Archers thread #196: Run, Rex, run! 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 like to marry Pip, 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.)

So now we know who bonked George on the head. Will the stunning revelation lead to anything interesting or credible happening? Answers on a postcard, please!

Will Alice and Rex become an item? Will Amber come to her senses? Has Adam's constant languor and fatigue now removed his ability to speak on air?

Over to you!

@JustAMiddleAgedDirtBagBaby , Is there not a thriving Young Farmers' in Borsetshire?
There is but as far as I can recall only Pip went.
The SW aren't from a rural or farming background and YFC doesn't get mentioned much on Farming Today so it doesn't really feature in The Archers.

I’m fairly sure Shula and Elizabeth were active YFs in their day. It was socially significant in Ambridge a long time ago, in the last century - but I don’t know how much I remember and how much I’ve filled in through imagination.

@OrphanBlankly , I meant recently. Pip would be too old now but I think that Ben and Henry would be going, as would others in that age range.

Realise that I am a very shallow person but can we please keep Finlay/ Bonner even if he only appears sporadically

Is the Realise that I am a very shallow person but relevant?

I'm a very deep and thoughtful person. Can we please keep Finlay/Bonner even if he only appears sporadically.
Better still, can he be the 'heir to Brian'.

Older council houses were really well built and a good size.

Parker-Morris standards.
Parker Morris Committee - Wikipedia https://share.google/0dxOwUYWa8VJJkqCy

Oof the heavy breathing made me start with little ears around the dinner table this evening! I snorted at Helen’s line about Tim not being a single parent. How long has Fiercely Independent Helen actually spent living alone as a single parent? She’s jumped from her parents to Rob to parents to Lee to Tom & Tash, I doubt she’s unpacked her cases. Pat and Tony have probably put her kids to bed more frequently than my husband has tucked our two in.

Spring is in the air!😏
How about rounders? I've always liked that game.

Can we petition Parliament (or failing that, Feedback) about banning sex scenes from TA??
Two in three days, this is not the programme we know and (used to) love.

It is …

There have been sex scenes in the Archers for decades. The recent ones are nothing compared to enduring Sid and Jolene in the shower..

That scene’s famous because it was the first, and the only one for decades!

in the last couple of years, and indeed the last week, there have been loads.

Because I always listen to TA first thing in the morning here in Melbourne, I have to say the sex scenes put me right off my morning cuppa.

Thinking of what @BeardieWeirdie said about childcare, has any night out ever been cancelled due to lack a babysitter in TA?

My impression, without drilling down to specifics, is that parents in Ambridge are inclined to use lack of a babysitter as an excuse to get out of anything they don’t want to do. Even though there is always someone able to look after their child at short notice.

I liked the scene with Alice and Rex - mainly because it took place on Rex’s boat. I’ve long thought the canal boat was a wasted location opportunity and hope we’ll have more domestic scenes there so we can get a proper feel for its dimensions and decor. And of course some canal boat sound effects.

A team sport that all ages can enjoy? Adam's going to get them all playing petanque isn't he?

No, it will be padel.

Why would Adam flog all the way over to the boat to talk to Rex rather than phoning him?

For the same reason that all birthday cards are hand delivered in Ambridge.

I would hand deliver a card to anyone local because stamps are so expensive. Otherwise I would just WhatsApp them.

I’m sure St Chris of Perfect Fatherhood has cancelled plans on at least one occasion because of some issue or other with childcare for Martha.

My ears 😱. No more slurping pleeeeeease.

I’ve really enjoyed the last few episodes. Adam’s ‘the boat was moving’ observation made me laugh out loud.

Oh - hadn’t picked up on Adam’s comment! 😂

But wait - one of my favourite walks takes me past a stretch of the Thames in Oxford on which there are houseboats. One has been upended and half submerged - and I’d assumed it was the recent storms and floods that did it. Are you saying the owner / tenant might have lost their boat and home due to overly vigorous sex? 😲