My usual Sunday morning listening was interrupted today because BBC Radio changed its schedule to accommodate the Remembrance Sunday ceremonies. 

So, instead of my normal news magazine programme, I was treated (if that's the word), to The Archers.  This is a venerable radio soap that goes back to the days when Harry Truman was still in the White House. It's set in a the fictional village of Ambridge, and like most soaps it relies on its cast of characters and storylines to keep listeners tuning in.

I hadn't heard it for years, and I don't think I'll be beating a path to its door again.  Even the most trivial event seems to be worked up into a major panic.  the big story today was that someone broke a teapot, resulting in much overeacting and even more overacting.

An insurance company here used to promote itself by promising: "We won't make a drama out of a crisis." But in The Archers, you can be sure that they'll take every opportunity to make a crisis out of a drama.