William Boot
Encyclopedia
William Boot is a fictional
journalist who is the protagonist in the 1938 Evelyn Waugh
comic novel Scoop
.
newspaper named the Daily Beast; his affected style is typified in the notorious sentence "Feather-footed through the plashy fen passes the questing vole". He is then sent abroad as a foreign correspondent
to the fictional African state of Ishmaelia which is on the brink of a civil war
, having been mistaken for a war reporter. Although he is completely inept, he accidentally gets the 'scoop' of the title.
; the two had reported together in 1936, trying to cover the Second Italo-Abyssinian War
and Deedes arrived in Addis Ababa
aged 22 with almost 600 pounds of luggage. Deedes himself said he "spent part of my life brushing aside the charge," but admitted "that my inexperience and naivety as a reporter in Africa might have contributed a few bricks to the building of Boot."
Barring the question of age, a more appropriate model for Boot may be William Beach Thomas who, according to Peter Stothard
, "was a quietly successful countryside columnist and literary gent who became a calamitous Daily Mail war correspondent" in World War I
.
Yet another suggested candidate as the model for Boot was the Daily Mails gardening correspondent for 50 years, Percy Izzard
(1877-1968).
has sometimes gone by the pseudonym William Boot when working as a journalist in the early 1960's.
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...
journalist who is the protagonist in the 1938 Evelyn Waugh
Evelyn Waugh
Arthur Evelyn St. John Waugh , known as Evelyn Waugh, was an English writer of novels, travel books and biographies. He was also a prolific journalist and reviewer...
comic novel Scoop
Scoop (novel)
Scoop is a 1938 novel by English writer Evelyn Waugh, a satire of sensationalist journalism and foreign correspondence.-Plot:William Boot, a young man who lives in genteel poverty far from the iniquities of London, is contributor of nature notes to Lord Copper's Beast, a national newspaper...
.
Character
Boot is the young author of a regular column on country life for a LondonLondon
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...
newspaper named the Daily Beast; his affected style is typified in the notorious sentence "Feather-footed through the plashy fen passes the questing vole". He is then sent abroad as a foreign correspondent
Foreign correspondent
Foreign Correspondent may refer to:*Foreign correspondent *Foreign Correspondent , an Alfred Hitchcock film*Foreign Correspondent , an Australian current affairs programme...
to the fictional African state of Ishmaelia which is on the brink of a civil war
Civil war
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same nation state or republic, or, less commonly, between two countries created from a formerly-united nation state....
, having been mistaken for a war reporter. Although he is completely inept, he accidentally gets the 'scoop' of the title.
Inspiration for character
It has been suggested that Waugh based the character of William Boot on his own experiences and on the legendary journalist Bill DeedesBill Deedes
William Francis Deedes, Baron Deedes, KBE, MC, PC, DL was a British Conservative Party politician, army officer and journalist; he is to date the only person in Britain to have been both a member of the Cabinet and the editor of a major daily newspaper, The Daily Telegraph.-Early life and...
; the two had reported together in 1936, trying to cover the Second Italo-Abyssinian War
Second Italo-Abyssinian War
The Second Italo–Abyssinian War was a colonial war that started in October 1935 and ended in May 1936. The war was fought between the armed forces of the Kingdom of Italy and the armed forces of the Ethiopian Empire...
and Deedes arrived in Addis Ababa
Addis Ababa
Addis Ababa is the capital city of Ethiopia...
aged 22 with almost 600 pounds of luggage. Deedes himself said he "spent part of my life brushing aside the charge," but admitted "that my inexperience and naivety as a reporter in Africa might have contributed a few bricks to the building of Boot."
Barring the question of age, a more appropriate model for Boot may be William Beach Thomas who, according to Peter Stothard
Peter Stothard
Sir Peter Stothard is a British newspaper editor. He currently edits the Times Literary Supplement, and edited The Times from 1992 to 2002....
, "was a quietly successful countryside columnist and literary gent who became a calamitous Daily Mail war correspondent" in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
Yet another suggested candidate as the model for Boot was the Daily Mails gardening correspondent for 50 years, Percy Izzard
Percy Izzard
Percy W. D. Izzard OBE was the well-known gardening correspondent on the Daily Mail newspaper and author of several books on gardening.- Life and works :...
(1877-1968).
Television portrayals
- Michael MaloneyMichael MaloneyMichael Maloney is an English actor.Born in Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, Maloney's first television appearance was as Peter Barkworth's teenage son in the 1979 drama series, Telford's Change....
played William Boot in a 1987 British television movie entitled ScoopScoop (1987 film)Scoop is a 1987 TV film directed by Gavin Millar, adapted by William Boyd from the 1938 satirical novel Scoop by Evelyn Waugh. It was produced by Sue Birtwistle with executive producers Nick Elliott and Patrick Garland. Original music was made by Stanley Myers...
, produced by LWT.
- Harry WorthHarry WorthHarry Worth was an English comedy actor and comedian...
played the character in a 1972 BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
television series, which was an adaptation of the novel scripted by Barry TookBarry TookBarry Took was an English comedian, writer and television presenter. He is best remembered in the UK for his weekly role as presenter of Points of View, a BBC TV programme in which viewers' letters criticising or praising the BBC were broadcast...
.
Popular References
Tom StoppardTom Stoppard
Sir Tom Stoppard OM, CBE, FRSL is a British playwright, knighted in 1997. He has written prolifically for TV, radio, film and stage, finding prominence with plays such as Arcadia, The Coast of Utopia, Every Good Boy Deserves Favour, Professional Foul, The Real Thing, and Rosencrantz and...
has sometimes gone by the pseudonym William Boot when working as a journalist in the early 1960's.