Mr. Mulliner


Mr. Mulliner is a fictional character from the short stories of P. G. Wodehouse. Mr. Mulliner is a loquacious pub raconteur who, no matter what the topic of conversation, can find an appropriate story about a member of his family to match it.
Like much of Wodehouse's work, the Mr. Mulliner stories were originally written for magazine publication. Thirty-eight of the 43 overall Mulliner stories were originally published between 1926 and 1937. After one brief 1940 anecdote, the final four stories appeared much later, being published between 1958 and 1972.

Overview

Like his fellow Wodehouse character, the Oldest Member, the raconteur Mr. Mulliner can turn any conversation into a "recollection", or funny story. Wodehouse revealed in an introduction that he devised Mr. Mulliner after collecting notebooks full of ideas that could not be used because they were too outlandish, until he had the happy notion of a fisherman whose veracity could be doubted.
In the first Mr. Mulliner story "The Truth About George", Wodehouse provides a description of Mr. Mulliner as "a short, stout, comfortable man of middle age" with eyes that are "large and round and earnest" and full of "extraordinarily childlike candor." A habitué of the Angler's Rest pub, where his fellow drinkers are identified only by their beverages, Mr. Mulliner is a "hot Scotch and lemon".
The tales of Mulliner all involve one of his relations: there are dozens upon dozens of cousins, nieces, and nephews. These include stories about loves lost, found and rekindled; fortunes made and lost; and opportunities grasped or missed. They take place across the globe: Los Angeles's Hollywood and the English country house are the settings for many.
Two Mulliner stories are not primarily about one of Mr. Mulliner's relatives. However, in these two cases, Mr. Mulliner states that the stories were told to him by relatives; he is therefore reporting a story told to him by a relation, rather than a story about a relation.

Stories

The Mulliner stories all employ an unusual structure. At the beginning of each story, an unnamed first-person narrator sets the scene at the Angler's Rest pub, describing the conversation at the bar-parlour. This will lead to Mr. Mulliner entering the conversation, generally elaborating on the conversational theme, and remarking that it reminds him of a story involving a relative. Then, no more than a page or two into the story, Mr. Mulliner effectively takes over the narration of the tale, describing the events that befell the relative in question. In the earlier stories, the unnamed first-person narrator returns very briefly to close out the tale back at the Angler's Rest—in later stories, the story ends when Mr. Mulliner has concluded it.
Mr. Mulliner himself is rarely a character in the tales he tells. An exception is the story "George and Alfred", in which Mr. Mulliner tries to help out one of his nephews who has been accused of a crime. In this story, we learn that Mr. Mulliner is a friend of Hollywood studio head Jacob Z. Schnellenhamer, and that he has stayed on Schnellenhamer's yacht while it was cruising the Mediterranean. We also learn that Mr. Mulliner's first name, whatever it may be, is not George.
Little else is revealed of Mulliner's character beyond his large family, his choice of beverage, and his hobby of fishing. Nevertheless, Mulliner narrates forty-three short stories. Many are collected in the three books, containing nine stories each, which bear his name:
  • Meet Mr Mulliner
  • Mr Mulliner Speaking
  • Mulliner Nights
Fifteen other stories are scattered in other volumes:
  • Five in Blandings Castle and Elsewhere
  • Three in Young Men in Spats
  • One in Lord Emsworth and Others
  • One in Crime Wave at Blandings
  • One in Eggs, Beans and Crumpets
  • Two in A Few Quick Ones
  • One in Plum Pie
  • One in The World of Mr Mulliner
One story -- 1940's "Shock Dogs", which is more of a brief topical conversation than a story -- has never been reprinted or collected in any form outside of its original publication in Punch magazine. It is signed with initials only but the Articles and Verse listing in the bound Punch volume CXCVIIJ Jan-June 1940 attributes the story to Wodehouse, P. G. It mentions by name Hitler, Brauchitsch, and Goebbels, which is very unusual for an author who so seldom allowed politics to impinge on his novels and stories.
The World of Mr Mulliner is an omnibus containing 41 of the 43 stories narrated by Mr. Mulliner. It omits "Shock Dogs", and 1937's "Romance at Droitgate Spa", which appears in several other Wodehouse compilations but without the framework of Mr. Mulliner's narration. The World of Mr Mulliner also includes one other story which has a tangential connection to the series: "From a Detective's Notebook" is narrated by the detective Adrian Mulliner, who had previously been established as one of Mr. Mulliner's innumerable nephews. Strictly speaking, despite its appearance in the Mr. Mulliner omnibus, this tale cannot be considered a Mr. Mulliner story, as Mr. Mulliner does not narrate it, appear in it, and is not actually referenced in it in any way.
Also note that a handful of what were to become "Mr. Mulliner stories" were originally published in magazines without the framework of Mr. Mulliner telling the story in question. When revised for book publication, Wodehouse added the Mulliner openings and narration — and it is these revised versions which appear in all Mulliner and Wodehouse anthologies to this day. These revised stories can often be distinguished by Mulliner identifying the prime character of the story as a "distant cousin" whose surname is not Mulliner.

Known relatives

Forebears:
  • A Sieur de Moulinières "came over with the Conqueror", presumably in 1066.
  • A Mulliner "once received the thanks of his Sovereign for services rendered on the field of Crecy".
Grandmother:
  • Unnamed. Died in the late 19th century. It is this grandmother who made William pledge to not drink until he turned 21—or 41, William can't quite remember which.
Uncles:
Aunts:
  • Myrtle Banks, married William
Brothers:
  • [|Wilfred Mulliner], a chemist and inventor of various creams, lotions, and tonics, known in the trade as Mulliner's Magic Marvels. Featured mainly in A Slice of Life he also has a cameo role in Mulliner's Buck-U-Uppo, where the tonic Buck-U-Uppo is introduced. Wilfred marries Angela Purdue, the ward of Sir Jasper ffinch-ffarrowmere and they have two sons, Percival who goes to a prep school in Sussex and Ferdinand who attends Eton College.
  • Sir Sholto Mulliner, M.V.O.
  • Joseph Mulliner, being the father of Bulstrode.
Sisters-in-law:
  • Angela Purdue, married Wilfred
  • Lady Wilhelmina Mulliner, the widow of Sir Sholto Mulliner and the mother of Archibald.
First cousins:
  • John San Francisco Earthquake Mulliner, son of William and Myrtle
  • Clarence Mulliner, photographer
  • Cedric Mulliner, a foppish bachelor of 45 years.
  • Lady Wickham, novelist under the pen-name "George Masterman"
  • Edward Mulliner
  • Rupert Mulliner; the father of Anselm.
  • Egbert Mulliner, civil servant
Cousins by marriage:
  • Gladys Biggs, married Clarence
  • Myrtle Watling, married Cedric
  • Sir Cuthbert Wickham, married Lady Wickham
First cousins, once removed:
  • Roberta "Bobbie" Wickham, daughter of Sir Cuthbert and Lady Wickham
  • Lancelot Mulliner, an artist, Edward's son; a portrait painter in Bott St, London. Brought up by his uncle Theodore.
  • Mervyn Mulliner, a son of a Mr Mulliner's cousin, being a chump.
  • Anselm Mulliner, a curate, Rupert's younger son
First cousin, once removed, by marriage:
  • Gladys Bingley, married Lancelot
Distant cousins:
  • James Rodman, mystery novelist
  • Agnes Flack, championship golfer and "daughter of a distant cousin"
  • Frederick Fitch-Fitch, prospective antique shop owner
  • Montrose Mulliner, Assistant Director of the Perfecto-Zizzbaum Motion Picture Corp. of Hollywood
  • Wilmot Mulliner, a "nodder" at Perfecto-Zizzbaum
  • , a young second cousin who has left his wife and is filing papers of divorce
Distant cousins by marriage:
  • Sidney George McMurdo, insurance executive and scratch golfer; marries Agnes
  • Angela Purvis, conjurer's assistant; marries Frederick
  • Rosalie Beamish, marries Montrose
  • Mabel Potter, a private secretary and ex-bird imitator in Vaudeville; marries Wilmot
Nephews:
Note that Mr. Mulliner has three nephews named George, all different people.
  • George Mulliner, a stammerer and crossword puzzle enthusiast, being in love with Susan Blake.
  • Ferdinand Mulliner, studying at Eton.
  • Percival Mulliner, at preparatory school in Sussex.
  • Augustine Mulliner, being a meek curate who eventually rose to become vicar of Walsingford-below-Chiveney-on-Thames thanks to the Buck-U-Uppo tonic invented by Wilfred Mulliner.
  • , a student at Harchester, younger brother of Augustine.
  • Lancelot Bassington Mulliner, an aspiring poet.
  • Osbert Mulliner, a rich jade collector.
  • Frederick Mulliner, brother of Dr. George.
  • Dr. George Mulliner, brother of Frederick.
  • Archibald Mulliner, son of Sir Sholto and Lady Wilhelmina, who does a masterful impression of a hen laying an egg; a member of the Drones Club and a sock collector. Engaged to [|Aurelia Cammarleigh].
  • Ignatius Mulliner, portrait painter and ukulele player.
  • Mordred Mulliner, a poet and an accidental pyromaniac.
  • Adrian Mulliner, a private detective who possesses a sinister smile.
  • Sacheverall Mulliner, a very timid man who suffers from Headmaster Phobia.
  • Eustace Mulliner, attached to the British Embassy in Switzerland.
  • Egbert Mulliner, assistant editor of 'The Weekly Booklover'.
  • Cyril Mulliner, interior decorator and avid reader of mystery novels.
  • Bulstrode Mulliner, screenwriter in Hollywood.
  • Brancepeth Mulliner, an artist in search of a character.
  • Augustus Mulliner, in love with Hermione Brimble.
  • Reginald Mulliner, inheritor of a substantial sum of money
  • George Mulliner, screenwriter in Hollywood, identical twin of Alfred
  • Alfred Mulliner, professional conjurer known as the Great Alfredo, identical twin of George
Nephews by marriage:
  • Aubrey Bassinger, married Charlotte
Nieces:
  • Charlotte Mulliner, a poet writing "Vignettes in Verse".
Nieces by marriage:
  • Aurelia Cammerleigh, married Archibald
  • Annabella Spockett-Sprockett, married Mordred
  • Hermione Rossiter, married Ignatius
  • Mabel Petherick-Soames, married Osbert
  • Evangeline Pembury, novelist, married Egbert
  • Amelia Bassett, married Cyril
  • Jane, married Augustine
  • Hermione Brimble, married Augustus
  • Jane Oliphant, married Frederick
  • Lady Millicent Shipton-Bellinger, married Adrian
  • Muriel Branksome, married Sacheverell
  • Susan Blake, married George
Nature of relationship uncertain:
  • Theophilus Mulliner, the bishop of Bognor