Wodehousekeeping

Ian is joined by Nigel Townshend to enthuse over 1917's Piccadilly Jim, a breakthrough novel for Wodehouse. Nigel voices his displeasure at the 2004 film version. There are plot spoilers. You can e-mail me at wodehousekeeping@gmail.comtip me at ko-fi.com/wodehousekeepingor follow the show on Bluesky or FacebookOther works by Wodehouse mentionedLeave it to PsmithThe Little NuggetA Damsel in Distress (film screenplay)A Gentleman of Leisure"Concealed Art"The Riviera Girl (musical, with Guy Bolton and Emmerich Kalman)Bring On the Girls (memoir, with Guy Bolton)Love Among the Chickens"Rallying Round Old George"Anything Goes (musical)Reference works consultedSophie Ratcliffe, P. G. Wodehouse: A Life in LettersRobert McCrum, Wodehouse: A LifeNorman Murphy, A Wodehouse HandbookBarry Day, The Complete Lyrics of P. G. WodehouseLee Davis, Bolton and Wodehouse and KernMadame Eulalie's Rare Plums websiteAlso mentionedThe three film adaptations of the bookBlandings (TV series)New York GiantsThe Regent GrillYe Olde Cheshire CheeseHugh LaurieGeorge Herriman, "The Dingbat Family" & "Krazy Kat" comic stripsDelmonico'sBachelors' Club

Host Ian Cockburn (of the Shropshire Cockburns) is rejoined by storyteller and writer Matthew Bellwood to discuss Psmith Journalist, the third Psmith novel, and one of the first of Wodehouse's novels to be set in America. The novel first appeared in The Captain from 1909-10 but didn't appear in book form till 1915, by which point it had already been repurposed in 1912 for the US version of The Prince and BettyA tale of yellow journalism in gangland New York. This podcast contains spoilers, and some discussion of racism.You can e-mail me at wodehousekeeping@gmail.comPut doubloons in the old oak chest at ko-fi.com/wodehousekeepingor follow me on Bluesky or FacebookWodehousekeeping cannot be muzzledOther works by Wodehouse mentionedMike and PsmithThe Luck of the BodkinsPsmith in the CityThe Prince and BettyA Gentleman of LeisureThe Kid Brady storiesThe Little NuggetThe Luck Stone"The Episode of the Live Weekly" Reference works consultedSophie Ratcliffe, P. G. Wodehouse: A Life in LettersRobert McCrum, Wodehouse: A LifeNorman Murphy, A Wodehouse HandbookMadame Eulalie's Rare Plums website Also mentionedColumbo: Strange BedfellowsTwin PeaksThe GodfatherBoardwalk EmpireCharles Dickens, David CopperfieldColin From AccountsCarol VordermanTed Kessler, Paper CutsAl CaponeMonk EastmanGroucho MarxDoctor WhoSandie Shaw, "Reviewing the Situation"John Mitchell Jr.Stella Gibbons, Cold Comfort FarmCole PorterNoël Coward 

Ian is joined by Tania Agnihotri to look at Something Fresh, AKA Something New, the first Blandings novel, published 1915. The book introduces the immortal Lord Emsworth, Freddie Threepwood, Beach the butler and the Efficient Baxter, though much of the focus is on this month's imposters at the castle. Content note: bad American accents.You can e-mail me at wodehousekeeping@gmail.commake a donation at ko-fi.com/wodehousekeepingor follow or contact me on Bluesky or FacebookOther works by Wodehouse mentioned:The Mr Mulliner Stories"The Story of Webster""The Truth About George"Mike and Psmith (part two of Mike)The Ukridge storiesLove Among the ChickensThe Luck Stone"The Matrimonial Sweepstakes""The Delayed Exit of Claude and Eustace""A Man of Means: The Episode of the Hired Past"Psmith in the City"The Crime Wave At Blandings"The Reggie Pepper stories"Ruth in Exile"Right Ho, Jeeves"Pearls Means Tears""Strychnine in the Soup"Leave it to Psmith"The Goalkeeper and the Plutocrat""A Man of Means: The Episode of the Live Weekly""A Pal Like You" from Oh, Boy!Reference works consultedSophie Ratcliffe, P. G. Wodehouse: A Life in LettersRobert McCrum, Wodehouse: A LifeNorman Murphy, A Wodehouse HandbookPaul Kent, Pelham Grenville WodehouseMadame Eulalie's Rare Plums websiteAlso mentionedSaki, "Mrs Packletide's Tiger"George AdeHerbert W. WestbrookWilliam TownendSamuel Johnson ("A man who is tired of London...")Alfred HarmsworthSimpson's in the StrandPhilip Peveril WodehouseGeorgette HeyerJ M Barrie, The Admirable CrichtonJeeves and Wooster (TV series)

I am rejoined by Gwen Sheldon to peruse the first collection of Wodehouse short stories for a general audience, The Man Upstairs and Other Stories (1914), a bumper crop of nineteen stories and a favourite of both of us. Because there is so much to discuss, we have split it into two parts. In the second part we look at the remaining eleven stories, including the two stories whose success persuaded Wodehouse to move to America, "Archibald's Benefit" (his first golf short story) and "The Good Angel" (the first Keggs story, and first mention of a Lord Emsworth). Also in this batch we have a rare football-themed story, a Knights of the Round Table parody, and a highly autobiographical love story. We also each list our ten favourite stories. There will be spoilers.You can e-mail me at wodehousekeeping@gmail.commake a donation at ko-fi.com/wodehousekeepingor follow me on Bluesky or FacebookStories covered in this instalment, with start times:"Archibald's Benefit" / "Reginald's Record Knock" 2m 09s"The Man, The Maid, and the Miasma" 10m 44s"The Good Angel" 17m 12s"Pots o' Money" 30m 08s"Out of School" 38m 46s"Three from Dunsterville" 43m 53s"The Tuppenny Millionaire" 51m 26s"Ahead of Schedule" 55m 22s"Sir Agravaine" ih 05m 50s"The Goal-Keeper and the Plutocrat" 1h 06m 40s"In Alcala" 1h 16m 16sOther works by Wodehouse mentionedLove Among the Chickens"The Truth about Webster"A Damsel in Distress"Mr Punch's Spectral Analyses. IV - An Official Muddle""Love Me, Love My Dog"The Coming of BillOver SeventySomething Fishy"The Crime Wave at Blandings""Creatures of Impulse""Jeeves in the Springtime"William Tell Told Again"The Idle King""At Geisenheimers"Reference works consultedRichard Usborne, Wodehouse at Work to the End, notes to Sunset at Blandings Sophie Ratcliffe, P. G. Wodehouse: A Life in LettersRobert McCrum, Wodehouse: A LifeNorman Murphy, A Wodehouse HandbookMadame Eulalie's Rare Plums websiteAlso mentionedElla Wheeler WilcoxRobert BrowningAlfred, Lord Tennyson, Idylls of the KingGene (band)Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night's Dream and Romeo and JulietFlanders and Swann, At The Drop of Another Hat (stage patter)"Purity" Statue, Times Square, New York City, 1909Thomas Mallory, Le Morte D'ArthurShrekJames Thurber, The 13 Clocks and The White DeerMark Twain, A Connecticut Yankee in the Court of King ArthurJ B Priestley, The 31st of JuneTed LassoAndré Messager, MiretteAlice DoveyLeslie BradshawWilliam Townend

I am rejoined by Gwen Sheldon to peruse the first collection of Wodehouse short stories for a general audience, The Man Upstairs and Other Stories (1914), a bumper crop of nineteen stories and a favourite of both of us. Because there is so much to discuss, we have split the episode into two parts. In the first part we look at the background of the book and Wodehouse's life when he wrote them (living cheaply in New York), and discuss the first eight stories. There will be spoilers.Content note: mention in "Rough-Hew Them How We Will" of attempted suicide and of animal cruelty in "The Man Who Disliked Cats".You can e-mail me at wodehousekeeping@gmail.comMake a donation at ko-fi.com/wodehousekeepingor follow me on Bluesky or FacebookStories covered in this instalment, with start times:"The Man Upstairs" 12m 33s"Something to Worry About" 23m 52s"Deep Waters" 32m 10s"When Doctors Disagree" 41m 47s"By Advice of Counsel" 49m 13s"Rough-Hew Them How We Will" 57m 03s"The Man Who Disliked Cats" 1h 02m 57s"The Fatal Kink In Algernon" (later rewrite of the above) 1h 11m 50s"Ruth in Exile" 1h 17m 40sOther works by Wodehouse mentionedThe Man With Two Left Feet and Other StoriesOver SeventyUneasy Money (preface)"When Papa Swore in Hindustani"The Code of the WoostersJoy in the MorningA Gentleman of Leisure"Jeeves and the Chump Cyril" The SwoopThe Luck Stone"Sir Roderick Comes To Lunch"Right Ho, Jeeves"The Fatal Kink In Algernon""Aunt Agatha Takes the Count" (AKA "Aunt Agatha Makes a Bloomer")The Adventures of SallyReference works consultedRichard Usborne, Wodehouse at Work to the EndSophie Ratcliffe, P. G. Wodehouse: A Life in LettersRobert McCrum, Wodehouse: A LifeNorman Murphy; A Wodehouse HandbookMadame Eulalie's Rare Plums websiteAlso mentionedThe Ainu people of JapanO. Henry, "The Gift of the Magi"F. Opper, Alphonse and Gaston (comic strip)Alfred, Lord TennysonWilliam Shakespeare, Othello and HamletLord RobertsAgatha Christie's character Hercule PoirotGeorge Herriman, Alexander and Krazy Kat (comic strips)Michael Tisserand, George Herriman: A Life in Black and WhiteThe Book of Ruth (The Bible)Herbert WestbrookThe Billiken

A solo episode. Ian delves into two short story cycles, The Kid Brady stories (1905-7) and A Man Of Means (1914, with C. H. Bovill) which posthumously were collected into a single volume. The Kid Brady stories are boxing tales set in New York, while A Man of Means is a quasi-novella wherein a hapless clerk from Bury St Edmonds inadvertently keeps getting richer and richer. There will be spoilers.CN: brief discussion of racismOther Wodehouse works mentionedOver SeventyPsmith JournalistThe Prince and Betty The Gold BatThe White FeatherThe Coming of Bill AKA The White HopeThe Reggie Pepper StoriesThe Inimitable JeevesThe Indiscretions of ArchieSomething FreshNot George Washington (with H W Westbrook)Nuts and Wine (Revue) (with C H Bovill)The Globe By The Way Book (with H W Westbrook)Big MoneyBachelors AnonymousBring on the Girls (with Guy Bolton)Reference works consulted or mentionedmadameeulalie.orgNorman Murphy, A Wodehouse HandbookGarrison and Midkiff, Who's Who in Wodehouse (third edition)David Jasen P. G. Wodehouse: Portrait of a Master Also mentionedKid McCoyToo many other real life boxers to mentionJack Johnson vs James J JeffriesDamon RunyanRandy Newman, Short People (song)Harold Begbie, The Curious and Diverting Adventures of Sir John Sparrow, Bart. Charles Dickens, David CopperfieldSeymour Hicks, The Gay Gordons (musical comedy)Phyllis BedellsC H Bovill, Honi Soit (revue)Miguel de Cervantes, Don QuixoteTobias Smollett, Roderick RandomCharles Dickens, The Pickwick PapersGeorge Barr McCutcheon, Brewster's Millions The Bumpkin Billionaires, comic strip originally in Whoopee comicGuglielmo MarconiWodehousekeeping Podcast linksWodehousekeeping on BlueskyWodehousekeeping on FacebookBuy me a coffee on Ko-fiemail: wodehousekeeping@gmail.com

Ian Cockburn is joined by his old friend Nigel Townshend to dissect Agatha Christie's favourite Wodehouse novel The Little Nugget (1913). A tale of kipnapping at an English private preparatory school, presumably inspired by Wodehouse's time as a guest at Emsworth House school. There will be spoilers.Other Wodehouse works mentionedPiccadilly JimFull MoonThank You, JeevesThe Luck StoneThe Eighteen-Carat Kid (variant version of The Little Nugget)The Indiscretions of ArchieMuch Obliged, JeevesPsmith JournalistAlso mentionedThe Beano and Dandy comicsThe BBC radio Jeeves adaptations with Richard Briers and Michael HordernAgatha Christie, Hallowe'en PartyBaldwin King-HallHerbert WestbrookKing Cophetua Harry Hershfield, Desperate Desmond (comic strip)Napoleon BonaparteReference works consultedmadameeulalie.orgRobert McCrum, Wodehouse: A LifeGarrison and Midkiff, Who's Who in Wodehouse volume 3Sophie Ratcliffe (ed.), P. G. Wodehouse: A Life in LettersNorman Murphy, A Wodehouse HandbookWodehousekeeping Podcast linksWodehousekeeping on BlueskyWodehousekeeping on FacebookBuy me a coffee on Ko-fiemail: wodehousekeeping@gmail.com

Ian is joined by Alexander Rennie once more to look at the UK version of the novel The Prince and Betty (1912). The US version has a very different plot closely based on the earlier novel Psmith, Journalist (serialised 1909-1910, book version 1915). We touch lightly on the US version but the main discussion of it will follow in the episode on Psmith, Journalist.Alexander's own podcast is Forgotten TownsOther Wodehouse works mentionedPsmith, JournalistThe Swoop"The Good Angel" (AKA "The Matrimonial Sweepstakes")A Gentleman of LeisurePsmith in the CityThe Prizegiving scene in Right Ho, JeevesThe Steggles stories in The Inimitable JeevesThe J. Washburn Stoker character in Thank You, JeevesAlso mentionedMills and BoonBoris KarloffEllaline TerrissSeymour HicksThe Monégasque Revolution of 1910Carry On FilmsStephen Leacock, "Gertrude the Governess"Mary Shelley, FrankensteinYes MinisterYe Olde Cheshire CheeseKigeli V Ndahindurwa of RwandaReference works consultedDaniel H. Garrison and Neil Midkiff, Who's Who in Wodehouse (Third Expanded Edition)Neil Midkiff's notes on the different versions at Madame Eulalie's Rare PlumsNorman Murphy, A Wodehouse HandbookSophie Ratcliffe, P. G. Wodehouse: A Life in LettersWodehousekeeping Podcast linksWodehousekeeping on BlueskyWodehousekeeping on FacebookBuy me a coffee on Ko-fiemail: wodehousekeeping@gmail.com