Roderick Spode
Encyclopedia
Roderick Spode, Bt, 7th Earl of Sidcup, often known as Spode or Lord Sidcup, is a recurring fictional character
from the Jeeves
novels of British comic writer P. G. Wodehouse
, being an "amateur Dictator
" and the leader of a fictional fascist group in London
called The Black Shorts. In the 1990s television series, Jeeves and Wooster
, he is portrayed by John Turner
and depicted as having a rather Hitleresque appearance.
, and had changed its mind at the last moment". He is constantly in love with Madeline 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 beat Bertie Wooster
and Gussie Fink-Nottle
to a 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 is modelled after Sir Oswald Mosley
, leader of the British Union of Fascists
, who were nicknamed the blackshirts
. Spode was at first an 'amateur dictator
' who led a farcical group of fascists called the Saviours of England, 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 various fascist or right-wing groups – Mussolini
's Blackshirts
, Hitler
's brownshirts
, the Irish Blueshirts and Greenshirts, the South African Greyshirts
, Mexico's Gold shirts
, and the American Silver Shirts
). 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:
of Sidcup
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
.
Out of embarrassment, Spode had long attempted to keep his ownership of the business a secret, though Jeeves
discovered the fact in the Junior 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 the threatened "jellying process." As Bertie says, "You can't be a successful Dictator and design women's underclothing. One or the other. Not both." Indeed, whenever Spode sees Bertie after the point where Bertie mentions the name "Eulalie," 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 that Aunt 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 to Aunt Dahlia
to save the day by actually coshing Spode herself.
After elevating his Spode character to the peerage, Wodehouse often used Bertie’s failure to remember Spode’s new status, and subsequent incredulity when reminded of it, to great comic effect.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
from the Jeeves
Jeeves
Reginald Jeeves is a fictional character in the short stories and novels of P. G. Wodehouse, being the valet of Bertie Wooster . Created in 1915, Jeeves would continue to appear in Wodehouse's works until his final, completed, novel Aunts Aren't Gentlemen in 1974, making him Wodehouse's most famous...
novels of British comic writer P. G. Wodehouse
P. G. Wodehouse
Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse, KBE was an English humorist, whose body of work includes novels, short stories, plays, poems, song lyrics, and numerous pieces of journalism. He enjoyed enormous popular success during a career that lasted more than seventy years and his many writings continue to be...
, being an "amateur Dictator
Dictator
A dictator is a ruler who assumes sole and absolute power but without hereditary ascension such as an absolute monarch. When other states call the head of state of a particular state a dictator, that state is called a dictatorship...
" and the leader of a fictional fascist group in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
called The Black Shorts. In the 1990s television series, Jeeves and Wooster
Jeeves and Wooster
-External links:*—An episode guide to the series, including information about which episodes were adapted from which Wodehouse stories.*—Episode guides, screenshots and quotes from the four series....
, he is portrayed by John Turner
John Turner (actor)
John Turner is a British television actor.One of his most recognisable roles was that of Roderick Spode in the ITV television series Jeeves and Wooster based on the P. G. Wodehouse novels...
and depicted as having a rather Hitleresque appearance.
Overview
Spode is a large and intimidating figure, appearing "as if Nature had intended to make a gorillaGorilla
Gorillas are the largest extant species of primates. They are ground-dwelling, predominantly herbivorous apes that inhabit the forests of central Africa. Gorillas are divided into two species and either four or five subspecies...
, and had changed its mind at the last moment". He is constantly in love with Madeline Bassett
Madeline Bassett
Madeline Bassett is a recurring character in the Jeeves stories by English comic writer P. G. Wodehouse, being one of the young women to whom Bertie Wooster periodically finds himself threateningly engaged.-Overview:...
, 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 beat Bertie Wooster
Bertie Wooster
Bertram Wilberforce "Bertie" Wooster is a recurring fictional character in the Jeeves novels of British author P. G. Wodehouse. An English gentleman, one of the "idle rich" and a member of the Drones Club, he appears alongside his valet, Jeeves, whose genius manages to extricate Bertie or one of...
and Gussie Fink-Nottle
Gussie Fink-Nottle
Augustus "Gussie" Fink-Nottle is a fictional character in the Jeeves novels of British comic writer P. G. Wodehouse, being a lifelong friend of Jeeves's master Bertie Wooster and a possible member of the Drones Club...
to a 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.
The Black Shorts
Oswald Mosley
Sir Oswald Ernald Mosley, 6th Baronet, of Ancoats, was an English politician, known principally as the founder of the British Union of Fascists...
, leader of the British Union of Fascists
British Union of Fascists
The British Union was a political party in the United Kingdom formed in 1932 by Sir Oswald Mosley as the British Union of Fascists, in 1936 it changed its name to the British Union of Fascists and National Socialists and then in 1937 to simply the British Union...
, who were nicknamed the blackshirts
Blackshirts
The Blackshirts were Fascist paramilitary groups in Italy during the period immediately following World War I and until the end of World War II...
. Spode was at first an 'amateur dictator
Dictator
A dictator is a ruler who assumes sole and absolute power but without hereditary ascension such as an absolute monarch. When other states call the head of state of a particular state a dictator, that state is called a dictatorship...
' who led a farcical group of fascists called the Saviours of England, 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
The Code of the Woosters
The Code of the Woosters is a novel by P. G. Wodehouse, first published on 7 October 1938, in the United Kingdom by Herbert Jenkins, London, and in the United States by Doubleday, Doran, New York...
, "by the time Spode formed his association, there were no shirts left", (alluding to various fascist or right-wing groups – Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
's Blackshirts
Blackshirts
The Blackshirts were Fascist paramilitary groups in Italy during the period immediately following World War I and until the end of World War II...
, Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
's brownshirts
Sturmabteilung
The Sturmabteilung functioned as a paramilitary organization of the National Socialist German Workers' Party . It played a key role in Adolf Hitler's rise to power in the 1920s and 1930s...
, the Irish Blueshirts and Greenshirts, the South African Greyshirts
Greyshirts
Greyshirts or Gryshemde is the common short-form name given to the South African Gentile National Socialist Movement, a South African Nazi movement that existed during the 1930s and 1940s...
, Mexico's Gold shirts
Gold shirts
The Revolutionary Mexicanist Action , better known as the Gold shirts , was a Mexican fascist paramilitary organization in the 1930s.The group was founded by general Nicolás Rodríguez Carrasco in 1933 with the official title of Acción Revolucionaria Mexicana...
, and the American Silver Shirts
Silver Legion of America
The Silver Legion of America, commonly known as the Silver Shirts, was an American fascist organization founded by William Dudley Pelley on January 30, 1933, coincidentally, the same day Adolf Hitler, whom Pelley admired, seized power in Germany....
). Bertie Wooster
Bertie Wooster
Bertram Wilberforce "Bertie" Wooster is a recurring fictional character in the Jeeves novels of British author P. G. Wodehouse. An English gentleman, one of the "idle rich" and a member of the Drones Club, he appears alongside his valet, Jeeves, whose genius manages to extricate Bertie or one of...
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:
Past life
Before Spode inherited the title of EarlEarl
An earl is a member of the nobility. The title is Anglo-Saxon, akin to the Scandinavian form jarl, and meant "chieftain", particularly a chieftain set to rule a territory in a king's stead. In Scandinavia, it became obsolete in the Middle Ages and was replaced with duke...
of Sidcup
Sidcup
Sidcup is a district in South East London in the London Borough of Bexley and small parts of the district in the London Borough of Greenwich.Located south east of Charing Cross, Sidcup is bordered by the London Boroughs of Greenwich and Bromley and Kent County Council, and whilst now part of...
from his uncle, he made a living as the "founder and proprietor of the emporium in Bond Street
Bond Street
Bond Street is a major shopping street in the West End of London that runs north-south through Mayfair between Oxford Street and Piccadilly. It has been a fashionable shopping street since the 18th century and is currently the home of many high price fashion shops...
known as Eulalie Soeurs", a famed designer of ladies' lingerie
Lingerie
Lingerie are fashionable and possibly alluring undergarments.Lingerie usually incorporates one or more flexible, stretchy materials like Lycra, nylon , polyester, satin, lace, silk and sheer fabric which are not typically used in more functional, basic cotton undergarments.The term in the French...
.
Out of embarrassment, Spode had long attempted to keep his ownership of the business a secret, though Jeeves
Jeeves
Reginald Jeeves is a fictional character in the short stories and novels of P. G. Wodehouse, being the valet of Bertie Wooster . Created in 1915, Jeeves would continue to appear in Wodehouse's works until his final, completed, novel Aunts Aren't Gentlemen in 1974, making him Wodehouse's most famous...
discovered the fact in the Junior Ganymede Club
Junior Ganymede Club
The Junior Ganymede Club is a recurring fictional location in the Jeeves stories of British comic writer P. G. Wodehouse, being a London club for "gentlemen's gentlemen", i.e. valets, especially for those whose employers are members of the Drones Club. Bertie Wooster's valet Jeeves is a member of...
's official Book, where one of Spode's former valets had inscribed it.
In The Code of the Woosters
The Code of the Woosters
The Code of the Woosters is a novel by P. G. Wodehouse, first published on 7 October 1938, in the United Kingdom by Herbert Jenkins, London, and in the United States by Doubleday, Doran, New York...
, this discovery allowed Bertie to threaten Spode with public embarrassment and prevent the threatened "jellying process." As Bertie says, "You can't be a successful Dictator and design women's underclothing. One or the other. Not both." Indeed, whenever Spode sees Bertie after the point where Bertie mentions the name "Eulalie," Spode instantly becomes meek and acquiescing.
Bertie plans to use the same stratagem in Jeeves and the Feudal Spirit
Jeeves and the Feudal Spirit
Jeeves and the Feudal Spirit is a novel by P. G. Wodehouse, first published in the United Kingdom on October 15, 1954 by Herbert Jenkins, London and in the United States on February 23, 1955 by Simon & Schuster, Inc., New York, under the title Bertie Wooster Sees It Through...
to prevent Spode – who is an expert on jewellery – from revealing that Aunt Dahlia
Aunt Dahlia
Dahlia Travers is a recurring fictional character in the Jeeves novels of British comic writer P. G. Wodehouse, being best known as Bertie Wooster's bonhomous, red-faced Aunt Dahlia. She is much beloved by her nephew, in contrast with her sister, Bertie's Aunt Agatha...
'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 to Aunt Dahlia
Aunt Dahlia
Dahlia Travers is a recurring fictional character in the Jeeves novels of British comic writer P. G. Wodehouse, being best known as Bertie Wooster's bonhomous, red-faced Aunt Dahlia. She is much beloved by her nephew, in contrast with her sister, Bertie's Aunt Agatha...
to save the day by actually coshing Spode herself.
After elevating his Spode character to the peerage, Wodehouse often used Bertie’s failure to remember Spode’s new status, and subsequent incredulity when reminded of it, to great comic effect.
Stories
Spode is featured in:- The Code of the WoostersThe Code of the WoostersThe Code of the Woosters is a novel by P. G. Wodehouse, first published on 7 October 1938, in the United Kingdom by Herbert Jenkins, London, and in the United States by Doubleday, Doran, New York...
(1938), in which the Eulalie Soeurs incident occurs - Jeeves and the Feudal SpiritJeeves and the Feudal SpiritJeeves and the Feudal Spirit is a novel by P. G. Wodehouse, first published in the United Kingdom on October 15, 1954 by Herbert Jenkins, London and in the United States on February 23, 1955 by Simon & Schuster, Inc., New York, under the title Bertie Wooster Sees It Through...
(1954), as Lord Sidcup - Stiff Upper Lip, JeevesStiff Upper Lip, JeevesStiff Upper Lip, Jeeves is a novel by P. G. Wodehouse, published in the United States on March 22, 1963 by Simon & Schuster, Inc., New York, and in the United Kingdom on August 16, 1963 by Herbert Jenkins, London...
(1963), again as Lord Sidcup; he gets engaged to Madeline BassettMadeline BassettMadeline Bassett is a recurring character in the Jeeves stories by English comic writer P. G. Wodehouse, being one of the young women to whom Bertie Wooster periodically finds himself threateningly engaged.-Overview:... - Much Obliged, JeevesMuch Obliged, JeevesMuch Obliged, Jeeves is a novel by P. G. Wodehouse, first published in the United Kingdom on October 15, 1971 by Barrie & Jenkins, London and in the United States on October 15, 1971 by Simon & Schuster, Inc., New York under the name Jeeves and the Tie that Binds.The two editions have slightly...
(1971)