The Archers: Elizabeth can't sleep ... Nigel makes decisions ... Bert's the man!
- To board, or not to board
- So Freddie isn't "sporting"
- A classic Eddie quip
- Seriously, when is Hugh going to turn up in Ambridge?
- Everyone knows Edgar is a flower man
- 4 poles make one chain which is the length of the cricket pitch
- What's the big deal about this Dairy event?
- "Better than Boston!"
- Oh good god! They're worried about Pip. Again!!!
To board, or not to board ...
Not one to let anything go easily, Elizabeth can't sleep for worrying about whether to send Lily and Freddie to boarding school.
While I'm on that - did we ever get to the bottom of why Elizabeth couldn't sleep before (when she ended up doing guerrilla gardening with Lynda in the wee small hours of the morning).
Nigel was still in his 'but that's what Pargetters do' mode, trying to find a compromise through sending the twins to a closer school as part boarders.
As Elizabeth pointed out, Nigel's hardly toed the family line on other occasions. Even when Elizabeth was talking about the twins missing their home and parents if they were at boarding school, all Nigel could summon from his experiences was:
"I missed nanny"
Between Elizabeth's pleas of:
"all i want is for them to be happy"
"[hate the idea of] spending a fortune to send our babies away"
You'd be forgiven for thinking there was a slight hint that this was all more about Elizabeth's needs than her kids.
Unfair?
When Nigel gave in to Elizabeth, he was heard to utter:
"if you'll be unhappy, that's all i need [to not send them to Boarding school]"
Hmmm.
So Freddie isn't "sporting"
Well that just isn't cricket, is it chaps!
A classic Eddie quip
"you can lead a horse to water but you can't make it bark"
Seriously, when's Hugh going to turn up in Ambridge?
So Nigel has decreed that allotments shall be in Lower Loxley's grounds.
Feeling a tad shy about owning so much land, when so many families have teeny gardens, Nigel still seems to be coming across as a Laird who has finally realised that 'his people' are starving while he eats kobe beef.
Commoners with a right to use Lower Loxley ground? Julia Pargetter-Carmichael would never have accepted such an affair.
Everyone knows Edgar is a flower man
Can't believe Nigel was so blissfully unaware ...
He was being a bit dim in not asking Bert in the first place, but Bert soon corrected Nigel's belief in Edgar Titcombe:
"Edgar Titcombe is a flower man knows his petunias but not so hot on his onions"
So all's well. Bert is Nigel's allotment adviser.
Jolly good.
4 poles make one chain which is the length of the cricket pitch
And who said The Archers wasn't educational.
It's just a few decades behind.
What's the big deal about this Dairy event?
Eddie seems to be obsessively keen about getting to it (for free, with Ed and driven by David).
Is it really just about having a few pints?
"Better than Boston!"
Which means 'better than good' in the Black Country.
Seemingly.
So one burger van called 'Boston Burger' is angry that the other burger van 'Better Burger' is handing out leaflets at Lower Loxley's steam event with "Better than Boston" on them.
This is revenge for when 'Jolly Dolly Donut' (owned by the same chap of 'Boston Burger') complained at Lower Loxley's vintage car rally about the fumes from 'Better Burgers' choking their customers.
Whatever the truth (which we must be told!), both burger vans have a slight barny, which Elizabeth sorts out.
Maybe just have one burger van next time?
(oh the heady trials and tribulations of Ambridge!)
Oh good god! They're worried about Pip. Yet again.
Maybe this was just me, but is sounded like Pip was about to go back to Primary School, rather than College.
David and Ruth are worried about Pip being worried about her College friends taking the mick out of her:
"your boyfriend hated you so much he ran away to another continent"
Well, it's perfectly not true (as Jude ran away because he was utterly devoid of any emotion for Pip, whether that be love or hate).
And surely College students are above playground taunts?
Just please. Don't give Pip another reason to start whining again. It's been so serene since she stopped.
The Archers: The Carter and Aldridge supper ... allotments and boarding school
- The Aldridges prepare ...
- The Carter's prepare ...
- "The Aldridges not Albert Pierrepoint"
- The supper begins ...
- "the natives are restless"
- Lilian and her gin
- Elizabeth says 'yes' ...
- ... and then 'no'
The Aldridges prepare ...
Popping on a "dull grey tie" for the occasion, Brian sounds in a jovial mood ahead of their supper with Susan and Neil.
Jennifer just sounds suicidal.
"we'll race through the pudding and refuse coffee home, then be home in time for the evening news"
The Carter's prepare
"The starter looks ... very ... interesting"
Oh dear. That's not a convincing noises coming from Neil.
Neil also gets the music wrong (though I would have personally preferred The Phantom of the Opera over the Three Tenors)
And Susan has had to resort to Bert Fry's "cast off veg" in making a vegetarian lasagne rather than the Lamb Tagine she'd planned.
Safer ground, but not quite the hint of sophistication she'd been looking to create.
"Aldridges not Albert Pierrepoint"
What?
I must have heard that wrong.
If not, what a very odd thing for Neil to say.
A hangman? for dinner? Which would be worse than having the Aldridges?
Eh???
The supper begins ...
Brian compliments the veg lasagne:
"I appreciate a well cooked meal made with fresh ingredients"
Neil likes the wine, but makes the mistake of thinking Brian got it from the Village shop (as if! Of course Brian has a bloomin' wine merchant on hand!)
Neil and Brian have a discussion about the Cap Reforms while Jennifer insists on Helping Susan with the dishes (if at all interested - Neil thinks it's only big farmers like Brian that benefit)
And when's all done, Jennifer asks Susan for the "anchovy starter".
The post-Supper Analysis
Neil:
"Phew!"
Susan:
"You were fantastic, Neil Cater" (for standing his ground with Brian over the farming discussion)
and
"tonight went really well"
Jennifer:
"that was absolutely ghastly"
"what was that fish pepper starter thing?"
"we won't have to sit through for a very long time to come"
So - no change there then. Susan thinks they're all the best of chums, Jennifer can't abide this whole situation, Neil just doesn't want the stress.
More of this to come then. I only hope that next time, such a supper is worthy of such a massive build up. A few quite amusing moments, but not the hilarity we'd all expected ...
"the natives are restless"
So says Brian, due to rumours about The Bull closing.
Rather than seeing Lilian as its savour, he reckons Jennifer will have no ready funds to buy out Jolene (due to Amside Property).
Closure shall surely not come to pass ...?
Either we'll see another shareholder of The Bull, or it could go the way of the majority of village pubs these days.
Turned into flats.
By Matt???
Lilian and her gin
And on Lilian, Brian reckons she's no longer susceptible to spilling all of the inside information on Matt after a few gin and tonics.
Nope - she hasn't stopped drinking.
Lilian has just got a real vested interested in Matt's dealings. If he fails this time, he'll drag her down with him.
Elizabeth says 'yes' ...
to allotments at Lower Loxley.
Nigel wasn't letting his allotment idea go, so Elizabeth has consented.
Seemingly Nigel feels "privileged" for having his land, and feels this would be a good way to help the community.
(not a hint of the Laird providing scraps of land to stop his peasants being completely wiped out from starvation. No, not at all ...)
All very nice. And they really should call Hugh to get signed onto his Landshare scheme.
... and then 'no'
to the twins being sent to boarding school.
All Nigel could initially muster was "gosh", but managed to pull himself together to drag out all the usual arguments of "tradition", "opportunity", "advantages".
Elizabeth seemingly heard Lily saying that while she wasn't bothered about going to boarding school, Freddie is already dreading it (with a whole 12 months to go).
"doesn't feel right anymore"
"i can't bear for them to live so far away"
"we will lose touch with them"
Nigel's comeback of
"surely you don't want to deny them"
Felt like it was being said to a mum who has already made up her mind. "Tradition" won;t stand a chance.
The Archers: the kids are getting kitted out for school … Helen’s organising a cookery demo … Susan’s trying to find a recipe … Nigel has a cunning plan
- Is boarding school less expensive than patent shoes?
- A female Jamie Olive in Ambridge!
- Antique furniture should not house vegetables
- Steak and kidney is alright for Clarrie and Eddie
- Allotments at Lower Loxley?
- Ed’s still on the artichoke hunt
- Is Helen fine?
Is boarding school less expensive than patent shoes?
I was a bit confused about Elizabeth saying that she couldn’t buy patent shoes for her kids (as she didn’t have money to burn), but that her and Nigel had put both Lilly and Freddie down for private school the moment they were born.
Maybe the cost of patent shoes have gone up since I was a kid (and had to stand in that strange foot measuring machine at Clarks).
And, maybe Nigel and Elizabeth have just decided that the kids away at boarding school is a good way to have them, but not have them in the house.
Kind of like having a dog but keeping it in an outside kennel …
A female Jamie Olive in Ambridge!
Who’d have thought it!
Helen’s very excited about this Shelly Brazil. Seemingly she’s a local chef with her own book, and is doing a demo to boost takings at Ambridge Organics.
To make sure they have an audience, Helen is calling everyone she (and Kirsty) knows.
Antique furniture should not house vegetables
Especially when the said vegetables are wrapped in yesterday’s newspaper.
Was Nigel having a go at Bert about the entire vegetable situation, or was he merely offended that Bert hadn’t made the effort to at least get the most recent newspaper?
God help us if it’d been The Sun.
Steak and kidney is alright for Clarrie and Eddie
But not for Brian and Jennifer.
According to Susan.
So it’s farce ahoy! Despite Pat’s advice to stick to a recipe she knows, Susan’s determined to try something new and exotic.
Oh dear.
Allotments at Lower Loxley?
Nigel is quite good at ignoring Elizabeth’s complete lack of enthusiasm for any of his ideas.
So shall we see hordes of keen amateur gardeners descending on Lower Loxley to grow their veg?
It’s a good idea. Maybe Nigel should speak to Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall about his landshare scheme.
Ed’s still on the artichoke hunt
Now he’s been trying Bert.
Is it just me, or shouldn’t Underwood’s have them?
Is Helen fine?
As I said yesterday, it’s all a bit suspicious that Emma’s pregnant at the same time as Helen.
It could mean one of them is in for a heartbreaker.
Pat thinks Helen looks tired, but Helen’s determined to be the epitome of healthy motherhood.
As much as I hope both Emma and Helen are okay, I really (muchly) hope that Helen doesn’t get yet another disappointment.
It’s be too much for any of us to cope with.
