Although I don't listen to
The Archers myself, it's hard to miss the
discussion going on at the moment about its current domestic abuse storyline, that
has apparently been building up for a couple of years before exploding into
violence. So it's a comparison I can't help but make with
The Delights of Dogs
and the Problems of People, which Rosalind Blessed writes and stars in, and
which has a nastiness barely concealed under its smiley surface. James (Duncan
Wilkins) introduces himself to the audience as he cooks a surprise anniversary meal
for his wife Robin (Blessed,) but it quickly becomes apparent this'll be less of a
surprise and more of a shock, as the two have separated and this is Robin's new
house, which he's broken into. The rest of the show bounces back and forth in time
through their relationship, their best times always seeming to revolve around the
various rescue dogs they've adopted over the years, their worst when they're left to
deal with each other.
