WODEHOUSE, P.G.

"I know I was writing stories when I was five. I don't know what I did before that. Just loafed I suppose."

Pelham Grenville Wodehouse, generally known as Plum, was a child of the Empire -  that is, he was mostly brought up by nannies and at boarding schools,  spending most of  his holidays with a succession of formidable aunts – a species which were to feature largely in many of his novels and short stories. Graduating from Dulwich College in 1900, Wodehouse started working for the Hong Kong and  Shanghai Bank, (his experiences there colouring PSmith in the City) but after only 2 years he left, taking up writing as a career.  His first novel, The Pothunters, was published in 1902, swiftly followed by A Prefect’s Uncle in 1903 after which there was rarely a year which did not see a new Wodehousian delight.  Wodehouse wrote prolifically for over 70 years, his work encompassing over 70 novels and 200 short stories , plays, poems, song lyrics and numerous pieces of journalism. During this creative outpouring, he developed numerous much-loved characters, including  Lord Emsworth and his beloved Empress of Blandings, the inimitable Jeeves and Wooster, Mr Mulliner, Ukridge and PSmith.

During his lifetime P G Wodehouse  was hugely popular and is still widely recognized as one of the greatest English comic writers of the twentieth century.  His creations have been read and admired by successive generations and have frequently been adapted for both television and the radio.  His contributions to the world of literature were finally officially recognized just weeks before his death, when he was Knighted Commander of the Order of the British Empire.

Blogpost: Depicting Jeeves and Wooster

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