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Life in Ambridge
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Life in Ambridge
THIS POST IS CLOSED "longer off topic comments' - Episode 8 Life Outside Ambridge Beach Chairs
Is everyone else just plain sick of all the stupid story lines at the moment? Nothing rings true, adults are acting like children & characters keep disappearing for months at a time whilst new "comedy" characters are paraded like village idiots for everyone to jeer at. It's no wonder that the blog is quieter than usual - there's not much to engage with!
ReplyDelete100% correct Gary - isn’t it ☹️
DeleteShould read sad isn’t it 🙄
DeleteThank you for the map Gary. Is there one of Ambridge?
ReplyDeleteAt least most if not all of us are radio 4 listeners for such times when the Archers let us down.
Yes Gary, I am! As I intimated at end of the last blog, I find the newcomers particularly awful; caricatures, unfunny, irritating, unbelievable - whatever adjective you care to throw at them.
ReplyDeleteI’m talking especially about Alf and Carmen, but would happily include Vince and Joy too.
It feels as if the SWs are playing a game with us - to see how much dross we will put up with before the complaints start rolling in and they have to resort to writing decent Archers scripts again.
Or perhaps they are simply running out of sensible ideas for the main families and characters, so are resorting to slapstick/pantomime in a failed attempt to inject humour?
Tracy has worked well. Alf and Carmen haven’t!
I can’t imagine what the current Editor thinks he is doing. Unless it’s a deliberate attempt to engender so much negative feedback that they have an excuse to bin TA once and for all and spend the money on youth programmes instead 😳
✔️👏🏻✔️👏🏻
DeleteMy thoughts exactly. What a load of ullage!
ReplyDeleteOoo, lovely word Pierre, or as the French would say « connerie » or another word perhaps I’d better not write in full - « m.r.e »
DeleteI am surprising myself in saying this - the sooner Joe is buried, the better. I appreciate that this sounds harsh, but then hopefully a bit of normality will return.
ReplyDeleteThere is though, the Grundy's final leaving of Grange Farm, and what happens to Hilda's kittens.
Still I am looking forward to the Christmas show at LL provided by Lizzie (plus Russ?). Not forgetting Brian + Jenny Dahling, re-locating to Grange Farm, be they tenants or buyers, however this is only a potential possibility.
Totally in accord with all the negative reactions to most of the last week's offerings. Nothing to add ! OK, a few, how can I say, acceptable, realistic moments : Shula showing clear displeasure at Freddie's behaviour, Tracy's hurt at Oliver's over reaction to disrespectful & malicious gossip ( in itself, unfortunately, not uncommon).
ReplyDeleteThat's about it.
Well Done Jim, he was definitely on form tonight, and I just loved him.
ReplyDeleteCan he do the same at Joe's "wake" - I do hope so, but it's going to be a challenge for him.
Oh, well played, Jim !
ReplyDeleteDidn't care for Helen & Lynda being snobbish about 'Beechwood' children.( ( Does that mean, had Emma nailed a Beechwood house, Helen wouldn't have allowed Henry to play with Keira any more ?)
I have deliberately not read other comments about tonight's episode, but I really enjoyed it. Suitably spooky for Hallowe'en 😨.
ReplyDeleteA definite improvement on other recent episodes.
Is Jim going to become the teller of ghost stories in Ambridge now Joe is no longer with us?
Brilliant. 👏👏✔✔
DeleteJim - The Ghost of Ambridge Past.
Sorry Zoetrope, I thought it was absolute drivel
ReplyDeleteMe too. The M. R. James parody was okay in itself but the scene as a whole was worse than absurd.
DeleteI also thought Jim’s ‘Book at Bedtime’ style of delivery sounded unnatural in that context.
DeleteA respite from the awful 'comedy.'
ReplyDeleteI loved tonight's bit of fun.
Typical Helen comment, labelling the children from Beechwood. Why Beechwood, if only a couple of the houses were 'affordable?' Surely the others were regular new houses such as Joy is inhabiting or have I misunderstood things?
I thought Jim's ghost story was fantastic even though it was based on the most frightening M R James' ghost/horror story I read once and will never read again!
Congratulations to Paul Broderick for springing a surprise episode!
I agree with Cowgirl and Maryellen.
ReplyDeleteWhat a load of codswallop
Robert would not have behaved like that.
Pathetic not spooky.
Afraid I was not entranced by tonight’s efforts either.
DeleteMainly because I have never subscribed to all this Halloween nonsense, but also because I don’t think sensible, down to earth Robert would have been so rattled by Jim’s Story.
However I did enjoy their initial birdwatching in the hide ....it went downhill after that
I agree with you Archerphile. I enjoyed the birdwatching and storytelling but no way would Robert have reacted in that silly way.
DeleteAgree with others that sensible and down to earth Robert would have behaved very differently.
ReplyDeleteHowever Jims re telling of MR James reminded me of Saturday night television of the fifties. And very well done.
Congratulations to Paul Broderick for pulling half the episode off.
I enjoyed this evening’s episode, even if Robert’s reaction was out of character. Certainly as improvement on recent episodes, not that that’s saying much.
ReplyDeleteGood job you didn’t get that Beechwood house after all Emma. Your dream was to be accepted as a homeowner and as such improve your status in the village we now know that Helen and Linda appear to view the Beechwood residents as the plebs of Ambridge.
ReplyDeleteJim as storyteller taken over from Joe ( I do like his voice) but Roberts reaction once home a bit odd....
Definitely 2 camps here ! M R James in Vogue again ( maybe he was never out, but have come across various reminders of him in the last few years) 'Jim' clearly relished his beautifully paced, atmospheric ghost story, aided by the owl, & it achieved its objective, leaving him alone in his nocturnal bird watch !
ReplyDeleteI was completely convinced by Robert - he was well & truly spooked ! No doubt he'll feel ashamed today, & even last night he couldn't bring himself to tell Lynda....
Reading through the comments here and on two other Archers' websites the reactions have been very diverse. Almost equally divided between love and hate!
ReplyDeleteIf anyone has watched long running serials or shows it has been known for an episode to take just a slight 'step aside' from the storyline and for the cast to play characters different to the 'norm.' Sometimes parodying themselves, performing a complete pantomime or in Sci-fi travelling to an alternative dimension for example! I can recall episodes from Eastenders, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Star Trek, X Files and they are just the ones I have seen. I expect there may have been some in Corrie and Emmerdale too.
I just say "Lighten up" It was just a bit of fun and certainly not to be taken so seriously.
A different S/W next week. Let's hope she'll not be too maudling leading up to the funeral and that they don't make him a lovely old rogue with affectionate reminiscences from the whole village!
As I & Spicy noted, Beechwood residents are already being judged. Particularly detested Helen's disparaging comments - who does she think she is ? Her own set up is hardly ideal/conventional/blemish free. She's used Emma a number of times to help out & I daresay if Emma had moved to Beechwood, she would have continued to do so, whenever it suited to have Henry taken or collected from school.
ReplyDeleteWhat a nasty piece of work she is.
Absolutely Carolyn. I think Jim(?) or Robert also referred to the unpleasant children as coming from Beechwood too. Is this going to be the 'sink' area in Ambridge? Once upon a time it would have been the 'Council' estate or houses (which actually occupy a very desirable position in the village being round the village green.)
DeleteI think Beechwood is a little way outside of the village. I'll have to find my OS (pretend) map and try to work out where Beechwood is. Anyone any ideas?
Well no wonder Henry has developmental and behavioural problems, and an inability to sound his age. He is nearly 9yrs and has to attend a party for children under 3yrs, including 1yr old Rosie. But , ghouls, ghosts and long legged beasts wont phase him as he has already witnessed dastardly deeds. But then blood, guts and gore might leave me psychologically stuck and with a tinge of resentment/anger which will only get worse as he gets older. He already has a history of aggression and violence.
ReplyDeleteI have never read an MR James novel and listening to Jim’s recalling of something similar has only put me off ever doing so. Sounds like the sort of book one might read as an adolescent.
Well, I feel I must put in a word here for M.R.James here, who was very far from a writer of novels for adolescents! He was a very erudite and scholarly man, provost of King's College and of Eton, and widely regarded by fans of the genre as the best writer of ghost stories ever and he's exactly the kind of author Jim would admire--I expect he has a copy of 'Ghost Stories of an Antiquary' by his bedside to savour during this witching season. Some of MRJ's stories were brilliantly dramatised on TV on the 1970s, and are still available on DVD.
DeleteI think Spicycushion’s theory about soap aberrations is intriguing because it could explain a lot. Is the mystery of the pink envelope also meant to be a spoof, and we should lighten up about it? What else has been a spoof during TA’s near-70 years? Have the scriptwriters been blamed unjustly?
ReplyDeleteI must admit I enjoyed Jim's telling of the story, and once the house had gone quiet and only the candles were lit I made sure I was sitting in the armchair facing the door.
ReplyDelete😁😁 I haven't heard that episode but I do love a good ghost story. I'm going to continue on the other blog because it goes a wee bit off topic...............
DeleteJim's story was an adaptation of "The Mezzotint" by M R James and I read it once and wish I could unread it!
DeleteThink you'll,very definitely got a point there, Spicy, & Maryellen, can remember another notable one on TA not so long ago : the parting between Lil & Paul, Crawford's brother ? A send up of Brief Encounter, popped into a 'serious' SL !
ReplyDelete2nd word 'you've'.
DeleteI've just caught up with last night's episode and really enjoyed Jim, Robert and the ghost story; I can well understand why Robert was spooked! I think it's good for soaps to go off piste from time to time as long as it's well done as this was. (I do remember the musical episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, which I always used to watch with my daughter).
ReplyDeleteI'm also with everyone about Helen's attitude to the children from Beechwood. Goodness, she is unpleasant, especially considering how she benefited so much from the sale of the land. In contrast, Jim and Robert are two of the most likeable characters (a category in short supply in Ambridge).
Lynda and Robert also complained about a group of boys who asked for money, from Beechwood apparently.
ReplyDeleteSpicycushion: 7.46 am
ReplyDeleteYou are quite right about ‘soaps’ occasionally having special episodes, it hadn’t occurred to me that last nights Archers could be one of those!
I do watch the lunchtime soap called ‘Doctors’ and they quite often have an episode where all the cast dress up for a special, say, Christmas edition, or for a whole week of Shakespeare-type stories.
Of course, the cast mostly all work in a doctor’s surgery so it is quite believable that they would hold a seasonal party.
Perhaps I should modify my criticism of the Halloween edition of TA and congratulate the SWs on being topical.
...but loved today's episode, with many of the cast dressed up as cleaners. It was light-hearted, and wish TA could match the fun. This must be more difficult for a radio programme though.
DeleteJust listened to last night's episode.....loved it.
ReplyDeleteJim you are a master storyteller you had me hooked😨😨
Surprise,surprise ,Jakob has turned into Mary Poppins.
ReplyDeleteHe just pressed the off button, it was getting rather monotonous. He's given Kate some ideas.
ReplyDeleteVery up to date about the Village Hall.
Much better episode tonight - good to hear Eddie and Ed without the awful Alf butting in.
ReplyDeleteAnd.... topical inserts, Strictly Come Dancing comments AND the date of the coming election! Well done SWs and actors for getting that in.
As for the dinner party, that was a bit disappointing, no faux pas about Jennifer’s cooking, but wouldn’t you just know Jakob would have the magic touch to quieten Xander’s crying? I think Kate is going to get broody, so watch out Jakob!
SCD ? I must re listen,
ReplyDeleteGathered the election was slotted in so yes a better effort overall - 😅
Brian said he and Eddie were talking at cross purposes but can someone explain to me who Brian was talking about and why?
ReplyDeleteBrian was talking about the English and South African scrum halves in the Rugby World Cup Final (half time as I write).
ReplyDeleteThank you, thinking afterwards as to what major events we've had recently I thought it must be rugby, I hope you're not too disappointed.
Delete🌍🌎🌏
ReplyDeleteHello Hong Kong, Mexico & Malaysia!
Spicy, 8.57 last night.
ReplyDeleteYou were asking where Beechwood is in relation to the village
So I got out my Ambridge Panorama Map to find out, having forgotten exactly where Bridge Farm is situated.
I was surprised to see it is actually quite some distance outside the village. Leaving the Village Green you head south, past The Stables and Nightingale Farm, carry on past Brookfield, continue for quite a bit further, turn right in a SW direction and Bridge Farm is further on, to the right up a long drive.
Unfortunately this map doesn’t give a scale but it looks to me to be about 1-2 miles from the village centre.
Depending on which field was sold for the Beechwood development I should think it’s not within easy walking distance and most residents would probably drive into Ambridge.
Of course, the SWs might be using a different map to me
Thank you Archerphile kind of you to source that information for us. Joy appears to pop into the village quite frequently does she drive in I wonder or does she enjoy the walk🤔 (she always sounds like Ruth’s mum to me) is she a country girl or an ex townie?
ReplyDeleteJust listened in to last night's; not bad, not bad, agree Eddie, Ed & drunk Jazzer were entertaining enough ( though did wince at Kate's coy insinuations about babies...please, Jakob, make for the hills if you know what's good for you - if she has your baby, you'll be left holding it ! Ask Roy !)
ReplyDelete✔️✔️✔️😟🥴
ReplyDeleteArcherphile Nov 1. 10.53.
ReplyDeleteMight it be on the cards that Kate will hatch and then despatch!! (Usually to someone else!) Does Jakob know about her unstable past or how many children she has. (Never seems to come up much in conversation). Her family just seem to treat her as some sort of endearing difficult child, with no useful censoring of her behaviour. ln real life of course she would have had a very unsettling effect on her children (and that's just a charitable observation!). She is someone who shouldn't be touched with a barge pole.......both figuratively and literally! If anyone in Abridge needs therapeutic intervention it is definitely this madam!......Phew! Feel much better now! 😌
I don’t care two hoots about Jakob .
ReplyDeleteHe is so wooden.
No personalityI.
think he and Kate make a good pair .
They would spoil another couple.
The problem Lanjan is that Jakob is being written as having some sort of social learning difficulty leaving him with the social skills of a child of about Henry’s age. If, as has been mentioned previously, he sits somewhere on the Autistic Spectrum Disorder scale then he could be termed as being ‘high functioning’ or he could be sitting on the Asperger syndrome end. What ever end of the spectrum scale he sits on, if he does, he would never have managed to get through university and join a veterinary practice interacting the way he did last night.
DeleteAll animals require, at some level human involvement, owners to act on their behalf, so his inability to be sensitive to their involvement in the animals health and welfare would IMO have produced many complaints.
Being a vet, or any other professional involved in health care, requires a level of empathy and sensitivity to the needs of others, and as animals don’t speak it is the owner who provides the details. The professional needs to have the appropriate skills of eliciting information to ascertain the problem.
This whole week of the Archers has been a total waste of time.
The sooner Joe is six foot under the better.
To quote another social inadequate “bah humbug”
I can only hope that Kate is not thinking of having another baby. She has such a bad track record with her offspring and I also wonder about her age. Would she be up against that biological timeclock? Jakob needs to run!
ReplyDeleteI wonder if a Paul Broderick is a sort of “fill in fellow”
ReplyDeleteWhat I mean is that possibly the Editor hasn’t clue which Cause to take up so he has to fill in with a load of nothing.
Perhaps PB was given a list of the characters who were available at this time and told to write some scripts which would incorporate those characters.
We might not have listened to any episode of the past few weeks and apart from the fact that Joe died what else of import would we have missed?
If somebody asked me what has happened in Ambridge since the beginning of October I would struggle to think of much that is likely to have any significance.
What is needed I believe is fewer characters .
Weed out those who we rarely or never hear.
If the actors are paid a retainer then the BBC would save money.
What strings are still hanging?
Did Peggy keep all the kittens?
Is Kirsty still interested in Jill’s bees?
Has Jill still got any bees?
I mentioned earlier my theory that this is a winding down to retirement job for the current editor and it feels to me as if he is not putting his back into it - the scriptwriters are thrashing around and coming up with situations that don’t lead anywhere, or not anywhere profitable. A third of an episode devoted to acathaving kittens! Neither plot-driven or character-driven but desperation-driven!
ReplyDeleteI agree Maryellen
ReplyDeleteMe too Maryellen.
ReplyDeleteI’m very afraid this is not only a winding down of the Editor’s career but of The Archers too.
The BBC’s current obsession with attracting a youth audience to radio could spell the end of programmes such as TA. 😢
I also agree, and the dearth of interesting well thought out storylines is leaving me as a listener very bored.
DeleteI have, since joining the BBC blog and now here, always considered TA listener as interesting and inquiring. Many bloggers have contributed professionally on some of the more distressing issue driven storylines, also on the social aspect of day to day life as it is reflected by the characters.
I don’t understand why an editor retiring should produce such trivial piffle?
Today I am missing one of my life long traditions. A Sunday morning lie-in followed by a lovely long bath listening to the Archers Omnibus.
ReplyDeleteFamily have always respected this habit and wouldn’t dream of calling in or phoning between 10 and 11.15 on a Sunday. They know I am not to be disturbed.
But today, I just can’t be bothered to listen to the week’s episodes over again. Much to my husbands surprise I got up earlier, cooked us both a full English breakfast and am currently reading the Sunday papers.
To me, this is an unmistakable sign that The Archers is failing. I should never have thought the day would ever come when I would purposely miss the Sunday Omnibus.
I feel very sad.
Me too ,Archerphile.
ReplyDeleteI used to listen at 2pm for the second time when washing up the lunchtime dishes and picked up points other people might have mentioned which I had missed the first time around
Not any more
Reading the above makes me feel sad too. There's some hope that perhaps it will take off after Joe's funeral. I know you don't listen Lanjan but Feedback ran a survey which took radio 4 listeners out of their comfort zone by making them try other stations. Most of those asked what they'd miss most included the Archers, they were seasoned listeners though, not new comers.
ReplyDeleteI shall be having an enforced break of 14 episodes in two weeks time when I shall be WiFi-less on
ReplyDeleteHoliday.
I am hoping for an improvement on my return and in the run up to Ch......s. At least there won’t be a pantomime to get through this year! 😄
I haven't listened to the Omnibus on a Sunday for much of this year.
ReplyDeleteFor me this is due to my late rising, plus all my radios failing so only my IPad to listen on, which I deliberately leave downstairs to prevent me being tempted to access when unable to sleep.
However, I don't feel that I have missed much, which like others is a difference to the past when I listened to evening, following afternoons repeat plus the Sunday broadcast.
Certainly there has been very little to grip the listening ear recently.
There are many things that I am just not enjoying in TA at the moment. The worst though, for me, is Alf. He is being made to sound more like Joe in every episode, which I just hate! Plus, he is constantly scrounging which is just not appealing. At least Eddie + Clarrie realise this, but how will they get him to leave? Simples, they move straight to No.1 The Green after Joe's funeral, where there will definitely not be any room for him. "No room at The Inn" is a phrase springing to mind.
ReplyDeleteI was so wrong with my idea that the Carmen letter was a hoax. I still wonder how, Joe travelled to see her, carrying Tumble Tussock Cider with him and none knew. Also, a pink envelope arriving at Grange Farm, addresed to Joe, surely this would have been commented upon.
But it's now history and the mystery/truth has been found out.
I'm sorry so many are disenchanted with TA these last few weeks, & don't disagree with any of the criticisms, especially the unedifying but very vocal presence of Alf, but then very rarely want to listen to any episode more than once, & don't have particularly high expectations at any time.It ain't Chekhov or Shakespeare !
ReplyDeleteThe scripts bumble along, sometimes offering a pleasant surprise of wit, insight or dramatic skill, mostly fairly mundane, like a sort of comfort blanket, at other times, like now, boringly silly.
It'll pick up ! 😊
It will!
DeleteBut how and with what - Lizzies alternative Christmas Show, Tracy + Oliver renewing their friendship, Alf leaving,
Lynda finding a new project, Joy becoming a lot quieter... who knows.
My main wish is that the long as riduculous Jakob + Kate romance fizzles out, never to be heard of again
Carolyn- thank you for your post, it has brought me to my senses by describing how I have felt for most of my listening years.
ReplyDeleteI like your ' comfort blanket ' far better than my 'habit' as I usually describe my need to listen to TA.
I suppose my post at 1.29 today was an effort to empathise with other posters.
But really I feel like you and don't have any high expectations other than simply to be 'there' at just after seven five days a week.
I almost wrote 6.45, but now accept that it's 7 o'clock each evening, and as you will detect, as far as I am concerned the Sunday evening Broadcast is complimentary.
Listen for five and you get one extra, free !
Of course for some, listening to the Omnibus is their once weekly visit to Ambridge, but I suspect they do not consider themselves addicts, or would even think of ' blogging' on the subject of a mythical village in the Midlands.
Alf sounds as old as Joe and too old to be Eddie’s brother. Maybe Eddie was an afterthought like my “little brother”!
ReplyDeleteI would also like Lily, Russ + Freddie, to become just two.
ReplyDeleteLily + Freddie will then be back together at LL. helping Lizzie, and starting to progress things, for when Freddie takes over. When is this likely to be - have his 25th Birthday in mind.
Aren’t the Aldridges/Carters overreacting a bit about Kate & Jakob? It’s not as if they are engaged or even that far along the relationship but this “welcome to the family” may be a bit premature given Kate’s peccadillos!
ReplyDeleteIt's a long way till Friday, I wonder how many more things we're going to find out about Joe.
ReplyDeleteJohnny is prepared to be a guinea pig for Eddie's hangover cure, good luck to the lot of them.
Sorry to be heartless but if I were Clarrie I would feel rather pleased that I hadn’t to cut Joe’s toe nails any more and I would not have had Alf staying at my house all this time.
ReplyDeleteI would have suggested that he left now but returned on the day of the funeral and then left for good.
At last we are getting somewhere with the Russ/divorce situation.
Lily has been far too patient .
Do some suggest that there isn’t a wife ?
If there is and she is highly stung or whatever, how is she coping now?
All sounds very fishy.
Russ is still sponging and scrounging, off Lizzie at LL, and living with Lily for what, must be a year now.
ReplyDeleteHow does he know the mental state, the fragility and general health of Lara, his wife, who is has supposedly been separated from for what 14months (when they went to Manchester).
I smell a Big Rat, with slight shades of a Rob manipulative character.
Is this going to be the SL build-up for the Christmas Season, with LL the focus.
A bit more to the point tonight, don't you think, fellow bloggers ? Why on earth should Lily 'trust' Rat Russ ? He has lived with the girl for over a year & hasn't even broached the subject of divorce with this so called Lara/Laura/ whatever ( IF such a wife actually exists), who is apparently fragile ? Well done Johnny for waking up the already suspicious Lily, just by speaking naturally about how someone in love might want to be with their girl or boy friend.
ReplyDeleteAlso, nice to see a softening in Clarrie towards Emma.
Mrs P, glad to see we're in accord in our attitudes to TA !
The NHS says hangover cures are a myth. There are no cures for a hangover, though there are ways to avoid one, and if you do have one, to ease the discomfort. Joe Grundy’s final con trick?
ReplyDeleteTo avoid a hangover - drink sensibly.
DeleteMust practice what I preach - Hic!
French onion soup is supposed to be a hangover cure, but I don't know why onions would have that effect.
DeletePossibly promoted by the French Onion Marketing Board??
Delete🤣✔
DeleteYay Johnny’s back - and Emma & Clarrie together in the kitchen chatting again 🤗
ReplyDeleteSeems like Lily is waking up as well! Queue Mrs “Russ” joining us soon?
I bet Mrs Russ has already filed for a divorce, taking Russ for all he has be it just a house. No wonder he is ignoring the word "divorce" and its issues.
DeleteOops “cue”🙄
ReplyDeleteIt’s harder to see how TA has lost its way so badly (of late)
ReplyDeleteTV soaps achieved this status imo by continually increasing episodes from 2 to 6 a week meaning very poor content and viewing figs have quite rightly declined accordingly.
TA however have always have 5 so when it increased to 6 - long ago now there was no reason to ever anticipate lower standards.
🤞a blip right now 🙏🏼
I think some of the blips have to do with Edward Kelsley dying, so changing the Grange Farm, Ed + Emma scenarios, along with the constantly changing political situation. It is possible that many long-term SL's have had to be scrapped, and sudden interimn ones written. This could be why it's all a "mish-mash" at the moment.
DeleteTotally in agreement with carolyn and Mrs P.
ReplyDeleteI am intrigued with the current 'inserts' in the past week or so in the conversations seeing as Keri Davis says that the episodes are recorded a month before broadcast!
Lanjan - Peggy has got the kittens for at least six weeks!
Someone suggested that Paul Broderick may be a 'fill in' S/W. He has written for TA for years though. Certainly was there at the start of the Rob and Helen storyline.
Yes , Carolyn, definitely a bit more to the point tonight and a relief to hear characters such as Johnny, Lily and Russ again, in addition to the
ReplyDeleteGrundy clan.
I’m very glad we are returning to the situation between Lily & Russ and to hear Lily becoming frustrated and annoyed with his lack of progress in the matter of divorce. The story had been allowed to drift for far too long and I hope there is going to be a resolution soon
Knowing my luck, it will all come to a head when I am incommunicado in a couple of weeks time and I shall miss the climax of this story - one in which I am far more interested than the Grundy hang-over cure!
My point is that bored and frustrated listeners shouldn’t have to wait for ‘it to pick up’ - the programme should maintain a consistently satisfactory standard of plotting and writing. If scriptwriters with a previously good track record aren’t doing this, it has to be the result of poor editorial control. I don’t agree entirely with a friend who recently said TA is fast becoming a parody of itself, but I can see what was meant. It has been going bumpily downhill since Sean O’Connor left, imo.
ReplyDeleteSpicycushion, of course re the kittens
ReplyDeleteHave to say that I am intrigued as to why Russ is not moving more quickly with the divorce.
Presumably letters and phone calls from the Solicitors are happening when Lily is at work.
I do not think he has has done anything about speaking a divorce
Not even sure he has a wife.
I am surprised that Lily hasn’t asked to see some of the correspondence-if of course there is any.
Very strange.
I would have thought Lily would have been a good bet financially if nothing else.
Bit confused as to why Lily should be concerned about Russ getting a divorce. She surely didn't give a damn about him being married when they first starter sleeping together. It's not as if they don't live together. She's not waiting for him to leave his wife. What's the big deal? I'm genuinely a touch confused.
ReplyDeleteUnless of course they want to get married! But then, they have both in the past year demonstrably proven that neither of them believes in the sanctity of marriage or take it seriously at all so why do it? Again, it slightly confuses me.
Russ said that he'd speak to Lara at the right moment, so he hasn't yet, he also said he still has some residual feelings for her.
ReplyDeleteEsscee.9.25 am. Certainly culture and personal history play a big part in how we express ourselves. I have a friend who taught Chinese young women and they were always inscrutable when expressing emotion and would appear to be indifferent to the distress of others. In some cultures expression of some emotions is considered to be a sign of failure, and in others such as our own it is the opposite. Bottling up as we perceive it is psychologically not healthy.
ReplyDeleteJakob could be a mixture of cultures and he might be diagnosed as having Asperger’s which could explain his behaviour when he first appeared. But last week he came across as a socially incompetent idiot.
At last, some meat on the bones of TA.
ReplyDeleteLily is now maturing and beginning to have a Damascus experience regarding pretentious Russ.
A timely reminder, Gary(9.10am), used to seeing Lily as being duped & manipulated these days, but it's true, she had scant concern for his married ( true or not true) status when she became involved with the man. What Lily wants, Lily gets + ' be careful what you want, you may not like it when you get it'.....I suppose now, she's just looking for commitment from him, which isn't in evidence as he keeps fobbing her off.
ReplyDeleteBasia ( 9.29am), yes, he did trot out ' waiting for the right moment' yet again, which says nothing is happening at all about divorce. A strong smelling rat around : if she's so fragile, how has she coped with his absence for over a year, no move from him about permanent separation OR returning to the marital home ? If there is one ! More & more, I don't believe in her existence.
Stasia (9.47am) I suppose Jakob could be high functioning Aspergers ? Plenty of people like that, managing a career very well, but socially challenged in various ways. The cultural difference is convincing, too - perhaps both, in his case !
Gary 9.10 a.m. Exactly correct 100%. Lily had zero regard as to Russ being married when she started their affair. Why does she suddenly care that he isn't divorced yet. What difference does that make.
ReplyDeleteI feel that I have to speak up for Lily. She was a 18/19yr old when Russ 40+yrs spotted her as someone he could use to get out of a job he most likely wasn’t very good at doing. The , “I’m an artist 👩🎨” was a means of impressing a young woman who would secure his future. So LL and Elizabeth protected him from what should have been his suspension pending investigation and possible dismissal from his job. He didn’t protect the young students from drug dealing and became emotionally involved with a female student. Lily is brighter than him, and will I hope, eventually wake up and recognise him for the pseudo twit that he is.
ReplyDeleteFair enough, Stasia, all you say is indisputably true, but she was still pretty ruthless about the fact that she started an affair with a ( supposedly ) married man. There again , she's very young & is her mother,s daughter .
ReplyDeleteCarolyn. Is it a case of ‘mirror, mirror on the wall.
DeleteI am my mother after all’?
I think it might be !
DeleteStasia 4.40 p.m. Just because Lily was 18/19 yrs. old doesn't mean that she didn't realize that Russ was already married and also much older than her and in a position of authority over her. She isn't stupid so why did she fall for this? Young attractive lady who should have been interested in young men who are not married.
DeleteI had forgotten that Russ turned a "blind eye" to the drug dealing at Borsetshire College - which at the time I thought he was part of, but not so.
ReplyDeleteWasn't he first attracted to Lily, when she told him about the painting passed onto her by Dad Nigel??
£££ signs lit up his eyes, and I think that this why he is still at LL along with the what could be stored in The Attics. Freddie's idea of the Attic Tours, has, I think, been mentioned fairly recently again.
I feel Russ is just biding his time, but don't know really what he wants to acheive or obtain. I predict "a scam" of some sort.
I have to say I agree with Miriam.
ReplyDeleteRuss's attention was fully engaged when he discovered that a pupil owned a Gwen John. He then realised that she was a posh tottie, and £££ signs glowed in his voice.
( I remember it clearly).
I too suspect there is no wife.
I also agree with Stasia that he took advantage and I do think Lily was initially naive,. However, at the age she was at the time she was highly engaged with her brothers use of drugs and was judgmental towards him, appearing to know right from wrong. Yet at the same time she chose to take the ' wrong' path as far as her moral judgement was concerned by starting a relationship with a tutor at her college whom she understood to be married.
Did she also know that he, Russ, had ' let her brother off' because he was her brother ?
I cannot remember precisely.
So Lily at the beginning was experiencing conflicting moral judgments. Perhaps that was the reason for her being so understanding of Russ's predicament, and so defensive of her position, while keeping her mother's concerns at bay by being so apparently certain in her defensiveness that the relationship was so important.
Her mother of course was equally confused at the time by her own conflicting moral convictions, having been in similar questionable relationships herself, and carrying the scars to prove it.
Now perhaps Lily is re thinking her previous decisions and actions, just as her mother has done regarding her own mistakes.
As Carolyn says, like mother like daughter.
It's called growing up......... and for some it comes late or later in life.
Lara...... or
ReplyDeleteLaura....
Is his MUM
Brilliant MrsP!
DeleteUUUGH, so we must wait, because they can't afford another actress?
ReplyDeleteWhat's the attraction of going to your ex's wedding and spending money on a present?
To meet your next?
Helen wants Rufus to be impressed, he already is.
Ow! aarh! Dare I say it, a grown-up episode. Exciting or what!! I'm almost looking forward to tomorrow's!..........New SW's this week?........keep it up!
ReplyDeleteOh dear! Yet another dramatic cliche....
ReplyDeleteStill, the scene between the brothers was verbally entertaining, with T❤️O❤️B❤️Y sorting Rex out yet again.
A real cliff hanger & it's only Monday ! I'm with you, Mrs P - it's mum 😆 Guessed when Freddie couldn't believe it was the wife....either she is eccentric, difficult in some way, or she tuffed him out because he's such a pain. Whichever, LL shone like a beacon of profitable light for her boy....
ReplyDeleteFreddie was supportive of Lily, Toby of Rex and Kirsty sensible with Helen.
ReplyDeleteI have just ‘ phoned my sister who thinks that Lara is pregnant!
ReplyDeleteIf so it is unlikely to be Russ who was responsible which could be the reason for her not getting in touch with Russ .
I can’t think that the woman can be his mum because she would have been in touch with Russ before now -unless of course she has been.
She is obviously mobile so could get to Ambridge if she wanted to ..
I wasn’t over fussed about the Helen/Kirsty meeting up or with the Fairbrother but to be fair I soon perked up when the Lara situation occurred.
Goodness, wouldn't it be a strange story line if I'm correct.
ReplyDeleteHe can't leave his Mum !
Actually, thinking about it I've always found his voice suspect.
Perhaps..... I'm now thinking, its a ' mummy's boy ' voice.
The woman Lily accosted could have been Russ’s daughter......
Delete...or a sister, possibly even his twin sister.
DeleteOoo - things definitely looking up in Archer Land!
ReplyDeleteReally enjoyed tonight’s offering and what a great cliffhanger.
Good suggestions from my fellow bloggers about the mysterious Lara, must admit It hadn’t occurred to me that she could be Russ’s Mater, or that she might be pregnant.
But whatever it was, Lily certainly has her hackles up and I think there is going to be an almighty row when she next sees Russ.
Hopefully it will be to tell him to sling his hook (pardon the expression) and that will be the last we hear of him. 🥳
He is formally employed at Lower Loxley. Elizabeth would need to terminate his employment but he could claim unfair dismissal.
DeleteThe point is that Lily didn’t go into the house .
ReplyDeleteIt was the appearance of the woman which shocked her.
It could have been because as Mrs P suggested that she was old enough to be Russ’s mother or as my sister thought because she was pregnant .
On the other hand if it were a younger woman perhaps it could have been his daughter as Maryellen thought.
A sister would have been a similar age to a wife so I am not sure that would have caused the shock Lily obviously experienced.
Any other ideas out there?
What a good ending. Now looking forward to tomorrow's ep.
ReplyDeleteThank goodness it’s Monday & not a Friday- what a frustrating ending 😡
ReplyDeleteOr Mystery Woman No.2 might just be the cleaner. Perhaps she called Lily a little tart which would account for Lily’s melodramatic reaction ..
ReplyDelete(Thinks: do Mystery Women come in threes like London buses, and will the next one arrive in Rex’s taxi??)
Or she might be Lara’s mother, aunt, granny, carer.....
DeleteAll will e revealed soon no doubt -or maybe not- but I find it strange that Lara hasn’t bothered to check up on Russ by visiting Ambridge.
ReplyDeleteIndeed Maryellen
ReplyDeleteMaybe Lily spoke to her at the door and she said that she was checking up on Lara who has to be seen three times a day by Carers to check her condition (whatever that may be.)
After what you said ,Maryellen8:51 am I am going along the lines that that is the likely scenario
It is all very intriguing, isn't it ?!
ReplyDeleteHowever it unfolds, it shouldn't be a problem booting Russ out of LL, which is a law unto itself, I reckon, not subject to employment law as such !
He could relinquish his job of his own accord, but why would he when he likes it and gets on well with his boss. He’s not doing anything culpably wrong - and he’s not even commiting adultety if the ‘not married’ theorists are right.
DeleteI know this is a little late, but I would just like to agree with Stasia's defence of Lily (4.40 yesterday). I think she was under a lot of pressure at the time - exams , growing up, being always taken for granted by her mother who showed more interest in and concern for Freddie, worried about Freddie and trying to turn him away from the drug scene, missing her father and lacking a stable father-figure in her life it's no wonder that she would fall for the attentions she would have received from that prize creep, Russ, who, I suspect, took full advantage of the situation and her inexperience. I think she trusted him and saw him as someone who was there for her in a way that no one else was. It takes time to see what people really are and she truly believed that his marriage was finished. I think she has shown a lot of character in what she has done to support her mother and brother and is now strong enough to acknowledge her mistakes and deal with the situation. I find her one of the more interesting characters and think she would make a much better job of running LL than her brother who is bit too much like his uncle K -clubbable but unreliable! To change the subject best wishes to all of you who are having to cope with illness and other problems..... you are all magnificent and I do hope that things improve for all of you soon.
ReplyDelete👏an excellent summary.
DeleteIt doesn’t negate the fact that even if Lily thought his marriage was finished in theory, she knew it wasn’t over in practice.
DeleteBufo - how lovely to see your name here again. Do I take it you still follow our posts without necessarily joining in? It would be great to have your erudite contributions more often. I wonder how many other followers there are who read our posts ‘silently’? There may be a huge army of Archers fans logging in here that we know nothing about!
DeleteA really good appraisal of Lily's situation. Although she may have initially leapt into the relationship without much thought for the consequences, they've now been together for well over a year, Russ is employed by her mother and sleeps under her roof; Lily is certainly entitled to ask for a clear commitment from him.
DeleteRe Russ’s employment at LL and if Elizabeth sacking him could lead to an unfair dismissal case.
ReplyDeleteI’m not at all sure that Russ is officially ‘employed’ by Lower Loxley.
Does he get a salary, do they pay his National Insurance?
Does he have official holiday entitlement, expenses etc?
Is he on PAYE, in fact.
I rather thought his staying there was by a grace and favour arrangement - he looks after the Gallery, cooks the odd meal, helps out occasionally if needed - they give him accommodation, meals, use of Lily’s car etc.
I don’t think terminating that type of arrangement, could be considered Unfair Dismissal.
But then I know nothing of current employment law - Perhaps someone can enlighten me.
Bufo9bufo.
ReplyDeleteYou do what I have never done
You think before you post a comment.
I agree with what you have written.
You have put it so succinctly.
The qualifying period for unfair dismissal is as I understand it 2 years, so Russ could not claim from LL.
ReplyDeleteGood!! Thank you CowGirl.
DeleteIn fact, there are circumstances in which an employee of less than 2 years can claim unfair dismissal though I grant they might not apply to Russ. It is certainly employment in the usual sense - Elizabeth saved on advertising the job when it became vacant. I sincerely hope Russ does not lose his job and Lower Loxley does Note Lose it’s chief cook and bottlewasher since neither twin has shown much aptitude or inclination in this direction. Correction : I believe Lily once rustled up some scrambled eggs when her mother was ill and Lily had come home to borrow of her.
DeleteWe have to wait to hear what Lily has to say to Russ. I don't think Elizabeth would insist on him staying if Lily wanted to end their relationship.
ReplyDeleteAccording to Russ he is married and thinking of divorcing Lara, so far.
Both Hayley and Roy resigned from their jobs at Lower Loxley for different reasons because their presence there had become untenable under the circumstances.
Will there be fireworks this evening between Lily & Russ? after all it is Guy Fawkes night
ReplyDeleteClever KP!
DeleteI just hope last nights cliff hanger is followed through.....amid Freddie’s party night 🎉🔥💥which is bound to end in disaster particularly as he has stated he plans to impress Shula by behaving in a totally responsible way 🤔
Well, quite, Lady R - your last sentence ! Disaster at the Party couldn't have been more loudly signposted !
DeleteReally enjoying all the theorising I’ve just caught up with...yes I think sparks will fly tonight and then there’s the party - is that going to go with a bang or be a damp squib (sorry).
ReplyDeleteI can see how Lily was flattered by the attention of an older man, believing that made her exceptional unlike her less mature fellow students who were only attractive and attracted to young men/boys.
Perhaps this woman is the new owner of the house, perhaps Lara has already moved on, sold up and maybe has a new partner.
bufo9bufo ( 9.21am), echo others in appreciation of your post - so clear & utterly convincing. Couldn't agree more.
ReplyDeleteAlso Archerphile's assessment of Russ's actual status at LL, a sort of informal employment, & CowGirl's information - both useful pointers to the way forward.
So, no real barrier to getting rid of the creep, once all Pargetters are of one mind ! 😉
Freddie said he'd shoo them out to the Bull in time for last orders at 10:30.
ReplyDeleteI fear Joe's final trick may be the party stopper.
Unfair dismissal
ReplyDeleteThe usual reason for dispensing with the 2 year period is if you are dismissed because of your political affiliation or your links with the trade unions, non of which apply to Russ.
This is where we miss Sleepy Lawyer.
Hopefully the question won’t arise because Russ won’t be sacked.
DeleteFreddie asked Lily how she knew where Lara lived, and she replied that he had signed a document with that address on it. Was that real or a false address in order to keep Lily of the scent of his of his questionable marriage? It is all very intriguing and I could have had more of that, rather than the brothers gruesome.
ReplyDeleteI think the 🔥 🧨🔋fireworks will take place on the Beechwood estate and Freddie’s do will be a quiet affair. Freddie’s mates are all (except Lily) a bit thick so Jonny will convince them to drink of the Grundy potion to avoid a hangover.
Result, they will be sick or it acts as a soporific medicine. Not good for his imagine.
I wonder if the identity of "mystery person" will be revealed tonight. As to Freddie's party, I wish it to be a success and Freddie finally shows, that he can be trusted.
ReplyDeleteWhat a come down.
ReplyDeleteAm I missing something?
Why was Lily so appalled that Lara was only 10 years older than she is?.
Perhaps it was Lara who wanted rid of Russ and not the other way round.
I've been locked out since last night.
ReplyDeleteAll very irritating.
Tried to say how good it was to hear from bufo9bufo and what an intelligent post it was
and hope you will post more frequently.
Now have to say.....I WAS WRONG...... so not old Lara, but young Lara.
And he has the cheek to tell Lily not to think he is into young girls.
A word in your ear Lily...... go with your instinct, he's done you wrong and he's probably done Lara wrong before you. Give him the shove, and tell your mother to do so too.
Seems like Lily thought Lara wouldn't be a patch on her but found out otherwise.
ReplyDeleteI liked Johnny's 'love test' but not his and Lily's drunken voices.
Then there was Helen with her daft remark how well Shula and Alistair were together and running down Beechwood again.
Oh, and an audible slurp of A's mulled wine.
Worse & worse - he lied to her ! Lara is not fragile, but getting on with life happily without that drag of a husband. He's not even attempting an explanation for the deceit, just bleating feeble declarations of love.
ReplyDeleteWonder how many more young girls with names beginning with L he has seduced? Wonder if the first one was called Lolita? 😳
ReplyDeleteClever Archerphile 👏🏻
DeleteIf Lily doesn't boot Russ out now she's crazy. He likes young ladies and she's just one of them. His protestations of love are pathetic. Remember Lily he used to tell Lara the same thing.
ReplyDeleteDamp squib tonight imo. We did not hear Lily confront Russ about his young lady (? wife or not) and certainly she was not what I was expecting to be revealed. She probably started off her relationship with Russ at Lily’s age and is now too old - plus Lily comes with the benefits of LL grandeur.
ReplyDeleteHelen was all of a do at the prospect of her visitor, emergency with cow to boot - next we hear been and gone and a gold ⭐️
Both firework parties and conversations back to being bland! Glad I didn’t bother to
listen live. For me it didn’t live up to the hype it ended with last night.
Have not read any comments yet but will do as soon as I have posted mine. May well find it is just me 🤗
Who was the woman in the shop with Helen at the start, apart from Shula and then Alistair (?)
Surely the age gap between Lara and Russ is only 10-12 years - not unusual in real or fictional marriages. We have absolutely no evidence on which to base a supposition that he seduced her as a schoolgirl prior to marriage - and I think we can take it they are married since Lara didn’t deny it (or Lily would surely have mentioned it). After all, we take it that the Snells are married, though we weren’t there at their wedding! Lara may of course have been lying about how well she is out of bravado. I believe Russ’s declarations of love to Lily as much as I believe Brian Aldridge’s protestations of love for his wife. Lily seems to me to be suffering from a severe attack of pique.
ReplyDeleteI think Lily might be suffering from more than a fit of pique this morning!
ReplyDeleteJohnny too, after drinking that foul sounding concoction of Eddie’s. 🤢
I agree Maryellen.
ReplyDeleteI do not know why Lily behaved like that.
He is hardly Humbert Humbert
From her reaction one would have thought the woman she saw getting off the bus had two heads.
She doesn’t seem to know much about Russ’s wife.
She has a woman living with her.
Do we read anything into that or is it a lodger who is helping out by paying rent?
Whatever the situation it would seem that Lara is happy with it and maybe it was she who told Russ to leave.
I wonder what Lara actually said to Lily?
She wasn’t there long
First of all may I say thank you for the lovely welcome and comments! I am a regular follower and try to check in every day to see how everyone is and what you are all doing. This is such a friendly, interesting blog where people matter, learn things from one another and care for each other even though many haven't actually met. There are and have been so many interesting strands and it is a joy to see disagreement without rancour - for the most part! Thanks also to Gary , who is incredibly creative and allows all this to happen and to you all for making me laugh and reminding me of the world we grew up in, which in so many ways seems a much more hopeful place than the world of today. Sorry , that was a bit long for this blog but wanted too say thank you ......
ReplyDeleteand to disagree with maryellen! I think that this is much more than a fit of pique - this is someone who is questioning everything about her relationship , as she should. Above all it is about trust and there is no more important thing in a relationship. It is not what you say but what you do. Russ says he loves her but is not honest with her. He belittles her quite subtly , pats her on the head when she is good ie when his needs are being attended to and withdraws his approval when she isn't. She has given him everything and what has he given her? He doesn't trust her with the truth of his circumstances and he doesn't offer any way for the relationship to progress. It takes time for these things to become clear and Lily's questioning and actions are perfectly reasonable and indeed necessary for her own survival. So, definitely not pique but a sensible recognition that all is far from being right, that she needs to change things but is trying to make sure that she makes the right decision this time. That takes courage but can save a lot of unhappiness and damage to self and others later. Sorry to go on, but... Have a good day everyone and thanks.
Deletebufo9bufo - our views are equally slid since they are matters of opinion not fact. I have come to the opinion that Lily’s ‘maturity’ is something of a myth. She was certainly showing signs of maturity aged 16 but hasn’t advanced much since. The current self imposed limits of her horizons are one example - is it to be glorified call centre jobs forever with vague hints of betterment never realised? What is she now contributing to Lower Loxley at the moment in return for free bed and board,in either business or domestic terms?
Slimy Russ wouldn’t say how old Lara was even though Lily went down to 25 Yrs. So, if Lily is 19yrs it could be that Lara is only five years older? The BBC can’t legally write a Lolita storyline so they have taken the concept and applied it to an eighteen year old thereby keeping them within the law.
ReplyDeleteSilly thought it sounded, the drunken conversation between Lily and Jonny was her, at last being her age, instead of always acting the adult both with her twin and her mother. I hope she accepts that once she enters her twenties she will be too old for Russ and he will be looking for younger models. But, unfortunately it is going to be difficult to get rid of him as he is now dependent on LL for his B/B and food. Does he get some remuneration for his involvement in the Arty Farty side of LL.? Would Lily have forked out for dinner?
bufo9bufo. He also applies emotional blackmail by frequently guilt tripping Lily on what he has given up for her. When in fact he would have eventually been dismissed for condoning drug dealing. He was aware of the drugs should have reported Freddie’s involvement in distributing throughout the college.
ReplyDeleteTotally agree, stasia and not only for drug-dealing. Having a relationship with a pupil is not acceptable. I'm amazed he got away with it.
Deletemaryellen , you're absolutely right , it is a matter of interpretation and again I view her present actions differently. I feel that she has been wise enough to realise that university is not for her at the moment and that she needs to do something different, less academic and gain some experience outside the somewhat narrow confines of her situation and find out what she really wants to do. Achieving in life is not just about going to university . I feel we make university almost too important in how we rate success and devalue the importance of doing things non-academic. Who makes the better managers - those who have worked in all levels of the business and understand how it really works or those who come in with all sorts of theoretical ideas which don't really work. As many young have discovered a degree cannot replace practical experience and learning to get on with others. There have beeen many complaints recently about the background of MPs, coming from a very limited pool of people who have very little idea of anything outside their milieu. I see this as Lily expanding her horizons, getting practical experience and finding out what she really wants to do. I have also found that those who come to uni later gain most from the opportunity, more focussed. Finally we don't know if she contributes to LL and upkeep, but at least Elizabeth is not spending money supporting her , although slimy R may cost a bit!
Sorry , I'm going to shut up now! Coffee calls.
We don’t actually know whether Russ told Lily how old Lara is.
ReplyDeleteI would think it rather odd that Lily wouldn’t have asked him though.
All we know is that Russ has said that Lara is “fragile”
My question is.
Was it only Lara’s age that has spooked Lily?
If so,why?
Well, I can't get past the fact that Russ hasn't been honest & is still economical with the truth. I don't see Lara's age as a big deal, though Lily latched on to that, but rather that her whole demeanor & current life, as observed by Lily, did not show fragility or unhappiness.
ReplyDeleteI agree with bufo9bufo, Lily needs to probe & probe some more with all the intelligence she can muster, to get the truth, which she is owed, out of this slippery, evasive & dishonest man, who actually imagines he can calm her down by a romantic dinner out !! Show your mettle, Lily, & get your life back.
I like the drunk scene with Johnny, who clearly adores his Bella without reservation or complication. Never mind whether the relationship lasts forever or not, it gave Lily a glimpse of what love means, & feels like.
Stasia (9.53am) ✓✓✓
ReplyDeleteSorry I'm back ! Lanjan , could it be that she saw herself in a few years time? Also saw the deception? and wasn't it telling when R denied saying fragile, or have I just dreamt he said that?
ReplyDeleteNot dreaming. He did try to deny his previous, oft repeated mantra.
DeleteAm I imagining this or wasn't there rumours about Russ and other young college girls, during his time as a lecturer before Lily came on the scene. I'm not sure the veil has totally lifted from Lily's eyes yet but it will very shortly............Stay strong Lily, Rex will be the one for you. Eventually!......IMHO!
ReplyDeleteI do hope so, BB - they'd be good for each other ! Complementary.
DeleteBB- Yes I have a vague memory of hearing that Russ had been in trouble before with rumours about his behaviour with students - it may have been at a different college though. I wish I could access some of the early episodes when he was first mentioned by Lily and Freddie. Things discussed back then could be quite revealing in the present circumstances.
DeleteI just feel that Russ has a golden tongue, which has been well used in the past. When he was first introduced into TA, at that time I thought he didn't appear to act, as a College Vice-Principal should.
DeleteI hope he shows he shows himself up soon, now that Lily is losing her rose coloured glasses.