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Archers thread #183: The Scorekeeper's Apprentice. Discuss The Archers here.

986 replies

Gasp0deTheW0nderD0g · 24/03/2025 12:46

Thank you, @PseudoBadger, for kicking off this long, long series of Archers threads.

Archers 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 share a hot tub with Mucky Mick, or other unusual views. Grin

Archers 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!

Archers 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 @TottersBlankly who suggested it and @BeatriceBatchelor who coined this lovely phrase. (It's led me to take a look at the Wikipedia page for The Sorcerer's Apprentice. I had not known before that the animation in Fantasia that goes with the Dukas symphonic tone poem is more or less unadulterated Goethe, and the story goes back to ancient times. You learn something every day.)

At the end of the last thread, there was an apocalyptic tone as we were all bemoaning the lack of continuity and farming storylines (especially lambing, which used to be a big theme at this time of year). Are there any reasons to be cheerful? (Not just Part 3 - another reference for the older listeners here. Grin ) Over to you!

OP posts:
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KnittedFerret · 02/04/2025 14:11

You'd have been lambing later because the winter were harsher up there, an the sheep were probably smaller and hardier.

CaptainMyCaptain · 02/04/2025 14:58

DeanElderberry · 02/04/2025 09:57

I got the impression the SWs think the lambs some of us eat at Easter are little babies.

Probably.

KnittedFerret · 02/04/2025 15:08

If you have chicken for Easter, is it a fluffy little yellow one, and how many MN family meals could you get out of it with a mahoosive salad?

is it just me that finds it weird that both Helen and Tom wanted to live on what used to be their field. Their agricultural land.

Madcats · 02/04/2025 15:15

A farming friend of the family had about a dozen massive lambs from his flock on Easter; the farmer had gone away for a few days and the person looking after things didn't notice that the ram had decided that weekend would be the perfect time to have some fun with his ladies.

I seem to remember that he was lambing in November!

RegimentalSturgeon · 02/04/2025 15:52

IHaveAlwaysLivedintheCastle · 02/04/2025 09:56

Yes. It made sense.

Show quote history

No it bloody didn’t.

imo, obviously Grin

KnittedFerret · 02/04/2025 16:00

@Madcats We would plan for November lambing.

Hortus · 02/04/2025 16:25

is it just me that finds it weird that both Helen and Tom wanted to live on what used to be their field. Their agricultural land.

You would think so, wouldn't you. But they were fine with selling agricultural land off to developers in the first place so any sentimental feelings about the farmland had disappeared a long time ago.
In my village of about 2000 residents there is a massive new build development of 1500 houses being built. Every single one is on farmland, it's heartbreaking to see the fields, ancient hedgerows and trees being grubbed up for these houses, which have no front gardens, tiny back gardens and barely a tree left. The beautiful views have been destroyed. Much of the land was sold off by a landowning family who has had no connection with the area for several generations, but other parts were sold off by farmers, I suppose when Persimmon and Barrett dangle their bags of money in front of you it's hard to resist. One of the farms was owned by the absent landowner but had been tenanted for several generations of the same family of farmers, the farm was sold, the tenants fought as hard as they could not to lose their farm but they were defeated, all had to leave including a man in his 80s, farmhouse and buildings were all knocked down and built on.

NetballHoop · 02/04/2025 16:27

Switching to pigs for a moment... I spotted quite a few piglets running around last Sunday when I drove to Norwich to collect DS from Uni. A highlight of the long tedious drive.

It'd be nice to hear some on TA.

ExitPursuedByABare · 02/04/2025 16:42

Fagash’s cackle last night was a whole other level.

Sidebeforeself · 02/04/2025 16:48

NetballHoop · 02/04/2025 16:27

Switching to pigs for a moment... I spotted quite a few piglets running around last Sunday when I drove to Norwich to collect DS from Uni. A highlight of the long tedious drive.

It'd be nice to hear some on TA.

Edited

Oh I know that drive!!

IHaveAlwaysLivedintheCastle · 02/04/2025 17:13

is it just me that finds it weird that both Helen and Tom wanted to live on what used to be their field. Their agricultural land.

What I find weird is that knowing they needed another house that as part of the sales negotiations they didn't ask for a house to be built on a plot they retained.

Abra1t · 02/04/2025 17:52

Hortus · 02/04/2025 16:25

is it just me that finds it weird that both Helen and Tom wanted to live on what used to be their field. Their agricultural land.

You would think so, wouldn't you. But they were fine with selling agricultural land off to developers in the first place so any sentimental feelings about the farmland had disappeared a long time ago.
In my village of about 2000 residents there is a massive new build development of 1500 houses being built. Every single one is on farmland, it's heartbreaking to see the fields, ancient hedgerows and trees being grubbed up for these houses, which have no front gardens, tiny back gardens and barely a tree left. The beautiful views have been destroyed. Much of the land was sold off by a landowning family who has had no connection with the area for several generations, but other parts were sold off by farmers, I suppose when Persimmon and Barrett dangle their bags of money in front of you it's hard to resist. One of the farms was owned by the absent landowner but had been tenanted for several generations of the same family of farmers, the farm was sold, the tenants fought as hard as they could not to lose their farm but they were defeated, all had to leave including a man in his 80s, farmhouse and buildings were all knocked down and built on.

Edited

Poor man. That sounds awful for him.

Madcats · 02/04/2025 18:28

KnittedFerret · 02/04/2025 16:00

@Madcats We would plan for November lambing.

They wanted to lamb in February and March, though (high bit of Cotswolds).

Also knew a hobby pig rearer who worked on the basis that his favourite piglets would go for bacon/curing after 2 years and the others would get butchered into cuts a year earlier.

TottersBlankly · 02/04/2025 19:15

This is utterly ridiculous. Robert’s going to find himself up before the beak pdq …

Bruisername · 02/04/2025 19:15

I don’t understand the elder Grundy financial position. No mention of pension. And clarrie talking about only just surviving if she doesn’t get a job - I thought that’s what they were doing

why was Eddie not suggesting meat packing for himself

was the cv bit supposed to be funny. And why would you write a cv in the third person

wow - the sw have figured out photo editing🙄. It’s such a shit idea which will undoubtedly go down really well 🙄

how long ago did the marry? Was Dubai so big those days?

what is khalil going to find on his dads computer?

hoped they were going to find a body in a box. What’s the betting there was a wedding video

IHaveAlwaysLivedintheCastle · 02/04/2025 19:22

I haven't listened yet- is Khalil back? Why?

DeanElderberry · 02/04/2025 19:22

Clarrie is 70. Eddie is 74. In Ireland they'd be getting between €500 and €600 a week between them. What is this obsession with getting jobs?

AzurePanda · 02/04/2025 19:30

@DeanElderberry £442 a week in the UK so with a peppercorn rent and Eddie’s work and the turkeys etc they should be fine!

IHaveAlwaysLivedintheCastle · 02/04/2025 19:30

DeanElderberry · 02/04/2025 19:22

Clarrie is 70. Eddie is 74. In Ireland they'd be getting between €500 and €600 a week between them. What is this obsession with getting jobs?

The full rate of new State Pension is £221.20 (€264 ) per week. But you need a full NI record for that. Clarrie will have, Eddy probably not.

Bruisername · 02/04/2025 19:31

Well same here although o wonder if Eddie hasn’t paid enough NI to get a full pension.

what are they spending money on?

is this all part of the fall of the house of bridge?

first Emma reduced hours (not quite sure what happened there?), Fallon and now clarrie - they’ll want her back at the dairy and she will be happy at the pub. Is Will going to become a delivery driver for Casey meats?

did they tell us what grade Emma got in her gcse? Would be good if they had her doing something else educational

AzurePanda · 02/04/2025 19:34

@IHaveAlwaysLivedintheCastle isn’t it double
for a couple? If Eddie really hasn’t even got 10 years + of NI contributions then without paying any tax he really must have been putting it away.

TottersBlankly · 02/04/2025 19:35

I honestly, honestly suspect the SWs are so accustomed to portraying the Grundys as scrabbling, hand to mouth desperadoes, that they haven’t noticed that in real life Carrie and Eddie would be perfectly comfortably situated. Obvs there’s the issue with their somewhat insecure housing situation - but Will owns a house in the village, if they’re ever really desperate. (And contrary to all our expectations the tree surgery business hasn’t been an instant disaster so Will’s investment should be, well, I don’t want to jinx things …

Bruisername · 02/04/2025 19:36

I come back to them treating them as if they are half their age plus 10

AskingQuestionsAllTheTime · 02/04/2025 19:42

Why are Eddie and Clarrie occupying and paying rent for a six-bedroom house? It made some sense (not much) for them to be at Grange Farm when there were Joe, Clarrie, Eddie, Emma, Ed, George and Poppy living there, but it makes none now. And we know that in September, 2016, when they started to pay any rent for Grange Farm (at Caroline's insistence) they were paying a market rate for it and having trouble scraping that together; I don't see why it would have gone down, though Oliver probably hasn't put it up since then.

AzurePanda · 02/04/2025 19:44

Happy to be corrected but I have a vague memory or Oliver allowing them to stay on a heavily reduced rent although god only knows why he would want to do that.