Academic Archers Conference 2026

 

Saturday 28 – Sunday 29 March 2026
University of Warwick

Celebrating 10 years of scholarly Ambridology

2026 marks the 10th Academic Archers Conference, and we’re returning in person to celebrate in style.

Join us at the University of Warwick for a weekend of warm welcomes, brilliant papers, lively discussion, and the kind of community only Archers fans and researchers can create. Whether you’re a familiar face or thinking about attending for the first time, this special anniversary gathering promises something for everyone.

We’ll be together again for:

  • All-day sessions on Saturday 28 March

  • A half-day of talks and reflections on Sunday 29 March

  • A conference dinner on Saturday evening to celebrate the big 1-0

  • An informal Friday hello at Benugo’s for early arrivals

Below - programme at a glance / FAQ (hover over the text for the link)

SATURDAY 28 MARCH

Welcome at 9 am, everyone to be seated by 9.10 am.

🌾 SESSION 1: Fandom & Fiction
• Ian Merry — Ambridge: Life on the Streets
• Jerome Turner — Ambridge Extra: Radio experiment or fever dream?
• Karen Rodham — An exploration of listeners’ Pavlovian responses to Barwick Green
• Sarah Buckle — The Archers Brand
• Alexander Lewis-Jones — EV Charging

🎭 SESSION 2: Characters and Characterisations
• Sarah Spilsbury — Vince & Birmingham
• Fiona Gillison — It can’t only be Rosie: Why The Archers Should Talk More About Body Weight
• Vivian Colbert — Voices, Silences, and Queer Lives: Performing Identity in The Archers
• Nicola Maxfield — Grand Designs, Modest Foundations: Desperately Seeking Betterment

🎙️ INSIDE THE STORY – Two Very Important Ambridge Guests
• Keri Davies (Scriptwriter) and one guest TBA
In conversation with Dr Cara Courage
(Our second VIP guest will be announced in the coming weeks – we assure you, you will not want to miss this)

👠 ONE STILLETTO IN THE GRAVE – LIVE PODCAST RECORDING
• Jane James and Sunny Ormonde (aka Lillian Bellamy)
With two special Ambridge guests (to be announced closer to the conference)

🌱 SESSION 3: Conversation and Community
• Pauline Bucknell — ‘I had this friend who…’ Exploring the Purpose and Incidence of Anecdotes in The Archers
• James Tuit & Aditi Krishnakumar — Ambridge Community Structure

🏛️ SESSION 4: Interests and Institutions
• Jonathan Hustler — The Churchmanship of St Stephen’s
• Bev Milner Simonds — The Ambridge Fete – analysis from behind the gazebo…
• Meg Burton — Cricket Teas

🎧 TALKING THE ARCHERS
• Keri Davies

🏆 Academic Archers Awards Ceremony

🍽️ Conference Dinner - with Brian Hewlett, aka Neil Carter, as VIP After Dinner Speaker

 

SUNDAY 29 MARCH

Everyone to be seated for 9.15 am

🌍 SESSION 5: Ecology and Economy
• Claire Astbury — Net Zero Ambridge: Decarbonisation Starts At Home
• Matt Underwood — Ultimate arboriculture: quantifying the value of trees in Ambridge

📖 SESSION 6: Literature and Landscape
• Christine Narramore — Ambridge, Fact and Fiction
• Helen Burrows — ‘This Blessed Plot, This Earth, This Realm, This Ambridge?’

🎧 LIVE LISTEN
A shared listening experience — always one of the most loved moments of the weekend.

🌾 Closing Reflections, Thanks & Next Steps