Phil Archer fan will." Phil Archer Philip Walter Archer is a fictional character from the British BBC Radio 4 soap opera "The Archers", played by Norman Painting. He made his first appearance on 29 May 1950, the show's pilot episode. The character later became the longest serving male character in the series. His longevity gave him something of the status of a 'patriarch' in Ambridge. Norman Painting joined the cast as Phil Archer, the "handsome" son of Dan (Harry Oakes) and Doris Archer (Gwen Berryman), for the show's pilot episode broadcast on the BBC Midlands Home Service on 29 May 1950, he
BBC Radio 4 in eastern and south eastern counties of Ireland, the north of France and Northern Europe. It is also available through Freeview, Sky, Virgin Media and on the Internet. Its sister station, BBC Radio 4 Extra (formerly "BBC Radio 7"), complements the main channel by broadcasting repeats from the Radio 4 archive, extended versions of Radio 4 programmes and supplements to series such as "The Archers" and "Desert Island Discs". It is notable for its news bulletins and programmes such as "Today" and "The World at One", heralded on air by the Greenwich Time Signal "pips" or the chimes of Big