The Archers Ysanne Churchman, who played Grace, sent them a congratulatory card signed "Grace Archer". In 1996, William Smethurst recounted a conversation with Baseley in which he reveals his real motivation for killing off Grace Archer: Churchman was encouraging the other actors to join a trade union. The actor Norman Painting played Phil Archer continuously from the first trial series in 1950 until his death on 29 October 2009. His last "Archers" performance was recorded just two days before his death, and was broadcast on 22 November. He is cited in "Guinness World Records" as the longest-serving actor in a single soap
The Archers its recurring "The Archers Accidentally" sketches; the sketches claim to portray "The Archers" the way it sounds to people who only listen to the show inadvertently. The radio series of "Dead Ringers" has frequently parodied characters from "The Archers", including a special edition. The subtitle was parodied by Bill Tidy in his long-running cartoon of "The Cloggies", "an Everyday Saga in the Life of Clog Dancing Folk", which ran in the satirical magazine "Private Eye", and later in "The Listener". In addition to books and audiobooks, purported maps of Ambridge and Borsetshire have been published. An episode of "Arena", broadcast