Archers thread #190: Carry on, Cleo! Best new character for ages. Discuss The Archers here.

[Gasp0deTheW0nderD0g]

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

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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.)

Charlotte Smith must have been delighted to get back to Countryfile and Farming Today. What a pile of piffle tonight. Ah well.

When is George expected back? It can't be long now, surely. It occurs to me that I can't recall whether he's ever spoken on air to Ruairi. As their actors are currently the best (IMO) amongst the younger members of the cast, I hope they will cross swords in some way.

And finally, I can't mention Carry on Cleo without squeezing in one of the best lines ever written (Denis Norden and Frank Muir have the credit): Infamy, infamy! They've all got it in for me! Currently, Lily probably feels this way.

https://youtube.com/shorts/eRnd48yTC5A?si=N05njp3uLfpSjAmI

Over to you!

I like turnips and okra. I don't like fried food, and okra and aubergine can be a bit slimy. I'm not a fussy eater but I despair at some restaurant menus.
A starter and a main course based on the same ingredient is lazy.

It was a main course with parsnip puree, roast parsnip and a parsnip dauphinoise

i mean that isn’t a proper meal! I ended up with risotto instead…

Oh Bruisername! They might have been delicious but it looks like they wanted to use up a glut. Was it parsnip risotto?

I heard the Great Lives programme on R4 the other day about E Nesbit, I'd completely forgotten about her husband's extra-marital children.
She had a very interesting life herself as well as dealing with her awful husband and his numerous affairs and various children that he fathered with other women. She ended up with one woman he was having an affair with moving in with her and her husband and unbelievably adopted the two children he fathered with this woman, extraordinary, but times were different then.

Jenny could easily have refused to have Ruairi live with her and presumably he would have gone to live in Ireland with relatives.

I like storylines like this, rooted in long-term families, inheritance, ramifications of things that happened long ago. Another one to come in the next decade or so will be what will happen with Henry and Jack when Jack inherits from Rob, so very different financial situations. Will he turn out to have elements of Ron's personality etc.

So Ruairi envies Ben ‘always knowing what he wants to do’ does he? Has he forgotten the abandoned geography degree and complete out of the blue never mentioned before yen for nursing?

Can’t see what’s to stop Ruari going on the trip, even if he has to pay for himself (or Brian does). Unless Alice gets drunk and makes a nasty comment or Ruari decides to be upset by a mean dead woman’s legacy - surely better to stick 2 fingers up to her and go…

and why didn’t Eddie want to see Bartleby? Am I misrembering his involvement before George suddenly got interested?

and I thought Amber wanted to forget about school so now why does she want to invite all and sundry (for admire her metamorphosis?) and draw attention to the fact that the only thing George has done of note since he left is get incarcerated. All he needs to do is turn up naked (or in fancy dress) and it’s the story of everyone’s worst nightmare…. Does he have any friends from school anyway (bar Brad and possibly Tilly Button who seems to successfully keep her distance)?

I think George may have overegged his popularity at school to Amber, which is why she thinks it's a good idea to invite everyone, and she's going to realise that perhaps they were... not as great buddies as all that.

George even naming one mate at school is probably over-egging his popularity.

Of course, we only ever had Siobhan's word for it that Brian is Ruaruariii's father ...

Ooh, I like that!

Do Adam and Ruiari view themselves as brothers, friends or acquaintances?

Step-brothers, I suppose. Adam is 58, Ruairi is 22, so I don't think they'd see each other as brothers.

back to Edith Nesbitt, there is a brilliant biography of her called A Woman of Passion (by Julia Briggs) - i loved her involvement with the Fabian society and the movement for less restrictive women's clothing

I expect this week's scriptwriter has forgotten about that, though he was definitely around when it happened.

I hope Stella tells Brian to stick his job. She must know if he retires ( which I very much doubt he will) he will still be popping in and out telling her what to do. And how selfish of him to tell her not to take that fabulous new job offer. Say no!! Stella and don't look back. Oh and don't ask Pip's advice on this.

Don't even mention it to Pip!

Unfortunately I think Stella is a long-term character in TA. I am just hoping that her not having a page in "characters" on the BBC website means she might frod off soon, but it's a fairly remote hope because on Pip's page it says "she has now found romance with Stella Pryor, who manages Home Farm".

Could Pip have sounded any less sincere saying well done to Stella?

I’m not sure that the difference in inheritance prospects between Henry and Jack are that significant? I thought Rob left him a few acres of pasture land, so maybe £150k or so?

I think £150k is quite significant.

£150k would be about 20 acres of pasture. My knowledge of matters agricultural (very much not aided by listening to TA) is so extensive that I have no idea if that is a significant amount and AI is about as much help as you'd expect. 🙄

I agree. It's roughly what I would inherit from my parents' estate. I wouldn't call it insignificant at all.

Depends where you are. We spent £170k for a 3 acre field at the back of our garden, in some areas it would have been a lot less.

I don’t know how much Bridge Farm is supposed to be worth, but if we presume £3m, then Helen, Tom and Jonny would receive the equivalent of £1m each, then when Helen dies, Henry would get about £500k, Jack would get that plus (say) £150k, so not a massive imbalance

What is Adam going to do for work if Stella returns to Home Farm? Pull pints at The Bull? Housekeeping at Grey Gables? Or will Bridge Farm take him back?

I think it's quite a lot of difference.
But more to the point, Henry has to wait for Helen to die to get his inheritance which could be 50 years, whereas Jack gets his from Rob at 18( or whatever age rob's will said).
That's when the difference will be much more pronounced. Jack will have money to travel, live a great life, put a house deposit down, get a good financial start to adult life, but Henry won't have that advantage.

Jack will only have money if he sells that land, which would be a very un-Archer thing to do and possibly cause ructions in a family that might expect him to chuck it into the BF pot. Of course, Helen might want him to sell it and burn the proceeds!