Underlying book story — recording-specific coverage unverified
Coverage is limited to the scope described in this write-up. Recording changes, further installments or an unwritten ending may remain outside it.
This synopsis covers the underlying book linked to this recording: Right Ho, Jeeves. Recording-specific abridgements, added material or adaptation changes have not been verified.
Bertie returns to London from several weeks in Cannes spent in the company of his Aunt Dahlia Travers, her daughter Angela and her soppy, childish friend Madeline Bassett. In Bertie's absence, Jeeves has been advising Bertie's old school friend, Gussie Fink-Nottle, a shy teetotaller with a passion for newts and a face like a fish, who is in love with Madeline but is too timid to propose. Jeeves advises Gussie to attend a fancy-dress ball (at Madeline’s invitation) dressed as Mephistopheles, which Jeeves believes will give Gussie the confidence to confess his love. This plan fails because of Gussie's excessive forgetfulness and lack of common sense. Owing to a strong disagreement about Bertie’s new mess jacket, Bertie harshly blames Jeeves for Gussie’s failure and tells him not to offer any more advice to him.
Gussie, though initially disturbed to hear Jeeves is no longer advising him, cheers up when Bertie tells him that Brinkley Court, where Madeline is staying, is also the country seat of Bertie's Aunt Dahlia and Uncle Tom, and that he (Bertie) can easily get him (Gussie) an invitation to join her there. It happens that Aunt Dahlia had demanded that Bertie come to Brinkley Court to make a speech and present the school prizes to students at the local grammar school. Determined to avoid this task and to assist Gussie's wooing, Bertie sends Gussie to Brinkley Court in his place where he will have the chance to get close to Madeline, and also be forced to distribute the school prizes instead of himself. Aunt Dahlia begrudgingly agrees to this.
When Bertie hears that Angela has broken off her engagement to Tuppy Glossop, he feels obliged to go down to Brinkley Court himself, to comfort Aunt Dahlia. In addition to her worrying about Angela's broken engagement, Aunt Dahlia is anxious because she has lost £500 gambling at Cannes, and now needs to ask her miserly husband Tom to replace the money in order to keep financing her magazine, Milady's Boudoir. Bertie takes umbrage when Aunt Dahlia says the only reason she’s grateful Bertie came is because he brought Jeeves. When Bertie tries to offer her advice she vigorously refuses to let him speak. Bertie finds Tuppy in the grounds who tells him he and Angela fell out due to Angela saying he was getting fat and Tuppy not believing she was attacked by a shark in Cannes. Bertie advises Tuppy to regain Angela's sympathy by refusing his dinner. He offers similar advice to Gussie, to show his love for Madeline and to Aunt Dahlia to arouse Uncle Tom’s sympathy. All take his advice; however, neither Angela, nor Madeline nor Tom notice, and the resulting return of plates of untasted food severely upsets Aunt Dahlia's temperamental prized French chef Anatole, who gives notice to quit. Aunt Dahlia understandably blames Bertie for this disaster.
Gussie still cannot confess his love to Madeline, so Bertie invites her for a walk to soften her up for him. Unfortunately she misinterprets his words as a marriage proposal on his own behalf. To his relief, she tells Bertie she cannot marry him, as she has fallen in love with Gussie. Bertie relays the good news to Gussie, but even with this encouragement, Gussie remains too timid to propose. Bertie decides to embolden him by lacing his orange juice with brandy.
Gussie ends up imbibing many times more brandy than Bertie had intended. Under its influence, Gussie successfully proposes to Madeline. He then presents the prizes to the schoolboys, with a drunken speech, berating the staff and pupils. Madeline, disgusted, breaks the engagement. Heartbroken and still drunk, Gussie proposes to Angela in order to score off Madeline; Angela accepts his proposal in order to score off Tuppy. Tuppy's jealousy is aroused, and he chases Gussie all around the mansion, vowing to beat him within an inch of his life. Madeline tells Bertie she will marry him instead of Gussie. The prospect of spending his life with the drippy Madeline appalls Bertie, but his personal code of chivalry will not allow him to insult her by withdrawing his "proposal" and turning her down.
Helpless in the face of all this chaos, Bertie appeals to Jeeves for advice. Jeeves suggests that Bertie ring the fire bell at midnight so Gussie and Tuppy will respectively rescue Madeline and Angela. Although skeptical, Bertie follows this advice. However, when all the residents have evacuated the building, none of the estranged couples appear reconciled. When they try to return to bed, they find that all the doors are locked; no one has the keys, and all staff members are away at a dance. Naturally, Bertie is blamed for the group being forced to spend the rest of the night outside. Jeeves suggests that Bertie ride a bicycle to the staff dance to retrieve the key from the butler. Bertie initially refuses but is forced by Aunt Dahlia. Bertie cycles the nine miles to the dance only to be told by the butler that he left the keys with Jeeves. Furious at having taken a long, dangerous ride in the dark, Bertie returns to Brinkley Court, and finds that Madeline and Gussie have made up, Angela and Tuppy have also made up, Anatole has withdrawn his notice and agreed to stay on, and Uncle Tom has agreed to lend Aunt Dahlia the £500 she needs. Jeeves explains that his true plan was to unite all the estranged parties in their contempt for Bertie by forcing them to spend the night outside and then in their collective amusement by finding the keys just after Bertie left, thus making his journey pointless. Though tired and aching, Bertie cannot argue with the results. Jeeves then says that he accidentally burned Bertie's mess jacket. Bertie is incensed, but agrees to let Jeeves have his way.
Bertie returns to London from several weeks in Cannes spent in the company of his Aunt Dahlia Travers, her daughter Angela and her soppy, childish friend Madeline Bassett. In Bertie's absence, Jeeves has been advising Bertie's old school friend, Gussie Fink-Nottle, a shy teetotaller with a passion for newts and a face like a fish, who is in love with Madeline but is too timid to propose. Jeeves advises Gussie to attend a fancy-dress ball (at Madeline’s invitation) dressed as Mephistopheles, which Jeeves believes will give Gussie the confidence to confess his love. This plan fails because of Gussie's excessive forgetfulness and lack of common sense. Owing to a strong disagreement about Bertie’s new mess jacket, Bertie harshly blames Jeeves for Gussie’s failure and tells him not to offer any more advice to him.
Gussie, though initially disturbed to hear Jeeves is no longer advising him, cheers up when Bertie tells him that Brinkley Court, where Madeline is staying, is also the country seat of Bertie's Aunt Dahlia and Uncle Tom, and that he (Bertie) can easily get him (Gussie) an invitation to join her there. It happens that Aunt Dahlia had demanded that Bertie come to Brinkley Court to make a speech and present the school prizes to students at the local grammar school. Determined to avoid this task and to assist Gussie's wooing, Bertie sends Gussie to Brinkley Court in his place where he will have the chance to get close to Madeline, and also be forced to distribute the school prizes instead of himself. Aunt Dahlia begrudgingly agrees to this.
When Bertie hears that Angela has broken off her engagement to Tuppy Glossop, he feels obliged to go down to Brinkley Court himself, to comfort Aunt Dahlia. In addition to her worrying about Angela's broken engagement, Aunt Dahlia is anxious because she has lost £500 gambling at Cannes, and now needs to ask her miserly husband Tom to replace the money in order to keep financing her magazine, Milady's Boudoir. Bertie takes umbrage when Aunt Dahlia says the only reason she’s grateful Bertie came is because he brought Jeeves. When Bertie tries to offer her advice she vigorously refuses to let him speak. Bertie finds Tuppy in the grounds who tells him he and Angela fell out due to Angela saying he was getting fat and Tuppy not believing she was attacked by a shark in Cannes. Bertie advises Tuppy to regain Angela's sympathy by refusing his dinner. He offers similar advice to Gussie, to show his love for Madeline and to Aunt Dahlia to arouse Uncle Tom’s sympathy. All take his advice; however, neither Angela, nor Madeline nor Tom notice, and the resulting return of plates of untasted food severely upsets Aunt Dahlia's temperamental prized French chef Anatole, who gives notice to quit. Aunt Dahlia understandably blames Bertie for this disaster.
Gussie still cannot confess his love to Madeline, so Bertie invites her for a walk to soften her up for him. Unfortunately she misinterprets his words as a marriage proposal on his own behalf. To his relief, she tells Bertie she cannot marry him, as she has fallen in love with Gussie. Bertie relays the good news to Gussie, but even with this encouragement, Gussie remains too timid to propose. Bertie decides to embolden him by lacing his orange juice with brandy.
Gussie ends up imbibing many times more brandy than Bertie had intended. Under its influence, Gussie successfully proposes to Madeline. He then presents the prizes to the schoolboys, with a drunken speech, berating the staff and pupils. Madeline, disgusted, breaks the engagement. Heartbroken and still drunk, Gussie proposes to Angela in order to score off Madeline; Angela accepts his proposal in order to score off Tuppy. Tuppy's jealousy is aroused, and he chases Gussie all around the mansion, vowing to beat him within an inch of his life. Madeline tells Bertie she will marry him instead of Gussie. The prospect of spending his life with the drippy Madeline appalls Bertie, but his personal code of chivalry will not allow him to insult her by withdrawing his "proposal" and turning her down.
Helpless in the face of all this chaos, Bertie appeals to Jeeves for advice. Jeeves suggests that Bertie ring the fire bell at midnight so Gussie and Tuppy will respectively rescue Madeline and Angela. Although skeptical, Bertie follows this advice. However, when all the residents have evacuated the building, none of the estranged couples appear reconciled. When they try to return to bed, they find that all the doors are locked; no one has the keys, and all staff members are away at a dance. Naturally, Bertie is blamed for the group being forced to spend the rest of the night outside. Jeeves suggests that Bertie ride a bicycle to the staff dance to retrieve the key from the butler. Bertie initially refuses but is forced by Aunt Dahlia. Bertie cycles the nine miles to the dance only to be told by the butler that he left the keys with Jeeves. Furious at having taken a long, dangerous ride in the dark, Bertie returns to Brinkley Court, and finds that Madeline and Gussie have made up, Angela and Tuppy have also made up, Anatole has withdrawn his notice and agreed to stay on, and Uncle Tom has agreed to lend Aunt Dahlia the £500 she needs. Jeeves explains that his true plan was to unite all the estranged parties in their contempt for Bertie by forcing them to spend the night outside and then in their collective amusement by finding the keys just after Bertie left, thus making his journey pointless. Though tired and aching, Bertie cannot argue with the results. Jeeves then says that he accidentally burned Bertie's mess jacket. Bertie is incensed, but agrees to let Jeeves have his way.
Sources and content license
Source and revision history ↗ · Underlying book identified by the catalog’s explicit book_slug relation. Exact source annotation 762. Adapted from Wikipedia contributors, Right Ho, Jeeves. Section headings and formatting adjusted. · Content license