"Company for Gertrude" is a

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

P. G. Wodehouse Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse, ( ; 15 October 188114 February 1975) was an English author and one of the most widely read humorists of the 20th century. His creations include the feather-brained Bertie Wooster and his sagacious valet, Jeeve ...

, which first appeared in the United Kingdom in September 1928 in ''

Strand Strand may refer to: Topography *The flat area of land bordering a body of water, a: ** Beach ** Shoreline * Strand swamp, a type of swamp habitat in Florida Places Africa * Strand, Western Cape, a seaside town in South Africa * Strand Street ...

'', and in the United States in October 1928 in ''

Cosmopolitan Cosmopolitan may refer to: Food and drink * Cosmopolitan (cocktail), also known as a "Cosmo" History * Rootless cosmopolitan, a Soviet derogatory epithet during Joseph Stalin's anti-Semitic campaign of 1949–1953 Hotels and resorts * Cosmopoli ...

''. Part of the

Blandings Castle Blandings Castle is a recurring fictional location in the stories of British comic writer P. G. Wodehouse, being the seat of Lord Emsworth (Clarence Threepwood, 9th Earl of Emsworth), home to many of his family and the setting for numerous ta ...

canon, it features the absent-minded peer

Lord Emsworth Clarence Threepwood, 9th Earl Emsworth, commonly known as Lord Emsworth, is a recurring fictional character in the Blandings Castle series of stories by British comic writer P. G. Wodehouse. He is the amiable and somewhat absent-minded head of t ...

, and was included in the collection ''

Blandings Castle and Elsewhere ''Blandings Castle and Elsewhere'' is a collection of short stories by P. G. Wodehouse. It was first published in the United Kingdom on 12 April 1935 by Herbert Jenkins, London, and, as ''Blandings Castle'', in the United States on 20 Septembe ...

'' (1935), though the story takes place sometime between the events of ''

Leave it to Psmith ''Leave It to Psmith'' is a comic novel by English author P. G. Wodehouse, first published in the United Kingdom on 30 November 1923 by Herbert Jenkins, London, England, and in the United States on 14 March 1924 by George H. Doran, New York.M ...

'' (1923) and ''

Summer Lightning ''Summer Lightning'' is a novel by P. G. Wodehouse, first published in the United States on 1 July 1929 by Doubleday, Doran, New York, under the title ''Fish Preferred'', and in the United Kingdom on 19 July 1929 by Herbert Jenkins, London ...

'' (1929).

Plot

's world is far from ideal – not only has his neighbour Sir Gregory Parsloe-Parsloe stolen his pigman Wellbeloved, but his niece Gertrude is imprisoned in the house, mooning miserably about the place and, worse still, trying to be "helpful" by tidying his study. Meanwhile,

Freddie Threepwood The Honourable Frederick Threepwood is a fictional character in the Blandings stories by P. G. Wodehouse. A member of the Drones Club affectionately known as "Freddie", he is the second son of Lord Emsworth, and a somewhat simple-minded youth who ...

, back in England to promote his father-in-law Mr Donaldson's "Dog-Joy" biscuits, has just been turned down by his dog-loving Aunt Georgiana, Gertrude's mother, when he runs into his old

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

pal Beefy Bingham. Bingham, Freddie learns, is in love with cousin Gertrude, but as he is not well-off, the family have closed ranks and sent Gertrude away to Blandings. Inspired by a Super-film he has seen, Freddie sends Bingham down to the castle, under the guise of a Mr "Popjoy" (based on Lord Emsworth's mishearing of the dog biscuits Freddie is selling), tasked with ingratiating himself with the Earl. Emsworth is at first pleased to see Gertrude less dour, and charmed by his guest's diffidence and helpful ways, but soon finds himself smothered – Bingham is overdoing the ingratiating. Emsworth even begins to question the man's sanity, when he wakes in the night to find the fellow blowing kisses up at his window. When Bingham tries to help Emsworth off a ladder and knocks him to the ground, he hopes to remedy the others ills (and anger) with a bottle of balm; sadly however, he buys a product designed for horses, which causes his Lordship considerable pain. When he sees Emsworth singing during his morning swim, he mistakes the awful noise for cries for help, and dashes in to save the aging peer, only to be thanked with a stiff punch in the face. Freddie reveals to Emsworth that Popjoy is in fact Bingham, hopeful of one of the many livings in Emsworth's gift. When Emsworth realises that he can inflict the man on his enemy Parsloe-Parsloe, he doesn't hesitate from granting him the job.

Publication history

The story was illustrated by Reginald Cleaver in the ''Strand''. It was illustrated by O. F. Howard in ''Cosmopolitan''. "Company for Gertrude" was included in the collection ''The World of Wodehouse Clergy'', published in June 1984 by Hutchinson, London.

Adaptations

The story was adapted for television by the BBC and broadcast in March 1967 as an episode of ''

The World of Wodehouse ''The World of Wodehouse'' is a comedy television series, based on the Blandings Castle and Ukridge stories written by P. G. Wodehouse. The series, which followed the television series ''The World of Wooster'', was shown on BBC Television. It c ...

'', titled "Lord Emsworth and the Company for Gertrude". "Company for Gertrude" was adapted for radio in February 1985, as part of the ''

Blandings Blandings Castle is a recurring fictional location in the stories of British comic writer P. G. Wodehouse, being the seat of Lord Emsworth (Clarence Threepwood, 9th Earl of Emsworth), home to many of his family and the setting for numerous tal ...

'' radio series. The BBC adapted "Company for Gertrude" for television again in 2013, as the third episode of the series ''

''. This adaptation adds a sub-plot in which Freddie marries a Portuguese woman named Paquita, and tries to keep his marriage a secret from Lady Constance.

References

;Notes ;Sources *

External links

* {{Blandings Castle Short stories by P. G. Wodehouse 1928 short stories Works originally published in The Strand Magazine Pigs in literature

Plot

Publication history

Adaptations

See also

References

External links