The Archers - Themes

Themes

A recurring theme has been the resentment of the working-class Grundy family towards the middle-class Archers. Labour politician Neil Kinnock in the 1980s jokingly called for The Archers to be retitled "The Grundys and their Oppressors". The series, however, now deals with a wide range of contemporary issues including illicit affairs, drug abuse, rape, and civil partnerships, inviting criticism from conservative commentators such as Peter Hitchens 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, competitive marmalade-making, or nonsense such as a 'spile troshing' competition, rather than the large-scale and improbable events that form the plots of many soap operas. However, there are some dramatic storylines, such as the rape of Kathy Perks, and, more recently, a storyline involving David Archer's family being threatened by a gang of farm thieves.

Sometimes mocked as a comfortable middle-class series with stereotypical comic yokels, the programme has nonetheless tackled many serious social issues. There have been, for instance: rural drug addiction; inter-racial relationships; direct action against genetically modified crops and badger culling; family break-ups; and civil partnerships.

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 announcements from the Ministry of Agriculture, one actor reading an announcement almost verbatim to another. More recently 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.