Archers thread #202: How are you finding your visits to Ambridge? Fill in your feedback forms 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 think working as a hotel receptionist is a perfectly reasonable career choice for a graduate from a family with a stately home, 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-12-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.)

Over to you!

Catching up reading posts after two days with a nasty lurgy.

I know it's all been tied up in a nice bow now, but there's still a part of me that thinks that Monty may have been innocent. Coincidentally I was watching an old episode of "Lewis" recently in which (human) DNA results had been messed up.

On another tack I'm disgusted at George's treatment of Esme - the only one to help him out when he was in dire straits. Getting cash in hand while she continues to shell out sick pay. As someone said several posts back, absolutely typical Grundy behaviour.

To use a rescue Doberman to illustrate that a beloved pet can do such things was stupid, had it been a cockapoo for example it would have been better by far.
Absolutely.

I don’t think George has really given it any thought. To be fair to him, although he knows it’s tough for Esme, had he not heard her say as much I don’t think it would even have been something he was aware of … I know it’s not very Ambridge but I wouldn’t be surprised if he thought it was paid by the government or something. I think Susan, Neil or Clarrie might say something to him, though they may not know exactly what’s going on at the moment.

But the car sales work being cash in hand adds an intriguing aspect to the story. Why is it cash in hand? Is he getting NMW? Are we building up to a story about tax and HMRC?

George isn’t allowed to drive so maybe he’s at the showroom to engineer a situation where Amber’s Dad or Conrad has to drive him to wherever she is when she goes into labour, and Something Happens.

More likely Amber's dad isn't there and Conrad is busy with a customer, so George "borrows" a car and drives himself. Perhaps he could run over Harrison?

I would be shocked if George was unaware he shouldn’t be working while on the sick. Amber and Bill would be well aware of that too.

Honestly, i can imagine him not realising. There is not that much example in his family of straightforward employment - most of them
mix employment, self-employment, probably zero hours. I think Neil’s the only one with a permanent full time PAYE job.

@SisterTeatime I think Neil’s the only one with a permanent full time PAYE job.

... and the only one with any sense.

Khalil is a sanctimonious little tit.

But Justin is a pompous arse so ... meh!

Khalil has lived in a rural environment for five minutes and is behaving like that, towards people that have lived there for donkeys' years. I hope Justin puts the frighteners on him. Poor Justin, feeling his age, though he's a bit of a prat too

I can't stand Justin. He hasn't lived in Ambridge all that long either.

Missed the new thread - thank you!

Interesting ancient information about dogs in Ambridge.
Honey the Basset Hound appears to have been a wrong 'un.

My apologies if this has been posted before and I just didn't notice.

BBC Blogs - The Archers - Dogs of Ambridge

Justin's sheer vanity is making him behave irrationally, threatening to sue a 15-year old boy.

Thanks for the thread {mention:Gasp0deTheW0nderD0g}@Gasp0deTheW0nderD0g sending peace to you x

George is silly to accept the sick pay and the cash in hand work. That's going to play out badly.

Ha! You may be right, though I think Susan enjoys running between the dairy and the shop.

Do two half-time PAYE jobs equal one full-time one?

You'd think so, but somehow Susan - mistress of multi-tasking - still finds the time to be enormously nosy, interfering and irritating.

If I were Neil she'd have been under the patio years ago.

Justin, aka Lady Macbeth: "All the perfumes of Arabia could not sweeten this little hand"...actually...pretty good writing!

Khalil, otoh, deserves a slap with a wet fish. What an obnoxious little tit, and how frustrating that nobody seems to be willing to tell him so.

Khalil is an arrogant, entitled little shit. Always mouthing off at people much older than him. I would have thought someone apparently cosseted by his parents would be a bit shy, not an obnoxious loudmouth.

He's bellowed at Linda, Ruth and David and now Justin. His parents have taught him absolutely nothing about how to behave, and how persuasion works more effectively than screaming.

But although Azra knows how to behave ( although she's a weak parent) Akram doesn't. All that complaining because Bridge Farm didn't want to take on his random care farm idea. So Khalil is perhaps taking after his father.

He needs squashing by a firm parental hand. Needs to be told to get off social media and learn some more temperate behaviour. He's a very dislikeable character.

Yes Kahil is so spoilt and knows everything he does need slapping with a wet fish as someone else said, but he does take after Pa Malik who gets the sulks when he dosnt get his own way.
Who is Leon? why another nobody. There are so many actors on The Archers that we hav'nt heard from for ages and yet they keep putting in randoms.

I presume Leon is one of Harrison's colleagues from Up North who knows about what he was up to there and now knows about Lily.

How long are Fallon and Harrison going to live together? Fallon's never going to be to be able to take over the mortgage so either Harrison turfs her out or they put Woodbine on the market.

Harrison needs to move on with his life ... with Lily!