Years ago, Beyond the Fringe did a sketch in which one Briton is explaining American politics to another: "There's the Republican Party, which is the equivalent of our Conservative Party, and the Democratic Party, which is the equivalent of our Conservative Party."

It seems to me that practically every Englishman to the left of Oswald Mosley is a socialist by U.S. standards. And any nation where Warren Buffet and Barack Obama can be regarded as pinkos is clearly a bird that flies on one wing, and not the left one.

Since Chris mentioned Oswald Mosley, I'm going to put the link to this article full of wonderful Wodehouse exerpts here.

Thanks, Frank, for calling attention to this article, which refreshingly acquits PGW of being an unworldly simpleton (he certainly was far from that when it came to royalties). That of course makes him more responsible for what was hardly his finest hour in wartime, but Orwell never found it necessary to get on his case & neither do I, though I am not an uncritical admirer of his writing, far from a cultist, & believe that he always did best in short story form. He taught me a lot about writing short stories, though a million miles away in sensibility, & of course in talent.

Has anybody else remarked on the similarities between Wodehouse and Joyce? Joyce was trapped in 1904 and never went back to Ireland. Both erected style above content. In fact style BECAME content. Aswith Flaubert but let's leave that alone because the guy was French. Frankly I think Wodehouse's achievement the greater. But I CAN see there might be another view. Held by the great Anthony Burgess for instance. But Evelyn Waugh would be of my opinion. Wodehouse's tenacity about royalties should make him the hero of all writers everywhere.

And Wodehouse was not quite as innocent as some think. His treatment of Lord Emsworth is not entirely forgiving. And Bertie's description of the black shorts' leader Spode is worth looking up.

quelle surprise
 

I have always suspected you of being an Evelyn Waugh groupie, John.

Not guilty. Bazza. I ended a quite lucrative innings in the Speccie back half by being very rude about 'Brideshead Revisited'. They don't like it up 'em, but who does? However, I do like 'Decline and Fall'. 'The Loved One' and 'Helena'. Also a short story called 'Mr Lovejoy's Little Outing'. But Kingsley Amis is much funnier in my opinion. Joyce? My daughter went to the greyhound racing at the weekend. She said, 'I'm glad I went but I shan't be repeating the experience.' My feelings about Joyce in a nutshell.

I liked the early heartless satires and Pinfold was a hilarious portrait of paranoia, but when he waxed sentimental with the Brideshead/Crouchback/Sword of Honour bollocks... pass the sickbag.

You were a regular reviewer for the Speccie?

I was. Novels mostly. I panned 'The Shipping News' which was a spectacular own goal. I went to two or three of the famous parties. Enoch Powell looked quite as mad as I might have expected.

'Black Mischief' is pretty funny. Being set in Africa, I suppose it could be described as the third-world Waugh.

Yup. Black Mischief is funny. And 'Scoop'. All the stuff when he's not trying to be a great novelist. He was a terrible bully at prep school, did you know that? Made Anthony Blunt's life a misery. He was a brave officer but all his troops hated him. They wanted to kill him. I can sympathise with that.