Hello, John. Is there any way of getting copies of these episides? Would be a remarkable addition to the archive. StephenRBeet@gmail.com

I only recently found out about this long running British radio series. Totally amazing & awesome history behind the show. Wish we still had radio programs like this here in the US still running on the airwaves.

Hi Stepehen, do you know if you have any recordings from around 1955-1958 featuring stable girl 'Margaret Hood'? My mum played the character. She's in her 80's now and I'd love to be able to play her a clip!

I found four 12” discs of The Archers from 1966 a few years ago. Just happen to be 16 consecutive episodes.

@@johnfraser7880 Wow. Would you consider tranfering onto CDs,?

​@@johnfraser7880 do you still have these?

You can email me stephenrbeet@gmail.com

Great to hear from you.

Hi, there! I, too, have been listening to this longest-running radio drama for the past two years. I'm glad that there's someone from India listening to The Archers apart from me.

@@sajanpanchkoti3951 Good to know 😊

Thanks. 👍

That woud be 1984. I wasn't recording regularly in the 80's but do have some episodes. I will have a look.

Thank you very much.

It's possible to listen from the erly 1970's

@@StephenRBeet Can you tell me how please? I fondly remember Jill's boozy Christmas cake - when all the family members fed it too much and it ended up highly inflammable! (Also one of the few times I heard Jill lose her temper)

@@CarolNo15 I have many on CD already and am now transferring all the episodes 1974 to 1979 onto CD. I havfe selected episodes already available. StephenRBeet@gmail.com

Every single episode of The Archers exists from 1959 to 1969, due to a discovery made in a BBC warehouse of crates containing transcription recordings that had been returned from abroad.

I certainly have a notion to second THAT emotion !

Well said and well put.

Yes, that's right.

You are welcome.

That's very true: I should have made that clear at the start. I also think the reverse side, which I haven't posted yet, was re-recorded specially in 1959 because the actress laying Peggy is Thelma Rogers.

Actually, it was not a typical episode: just a commercial disc which was put out at the time to promote the programme. In regular episodes, from the 1950's up to the death of Tom Forest about twenty years ago, he used to sing snatches of songs at Ambridge events or in the Bull..

You are right there!

All those old characters gone now except for Peggy and Christine and Jill

@@StephenRBeet yes i am still listening to it.

Most of the BBC archives were wiped in the 70's, as you say, including most of The Archers. Fortunately, they used to broadcast the show to Australia and New Zealand and these were sent out on record for broadcast. One full set was kept by ABC in Australia (I think it was) and that ecently turned up containg most og the late 50's to late 60's.

@@StephenRBeet Thanks for the info. I wonder if they had Mrs Dales Diary as well, at ABC, or just the Archers?

@@alexmckenna1171 Would be worth asking!

Can I just point out that this particular recording was specially produced for a commercial record release, and was never broadcast. The Archers has always been 15 minute episodes, or thereabouts, with exception, of course, of the Sunday omnibus edition. Also, "The Archers" is NOT and never will be "Out Of Copyright", as it remains the property of the BBC and has been so since it began in 1951 !!!!!!

@@thegerryhugheswavelength4469 There is no copyright in a radio broadcast transmitted in the United Kingdom before 1 June 1957, the commencement date of the Copyright Act 1956. Prior to that Act there was no such thing as broadcast copyright in British law. The previous law was contained in the Copyright Act 1911, which was enacted before the invention of broadcasting. The 1956 Act is not retrospective in its effect. A radio broadcast made before 1 July 1957 (the commencement date of the 1956 Act) has no broadcast copyright: Schedule 7 paragraph 17, Copyright Act 1956; and Schedule 1 paragraph 9, Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988. Under the terms of the 1956 Act, broadcast copyright expires 50 years from the end of the year in which it was transmitted: section 14(2), Copyright Act 1956. The 50 year copyright period cannot be extended for such broadcasts. Repeating a broadcast does not extend the period of copyright, whether the repeat is during or after the 50 year copyright period: section 14(3), Copyright Act 1956; and Schedule 1 paragraph 9, Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988.

I should think surprisingly few, I don't believe anyone else recorded extended runs of over four years as I did in the 1970's

@@StephenRBeet eversince the BBC began recording The Archers onto computer as opposed to tape circa 1988, every single episode has been kept and archived as computer audio files. The only reason the programme wasn't archived, save for dramatic or special occasion episodes, before then was because tape was too bulky, costly and there wasn't the archive space for it. ALSO - please note that The Archers remains the copyright of the BBC from 1950 until this very day (23_03_20) it will never be in the Public Domain!!!!

@@thegerryhugheswavelength4469 There is no copyright in a radio broadcast transmitted in the United Kingdom before 1 June 1957, the commencement date of the Copyright Act 1956. Prior to that Act there was no such thing as broadcast copyright in British law. The previous law was contained in the Copyright Act 1911, which was enacted before the invention of broadcasting. The 1956 Act is not retrospective in its effect. A radio broadcast made before 1 July 1957 (the commencement date of the 1956 Act) has no broadcast copyright: Schedule 7 paragraph 17, Copyright Act 1956; and Schedule 1 paragraph 9, Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988. Under the terms of the 1956 Act, broadcast copyright expires 50 years from the end of the year in which it was transmitted: section 14(2), Copyright Act 1956. The 50 year copyright period cannot be extended for such broadcasts. Repeating a broadcast does not extend the period of copyright, whether the repeat is during or after the 50 year copyright period: section 14(3), Copyright Act 1956; and Schedule 1 paragraph 9, Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988.

No, it was a special Christmas recording and not typical of the 15 minute programmes.

Advice to farmers was part of the BBC's remit.

Yes, Alan. I have a CD of 20 songs in full.

Contact me at stephenrbeet@gmail.com

@@StephenRBeet Wonderful, Is it a commercial CD or is it one you have created yourself. I would love to obtain a copy Is it one that I could buy anywhere? I asked the BBC a few years ago and they had nothing

Denis Folwell who played Jack Archer, Dan's son and Phil's brother

Skiffle guitarist Jimmy Grange started work at Brookfield in 1958. Anyone know the actor's name?

I believe he was played by Alan Rothwell who went on to play Ken Barlow's brother David in Coronation Street and also did a stint in Brookside.

Very interesting, thanks.

Yes, message me at StephenRBeet@gmail.com Lots with Tom Forest.

Yes, indeed. All trained singers of the old head tone school

Norman Painting at the piano

@@StephenRBeet Thanks. He was pretty handy on the ivory!! I'd just assumed they would have had some jobbing pianist in. busy chap archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk/search/archives/e7862dc9-891b-3832-b9c8-95876d49a3ee

@@StephenRBeet btw, did you notice my other comment asking if you have any other episodes with Bob Arnold/ others singing?

@@richH1625 Most interesting lin, thanks. The4 Musicians Union prevented his playin for Doris Archer's funeral because he was not a member, threatened to go on strike and caused the BBC to substitute a record on the day of the broadcast. There was quite a lot of national publicity about it. "Abridge Villagers fail to sing Doris to he rst" or some such headline

It was 'An Everyday story of countryfolk'. There was quite a bit of practical advice to farmers in the early episodes

Just put there for you to check. In fact you are incorrect. It's 1970s' "of the 1970s" -genitive plural, if you want to be pedantic! But when you know the rules you can break them.

That was the beauty of it. He was a terribly popular figure in "The Archers". They were caricatures supposed to be just a little larger than life, but based on real country characters of days gone by. There really were people like him about then!

@@StephenRBeet True. Graham Garden did his Walter impression on I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again into the 1970s. I preferred his son, Nelson Gabriel (Jack May) who sounded nothing like him (thank God!)