All About The Archers

The wonderful Sunny Ormonde, who plays our beloved Lilian Bellamy, is back with Philippa for the first of two episodes.

In this episode

• How Sunny would describe Lilian to brand new listeners, and what long-time fans might have missed
• How losing Peggy and Jennifer has turned Lilian into the family matriarch
• The weight of Brian’s secret, and whether Sunny peeked in the whodunnit envelope
• Team Alan or team Anna?
• Lilian and Ruth’s cooking, and why Philippa is worried about inheritance tax
• Matt Crawford, Paul Morgan, and the voice chemistry that brought Lilian and Justin together
• Behind the scenes of The Archers live tour with Angela Barnes
• Sunny’s strong feelings about the BBC’s plans for the Birmingham studios
• Sunny’s hopes for Lilian, and her Star and Twit of the week

Links

• Sign the petition to keep The Archers together: https://www.change.org/p/keep-the-archers-in-birmingham
• Watch on Apple Podcasts: All About The Archers on Apple Podcasts
• Join our Facebook group: All About The Archers Facebook group
• All our links: linktr.ee/AllAboutTheArchers

Topics covered: Lilian, Jennifer, Peggy, Jack, Alice, Justin, Brian, Adam, Kate, Rory, Lily, Harrison, Alan, Anna, Neil, Elizabeth, Vince, Ruth, Matt Crawford, Paul Morgan, Christine, James, Mungo

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Philippa is on her own one last time this week. Katie is back next Tuesday and every week after that. So get yourself a cuppa and pull up a chair, because we need to chat.

This week in Ambridge

Harrison is not reading the room, the house or the village. There’s the dishwasher, the milk and the Chardonnay, and that very awkward evening with Fallon. Meanwhile Lily is parenting everyone. Elizabeth is struggling, and Philippa thinks it’s time to send counsellors door to door across Ambridge.

Freddie brings back his school meals idea. We recap what went wrong in 2025 and ask whether he has learned from it, as the consignments at Casey Meats start to back up.

Lynda puts her foot in it with Alan, who could really just Google himself. The flower arrangers’ rota WhatsApp group is busier than ever. Martyn talks to Lynda about agility equipment, sand pits and swimming pools for dogs. Neil is happy to take redundancy, but what does that mean for Hannah and Jazzer?

Your questions

How bad is the meat situation going to get? Would you have called Vince in hospital about the business? Is the dog field worth the money? And who is your star and your twit of the week? Please disagree with Philippa. She loves it when you do.

Coming up

Philippa’s interview with Sunny Ormonde, who plays Lilian, is out this weekend. Part two, with your questions from the Facebook group, follows two weeks later.

Find us

• Watch on Apple Podcasts: All About The Archers
• Join the conversation: All About The Archers Facebook group
• All our links: linktr.ee/AllAboutTheArchers

Topics covered: Harrison, Lily, Fallon, Elizabeth, Vince, Usha, Freddie, Donal, Ian, Alan, Lynda Snell, Martyn Gibson, Neil, Jazzer, Hannah, Tracy, Helen, Lilian

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rumours are flying and I’ve been checking the receipts. It’s just me this week, so get yourself a cuppa and pull up a chair. I’m going through everything in The Archers from Sunday to Tuesday 3rd November, and I want to hear where you think I’ve got it wrong.

Your questions

• How many people do you think Tracy has told?
• Why is Usha not thinking like a lawyer?
• Why hasn’t Alan gone through the events in his mind?
• Will the title deeds show Helen has to pay?
• Who is your star of the week, and who is your twit of the week?

Tell me what you think on our Facebook group.

News

• Tomorrow we’re announcing our next cast interview on the Facebook group, and you can post your questions for it there.
• Quentin’s episode last week was his last one. Thank you, Q, for all the fun and your years of service, and have a very happy retirement.
• Katie booked this week and next week off a while ago, and she’ll be back in two weeks.

Watch this episode on Apple Podcasts: Watch here

Topics covered: Alistair, Lily, Fallon, Alan, Harrison, Elizabeth, Vince, Anna, Carol, Usha, Helen, Jazza, Tracy, Susan, Neil

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on All About The Archers

Philippa is joined by Quentin, also known tonight as Gale Force Wind, to talk about events in Ambridge from Sunday 25th to Tuesday 27th October.

The missing booking

Rex turns out to be a hopeless liar, and Helen gets the truth out of him straight away. Did Kirsty’s paperwork slip really matter if there was still time to book the survey? And why, of all people, did it have to be Helen who found out? Meanwhile Martyn Gibson worries about Brookfield being sued by Vince, and Beth is already asking about the paperwork.

Keira and George

Keira is still trying to skip school, and “can’t face anybody” suggests something more is going on. Is George looking out for his sister, or is this a hint of the old George returning?

The baby’s name

The Grundys have named the baby. Neither host is convinced. Also: Eddie’s alternative names, Ed’s “Bruiser”, and Quentin’s idea of Helen as the human dehydrator for the apple-themed Bonfire Night.

Elizabeth, Azra and Zainab

Was Elizabeth’s car journey with David strangely calm? Azra is sharp as always, and hearing her say “Mrs Pargetter” catches Philippa off guard. Zainab gets her thank-you flowers.

Monday’s episode

Akram has a crunchy breakfast. Beyond that, the hosts praise Sean McKenna’s script for the Malik family’s conversation about Zainab joining the police. It is calm, plausible, and confronts the concerns about racism directly. Quentin also asks how much the family defers to Akram.

And finally

Ed and the business side of things, and the news that Vince may not walk again. Will it turn into a legal battle, or will a little Ambridge magic come to the rescue?

Watch on Apple Podcasts: All About The Archers on Apple Podcasts

Topics covered: Rex, Kirsty, Helen, Martyn Gibson, Vince, Beth, Keira, George, Emma, Ed, Eddie, Amber, Elizabeth, David, Lily, Azra, Akram, Zainab

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Angela Barnes, comedian, Archers superfan and host of The Archers Live at 75, is back with Philippa, Katie and Quentin, and this time you are asking the questions. Thank you to everyone in the Facebook group who sent one in.

If you missed part one, do go back and listen to it first, not least for the backstory Charlotte Martin has invented to get Angela into the Horrobin family.

Watch this episode

This episode is also available as video on Apple Podcasts: Watch All About The Archers on Apple Podcasts

In this episode

• The friends who message Angela the moment something big happens in Ambridge
• Why she listens every day at bedtime, and her advice for omnibus listeners
• Whether touring with the cast has changed how she pictures the characters
• Charles Collingwood and the nightly boos (with Quentin, the lone Brian apologist, cheering)
• The Ambridge family she would most like to join
• Her verdict on Sykesy's comedy
• The first storyline that gripped her, the one that made a real difference, and why she will always love a Flower and Produce Show
• Which cast members and famous faces have been in the audience
• Whether seeing the actors spoils the pictures in your head
• Archers audiences summed up: "it's not a cult, but it sort of is"
• What she learned on tour about how the programme is made, including the studio sofa bed
• Why Jazzer sings a different song at every show
• Who she would take on Race Across the World

One for the Facebook group

Liz asked which song Ryan Kelly sang at Bexhill on 11 September. Angela has promised to ask him, and we will post the answer in the Facebook group if he can remember.

Topics covered: Lynda Snell, Susan Carter, Tracy Horrobin, Brian Aldridge, Siobhan, Sykesy, Jakob, Helen, Kate, Jolene, Harrison, Lilian, Jill, Jazzer, Rex, Ben, Tom Archer, the Grundys, the Horrobins

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Katie and Philippa look back at events in Ambridge from Sunday 18 to Tuesday 20 October, and somehow it is still Sunday. The storm everyone was warned about has arrived in full force, and we are, in Katie’s words, shook.

We start with the most horrifying thing of all: crème brûlée and tarte tatin as the full range of wedding puddings. Then the real question. With a forecast like that and a venue owned by the family, why didn’t anyone just postpone?

Watch this episode

This episode is also available as video on Apple Podcasts: Watch All About The Archers on Apple Podcasts

In this episode

• Wedding puddings, and why Elizabeth could have called it off
• Chelsea, Vince and Josh in the forest, and a heart-wrenching episode
• A warm welcome to Sam Wilkinson, our new Josh
• Did David have one champagne too many, and could he drive any slower?
• A commanding Harrison, and Zainab and the Orangery
• Pip and Stella: drop the dance, read the room
• Eddie and Clarrie’s turkeys, and whether they all wore seatbelts
• Why does nobody in Ambridge answer their phone?
• Could this be Freddie’s moment, at Casey Meats or Lower Loxley?
• The brilliant sound design contrasting the storm with the warmth of the wedding
• Star of the Week, Twit of the Week and predictions, including weather researchers descending on Ambridge

How you can help

Thank you for all the love for our emergency episode with Susie Riddell, Annabelle Dowler and Andrew Wincott. If you haven’t heard it yet, do go back and listen or watch. Please sign the petition to keep The Archers in Birmingham: Keep The Archers in Birmingham

Coming up

Part two of our interview with Angela Barnes, answering your questions from the Facebook group, is out this weekend. We’re back next Tuesday with more from Ambridge.

Topics covered: Chelsea, Vince, Josh, Elizabeth, David, Freddie, Lily, Harrison, Zainab, Khalil, Keira, Henry, Pip, Stella, Ruth, Ben, Anna, Alan, Eddie, Clarrie

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

An emergency episode. Following the news that The Archers will no longer have its planned new studio in Birmingham, Philippa is joined by three of the cast: Susie Riddell, who plays Tracy Horrobin, Annabelle Dowler, who plays Kirsty Miller, and Andrew Wincott, who plays Adam Macy.

They explain what has happened, why recording the programme away from its production team would change The Archers as we know it, and what the decision could mean for Birmingham and the West Midlands. Most importantly, they tell us what we as listeners can do to help.

Watch this episode

This episode is also available as video on Apple Podcasts: Watch All About The Archers on Apple Podcasts

In this episode

• What has happened, and why the cast found out by email
• Why the actors and the production team need to be in the same building
• How the studio works, from the dead room to the sofa that turns into a bed
• Making six episodes a week, 52 weeks a year
• The wider impact on jobs, training and young talent in the Midlands
• What the studio could be used for on the days The Archers isn’t recording
• Why the cast believe the move would be a false economy
• Would EastEnders ever be moved to Liverpool?
• The solidarity of the cast, past and present
• What listeners can do to help
• And finally, Adam, Tracy and Kirsty together at last

How you can help

The cast are asking listeners to make their feelings known. Write to your MP, especially if you live in the Midlands. Write to the BBC. And share your support on social media. As Andrew says, the battle is not lost.

Topics covered: Tracy Horrobin, Kirsty Miller, Adam Macy, Debbie Aldridge

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Philippa, Katie and Quentin are back with everything that’s happened in Ambridge from Sunday 11 to Tuesday 13 October, and we are all, by our own admission, a little bit grumpy.

Freddie divides the team straight away. Katie has not missed the whining, Quentin thinks Vince is right, and Philippa is firmly Team Freddie and has some words for Elizabeth. Philippa then gets the Josh situation off her chest, while Quentin finds himself siding with him for once.

Watch this episode

This episode is also available as video on Apple Podcasts: Watch All About The Archers on Apple Podcasts

In this episode

• Is Freddie ready to take on Lower Loxley, and is Elizabeth helping?
• Josh, the wedding and South America
• Happy 16th birthday to Khalil, plus Keira’s half-term tuition
• Why did Khalil walk off, and who has told Henry what?
• Azra and Ruth are friends again
• Usha calms Anna down, and the question of one transaction or two
• A Facebook group member’s 50p birthday present
• Quentin’s complaint about Sunday’s farming lessons
• Brian’s best line, Tom’s greenhouse and poor Alistair and the vet bills
• Unicorns, a first dance with the cows, and whose wedding is it anyway?
• Stars (and hugs) of the Week, and Twits of the Week, including Philippa breaking the fourth wall
• Predictions, featuring a three-hour Wizard of Oz special and some positive manifesting

Coming up

Thank you for all your lovely comments on our interview with Angela Barnes. Part two, with your questions from the Facebook group, follows a week on Saturday, and we’re back next Tuesday with more from Ambridge.

Topics covered: Freddie, Elizabeth, Vince, Lily, Harrison, Fallon, Josh, Pip, Rosie, Khalil, Keira, Eddie, Henry, Azra, Ruth, Usha, Anna, Alan, Brian, Tom, Helen, Alistair, Stella, Shula, David

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Philippa, Katie and Quentin are joined by comedian, Archers superfan and host of The Archers Live at 75, Angela Barnes.

Angela tells us what it is really like touring the country in a minibus she has christened the Archers Omnibus, including the Sunday morning when Charles Collingwood asked the driver to put Radio 4 on. She also explains why this is the first job she has ever had without imposter syndrome & the only one where she cried when she got it and who would win The Traitors.

Watch this episode

This episode is also available as video on Apple Podcasts: Watch All About The Archers on Apple Podcasts

In this episode

• Flower or Produce: does Angela have a favourite cast?
• The two "tester" jokes that tell her how the night is going to go
• Why she cut most of the tech from the show, and what audiences have made of the QR code
• Vanessa's sound effects, the gasps from the audience, and whether seeing behind the scenes spoils the magic
• Tour gossip, with Ben Norris firmly under the Archers Omnibus
• Angela's "audition" for Jeremy Howe, and the backstory Charlotte Martin has invented for her as a long-lost Horrobin
• Her Star and Twit of the Week
• The Ambridge neighbours she would choose, and the one who would send her straight to Darrington
• Who she would take to the Edinburgh Fringe, and who is the funniest character in Ambridge
• How she got hooked on The Archers as a student in the mid 90s
• An Ambridge Grand Prix, what colour The Archers is, and who she would want in a Cold War bunker
• Who would make the best Traitor in Ambridge
• And, most importantly, her biscuit of choice

Coming up

Angela is back with us in two weeks to answer your questions from the Facebook group.

Topics covered: Brian Aldridge, Adam, Xander, Joy Horville, Tracy Horrobin, Jazzer, Helen Archer, Susan Carter, Bert Horrobin, Jakob, Leonard, Ben Archer, Lilian, Lynda Snell, Robert Snell, Sabrina Thwaite, Mandy Beesborough, Amber. The Traitors.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Philippa and Quentin look back at events in Ambridge from Sunday 4 October to Tuesday 6 October 2026.

Quentin cannot get over a £400 bill for cleaning a cat's teeth, while Philippa points out that someone has to pay for the new anaesthetic monitoring system. Alistair insists there is nothing to worry about at the practice.

Philippa has written in capitals that he should be worried. On the bright side, he may have found his marketing slogan: "We're not AI vet bots." Anna is bereft and full of praise for Alan, and we both have the same note about where that might be heading. Quentin gives full marks to the writing in Alan's conversation with Anna about why people so often slip away when nobody is in the room. Sunday's word was awkward. Harrison and Lily, Fallon and Grant, and a round of spicy margaritas that neither of us has ever tried.

Was Fallon proving a point, or simply allowed a bit of fun? We do not agree. We also disagree about whether Vince was firing a warning shot or handling things beautifully. Then there is Keira's toothache, Clarrie's miraculous 10am emergency dental appointment and Eddie's diagnosis of adolescent molar shift. Quentin thinks it is wrong on at least four levels. Philippa thinks something is going on and wants Eddie to find out what. Amber has a visit from the health visitor and takes the baby to see her mum, and we look ahead to the Grundy cider wetting of the baby's head.

Plus the brilliant baby name suggestions in our Facebook group, a welcome mention of the word biscuit, our Stars and Twits of the Week, and predictions involving a Porsche. This week's episodes were written by Sarah Hehir. Coming up: if all goes well, our interview with Angela Barnes, host of The Archers Live at 75 events, will be out this weekend.

Listen and watch here: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/all-about-the-archers/id1706526260

Topics covered: Alistair, Paul, Denise, Shula, Anna, Alan, Carol, Harrison, Lily, Fallon, Grant, Conrad, Vince, Beth, Ben, Keira, Clarrie, Eddie, George, Brad, Amber, Anne-Marie

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.