Ruth Archer
Ruth Archer is a fictional character from the British BBC Radio 4 soap opera The Archers, played by English actress Felicity Finch. She made her debut in the 15 July 1987 episode. The character was created and introduced to The Archers as a love interest for established character David Archer, whose then girlfriend was deemed unsuitable for the role of mother to the next generation of the Archer family by the editor of the show Liz Rigbey. Finch was cast as Ruth after a successful audition.
Ruth is portrayed as being strong-willed, determined and loyal. She is also a New Woman and a farmer, traits that made her stand out from the other female characters in The Archers at the time of her introduction. In later years, Ruth has mellowed and is more open to negotiation. Her storylines have often revolved around her marriage to David and her work on Brookfield Farm. In the early 2000s, the scriptwriters had Ruth and David isolate themselves from the community during a foot-and-mouth outbreak. Ruth was also diagnosed with breast cancer, a storyline which Finch undertook extensive research for and later named as one of her Archers highlights.
The show's 15,000th episode focused on Ruth contemplating whether to consummate her affair with herdsman Sam Batton, after believing David was having his own affair with his ex-girlfriend Sophie Barlow. Ruth ultimately chose to return home to her family. The storyline, which had begun in 2004, was heavily criticised by listeners, who inundated the BBC with complaints. Low listener figures were also attributed to the storyline, while the editor Vanessa Whitburn said the backlash helped keep Ruth faithful to David.
Critical opinion on the character differs. She has been described as a "much-loved character" and a "cheery supermum-farmer", but has also been called the "most irritating" Ambridge resident and she is disliked by some listeners for being a Geordie. Other listeners hoped Ruth would be killed off during the show's 60th anniversary celebrations. Away from The Archers, the character has appeared in the Rwandan radio soap Urunana, the BBC telethon Children in Need and has been frequently parodied on the comedy programme Dead Ringers.
Creation and casting
When Liz Rigbey was appointed editor of The Archers in 1986, she began implementing several changes in a bid to revitalise the show which had become tired. Rigbey brought in new writers, retired some characters and introduced new ones. In his 1996 book, The Archers: The True Story, Rigbey's predecessor William Smethurst explained that she had "wisely" decided that David Archer's fashion designer girlfriend, Sophie Barlow, was not suitable for the role of matriarch to the next generation of the Archer family. During the script meeting to invent David's new love interest, the writers played with the idea of making the character Scottish and calling her either Anne, Heather or Thistle to show off her spiky nature.Rigbey also wanted to make sure that everyone liked the character, and eventually nineteen year old, agricultural student Ruth Pritchard was created. Actress Felicity Finch was cast as Ruth. Finch had not listened to The Archers prior to her audition in 1987 and she tried to learn as much as she could about the history of the show before she came to the studio. Smethurst thought the decision to cast a Geordie was "odd" and wrote that it harked back to the days when the show would cast many Scottish and Irish actors, irritating the audience. Finch's first scenes as Ruth were broadcast on 15 July 1987.
Development
Characterisation
In her fictional backstory, Ruth was born on 16 June 1968 to Solly and Heather Pritchard. She was raised in Prudhoe, Northumberland. Ruth worked on an Israeli kibbutz for a year, prior to her acceptance onto an agricultural course at Harper Adams University College. She then applied for a year's work experience at Brookfield Farm and she was hired by Phil Archer. 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. Her favourite style is a pair of jeans and a T-shirt. 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. Ruth's "dedication and willingness" eventually won David round and he came to appreciate her.Speaking to the BBC, Finch said Ruth "is strong willed, determined and pretty direct in her approach to life and people in general." Finch explained having breast cancer mellowed Ruth and instead of fighting her corner, she is quite likely to negotiate instead. Finch added her character appreciates life day to day. 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." Simon Frith and Chris Arnot, authors of The Archers Archives, opined Ruth is not a stereotypical farmer's wife. 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."
Marriage to David Archer
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. However, Ruth had noticed his ruggedness and she was attracted to the way he helped the sickly animals. After David noticed his brother flirting with Ruth, he realised that he loved her and told her about his feelings. Despite getting off to a bad start, Ruth and David began dating and were married towards the end of 1988. 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." The actress added that Ruth and David are the best of friends.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. Ruth and David's first child, Philippa Rose, or Pip, 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. The couple's second child, Joshua, was born in 1997. Ruth and David later purchased some Hereford cattle and began to establish themselves as suppliers of traditional beef. 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. 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.
In 2012, the couple were faced with a campaign of intimidation, after David witnessed an assault on Adam Macy. 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. 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. 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." The following year, Ruth discovered that, at 45, she was expecting her fourth child. However, the pregnancy ended in a miscarriage.
Breast cancer
In 2000, the character was diagnosed with breast cancer. After discovering a lump in her breast in May, Ruth was checked out by her general practitioner, Tim Hathaway. 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. Ruth was thirty-four at the time of her diagnosis, which was unusually young to contract such a cancer. 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. 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: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. When Ruth's chemotherapy treatment began during the Autumn months, David, Heather and close friend Usha were a constant source of support and comfort to her. Following her last course of chemotherapy, Ruth returned to work on the farm and was later given the all clear. In 2002, Ruth became pregnant and gave birth to her third child, Ben.
Speaking to The Observers 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. Finch also named the storyline as one of her Archers highlights. Delyth Morgan, chief executive of Breakthrough said The Archers treated the subject of breast cancer "as sensibly as one can reasonably expect." Morgan continues saying that Breakthrough liked how the show had highlighted the effect that a cancer diagnosis can have on a partner. 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.