Ambridge Extras

[mikey4444]

Is anyone else find the current storyline with Matt in Russia even remotely believable ? Matt is a hard-bitten businessman and yet he gives a lot of money to a complete stranger in a foreign country ?

And how are we supposed to know what the heck is going on if so much of the dialogue is in Russian ?

Am I right in suspecting that Brenda's "love affair" with the Russian chap is somehow linked to Matt's problems ?

[Pooka1950]

I have been thinking exactly the same thing mikey. Surely Matt is too savvy to fall for such a trick, wouldn't he have employed a translator to go along with him to ensure that everything was above board? And yes, the Russian dialogue is so frustrating! As for Brenda's "hunk" he is too good to be true, it is bound to end in tears. I wouldn't be surprised if he turned out to be Vitaly's brother or one of his "gang" and just there to distract Bren.

[mikey4444]

My thoughts exactly Pooka.

I have enjoyed all the previous Ambridge Extras but this one is just frustrating. The Menage a trois of Matt. Lillian and Dopey Paul was building up nicely and then ended, not with a bang but a whimper in Montenegro. It so disappointing that the writers have chosen this faintly ridiculous Russian storyline. I am surprised that there hasn't been more complaints about the use of long periods of the Russian language.

Still, even a bad Archers script is better than most of the juvenile rubbish that is on the Telly at the moment !

[Pooka1950]

Agreed. I have listened to the Archers for some years on and off but this storline has been my first foray into Ambridge Extra. It seems strange to me that all this "excitement" is going on outside of the main prog when all we have happening on the Archers is the predictable Helen/Rob storyline (who didn't see that coming!) and blasted Pipp who does my head in. The end of the Lil/Matt/Paul storyline was such a disappointment after weeks of build-up, I was expecting fireworks but it just fizzled out into nothing.

[mikey4444]

I'd like to predict a further story development in Ambridge. Cathy is getting increasingly frustrated about working at the Golf Club, and Caroline needs to get away, permanently, from Grey Gables, unless she wants to see her hubbie stalk off over the horizon.

Match the two up .............. !

[dubsie]

So agree with both of you! Have listened to the Archers since childhood and am constantly annoyed by the sheer stupidity of some of the characters especially some of the men! Re Lilian/Paul- what happened to his mobile phone when he died? Wouldn't his daughter have checked through his messages and picked up Lilian's many voice messages? Or did no one in Felpersham council check the CCTV from the car park when Paul was 'mugged' and rescued by Tom and wouldn't Tom have mentioned it to someone?

[Pooka1950]

Dubsie maybe Paul's daughter *did* check his phone, but her parents were separated and so why should she care about messages from his girlfriend? Matt and Lil are not married after all so what would be the point of her confronting Lil unless, of course, she thought that the affair really did contribute to her father's death?
Mikey I think you are right about Cathy going to Grey Gables. For more "drama" (yawn) don't you think that Helen will be pregnant with Rob's baby? He seems very keen on children and his mysterious wife seems more of a career woman than a motherly type.

[sunny-dave]

I agree about Helen - pregnant by Michaelmas and endless agonising when yet another unsuitable impregnator (is that a word?) is revealed to the long-suffering PatandTony.

Pip gets worse - I think Mikey and I have already agreed that the only answer is "a good slap".

Has anyone seen/heard Joe recently, or has the Farmers Lung carried him off to the Choir Invisibule and no-one has noticed?

[SeaJayPea]

Can't listen to it any more. Anybody with anything to do with commerce is automatically a crook, all the women are really positive and all the men have become wet. They obviously don't check up on what the characters were like in earlier episodes, just get an idea then bung it in.

And somebody has the job of 'Agricultural Story Editor'. If ever there was a redundant job, that's it. Nobody appears to have done any farming for about 15 years! Eastenders without the pictures these days.

[Pooka1950]

It had not dawned on me before but you are right, all the strong characters do seem to be women nowadays. Caroline running GG (who gets all that time off with shingles?) with the help of Linda (where is Robert?) Jolene at The Bull, mad Helen and her blasted cheese and "how will we manage without Pip?" And who cares about Nic and her cramp - the list goes on. Meanwhile Kenton's get up and go has got up and gone and Tom just comes over as a pathetic wimp.

[mikey4444]

I think Linda Snell could manage Grey Gables, The Bull and the blo0dy Golf Club single-handed if she was allowed to !

More Linda please and less whiny Helen, Tom and both Grundey brothers' partners !

And while we are at it, isn't about time that Brian got his leg over again ? It seems a very long time since his last affair. Perhaps he's getting too old for rumpy-pumpy !

[grasscarp]

This has whetted my appetite. I am learning Russian so will see if I can listen to some episodes.

[WyeDyed]

I'm a bit confused with the Russian Plot, it's all getting a bit convoluted and, I agree, Matt is acting out of character; I don't believe that he would be suckered in like that.
As for the rest, I quite like the thought of Cathy going to GG but what is this Golf Club chappie up to? He put his lunch and bar bill on a tab on their first meeting, there's more to come from that plot...

[Pooka1950]

Grasscarp if you do will you *please* let us know what is going on? I am sure it is something really dodgy!

[Pooka1950]

I think the golf club chap is definitely up to no good. At first I thought. he was picking Cathy's brains ready to set up in his own establishment - maybe he is planning to buy the golf club and kick Cathy out once she has done all this extra work for him. Then she can go to GG!

[mikey4444]

I think that this chap is going to come an awful cropper, with his tab behind the bar, and Cathy will get in to trouble for it !

[Pooka1950]

Good point. I think she is being a bit gullible about the whole business. As far as I remember she only has this chap's word for it that he is on committee business. Does she have anything in writing?