Ruth Archer

In her fictional backstory, Ruth was born on 16 June 1968 to Solly (Richard Griffiths) and Heather Pritchard (Joyce Gibbs; Margaret Jackman). She was raised in Prudhoe, Northumberland.[6][7] Ruth worked on an Israeli kibbutz for a year, prior to her acceptance onto an agricultural course at Harper Adams University College.[7][8] She then applied for a year's work experience at Brookfield Farm and she was hired by Phil Archer (Norman Painting).[8] Smethurst wrote that Ruth stood out among many of the other female characters at the time of her introduction, as she was a New Woman, a feminist and a farmer.[2] Her favourite style is a pair of jeans and a T-shirt.[7] Upon her arrival in Ambridge, Ruth felt like an outsider. This was not helped by David's attitude towards her being an unskilled woman and her landlady's nosy demeanour.[6] Ruth's "dedication and willingness" eventually won David round and he came to appreciate her.[8]

Speaking to the BBC, Finch said Ruth "is strong willed, determined and pretty direct in her approach to life and people in general."[3] Finch explained having breast cancer mellowed Ruth and instead of fighting her corner, she is quite likely to negotiate instead.[3] Finch added her character appreciates life day to day.[3] Robert Hanks writing for The Independent described Ruth as The Archers' "matriarch-in-waiting" and said she is "a family lynchpin – loyal wife, loving mother, and handy in the milking-shed when called on."[9] Simon Frith and Chris Arnot, authors of The Archers Archives, opined Ruth is not a stereotypical farmer's wife.[10] They said "Ruth is more likely to have her hand in a rubber glove rather than an oven glove – thrust up the back end of a Friesian rather than delving into an Aga and emerging with something wholesome for supper."[10]

Ruth is married to David Archer, played by Timothy Bentinck (pictured).

Ruth's marriage to David is central to her character. Finch explained that it took Ruth a while to see that there were good qualities in David, as his initial behaviour towards her was unpleasant. Finch called David "a sexist pig" and said he resented Ruth's presence almost immediately.[11] However, Ruth had noticed his ruggedness and she was attracted to the way he helped the sickly animals.[11] After David noticed his brother flirting with Ruth, he realised that he loved her and told her about his feelings.[12] Despite getting off to a bad start, Ruth and David began dating and were married towards the end of 1988.[7] Finch thought Ruth and David had "a really believable partnership" and were well-suited, saying "They are both very capable of becoming highly emotional if something riles them but thankfully they tend to react to different things. So, often one will be able to calm, soothe and support the other through most crises. Or at least provide some kind of balance to a problem."[11][13] The actress added that Ruth and David are the best of friends.[11]

Ruth continued with her studies at Harper Adams and she and David eventually established "a good working relationship". Ruth was given the responsibility of looking after the dairy herd, before becoming a partner in the farm.[14] Ruth and David's first child, Philippa Rose, or Pip (Helen Monks; Daisy Badger), was born in February 1993. Joanna Toye and Adrian Flynn, authors of The Archers Encyclopaedia, said Ruth took to motherhood well and did not let it stop her from playing an active part in Brookfield.[7] The couple's second child, Joshua (Cian Cheesbrough; Angus Imrie), was born in 1997.[14] Ruth and David later purchased some Hereford cattle and began to establish themselves as suppliers of traditional beef.[7] Toye and Flynn observed that Ruth and David's marriage had to be strong when the Archer siblings began arguing over who would inherit Brookfield Farm.[15] Ruth told David that "time was too precious to spend in argument" and suggested they moved away. However, David's father, Phil, decided that the farm should go to the couple.[7]

In 2012, the couple were faced with a campaign of intimidation, after David witnessed an assault on Adam Macy (Andrew Wincott). Ruth was "unnerved" when the silent phone calls began and she sent the children to stay with her mother. The intimidation ended after a barn at Brookfield was set alight and the arsonist was caught, following an anonymous tip off.[16] In 2013, Ruth and David celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary and Finch hoped the couple would continue to make Brookfield a thriving business, while relaxing into semi-retirement.[11] Finch commented, "Any couple who after 25 years still love going out for meals together, having the occasional break away without the kids and the odd roll in a haystack are doing pretty well I reckon."[11] The following year, Ruth discovered that, at 45, she was expecting her fourth child.[17] However, the pregnancy ended in a miscarriage.[18]

In 2000, the character was diagnosed with breast cancer.[19] After discovering a lump in her breast in May, Ruth was checked out by her general practitioner, Tim Hathaway (Jay Villiers). The following month Ruth was told that she had breast cancer and that as it was multi-focal, she would need a mastectomy followed by a course of chemotherapy.[19] Ruth was thirty-four at the time of her diagnosis, which was unusually young to contract such a cancer.[20] Breast cancer nurse Vickki Harmer acted as a consultant to the scriptwriters during the storyline and BBC Radio 4 invited listeners to ring a helpline for further advice after Ruth received her diagnosis.[21] Finch contacted the breast cancer charity, Breakthrough, when she learnt about her character's new story and she spoke extensively about the research she did and the effect of the diagnosis on her character:

Everyone I talked to seemed to have a relative or a friend who'd been through it. That was the other thing – everyone reacts to the problem differently so there's no textbook way of playing Ruth in her present situation. In fact, the way I'm playing her now might surprise some people because in the past she's been such a strong character and here she is collapsed and weeping and thinking the worst. Occasionally you may suggest to the script editor that you don't think your character will react a certain way, but with Ruth I have absolute trust in the scriptwriter's characterisation.[21]

The storyline continued to play out over the following months as Ruth had her mastectomy operation, began a slow process of recovery and came to terms with her new appearance.[19] When Ruth's chemotherapy treatment began during the Autumn months, David, Heather and close friend Usha (Souad Faress) were a constant source of support and comfort to her.[19] Following her last course of chemotherapy, Ruth returned to work on the farm and was later given the all clear.[19] In 2002, Ruth became pregnant and gave birth to her third child, Ben (Thomas Lester; Ben Norris).[22]

Speaking to The Observer's Sue Arnold, Finch believed The Archers had done "a great service for women's health" by tackling the subject of breast cancer. Finch later revealed that she had received letters from listeners about the storyline and one woman wrote to thank her because she had found a lump in her breast after listening to the show.[21][23] Finch also named the storyline as one of her Archers highlights.[3] Delyth Morgan, chief executive of Breakthrough said The Archers treated the subject of breast cancer "as sensibly as one can reasonably expect."[24] Morgan continues saying that Breakthrough liked how the show had highlighted the effect that a cancer diagnosis can have on a partner.[24] In contrast, the radio series Feedback reported that the storyline had initially attracted a negative response from listeners, who felt the subject should have been handled with more optimism.[21]

Shortly after inheriting Brookfield, Ruth and David were faced with a countrywide foot-and-mouth outbreak. They decided to isolate themselves from the community in a bid to stop the disease spreading onto their land and infecting their animals.[25] Farmworker Bert Fry (Eric Allan) also came to live with the family in seclusion, so he could help out with the animals. Ruth and David became frustrated with the situation and Ruth also had trouble sleeping.[26] The couple later sent Pip to live with relatives. Soap Opera author Dorothy Hobson wrote that it was a "drastic measure", but believed the storyline to be part of The Archers' continued commitment in responding to topical events.[27] The show's then editor, Vanessa Whitburn, said that some storylines had to be put on hold in order for the cast and crew to weave in the foot-and-mouth outbreak into the show.[25] Whitburn told Samantha Lyster from the Birmingham Post, "We decided that David and Ruth Archer should isolate themselves because they had just taken control of the farm and they had the most to lose should foot-and-mouth hit them."[25] Whitburn later said she was "particularly proud" of the storyline and all the work that went into it.[28] Finch commented that dealing with the constant re-writes was hard, but enjoyable work.[25] The storyline was praised by farmers for its realistic portrayal.[25]

After expanding the dairy herd in May 2004, David and Ruth hired specialist herdsman Sam Batton (Robin Pirongs).[29][30] Ruth frequently came into contact with Sam around the farm and he confided in Ruth about his relationship with Kirsty Miller (Annabelle Dowler). Ruth found herself becoming jealous when Sam went on holiday with Kirsty.[30] In their book, The Archers Archives, Simon Frith and Chris Arnot commented that the "simmering mix of sexual chemistry" between Ruth and Sam reached boiling point when David's ex-girlfriend, Sophie Barlow, returned to Ambridge and asked David to help organise a charity fashion show.[30] Ruth became stressed and insecure about David spending time with his ex-girlfriend and she turned to Sam.[30] The main reason for Ruth's insecurity was her image, as she had recently undergone a mastectomy and felt "dowdy" next to Sophie.[31] Ruth became emotionally confused when Sam informed her that he had broken up with Kirsty. She then caught David lying about meeting up with Sophie and believed he was having an affair.[30] Unbeknownst to Ruth, Sophie had tried to entice David into an affair, but he resisted her advances.[32]

Elisabeth Mahoney from The Guardian observed that Ruth and David's marriage imploded while Sophie was around and she said the speed at which it happened made for genuinely shocking listening.[33] Mahoney said "Felicity Finch and Tim Bentinck spat their toxic lines out with much relish, and for once emphatically shook off their characters' middle-of-the-road cosiness and golden couple status."[33] After seeking Sam out for comfort, Ruth kissed him. When Sam declared his love for Ruth, she agreed to spend the night with him at a hotel in Oxford. Ruth told David she was meeting a friend for the night.[32] Tim Teeman from The Times commented that the moment Ruth became stuck in traffic contrasted with "the scary new land she was travelling towards".[32] Ruth's decision to spend the night with Sam was the focus of The Archers' 15,000th episode, which was broadcast on 7 November 2006.[31] The episode was written by Joanna Toye, who told Emily Lambert of the Western Mail that the traffic jam was used to increase the tension.[34]

Editor Vanessa Whitburn told Chris Arnot of The Independent that the climax to the storyline was planned three months prior to the show's anniversary.[31] When Ruth listened to a voicemail from her daughter, it reminded her of home and she called Sam to say she could not be with him.[32] Ruth then turned to Usha for support, before returning home to David, who observed Ruth's emotional state. After Sam quit his job, Ruth eventually told David the truth about what happened.[30] Bentinck explained that when he and Finch finished recording the scene, they were both crying as it had been very distressing.[35] David was initially unable to forgive Ruth for her actions, but after speaking to Usha and gaining some perspective, over time things between himself and Ruth became easier.[30]