- Roderick Spode
Roderick Spode, 7th Earl of Sidcup, often known as Spode or Lord Sidcup, is a recurring
fictional character from theJeeves novels of British comic writerP. G. Wodehouse , being an "amateurDictator " and the leader of a fictionalfascist group inLondon called The Black Shorts . In the 1990s television series, he is portrayed by [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0876519/ John Turner] , and depicted as having a veryHitler esque appearance.Overview
Spode is a large and intimidating figure, appearing "as if Nature had intended to make a
gorilla , and had changed its mind at the last moment". He is constantly in love withMadeline Bassett , and though he intended to remain a bachelor during his career as a dictator, he nevertheless attempted to protect her from men "playing fast and loose"; to this end, he threatened on several occasions to beatBertie Wooster andGussie Fink-Nottle to jelly. He marches his followers around London and the countryside, preaching loudly to the public on the dissoluteness of modern society until a heckler hits him in the eye with a potato. Spode's grotesquely lampooned character is possibly Wodehouse's surest defence against the absurd charges of Nazi sympathies.The Black Shorts
Spode is modelled after Sir
Oswald Mosley , leader of theBritish Union of Fascists , who were nicknamed the "blackshirts ". The name was probably suggested by Mosley's family connection to the Potteries area inStaffordshire , where the famousSpode pottery is made. Spode was at first an 'amateurdictator ' who led a farcical group of fascists called the Saviours of Britain, better known as the Black Shorts. Spode adopted black shorts as a uniform because, according to Gussie Fink-Nottle in "The Code of the Woosters ", "By the time Spode formed his association, there were no shirts left." (alluding to Garibaldi'ssocialist red shirts, and various fascist groups -- theblack shirts of Mussolini, thebrown shirts of Hitler, theblue shirts ofIreland , the green shirts of theNational Corporate Party and Social Credit and thesilver shirts of theUnited States ).Bertie Wooster believes that wearing black shorts is an extreme social and sartorial faux pas (shorts being inappropriate for a grown man outside a sporting context) and uses it to make fun of Spode:Quote
The trouble with you, Spode, is that just because you have succeeded in inducing a handful of half-wits to disfigure the London scene by going about in black shorts, you think you're someone. You hear them shouting "Heil, Spode!" and you imagine it is the Voice of the People. That is where you make your bloomer. What the Voice of the People is saying is: "Look at that frightful ass Spode swanking about in footer bags! Did you ever in your puff see such a perfect perisher?"
P. G. Wodehouse (Bertie Wooster speaking to Spode)
in "The Code of the Woosters " (1938)Past life
Before Spode inherited the title of
Earl ofSidcup from his uncle, he made a living as the "founder and proprietor of the emporium in Bond Street known as Eulalie Soeurs", a famed designer of ladies'lingerie . [This may allude to the fact that "The Lady" was owned by the Mitford family, and Mosley becameDiana Mitford 's second husband.] Out of embarrassment, Spode had long attempted to keep his ownership of the business a secret, thoughJeeves discovered the fact in theJunior Ganymede Club 's official Book, where one of Spode's former valets had inscribed it. In "The Code of the Woosters ", this discovery allowed Bertie to threaten Spode with public embarrassment and prevent being coshed: as Bertie says, "You can't be a successful Dictator and design women's underclothing. One or the other. Not both." Indeed, whenever Bertie mentions the name "Eulalie" throughout the book, Spode instantly becomes meek and acquiescing. Bertie plans to use the same stratagem in "Jeeves and the Feudal Spirit " to prevent Spode – who is an expert on jewellery – from revealing thatAunt Dahlia 's pearl necklace is in fact a fake (she pawned the real one to raise money for her magazine, "Milady's Boudoir "). Before he attempts the blackmail, however, Spode dashes his hopes by telling Bertie that he has sold Eulalie Soeurs. It is left up toAunt Dahlia to save the day by actually coshing Spode herself.tories
Spode is featured in:
* "
The Code of the Woosters " (1938), in which the Eulalie Soeurs incident occurs
* "Jeeves and the Feudal Spirit " (1954), as Lord Sidcup
* "Stiff Upper Lip, Jeeves " (1963), again as Lord Sidcup; he gets engaged toMadeline Bassett
* "Much Obliged, Jeeves " (1971)References
;
Primary sources consulted* Cite book
author = Wodehouse, P. G.
origyear = 1938
year = 1975
title =The Code of the Woosters
location =New York, NY
publisher =Vintage Books
pages = pages 221–222
id = ISBN 0-394-72028-8
* Cite book
author = Wodehouse, P. G.
origyear = 1954
year = 1999
title =Jeeves and the Feudal Spirit
location =London, UK
publisher =Penguin Books
pages =
id = ISBN 0-14-028120-7;
Secondary sources consulted* Cite book
author = Usborne, Richard
origyear = 2002
year = 2003
title = Plum Sauce: A P. G. Wodehouse Companion
location =Woodstock, NY
publisher =The Overlook Press
pages = pages 137–207
id = ISBN 1-58567-441-9; Endnotes
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