Archers thread #203: It's Affair Cop! 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 would love to attend Pip's wedding with Natasha and the starry twins, 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.)

Starting the new thread a bit early as I'm not sure I'll have much internet access for the next few days. Fill up the old one first. And then - over to you!

(Credit for the thread title goes to @TripleSulko.)

I thought that was only for a month?

Every1ElseInKnowsley
Will inherited and owns his home.

He remortgaged it in order to bankroll Ed'n'Em's business, so at the moment some of it belongs to a bank. (How he got a mortgage as a part-time delivery driver is anyone's guess.)

I remembered that but not the amount.

I think it was twenty thousand quid that he borrowed using his house as a guarantee, which means it is only some of the house that belongs to the bank; how he pays the mortgage out of his part-time earnings is a little mysterious. Previously of course he used the rent he charged people for living there to pay off the mortgage, but thanks to George he no longer gets any rent.

That sounds about right but I have the idea that he borrowed £30k but it didn't sound right. He's got 3 adults, a teenager and a baby in the house but we don't hear him mentioning bills.

At one point Will told George he didn't have to contribute towards food, I seem to remember. Certainly he wasn't expected to pay rent, and if it were suggested I would expect that the shrieks of "fammmerrrrrleeeeee!" from every other Grundy would be audible in Felpersham, or possibly even Birmingham.

(Unless it has been suggested at some point since mid-June?)

When there is an episode that features nobody but the Grundy clan, I find myself wondering why I bothered listening. (Although it was good to hear the awful Eddie being called out over abetting Keira in bunking off school).

I would have thought that Fallon would have been using rock solid contraception as she really did not want a baby. I forgot that Kirsty wasn't using contraception, silly idea when Erik is hardly around and she's got no family support. She should be the one who is much more likely to get post natal depression.

I think Fallon had a coil.

@CaptainMyCaptain , she did.

@ExOptimist , Kirsty wanted a baby. She would statistically be more likely to suffer PND as a single mother but not as an older mother. Your post comes across as ageist.

No it doesn’t. Kirsty is more likely to have PND because she has no family around and no stable partner. Age is irrelevant in this regard.

But I don't think ExOptimist mentioned Kirsty's age, so how can her post be ageist? Or have I missed the age thing in her post?

She didn't but Kirsty wanted a baby and given her age didn't have the years of fertility to look to settle down first. She doesn't have family nearby but the baby will. I'm generally not that keen on having a baby when not married or when over 40 but in Kirsty's case I can understand and don't think she was being silly.

Amber on the other hand chose to have a baby with a man she'd known for a few weeks.

I think the word judgemental might have fitted better but I felt the judgement was not allowing for not having the luxury of time.

No it isn't ageist at all, I never said anything about her age, although it is an issue biologically. I think she's more likely to have PND because she has a largely absent partner and no family support locally.

I honestly don't get it. A woman on her own with precious little support likely from a feckless footloose lover seems to me more likely to get PND because she is all alone with the baby most of the time and that is hard work mentally, than someone who is unlikely to lack support even if from a ghastly family. I can't see judgemental there, apart perhaps from being a bit dismissive of Erik.

What nearby family will Kirsty's baby have? Her parents live pretty-much elsewhere and have appeared in the programme about three times; when her mother did it was clear that she and Kirsty didn't really get on.

You think I was judgemental because I thought Kirsty was more likely to get PND as she has very little support?

I've never understood why being called judgemental is a criticism. Everyone makes judgements about other people and/or their lives,even those who use the word judgemental as an insult. You yourself have made a judgement about my remarks.

Kirsty had several years after the end of her marriage to look for someone else if she really was desperate to have a baby, but instead she chose someone with whom she has a very loose "relationship".

Could not delete the duplicate post.

I thought tonight’s episode was a perfect illustration of what it means to be a Grundy. For baby Grundy - who still has no name.

I would love Lily getting pregnant just to see how Fallen would react. I hope Harrison stops saying he hasn't given up on him and Fallon and settles down with Lily. He can then say Im buying you out Fallon cos I need the house for my new family. Tough luck Fallon.
As you can tell I dont like Fallon, she is a spoilt,selfish person and can't see how she can survive working at LL barely part time. Dream job? Dream on.

Ageist nonsense. Kirsty and Erik were deliberately not using contraception

Yes. Kirsty said she didn't think she could get pregnant anyway but they had deliberately left it open to chance. It wasn't an accident and she's a competent independent woman who has learned lessons about putting her trust in men. I don't think she's any more likely to get PND than anyone else.

Whenever I hear Eddie Grundy's voice, I die a little inside.

Hard to know how to feel about Anne-Marie. If I were her, I too would be horrified that my daughter had taken up with a jailbird and had mothered the first in a new generation of the feckless Grundies. She’s doing a good job of concealing her horror and being supportive this week. Having said that, the SWs last night presented the Grundies as a model family, idealising them for being poor yet happy; loving and supportive; kind and accepting. It was all weirdly sugar-coated. Like a Christmas episode or a snapshot from that terrible film It’s a Wonderful Life. I’m kind of done with hearing about baby notjoe. Especially as we have barely heard from Emma who I think would be struggling to cope with the idea she is now a granny…

@JoelenesParrot Agree re Emma. If I remember correctly she was concerned that the childcare would fall to her when they first announced the pregnancy?

@JoelenesParrot "that terrible film It’s a Wonderful Life."

Glad to hear someone else doesn't love it - I like the premise of it, but not the main character.