Tom Steele is only partly correct in his claim that agricultural workers have been woefully misrepresented on The Archers (Letters, 10 October). One of the earliest main characters, Len Thomas, Dan Archer’s cowman, was an active trade unionist; his wife Mary had strong pro-Labour views. Later, Mike Tucker in his early days was also active in the union. In terms of wider radicalism, Pat Archer was involved in the Greenham protests and was a keen feminist. Admittedly, radicalism in The Archers has been more or less absent in recent years: but then so has it in rural England, however regrettable that might be. (Just look at the electoral patterns of rural voting.) Now that we have a welcome rejuvenation of socialism following the rise of Jeremy Corbyn and the progressive movement generated, perhaps it is time for a new prominence for radical ideas in Ambridge?
Richard Taylor
Pooley Bridge, Cumbria
