The Archers: Why the World's Oldest Continuous Drama is as Comforting as Ever
The Da-Da-Da-Dum-Dum of The Archers' opening music will be instantly recognisable to many Brits, even if they've never listened to an episode. The memorable tune has found its way onto Chicken Run and was even represented in the 2012 London Olympics. The radio show celebrates its 70th anniversary on New Years Day, marking an almost constant stream of stories from Ambridge. The Archers is a simple contemporary drama of country folk. It has become a regular stalwart in so many homes across the UK, and is one of the most downloaded radio programmes on BBC Sounds and boasts over five million listeners.
The radio soap has been on our airwaves since 1951, and was initially created to educate farmers after WWII. Since its first broadcast, it quickly morphed into a classic loved by rural and city folk alike. Set in the fictional village of Ambridge, the show follows the eponymous Archer farming family and their neighbours. The Archers isn't a tale of the landed gentry. Instead, it's an interwoven mass of tales from different characters with different backgrounds, ranging from the hapless Grundys who are always cooking up a money spinning scheme to Kenton and Jolene who run the village pub, The Bull. The Archers perfectly weaves together comic plotlines alongside the dramatic, creating some of the best regular programming on the air.
In a year full of anguished stillness, a trend has risen from TikTok and Instagram, cottagecore. Young people now yearn for the countryside and an escape from the drudgery of the stressful 9-5 and city life. They want to collect apples from the orchard and slice them into a pie filling. They want to wander through the meadows with their wellies slick with morning dew. I grew up in the countryside. Although I've always been sceptical about townies dreaming of becoming farmers, it's easy to understand cottagecore's popularity. It is an idealised escape into a kitchen with an AGA range, while a pan of jam bubbles gently on the stove. While cottagecore is mostly based on a particular aesthetic of milkmaid braids, long Laura Ashley dresses and pinnies, there has also been an increased interest in twee films and books. While Studio Ghibli and Anne of Green Gables were mentioned continuously, the most apparent cottagecore media – The Archers – never came up once. There is a regular mundanity that would appeal to those Gen Z entranced by cottagecore.
The Archers' plotlines whirl around the flow of the seasons, and many episodes are full of bird-watching, baking, and arts and crafts. Jill Archer was last seen stirring mincemeat. Yet while the coming and going of the seasons and the gentleness of The Archers is a large proponent of its appeal, it is still a drama. The storylines seem to develop in real-time. The two major storylines currently are the human trafficking ring, run by the seemingly respectable builder, Philip Moss, and pregnant Alice Carter's struggles with alcohol. While the first plotline has been mentioned since March, Alice's alcohol dependency has been hinted at for years. The mix of the hum-drum reality of rural life and the occasional explosive plotlines confirms that although The Archers is a slice of the good life, The Archers feels incredibly real.
I've been an on-off listener for ten years, a full-blown Archers addict for at least five. By this point, I think I've signed a life-long contract for The Archers. When the clock chimes 19:03, the race for the radio on button (or the BBC Sounds App) is the daily ritual. Before lockdown struck, the show was on every day apart from Saturday. Even then, on a Saturday evening you'd turn on the radio, and you'd be sorely disappointed that your ears weren't met by the rum-ti-tum of the Barwick Green. During the first lockdown in March, The Archers rapidly ran out of pre-recorded episodes. By April, there was silence on BBC Radio 4. What had been a constant for years was suddenly gone. For the first time in its seventy-year history, the show had momentarily paused. Without the pull of The Archers, it was easy to feel adrift. The show came back – first with monologues recorded at the cast members homes, and now the episodes are almost back like normal – even though The Archers' week has lost two episodes. The show has always been a constant to lift my spirits. Since it isn't on TV, it's one of the few British soaps that you can access abroad. While I lived in Germany, the show became an anchor to my home country, while I grappled with the fuzz of my second language burrowing in my brain and new rules and traditions that I had to suddenly get used to. Even when the culture shock eased off, The Archers was a welcome ritual. Every phone call with my mum began with the words "have you caught up with The Archers?". To put it plainly, The Archers for me is as comforting as tea and toast.
I've talked to a lot of people about starting to listen to the show and the real barrier for many non-listeners is the longevitity of the show. I have heard so many cries in terror when people realise how long the show has been going on for. There are almost 20,000 episodes. People get frantic, believing that they have to start from the beginning, or how would they know anyone? How would they know what's going on? The answer is: you just jump right in. It might seem overwhelming with its Game of Thrones level of backstory and endless related characters, but even I forget characters names or what they've done in the past. The Archers is made for the present, even though it’s easy to assume that anything rural and comforting might be associated with the word "old-fashioned". It's not essential to understand all the events in detail. The relaxed nature of the show makes it easy to just start listening. Still, it's always more exciting and easier to get into if something suitably dramatic is happening. With the 70th anniversary episode on New Years Day, that might be the best place to start.
While there is a youthwide yearning for rural life's comforts, it would be impossible to leave out The Archers. Everyone talks about starting some new habits in January. Eating healthy, working out, drinking less alcohol, the list goes on. But, this is one of the simplest habits to get into. You'll soon welcome Ambridge like it's your home away from home, and the cast like old friends, and you'll feel your soul lift and become lighter too.
Written by Lucy Clarke
Lucy Clarke is studying her Masters at Edinburgh University, and an avid film lover and writer. When she’s not watching or writing about film, you can find her attempting to become Nigella Lawson by baking another banana bread or singing Eurovision classics. You can find her blog here: lucyatthepictures.com and you can also find out what she’s up to on her twitter