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Life in Ambridge
THIS POST IS CLOSED "longer off topic comments" - Episode 14 Life Outside Ambridge Have a seat and let's chat.
And also at 10am on a Sunday I've heard....
ReplyDeleteThanks, Gary, for looking after us & all the best to you & Mr GG for a lovely, nature drenched break from the urban scene, well stocked with pre prepared food, &, um, some liquid enhancement.
DeleteLet's skip the 10am Sunday.....TA really doesn't merit 2 hearings....
I hope you are right Mrs P (final post on previous blog) regarding Jim going to the funeral.
ReplyDeleteI just hope that somebody doesn’t give a eulogy about the man and that Jim stands up and shouts something like.
“That is a lie.
That man was a paedophile .
He took away my childhood”
If Jim did do that there would be a very great chance that he would be very violently assaulted by several people. And probably rightly so in my humble opinion - much as I abhor violence, I would understand the mourners anger...
DeleteWell as I say,I hope Mrs P is right and that the whole episode can be put to bed by the script writers.
ReplyDeleteI have had enough of “If you have been upset by anything mentioned in this evening’s ............”
I'm with you Lanjan but since it's in Jim's mind forever who knows how far they're prepared to take it.
DeleteI did say on the closed blog that Jim is probably doing the right thing for himself by attending the funeral, but I can also see your fears, Lanjan & Gary.: funerals, naturally enough, generate eulogies. Even if it's an anonymous person officiating, they won't know what Jim knows, & are hardly likely to say, 'today we bid farewell to a very evil man'
ReplyDeletePerhaps Alistair should go too, if Jim allows it.
Tom's and Brenda's engagement gave Mike the idea to propose to Vicky, so there's a precedent, parents taking their cue from the children.
ReplyDeleteI just think that now Kirsty + Philip are also getting married, Philip realises how ridiculous it is to pay for Gavin's wedding.
ReplyDeleteHis new wife to be, aka Kirsty deserves all he has, for their life together.
I love the Sunday 10.00am Sunday omnibus, which others don't appear to do so.
ReplyDeleteMy reasons are two-fold.
1) The weekly TA episodes are listened to, whilst eating or still cooking, an evening meal so perhaps don't concentrate.
2) The TA omnibus, joins all the weekly episodes together, so often makes much more sense with the continuing TA story-lines.
I will continue with the "double whammy" of TA each week, to get my true fix + understanding.
I imagine we all listen when best suits us, that day's plan & so forth. The only interesting aspect is what we all make of it when we do listen, agreeing, disagreeing, speculating & so on !
DeleteWhat I'm finding most interesting in the blogs recently, are the varying likes & dislikes of certain characters.
I’m there, in the bath, every Sunday morning Miriam, listening in.
DeleteFor many years from my 20s, to 60s it was the only way I listened, once a week, a sacrosanct appointment nobody in the family would dare interrupt.
I only started listening nightly too when it was possible to catch up later in the evenings on an iPod.
I'm sure Kirsty will want a very small low-key wedding after the Tom debacle and surely nothing showy like a double wedding. She deserves some happiness now.
ReplyDeleteNot sure about the wisdom of Jim attending the funeral of his tormentor but I do understand about getting some form of closure when one has been wronged. Don't know if we will hear this or if it will be referred to afterwards but I hope it helps Jim.
I just hope that both Kirsty + Jim, acheive what they want to do.
DeleteThis will be in a good way to suit them both, in their very separate and diffeferent lives.
Bet the SW's are thinking in an oppodisite way.
Nobody seems very bothered about Pip caving in to her ‘new bestie’ (horrible description) and going ahead with the rewilding scheme. I’m probably being nasty, but I really hoped she’d drop out and leave Phoebe to face the debacle alone.
ReplyDeleteI’m annoyed Pip succumbed to Justin’s interference and am sure David’s not going to be happy.
Looks like Justin and BL have won again.
Pip is a farmer and she's been given land, so she just wants to get on with the job, that's how I look at it, as long as it's no longer Phoebe's project.
DeleteSadly I think Pip cannot do anything. She was a joint signer of that contract. As such, I don't think she can leave the project, as much as she would like + wants to.
ReplyDeleteToday’s Guardian features an interview with Lady Hale, described as the “phenomenally clever” President of the Supreme Court until this year. Asked which were her three favourite judgments she cited as her third choice, the Court’s 2011 judgement which established that domestic violence does not have to be physical. “Hale explains the impact of the judgment by referencing the fictional case of Rob and Helen Titchener in The Archers...She relates the storyline with total recall” and adds that The Archers educated the public. We could all see what was happening, but of course, the family and neighbours couldn’t.
ReplyDeleteI think this confirms that particular storyline, like it or not,as one of the programme’s defining moments, when it resonated with the national consciousness, in a way that hasn’t been equalled since.
I think that's a fair enough comment Maryellen, and I agree with you.
ReplyDeleteThank you for drawing attention to the article.
Yes, the excruciating drip, drip in real time was so well done & in detail probably never before tackled in Drama. It was influential.
ReplyDeleteJim's historical abuse, whilst perhaps not so dramatically engaging on the face of it, is, I think, just as harrowing & important to expose.
We have here a robust, 80 yr. old man, highly educated & often overbearingly opinionated, who falls apart when disastrously confronted with the man who abused him as a child. He falls apart, the powerful & previously impregnable carapace he's developed throughout many years of adult life, falls away.
It's tragic, imo, worse than what happened to Helen in long term effect.
it's been clever, too, as he was softening up a bit before the party : the odd couple relationship with Jazzer, real affection between these 2 who are so different from each other; never a demonstrative father, yet giving all the support he can to Alistair when Shula dumps him.
He's changed so.much over the months - angry, tetchy, sad, fearful but gaining insight all the time. He's able to apologise to the 2 people he's closest to, & explain his feelings.
It's slow, up & down, but in the end there's hope for Jim, I believe.
A beautifully expressed synopsis of Jim’s story Carolyn.
DeleteI totally agree with your account and would add my admiration for John Rowe who has played the part with such accuracy and sensitivity. It has been fascinating
(though not comfortable) to listen to the changes in Jim’s voice and demeanour throughout his story.
And of course there is a little more to come with Jim’ s attendance at the funeral of his tormentor.
I am not looking forward to the funeral episode one bit.
ReplyDeleteThey have done the abuse story and that should be it.
The editor should consider the listeners who have been abused in the past and think how it might affect them.
The Archers is a programme to which we should be able to look forward to listening. not one where we are given a telephone number to ring if we have been upset by anything we have heard.
As you can tell ,I feel very very strongly about this.
I do see your point, Lanjan, whilst not happening to agree, just because I think it a worthwhile SL to explore. Do agree the funeral has the potential to be explosive, & I think Archerphile mentioned that as well. I guess we'll find out next week ! I hope it actually helps Jim & that he doesn't have to sit through the mockery of a eulogy.
DeleteI'm afraid I've sat through many a mockery of a eulogy, simply because the officiant has often never known the deceased and has had to piece together something appropriate to the occasion from information received from the family, who did not necessarily know their relative all that well either. I sat at the organ in my last sister's funeral listening to a complete stranger describing my birth at the end of the war as 'a happy event' for the family, which it most certainly was not.
ReplyDeleteJim is a very intelligent man and will probably know what he needs to take from the event. Of course, in this case the family might well have known this man only too well and either despaired of him or felt obliged to turn a blind eye out of family loyalty, of which there have been one or two (in)famous cases in recent years. We'll have to wait and see.
Lanjan, as I said before, I'm with you on this one. We don't know how the funeral will be played out. In the meantime, let's just be thankful that it's historic and not here and now.
ReplyDeleteTalking of the officiant not knowing the deceased or family, some years ago we went to Mike’s aunty’s funeral and a small talk was given about her and how she met uncle through his sister. Her name was Veda, unusual I know but the vicar called her Bidet! Mike, his sister and I somehow managed not to laugh! 😂
ReplyDeleteI think the funeral could be a form of closure for Jim. A very brave decision to take on his part I think.
Loved listening to the TA omnibus this morning (whilst cleaning the kitchen 😣).
ReplyDeleteI just found the continuity with the S/L's, so very interesting and they made so much more sense, well to me.
It was a delightful 1hr 15mins, as to TA listening.
I really hope that Jim does get a sort of "closure", when going to the funeral of his nemesis.
ReplyDeleteIt is time that this TA S/L. comes to a conclusion.
A funeral yes, but now there are 2 Weddings to look forward to.
How will Phil pay for both?
I've been having flashback visions over the last day or two, from one of my favourite films, Charade. Where the characters in a group enter the chapel one by one and check in their own individual way on whether the character in the coffin is indeed dead.
ReplyDeleteOne produces a small mirror and holds it to the mouth of the corpse. Another takes a pin from his lapel and stabs the hand of the corpse.
I keep wondering if Jim will be taking a pin in his lapel !
And will we hear the ‘ouch’ !
Delete😉
Even though Jim dislikes the word 'closure', that is exactly what he needs and let's hope he gets that without being too distressed. It is hard to realize the finality of the fact that you'll never be able to have that conversation/confrontation with someone who has wronged you (I have personal experience of this, although nothing along the lines of Jim's abuse).
ReplyDeleteLast night : can't get away from the feeling that Tom is a bit of an idiot. Though the writing has been on the wall for many months, he was clearly shaken by the Kirsty/Philip news. Both his peculiar conversation with a slightly embarrassed Kirsty & his protestations of love to Natasha seemed to be ways of assuaging past guilt & boosting his ego. Got the impression that neither of the women were particularly interested in his declarations, & just wanted to get on with their lives, in the present.
ReplyDeleteI accept that, Pierre - he really is, isn't he ' complete & utter... '😎
DeleteI still think that Tom (though now married to Natasha) does not like the idea of Kirsty also commiting to a marriage.
ReplyDeleteI think he still has feelings for her.
This is very opposite to others thoughts + ideas, which I appreciate.
Well I’m beginning to wonder that too Miriam!
DeleteWasn't that ridiculously abysmal, any better adjectives please.
ReplyDeleteDoes it mean the deal is off?
How about Tom and Kirsty again Miriam, you like the idea I think and the two Welsh together or maybe "sorrow" thrown in, oh please, Gary was right to have gone on holiday.
After all Tom was taken aback and he did turn up with champagne as if it was his own do...
Omg!!! I can’t stand Gavin. What a revolting human being. Couldn’t be doing with that as a step son!!!!
ReplyDeletePoor Alastair.
All those of you that dislike or distrust Philip - how about his delightful son?
ReplyDeleteWhat a nasty character he is turning out to be but I don’t think he is a chip off the old block.
In a different way to some of the other young adults in Ambridge, he is also acting like an entitled brat, expecting his Dad to fund his extravagant wedding plans..
Kirsty needs to be very careful how she handles this difficult situation. Gavin would probably really enjoy messing things up between his Dad and Kirsty.
Perhaps like David Archer he doesn't want his father marrying someone else, but has a nastier way of showing it. I think he sounds like an angry, spiteful, jealous small boy.
DeleteAgree about Gavin - what a thoroughly nasty person he's showing himself to be. We're hearing a lot of Welsh accents at the moment but never a Brummie. There used to be one back in the day. Always good to hear regional accents IMHO.
ReplyDeleteYes, Anneveggie, also, I have never heard a Norfolk accent, which I like and I can’t remember hearing a Scouse accent which I also enjoy, to the annoyance of Mr A.
DeleteOne of my absolute favourites though is the highland and islands Scottish accent as heard in the lovely old film, Whisky Galore.
Now how could they introduce such a character to Ambridge, I wonder?
Alistair with his towel was a very clumsy plot device to unleash Gavin who on the way to the house met Tom. Can he come and go as he likes? Does Philip keep his laptop in the wardrobe? Why did Alistair go to Kirsty's? As soon as he went to the en suite we knew it was trouble, I hope he cleaned the bath. Pitiful.
ReplyDeleteWow, that Gavin is surely too vile to be plausible !! I don't see how his poisonous character could have completely escaped Philip's notice through the years, simply not convincing, even allowing for some parental blindness ( & perhaps guilt, because of the divorce)
ReplyDeleteAt least Tom behaved reasonably with an overwrought Natasha, offering the calm homecoming she needed.
Questions:
ReplyDeleteWhy does Philip keep his laptop in the wardrobe?
How did Gavin get into the house & know where to find said laptop
Why didn’t Alistair go to Shula’s or The Stables for a shower?
Did Natasha really leave her bag in the café - sounded like a very poor excuse for being late.
Was she reluctant to keep the meeting with Tom about the van, or whatever?
Who, in their right minds, would call a kitten Ena, even if it is the offspring of Hilda Ogden?
Because, as I said above it's a clumsy way to throw a spanner in the works and with your suspicion as to Natasha, to push Kirsty and Tom together? I don't like predictions but this is so boring there's nothing else.
DeleteI don't think it was particularly clumsy. I think there's a plausible explanation for all your questions, A P : for instance, why shouldn't he keep the laptop in the wardrobe when he's not using it ? Alistair went for a shower there because Philip offered, over a pint, probably, & it''s nearer than the stables.
DeleteNo reason to be suspicious of Natasha, she's stressed at the moment without an office manager, & in that state, bags, umbrellas get left behind.
People are notoriously ridiculous about naming their animals, especially people like Joy, so perfectly in keeping, imo, with her character to call the kitten Ena ( Sharples !!)
The scriptwriters really do not like the Welsh.
ReplyDeleteOf all the characters Archers fans have disliked I think that Gavin is the worst .
He mentioned that his mother had been made redundant but was still happy to take her £1000 from her.
If she and his father are divorced why does Phillip need to tell his former wife he is remarrying?
They may not be in contact with each other.
I thought ,like you Archerphile that a wardrobe is an odd place to put a lap top which implies to me that Gavin was just going through the place to see what he could find.
Was he hanging around there and saw Kirsty go out without locking the back door and thought he would take a quick look?
Then there is Welsh woman Natasha .
No young woman would leave her hand bag and phone in a coffee shop.
Where were her car keys if not in her bag?
Did she not wonder when she came out of the Coffee shop why she was not carrying anything?
Surprise ,surprise the bag was still there when she returned.
Of course it was.
She had never left it in the first place .
She wanted extra time to do ...........what?
and Tom believes her.
More fool him.
Kenton Archer has been moonlighting.
ReplyDeleteHe is the judge in “The trial of Christine Keeler”.
Ooh ,I think I will be right about Natasha Carolyn.4:06pm.
ReplyDeleteWouldn’t trust her an inch.
You might leave an umbrella but not your handbag (where any sensible woman would have put her car keys.) in a Coffee Shop..
We'll have to agree to differ on that one, Lanjan ! People do untypical things when stressed. AND I've yet to meet the driver who doesn't have the occasional, 'Where did I put the b----y keys ?'
DeleteI promise you Carolyn that I will not gloat when I am found to be correct!
DeleteWhat is wrong with being Welsh?
ReplyDeletePat is also, and what has she done, to cause such angst?
Jazzer is a Scot, Ruth a geordie but they are accepted.
Then there was Lexi, from Bulgaria, the surrogate to Xander..
Ian is Irish, so why be detrimental as to the Welsh all of a sudden. 😣😣
I can tell you what kind of young woman leaves her handbag in a coffee shop, LanJan. - me. Like Natasha, I was lucky enough to retrieve it but it was a searing experience and I have had a recurring dream in which I realise I haven’t got my handbag with me ever since. I try to dash back to the shop to retrieve it but the landscape changes andI get more frantic until the dream peters out, as they do!
ReplyDeleteThere is absolutely nothing wrong with being Welsh,Miriam which is why I cannot understand why suddenly two of the characters who appeared on last evening’s programme and who some Archers listeners find not entirely to their liking.just happen to be Welsh.
ReplyDeleteIt is not me who does not like the Welsh.
I was questioning whether the scriptwriters do.
It is obvious that Gavin is not the most pleasant of people and he is Welsh
May be I am alone in not trusting Natasha .
I don't trust Natasha either. I have never done so, nor probably never will.
DeleteMy personal thought only 😁
I think Natasha might be angling to appoint her former boyfriend as her office manager, and has been spending time sorting this out.
ReplyDeleteI suspect that IF a laptop was hiding in a wardrobe, it might have material on it that is private.....
If I was Kirsty, I would have the locks changed, and a serious word with the other inhabitant.
Is it a former or not, partner or boyfriend, as I just think that he is still around.
DeleteNatasha might be scheming - or perhaps not and also -
she just might be a very genuine person and so in love with
Tom, so they have a true and happy marriage together.
I still have many doubts about her, and actually would liked to be proven wrong.
I don’t trust natasha, Philip and deffo Gavin.
ReplyDeleteGavin was definitely doing a recce to see what he could find.
Kirsty.....change the locks and don’t agree to marry Philip in haste. Look at Harry and his in haste marriage!!!!
Hope we don’t get any more welsh characters. Let’s have some local accents introduced.
I hope I am not reading comments, as to the Welsh, which might be construed as a type of racism.
DeleteAm sure this was not intended.
Wouldn’t be quick to say that if I were you Miriam. You’ll get folks’ backs up.
DeleteIs that how you see us on this blog? We are just offering our opinion!!
Since a lot of the opinions differ P tbY one of us is sure to be proved right .
ReplyDeleteSome of us have been saying for some time that it is time we had a few characters in Ambridge who actually have local accents.
It might be interesting to find out why the incomers have come to live in a small village in the midlands .
What made Joy come to Ambridge for example?
Nobody seems to have come from Dudley (Dudloy ) Worcester ,Wolverhampton or Birmingham .
I wonder why not?
The Grundys and Carters (particularly Christopher ) have mixed Mummerset accents with a bit of Pam Aires’s thrown in.
Most of the Archers family are accentless.
As I've said before the only thing I do like about Natasha is her Welsh accent and I've not detected any prejudice against that nation in the above comments.
ReplyDeleteExactly ,Basia .
DeleteMaryellen.
ReplyDeleteYou must have been carrying lots of other bags for you to leave your handbag in a Cafë.
I bet you didn’t get into a car and dive away before you discovered what you had done.
I bet it was before mobile phones too.
I do not think any young woman would leave anywhere without checking whether she had got her phone with her.
I would assume Ambridge is not that far from t he Welsh border so not surprising that some Welsh characters appear in their midst! There should be some brummie mix as well though. We lived in Ledbury, no real accent maybe a little West Country. As soon as you got to Worcester, about 15 miles to the north the brummie accent crept in. Amusingly there is a local bylaw we were told that if a Welshman crosses the border on a Sunday you can shoot him with a bow and arrow. This has never been repealed apparently,! It should apply to Gavin whatever day he crosses over!!
ReplyDeleteWhy on earth would you put your laptop in a wardrobe? Surely only if you had something to hide or were beginning dementia and have started to put things in odd places.
ReplyDeleteI still fail to see how B at Ambridge is so modern and more upmarket than The Bull. I must be one of those 'old fogeys' that Lilian and Jolene are so keen to see the back of.
As a matter of interest, i never put my car keys in any bag I may have with me, on the principle that a bag may be snatched or left and forgotten. I always keep my car keys on my person in a pocket where I can feel for them regularly to make sure I still have them.
ReplyDeleteI don't like Natasha much either and am still waiting for her to slip up in some way.
Gavin seems to have been introduced to be a thorn in the side of yet another of Kirstie's relationships.
And as Ev has pointed out it really is not so strange for Welsh people to be in Worcestershire, only two counties distance from the border.
I can see Wales from my garden.
Carolyn, 4.06 pm
ReplyDeleteYes you are right, there are answers to the questions I asked (somewhat tongue in cheek!)
But, honestly, Ena for a kitten? Fair enough to follow the Coronation Street trend but I should have thought Minnie (for Minnie Caldwell) would have been prettier. At least she didn’t choose Rita, Deirdre or Raquel! 😄 😸
Have to agree, AP, Minnie is a much better name for a cat ! Except, in this case, from the way they're talking about the kitten, it seems to take after it's formidable mother ( as I remember, Ena. S. was a tartar in a hairnet, wasn't she ?)
DeleteIndeed she was Carolyn. Didn’t watch Corrie back then, but I’ve heard of Mrs Sharples and seen photos. Good luck to Joy with that kitten, she sounds like another home-wrecker to me.
DeleteAnd I wonder what Justin is going to say when Lilian turns up with the last kitten - any predictions for appropriate names for that one?
I haven’t watched Coronation Street since there were only two TV Channels ,when Ena Sharples was around.
ReplyDeleteI would suggest that Joy was probably a child then and remembered Ena .
I think that she has named the cat appropriately
There are much odder names for cats.
One of our favourites who came to join us many years ago (apparently, I heard later from the same litter as a Blue Peter cat) was a stray who we originally called Naughty cat (for leaving his previous home) and then shortened his name to Nort.
When I was at the vet’s someone was asked the name of their cat and they said “Number 9.”
Even as a house guest I wouldn't use somebody's private bathroom if there was an alternative. It was a ploy to put a half naked Alistair in Kirsty's bedroom to provoke an altercation between her and shoot with bow and arrow Gavin. *In my opinion* it was a very cheap stunt.
ReplyDeleteI used to house sit for three cats: Parker (nosy), Sphinx and Skittles.
Couldn’t agree more ,Basia.9:39 .
ReplyDeleteI thought at the time that Alastair had a cheek asking to have a bath.
I would have thought that the bath would have been in the main bathroom for the use of any guests staying there rather than in the en-suite .
We have neither an en-suite nor a bath so I wouldn’t know though.
Two new women talking about weddings, both of them dreadful. If the father was local then the chances were it would be someone known to David, like Vince, what is he playing at? He has a much younger daughter too. This one was talking about cuddly little animals and her father runs an abattoir! Then Jim talking cryptically to himself.
ReplyDeleteHonestly, so far this week it's been farcical!
It is a put up job isn’t it Basia?
ReplyDeleteSurely Ruth and David would have known the young woman’s surname and smelt a rat.?
I know nowadays people tend to use first names but if one is trying to run a Business ........
As for Mrs Miller .
No wonder Kirsty left home....
I guessed that silly Stephanie's dad would turn out to be the bumptious Vince character. David is now so angry with many people : JE, Vince, Josh, um, who else ?
DeleteI rather liked the Shula/Jim scene, continuing the better understanding that has been established between them these days. Though he steered the talk on to Shula & her ordination tests, & away from his current preoccupations, the conversation about facing fears certainly related to him & it seemed to help him. Quite cleverly scripted, I thought.
ReplyDeleteYes, to an extent, but Jim is aware that Shula knows enough and he was seeking guidance/confirmation of his decision, I thought he might have confided in her about his plans.
DeleteLanjan - "As for Mrs Miller" - Yes, I thought, no wonder Kirsty came back to Ambridge!
ReplyDeleteWell, some people have been wishing for a newcomer with a Birmingham accent - now we have one.
ReplyDeleteWhat a pity she is being portrayed as a stupid airhead who wants little piggies and lambs running around at her wedding!
As for Mrs Miller - I thought Kirsty was talking to Joy at first. I expect those two ladies would get on well together and sort out Kirsty’s wedding between them!
Exactly Archerphile, what an airhead, but she does have a Brummie accent.
ReplyDeleteI think Ena is quite a nice name for a cat and, in this case, it sounds very appropriate. My daughter's cats are named: Billy, Phoebe and Fat Bob (for obvious reasons).
Am I alone in thinking that the Brookfield Wedding Venue ideais absolutely ludicrous?
ReplyDelete1) Will there be portaloos?
2) Who will be doing the catering and where will they prepare the food?
3) After the meal where will the guests go whilst the barn is being prepared for the Evening Do?
4) What happens if/when it rains ?Surely a farmyard is likely to get muddy.
5) From where will David get all the rose bushes?
6) Josh his own Business,Pip has Rosie and Re wilding ,Ben is nowhere to be seen so who apart from Ruth and a David will be involved in this ridiculous scheme?
7) When Sarah Beeny was trying to do a similar thing in a large house with a lot of gardens ,she had to go through loads of hoops to achieve her aim.
Why has nobody been to inspect the barn?
8) Health and Safety-Farm animals; farm machinery
9) When the wedding takes place ,is everything else put on hold?
10)I am sure there must be a 10th point somewhere.
The. 10th point is who is Sarah Beeny?
DeleteShe was somebody who was involved in House programmes on TV about 10 years ago.
ReplyDeleteYour logic is impeccable, Lanjan. Set out starkly like that, what on earth do R. & D. think they are doing, & for what sort of reward ? A load of work, a long list of hoops to get through, how can the effort & frustrations along the way be recompensed financially ?
ReplyDeleteOh, may I offer a point 10 ? Having to spend time listening to simpering brides like Stephanie.
Compared to above, I don't think Kirsty's mum was anything like as cringebmaking ! Not remarkable for tact or sensitivity but really just a concerned mum who wants her daughter to be happy, & sees Philip as the ideal man for her.
Lanjan
ReplyDeleteYou are so right! None of your points seem to have been addressed. Catering facilities in particular have very strict rules about preparation areas, separate toilet and hand washing areas, proper cold storage etc etc
Have they actually received planning permission for change of use from agricultural to other business use?
The whole idea is ridiculous - well, perhaps not ridiculous as I expect this has been done in real life but there has been so little detail, like, have Environmental Health been consulted and inspected the facilities.
Perhaps I am expecting too much detail, but this seems to be a very far fetched method of bringing David and Vince into conflict again, for goodness sake!
Yes, bet you're right on that last point, too. Plus, I suppose, David is also quite cross with his sister & brother, who, for all their shortcomings do have experience in catering & hospitality.
DeleteTo me not as far fetched though as Alistair in a towel confronting bow & arrow Gavin rifling through his father's wardrobe.
ReplyDeleteTo me not as far fetched as a large expanse of land in the middle of England pushing out the coast lines called Borsetshire.
ReplyDeleteYes, a bit of a stretch ! Thomas Hardy coped with fictional places best, labelling swathes of Wiltshire, Somerset, Dorset as Wessex, reviving the ancient name. This gave him carte blanche to use a mixture of real places, Stonehenge etc, & fictional towns such as Casterbridge ( based on Dorchester)
DeleteIt's all kind of vague in TA, except for those detailed maps they produce, so we just have to imagine there is some mythical space which doesn't actually alter coastlines ! 😉😊
It all depends on whether Brookfield is being marketed as a venue or is offering ' wedding packages.'
ReplyDeleteJust as a venue they wouldn't have to offer preparation facilities for food. flowers etc 'Decorators' would do the flowers, those silly bows on the individual chairs, table decorations and balloons etc. All these would be done by outside companies, maybe two or three or just one.
As long as the caterers have a means of transport for hot and or cold food it can be prepared elsewhere.
Brookfield needs toilet, parking and possibly tables and chairs but not much else.
Public Liability insurance would be nice too!
After all the comments labelling the wedding venue plans as ridiculous
DeleteSpiceycushion has given the answer that I was preparing to write.
All the services required can be outsourced by Brookfield and found in abundance including the toilets and any extra covered space required provided by a marquee from car parking area to the barn.
The pub opposite me now has food prepared, cooked and served from a mobile unit every weekend and for large occasions provides extra portable loos.
All that David and Ruth need consider is whether the costs of outsourcing plus their expected profit matches what the public are prepared to pay.
And surely we are all aware that much of the public is prepared to pay outstanding costs for lavish weddings.
And if we don't know, Kirsty is prepared to remind us !
I seem to remember that similar arguments were voiced about Kate and her business, which seems to be gently bobbing along, if not actually thriving,
despite us hearing very few details.
It seems to me that the requirement to hear details about business ventures, would suggest that a business programme rather than TA is what is wanted, and there are plenty of them to listen to which describe such services that are available.
Interesting piece on You and Yours today, repeated from the Farming programme earlier
ReplyDeleteabout animal welfare and specifically pigs and focusing on the subject of tail docking to prevent tail biting in indoor housing of pigs.
Animal welfare not included in Parliaments farming directive yesterday.
So in this story line TA seems to be topical as we leave the EU.
However one contributor to the programme claimed that animal welfare in the U.K. was not of the highest, contrary to what the NFU claims, and, I would suggest, as many of us in the U.K. have believed.
Spicycushion but even if Brookfield were to be marketed just as a venue , there would have to be somewhere to prepare the meals or would everything just be pre cooked and brought out of the delivery vans?
ReplyDeleteIt is the toilet facilities which I think are more important though.
I have said that I don’t enjoy weddings.
The last one I went to was in an old Manor House where there was one room for everything .
It started off as the place where the marriage took place .
We were then shunted outside (fortunately it wasn’t raining) until they were ready for us to partake of the wedding breakfast after which we were again shunted outside so that the tables could be cleared in preparation for the Evening “Do “
By that time we had had enough.
What will happen ( or has happened already )at Brookfield.?
Would it not be a similar situation.?
At least in our case we did not have to use porta loos.
LanJan, we were typing at the same time but I placed mine above my previous post as a direct response to Spiceycushion.
ReplyDeleteWell Mrs P I certainly wouldn’t want to pay a vast amount to be paying for food served from a mobile van and to be using a portable loo but I may well be out of touch .
ReplyDeleteJoe Public might be prepared to pay large amounts of money for lavish weddings but can you honestly believe that any wedding at Brookfield is going to be lavish?
Brookfield is a working farm so does everything carry on as usual whilst marquees are being erected,chairs and tables are being delivered ,portable toilets are being put up?
Also ,with respect MrsP ,I would suggest deliver that delivering food to a pub from a Van is not the same as delivering it to a Barn for a wedding.
I think your explanation is convincing, Spicy. Brookfield is just renting out space - hadn't thought of that before !
ReplyDeleteAt the same time, there should have been just a few sentences between Ruth & David whilst they were discussing the new centure to let the listeners what they would be selling, & what not. Also, Elizabeth & Kenton seemed to think the idea was far more adventurous than it probably is, if Spicy is right - which makes for further confusion ! 😙
Tch, tch ' venture' not 'centure'...
DeleteWhen my daughter was married (late morning), they hired a local village hall for their afternoon reception of an afternoon cream tea. Both families did the catering for the tea, baking scones, cakes and making sandwiches, and the tea and coffee making facilities were supplied by the hall which had a small kitchen to one side. Shouldn't be too difficult for David and Ruth to manage something like that. They also had an evening barbeque and they paid for that to be supplied by a caterer. And the evening finished with dancing to a live band, which they also provided. So, basically all that they hired at the venue was the venue itself. Oh, and we all gave a hand to decorate the hall on the night before the wedding, so Brookfield wouldn't necessarily have to do that either.
ReplyDeleteShould say that it was my daughter and her husband that paid for the evening caterer, not the venue.
DeleteI think Vince's daughter, is just like Gavin - in that they both have decided what they want, and then say "Daddy - pay up".
ReplyDeleteI don't believe that Vince has had anything to do with the fact, she has decided on David's property, so it is another TA "red herring".
I might, and probably could be proved wrong, But I don't think that even Vince, would cause angst as to his daughters wedding and her Big Day.
I got that impression as well, Miriam. Could be that when Vince finds out he won't be any more pleased than David.
ReplyDeleteWhether facilities are being provided by Brookfield or outside caterers/wedding arrangers, I know I wouldn’t want to have to use a portaloo in my best outfit as a guest, let alone the bride and/or bridesmaids in their wedding/bridesmaid dresses!! 🥴
ReplyDeleteNot talking about a van outside a pub, rather using it as an illustration of what is available.
ReplyDeleteMany caterers now have sophisticated portable ovens.
And if this reminds you of a microwave in the back of a van, think again of a rather large piece of kit housed on a trailer.
Street food and the accoutrements required to accommodate cooking in the open air or a covered area has become big business.
Josh is back from his Hols.
ReplyDeleteWhat is the ongoing situation, with his digger, apparantly lent to a friend, and then used in a "smash 'n grab"?
This S/L seems to have disappeared -
Please update me...
Are we actually expected to take Kate seriously now ? I don't get it at all !
ReplyDeleteNo I don’t think so ,Carolyn.
ReplyDeleteI think they were so appalled by the rubbish they were doing that they all bonded against Kate’s ideas.
Was it Lynda who kindly implied that Kate had achieved what she set out to do (ie bonding ) although I don’t think that was what Kate actually understood what Lynda meant but thankfully accepted her praise.
I may not have understood correctly nor have I expressed myself well either .
I was pleased Kate (who was relieved that the Session had not been a failure ) behaved in the way she did towards Freddie in the end.
It was the first time I actually quite liked both of them.
Glad you have that take on the scene, Lanjan, must say I did hope it was serendipitous, that the ghastliness of the exercises caused the squabbling GG staff to bond ! So Lynda enabled Kate to save face ? Lynda could, I suppose, really have thought that it was all intentional on Kate's part.
DeleteI liked her attitude to Freddie, too, first time I've heard her approach anything like an apology or an admission of being wrong. Of course, we know Noluthando was no little angel & had started Freddie on the drug trail initially, though she did her best to stop him when he got into dealing.
Did Grey Gables close for the day then 😂
ReplyDeleteKate acting her cold - sounded like she did have a bad one I have to say!
Is Tom trying to convince himself that Natasha is the love of his life after hearing of Kirsty’s marriage?
Kate the teacher learning from the pupil - whatever next!
I was wondering who was running Grey Gables too Lady R.
ReplyDeleteThen I assumed it was mainly the kitchen staff who were involved because of their gambling fracas - but then, why was Kirsty involved?
Another piece of not properly worked out scriptwriting I suppose.
My take on the ‘successful’ results of the team building exercises is that the participants finally became united - but only against the exercises and Kate’s ideas.
I expect they will be back to gambling and arguing again tomorrow.
Mrs. P 1.14: I must admit I was left wondering what part of anyone's body wouldn't hurt if a tight rubber band was put round it which was mentioned as 'painless castration'. Is there such a thing really?
ReplyDeleteI was pleased to hear the interaction between Kate and Freddie too.
Tamsin Grieg will be narrating The Animal Farm on R4 tomorrow afternoon, her voice plus a timeless story and both related to the Archers.
ReplyDeleteLove Tamsin Grieg's voice esp. as the narrator of "The Secret Life of the Zoo".
DeleteWill she ever re-appear in Ambridge- by 'phone, face-time, Skype etc. which must happen.
PS I have now a yearly membership to that zoo. The senior citizen rate, was so good at this time of year, it was too good not to do. It was just £95 for unlimineted access for all of 2020. I can drive there in 10 mins. It will be well used.
DeleteMiriam, the odd post will have been left on this blog because Gary is away without WiFi and won’t have seen it.
DeleteHe usually removes such scamming posts straight away and I expect he will do so if and when he sees it.
How great that no-one has replied to or acknowledged, that very strange post, from a few days ago.
ReplyDeleteIt has to be some sort of - getting personal details "scam".
Do any of the residents of Ambridge, get the awful scam calls, I constantly get, even though I am ex-directory.
Christine was a subject of a scheme, but are any others:- Peggy, Bert, Carol T for example, bombarded as single, senior citizens, living alone (in theory), and are suffering the same?
It could make a S/L, which is very relevant at the moment.
I am looking forward to GG's return from his well deserved break. He will, no doubt, remove the weird scamming message possibly with one of his imaginate put downs to boot.
DeleteAlistair accompanying Jim yes, but Jazzer?
ReplyDeleteCan't wait to find out the names on Lynda's petition.
I’d be happy to sign it myself!
DeleteSo Shula has taken another step on her journey to join the ministry. Yet again, her conversation with Alistair has led him to do the Right Thing. Less tongue in cheek, common sense prevailed, & Jim will be accompanied to the funeral. He clearly welcomed this.
ReplyDeleteBasia, I think Jazzer has learnt a thing or two recently, so may well be OK, & not make a tricky situation worse when they have to sit through the service.
Lilian & Lynda ! A typical clash between these two, each taking themselves so seriously. I hope we don't get too much of this. Am more interested in what the.plans are for the actual refurbishment of The Bull or The B @...
Yes, another spat between Lynda and Lilian, one would hardly think they are, sort of, related by the marriage of Lilian’s son to Lynda’s step- daughter!
ReplyDeleteBut I am a bit disappointed it has been left to Lynda to start a petition against The Bull’s change of name. I should have thought there were several regular customers who would have been up in arms and suggested a petition or some other action. Lynda is hardly a regular customer, but admittedly does have the history of the village in mind and has always fought for traditions to be maintained.
I still can’t understand why Kenton is, apparently, taking this lying down, and also Peggy being so reasonable about the changes Lilian proposes. I should have expected her, as previous landlady and owner of The Bull to have fought for the retention of it’s original name and function as the traditional village public house. She is more complacent than I should have expected.
Honestly on a scale of 1 to 10 how important is it in the lives of the residents of Ambridge if the local changes it's name..probably say -30. We have residents wrestling with child abuse, being abandoned by their family (Joy), milleniums struggling to change the world with their rewinding project.etc. etc.
ReplyDeleteI honestly think The Bull comes fairly far down the pecking order. If Lynda wants to to start a campaign then go for it..she always needs something to make her feel worthy..to have the gratitude and adulation of her public.
Here, here ! As I said earlier, it's just something for Lynda & Lilian to ruffle their feathers about, & then strut around the village, like the peacock used to. A storm in a teacup.
DeleteThere again, TA always likes to mix relatively serious, or complex, SLs with trivia, often aiming at comedy, with varying success. I don't find renaming The Bull amusing or interesting.
Well, I suppose I must be more of a traditionalist that our two correspondents immediately above.
DeletePerhaps it’s an age thing! 👵🏼
It's not a question of being a tradionalist or not ..it's a question of priorities and the majority of ambridge families ( like our own) are up to their eyes in their own problems.
DeleteIf The Bull serves a pint as it did before and offers the same hospitality, then who gives a hoot what it's called.
I like that emoji, AP ! I haven't:got that one. Don't think it's an age thing, I ain't young at all... Just a different take in what we like/don't like in TA.
DeleteEmoji nothing like you Archerphile that’s for sure 🤗
DeleteI also do not want The Bee we have not heard of the proposed inside changes yet of which I am sure Justin’s consultant has many planned to go with the more trendy (?) modern name
I can see Autumnleaves point and Carolyn's agreement on the name change.
ReplyDeleteIn relation to the problems that Jim has, Shula and her spiritual journey and Joy being lonely for whatever reason, the change of name for the local pub is not important.
But I also feel that it is important to adhere to traditions.
Linda, at the moment has no other cause to follow, so it seems natural to me that she should take up the cudgels on behalf of the wider community and fight the proposed change.
I see no reason why personal difficulties cannot be run beside a petition regarding the local pub.
I would also be willing to sign her petition
I agree Mrs P and I would sign the petition without hesitation . My point was that in the whole scheme of things is it so important..have families the time to organise themselves.
ReplyDeleteMaybe that's why the Lyndas are put on the earth to do these things for us.
👼👼👼👼
DeleteI wouldn't sign the petition, purely to see Lynda go 'tch, tch' & pout, certainly not in support of Lil. That's how much of a bad sport I must be !
ReplyDeleteParticularly dislike Lynda's tendency to wear down & bully busy people into doing what she wants, in order for her to shut up, for dubious ' community benefits'.
Obviously, some of us are totally unsuited to village life !
To me, I don't understand why a change of name is necessary. Surely it is the ambience, the bar food available, and the restaurant menu which is important.
ReplyDeleteAgree - that the internal decoration needs improving, but it is still a "local" pub, which needs to keep its regulars, who pop in for a pie + a pint.
I would side with Lynda.
There has to be a suitable + happy comprosise, to suit all.
Would I organise a petition to change the name of a pub back to what it was ,that I only went to occasionally ?
ReplyDeleteNo
Would I sign Lynda’s petition ?
Yes ,possibly if I thought there was no sensible reason for the change and a lot of people were really upset by it.
On the other hand surely it is up to the owners to change what they like with their own property
We had two libraries where I live.
The one nearest me was smaller and not many people used it .
The Council decided to close it.
Quite rightly in my opinion.
Someone started a petition which I did not sign.
There were so many signatures on it you would have thought that the library was full of people every day .
The Council did close the library!
I still don't understand, why changing the pub name, will give it a greater appeal?
DeleteExactly Miriam ✔️
DeleteThe Bull or The B is quite minor.
ReplyDeleteI would prefer to hear more about other Ambridge stories, such as:-
Carole T
Leonard + Jill
The Weddings, esp Phil + Kirsty
Natasha's credit card debts
Bert
Toby
Josh
Rex
Neil with Hannah + Berrow.
Clarrie, Eddie in Grange Farm
Emma + Ed
Will with Keira etc.
Helen + Lee
There are so many possible S/Lines available to expand.
Not forgetting the return of Rob 👎
Have muddled names up re Keira and Poppy.
DeleteAlso forgot George - where is he?
Has Wayne been consulted, as he is in charge of The Bull's restaurant - or will it be a "fait-accompli"?
DeleteIt was made quite clear when Rob fled that he was declared as being "of interest to the police" and would be immediately arrested. Rightly so!
DeleteAgree with your list Miriam 👏
DeleteThe B at Ambridge - that's how they spelt in the synopsis. I would sign the petition but it hardly matters because the locals are likely to call it by its old name rather than: see you/let's have a drink/lunch at The B?
ReplyDeleteThere has been a pub on the corner of Putney Hill and Putney Heath called the Green Man. I don't think I've been in there since I was about eighteen.
ReplyDeleteAbout ten years ago, I saw men taking down the sign, on the opposite side of the road, a traditional painted pub sign with a Robin Hood type of green man.
When I returned about an hour later, there was a new sign, a modern reproduction of a green man in place, and the old one leaning up against the post.
I was puzzled, but felt something needed to be done.
So I picked up the discarded sign and took it into the pub.
The manager didn't know anything about the change of sign, presumed it was changed by order of the brewery and thanked me for rescuing the sign.
At the time I had other, more important things to deal with, so I made a phone call to a local active Putney Society member and explained what had happened, asking him if he was able to do something.
I never followed it up personally but was pleased to see, about eighteen months later, a new post with the old sign reinstated.
Yes, people like Linda, and me, and the busy bodies who care about minor infringements in our locality, are here to 'do something ' on behalf of those who have too much else in life to care, or put effort into doing.
I remember LanJan and the local cat !
Well done Mrs P 👏
DeleteIndeed, Mrs P, well done from me too. I should have done the same.
DeleteI know there are more important stories in Ambridge for us to be worried about, but why should that exclude lighter matters such as a petition against the change of name of the local pub.
It is most definitely something that would cause upset and argument in my village.
If anyone tried to update the name of our pub, ‘The Fox’ there would be uproar, not only in the village itself but much further afield as it is a well known excellent dining venue as well as a ‘local’. We wouldn’t need a Lynda to start a petition, the Basingstoke Gazette would be hot on the trail!
Your last sentence is the key thing for me, AP : if the locals feel strongly enough, they'll protest, & don't need Lynda's inflated ego to speak for them; if they don't feel strongly, going by the way they usually carry on, they'll sign the petition just to shut her up.
DeleteDoes Lynda ever do good quietly without somehow drawing attention to herself as the champion of local values & cohesion ? Oh, she did shelter the beleagured Lexi for a while, to be fair, in a discreet manner ( but had the satisfaction of telling Jennifer off...)
I don't think the B at Ambridge is in any way an improvement on The Bull. It's not witty or particularly modern sounding so what's the point? Change for change sake isn't a good idea. The interior and atmosphere inside is what really matters to people plus good host/hostess and good drinks and food. If I lived there I would sign Lynda's petition.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy listening to the conversations Jim has with Shula, remembering how beastly he was when he first arrived in Ambridge, requiring a lot of forbearance. Now he’s at his nicest when talking to her, neither tart nor condescending as he is with other residents. That’s one personal relationship that has matured along the right lines,
ReplyDeleteCouldn't agree more; a grown up relationship has developed, showing both of them in a good light !
DeleteI think recent life experiences have changed Jim & Shula for the better generally : she's less dithery & has a much better friendship with Alistair than she had a marriage, & Jim is more expressive about his feelings, & quicker to climb down when he's been bad tempered, notably with his son & Jazzer.
Carolyn, 8.21am
ReplyDeleteHeaven knows, I am no great fan of Lynda. There have been times when her snobbishness, bullying, assumption she is always right and ridiculous adoption of foreign accents have irritated me beyond endurance. But in answer to your question about whenever she has done good quietly: I think I remember her being very supportive and protective of Kate at one time, when Kate was undergoing one of her crises (can’t quite remember which one!). I remember being very surprised at the time that Lynda could be so understanding and caring and I dont believe it was well known around the village.
Have to admit, AP, & Lanjan below, Lynda does show genuine kindness at times ( though Kate was aidjudged recipient of kindness, imo!) & she was also understanding of Jim without having to be told exactly what was upsetting him. Fair points, but this decent, human side is opposed to the other, very tiresome side; I suppose this makes her a 'real' person, warts & all. There's an element of caricature thrown in, also, which makes for humour.
DeleteKate...a misjudged...
DeleteI remember Lynda being very kind to someone who was expecting a baby .
ReplyDeleteWas it Vicki?
I thought for someone who possibly would have wanted her own children but maybe was unable to have any ,she was being so kind and supportive.
(I have to be nice about Lynda since I was once told by a Methodist Minister no less, I reminded him of her .
I would prefer anyone who thinks the same as he did to keep it to him or herself !)
A hard shell with a soft centre...admirable qualities imo.
DeleteLynda can be a pain in the derriere at most times but she is a kind and caring soul...wish there were more like her.
Lanjan, I think it was Coriander or Caz, Robert's daughter who stayed with them when pregnant and Lynda made her ginger with warm water. No, I don't understand why she had to slip into French twice while talking to Lilian but I like her all the same. I think she's like Mrs Antrobus "the dog woman" who was also a busy body in the village.
ReplyDeleteSeems many of us accept Linda as being a difficult character to like on many occasions, but yet overall see the kindness beneath the often bullying exterior, which shows itself often enough to make her a rounded character.
ReplyDeleteI personally, don't think of Lynda, as a bullying character - more like - just a very persuasive one.
ReplyDeleteI love her when she gets a bee in her bonnet, as she now has with The B at Ambridge.
I wonder if the leaving of her bag in a cafe, and the lack of an office manager, so is having to stay late, are relevant with Natasha, or are genuine.
ReplyDeleteWhat confuses me, as is this is her fruit-juice business -
who runs the Bridgefarm.app with their boxes??
I can't see how Tom + Natasha are running their many buisness's, yet still have time, + need to prune trees.
I just don't understand their set-up.
Meant the Bridgefresh.app.
DeleteAfter listening to the TA Omnibus this morning, I still feel that Kirsty + Tom are destined to end up together, finally.
ReplyDeleteGav + Natasha - between them - will provide a lot of shenanigans, plus talk + thoughts, be they either negative or positive.
Yes, you all know my thoughts re Kirsty + Tom...
It probably won't happen, but wish it would.
Also picked up in the omnibus, the kitten Peggy is keeping.
It is Stan, to go along with Hilda 😂 They were a great Corrie Couple.
Now there is also Ena + Bet - a story writer is having a laugh, which I like. 😗
Jim said exactly what some have been saying here about the petition.
ReplyDeleteSee ?! (she crowed), nobody who spoke tonight was interested in Lynda's petition. Some signed just to get rid of her & it seems little is attached to the name, so long as they can get their pint as usual.
DeleteIsn has a severe case of ants in the pants ! Quite funny, as Adam, not a food connoiseur, of course, was perfectly satisfied with Hugh's menu. The sooner that Ian gets back to work, & arrangements are made for Xander's day care, the better !
ReplyDeleteRather enjoyed Freddie in his spy role, as he obviously relishes it, too. He's actually beginning to develop a personality.
A well balanced, entertaining episode altogether, including Eddie, Jim & Jazzer.
Ian (1st word)
DeleteI wonder how many people Eddie might attract to his cider club Burns night , if that is what he meant.
ReplyDeleteI wasn't sure what was going on there, either !
DeletePossibly an attempt to show Lilian what they think of her plans for THE BULL by everyone boycotting Burns Night there and going to the Cider Club instead?
DeleteA plausible idea - you may well be right !
DeleteGood thinking Janice.
ReplyDeleteI hope you are right.