The Archers

The Archers

Genre	Soap opera
Running time	12 minutes (formerly 15 minutes)
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Language(s)	English
Home station	BBC Light Programme[1] later BBC Home Service now BBC Radio 4
Created by	Godfrey Baseley
Edited by	Huw Kennair-Jones[2]
Produced by	Julie Beckett
Recording studio	BBC Birmingham
Original release	29 May – 2 June 1950 (Pilot) 1 January 1951 – present
No. of episodes	18,684 (as of 09 Aug 2018)[3] Six per week, plus 75 mins. omnibus
Audio format	Stereophonic sound
Opening theme	Barwick Green
Website	Archers homepage
Podcast	The Archers podcast

The Archers, having aired over 18,650 episodes, is the world's longest-running radio soap opera.^[4] The British production is broadcast on Radio 4, the BBC's main spoken-word channel. The programme was originally billed as, an everyday story of country folk. It is now described as, a contemporary drama in a rural setting.^[5]

Five pilot episodes were aired in 1950 and the first episode was broadcast nationally on 1 January 1951. A significant show in British popular culture, and with over five million listeners, it is Radio 4's most listened-to non-news programme,^[6][7][8] With over one million listeners via the internet, the programme holds the record for BBC Radio online listening figures.^[9]

Partly established with the aim towards educating farmers following World War II, The Archers soon became a popular source of entertainment for the population at large, attracting nine million listeners by 1953.

Programme synopsis[edit]

The Archers is set in the fictional village of Ambridge in the fictional county of Borsetshire, in England. Borsetshire is situated between, in reality, the contiguous counties of Worcestershire and Warwickshire, south of Birmingham in The Midlands. Possibly based on the village of Cutnall Green,^[10] various other villages claim to be the inspiration for Ambridge; The Bull, Ambridge's pub, is modelled on The Old Bull in Inkberrow,^[11] whereas Hanbury's St Mary the Virgin is often used as a stand-in for Ambridge's parish church, St Stephen's.^[12][13]

Other fictional villages include Penny Hassett, Loxley Barrett,^[14] Darrington, Hollerton, Edgeley, Waterley Cross and Lakey Green. The county town of Borsetshire is Borchester, and the nearest big city is the cathedral city of Felpersham. Felpersham also has a university. Anywhere further from Ambridge may be referred to humorously with comments such as 'that's on the other side of Felpersham!', but characters do occasionally venture further: several attended the Countryside Alliance march in London,^[15] there have been references to the gay scene in Manchester's Canal Street, and a number of scenes have taken place abroad or in other places around the country, with some characters resident overseas in South Africa and Hungary, and other characters have visited Norfolk. Birmingham is a favourite destination for shopping.

Since Easter Sunday 1998, there have been six episodes a week from Sunday to Friday, after the news summary at around 19:02. All except the Friday evening episode are repeated the following day at 14:02. The six episodes are re-run unabridged in the Sunday morning omnibus at 10:00. On Remembrance Sunday, the Omnibus edition begins at the earlier time of 09:15. This information is available in the press and on the BBC's website.^[16]

Characters[edit]

• The Archers's family farm, Brookfield, combines arable, dairy, beef, and sheep. It is a typical example of mixed farming which has been passed down the generations from Dan, the original farmer, to his son Phil and is now co-owned by Phil and Jill's four children: David, who manages it with his wife Ruth; Shula Hebden-Lloyd, married to vet Alistair and owner of the riding stables; her twin Kenton, who runs the village's only pub with his wife Jolene; and the widowed Elizabeth Pargeter. Jill lives in Brookfield with her son David, his wife Ruth and their children Pip, Josh, and Ben
• The Aldridges at Home Farm. Brian, who is portrayed as a money-driven agribusinessman and his wife Jennifer. They have five children: the two Jennifer brought into their marriage: Adam, a farmer married to chef Ian Craig and Debbie a farmer based in Hungary; two born into the marriage, Kate with a family abandoned in South Africa, and Alice married to farrier Chris Carter; and schoolboy Ruairi, Brian's son by one of his affairs. Also, Kate's daughter Phoebe and Jennifer's sister Lilian
• The Bridge Farm Archers practice organic farming. Their operations include a farm shop, a farm café, a vegetable box scheme and a dairy. Tony and Pat's children are Helen and Tom, and their three grandchildren: Johnny, who is the son of their deceased son John; and Henry and Jack
• The Pargetters, a landed gentry family who have to make their stately home, Lower Loxley Hall, pay the bills as a public attraction. Nigel Pargetter's widow, Elizabeth née Archer, her son Freddie and his twin sister Lily
• The Grundys, formerly struggling tenant farmers who were brought to prominence in the late 1970s and early 1980s as comic characters, but are now seen as doggedly battling adversity
• The Carters, Neil and Susan. Their son, Chris, is married to Alice Aldridge; their daughter, Emma, has successively married brothers, Will and Edward Grundy
• The Snells, Lynda, married to the long-suffering Robert, is the butt of many jokes, although her sheer energy makes her a stalwart of village life

Ambridge[edit]

• Arkwright Hall is a large Victorian mansion with a 17th-century atmosphere. The building served as a community centre for many years, containing a soundproofed room and field studies centre. Later it fell into disrepair, but was renovated when Jack Woolley leased the mansion to the Landmark Trust; architect Lewis Carmichael led the restoration of the building to its Victorian splendour.
• Bridge Farm is a 168-acre (68 ha) farm previously on Berrow Estate, but now owned by Pat and Tony Archer. The farm became wholly dedicated to organic farming in 1984, in a storyline inspired by a scriptwriter's visit to Brynllys farm in Ceredigion, the home of Rachel's Organic.^[17] In 2003, Tom Archer began producing his Bridge Farm pork sausages. In early 2013, the family decided to sell their dairy herd and buy organic milk instead and the following year, Tony Archer bought a small Aberdeen Angus herd.
• Brookfield Farm is a 469-acre (190 ha) mixed farm which was managed by Dan Archer and then by his son Phil. After Phil's retirement in 2001, his son David Archer took over.
• Grange Farm was a working farm run by the Grundys until their eviction in 2000. The farmhouse, along with 50 acres (20 ha) of land, was sold to Oliver Sterling, who then began "hobby farming". He took young Ed Grundy on as cow man and later gave him full responsibility for running the farm.
• Grey Gables, once a country club, is now a luxurious hotel. The late Caroline Sterling bought it with her husband Oliver Sterling. The hotel boasts a pool, spa, health club and a golf course. Ian Craig is the executive chef.
• Home Farm is a 1,922-acre (778 ha) farm, by far the largest in Ambridge. In recent years, Home Farm expanded into soft fruit and deer farming.
• Lower Loxley Hall is a large 300-year-old country house located just outside Ambridge. It serves primarily as a conference centre.
• The Bull, the village's only pub is perhaps the most recognisable structure in Ambridge
• St. Stephen's Church, established in 1281, dates back to Saxon times. The church has undergone many changes over the years, including a number of different vicars. The eight bells are rung by a group led by Neil Carter.
• Ambridge still has a village shop and post office, originally thanks to Jack Woolley's philanthropy. The business is now a community shop managed by Susan and run by a team of volunteers.
• Willow Farm is owned by the Tucker family. After Betty's death in 2005, the house was divided to accommodate Roy and his family. The farmland is home to Neil Carter's pigs.

Topicality[edit]

Unlike some soap operas, episodes of The Archers portray events taking place on the date of broadcast, allowing many topical subjects to be included. Real-life events which can be readily predicted in advance are often written into the script, such as the annual Oxford Farming Conference^[18] and the FIFA World Cup.^[19] On some occasions, scenes recorded at these events are planned and edited into episodes shortly before transmission.

More challengingly for the production team, some significant but unforeseen events require scenes to be rewritten and rerecorded at short notice, such as the death of Princess Margaret (particularly poignant because she had appeared as herself on the programme),^[20][21] the World Trade Center attacks,^[22] and the 7 July 2005 London bombings.^[23] The events and implications of the 2001 foot-and-mouth crisis required many "topical inserts"^{[24][25][26][27]} and the rewriting of several storylines.^[28]

In January 2012, Oliver Sterling, owner of Grange Farm, together with his tenant, Ed Grundy, elected to vaccinate the badgers on their farm in an attempt to prevent the spread of bovine tuberculosis. The plotline came within weeks of the government confirming a badger cull trial.^[29]

Actors[edit]

Unlike television soaps, The Archers actors are not held on retainers and work on the series usually for a few days a month. By the nature of the storylines concentrating on particular groups of characters, in any one week out of a cast of about 60, the episodes include approximately 20–30 speaking-characters. Most of the cast do acting work on other projects and can disappear for long periods if they are working on commitments such as films or television series. Tamsin Greig plays Debbie Aldridge and has appeared on many television series such as Green Wing, Love Soup, Black Books and Episodes, so Debbie manages a farm in Hungary and her visits to Ambridge are infrequent. Felicity Jones played Emma Carter from the age of 15 but after a period of studying at Wadham College, Oxford, she gave up the role to move into television and cinema.^[30]

Some of the actors, when not playing their characters, earn their money through different jobs altogether: Charlotte Connor, when not playing Susan Carter (credited as Charlotte Martin), works full-time as a senior research psychologist at the Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Foundation; her office is a short walk from BBC Birmingham, and thus she is able to fit her work around recordings.^[31] Meanwhile, Graham Blockey, who plays Robert Snell, worked till recently as a full-time general practitioner in Surrey, commuting to and from BBC Birmingham at weekends and on his days off. He kept his role secret from his patients, for fear of losing their respect, until his retirement from medicine in March, 2017.^[32] Other examples include Felicity Finch (Ruth Archer), who also works as a BBC journalist having travelled on a number of occasions to Afghanistan; and Ian Pepperell (Roy Tucker), who manages a pub in the New Forest.^[33]

History[edit]

A five-episodes pilot series started on Whit Monday, 29 May 1950, and continued throughout that week.^[34] It was created by Godfrey Baseley and was broadcast to the English Midlands in the Regional Home Service, as 'a farming Dick Barton'. Recordings were sent to London, and the BBC decided to commission the series for a longer national run. In the five pilots the Archers owned Wimberton Farm, rather than Brookfield. Baseley subsequently edited The Archers for 22 years.

Since 1 January 1951, five 15-minute episodes (since 1998, six 12½-minute episodes) have been transmitted each week, at first on the BBC Light Programme^[1] and subsequently on the BBC Home Service (now Radio 4). Early afternoon repeats of the previous evening's episode began on 14 December 1964. The original scriptwriters were Geoffrey Webb and Edward J. Mason, who were also working on the nightly thriller series about the special agent Dick Barton. The popularity of his adventures partly inspired The Archers, which eventually took over Barton's evening slot. At first, however, the national launch placed the serial at the 'terrible'^[35] time of 11.45am, but it moved to Dick Barton's former slot of 6.45pm from Monday, 2 April 1951. An omnibus edition of the week's episodes began on Saturday, 5 January 1952. Originally produced with collaborative input from the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, The Archers was conceived as a means of disseminating information to farmers and smallholders to help increase productivity in the postwar era of rationing and food shortages.^[1] It was originally formulated around the lives of three farmers; Dan Archer, farming efficiently with little cash, Walter Gabriel, farming inefficiently with little cash, and George Fairbrother, a wealthy businessman farming at a loss for tax purposes (which one could do in those days).^[36] The programme was hugely successful, winning the National Radio Awards' 'Most entertaining programme of the Year' award jointly with Take It From Here in 1954, and winning the award outright in 1955, in which year the audience was reported to have peaked at 20 million.^[37]

At the late 1950s, despite the growth of television and radio's consequent decline, the programme was still claiming eleven million listeners and was also being transmitted in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.^[38] By the mid-'70s, however, the audience for the two daily broadcasts and the weekend omnibus combined was less than 3 million^[39] and in 1976 the BBC Radio Four Review Board twice considered whether or not the programme should be axed.^[40] The serial's woes at this time were seen to mirror the poor standing of radio drama in general, described as "a failure to fully shake off the conventions of non-realism which had prevailed in the 1940s and 1950s."^[41] Programme chief Jock Gallagher, responsible for The Archers, described these as the serial's "dog days".^[42] Sweeping editorial reforms followed, included the introduction of women writers (there had been none before 1975), two of whom, Helen Leadbeater and Margaret Phelan, were credited with giving the programme a new definitive style of writing and content, although some listeners complained about their radical feminism.^[43] In 1980 Julie Burchill commented that the women of Ambridge were no longer stuck with "the gallons of greengage jam old-guard male scriptwriters kept them occupied with for over twenty years"; but were 'into post-natal depression and alcoholism on the way to self-discovery'.^[44] By the mid-'80s the Radio Four Review Board noted that scripts, directing and acting was "very good" and sometimes "better than ever".^[45] In August 1985 The Listener said that the programme's revival was "sustained by some of the best acting, direction and writing on radio."^[37]

Tony Shryane MBE was the programme's producer from 1 January 1951 to 19 January 1979. Vanessa Whitburn was the programme's editor from 1992 till 2013. Whitburn took service leave from March to July 2012, when John Yorke, a former executive producer of EastEnders, was the acting editor.^[46] Yorke's arrival prompted charges that the programme was importing the values of EastEnders to Borsetshire, with fans and commentators complaining that characters were behaving unrealistically simply to generate conflict.^[47] This was denied by Yorke, who wrote that he agreed to take over "on one condition - that it stayed exactly as it was and that I didn't have to change anything."^[48]

Vanessa Whitburn was succeeded as editor by Sean O'Connor in September 2013.^[49] In September 2016, Huw Kennair-Jones took over as editor though O'Connor continued to oversee the Helen and Rob storyline until its conclusion.^[2] In February 2018, it was announced that Jeremy Howe would take up the post later in the year.^[50]

Since 2007, The Archers has been available as a podcast.^[51]

Death of Grace Archer[edit]

One of the most controversial Archers episodes was broadcast on 22 September 1955, the evening of the launch of the UK's first commercial television station, ITV. Phil and Grace Archer had been married just a few months earlier, and their blossoming relationship was the talk of the nation. However, searching for a story which would demonstrate some real tragedy among the increasingly unconvincing episode cliff-hangers, Godfrey Baseley had decided that Grace would have to die. It was explained to the cast as an "exercise in topicality." The scripts for the week of 19 September 1955 were written, recorded, and broadcast on each day. On Thursday evening of that week, listeners heard Grace trying to rescue her horse, Midnight, from a fire at Brookfield stables, and the crash as a beam fell on her.^[52]

Whether the timing of the episode was a deliberate attempt to overshadow the opening night of the BBC's first commercial rival has been debated ever since. It was certainly planned some months in advance, but it may well be that the actual date of the death was changed during the scriptwriting stage to coincide with the start of ITV.^[53] Deliberate or not, the episode attracted widespread media attention, being reported by newspapers around the world.

This controversy has been parodied twice: in "The Bowmans", an episode of the television comedy programme Hancock, and in the play The Killing of Sister George and its 1968 film adaptation. On the 50th anniversary of ITV's launch, Ysanne Churchman, who played Grace, sent a congratulatory card to ITV, signed "Grace Archer".

In 1996, William Smethurst recounted a conversation with Baseley in which he reveals his real motivation for killing off Grace Archer: Churchman was encouraging the other actors to join a trade union.^[54]

Longevity[edit]

The actor Norman Painting played Phil Archer continuously from the first trial series in 1950 until his death on 29 October 2009. His last Archers performance was recorded just two days before his death, and was broadcast on 22 November.^[55] He is cited in Guinness World Records as the longest-serving actor in a single soap opera.^[55] Under the pseudonym "Bruno Milna", Painting also wrote around 1,200 complete episodes, which culminated in the 10,000th episode.

June Spencer has played Peggy Archer/Woolley from the pilot episode onwards,^[56] though not for all of the period since. According to Who's Who in The Archers 2008,^[57] episode 15,360 was to be broadcast on 1 January 2008.^[58] Episode 15,000 was broadcast on 7 November 2006.^[59]

Sixtieth anniversary[edit]

The Archers reached its 60th anniversary on 1 January 2011 and to mark this achievement, a special half-hour episode was broadcast on Sunday, 2 January, on BBC Radio 4 from 7pm. The episode had been advertised as containing events that would "shake Ambridge to the core".^[60] This phrase even gave rise to the initialism #SATTC trending on the website Twitter during that weekend as listeners speculated about what might happen, and then reported their views as the story unfolded.

The main events in the episode were Helen Archer giving birth to her son Henry and Nigel Pargetter falling to his death from the roof of Lower Loxley Hall. This unlikely event provoked interest in the frequency and causes of death in the series. In fact, although the incidence of accidental death and suicide is seven times the national average, the overall mortality rate in Ambridge is almost exactly what would be expected.^[61]

The writing out of the character of Nigel caused much controversy among listeners,^[62][63] with a large number of complaints variously expressing dismay at the death of a popular character, concerns over the manner of the dismissal of the actor, belief that the promise to "shake Ambridge to the core" had been over-hyped, criticism of the credibility of the script and acting for the anniversary episode, and a perceived unwillingness of the editorial team to engage with these listener complaints.

Themes[edit]

The programme has tackled many serious, contemporary social issues: rural drug addiction; rape, including rape in marriage; inter-racial relationships; direct action against genetically modified crops and badger culling; family break-ups; and civil partnerships, and a family being threatened by a gang of farm thieves. There has been criticism from conservative commentators, such as Peter Hitchens^[64] that the series has become a vehicle for liberal and left-wing values and agendas, with characters behaving out of character to achieve those goals. However, one of the show's charms is to make much out of everyday, small concerns, such as the possible closure of the village shop, the loss and rediscovery of a pair of spectacles,^[65] competitive marmalade-making, or nonsense such as a 'spile troshing' competition,^[66] rather than the large-scale and improbable events that form the plots of many soap operas.^[67][68]

According to some of the actors, and confirmed in the writings of Godfrey Baseley, in its early days the show was used as a conduit for educational announcements from the Ministry of Agriculture, one actor reading an announcement almost verbatim to another. Direct involvement of the government ended in 1972.^[69] The show has reacted within a day to agricultural emergencies such as outbreaks of foot and mouth disease which affect farmers nationwide when livestock movements are restricted.

Cameo appearances[edit]

Many famous people have made cameo appearances on the programme:

• Princess Margaret and the Duke of Westminster appeared in 1984 in connection with a fashion show to commemorate the centenary of the NSPCC.^[20]
• Dame Judi Dench made an appearance as the (hitherto usually silent) Pru Forrest in 1989 for the 10,000th episode. Terry Wogan was featured and Esther Rantzen was responsible for the sound effects.^[52]
• Radio presenter John Peel appeared as himself in 1991.^[70]
• Gardener Alan Titchmarsh judged Ambridge's entries in the National Gardens Scheme open gardens competition in May 2003.^[71]
• Radio presenter Chris Moyles appeared in June 2004 as a random customer—and suspected National Pub of the Year judge—in The Bull.^[72][73]
• Comedian Griff Rhys Jones appeared as himself in July 2004, when he was drafted into Lynda's campaign to restore the Cat and Fiddle pub.^[74]
• Zandra Rhodes played herself in an episode in September 2006 in connection with a charity fashion show.^[75][76]
• Robert Winston appeared as a fertility specialist consulted by Hayley and Roy Tucker in January^[77] and February 2007.^[78]
• Mike Gatting appeared in September 2007 at the centre of a misunderstanding between Sid and Jolene Perks during the npower Village Cup final at Lord's Cricket Ground.^[79][80]
• Crime novelist Colin Dexter made a cameo in 2010.^[81]
• Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall appeared on 16 February 2011 in connection with the National Osteoporosis Society's 25th anniversary as well as the show's 60th anniversary.
• In 2011, a recording of the show Gardeners' Question Time was followed by a special recording session in which Archers characters, notably Brian Aldridge, took part asking questions of the regular panelists while sitting with the audience.
• Sir Bradley Wiggins appeared in an April 2014 episode, presenting prizes at the Ambridge Sport Relief Rough and Tumble event Challenge.
• Kirstie Allsopp appeared in July 2014 to open the village fete.
• In August, 2014, the Pet Shop Boys were last-minute headliners at the music festival Loxfest.
• Anneka Rice has appeared twice in Ambridge; in March 1993 and in March 2016.
• In September 2016, in an hour-long episode concluding a highly publicised storyline in which Helen Titchener had stabbed her abusive husband Rob, some notable names guest starred as jury members, including Eileen Atkins, Catherine Tate and Nigel Havers.^[82]
• Others who have made appearances include Britt Ekland, Humphrey Lyttelton (1956), Dame Edna Everage and Antony Gormley (2009).

Theme tune[edit]

The theme tune of The Archers is called "Barwick Green" and is a maypole dance from the suite My Native Heath, written in 1924 by the Yorkshire composer Arthur Wood. The Sunday omnibus broadcast of The Archers starts with a more rustic, accordion-arranged rendition by The Yetties.^[83][84] The theme for BBC Radio 4 Extra's The Archers spinoff, Ambridge Extra, is a version arranged by Bellowhead.^[85]

A library music recording of Barwick Green was used for the pilot and during the early years of the national version, because a bid by Godfrey Baseley to have a special theme composed had been turned down on the grounds of cost, put at £250-£300.^[86] However, once the serial had become undeniably established, a new recording of Barwick Green was authorised and performed by the BBC Midland Light Orchestra on 24 March 1954.^[87] This mono recording was also accompanied by four movements entitled "A Village Suite", composed by Kenneth Pakeman to complement Barwick Green. Excerpts from these movements were then used for a time as bridging music between scenes. The 1954 recordings were never made available to the public and their use was restricted even inside the BBC, partly because of an agreement with the Musicians' Union.

In 1992, the theme was re-recorded in stereo, retaining the previous arrangements. The venue was Symphony Hall in Birmingham, the conductor Ron Goodwin, producer David Welsby and the sound mixer Norman McLeod. The slightly different sound mixing and more leisurely tempo reportedly led some listeners to consider the new version inferior, specifically that it lacked "brio", although the BBC publicised the fact that the orchestra contained some of the musicians who had played in the previous recording, including Harold Rich (piano) and Norman Parker (percussion).^{[citation needed]}

Robert Robinson once compared the tune to "the genteel abandon of a lifelong teetotaller who has suddenly taken to drink".^{[citation needed]} On April Fool's Day 2004 both The Independent and The Today Programme claimed that BBC executives had commissioned composer Brian Eno to record an electronic version of "Barwick Green" as a replacement for the current theme,^[88][89] while comedian Billy Connolly included in his act the joke that the theme was so typically British that it should be the national anthem of the United Kingdom.^[90]

In 2009, comedian Rainer Hersch conducted the Philharmonia Orchestra in a performance of the theme, live from the Royal Festival Hall to a listening BBC Radio 3 audience in an attempt to confuse them. He then went on to show how similar it is to "Montagues and Capulets" - "Dance of the Knights" - from Romeo and Juliet by Sergei Prokofiev, claiming that this was a result of Russian spies going through the BBC's rubbish bins looking for the scripts.^[91]

Serious events[edit]

At times, a cliffhanger involving the death of a major character or a disaster was marked by the traditional closing theme being replaced by the final dramatic section of Barwick Green involving trombones, cymbals and the closing bars of the signature tune - known as the "doom music" to some fan groups^[92]. However, this tradition has been dropped more recently, such as the death of Nigel Pargetter when the normal closing music was played despite the gravity of the incident - to the irritation of some followers, who consider the jollity of the normal segment inappropriate in such circumstances^[93].

A brief extract from The Dream of Gerontius was played following the death of Phil Archer. When John Archer died no music was played.

There was a nod to The Archers in the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in London on 27 July 2012, where the theme tune was played at the beginning of a segment celebrating British culture: the sound of a radio could be heard being tuned in as Barwick Green was played.^[94]

Ambridge Extra[edit]

BBC Radio 4 Extra ran an occasional short supplement, Ambridge Extra, between 2011 and 2013, featuring characters away from the Ambridge environs. Series 1 and 2 had 26 episodes and series 3, 4 and 5 had 20. The reason offered for non-renewal was limited resources.^[95]

Fan clubs[edit]

Two organisations dedicated to the programme were established in the 1990s. Archers Addicts was the official body, run by members of the cast. The club had five thousand members^[96] and an online shop where Archers memorabilia was sold under licence. It closed as a club on 31 December 2013 but still has a Facebook page and Twitter feed. Archers Anarchists was formed some time later, objecting to the "castist" assumptions propagated by the BBC, and claiming that the characters are real.

The usenet newsgroup uk.media.radio.archers^[97] (referred to as UMRA by its users, who call themselves umrats) has been running since 1995. Its users include experts on many subjects covered by the programme, such as campanology, many aspects of farming, the running of small businesses, etcetera, and lengthy discussions ensue - as well as light-hearted matters, and plot speculation. Various gatherings occur where umrats come together: the first were a series of about ten annual barbecues^[98] in Reading [the first of which was attended by Carole Boyd (Lynda Snell)], but subsequently at various points around the world. The 'group has at times included participants from various parts of Europe and north and south America. It has nicknames for many of the main Archers characters, such as S'aint for Shula, and Hellen (it also has nicknames for most of its own regular participants)^[99]. Due perhaps to usenet being initially more accessible in academia, the 'group has quite a high academic content, and discussions can thus be quite detailed, though UMRA considers itself to be a friendly and welcoming 'group, where in particular flamewars and the like are not welcome. Despite the general decline of usenet^[100] with the advent of trendier media such as Facebook and Twitter, UMRA remains a very active newsgroup compared to many. Its one-time T-shirts^[101] and mugs bore the legend (in yellow on "Barwick Green", of course) "An everyday story of internet folk."^[102]

Overseas parallels[edit]

In 1994, the BBC World Service in Afghanistan began broadcasting Naway Kor, Naway Jwand ("New Home, New Life"), an everyday story of country folk incorporating pieces of useful information. Although the useful information was more likely to concern unexploded land mines and opium addiction than the latest modern farming techniques, the inspiration and model of Naway Kor, Naway Jwand was The Archers, and the initial workshopping with Afghan writers included an Archers scriptwriter.^[103] A 1997 study found that listeners to the soap opera were significantly less likely to be injured by a mine than non-listeners.^[104]

In Rwanda, the BBC World Service's Rwanda-Rundi service has been broadcasting the Archers-inspired soap opera Urunana ("Hand in Hand") since 1999.^[105][106]

The Archers was also the model for the Russian radio soap opera Dom 7, Podyezd 4 ("House 7, Entrance 4"),^[107] on which the former UK Prime Minister, Tony Blair, once made a cameo appearance.^[108]

The Japanese NHK, offers a "morning drama" (asadora) that runs for 15 minutes from Monday to Saturday on television. This slot was established on radio in the early postwar era and moved to television in 1961. Each series lasts six months, i. e. approximately 150 episodes. All centre on a heroine, usually a young girl facing challenges (usually in Japanese traditional social ways) to realize her dream. Programmes have often been used as vehicles for discussion of matters of social concern, such as the foster-child system, and to celebrate the locales around Japan where the series are set.

Parodies[edit]

Tony Hancock starred in the Galton and Simpson spoof "The Bowmans" in an episode of BBC Television's Hancock's Half Hour.^[109]

Ned Sherrin produced a short 1973 film called The Cobblers of Umbridge. The cast included Joan Sims, Lance Percival, Roy Kinnear, Derek Griffiths and John Fortune.^[110]

John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme has parodied The Archers with its recurring "The Archers Accidentally" sketches;^[111] the sketches claim to portray The Archers the way it sounds to people who only listen to the show inadvertently.

The radio series of Dead Ringers has frequently parodied characters from The Archers, including a special edition.

The subtitle was parodied by Bill Tidy in his long-running cartoon of The Cloggies, "an Everyday Saga in the Life of Clog Dancing Folk", which ran in the satirical magazine Private Eye, and later in The Listener.

Books and audiobooks[edit]

Reference works[edit]

• Forever Ambridge — 25 Years of The Archers (1975) by Norman Painting ASIN B0012UT8XM
• The Book of The Archers (1994) by Patricia Greene, Charles Collingwood and Hedli Niklaus ISBN 0-7181-3849-X
• The Archers: The True Story (1996) by William Smethurst ISBN 1-85833-620-1
• The Archers Encyclopaedia (2001) by Joanna Toye and Adrian Flynn ISBN 0-563-53718-3, published to coincide with the 50th anniversary of The Archers
• Who's Who in The Archers 2008 by Keri Davies. ISBN 1-84607-326-X
• Who's Who in The Archers 2011 by Graham Harvey. ISBN 978-1-849-90015-7
• The Archers Miscellany (2010) by Joanna Toye. ISBN 978-1-84607-754-8
• The Road to Ambridge (2010) by June Spencer. ISBN 978-1-907532-25-2
• The Archers Archives (2010) by Simon Frith & Chris Arnot. ISBN 978-1-84990-013-3
• Borsetshire Life (2011). The county magazine. ISBN 978-1-902685-14-4 see borsetshire-life

Novelisations[edit]

• The Archers by Jock Gallagher
• Ambridge Summer by Keith Miles (1975). ISBN 0-85523-065-7
  • The Archers: To The Victor The Spoils (1988). ISBN 0-563-20599-7
  • The Archers: Return to Ambridge (1988). ISBN 0-563-20606-3
  • The Archers: Borchester Echoes (1988). ISBN 0-563-20607-1
  • The Archers: Omnibus Edition (1988). ISBN 0-563-36001-1
• The Ambridge Chronicles by Joanna Toye
  • The Archers 1951-1967: Family Ties (1998). ISBN 0-563-38397-6
  • The Archers 1968-1986: Looking For Love (1999). ISBN 0-563-55125-9
  • The Archers 1987-2000: Back to the Land (2000). ISBN 0-563-53701-9
  • The Archers 1951-1967: Family Ties (1998, audiobook, narrated by Miriam Margolyes). ISBN 0-563-55714-1
  • The Archers 1968-1986: Looking For Love (1999, audiobook, narrated by Stella Gonet). ISBN 0-563-55813-X
  • The Archers 1987-2000: Back to the Land (2000, audiobook, narrated by Stephanie Cole). ISBN 0-563-55818-0
• In 1975, Tandem published a prequel novel about Ambridge in the early 1900s
  • Spring at Brookfield by Brian Hayles (1975). ISBN 978-0-426-16520-0

Published audio episodes[edit]

• Vintage Archers
  • Vintage Archers: Volume 1 (1988). ISBN 0-563-22586-6
  • Vintage Archers: Volume 2 (1988). ISBN 0-563-22704-4
  • Vintage Archers: Volume 3 (1998). ISBN 0-563-55740-0 (contains several "lost episodes" which have been digitally restored)
  • The Archers: The Wedding Jack and Peggy tie the knot
  • Vintage Archers: Volumes 1-3 (2001). ISBN 0-563-38281-3
• Ambridge Affairs
  • Ambridge Affairs: Love Triangles (2007). ISBN 1-4056-7733-3
  • Ambridge Affairs: Heartache at Home Farm (2007). ISBN 1-4056-8785-1

Maps[edit]

In addition to books and audiobooks, purported maps of Ambridge and Borsetshire have been published.^[112][113]

Documentaries[edit]

An episode of Arena, broadcast on BBC Four on 1 January 2007, focused on The Archers. It was narrated by Stephen Fry and included interviews with current actors and scriptwriters.^[114]

See also[edit]

• List of longest-serving soap opera actors
• List of radio soaps

References[edit]

Further reading[edit]

• Sanderson, Ian (1998) The Archers Anarchists' A - Z. London: Boxtree ISBN 0-7522-2442-5 (the author founded the Archers Anarchists in 1995)

External links[edit]

• Official website
• The Archer Family Tree (unofficial)
• Archers Appreciation Group via Facebook
• Ambridge Addicts Group via Facebook
• Archers Newsgroup via Google Groups