Uncle Fred In The Springtime

Read by Martin Jarvis, this joyous celebration of spring fever is an undisputed comic masterpiece. Once again we find ourselves at that idyllic country seat, Blandings. This time it's debonair charmer, Frederick Altamont Cornwallis Twistleton, fifth Earl of Ickenham (known to most as 'Uncle Fred') who has been lured to the castle by affable Lord Emsworth. His lordship requires an expert in human behaviour to prevent the egg-throwing Duke of Dunstable from stealing Emsworth's treasured pig, Empress of Blandings. The plot's eccentricities naturally include love and romance and, crucially, three imposters. Add to the cocktail some 'Mickey Finns', a brace of financially embarrassed nephews and a private investigator, 'Mustard Pott'. As the mixture boils there are shot guns in the night time - plus redoubtable Lady Constance, Emsworth's sister, who could halt a cavalry charge merely with her voice. A happy and appropriate ending is of course on the cards. But the joy is to marvel at how Wodehouse weaves the intricate threads in this tapestry of dottiness, and to hear him tie it up (and us) in knots of laugh-aloud hilarity. Martin Jarvis is the quintessential reader for the 'Blandings' series, with an outstanding range of voices and a true passion for the works of P.G. Wodehouse, Britain's greatest comic writer.