Jill Archer still ‘at the heart of the show’

The editor of popular BBC Radio 4 soap The Archers has said there will “always be stories” for the character Jill Archer, who today celebrates 60 years of being on the show.

The character of Jill, often described as the “lynchpin” of Ambridge life, has been played by actress Patricia Greene since 25 July, 1957.

The 60th anniversary cele- bration also sees Greene claim the honour of being the longest-serving continuous actor on The Archers, the BBC confirmed.

Editor Huw Kennairjones, who took over at the helm of the Radio 4 show last year, said as far as storylines for Jill go, “the world is her oyster”.

He said: “I can’t give away what’s going to happen, but what I will say is, we kind of take her back to where it all began. There are always stories for Jill, she’s such an integral part of The Archers landscape.

“She’s right at the heart of it, so we’re always finding stories for her in different things.”

In recent weeks, listeners have heard Jill find herself back on the premises of the job she held when she first appeared in The Archers.

Greene’s character made her debut as an assistant in a department store.