听播客学英语 24 弓箭手

 　　The music which you have just heard is a signature tune¹. A signature tune is the music which you hear at the beginning of a radio or TV programme. This signature tune is the signature tune of a radio soap opera called The Archers³. The BBC describe The Archers as “an everyday story of country folk”. It is about the lives of a farming family, the Archers, and their friends and neighbours in the fictional⁴ village of Ambridge, somewhere in the middle of England.

　　The Archers is the most popular radio programme in Britain, except for some news programmes. It has been running since 1950, which means that it is the longest-running soap opera in the world. Originally, the programme tried to bring new ideas in agriculture to farmers. But it developed into a soap opera which appealed to townspeople as well as to country folk. Indeed, you could say that the Archers signature tune is one of the authentic⁵ sounds of urban, middle-class Britain. At 7 o’clock every evening, all over the country, people switch on their radios to listen to a news summary, followed by the Archers. It is a very special time of day. Never, ever, telephone an Archers fan between 7 and 7.15 in the evening.

　　The Archers is not normally an exciting programme. Its characters are just ordinary people doing ordinary things. Of course, there have been some extraordinary moments. Older listeners still talk about the time in 1955 when Grace Archer² died in a fire. And people of my generation remember when a pregnant Elizabeth Archer was abandoned by her awful boyfriend Cameron Fraser in 1992. But most of the time, the Archers characters are just people living their lives in parallel to our own lives. Their problems are like our problems. They are interesting because they are ordinary, not because they are extraordinary. Many of the actors in the Archers stay with the programme for years . They grow old with their characters, and we feel as if we know them.

　　Last week the Archers celebrated⁶ its 60th birthday. The BBC told us that something special would happen. It would be something which would “shake Ambridge to the core". For weeks, the internet forums⁷ and chatrooms for Archers fans were abuzz with rumours⁸. People assumed that one of the characters would die – or perhaps more than one character. After all, only a few weeks earlier, the TV soap opera Coronation Street had killed off several of its characters in a spectacular tram crash. People made lists of which characters they would most like to go, and how they would like them to die.

　　So, what actually happened? First, Helen Carter had a baby. And second, Nigel Pargetter fell off a roof and was killed. A lot of Archers fans are not happy. Helen Carter is an odious⁹ egotist who was on most people’s “death list” of Archers characters. And Nigel Pargetter was a really nice man and we shall all miss him. But most of all, Archers fans complained that this is small stuff – we were promised something which would shake Ambridge to the core, and all we got was poor Nigel falling off a roof. Coronation Street killed three characters in a tram crash. Surely the Archers could do better.

　　Well, we have to wait until we see what happens next. Helen Carter is still an odious egotist. Probably the new baby will make her even worse. And we, the listeners, know why Nigel Pargetter was on the roof. He was there because David Archer persuaded him to climb the roof to remove a “Happy New Year” banner. And David Archer is the brother of Nigel’s widow, Elizabeth (yes, the same one who was dumped by Cameron Fraser in 1992). Elizabeth is a strong-minded woman. When she finds out why Nigel was on the roof, what will she do?

　　You are now well on the way to becoming an Archers expert. The BBC have an Archers website for you to explore, and you can listen to the Archers on the BBC World Service(*) or download the Archers podcasts from the BBC website. Happy listening!

　　(*)Sorry, this is wrong. The Archers is not on the BBC World Service.

1 tune   

n.调子；和谐，协调；v.调音，调节，调整

参考例句：

• He'd written a tune,and played it to us on the piano.他写了一段曲子，并在钢琴上弹给我们听。
• The boy beat out a tune on a tin can.那男孩在易拉罐上敲出一首曲子。

2 archer   

n.射手，弓箭手

参考例句：

• The archer strung his bow and aimed an arrow at the target.弓箭手拉紧弓弦将箭瞄准靶子。
• The archer's shot was a perfect bull's-eye.射手的那一箭正中靶心。

3 archers   

n.弓箭手，射箭运动员( archer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The next evening old Mr. Sillerton Jackson came to dine with the Archers. 第二天晚上，西勒顿？杰克逊老先生来和阿切尔家人一起吃饭。 来自辞典例句
• Week of Archer: Double growth for Archers and Marksmen. 射手周：弓箭手与弩手（人类）产量加倍。 来自互联网

4 fictional   

adj.小说的，虚构的

参考例句：

• The names of the shops are entirely fictional.那些商店的名字完全是虚构的。
• The two authors represent the opposite poles of fictional genius.这两位作者代表了天才小说家两个极端。

5 authentic   

a.真的，真正的；可靠的，可信的，有根据的

参考例句：

• This is an authentic news report. We can depend on it. 这是篇可靠的新闻报道, 我们相信它。
• Autumn is also the authentic season of renewal. 秋天才是真正的除旧布新的季节。

6 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

7 forums   

讨论会； 座谈会； 广播专题讲话节目； 集会的公共场所( forum的名词复数 )； 论坛，讨论会，专题讨论节目； 法庭

参考例句：

• A few of the forums were being closely monitored by the administrators. 有些论坛被管理员严密监控。
• It can cast a dark cloud over these forums. 它将是的论坛上空布满乌云。

8 rumours   

n.传闻( rumour的名词复数 )；风闻；谣言；谣传

参考例句：

• The rumours were completely baseless. 那些谣传毫无根据。
• Rumours of job losses were later confirmed. 裁员的传言后来得到了证实。

9 odious   

adj.可憎的，讨厌的

参考例句：

• The judge described the crime as odious.法官称这一罪行令人发指。
• His character could best be described as odious.他的人格用可憎来形容最贴切。