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Archers thread #184: It’s a shambles! And we don’t mean Casey Meats. Discuss The Archers here.

992 replies

Gasp0deTheW0nderD0g · 14/04/2025 12:03

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're looking forward to Morris dancing on the radio, 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.)

Right, to business. I can't say I'm delighted that the focus is on Rochelle and Casey Meats at the moment, because I'm not. All far too peripheral to Ambridge and too new. As I say ad nauseam, more farming storylines please, and where are all the long-standing members of the cast? The discussion about inheritance tax in The Bull the other night was a bit clunky, but what a refreshing change to hear two familiar voices, both farmers, talking about farming-related stuff, even if BBC balance meant they had to be challenged by two non-farmers, and even if it is months after the Budget introduced these changes. Ah well.

I was tempted to put one of my Dad's terrible jokes into the thread title as an oblique reference to George's coffin-making idea, but it wouldn't have made sense to anyone else. He loved referring to the cemetery as the Dead Centre of the island, so I was pondering something about Grange Farm becoming the Dead Centre of Ambridge. It could happen yet. Emma and Ed could provide willow branches and Clarrie could sit in the kitchen weaving them. Surely it must be similar to knitting?

Finally, if the SWs are lurking and looking for new storylines, it's been very dry recently and there have been lots of wildfires in rural areas. There was a bad one on Gaspmother Island a few days ago. Many farmers are very worried about this at the moment, as reported on Farming Today last week. But what am I thinking! This is a story that only works in a rural setting, so in the current incarnation of TA, it's not soapy enough. Hmm

Over to you!

OP posts:
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Madcats · 02/05/2025 14:43

Presumably Felpersham Shopping Mall comprises a boarded up Debenhams and Wilko, M&S, a phone repair shop, two Turkish barber shops, a WH Smiths, Poundland, The Works and a handful of charity shops.

The midweek, early afternoon, livestream into an empty shopping centre is certainly an unusual approach. It probably boosted sales of meat, not hampered them.

Bruisername · 02/05/2025 14:45

It’s so thoroughly bizarre! And would the big screen have volume? I’m not sure what they’re on about half the time these days because they seem to live in a different universe

PassivAggressivHaus · 02/05/2025 14:57

@Madcats , no, it's got a boarded up M&S (replaced by a M&S Food Hall on the by-pass), a former Debenhams selling factory clearout and the closing down sale has been on since September 2023, a Card Factory, 3 nail bars, a food supplement shop, 3 turkish barbers, a far east asian store, Heron Foods, a Warren James jewellers, a Timpsons, some shops selling clothes like you used to get in a street market, two dodgy looking charity shops, and newsagent.

Gonners · 02/05/2025 14:57

Madcats · 02/05/2025 14:43

Presumably Felpersham Shopping Mall comprises a boarded up Debenhams and Wilko, M&S, a phone repair shop, two Turkish barber shops, a WH Smiths, Poundland, The Works and a handful of charity shops.

The midweek, early afternoon, livestream into an empty shopping centre is certainly an unusual approach. It probably boosted sales of meat, not hampered them.

The WH Smiths will also be boarded up, unless it's been replaced by one of those all-purpose takeaways (with a hygiene rating of 1) that does pizza, fish & chips and burgers ... all inedible.

BeaLola · 02/05/2025 15:01

You forgot the nail bar ...

Poor Rex - I hope the SW are saving him for Kirsty (& not Helen)

Bruisername · 02/05/2025 15:03

Will there be an American candy store?

PassivAggressivHaus · 02/05/2025 15:03

Poor Kirsty. Rex would make the Human Wet Wipe seem dynamic.

PassivAggressivHaus · 02/05/2025 15:04

We've not got one of those. Lots of barbers and nail bars.
Lots of dodgy-looking eating places. Some eating places look good.
Takeaways are very cheap here, and the ones I've tried were inedible.

AskingQuestionsAllTheTime · 02/05/2025 15:06

OnlyFrench · 02/05/2025 13:13

Did I hear Helen shouting to keep the camera away from her? About the only thing that was consistent recently, I remember her refusing to let a journalist photograph her

I thought that was because she was afraid of Rob; now he's dead she surely isn't afraid of him any more?

PassivAggressivHaus · 02/05/2025 15:09

She doesn't want the good people of Weatherfield to recognise her.

OnlyFrench · 02/05/2025 15:09

🤒@askingquestionsallthetime didn’t she have an issue with being recognised by a neighbour in the executive homes?

AskingQuestionsAllTheTime · 02/05/2025 15:13

Kyle, married to and cheating on Sara. I don't think it was photographs of Helen that were the problem: I think it was that he lived next door but three, recognised her name and had read about the trial at the time.

Ambridge · 02/05/2025 15:14

Madcats · 02/05/2025 14:43

Presumably Felpersham Shopping Mall comprises a boarded up Debenhams and Wilko, M&S, a phone repair shop, two Turkish barber shops, a WH Smiths, Poundland, The Works and a handful of charity shops.

The midweek, early afternoon, livestream into an empty shopping centre is certainly an unusual approach. It probably boosted sales of meat, not hampered them.

I tried to find a GIF of boarded-up shops with one passing man and a dog, but no luck, alas

AskingQuestionsAllTheTime · 02/05/2025 15:20

WHSmiths will shortly become TGJones, or some such memorable name, because WHSmiths hung onto the name for use at airport and other "captive audience" outlets, having become so crap that everyone who can avoid them, by using the internet to shop on or walking into a different retailer, does.

I have gone into a Smiths once a year this century, to buy their month-to-a-view plain calendar each December. It will be a pain having to change the format, but I expect I'll live.

Brefugee · 02/05/2025 15:30

There will be a Greggs.

Listened in the car with vegan daughter. She said "stupid action, you're supposed to chain yourselves to the machines to stop the killing, not alienate people you want to convert"

Joy can sell her house to Helen (who will HATE) the mismatched kitchen

DeanElderberry · 02/05/2025 15:38

it's going to be awful if the protest backfires

Archers thread #184: It’s a shambles! And we don’t mean Casey Meats. Discuss The Archers here.
DeanElderberry · 02/05/2025 15:40

or maybe

Archers thread #184: It’s a shambles! And we don’t mean Casey Meats. Discuss The Archers here.
PassivAggressivHaus · 02/05/2025 15:42

Nice one. BF sell some land for houses to be built on, then buy two expensive houses on that land.

There will be a Greggs. Smile There's probably a Spoons and several bookies on the high street.

TottersBlithely · 02/05/2025 15:42

The repercussions surely have to spread further than just to Joy and Rochelle. The activist invasion episode involved representatives of three of the Great Houses of TA - Brookfield, Bridge Farm and Lower Loxley - so there must be significant consequences coming for at least one, if not all of them. Plus the Fairboat boy.

Although the groundwork for this story hasn’t been as well laid as with the Bridge of Doom and George’s imprisonment, so who knows?

PassivAggressivHaus · 02/05/2025 15:47

@DeanElderberry , why are they not BUTCHERS?

DeanElderberry · 02/05/2025 15:47

Maybe they really DID release a poison and all the heirs of the Great Houses will die of Anthrax. That would be new.

PassivAggressivHaus · 02/05/2025 15:49

The plague has come to Ambridge.

Bruisername · 02/05/2025 15:49

It’s a shame Brian wasn’t there

DeanElderberry · 02/05/2025 15:57

PassivAggressivHaus · 02/05/2025 15:47

@DeanElderberry , why are they not BUTCHERS?

Because when Bing creates images it still struggles with words. You may observe that it found 'Felpersham' challenging as well.

I did enjoy its vision of Felpershamians as depressed-looking 1970s throwbacks.

Bruisername · 02/05/2025 15:58

It’s like they think felpersham is a town in communist russia

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