to be about. When is it lambing time.?

And apparently need players so much they give a beginner a try (Brad) five minutes before cutting off existing experienced players (Tony’s retirement aside.)

Been and gone, I think! Used to be a big thing every year. Not a mention this year, unless I missed it.

I don't recall lambing being mentioned this year either. What happened to those lovely scenes with the sounds of the animals in the background? When we did we last hear a sheep or cow? The SW are too busy focusing on water companies and cricket.

I always associate Adam with lambing - a reasonable explanation as to why he always sounds so tired. He is now banished to some distant reach of Bridge Farm (miles from the sewage leak). Brookfield - another source of lovely lambing shed noises - is so rarely included these days. My theory is that the SWs can't decide what to do with Jill and it's too unrealistic to go there without so much as a mention so they are just giving it a general swerve and hoping we won't notice. I loved the scene with Clarrie and Emma yesterday - I feel these kind of close and intertwined relationships are what we are missing at Brookfield where character development appears to have stalled. Bridge Farm now has TomTash and the doggedly independent one taking it into the future while Pip, Josh and Ben still seem half-formed by comparison. Home Farm feels like it has disappeared into a puff of smoke.

You're absolutely right. We haven't had any mention at all, not even a comment from anyone feeling tired because of having to stay up all night in the lambing shed or any sound of bleating lambs.
It's definitely happened in real life, there are lots of lambs in the fields near me.
I wonder if they'll mention shearing when that time comes.
Now I think of it there are far fewer mentions of farming activities - it's been a long time since I heard anything casually mentioned about e.g. sheep drenches or moving pig arcs( never knew what these actually are) or even anyone having their lunch brought to them out in the field after hours on a tractor.

Given the new characters that are being focussed on are distinctly not farmers (maybe hope for khalil) I can see the sw are steadily moving away from farming

the Brian succession issue seems to have been dumped and Brookfield is out of favour so it leaves us with bridge farm and the pigs

it is disappointing and I too always enjoyed the lambing, conversations at milking etc etc

when we do go to the farms it tends to be around event barns and tea rooms and cheese making

I wonder if it was just too expensive to have a proper agricultural adviser and make time for the writers and producers to get up to speed on the issues (to the extent that they did). It is sad. I don't follow any other soaps at all. One reason I've stuck with TA all these years is that it's on the radio, but another definitely was that it was a bit different because of the focus on farming and country life. I have no real connection with any of that and I enjoyed hearing about it. Now it could just be any soap anywhere. No real reason to have it in a village.

I've just been ranting about the lack of Brookfield and other farming stories on the spoilers thread, as it happens, prompted by looking at what is and isn't coming up over the next few weeks.

What a load of rubbish The Archers is nowadays.
I only listen because of my addiction.
Years ago I weaned myself off various TV soap operas. I think that it may be time to do the same with TA.

They do have an agricultural advisor in the credits but perhaps they have a cut price one! He certainly doesn’t have much to do!!

The current AA is Sybil Ruscoe, who is a journalist and presenter, not a farmer or agricultural scientist by training. She presented Top of the Pops at one time, then Channel 4 cricket, and has worked on Farming Today.

Oh. So not really an agricultural adviser - seems more like a job for a friend

Perhaps more of us need to start making our feelings known officially? The problem is that because most of us have listened for so long, we keep listening out of habit and in hope things will improve. Lately there's the odd good episode but mostly it has been pretty dire. I don't think I've really felt like I've truly enjoyed TA for about 4 months now, yet still listening to every episode 🤔
The BBC will see the ratings which I'd imagine stay relatively stable and assume all is well and listeners are happy.

Given the responses on feedback over the last few years I think the BBC holds its listeners in contempt anyway

I don't think I've really felt like I've truly enjoyed TA for about 4 months now, yet still listening to every episode

I’m weaning myself off now. I dip in and dip out eg I opted out of listening on Friday as I knew it would be all about the bellringing - with Pat repeatedly saying s-u-age - and I couldn’t bear to sit through 13 mins of Chiara’s bicycle bell.

On the other hand, this thread remains unmissable!

It’s only the thread that keeps me going. I don’t make time to listen anymore and will only listen if i happen to have the radio on. I always read the synopsis and this thread and will listen on the app if it sounds interesting and it means I can skip the irritating bits (like the bell!!!)

So what did Lynda say or do to drive the Maliks away! 😁 Was she doing Ramadan over fervently and getting on their nerves?

Yeah - they’d rather live in a house that smells of sewage!

Have we heard if Helen and Joy are back home?

Pug arks are basically a curved sheet of corrugated metal with the fllor and ends sealed off (with a door) like a pig hutch.

https://www.littlemortonfarm.co.uk/pig-arks-pig-keeping/ready-built-pig-ark

New thread: https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/radio_addicts/5301016-archers-thread-183-the-scorekeepers-apprentice-discuss-the-archers-here

@EBearhug Pug arks are basically a curved sheet of corrugated metal ...

Thank you for that image. 😁

Nothing; their house was cleared of sewage and they went home.