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Borsetshire is a fictional county in the BBC Radio 4 series The Archers . Its county town is the equally fictional Borchester. The county is supposedly set between Worcestershire and Warwickshire, but is also intended as a generic West Midlands rural county. Its name also echoes Anthony Trollope's fictional Barsetshire [1] and the real Dorsetshire.
Other places in the county include Ambridge, where The Archers is mainly set, Lower Loxley, a nearby village and Felpersham, a cathedral city which appears to be larger than Borchester. Ambridge is on the B3980 six miles south of Borchester and seventeen miles west of Felpersham. Ambridge lies in the valley of the River Am below Lakey Hill from which the (real-life) Malvern Hills may be seen in fine weather. [2]
Felpersham is probably the largest settlement in the fictional county of Borsetshire. [3] Felpersham is known to be the seat of a Church of England diocese, a university, [4] and department stores. Unlike the county town, Borchester, Felpersham has city status. In having a cathedral but not being the county town it can perhaps be compared to Lichfield or St Albans.
The BBC map of Borsetshire shows most road numbers beginning with "1", which would place it in East Anglia, although some roads begin with "4" (appropriate to its apparent location in the West Midlands), "3", which would place it in the West Country, and even "9", which would place it in north-east Scotland. Fictional rivers in the county include the River Mercer, the River Perch and the River Am. There is also a fictional Felpersham Canal. There are railway stations at Felpersham, and at Hollerton Junction (nearer to Ambridge).
The Borchester Echo is the local newspaper published at Borchester. Radio Borsetshire is a local radio station. [5] Borsetshire Blue is the name of a fictional cheese made by Helen Archer in the programme. [6]
Worcestershire is a county in the West Midlands of England.
The Archers is a BBC radio drama on BBC Radio 4, their main spoken-word channel. Broadcast since 1951, it was initially billed as "an everyday story of country folk" and is now promoted as "a contemporary drama in a rural setting". Having aired over 19,500 episodes, it is the world's longest-running drama by number of episodes, and will become so by duration in 2023.
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands County and Worcestershire to the south, and Shropshire to the west.
Daventry is a market town and civil parish in the West Northamptonshire unitary authority in Northamptonshire, England, close to the border with Warwickshire. At the 2011 Census Daventry had a population of 25,026, making it the sixth largest town in Northamptonshire.
Bridport is a market town in Dorset, England, 1.5 miles (2.4 km) inland from the English Channel near the confluence of the River Brit and its tributary the Asker. Its origins are Saxon and it has a long history as a rope-making centre. On the coast and within the town's boundary is West Bay, a small fishing harbour also known as Bridport Harbour.
Halesowen is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, in the county of West Midlands, England. It is considered one of the largest towns in the United Kingdom without a railway station.
BBC Radio Leicester is the BBC's local radio station serving the counties of Leicestershire and Rutland.
BBC Radio Nottingham is the BBC's local radio station serving the county of Nottinghamshire.
BBC Radio Stoke is the BBC's local radio station serving Staffordshire and South Cheshire.
BBC CWR is the BBC's local radio station serving Coventry and Warwickshire.
BBC Midlands is the BBC English Region producing local radio and web content for Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, the West Midlands, and Worcestershire. Although the region has been unofficially called BBC West Midlands since BBC East Midlands became a separate region in 1991, it retains the BBC Midlands name and brand, with its history dating from 1927, for public use.
Barsetshire is a fictional English county created by Anthony Trollope in the series of novels known as the Chronicles of Barsetshire. The county town and cathedral city is Barchester. Other towns in the novels include Silverbridge, Hogglestock and Greshamsbury.
Borchester is a fictional town in the BBC Radio 4 radio series The Archers. It is the county town of the fictional county of Borsetshire. According to series tradition it is located 6 miles north-east of Ambridge in the Am Vale and is a historic market and wool town. These typically English country-town features are complemented by more modern additions, such as Underwoods, Jaxx bar, which was previously a café both managed by Kenton Archer, and Ambridge Organics, the shop run by Helen Archer, who also makes the Borsetshire Blue cheese sold in Underwoods.
The A422 is an "A" road for east–west journeys in south central England, connecting the county towns of Bedford and Worcester by way of Milton Keynes, Buckingham, Banbury and Stratford-upon-Avon. For most of its length, it is a narrow single carriageway.
BBC East Midlands is the BBC English Region covering Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire, Rutland, southern parts of South Kesteven in Lincolnshire and some northern parts of Northamptonshire.
Elmbridge is a small community, mainly clustered in a village and forms a civil parish in Worcestershire, England.
Margaret "Peggy" Woolley, is a fictional character from the BBC Radio 4 soap opera The Archers. Portrayed by June Spencer for over 60 years, Peggy has served as the core family's – and by extension, the village's – matriarch. Spencer is of 2022 the only remaining member of the original cast.
Shula Hebden-Lloyd is a fictional character from the British BBC Radio 4 soap opera, The Archers. The character was introduced as the eldest daughter of Phil Archer and Jill Archer in 1958. Shula has been portrayed by Liverpudlian actress Judy Bennett since 1971. As of 2021, Bennett has played the role for 51 years, making her one of the longest-serving soap opera actors in the world.
Mike Tucker is a fictional character from the British BBC Radio 4 soap opera The Archers. Described upon his introduction in 1973 as "the Milkman from Hell", Mike has developed over five decades to become a family man whose grumpy demeanour and gruff attitude won favour with listeners. Radio and television actor Terry Molloy was cast in 1973 by producer Tony Shryane and stayed for four years until leaving the show in 1977, only to return in 1983. He has remained on the show for 40 years, making Molloy one of the longest-serving soap opera actors in the world.