1, The Green

Eddie and Clarrie are urging Emma to ask Will to rent her the house where she grew up. But how did he become the owner of 1, The Green at all?

The Green is a cul de sac of small semi-detacheds, originally built as council houses, right by the village green in Ambridge. A changing posse of Horrobins have lived at number six, and that is where Susan Horrobin (now Carter) grew up.

In December 1984, a few months after their daughter Emma was born, Susan and Neil moved into number one as council tenants. By 1991, Susan was keen to take advantage of the right-to-buy legislation. Neil was wary but, as is usually the case, Susan prevailed. They became owners in February 1992 and promptly celebrated by fitting a faux-Georgian front door.

Susan was very happy raising Emma and Christopher in a home they owned. But her grand design didn’t end there. In May 2005 they took another big step, moving into the detached Ambridge View, which Neil had self-built with the help of friends and the occasional contractor.

Matt Crawford bought their old home as an investment, letting it to a succession of tenants.

Will’s windfall

At roughly the same time that the Carters moved into 1, The Green, Eddie Grundy was summoned to the bedside of a distant relative. Auntie Hilda was supposedly dying. With a suit from a charity shop and a photo of young William and Edward in a gilt frame, Eddie made the long journey to Aberdeen. As Hilda’s only other living relative was her son Ralph, Eddie reckoned they would benefit from her passing.

But Hilda recovered. Eddie’s dream of riches came to nothing – not for the first time.

It was 15 years later, in August 2007, that Hilda finally died at the age of 86. And this time the Grundy family did benefit, but in a way that was to further the divisions between now-warring Will and Ed. It transpired that Hilda had made a will shortly after Will’s birth, leaving him a substantial proportion of her estate. And despite the arrival of Ed, she had never updated it.

Will inherited £120,000. Ed got nothing.

In February 2008, Will bought 1, The Green and started benefiting from the rental income. This was doubly mortifying for Ed, because gamekeeper Will already had a rent-free house as part of his salary package.

Ed probably feels as much unease at the prospect of becoming Will’s tenant as Will feels about the prospect of becoming his hated brother’s landlord.

Keri Davies is an Archers scriptwriter and web producer.

Learn more about the Horrobins. Susan, Neil, Emma, Christopher, Matt, Eddie, William and Edward – and the actors who play them – in our Who’s Who