In our last blog covering 2001 to 2002 we saw young Emma, Ed and Wills plotting an unsure course through their early attempts at young love. In the next year Emma was to realise she could only marry one of them – she had to choose.
The first half of 2003 brought mixed fortunes for Ed. Now living in Ambridge again, no longer at school but not really in work, his time was shared between hanging out with Emma, Jazzer or Fallon, his music, and time spent with Oliver at Grange Farm. After Jazzer’s overdose, Dross was on its last legs. Fallon was attempting to develop a solo career, and that year a solo entry from Fallon beat Dross in a Radio Borsetshire music competition. That was more or less the end of Ed's hopes of a music career.
Ed was happiest hanging out at his old home, Grange Farm. He first began to spend time there as soon as he returned to Ambridge, talking to new owner Oliver Stirling about the land’s history and Oliver’s plans. Retired from active farming, Oliver intended to set up a small, hobby farming operation at Grange Farm, and as an incomer, he could see Ed’s abilities rather than the Grundy family reputation. Oliver bought in a small herd of beef cattle and, seeing Ed’s natural ability with stock, he eventually offered him regular work with the herd.
So far, 2003 was in balance – some disappointments, some positives.
Ed’s love life was not on firm ground though. It hadn’t been easy for him seeing Emma blow first one way, then the other, between him and his brother Will, but by the start of 2003 she was definitely with Will, and Ed was trying to convince himself he had feelings for Fallon instead. In Spring, Ed was beaten up by muggers while he was defending Emma from their attentions. Naturally, this regenerated Emma’s feelings for him, and Will objected to her visiting him in hospital.
Unsurprisingly, Emma reacted by leaving Will - eventually relenting and returning to him - but the episode serves to remind us that she doesn’t like Will’s attitude, and it’s Ed that she truly loves. For a few weeks, Emma secretly dated both brothers, eventually sleeping with Ed. Of course, Will found out, and had a fight with Ed. Fighting his brother over her didn’t endear him to Emma, but Will didn’t seem to realise that his attitude was turning her away from him towards Ed. Emma finally made her choice between them in early summer, and told Ed that she had chosen Will. She stayed with him throughout the summer, and on her birthday in August, she accepted his marriage proposal.
The writing had been on the wall for Ed from the time Emma stopped seeing him, but that proposal was the final straw. His displacement activity during the summer included a holiday abroad with Jazzer, followed by time spent with Fallon working at Glastonbury – not singing, sadly, but serving on Tom’s sausage van, Gourmet Grills
2003 wasn't the only year the youth of Ambridge went to Glastonbury.
Famously, Kate gave birth to Pheobe in a tepee there in 1998. Read this Beeb blog here and this Guardian article here for more info.
After Will's proposal to Emma, things got worse. Depressed Ed fell into crime again, helping Jazzer with a robbery for which Ed alone was caught and charged, and the charge carried a strong chance of spending time in jail. Fortunately, he was sentenced to community punishment and a twelve month community rehabilitation order. Part of that order required him to undertake a thinking skills course. Oliver was pleased that he had avoided jail, and later on, Ed himself was thankful for the course, which gave him skills and confidence to help him improve himself.
2004 was going to be even worse for him – he didn’t know it then, but 2003 was one of his better years.
This is the latest episode in the Grange Farm story. If you'd like to read the earlier blogs, start here. Or if you want to read a bit more about his mentor, Oliver, try here