'The Diary Of A Nobody'

'The Diary Of A Nobody'

Why should I not write a blog? I have often seen blogs by people I have never heard of and I fail to see, because I do not happen to me a Somebody, why mine should not be interesting...

First appearing in 'Punch', then later published as a book, 'The Diary Of A Nobody' by George and Weedon Grossmith is one of my favourite things from the 19th century and I've got it in paperback, hardback, audiobook (read by Martin Jarvis) and the DVD release of the 4-part BBC Four version starring Hugh Bonneville.

Our hero is Mr Charles Pooter, who is a decent, if rather pompous, chap who loves his wife Carrie and worries about his son Lupin. Incidentally, Lupin Pooter shares his name with 'Victorian Dad' from the strips in 'Viz' comic, which made me grin when I finally noticed the reference. Pooter works as a clerk to Mr Perkupp and takes his job very seriously, perhaps too much so.

There was a Ken Russell / John McGrath version on BBC Two in 1964, which I've seen, that shows all the characters, along with Mr Pooter's friends Cummings and Gowing. But the BBC Four version is simply Mr Pooter talking to the audience at home and Hugh Bonneville nails the character perfectly.

The trivia of his life is thoroughly entertaining as his visitors come off worse when the encounter the dreaded bootscraper or Mr Pooter becomes obsessed with covering everything in red enamel paint. This ends badly when he has a hot bath in the newly-red bathtub...

He goes on holiday to Broadstairs, wearing an outlandish straw helmet, never once acknowledging that he looks ridiculous. He likes a tot of whisky, but does not see why he should pay over the odds for it.

Pooter's pomposity is not a million miles away from Captain Mainwaring - indeed, there is a reading by Arthur Lowe that I'm listening to as I write this. He's a very familiar figure and effortlessly crosses the divide of all those years.

The BBC version screenplay is by Andrew Davies, but all he's had do is cut it down to fit the timeslot. It really does read as though it's much more modern than you might expect and Pooter's speech has a rhythm to it that for me frankly elevates it above much of the work of even Dickens.

It's probably one of those things you have to discover for yourself and the DVD is a very good place to start. We even once tweeted Hugh Bonneville about how much we loved it and he was kind enough to reply in character, which shows that he is rightly proud of his association with Mr Pooter.

There have been many fictional diaries over the years, but 'The Diary Of A Nobody' is by far my favourite. Its use of language is both precise and poetic with the intelligent humour never failing to cheer me up.

A little bit of Victorian magic.

'The Diary Of A Nobody' is available from BBC DVD - numbered BBCDVD2932.

(By Andrew Trowbridge)