Playing Joe Grundy

While poor old Joe is recovering from his fall, we spoke to Edward Kelsey, who took over the part from Haydn Jones many years ago

How long have you been playing Joe?

I recorded the first episode on 25 February 1985, so I’m coming up to my 30^th year. The first episode with was Tom Forrest and Walter Gabriel. It was quite a baptism to be stuck in with those stalwarts.

What’s it been like sharing your life with this character?

It’s amazing. I do seem to slip into it very naturally. I don’t know what that means!

How do you think Joe has changed over the years?

He has mellowed. As a great-grandfather, he’s more concerned about the future for his offspring than himself. There’s no real opportunity now for him to do all those wonderful scams that he used to do.

He used to be a bit of a rogue.

I don’t think he was ever wicked, he was just after the main chance. One of my very first storylines was when he thought that organic flour was the great thing and he had Clarrie grinding up wheat in the kitchen. And then he went into Grange Farm bottled water. I suppose the worst one was the sheep. He pretended Mike’s sheep were his, so that he could get the subsidy. That was the only really illegal thing, I think. The others were on the verge.

Would it be fair to say that in the early years he was more of a comic character?

Well, he was used as comic relief. This was always a bone of contention: the Grundys were used as the leavening in between the Archer family serious stuff. But there was a very strong element of truth about it. People do these dubious things. And although they were funny, to him they were very serious – they could have made his fortune!

When the Grundys were evicted from Grange Farm, would you say that was a turning point, when the characters took on a depth they hadn’t had before?

Audio clip: Grange Farm sold:

I don’t think it was for the actors. I think we thought our characters were serious, just doing things that people thought were amusing. But certainly that was the real crunch. I still remember when we came out of the studio afterwards. Nobody wanted to go home. We just sat down in the little area outside the studio, feeling drained.

You’ve had this great acting partnership with Trevor Harrison (Eddie) over the years. What’s the relationship like? 

Yes, we seemed to hit it off from the start. We just pick up as if we’ve not been away. We commiserate with each other on the fortunes of Wolves and Portsmouth and just carry on as if there’s been no gap.

The character is quite a bit older than you are. As Joe gets older and frailer, how do you approach that?

Audio clip: Joe’s teeth:

It’s obviously something I’ve got to bear in mind. Although the extraordinary thing is that some people sound about 150 when they’re 40 but others sound exactly the same. It’s like everything else. People have got to believe it. And that’s what acting is. It may not be accurate but it’s got to be believable.

What would your hopes be for the Joe’s future?

I expect the Queen to deliver the telegram in person!

Keri Davies is an Archers scriptwriter and web producer.

Learn more about Joe, Eddie and Clarrie Grundy – and the actors who play them – in our Who’s Who