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Life in Ambridge
Life outside 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.
*** FROM PREVIOUS BLOG ***
ReplyDeleteSpicycushion - September 10, 2021 at 9:08 AM
According to another blog (which gives a lot of 'avid' listeners!) the two cottages were transferred back to Ambridge Holdings Ltd (or some other name) which the farm and outbuildings belong to and which the partners of Brian and family have equal shares. The cottage does not belong to Alice but to the farm business.
I think I have understood this!
Spicycushion - September 10, 2021 at 9:10 AM
Also I think that the scriptwriters 'may or may not' understand it too!
maryellen - September 10, 2021 at 9:24 AM
I certainly didn’t grasp it! My source (the BBC’s TA website) only mentions Brian’s gift, so must need updating. Sorry, Miriam, forget I spoke!
maryellen - September 10, 2021 at 9:40 AM
PS. Could the retracted gift have happened on Archers Extra which this non-avid listener didn’t listen to? All I remember from TA is a brief comment from Adam is that selling the holiday cottages to pay Brian’s fine wasn’t an option because they were ‘tied up’ in some way (and wouldn’t raise enough).
Sorry for allowing the previous blog to run over, I was too hungover and lazy to change it!
ReplyDeleteFound a selection of hideous lamps for sale on ebay - all faithful renderings of Ambridge properties apparently... Yuck.
My response ?........ oh my goodness me !
DeleteWhoever made these, has no idea about the idyllic, picture box village of Ambridge.
DeleteThe images did make me laugh, in a couple of differing ways 😂
Definitely the Hamner "Houses" of Horror.
DeleteNow Gary, I am *so* disappointed. I can't find the houses anywhere on eBay : (
DeleteIt rather begs the question, whatever were you searching for that threw up these delightful des reses?
I did find a mug though, and it's by Simon Drew who's great: 'I think therefore I Ambridge'
(See profile pic)
I have never been a great admirer of Brian's. He does though, seem to have mellowed recently, after the loss of Home Farm, as has Jennifer - in her own way.
ReplyDeleteI really did feel for Brian last night, when he told Jennifer about Alice and what he had to do and endure. Let's hope Brian will tell Alice the same, so that she understands what she actually put her Dad through....plus every-one else who have been invited to write the letters.
In an episode this week, Shula was with Banjo and said to who-ever was visiting, that there were no enquiries about his sale.
I stand by my initial thought, that either Shula or perhaps Lilian, have purchased him. Alice can still ride, groom and see him in his normal stables, yet she still will have contributed to her re-hab. costs.
I love an ideal solution, even if it is unrealstic...🙊🤷♀️
I really liked Susan who told Shula ' to back off' from Neil and that Susan would be taking care of him from now on. Susan - 1, Shula - 0.
ReplyDeleteMaryellen. Your reply to my simple questions, about The Nest, was very well received. I just had no idea of the ownership of the property.
ReplyDeleteThis was very appreciated, so Thank-you.
Oooh, Gary, can I have these to display next to my Bagpuss collection?
ReplyDeleteMiriam - I too hope that Brian will tell Alice exactly what she put him through on the day she went into rehab. She needs to be made fully aware of the effect she has had on her loved ones and hopefully this will stop her drinking. Brian's a tough old bird but maybe he has matured in some way after having his heart broken by her. One can hope.
ReplyDeleteGary - those were sought after items at one time I believe!
I thought it was ironic that Brian Aldridge, the arch betrayer of wife and family, should complain of feeling betrayed by Alice. He has yet to acknowledge his own role in the events leading to Alice’s alcoholism. She grew up knowing that she wasn’t the son he had hoped for, and her lowered self esteem and insecurity were compounded when he brought his illegitimate son into the family. (We shall never know whether he would have done the same if Ruairi had been a girl.)
ReplyDeleteHe needs to mature enough to recognise and admit his personal contribution to the problem instead of casting himself as hard done by.
An interesting thought about Ruairi, Maryellen. Brian already had 3 girls in the family (not all his, of course) so if his illegitimate child with Siobhan had been a girl would he have been so keen to bring her into his immediate family?
DeleteAnd if he hadn’t, would Alice have felt more secure?
IMO Brian has always been proud of Alice and her achievements and if he had wished her to be a boy he hasn’t made that obvious. Alice like many alcoholics started off with social drinking which then got out of hand due to her addictive personality. It is possible that her upbringing and disappointment in her father played a small part but were probably not the cause of her problem with alcohol.
DeleteEv - the BBC’s TA website says: Brian had been confident that the baby [Alice] would be a boy who’d go on to take over the Aldridge empire, and struggled to hide his disappointment.
DeleteShe “exceeded his expectations” by the time she reached working age, but this brought the constant pressure to maintain them, and it was this parental pressure, chiefly from Brian, combined with the pressures ofher high-flying job, which led to social and family drinking developing into a dependence on alcohol as an ultimately unsuccessful way of coping.
I think it is impossible to deny or defend Brian’s role in this. His own lusts for money and women are partly to blame for his family’s misfortunes.
I still rotally believe that Alice, was the unfortunate one, who inherited the "alcohol gene", from her grandfather, Jack.
DeleteI realise that this has been debated before
There is though, a proven gene, which directly relates to the love of alcohol. This can lead towards alcohol dependancy.
Alice could have tried to control this, but didn't perceive what was happening. This was not helped by others, who just criticised and picked up the pieces.
There are so many incidences, but the one that I remember most, is Nic's wake.
Peggy, should have approached thisat a much earlier stage
After all, she recognised the signs of her husband, Jack (the 1st one).
I understand why she didn't though.
Prevention - is so often, better than the cure.
DeleteThen there is Lilian...
Deletewho enjoys her "Scruff + T", and the red wine, even saying to Alice that a glass of this, was OK in pregnancy.
Didn't Lillian say in an episode, something like "perhaps I am also an alcoholic"?
It is being well done in TA, so far, but there is still a long way to go. I still think.that there will be many repurcussions, affecting so many.others, in both the short and long term, in Ambridge.
It is such a good social awareness, excercise which the TA have done so well, in the past.
Helen with the coercive control, is a prime example.
My weekly Sunday Omnibus thoughts. This is just one, this week.
ReplyDeleteThis is Stella, again. As all must have realised already, I have massive doubts about her, as to her suitability, previous experience, reliabity and commitment. This was accentuated today, when Jennifer said to Brian, something like:-
She will be a breath of fresh air, and as such, she will enable you (Brian), to retire completely....
Jennifer, might well be very right, and her hope will become a true reality.
I am still not as convinced, at this moment though. It would be so nice, to hear how completely wrong I am, in future TA life.
Glad that Ruth instigated Jenny & Peggy reuniting. If Jenny feels bad now about Alice just think how she would feel if her mum Peggy passed and then she wished she had made her peace with her! I felt quite tearful when Peggy passed on her treasured card from her vicar of years ago. Does this mean that June Spencer may be retiring from TA ….she has always said she will not of her own volition I believe.
ReplyDeleteI thought that Pat's voice sounded different!
ReplyDeleteI couldn't think who was speaking at first, and not till Peggy said 'Pat' did I realise.
DeleteI also thought that Peggy had a rather deeper and slightly wobbly voice.
Peggy's voice has of course deepened over the decades as she, the actress JS has aged, but I feel that it's been more noticeable since the lockdown periods.
The voice is after all a muscle and many of us have used that muscle a lot less in recent times. Perhaps June Spencer is such a one.
It is of course also likely that this change in her voice is due to her acting ability which I am not about to forget.
It seemed to me also last night, that this poignant moment of passing the card on to Jennifer and the suggestion that she too might pass it on one day, perhaps to her daughter, was a step towards saying her goodbyes.
Oh dear senior moment 🤗 of course it was Pat Janice!
DeleteWell put Mrs P and as can be seen I agree with your thoughts.
‘Pat’ was the same actor as pre-pandemic. I thought she sounded different too, stiffer and somehow isolated from her surroundings.
DeleteReading Miriam’s earlier description of the idyllic, picture book village of Ambridge makes me think it must be a magnet for second home owners, yet I can’t remember meeting any. The damaging effects of second home ownership on rural communities are becoming an increasingly serious concern. It was highlighted the radio this morning.
ReplyDeleteI think this would be an excellent topic for TA to explore because it is basically a rural problem. And personally I prefer topic-led storylines to the character-led storylines in which the scriptwriters try to dredge up a storyline for a particular character and the result is inept, to say the least, eg. the latest Eddie Grundy ‘scam, which makes Eddie look weird and Oliver ridiculous.
Maryellen, I agree, but wasn't the sale of the Home Farm to outsiders, and to me at least, those outsiders were buying a second home.
DeleteI don't think it was stated as such, but the fact that the family who purchased it have not been brought into the village as characters emphasised this to me.
Although I'm always aware that the TA team have always kept cards up their collective sleeves and perhaps this is a topic yet to be explored.
I do hope so.
What very interesting thoughts, and somethng I hadn't thought about, but this would be a great topic.
DeleteI agree!
DeleteI am hoping that, the recent lack-lustre episodes of TA, is just a lull.
ReplyDeleteI want to believe, that there will be better far more convulated S/L's, to follow, very soon.
I can but wish.
Well I thought that was very well acted tonight.
ReplyDeleteAnd well written.
DeleteI agree with you Janice.
DeleteWell written, well acted, and I am assuming extremely well researched or perhaps personal experience of someone close to the TA team.
DeleteWell done TA.
✔️✔️✔️
Absolutely agree! Very well done.
DeleteI so appreciated last night's episode of TA.
ReplyDeleteDid I enjoy it - perhaps not - but I did find it, interesting and very thought provoking, on very many different levels.
To add.
DeleteThis Chris, with Alice and Martha conundrem, along with Jennifer + Brian, will take a long time, for things to be finally resolved, and sorted for all. I like that this will be done in "real time" as the Helen/Rob situation, was done.
Where are Kirsty + Roy?
ReplyDelete...and Fallon, Harrison, Emma + Eddie...They have all been too quiet, for far too long.
DeleteWell, you got half of them tonight : )
DeleteHow kind of Fallon to recognize that doing normal things would help Jennifer in her current situation. Whilst in a personal life crisis it is indeed helpful to carry on doing normal activities if you can.
ReplyDeleteThank goodness nothing bad happened when Xander was left alone.
I still think, that Adam is not fully commited to his new job.
ReplyDeleteHe made a bad decision, re "borrowing" the monies he needed, and keeping it hidden.
I just feel that there will be many more problems, with Adam, Ian, Xander, their lives and also Home Farm.
This relates to the arrival of Stella, in some way or another, but perhaps I am wrong.
I wonder where Stella will live, after refusing the offer of a holiday cottage, deciding instead, to source her own accomodation.
Alice is in a very unknown and in-between place, at the moment, as to what she does when she leaves re-hab.
ReplyDeleteI recall, at one time, she was eager to go to Canada, to have a job in her chosen career, an aeronautical engineer. I wonder if she will pursue this, once again?
There was an article in the October Prima magazine about a young mum who had struggled with alcoholism. Like Alice, she was outwardly thriving and even managed to hide her drinking from her husband and children, but inside was falling apart.
ReplyDeleteHappily, with plenty of support, she was able to beat her addiction and has been sober for 5 years so far. Hopefully the same will be true in time for Alice.
Miriam, I do hope she won't go off to Canada or elsewhere. At present, she's scared to bond with Martha for fear of hurting her, or herself. But I don't think she could ultimately bring herself to put such a great distance between her and her child. As for her relationship with Chris, who knows? He clearly hopes to make it work; I hope in time she too will decide they still have a future together.
Although able to read blogs while in Norway, it’s totally impossible to get Sounds, so will have to catch up with Ambridge doings when I get home. Thank goodness for the Omnibuses, will be able comment after catching up…….hopefully.
ReplyDeleteI have only one comment to make.
ReplyDeleteThe much loved and competative, Ambridge Flower and Produce Show, is now turning into an unwanted "farce".
The one to blame for this is Eddie, along with his more innocent side-kick, Oliver.
I hope Linda and Joy, will turn things around.
After all, why shouldn't the wonderful but silent Bert, win the Freda Fry Prize, in memory of his late wife, at last.
I do wonder though, how the Freda Fry rose is doing, outside The Bull..along with maintenance of Caroline's memorial bench.
Bert is now about 85 years of age, so I think.
ReplyDeleteI would hate that Eddie will also try to "knobble" him to not enter, as well..
I bet the silent lodgers, of the silent Bert, namely Rex and Toby, will have their say - but in a still silent way.
I would hate to learn that Bert doesn't participate.
2021, could be his one and perhaps, his only chance to get the accolade, he so deserves, after so many years competing against Joe.
My prediction is that:-
The annual flower + produce show, will be a total "damp squib" of an event.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete😂😂😂
DeleteDear Bert, There’s something you should know
DeleteAbout the Flower and Produce Show.
This year’s is set to be a sham
Due to Eddie’s latest scam,
Which aims to win the Cup “for Joe”,
The man who was your gardening foe.
This is why it’s you I’m telling.
Yours sincerely, Mary Ellen.
(Is Freda’s rose still sweetly smelling?)
Zoetrope, how I wish I knew what you were laughing at. I should get up earlier.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteShe was laughing at my poem which I replaced with the amended version.
DeleteAh, nothing 'additional' then.
ReplyDeleteMaryellen✔️✔️✔️✔️✔️
ReplyDeleteI have totally lost the plot about why Eddie is trying to stop people entering the F and P Show.
I binge listened the TA last week.
Could have waited until the Omnibus I suppose.
To LanJan
DeleteEddie plans to win the Cup
By nobbling the competition.
A legally okay device
But morally doubtful position.
‘Twas ever thus, I hear you say.
He’s only got one tune to play!
PS. I assume the Freda Fry Memorial Cup comes with a cash prize or is it only the honour and glory of getting the winner’s name engraved on it?
DeleteI think it is only, just the accolade of winning 🏆🥇
DeleteWhere would the cash, actually come from? 🤷♀️
Maryellen. I have to say how much I loved your poem, on the 18th at 7.56am which encapsulated my similar thoughts.
ReplyDeleteI don't read ahead, like some others do.
I will be intrigued, as to what the Flower + Produce show actually produces, if anything really productive!
Yes, I am playing on a word 😂
..and I hope that the Producers of TA, will produce an episode of the Produce show, worthy of the production already recorded, and the produce grown and shown, is applauded accordingly 👏
DeleteMy own garden produce, is now sadly no more, as my not very productive runner beans, are no longer producing anything.
Well done all you poets ✔️✔️✔️
DeleteEddie wants Joes name on the FF MC to celebrate his 💯 birthday.
DeleteIt would of course, also mark the number of times Joe missed the award while still alive.
I don't think Eddie has realised the irony of that.....yet !
Thank you, Mrs P, and others - I really only did the ‘letter to Bert’ to prevent the blog freezing which it tends to do at weekends. I don’t have anything new to say about Alice’s alcoholism. (The Bull’s alcoholic scarecrow remains a mystery, like the disappearance of Fallon’s bunting was!). I’m interested in how it plays out for her and her family but find it difficult to engage with the rest of the current storylines, which are often very episodic.
DeleteIntruder Alert!
ReplyDeleteStranger, begone...!
DeleteI like your poem Maryellen.
ReplyDeleteI am guessing that the SWs are trying to introduce a light hearted S/L about the Flower and Produce Show in an effort to stop TA falling into a depressing tale of alcoholism and how it ruins lives. I am in favour of this. Let's have a bit of daft stuff along with the sad S/Ls.
And story lines are always uplifted by Eddies perpetual scamming.
DeleteOliver is such a wet sometimes, isn't he.
He does have a moral compass for sure, but just doesn't always have the capacity to engage it.
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteWell that was an Archers episode, which is not really worth commenting on.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I understand Eddie's idea about celebrating what would have been Joe's 100th birthday, he forgot one vital thing.
The Freda Fry Cup is in memory of Bert's late wife,
Joe passed away naturally, unlike Freda who died in The Flood, so her memory should have been embraced in the way meant, and not by trying to win by knobbling others.
Eddie is far too Self, Self etc.
Very well put Miriam.I ‘m glad that Eddie was put in his place and foiled in his
ReplyDeleteUnderhand attempts to win at the Flower & Produce Show but it was a nice touch allowing Poppy to come through for the Grundies with her entry.
Dear Bert, Congrats! Well done! Hooray!
ReplyDeleteYour outright win has made my day.
Since dodgy Eddie came a cropper,
It’s you to whom I raise my topper.
And at the risk of sounding soppy,
Well done too, to winsome Poppy!
(All puns intentional!)
Brilliant, yet again esp the puns.😃
DeleteMaryellen, are you spending more time at Stratford these days? If so, the poetical vibes are certainly getting to you. Brilliant.
ReplyDeleteThat’s kind of you, Sarnia, but I think all of WS that’s rubbed off on me is a fondness for rhyming couplets and the occasional pun. He broke quite a few grammatical rules too, but had the excuse that they weren’t invented till the19th century. I’ve finally retired from Stratford-upon-Avon after 30 years! Another lockdown decision.
DeleteLanJan is the real blogging bard and I keep hoping she’ll pick up her quill again!
Maryellen
DeleteWill you remind us of your connection with Stratford upon Avon ?
If you have mentioned this before, then I missed it.
If you can bring yourself to answer on the other blog, you might feel able to be more fulsome ?
That, in my view, was a disgracefully clunky ending to tonight's episode.
ReplyDeletePresumably we are all meant to think that ' the man' was the reappearance of Rob !
Or do others think differently ?
Probably it is just one of TA's red herrings, which they do so well.
DeleteI would like it to be Rob, and what that this could entail, such as Go Directly to Jail etc.
He could share with Philip and so compare all their Ambridge experiences, of which there are many.
Good heavens! It never occurred to me the man was Rob. How dim am I ! But I’m inclined to agree with Miriam about scriptwriters and their red herrings. I remember Rob at the end hanging round Henry’s school playground for a chance to waylay him, but I don’t think loitering on street corners is really his style.
DeleteYes I immediately thought of Rob. Intrigue afoot!
ReplyDeleteI did think that Pat would offer to make some famous “just soup” for the harvest supper.
I'm still sure we haven't seen the last of Rob. But the current 'mystery man' plot line seems rather a too obvious device - meant ot get our antennae twitching but ultimately to be revealed as a red herring. Rob's return will be more subtle.
ReplyDeleteI think Rochelle has sent private detective to suss out this mystery woman who has been telling all of Ambridge that she is Rochelle's mother. Or perhaps a location scout, looking for somewhere to set a new TV soap. Any other ideas, folk?
One of the three lads “enslaved” by Philip Moss, come looking for Kirsty (who seems to have abandoned all thoughts of them)??
DeleteI think the 'mystery man' is a member of the WhatsApp group determind to get Helen to move.
ReplyDeleteBack home, but not had time to catch up with last two omnibuses (omnibi?)
ReplyDeleteSo I do that before reading all the comments and then adding my own.
Don’t want to spoil the story by reading here first!
I have finally got right up to date with listening so can comment for once.
ReplyDeleteI do hope Rob isn’t back on the scene. That is obviously what the scriptwriteres want us to speculate about. I would much prefer to hear of heartwarming kindness and affection from Fallon and Harrison, and so on.n
Chris and Amy are getting on well, aren’t they?
And might Adam get his old job back if Stella proves not to be suitable. Terrifying that little Xander was left unsupervised. Is he about 18 months old now?
Maryellen - see reply to your post 9.30 pm 20th
ReplyDeleteMrs P - I haven't mentioned the exact nature of my connection with Stratford-upon-Avon to anyone here except Sarnia in an email. Briefly, I've been a freelance audio describer for nigh on 30 years, working mainly for the RSC in Stratford, London and on tour. I've described several TA actors in Shakespearean and non-Shakespearean roles ,and one of the RSC admin staff I worked with had been on the TA production team.
DeleteSorry, Maryellen, I seem to have 'outed' you, with what I thought was just a throw away remark, ie with the sudden outbreak of rhyming couplets and puns you must have been spending time in Stratford and come under the influence of the Bard.
DeleteNot to worry, Sarnia - it’s in the past tense now!
DeleteI'm very pleased to see other possible versions of the mystery man.
ReplyDeleteAs I indicated in my post we were ' presumably ' meant to automatically think of RT, and yes, it was also most likely to be a red herring.
I am loving the idea that it is one of the "horses" coming back, to try and take his "revenge" on Philip. Perhaps though, it is the one who had the accident, who Gavin helped but then sold on.
ReplyDeleteThis idea just didn't cross my mind, but it is an intriguing idea.
Still, I am sure Joy will find out more...with watering can in hand.
Chris and Amy seem to be getting close, but they are surely just friends, who just have the same interest and concerns, which is for the health and welfare of Alice and Martha.
ReplyDeleteHowever, is Chris showing true commitment to this and does he still love Alice, as he says he does?
Chris at the moment, seems to be relying on so many others for child-care, meals etc. He does work in his own buisness, but he needs to look long term, in relation to what will happen in the near future and how this could affect him.
Anyone else feel uncomfortable hearing Chris get hammered? Bearing in mind all that he's been through with Alice, it really doesn't seem helpful or appropriate for him to go out and get drunk himself.
ReplyDeleteWhat will Alice say when she hears about it?
Yes, I would have thought his experiences with Alice would have taught him moderation. Perhaps he wants to drown his sorrow over Alice not returning to the Nest. I can’t understand her not wanting family support but maybe you have to be in her position to comprehend the thinking behind her decision.
DeleteI too think t he man is one of the horses who of course wouldn’t know Kirsty had moved out. We shall see!
Oh dear I had forgotten about the “horses” and for a second or two thought why would a horse be walking around their garden and anyway how would a horse have been able to open/locked the gate🤔😂😂😂😂😂 I’m still in hysterics myself! After all there are senior moments and it seems more serious senior moments….
DeleteI agree that hearing Chris get hammered was a difficult listen, it shows how normalised alcohol as a reaction to stress is in our society. I do think that Amy would have been able to put him in the recovery position single handed, it is practiced at every CPR training session which all health care workers do every year.
ReplyDeleteI think that the character in Helen’s garden is Kyle, playing mind games rather than Rob, of course it could be someone else introduced by the script writers to get us confused!
I was horrified at Chris getting drunk. Both girls should have given him the hard word. I’m also feeling sorry for poor Cecil….hate to think what a drunk Chris has done to him.
ReplyDeleteI’m still going with the Nan being Rob, sneaking back to try to see Jack.
Lol….Nan…obviously meant man.
DeleteYes me too. Very difficult to hear, particularly since once Alice had come clean about her ' problem', many months ago now, Chris's immediate reaction was to say that he could see his responsibility in being somewhat too free with the drinking along with Alice. He then resolved to reduce, if not stop, his own drinking, and did so, as far as we know.
ReplyDeleteEven Jennifer has seen that Brian turns to the scotch whenever a ( even very small) crisis occurs, and has commented upon the irony in such a situation.
As for Mr Mystery.... well perhaps it is one of the lost boys, or perhaps Kyle, but Tony and Lee clearly both feel it might well be Rob Titchener.
The mystery man is creepy and I really hope it's not Rob Titchener.
ReplyDeleteI also did not enjoy hearing Chris get drunk and I don't think he would do that, given all that's happened with Alice. Surely this would have put him off alcohol at least for a while.
Enter Rob coming to check on “his boy”??? Helen will naturally goo to meltdown or is it a red herring!
ReplyDeleteChris should have been asked “Do you want Martha to have to alcoholic parents”? They need joint counselling it seems to me by the clinic Alice is /was attending so Chris can understand what Alice’s fears are regarding get back together especially in such early days, for once she is trying to do the right thing for them all in case going back now would put them both back to square one.
Helen will go into….
DeleteAny ideas as to how Rob would have discovered that Helen was no longer living at Bridge Farm and which Beechwood house it was? He would need to keep out of sight of anyone who might recognise him from his time in Ambridge or press reports of the trial. Where has he parked his car unnoticed? Isn’t he still wanted by the police?
ReplyDeleteSeriously Maryellen ?
ReplyDeleteNot too difficult with a mindset such as RT has illustrated in the past.
House sales are on public record, and it doesn't take too much digging to find more information.
And as for being recognised, in a society where many keep to themselves having little regard for those around them ( thank goodness for Joy, an old fashioned busy body and relatively rare in these times ), it would not be difficult to remain fairly invisible, and I wouldn't be surprised if he wasn't now looking different, perhaps with a beard and maybe a shaved head. Besides which we assume that most of the Beechwood residents are new to Ambridge.
If you say so, Mrs P, but the Beechwood house wasn’t sold to Helen, and the estate gets visited by Eddie Grundy for starters! Remember how he felt he was being watched! Residents new to Ambridge may have seen reports of the trial, as Lee had. It’s odd Joy didn’t mention what the mystery man looked like, but I guess that’s part of keeping us on tenterhooks until he’s revealed to be anyone but Rob!
DeleteI'm certainly not denying that the appearance of a mystery man is a red herring.
DeleteTime will tell.
I have now caught up on last weeks omnibus and this weeks three episodes and I am confused.
ReplyDeleteHave Alice and Chris really split up - or is it just until Alice feels she can cope with normal family life again?
And this business with a stranger in Beechwood. Have there been any other serious reasons to think this could be Rob - or is it just speculation on the part of Helen and Lee. I have never thought he could actually return and I find it difficult to believe now.
So, Is this just a wind up by the SWs?
We don't know Archerphile, anymore than you do.
DeleteBut most of us are keeping at the back of our minds that it might be a wind up as you say, or a red herring from the SWs.
But the Bridge Farm family are certainly taking it seriously.
I hope the S/Ws clear up who this mystery person is quickly as Helen has been put on such high alert it cannot do her nerves any good. Her reaction is very understandable of course.
ReplyDeleteI hope it is one of the three young men, one of whom has escaped and is trying to find Kirsty or get help from someone.
I do love these covulated S/L's, which TA did so well, and now seem to be reviving.
ReplyDeleteThe SW's are certainly keeping us on tenterhooks.
I bet there will be twist some-where, as long as it is not impossible, nor just plain silly and unbelievable.
I wonder if, it has something to do with either Kirsty or Joy, in some way.
Could it a private detective, for whatever reason?
Well, that answers one of my confusions - Chris and Alice’s split is to be permanent.
ReplyDeleteGoodness only know what SUSAN and Neil will say, but how typical of Brian to be most worried about Chris getting money from the farm ! 🙄
AP - you weren't alone in wondering about the permanence of the split.
ReplyDeleteI hadn't been sure.
I haven't heard tonight's episode yet.
Reason why on other blog.
I can’t have been paying attention because I haven’t gathered why (1) Alice needs to divorce Chris (and he has apparently acquiesced without a murmur). I thought her wanting to be on her own simply meant they would live apart. Has she fallen for Luke the rehab counsellor?
ReplyDeleteAnd (2) why has no one apparently asked Joy what the lurking man looked like or shown her a photo of Rob? For a start she could put an approximate age to him. Are Bridge Farm over-reacting to a single genderless footprint which could have been useless Lee’s? If they are that alarmed, why haven’t they apparently called the police? Or moved Helen to somewhere less obvious?
Don't think your first point clear to anyone Maryellen, certainly not to me.
ReplyDeleteAnd I would think the answer to point 2 is to ratchet up the drama and interest.
Agree, Mrs P. I don’t think Alice and Chris will divorce and I don’t think the lurker is Rob - but I do think the damage has been done there. The boys are old enough to start asking awkward questions.
DeleteIt shows the power Rob still has over Helen - we can happily debate whether or not the mystery man is a red herring, for Helen every such incident is a potential risk. She has no idea where Rob is, nor what he is doing. Even if the mystery man bears no resemblance to Mr T, how can she be sure he's not come on Rob's behalf?
ReplyDeleteSadly, as we know, there are many, many real-life Helens equally on constant alert lest their ex returns to wreak havoc.
Well written and so true.
DeleteI've missed some episodes so missed the build-up to Chris and Alice's decision to divorce. However, it's a device to introduce problems and conflicts about the financial future of Home Farm. This is a continuing thread which has been, and will continue to be, fertile ground for the scriptwriters.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Home Farm, with the loss of Adam and the introduction of Stella, is a slow burner of a S/L
DeleteEx - Londoner
DeleteYou've hit the nail on the head there.
It's seemed to me this week that tying Alice's decision to exit ( if she does ) is an ideal condition to further the SL of Home Farm and the future financial position of the estate.
And the next realisation was that this was, yet again, much of the appeal of TA, the very very long time plan of mixing SLines that interact with each other at varying points.
And at the moment we are given two such situations to chew over.
Well done the TA team !
And Ow.... S - your point well made, well understood, and oh so very very true in many instances.
It has only just occurred to me that Helen & Lee now live in what was once Kirsty & Philip’s house.
ReplyDeleteSo could the lurker be Gavin or one of the poor slave workers who were employed by the Mosses? Perhaps Gavin needs to talk to Kirsty about what happened months ago. Or one of the workers has escaped his new employer’s clutches and wants to return to Gavin, who at least had some sympathy for them. They wouldn’t know the house had been sold.
AP, not sure the house was sold, I think Helen and Lee are renting from Kirsty, I think she would be on the electoral roll as the homeowner, or maybe Philip Moss.
ReplyDeleteThe house definitely wasn’t sold.. Kirsty didn’t want to live there after the debacle and was very happy to rent it to. Helen. One or other of Philip’s former workers was suggested as the lurker here at the same time that Rob was. Joy would probably have recognised Gavin (who may or may not still be banged up - the storyline got as bit hazy or maybe it’s my memory!)
ReplyDeletePS. The suggestion that the lurker could be a private detective working for Rob seems more feasible to me than the man being Rob himself. Presumably they are used to skulking on street corners and hiding in bushes! Helen mentioned that the police would stop Rob if he tried to enter the country so this would be the solution.
DeleteI still think its more likely to be connected with the Kirsty/Philip storyline, though.
If he is a private detective, he isn't a very good one! Aren't they supposed to keep themselves hidden and/or behave so normally that no-one suspects they are anything than your average Joe Public passing by?
DeletePerhaps that adds to the evidence for him not being connected to the Rob/Helen storyline?
DeleteRe the lurker being one of the "horses", I don't see how as to how would they know where their boss, Philip lived?
ReplyDeleteI wonder whose name the Beechwood house is now registered to. Philip seemed to give it to Kirsty, but were the title deeds actually changed at that time....
It's very intriguing
The one person it can't be is Gavin, as he is too busy strutting his stuff, on the Wetherfield cobbles.
DeleteAka, Coronation Street.
Whovever the Lurker is, I hope that there is a really good reason, so him or even maybe her, behind this intrusion, is revealed and exactly why.
DeleteI would hate it all to just fizzle out, with no real and substantial, conclusion.
An idle thought only.
ReplyDeleteI wonder what would happen if, Jennifer and Brian are given notice that their lease is now to end, so they need to move out of Willow Cottage?.
It is entirely possible...
I’m not sure what their monetary situation is. Certainly they found the funds for Alice but maybe she realised it was a stretch so decided to sell Banjo. Brian must still( have income as he is working and both would have state RP. You would have thought they would have been able to move on to their own house but probably would have to buy it outright as mortgages are so difficult at their age. A bit more info would be good!
ReplyDeleteI read an interesting article in yesterday’s Guardian about rewilding enthusiasts pushing to reintroduce wolves and bears to Britain, and the risk of alienating public support for rewilding in general, as a consequence. If the TA scriptwriters pick up this story, might it have implications for Ambridge’s own rewilding scheme? (‘Exit Rex, pursued by a bear’!) Though I think they were talking about the Scottish Highlands rather than the West Midlands.
ReplyDeleteHowever, the clash between rewillding and other countryside interests would be worth exploring. (I don’t think the clash between straying cattle and amorous campers counts!)
(‘Exit Rex, pursued by a bear’!)
DeleteChuckles !!!!!
Well, we've got Vince, is he a wolf in sheep's clothing?
DeleteI always pick up extra things in the omnibus.
ReplyDeletea)Chris did not seem happy to hear that Jennifer had been in The Nest. I wonder, after his night at The Bull, whether he is also hiding something, of some kind.
b) Joy called the bloke she saw, a "bonnie lad", without a no car.
c) Chris saying, that he is ecstatic that he and Alice are splitting up..I still find this sad and does he mean it..
Posted in error.
DeleteWhy doesn't Lee have a bolt on his garden gate?
There are so many Red Herrings, assumptions around at this stage, but who knows, as I can't guess...
I still don't trust Stella.
ReplyDeleteWhy is she not prepared to talk to the Brian, wanting complete control to do things her way?
My thought, and as you must know me by now, it is a strange one. This is that Stella is a plant..She is working for A. N. Other in whatever form, who will try and do a total "take-over" of Home Farm..
Did Brian actually understand what Stella was spouting about, after such a well learnt script.
I wonder where her accomadation is.
I don't trust her!!!
How frail + fragile Blake sounded.
ReplyDeleteI hope Kirsty/Lee/Harrison can help in, in whatever way possible.
As well as helping Blake personally they will also be very keen to find out from him who he was sold ont by Philip. And a great deal more, I shouldn't wonder.
ReplyDeleteYes Miriam, very fragile and frightened too.
And still he thinks Philip is his friend and protector : (
DeleteI found it interesting that Stella was so firm that she wanted to be allowed to do her job - managing the farm - without constant input from Brian. Didn't Adam want the same? Although I seem to recall he was very overburdened when Xander was tiny and actually came to recognise that Brian's input and experience could be helpful after all, even if they frequently had to agree to differ.
ReplyDeleteHannah has experience at other farms and, perhaps, some farming qualifications (I didn't pay enough attention to thr interview). She could be just what Home Farm needs to put it on a secure long-term footing. We've already got a brash new know-it-all incomer working at the mega pig unit, so Stella will need to be a contrasting character. Come to think of it, Natasha was something similar, but has mellowed of late.
As for Stella's qualities as a person, I was wrong on Philip and right on Lee, so I think I'll stay firmly on the fence for now : )
Did anyone seriously believe, for one minute, that the lurker could be Rob? I certainly didn’t.
ReplyDeleteIt is heartbreaking that poor Blake thinks Philip will give him work and look after him again.
I sincerely hope that Harrison will treat him very kindly and find him safe to live and be looked after
He is going to have to be very careful in his questioning of Blake not to frighten him and send him running off again.
I am glad the issue of slavery is being addressed again, hopefully to bring a conclusion of this very sad tale
I’ve always found Lee difficult to warm to, and now I’m on the brink of actively disliking him. How could he have thought poor young Blake was Helen’s ex-husband? Blinded by the weak man’s urge to hit out, I suppose, never mind his victim was frailer and defenceless.against him. Yuk!
ReplyDeleteI agree that Lee was a screaming idiot last night! 'I've got Rob!' or words to that effect!
ReplyDeleteJoy agreed that the man was 'well set up' but Blake was an underweight fragile person and unlikely to be recovered in the months before last nights episode!
I'm wondering if Philip had taken them to his house too? I don't think he did but perhaps I mis-remembered?
I don't think that Rob will be coming back so soon. The number of listeners would undoubtedly fall yet again, because of the doubts of agreeing to a long-term rapist and control freak being allowed to dominate TA storylines yet again.
Not sure about Stella, but at least we got some farming and countryside news!
I still cannot understand how Blake knew, where to go and look for Mr. Moss, after only been in the flat with Gavin.
ReplyDeleteHe only ever saw this, the inside of the van and the building project they were working on. Also he, Kensie and the other (sorry forgot his name), were kept away from every-one.
Joy described him, as a bonnie lad, even when twitching her net curtains. Surely he would have been very lean and gaunt...
Well done the SW's for this S/L.
I wonder if this could affect Philip. This is with other investigations and consequences, which though known by the listeners at the time, the police etc. did not.
It is almost like tying up a S/L, which was not fully resovled, due to the Pandemic. 🤷♀️
....remembered..
DeleteJordan was the other.
I am posting this now, as Stella takes over Home Farm Estate.
ReplyDeleteI am just not sure, that she is exactly who she is.
At her interview, she was not very interested in seeing the farm estate, concentrating more on her money package, accomodation etc.
Also she said, that in one of her positions, she spent more time sorting the owners out with their problems, than with the farm management. This seems totally opposite, as to her talk with Brian.
Remember a while back, Adam went for an interview in a hotel, for this to be scuppered by Ian.
This interviewer, learnt a lot more about both Adam, Home Farm and even Brian, at that time.
This is why I think Stella is a well groomed plant, with other plans afoot, in the back-ground, resulting in a Home Farm take over bid.
"That is my case, which I now rest, M'Lord"
Yes, my thoughts are now done + dusted, except where is she living?
I like her voice!
DeleteNot sure which blog should be on but
ReplyDelete: Denzil Washington and Frances McDormond's latest film is 'The Tragedy of Macbeth.'
In an interview Denzil Washington said that they (the stars) had referred to the characters as 'Susan and Neil.'
Wonder where they got that from?
Obvious innit Spicey
DeleteNever mind right or wrong blog, its interesting on either.
The scriptwriters really don’t write teenagers very well, I found the interaction between Tracey and Chelsea unconvincing.
ReplyDeleteI wasn’t clear whether Harrison had formally interviewed Blake or just found him a hostel place, I found listening to Blake quite difficult, such a vulnerable and damaged character. I hope it wasn’t Blake we heard being hit by Chelsea, too EastEnders.
Oh I’m sure it was Blake being hit by Chelsea. Kirsty sounds so false nowadays. I used to like her but she gets right on my nerves now.
ReplyDeleteI feel sure it was Blake that Chelsea hit too PtbY. It's such a shame that this happened after he had tried to find 'nice Mr. Moss'. Poor chap, he is so vulnerable.
DeleteSorry, I think it's a stupid plot twist. There's enough material in Blake coming to realise Mr Moss was not such a hero and then him gradually rebuilding his life. Why put him back in hospital, or worse, and give Chelsea the guilt of having hit him? Although at least she's getting plenty of practice at emergency stops!
DeleteBlake's attitude was interesting. We know he's not good at figures, nor reading probably. The set-up in the flat gave them security and food (usually) without the scary responsibility of managing finances, etc. I can see why Blake thought he was being well treated - certainly better off than being homeless. (Although, when they were about to move on to their new 'employer' the lads did start to think they would like a bit more autonomy.) If the script-writers allow him to live, I hope he will get the help and support he will need gradually to move to independent living. But I think it will be quite some time down the line before he is able to accept that Mr Moss was far from being a model boss.
I stopped listening because of the Alice storyline then didn't have time over the summer because my daughter and family were staying with us while sorting out their relocation from Singapore. I have tried to get back into The Archers over the last couple of weeks but have decided that it's just making me depressed. I'll keep in touch with the programme in case I decide at a later date that I want to listen again but, for the time being, will probably just follow this blog.
ReplyDeleteI think Kirsty was wrong to tell poor Blake where the Mosses were and thus further upset him.
ReplyDeleteShe should have spoken to Harrison and, through him, have sought help from an experienced councillor used to working with the victims of slavery. They would have known how to handle the situation and, over time, help Blake to understand what had happened to him and why it was so wrong.
He has obviously been brainwashed by the Mosses and any criticism of them upsets him and has, I think, induced Stockholm Syndrome. He needs professional help. Not a blundering Kirsty.
I just hope it’s not too late!
I do agree with you AP.
DeleteKirsty did not score any goals by informing Blake that Gavin and Philip were in prison. I'm pretty sure this will further undermine his confidence in ' authority' and may also make him feel he needs to withdraw from Kirsty too.
I certainly hope the SW will use their presumably extensive research into guiding Blake towards appropriate professional help for victims of slavery.
I don't think she hit Blake. I think t was a random animal.
ReplyDeleteMe neither, as far too similar to the Matt Crawford event.
DeleteI don't think any-one in the car knows what was hit. There was too much talking + bickering, going on.
Whatever it was, I don't blame Chelsea but Tracy, who wasn't concentrating.
She was after all, in control of the car as there was a learner driver, at the wheel.
DeleteLinda at her best. Now if anyone can sort things out for Blake it's Linda. I wouldn't want to be the person telling her there is a waiting list of a year for counselling, no permanent hostel accommodation, and no employer who will want to employ him.
ReplyDeleteMaybe Lynda could find a room and a role for Blake at Ambridge Hall.
ReplyDeleteI also think Linda will invite Blake to stay at Ambridge Hall!
ReplyDeleteWasn't Lynda also a little to blame for the accident as she was causing distraction in the car owing to her unfailing practice of never failing to pontificate?
ReplyDeleteLinda could take in Blake, but how would Robert react, but then he always does what Linda decides.
ReplyDeleteMy vote is for Joy to give Blake a home with plenty of comforts.
She could mother, or should that be smother, him.
Also, it would stop her popping round to Helen + Lee.
Linda + Joy are very alike in some ways.
So that's the plot:-
ReplyDeleteHome Farm potentially losing the BL contract, leading to a possible "take over".
I think Chris would settle for having the Nest, and Martha having part of Alice's stake in the farm. Alice hasn't thought at all about the repercussions of divorce on the farm.
ReplyDeleteI think Stella is a tough cookie and will more than hold her own with Martin Gibbs.
DeleteWell, there you are Miriam!
ReplyDeleteYou have long been wondering how long Brian and Jennifer would stay in their little rented house and why they haven’t looked for somewhere more in keeping with their ‘status’
If Brian sells Home Farm they’ll have the cash to move. And did you hear how Jennifer’s reactions changed when he uttered the magic words “We could look for a bigger house”
😂
Though, how can Brian possibly decide unilaterally to sell Home Farm?
ReplyDeleteSurely he has to hold a board meeting and get everyone’s agreement?
Can’t see Kate being keen, where would her yurts go?
Would this bring Adam rushing back to ‘save’ the farm by taking over the management from flaky Stella?
This might just be all pie in the sky………..
Unless, of course, the long circulating rumours about ‘Brian’ and ‘Shula’ retiring are true…….
My thoughts are well along the same lines, re Home Farm and it's own property family board.
DeleteSurely Brian can retire, release capital in some way from Home Farm, to then buy Jennifer her new bigger, but not big house.
Not quite TA but did anyone read the article about equity release on a farm with its subsequent sale?
DeleteThis was done in 2008 for about K350, to expand the business. The husband died sadly in 2013. The wife sold the farm in 2020, when she had to pay back the original release of the monies. Due to the compound interest charged and a early payback fee, she had to pay nearly £1,000,000!
Blake would have been so much better with Joy, and perhaps would not have disappeared.
ReplyDeletePoor Blake, it makes me so uncomfortable listening to him and you could hear Robert and Lynda struggling….. I am sure I would have been just as awkward. But it is good that this story is back as I didn’t want the workmen to just be written out.
ReplyDeleteI do hope we’re not going to have Ben and Josh chasing the same girl we had the Grundy triangle and that was plenty.
So when are the SWs going to write a current, important, agricultural story about pig farmers, all over the country having to cull hundreds of young pigs because there are too few HGV drivers to take them to the abattoir and too few workers at the abattoirs and processing plants to deal with them? Another case of agriculture needing foreign workers to keep things running.
ReplyDeletePigs have to to be butchered at a certain weight for pork and a different weight for bacon. Farms are filling up with pigs because they can’t be transported and the farms are running out of room and resources to feed them. Another side effect of bl..d’y Brexit! ( and I don’t care if that is political). I’m so thankful we are now retired pig farmers, without these extra worries!
An ideal story to involve Berrow Pigs, Rex’s pigs and Vince Carey’s abattoir I should have thought.
More in this vein on the other blog, AP
DeletePesky iPad just deleted a long post, grrr.
ReplyDeleteI agree with AP that script writers are missing out a major issue in British farming at the moment.
The increasing age of farmers is being addressed and I am curious as to what will happen with Home Farm.
I think Rauiri and Alice would be happy to take the money and do something non farming, I don’t think Debbie would want to take on the farm, so could well be happy with a large pension pot ( she must be in her mid fifties by now) when she concludes her time abroad. I have never felt that Adam is truly committed to Home Farm and could choose a fresh start with Ian, possibly some catering concern. The hardest to call is Kate, but someone might be able to talk her through buying a suitable plot for her business ( I’ve forgotten the name something home)
I think we can assume some agri-business conglomerate buying the farm and upsetting the locals
Eddie will win the lottery and the Grundys will buy it, lock, stock, and barrel : )
DeleteKP. I think that, a "take-over" is being planned, and Stella is involved.
Delete😆😆
ReplyDeleteThe S/L of Blake, reminds me of another, the details of which I have now forgotten. Shula took some-one under her wing. This person ended up, living in a railway carriage or similar, in Grundy's Field.
ReplyDeleteRobert was such a gracious and generous host, alongside Linda.
It is no wonder that Blake disappeared. He is just not used to, and probably never has known, such a life-style.
I hope that Blake is still in Ambridge, found and helped by a "good samaritan". I wonder who this could be.
I am sure that there is plenty of cheap, casual farm work available, to suit Blake.
He could stay in one of Home Farm worker's caravans, which are currently standing empty.
It is obvious that, I do not want Blake to have gone, never to be heard about again.
Perhaps St. Shula will be the Guardian Angel again, when Blake is found, sleeping in a stable!! 😂
DeleteBanjo's empty one?
DeleteMiriam !
DeleteYour endless imagination regarding events in THE ARCHERS astounds and bedazzles me.
And makes me feel very humble as I take what the SWs give me as a passive and occasionally responsive listener.
You are amazing !
Mrs P..
DeleteI do have an over-active imagination, re TA, but just at the moment.
The Alice S/L has been so prominent and very worthwhile, but there has not been much else.
I have only given my ideas, as to other possible ideas, relating to life in Ambridge.
I like intrigue...
Others don't.
We all listen to TA, in differing ways with different ideals and expectations.
Long May it Last.
Josh and Beth.
DeleteThis is Josh just trying to put one over on Ben, but most importantly, to get an introduction to Vince.
Josh is a schemer in many ways.
Oh my imagination is OTT yet again, but anything is possible, but more likely, entirly not probable! 🤥😨