Jeeves and Wooster

P. G. Wodehouse's (pronounced wood-house) classic series about Jeeves and Wooster is fun reading. Not only that, but it also gave the name of Jeeves a boost as the capable servant and even became the basis for the name of the search engine "Ask Jeeves." (Now called ask.com)

Let's learn about it.

The Mastermind

The stories take place in the 1910s or 1920s and are told from the viewpoint of Bertie Wooster, a wealthy young man. Being the son of old money, he inherited enough money from a family fortune to never need to work or have ambitions.

And he doesn't.

Wooster employs a gentleman’s gentleman named Jeeves. It is Jeeves who is the brains of the pair – it is his genius that saves Wooster from the trouble that seems to seek him out.

The books are delightful in part due to its class reversals. It is the servant Jeeves is the brains who is knowledgeable about, it would appear, everything. On the other hand, Wooster is so mentally lazy that he often uses only the first letter of the word he wants. (For example, we often called his aunt his "aged A_.")

Who thickens the plot

Bertie has a natural ability for trouble, but he does have help from friends and family. Here are a few:

The Aunts

All of Wooster's aunts are strong, determined women who are perpetually pushing him into situations that result in his misadventures.

Madeline Bassett

Madeline constantly moves from fiancé to fiancé – all the while laboring under the mistaken idea that Bertie is hopelessly in love with her. And, as soon as one engagement is at an end, she immediately accepts Bertie's supposed desire to marry her.

The problem is, he is not interested in marriage in general, but especially to a woman who thinks "Every time a fairy sheds a tear, a wee bit star is born in the Milky Way," or, in his own description of her:

“Well, I mean to say, when a girl suddenly asks you out of a blue sky if you don't sometimes feel that the stars are God's daisy-chain, you begin to think a bit.”

Adding to the awkwardness is Bertie's English sense of being a gentleman, which means he cannot directly and bluntly refuse the offer.

So … Jeeves to the rescue.

The muscle men – Roderick Spode and Stilton Cheesewright

Characters that keep popping up are a couple of toughs who threaten Mr. Wooster that they will beat him to a jelly or break his spine in multiple places.

The first such is Roderick Spode – fascist leader and self-viewed man of destiny. He leads a small group of followers called the “Blackshorts” and gives powerful speeches that talk about total gibberish. Roderick is also in love with Madeline, and seeks to beat up to anyone who he feels has hurt her in any way.

The second is called Stilton Cheesewright (those who know about English cheese should get the pun, otherwise click here). Stilton is a strong man with the jealousy to match. Occasionally he accuses Bertie of trying to steal the woman he loves.

From either direction, it is Jeeves to the rescue to prevent bodily harm to his employer.

Gussie Fink-Nottle

Gussie is an old classmate of Bertie. Following school, he went off to his home where he devoted his life to conducting experiments with newts. In fact, he is far more comfortable dealing with his newts than people.

Gussie never poses a direct problem for Bertie, but his lack of judgment often puts Bertie in awkward spots. In fact, for all his limitations, Mr. Wooster comes across as the smartest of his gentlemen associates.

It is the collection of these interesting characters, Wooster's ability to attract trouble, fun writing and the ever-clever Jeeves who figures out how to save the day in the end that makes for enjoyable reading.

Great Books

There are several books in the series, each one with several short stories. Each story is short and an easy read. Just look up Wodehouse or Jeeves and Wooster. The book Carry on, Jeeves starts with the story of how Jeeves came to work for Wooster.

Great Films

Jeeves & Wooster

A miniseries combining many of the stories of P. G. Wodehouse produced by A&E. Staring in this miniseries is Hugh Laurie as Wooster and Steven Frye as Jeeves. I own the set and it is often my go-to entertainment.

The casting is excellent, but I want to place a particular note to that of

Roderick Spode. The role he plays is hilarious. In one scene he appears in a robe at night. There he stands, powerful and manly while manfully holding a teddy bear under one arm. Classic!

On the web

P.G. Wodehouse - Carry On Jeeves (1925) Audiobook. Complete & Unabrigded.

Audiobook reading of the book Carry on Jeeves.

P.G. Wodehouse - Aunts Aren't Gentlemen (1974) Audiobook. Complete & Unabridged.

Another audiobook, here for the book Aunts aren't gentlemen.

Jeeves and Wooster (1990) - Opening Sequence

This features the opening music to the A&M miniseries. The music was composed for the series, but is it so period, and the animation so interesting that it's half the fun of watching the series.

Jeeves And Wooster — Jeeves Takes Charge (S01E01)

This is the first episode of the miniseries. A bit of a taste!

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