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Life in Ambridge
Life in Ambridge
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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.
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ReplyDeleteJanice - August 23, 2020 at 8:15 PM
I feel that the Archers started out as an advisory service, admittedly of a farming nature but nowadays farming includes diversification into farm based tea and food shops etc, and this could have been treated as a golden opportunity to give out good practical advice to all those little country businesses like Fallon's that need advice in these strange times. They have mentioned Roger having coronavirus and the fact that Fallon had to have the rent reduction because of lockdown and consequent greatly reduced footfall in the cafe, so as they have not totally ducked the subject they might have done some good and showed what help was available and advised how to get it.
It's time they stopped acting like a pathetic soap opera and went back to proper farming and giving useful information, particularly in times when help is needed.
MrsP Ambridge - August 23, 2020 at 9:12 PM
Totally agree with Janice.
I have been saying so for decades and on this blog on numerous occasions.
But the BBC cannot do that any longer, for, god forbid, we can't be told what's what unless it's a government directive.
There have been many occasions in recent years when TA has found a way to inform, such as the ' Helen/ Rob story ' and this could have been another such occasion.
One point though. Natasha and Toms new business would have to have been in existence for over one year to apply for the appropriate government grant.
Have they been going for a year ? I'm not good regarding dates and lengths of time. Others will correct me !
carolyn - August 23, 2020 at 9:05 PM
Well said, both Janice & Stasia. They have given lip service to lockdown, not so hard to do in a rural community where many work outdoors, & within a family unit, but why no reference to hospitality businesses - L L, G Gables, The Bull ? All those places must be concerned about when furlough stops, as well as Fallon & her little place.
maryellenAugust 23, 2020 at 9:47 PM
I agree with you, Janice. To me it suggests a programme that has lost its way, when the BBC describes its role as being a comfort, with no recognition of the fact that it could be (and was meant to be) a source of helpful information. Very sad.
Point very well made Janice. Would have been a fantastic opportunity.
ReplyDeleteTo support Janice’s point, in this area two farms were shut down and everyone put into quarantine because 70+ farm workers tested positive. Most were casual workers, just like Adam’s seasonal crew.
ReplyDeleteLovely picture of you at the top of the page Mrs P 🤗 Was she the character you admired?
ReplyDeleteWow Gary, that photo really is a brilliant find!
ReplyDeleteAs someone who listened from day one, I am disappointed to realise I cannot remember ever hearing Mrs Fairbrother, I thought she was just a background character - but there she is in black and white!
I always admired Carol Grey ( as then was) running her own Market Garden, and imagined her as rather chic and glamorous.
My big disappointment with the photo is Mrs Perkins - she was much older, stouter and grumpy looking in my head. I think I pictured her a bit like ‘Gran’ in those old Giles cartoons!
(I should very quickly add that us NOT how I picture our dear Mrs P. )
A wise last sentence Archerphile 🤣🤣🤣
DeleteAmazing photo! My first thought was "a bygone age, they must all have passed on". But no, Lesley Saweard (Christine Archer) is not only still with us but remains a member of today's cast. According to Wikipedia, she is the longest serving soap actor in the world! Maybe we'll hear from her again when normal recording resumes (if we ever see "normal" again).
ReplyDeleteFeedback stated that recordings are starting again this week probably not with Peggy, Jill etc not that that was specifically mentioned we shall have to wait and see....
DeleteI just hope that some S/L's, are not rushed into to reach a suitable + sensible conclusion.
DeleteI would like a "Softly, Softly" approach, to then build up again to the climax of stories, which have been on the back burner - Sorry, I couldn't resist that!
What a photo, which just so intrigued me, as I know virtually nothing about the earlier years. I was not even born, and not even a twinkle in the eye, when TA started. I only started listening in the 1980's - but the addiction quickly happened. 😁
ReplyDeleteI believe, but I am not sure, that I was 1yr old on the day, Grace Archer died.
DeleteI have only been listening for about 34yrs.
My Archers book has a similar array of photos arranged in 3 rows of 6 and labelled The Archers cast in the mid-50s. Jill has been substituted for Grace Archer so it must be a later selection than the one above, and minus the autographs. There are a lot of staged photos - looking just that! To my eye, the actor playing Phil Archer looks particularly awkward in them as if he knows he doesn’t look the part- more like the image of the librarian he started out as, than a farmer!
ReplyDeleteAnd, of course, went on to write a great many Archers scripts under the pseudonym of Bruno Milna.
DeleteIf many of the TA cast, will now be back recording in the studio, can the more vunerable cast members now record from home, and become cast members again?
ReplyDeleteI refer to the likes of Peggy, Jill, Bert, Oliver, Christine, Jazzer (due to the actor being blind).
How I would like to hear from Eddie + Clarrie again...
Plus, how is Hilda and her offspring doing 😹
There is so much to catch up with - and where are Ruth + Pip, Toby, Rex, Roy + Phoebe?
I also would like to hear a scene, in the community shop and Susan enforcing, social distancing.
I am, perhaps, expecting far too much. 😣😩
...Is it too much, to want to hear Lily + Russ again?
DeleteApparently Miriam some of the older generation say they would be unable to set up and use the equipment that would be sent to them. It took awhile to talk “Brian” into it with support I believe from “David “ (Charles Collingwood & Tim Benktinck) but I know what you mean.
DeleteRe Mrs Perkins and me, MrsP
ReplyDeleteArcherphile, my image of Mrs Perkins or MrsP as Walter Gabriel often called her was as you described, Old, Stout and very grumpy. And invariably in a wrap around floral apron.
However it was her sharp mind and her very sharp tongue that intrigued me and prompted me to use her name as a connection to TA.
She often disagreed with all other points of view. Had a different view to others, contrary, and putting spokes in others wheels.
I suppose that is much the way I view myself, hence the adoption of her name.
Like you I am surprised to see a rather pleasant looking middle aged lady in the photograph.
And thank you, no, I don't look like the photograph or your description of her.
Now with a lined face and very old man scalp along with the spreading vitiligo I think I resemble some creature from the Star Wars planet.
But I am what I am and don't have too many problems about my appearance. I am acutely aware that it could be far worse.
See Linda.
That Mrs P had the worst Mockney accent ever. “I’m shewer”
DeleteJanice - 8.15 p.m. What an interesting viewpoint. Some people would say that the BBC are very busy with their own particular agenda and would not have time to give advice to rural communities.
ReplyDeleteCan my opinion of Kate get any lower? No.
ReplyDeleteCan my admiration of Ed get any higher?
Possibly.
Which is pretty amazing considering what I thought of him as teenager!
AP, I listened to last night's a few hours ago, & I think you meant Alice rather than Kate, don't you ??
DeleteAbsolutely agree about Ed - for once he's found a voice & is standing up for himself !
As for Alice, it certainly looked as if she was going to do The Right Thing in the end ( though not soon enough)& own up to Brian, but I do feel sorry for her. She's up against a severe addiction, the kind which warps normal, decent behaviour in the victim.
It sounded as if Alice was actually speaking to Brian last night as the programme ended so things are looking up for her character I believe. I missed the interaction between her and Chris regarding the alcohol problem (having been married to an alcoholic I don't wish to be reminded of those years!) but I hope their eyes have been opened to the true extent of the problem.
ReplyDeleteI didn't like the decision to continue with the monologues and some of them have been dire due to either poor acting or scripts or both. But the format initially gave an extra dimension to the characters e.g. Natasha being over-confident, rather than bitchy, verging on evil, as many characters in TV soaps are.
There are some characters I don't think have improved e.g. Robert who was always nice, calm and sensible, deeply in love with his wife and on the whole a contented man. I'm sorry but I don't believe all the amateur pseudo- psychology guff that 'his trauma would make him behave this way...' He has become petty and obsessive.
I think the writers had a tough time in re-thinking their storylines, writing episodes, editing and recording them (which all normally takes three to four months but now includes social distancing, no hotels available for necessary overnights etc) and now to carry on, as the actors are more available, will take time.
Perhaps they will return to the main stories and incorporate new ones?
It is nice to see that each week's episodes are moving from two characters to, in a couple of week's time, eight characters over the whole week. Things are looking up!
I think Robert & Jim have always been obsessive &. yes, petty over their birdwatching actvities - it's their little boy competitiveness surfacing again in later life !
DeleteAs for Lynda -such an unexpected disaster, hard for both to negotiate their way through. She is still suffering physically & feels insecure about her altered appearance, neither experiences she's familiar with & I, for one, find her behaviour completely understandable. Equally, poor Robert, he's treading on eggshells & at a loss right now. Basically, they have a sound & enduring relationship & I expect they'll find a way through.
I didn't like the monologues to begin with, but I soon warmed to them and since then, I am really enjoying all that I listen to. I, for one, have loved the many individual thoughts + ideas being broadcast.
ReplyDeleteBut...I can't wait for full-scale TA episodes to happen again.
I listen to R4ex a lot. This also, has been so different and slightly disappointing, in the current times. I think I heard "Evil Under the Sun" about 4 times last week
I am looking forward to the normal Archers, returning soon, and the S/W's don't try to do too much, too soon.
I'm tired of Lynda's lack of sex life and now she's joined Lilian and Alice in drinking. The last one self-delusional as always, drinking in the shed to help out Chris, she doesn't have a problem, only makes expensive mistakes, like wrecking a combine in the past and rectifying it with a bottle of champagne.
ReplyDeleteI feel cheated!
ReplyDeleteI wanted to hear Alice confessing to Brian about her mix up yesterday and, especially, his response. Then I wanted to hear him apologise to Ed and offer him his job back
But it was all glossed over and spoken about in retrospect - as so often happens in TA
Perhaps we would be able to have more proper outcomes to hear if we hadn't been robbed of 3 to 4 minutes of each episode so that we cojld hear a load of internal BBC trailing of programmes which I for one find damned annoying.
DeletePierre, that drives me up the wall!!
DeletePierre les Corbeaux - ✔️✔️✔️✔️✔️
ReplyDeleteI don’t often find something to praise the editor and producer for, but I think allowing Linda to talk about her sex life is a brave move on their part, because sex is the one area of disability notoriously doesn’t get talked about, whether it’s long-standing disability like Down’s syndrome or sudden, midlife disability like Linda’s (or like Nigel’s might have been had he survived). It’s clearly an important aspect of the life changing nature of disability for people who have disability thrust upon them, and unlike us, they can’t switch off.
ReplyDeleteI agree Maryellen.
DeleteHowever uncomfortable it may be for those of us without disabilities to hear, it is an important subject and is as worthy of being explored as is the subject of disability itself.
Whoever brought it to the table is to be admired for their bravery.
While I agree with the sentiments expressed in the previous two posts personally I'd rather not hear about sex lives of any group of people or the population in general.
DeleteMy view always has been (to paraphrase) "What happens in the bedroom, stays in the bedroom."
Years ago when I was going through a SF phase, as collections of short stories, I cane across one set on a distant planet (of course) where the inhabitants treated sex as a social activity, and eating as an intensely private affair for one or two people. So the saying was: what happens in the dining room, stays in the dining room!
Delete😆😆
DeleteThis idea was used by Bunuel in one of his films, people sat around on toilets together and then stole to a separate room to eat in private, otherwise his films are full of sex.
DeleteI remember the time when Robert wanted sex but Lynda told him firmly to leave their beds apart. Now she wants to be desired and has enlisted cackling Lilian to help her out. She said she'd go up to Robert and kiss him, instead she suggested an early night and he made cocoa. Yes, people talk about sex and usually by means of euphemisms because normally it's not something they show to others or are prepared to watch themselves.
ReplyDeleteHow I admire Lynda. If she wants to wear a wig, why not? This will boost her self-esteem and so she can go forwards faster.
ReplyDeleteAs to sleeping with Robert - surely it was the need of being in a normal relationship again, after her ordeal, so to help her to feel wanted again?
Sadly, she was "rejected", which didn't help her progress, at that time.
I interpreted this S/L, as a longing, from Lynda, to feel wanted + loved, again.
Robert does love her, but Lynda needs proof, hence her "seduction".
Well, that's my idea. 😩
I really rated the talk between Lynda & Lil - just what the former needed, so realistic. Unfortunately, (& this will sound like gender stereotyping, indeed, perhaps it is, ) but Robert, as a man, hasn't that outlet, not with Jim or anyone else. Women do confide personal things with other women they trust, men usually don't.
ReplyDeleteI don't see the objection to this plot development. Robert & Lynda are a close couple at every level, & now their continuing sexual connection has been severed by the dreadful accident. She wants to/is ready to resume lovemaking, but he is mainly relieved she is still alive & seeks to aid her gradual recovery. It's not that he doesn't still desire her in that way, but he is repressing such feelings in the ( mistaken) belief that he needs to take care of her in other ways, so he moves with exagerated caution, & is, so far, blind & deaf to what she actually does want but is too anxious & unsure to express clearly. Hope that makes sense !
It rings very true to me, at any rate, & could well resonate helpfully with other couples faced with similar problems.
It also makes the best use of the monologue form to date in TA, letting us into a character's inner world, with the added touch of bringing in actual dialogue between 2 female friends.
Well said carolyn. maryellen has raised a valid point in highlighting how people with disabilities cope with the perceptions others have of them as sexually attractive. Lynda knows Robert loves her, but he in his role as carer, has failed to recognise her need for sex and intimacy.
DeleteHer physical trauma and the time taken to heal has perhaps not allowed Robert to use their normal routines and verbal expressions for engaging in sex. Sounds like he is hesitant in pushing the issue and his misunderstanding of an early night might be due to perceiving Lynda to still being in the ‘sick role’.
She doesn’t want to be seen as insecure and needy, she wants to touch and be touched. If Robert has perceived her to be fragile and sex is taken out of the equation in their relationship it will add to a Lynda’s perception of herself as unattractive and unsexy.
Let’s hope this issue doesn’t drag on and they get back to their unique way of hopping happily into sexual intimacy.
Magic time is a must.
I am liking this concept. There could many, who have had major ops/accidents etc. and just what to be loved, and feel normal again, rather than being cared for.
DeleteI wish Lynda would just say to Robert "I am ready to try to resume 'magic time' between us so how about we go upstairs and try to do that'. It couldn't be misinterpreted by Robert and I'm sure he would go along with the idea happily. All the soul searching and wanting to be wanted just does not appeal to me to listen to and I'm sorry if I sound unsympathetic. I am not and feel for Lynda in her recovery but I do think she is very fortunate to have such a loving and faithful partner.
ReplyDeleteAnneveggie, I agree absolutely.
DeleteI would agree If it were pre accident Lynda, Anneveggie & Basia, but the trauma & consequent disfiguring physical damage has unnerved her. Firstly, she was nervous about appearing in public, now she has lost confidence in her her intimate relationship.
DeleteI hope Ed is there for Alice when she needs help, as a friend.
ReplyDeleteI don't"t see that as his call at all.
DeleteI hope Ed gets a back-bone, and tells some-one, be it Adam or Brian, about his observation and thoughts, re Alice.
ReplyDeleteThis could go two ways:-
Rubbish, as her life is her own and does a good job, so nothing to do with you.
or
Thanks for pointing this out, and she will be watched.
I fear the former 😣😢
Alice has got a nerve ! All indignant that Chris has broken their agreement ( once) when she has been cheating from the start. I suppose that's par for the course with alcoholism. When is Chris going to wake up to the situation & when is she ?
ReplyDeleteIn answer to your rhetorical question Carolyn.......
ReplyDeletenot for some time I fear !
Drunk or not, the way Alice spoke to Ed last night was unforgivable.
ReplyDeleteIt shouldn’t be up to him to ‘do something’ about her drinking, it should be up to one of her family to take notice of what is happening and take action. They are all as blind as bats when it comes
to Alice. If Adam would make the effort (crutches not withstanding) to get to the office for a short visit he might see.
I actually heard last night's broadcast and agree with both Carolyn and Archerphile.
ReplyDeleteWhat a shame the editor(s) decided to change both Alice and Chris's characters so much.
Alice is a dreadful woman now.
Ten years ago although she had been spoilt by her parents she had no airs and graces.
Chris has turned out to be a pathetic wimp who doesn't seem to be very bright in that he can't see what is going on under his nose.
When he changed his accent to the pseudo Mummerset one,he became a weaker character too.
Ed should tell Brian or Adam (as Miriam mentioned earlier) what he saw and let the family deal with it.
I hope that is what happens because if he tells Emma who tells Susan...............
Alice seemingly doesn’t yet realise she has a problem with her drinking. She is not in control of how much she is consuming, and the problems it is causing in her decision making at work. She is exhibiting all the signs of abusing alcohol at inappropriate times. She is drinking alone and in secret and not putting any limit on how much. Hiding her vodka bottles and now becoming nasty and unpleasant towards others whilst drunk at work.
ReplyDeleteThere many reasons why individuals use alcohol as a an aid, and in Alice’s case it could be the result of being put on a pedestal as the clever brainy child who will always be able to cope with life.
Perhaps that pedestal has been placed to high and she can’t maintain being there. She is clearly frightened of failing the standards expected, especially from Brian. She mentioned him several times in relation to his beliefs in her abilities.
Despite her ‘privileged’ background and apparent arrogance she has low self esteem and whilst small amounts of alcohol will have boosted her confidence (falsely), she has now developed an addiction. This is causing her behave inappropriately and the issues with the job have increased her anxiety levels and her tcoping response is to have a drink.
She will most likely not recall her outburst towards Ed. This amnesia is also a sign that she needs to be confronted about her actions and the consequences of say, drink driving, injuring herself or injuring others.
Chris is unable to see the disaster that might occur if he doesn’t open his eyes.
Very well analysed, Stasia. I go along with your summary.
DeleteChris could be too close to see the obvious + deaf to any internal suspicions, because of fear.
Could be Brian who confronts her ?
Great News!
ReplyDeleteThe Archers Facebook page has just confirmed (with pictures) that the cast are back in the studio recording again.
But we won’t get to hear these new episodes until October.
So, more of the same until then.
I think I can live with that.
At least there is light at the end of the tunnel now 😉
That is good news, AP.
DeleteMeanwhile, we are progressing to snatches of dialogue (eg Lynda + Lilian)
Archerphile- Apparently the BBC's Head of Radio 4 has apologised for a mistake over continuing with the monologues. It was reported in The Times and came up on the 'click baits' when I picked up my phone where Google automatically seeks out bits of 'news.' I couldn't read more though because the Times is behind a paywall. Perhaps others may know more?
Delete😁👍
ReplyDeleteEd has seen Alice's drinking and the resulting behaviour at first hand. He went through something similar. He has mulled it over and decided to keep an eye on her for the time being. He said it may have been a one off, so he won't rush to tell Chris and face his denial, he won't tell Emma who would tell Susan. There are many ways it could be played out. He saves Alice from danger, he blurts it out when challenged, he blames himself for not having spoken sooner...
ReplyDeleteI fail to see how Chris is unaware that Alice is drinking.
ReplyDeleteIt was obvious to Ed straight away.
She must be smelling of booze .
Vodka isn't cheap.
Who has control of the money or do they have separate Bank Accounts?.
Sadly Chris thinks he is fortunate to have married the squire's daughter .
You are right Basia ,there are several ways that this can be played out.
What would I have done?
What should Ed do?
I think Ed should tell Alice that he knew she had been drinking and that he would be going to tell either Brian ,Adam or Chris.
He should let her decide which of them
He should give her time to tell that person first and say that he will check up in a few days to see if she has done so and if necessary tell them what occurred .
Sorry ,no spoon feeding .
She is a rude spoilt brat .
No excuses.
I believe, that although Ed realises Alice was drinking - does he have the right to tell others?
ReplyDeleteThere are 2 aspects to this, in my opinion:-
a) What she does, is her own personal business, and no-one elses. It is her life, after all.
b) The problems of causing detriment to her own work, plus the health + safety of employees, plus managing Home Farm, is so very important.
I don't envy Ed.
Does he "tittle-tattle" or not, and if so, to whom??
He needs to say something, or perhaps, to give some very strong hints, to some-one, to relieve his own concience. He knows what could happen, when farm machinery is involved.
Sorry..I have just realised that I have given almost identical thoughts, to Lanjan.
ReplyDeleteI posted, before reading back.
A mistake.
I think LJ is right.
Ed needs to confront Alice with an ultimatum, but I doubt she could conform to him.
She is now too far down the "slippery slide" and needs help.
Chris will stand by her, but as I have said before, his own business will suffer as a result. There have already been hints already, about him having problems in his work.
DeleteHow absolutely tacky and disgusting. I said at the beginning - they don't communicate. It was you Lynda who went to the cackling Lilian. The trouble is, Lynda has never had much confidence and now none. I remember the time when she needed reassurance and Robert told her he thought of her being a fawn, she was touched. But now they don't touch and don't talk.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad it's over for now, I guess it'll be Alice and her 'guardian angel' next week.
I agree,Basia.
ReplyDeleteI thought there might be a bit more about Alice so when washing up I decided I would listen.
I haven't a clue about the hanging basket episode and therefore can't understand why Lynda was annoyed that Robert decided to commission one for her or why she was upset with Chris.
Lynda of course should have said nothing to (of all people) Lilian but Lilian should have kept her nose out of things and said nothing to Robert.
I don't know why he wasn't the one who was livid.
Lanjan, Robert commissioned the hanging basket for Lynda because she spends a lot of time in the garden and Chris put a lot of care into it, but Lynda with her nil confidence thinks it a present fit for a granny, she'd prefer lingerie. Again, with her nil confidence she thinks that when people tell her she looks nice, like Emma and Chris, that they do it to boost her morale, why would they bother if they didn't think it. She thought Chris was sniggering, so she later apologised. Robert on the other hand likes her as she is and not 'his Lindy' in a wig.
DeleteThey've been around long enough to know that being intimate doesn't mean to have MBSex like Helen and Rob!
DeleteChris is good at horse shoes, metal trees and hanging baskets. I'm not sure Lynda would have been too delighted if he had been commissioned to bash out some underwear for her in the forge ; )
DeleteHa! Big old pair of iron knickers!
DeleteI have to disagree with Basia, as to the comment re Lynda never having much confidence.
ReplyDeleteI have to disagree, on this point.
She has written, staged, and totally organised the Christmas Shows. She has been involved in all Ambridge Life - such as the Maypole Dancing with the younger residents, the new road plan when she found rare butterflies, the "speed trap" and its rota, working in LL where her prescence is known and her time as a volunteer, in the shop.
This to me, does not suggest, a lack of confidence.
Her situation is now very different, but she will get this very normal confidence back again, as it cannot be surpressed indefinitely. She will return, far much stronger and more motivated, than previously, of that I am sure.
Ambridge would not be the same, without Lynda organising things and stirring things up, with her big "wooden spoon".
I totally agree Miriam.
DeleteFurthermore, Robert's over fussy avoidance of Lynda is ridiculous. Just gentle hugs and holding her hand would mean a lot and be reassuring for her. He was so stupid initially with cackling Lil and then absurdly told her of his fear of lack of libido. What a jump from what had been normal .
Then to compound the issue he told Lillian about the pills. Subtle as a housebrick!
Pity is that Lynda did not have the brick to hand to throw at him.
I have often wondered if the actors ever point out such absurdities to the script writers. Surely an actor who is also a GP must have found it pretty hard to stomach.
(Another random thought, how come the Cackler just happened to have those pills to hand?)
I know some people who appear very confident and able and yet still struggle with a major lack of self-esteem.
DeleteWe've seen something similar in Natasha - she seems to be the epitome of a successful career woman but she's still struggling with loneliness and working out how to find her pace in the community.
I’m sorry but I don’t want to know about the intimate details of Robert and lyndas lives. If I wanted exhibitionism I’d watch some crappy tv prog.
ReplyDeleteSorry if I sound unsympathetic but I have had enough of Lynda and Roberts intimacy problems now.
ReplyDeleteEnough is enough. The SWs have aired and explored a delicate subject. OK, so can we now move on to other stories please.
I thought this episode was a load of rubbish. Hysterical, demanding, self pitying, drama queen Lynda and hen-pecked, wet, weak, over anxious Robert. Yuck. Cackling Lilian giving out blue pills - how interfering is that. Sorry but I thought it ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteDon't you have to be a registered pharmacist to supply them?
DeleteOr perhaps they were simply blue Smarties - Robert wouldn't notice if he just swallowed them down, and the placebo effect can work wonders.
I see I shall have to start listening again...
DeleteWhat a pity that the S/L didn’t bother to research how the pills work and should be used. They are not an aphrodisiac and do not promote spontaneity. Still wondering why the Cackler in Chief would have have them to hand. Throws a weird light onto her relationship.
ReplyDeleteIt’s simple. They are Justin’s.
ReplyDeleteSeems to be a common problem in Ambridge, first the Aldridge, now Robert Snell and Justin Elliott! Will it be Neil Carter next?
ReplyDeleteMust be something in the water.
DeleteI thought the same ,P tbY.
ReplyDeleteI only came in part way through this story and I don't wish to hear any more about it thank you scriptwriters.
Anne veggie-succinctly put.
After listening to that load of cackling, angst and “oh Robert” I shall take myself out to Alice’s shed and join her in consuming a vodka or two.
ReplyDeleteGreat idea Stasia.
DeleteOn the fb page there were many who disliked last night's episode and often that is opposite to the views aired here. But it seems there is a general air of agreement across all of the three Archers related sites I read and that is there is just one word that sums up last night and that is 'tacky.'
ReplyDeleteOne of this week's credited writers I haven't come across before on TA but on checking she has written many radio plays over the past twenty years. The other, Nayla Ahmed, has 'previous' in dubious taste when writing the scripts.
I think the SWs just forget who the majority of their audience are. (Yes I know most of my contemporaries have broader minds than I have! )
Next week hopefully we'll get some progress on the major story-line, abandoned 20 odd weeks ago!
BTW - they are not going to get younger audiences by airing the sexual problems of a 73 year old woman and her 77 year old husband! To be honest I was waiting for the tag line 'If you have been affected......!' 🤣
Last night we were offered a pantomime: Lynda prancing around in a wig, Robert shaking a packet of granola and Lilian sprinkling viagra (women can use it too, also for depression).
ReplyDeleteWhat was supposed to be a sensitive issue (I was against it) ended up in a farce.
Owias - yes, you're right, that's what I said about Lynda, in spite of being bossy she is insecure at heart, as in the example of Robert telling her that she was the centre of his life and compared her to a fawn.
ReplyDeleteI wonder what the actors think when given scripts of utter drivel like last night.
ReplyDeleteWas C. Boyd instructed to wail and shout, “Listen dear heart Carole, go over the top with high emotion. Shout, wail, show disgust, hostility, contempt and remember to direct it at the hanging basket. Then give it more welly at the end, so the listeners get the point of Drama”
Sniff, sniff,
Has anyone got a tissue?
You echo my query re the actors going along with such utter drivel.
Deleteit was not drama it was farce and an insult to intelligence.
My fear is that TA’s ‘new normal’ (expected in October) will be the same as the ‘old normal’ pre-lockdown, ie. not good. The drift away mentioned by Gillian Reynolds and others had already begun before the decision to go for monologues (without taking into account the ability of cast and writers to handle this testing format), accelerated it. I intend to give the new, normal a go, but if it can’t provide some new normal storylines, my drift will continue.
ReplyDeleteI find nowadays that I only listen if TA coincides with a quiet time in between chores, meals etc where before lockdown I would make a point of clearing the space to listen. I did hear the tail end last night with Linda’s weeping and wailing. Well acted but not well written. A feeling of “who cares?” followed!
ReplyDeleteHave now caught up with the last 2 nights, & left with the thought that Ed was the only speakng character who came across as having any sense or was in any way likeable. The rest were by turns blind, deaf, stupid, insensitive or vile (Alice)
ReplyDeleteHaving listened, do see Ed"s dilemma. He's seen what he's seen, is concerned ( not just for Alice, but the harm her addiction could cause to the farm) but he's damned if he says anything, damned if he doesn't. Poor man - he so doesn't need this problem !
Did Alice confess fully to Brian? I think not. She told him it was her mistake/oversight rather than Ed's, hence his humble apology to Ed.
As for Chris ! Oh, yes, ' Let's pause the alcohol ban, Alice...' Is he for real ?
As for the Robert/Lilian/ Lynda farce, cannot but agree with most of what others have written. How clumsily handled.
I listened late last night to the last two episodes. The first: if anything will stop me listening it’s an account of alcohol problems (saw enough of them professionally, and how intractable they can be).
ReplyDeleteThe second: I heard Lynda trying on the wig and Robert at the shops, then I was woken by Lynda’s wail just before the theme music.
Seasider -
ReplyDeleteDespite all of the excellent posts above, yours sums up the present situation in TA
Most elegantly.
What such entertaining and interesting posts, today. What I am so liking, is that TA is being discussed again.
ReplyDeleteIs normal service, starting to be revided again - I hope so.
I read about how the cast is now back recording, together again. Social distancing is paramount, with a maximum of 3 characters in the studio, at any one time. I also believe, there will be a mixture of monologues, with the new studio recordings, intermixed.
I, for one, am looking forward to this slow, but sure, change.
I, though, am one who has enjoyed the monologues, even in the minority, and have not missed an episode nor omnibus.
Yes, I now know, that I am a Very Sad TA devotee.
Do I care - No Way - it is a good way of escaping the life, we are now all having to live.
A few typo's, unfortunately...but that is not new.
DeleteI read that no actor over 70 would be used on set for EastEnders, so I imagine that no actors over 70 will be allowed in the studio for TA and (if willing and able) will be recorded at home instead. They only used 20 actors for the home-recorded monologue series (the Radio 4 Head denied there was any cost cutting involved) and it will be good to be exposed to a larger number of characters (including T❤️O❤️B❤️Y!
DeleteI think I can do twenty, here goes - gulp.
DeleteDavid, Chris, Alice, Ed, Emma, Fallon, Harrison, Lilian, Justin, Lynda, Robert, Kenton, Jolene, Freddie, Lizzie, Helen, Lee, Brian, Alistair, Katy, Rosie/Daisy, and the bloke who was Ed's nemesis and conned Joy, not forgetting Susan!
Any others?
OK..Rosie/Daisy is very debatable, but I think I managed 20.
DeleteI guess the journalist who wrote 20 couldn’t count! I heard Josh in the first (and only) episode I listened to.
DeleteI forgot Josh, so that is definitely 20+
DeleteI love proving things, wrong.
Plus there has been Natasha, to be added in.
Also Tracy ?
DeleteYes!! I did I forget her, the new Cricket Captain..
DeleteTom, Tony, Johnny. I don’t remember Alastair or Justin but perhaps I fell asleep then as well.
ReplyDeleteTwo of the characters we have not heard from are Shula and Jennifer. I can’t understand this because Shula ‘lives with’ Brian who has managed to record quite a few episodes.
ReplyDeleteOne can understand not hearing from Jill, Peggy,
Bert etc but I should have thought Shula & Jenny could have managed a line or two.
Maybe they couldn't think of anything remotely interesting to write about them ( Jenny cooped up in her pokey little kitchen, wittering away; .Shula doing vicar training via zoom....mmn, fascinating...,)
ReplyDeleteIT has come into its own during lockdown and I imagined Jennifer doing interesting and positive things involving the village website which she runs. Shula could have talked to the horses. But, despite the R4 Head saying cost wasn’t a consideration, I suspect there were only so many home recording kits to go round. Plus some actors probably needed the money more than others, so were more willing to put up with the inconvenience.
ReplyDelete‘Brian’ and ‘Shula’ would only have needed one recording kit in their house, so that doesn’t explain Shula’s absence.
DeleteBut perhaps, as Carolyn said, there were simply no interesting things she could contribute to the on-going storylines.
The obvious answer is that the actor didn’t want or need to do it.
DeleteI mentioned a while ago that Jennifer has been absent for a while. Since the baby was born. I wondered if the actress had retired. They seem to have dropped the story about the Aldridges looking for a new house as they live in temporary rented accommodation.
ReplyDeleteOther characters I thought of that have appeared in the monologues: Jakob, Ben, Adam and Kirsty. Oh and Debbie.
(I need to get on with the work on my house...)
It is fascinating how many characters, have been recalled by others.
ReplyDeleteI realise, that I posted Alistair but I meant Adam, at least the initial was right.
I would have liked to hear from Shula, about whether her ordination training was being put "on hold", and how she was managing The Stables in lockdown such as excercising the horses, keeping them fed + watered, with Jakobs horse weight regime etc. for the picky + fussy owners.
Still, as Maryellen has rightly said she could have had an input but didn't want to. This also makes me believe that, Shula will be leaving Ambridge, never to return.
In another "soap" on TV, a character left with only a slight recognition of going. The contract of that person, expired in lockdown, so the final scene was never recorded.
I wonder if this is a similar situation with Shula.
Hi All,
ReplyDeleteHave just listened to last week and contrary to lots of you feel that Lindy and Robert's problems and Lillian's attempt to help was quite moving.
The love, both as deep friends and sexual partners that L and R have is quite extraordinary and worthy, surely of exploration.
Lillain did her best from the best of motives and in her own inimitable way. Robert would do anything to make Lindy happy. The sad thing is Lindly only sees things from her own perspective and feels that she should be able to attract without chemical stimulus. She doesn't and, hasn't ever, during this storyline, seen the unadulterated love shown to her - even berating Freddie for saving her. She's had a hard time but now needs to see others did and still do.
I enjoyed these episodes also, but then I always like Linda and Robert, as well as Lilian.
DeleteAs I have said before, I wish Robert would just tell Lynda how he still feels about her.
What he needs to do now, is to step back from being her carer and become, just a husband again.
They have been married for 41 years, so he must know what a strong and feisty person she is and she is fast becoming that person again.
PS It did bring tears to my eyes at one point - I thought the acting was great. I didn't like Lindy's reaction and was so disappointed but it wasn't the actor's fault.
ReplyDeleteShe was brilliant, considering she was alone in recording that scene.
DeleteIt must have been strange + difficult, doing so.
Back to Shula. I wonder who will be taking charge of The Stables, both the business and the house, when she goes off to college for her ordination course and teaching, which I assume must be full-time and "live in" - unless there is a local one. It would be typical of TA if there was one in Felpersham!
ReplyDeleteIf we are to go back to Lynda and Robert, I even wrote my own intimate "scenario", but no, the message I received is that love and companionship in later years is not enough, there is a pressure to be 'desired' at all cost, including props, I'm still fuming.
ReplyDeleteHi Basia, Sorry if I have misunderstood, I'm not suggesting that we should all be 'up and running' in later years but it's rather lovely if a couple are, and with such devotion. I reckon we'd like it if we had it.
DeleteNicely put, Janet.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI meant to say: I speak as a not necessarily 'up and running elderly lady'
ReplyDeleteJanet, I liked the way Lynda and Robert were and have been since the fire but the scriptwriters have decided to add sex into the mix in a very clumsy way - I think.
DeleteAnyway, if this storyline made you post your opinion, so much the better.
Good to see you posting Janet.
ReplyDeleteYou have been quiet for a very long time.
As Basia says, this story line has given you something to say, and that's a plus.
😊👍xx
ReplyDeleteHave to say, Janet, your post (4.47pm) yesterday struck me as both sensitive & reasonable. What's turned me off recently is the resorting to soap style misunderstandings & confusions, compounded by Lilian's crass interference. I grant you she meant well, but she jumped to a simplistic assumption, inevitably followed by a disastrous outcome.
ReplyDeleteLynda's prickly, paranoid reactions are understandable, as is Robert's nervousness about hurting her physically. Honest communication between the two concerning their fears & feelings has broken down.
Ultimately, it is up to Lynda to see others' perspectives, as Janet says, but that will require Robert to find a bit of iron in his easy going character. He could start by not submitting to temper tantrums, like retreating,, tail between legs, to the shepherd's but !
Please do not read this if you are not interested in sex.
ReplyDeleteCarolyn, your comment about Robert’s nervousness regarding hurting Lynda (physically) might say more about their sex practices. I see Robert specifically, as some what traditional, the missionary position and only when Lynda needs to have ‘magic time’. Many individuals find a way of achieving sexual need without resorting to a method that might not be conducive to their physical disabilities.
Good point, Stasia ! If you're right, they may be so settled in their ways that they'd a) be uncomfortable with change b) lack the imagination to see alternatives.
DeleteIf they can't be honest with themselves & each other, they'll never find out
What about intimate cuddles - that's what Lindy needs at the mo not necessarily performance. That could come later and meantime L would feel cherished and loved and R might, in the dark, mangage to tell her that he finds her attractive and beautiful. Gosh I believe what I just said but it certainly sounds chick flick
DeleteNot chick lit - it would be nice if they could do just that !
Delete🤗🎶
DeleteI have been warned, by somebody who reads the R. Times, not to miss this week’s episodes!
ReplyDeleteI didn’t want to know why, and she didn’t tell me, but she insists I should not miss them.
In the straplines on the BBC blog, a name is mentioned on Tuesday belonging to a character from an outstanding storyline who has not previously been heard in the monologues.
DeleteI always succumb and read the straplines, but let's consider the one for last Thursday: disaster strikes for Robert - definitely not what I expected - and Lynda issues an apology - I thought to Robert but it was to Chris for rejecting his basket, I thought it might be to do with rejecting the basket and apologising to Robert. I'm very prosaic and could not have imagined a 'ménage à trois'.
DeleteI would not read a book without reading the blurb on the back cover and I see no difference to reading strap lines. However as Basia says the strap lines written by the TA team are often deliberately misleading and/or ambiguous.
DeleteMore informative is the weekly summing up in the Radio Times which some people post 'hidden' on the mustardland website and you have to 'unhide' the comment to read it.
Due to the extreme variability of the scripts, acting and plots nowadays I think it's nice to know what to expect! 😀
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteI quite enjoy being teased by the BBC strapline writers, and at least it lets you know which characters to expect and maybe avoid!
Delete✅✅
DeleteCarolyn 8:15 - You are absolutely right, communication after so long a marriage and managing their own needs and expectations but it was all turned upside down for drama's sake. I'd written my own scenario but it was too benign.
ReplyDeleteMind you, I know of one married woman in her 60s who'll do anything in pursuit of sex, with her husband's consent, what I object to is that she has the adolescent need to to talk about it.
Hi Basia - I reckon if she didn't articulate we wouldn't know.
DeleteI'd certainly prefer not to know.
DeleteAlice’s bad behaviour and the big mistake she made with the barley makes me wonder about the bad treatment she reckoned she had from her previous employers. Maybe she’s not so good as she thinks she is. Instead of learning from her mistakes typically with her characteristics she turns on others and feels they are picking on her.
ReplyDeleteSpicycushion, 28/8
ReplyDeleteThe other scriptwriter credited after the omnibus this morning was Katie Hims. I was really surprised because I usually like her stuff. She did a lot of Home Front scripts, and Kildare Road that was mentioned on here at the time, (Womans Hour drama). She also did three afternoon drama plays that I really enjoyed, called something like 'The train now terminating'.
I would have thought that the scripts would take a turn for the better with her contributing, maybe it will take a bit of time.
I don't know why the head of R4 apologised for the lockdown (IMO) rubbish. They chose to do it in this amateur way and underestimated/underwhelmed their core audience. What did they expect?
I was going to write an identical post! I was very surprised to hear that Katie Hims was a scriptwriter this week. Like you, I have greatly enjoyed her previous work, especially in Homefront and I recommended a series of plays called “24, Kildare Road “ broadcast earlier this year, which several people here liked.
DeletePerhaps she was presented with the unlikely Archers story for this week and just had to get on with it. I don’t remember such intimate detailing in her previous work.
Mistral - I don't know anything by Katie Hims apart from her name.
DeleteI did enjoy the train series of dramas but that was by Katherine Jakeways.
Basia, I think those two writers are very similar in their writing and approach .
DeleteI think I’m correct in saying that Katherine Jakeways also wrote for the excellent Homefront series.
It was so sad that Home Front was axed!
DeleteI loved it and Daisy Barber played a great part and as she was so very different to Pip, I was able to keep the two portrayed characters, completely separate. They were so different and just no comparison, just like "Helen" in Coronation Street.
Apart from the name of the actresses, there is no similiarity at all.
This does not spoil my image of the TA characters, they so well portray.
Homefront was there for the duration of the first World War, in our time 2014-18.
DeleteAfter just having listened to this mornings omnibus, my comments are:-
ReplyDeletea) I personally, would love a hand crafted, artisan, hanging basket made by Chris.
b) How Alice has changed from the time she left Southampton with her degree in aeronautical engineering, to then marry Chris whilst on holiday. She then went on to have a good career, well until now.
She has so many problems but how and when, will she realise this? She has the usual addictive persons skill, which is hiding the problems. At least, there are no mortgage problems with their cottage.
c) How did Lynda know about Lilian's and Robert's tete-à-tete? Was she able to listen in, in some way to this conversation between just the two of them?
I don't know, if this could be possible though, but how else did she know about their conversation and the suggested "chemical intervention"?
I don't have the RT but the tv/radio guide I now subsribe to, has a good TA guide plus the same straplines as the RT, as supplied by the BBC.
ReplyDeleteI try not to look at these, as I much prefer to be intrigued + surprised, on a nightly basis.
Tonight is different, and after reading earlier posts, I have succumbed. 😩
All I can say is that I hope that it won't be a damp squib and that the carrot was dangled before the donkey, too soon.
As others have said, the straplines can be meaningless.
I used to read them, but as they were not realistic, I really prefer to wait, hear and then give my own thoughts, be they good, bad or just rubbish.
I am waiting to hear something about Philip, Gavin, Kirsty and the 'horses'. Please no more about Lynda and Robert's sex, or lack of, life.
ReplyDeleteI am off to hang my head in total shame.
ReplyDeleteI confused Home Front (the radio WW1 series) with Home Fires (the tv WW11 series).
I am just in, complete and total embarassement, in confusing these two wonderful, productions, both of which I followed and enjoyed.
I can only apologise to all, for my now known, silly and out of context posts.
But this is quite normal for me - in that I get things so very wrong.
Oh well TA still beckons in its new format, and I will never give it up.
Regarding Alice -
ReplyDeleteI, reading between the lines, never did think that Alice had a wonderful job, or a good career.
I have always felt that she struggled with the job and the work she was required to do.
When the drinking started, or became evident that it was increasing in regularity, I felt it was the high powered nature of the work that was frightening or worrying her.
Getting the push has encouraged me to think that responsibility of any kind is of concern to Alice, and that may also be the reason for not wanting a baby.
Concerning Robert and Linda.
Stasia, I also thought as you did. And as Carolyn has said, lacking the imagination to change their practices or positions.
....but didn't Alice go elsewhere, Canada or was it New Zealand, to further her career, as an aeronautical engineer and get her ideal job?
DeleteMy memory is letting me down as to where, and what happened, but surely this shows that Alice had a viable career and wanted to progress further?
I need to do some research as to Alice + Chris, when they shocked everyone with their spontsneous marriage and then what happened next.
As Alice has recently said, it will be their 10th anniversary soon, so I think.
I was right.
DeleteAlice + Chris married in Las Vegas on 28th July 2010.
It is their 10th anniversary.
OK TA is a bit behind, which at the moment, is not surprising and is not a major problem, as long as it acknowledged in some way. I bet Susan will know the date!
I think Alice mentioned the anniversary in passing wondering about the state of her marriage.
DeleteIn fact, both Alice and Chris mentioned the 10 year Anniversary!
DeleteAs far as I remember Alice was offered a job abroad which caused Chris some anguish as he didn’t want to leave Ambridge and his developing business as a blacksmith. She really wanted to go which caused some friction and in the end decided not to. Agree with Mrs P that she shirks responsibility, maybe not her fault as she has led a shielded life with everything on a plate. She probably exudes confidence to prospective employers but can’t carry it through once in the job. My thoughts only!
ReplyDeleteI’m not clear just how incapacitated Lynda is now. I know the accident left her disfigured, after she made one of the miracle recoveries that the local hospital is renowned for, and this is causing considerable mental anguish, but has the physio we heard about been equally effective in restoring movement etc? She was talking about reopening the B+B very soon after her return home (though coronavirus may have put a stop to that).
ReplyDeleteWe know that her back seized up but with Monty as the only witness she prefers to keep it this way.
DeleteBasia, 4.19.
ReplyDeleteOf course it was!! I like Katherine Jakeways too......
Tracy and her empty luggage - was just so funny, well IMHO.
ReplyDeleteThe selfishness of Susan was breathtaking. I hope she reflects and gives Tracy a break from her dad. I too found Tracy's wind up of her sister very amusing.
ReplyDeleteEd has, by trying to be helpful, got himself into an awkward situation that will have consequences simply because he didn't realise how completely unaware Alice is that her drinking has become an addiction.
Well , I didn’t hear anything tonight that warranted my friends message of “don’t miss The Archers this week”
ReplyDeletePerhaps something exciting will happen tomorrow.
Well if we didn't know before, we do now - Alice is absolutely clueless. Ed was trying hard to do the right thing and be helpful and now Alice has got the wrong end of the stick because she thinks she is just fine.
ReplyDeleteAnd think Ed must fancy her!
ReplyDelete