Lord Peter Who's Who Trivia Quiz

Answer: He had a strained relationship with his father who has died; he has a good relationship with his mother who is alive

The Dowager Duchess Honoria Lucasta is very much alive throughout the books - she is a delightful character with a unique way of expressing herself. She is definitely Wimsey's ally in the family.

Wimsey had a poor relationship with his father, due in part to their very different temperaments - the old Duke was a huntin' fishin' sportin' Englishman of the old school - and in part to the Duke's poor treatment of his wife (he sported in more ways than one...).

Answer: Gerald

Gerald Christian Wimsey, Viscount St George, Duke of Denver. In "Clouds of Witness"(1926), the Duke is accused of murder. He refuses to give an explanation of his actions the night of the murder, or to produce an alibi. In the unravelling of the mystery, we find that he takes after his father.

The current Duchess of Denver, his wife, is a humourless and strictly correct woman - she and Wimsey cordially loathe each other.

Answer: She was a V.A.D.

V.A.D.s (Voluntary Aid Detachments) were administered by the Red Cross and Society of St John. The detachments, mostly women, served as nurses, clerical and kitchen staff, ambulance drivers, etc. Mary appears to have been a nurse.

During this time, she lived a rather Bohemian lifestyle, and even consorted with Socialists(!). She became involved with a highly unsuitable young man, who played a part in "Clouds of Witness".

Answer: Mervyn

Bunter was not in fact "turned out ready-made" ("Clouds of Witness") but has an old mother in Kent who named him Mervyn - he was one of seven children.

Bunter had served as Wimsey's batman in the War. There is a very strong suggestion running through the series that his stabilizing influence is essential to keeping Wimsey on track. Especially in the earlier books, it is clear that Wimsey suffers from "nerves" - probably what we would now call Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, dating back to the War.

Answer: Sir James Lubbock

Sir James also plays a part in the rather complex scientific aspects of isolating the poison in the only non-Wimsey detective novel published by Sayers, "The Documents in the Case"(1930).

Answer: The family solicitor

He is described in "The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club"(1928) as "so perfectly the family solicitor as really to have no distinguishing personality at all", but, really, over the course of the series we do feel we get to know this kindly but dry man quite well. I'm especially fond of his Victorian-style travelling cap with flaps to it, as described in "Unnatural Death"(1927) - I understand Sherlock Holmes wore something of the same sort.

Answer: He marries Wimsey's sister Mary

Parker is very much taken with Lady Mary from his first meeting with her, in "Clouds of Witness". In "Strong Poison"(1931) he asks her to marry him, and by "Murder Must Advertise"(1933) they are married with two small children.

Parker plays the invaluable role in a series about an amateur detective of "friend in the force" - someone with the official standing to make inquiries and bring in unwilling witnesses. He also tends to get the tedious and unpleasant jobs in the partnership; between Parker and Bunter, Wimsey seldom has to do anything boring at all - more than once in the series this is pointed out, in fact. As Wimsey says in "Whose Body?", "'It affords me, if I may say so, the greatest satisfaction...that in a collaboration like ours all the uninteresting and disagreeable routine work is done by you.' Parker grunted again."

Answer: Knowledge and understanding of the stock market and financial matters

Freddy at first sight appears to be a Bertie Wooster clone - a young fool without a thought in his head. The scene in "Whose Body?"(1923) in which we meet him could have been written by Wodehouse himself. His financial expertise, however, comes in handy in several different books, most notably "Whose Body?" and "Strong Poison".

He eventually marries Rachel Levy, the daughter of Sir Reuben Levy from "Whose Body?".

Answer: Miss Alexandra Katherine Climpson

Miss Climpson, a veteran of shabby-genteel watering places and second rate boarding houses, runs, at Wimsey's expense, an agency employing unmarried and unwanted women to ferret out scams and frauds preying on the unwary. She plays a prominent part in "Strong Poison" and "Unnatural Death"; her adventures as a fake medium in "Strong Poison" are great fun to read.

Answer: Robert Templeton

He was "...a gentleman of extraordinary scientific skill, combined with almost fabulous muscular development. He had arms like an orang-outang, and an ugly but attractive face." ("Have his Carcase" 1932). We don't hear too much about Templeton in the Wimsey books, though he comes up now and then in "Have his Carcase" and "Gaudy Night"(1935).

Sayers is widely believed to have based the character of Harriet upon herself, and much of Harriet's biography mimics that of Sayers - minus, of course, being tried for murder!