Mike and Psmith

Mike and Psmith P. G. Wodehouse - Pelham Grenville Wodehouse on born on 15th October, 1881 in Guildford, England to distinguished parents who were visiting the UK from Hong Kong where his father was a magistrate.

After two years in Hong Kong Wodehouse and his two brothers were sent back to England to live and be schooled.

Failing family finances meant that Wodehouse did not go on to University but began work straight away. He wrote in the evenings and during a two-year stint as a bank clerk managed to have over 80 pieces published. With the publication of his first book 'The Pothunters' in 1902 he devoted himself full time to writing.

His career was both prolific and commercially successful. Whether it was novels, short stories or plays everything seemed to be a hit.

His wonderful characterisation of the English upper classes combined with his mastery of prose left a lasting legacy most notably in his series of the humorous, and sometimes hilarious, Jeeves and Wooster stories that are at the pinnacle of comic writing and continue to be widely read and enjoyed.

Despite controversy over his broadcasts for the Germans during World War Two, which stemmed more from naivety than any possible Nazi sympathies, but which left a lingering stain against his name, he continued to write although with diminishing success.

P G Wodehouse died on 14th February 1975 in the United States.

n Evelyn Waugh's book _Decline and Fall_ his legend, applying for a post as a schoolmaster, is told by the specialist, "We class schools in four grades-driving school, top notch school, great school, and school. Sedleigh in Mike and Psmith would, I assume, come into the last-named class, however not exactly as low in it as Mr. Waugh's Llanabba. It is one of those little English schools with yearnings one day to have the option to put "public" before their name and to have their director qualified to go to the yearly Headmaster's Conference. All it needs is a couple more Adairs to get things moving. Also, there is this to be noted, that even at a "school" one gets magnificent training. Its as it were disadvantage is that it doesn't play the main schools or the principal rate schools or even the great schools at cricket. In any case, to Mike,traight from Wrykyn (a "top notch school") and Psmith.