Ruth Archer (also Pritchard) 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 (Timothy Bentinck), 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 (Robin Pirongs), after believing David was having his own
affair with his ex-girlfriend Sophie Barlow (Moir Leslie). 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.
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 (Timothy Bentinck), 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 (Robin Pirongs), after believing David was having his own
affair with his ex-girlfriend Sophie Barlow (Moir Leslie). 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.
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