Claude Cattermole "Catsmeat" Potter-Pirbright is a recurring fictional character in the

Jeeves Jeeves (born Reginald Jeeves, nicknamed Reggie) is a fictional character in a series of comedic short stories and novels by English author P. G. Wodehouse. Jeeves is the highly competent valet of a wealthy and idle young Londoner named Bertie W ...

and

Drones Club The Drones Club is a recurring fictional location in the stories of British humorist P. G. Wodehouse. It is a gentlemen's club in London. Many of Wodehouse's Jeeves and Blandings Castle stories feature the club or its members. Various member ...

stories of English comic writer

P. G. Wodehouse Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse ( ; 15 October 1881 – 14 February 1975) was an English writer and one of the most widely read humorists of the 20th century. His creations include the feather-brained Bertie Wooster and his sagacious valet, Je ...

, being a longtime school friend of Jeeves's master

Bertie Wooster Bertram Wilberforce Wooster is a fictional character in the comedic Jeeves stories created by British author P. G. Wodehouse. An amiable English gentleman and one of the "idle rich", Bertie appears alongside his valet, Jeeves, whose intellige ...

and a member of the Drones Club. A West End actor known as "Claude Cattermole" on stage, he is known to his friends by the nickname "Catsmeat".

Inspiration

The character was inspired by the real life actor and county cricketer, Basil Foster, who played against Wodehouse in the ''Actors against Authors'' game at

Lord's Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket List of Test cricket grounds, venue in St John's Wood, Westminster. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex C ...

in 1907 (with Wodehouse playing for the Authors XI). Foster portrayed the hero, George Bevan, in the 1928 New Theatre production of '' A Damsel in Distress'', and also played Psmith in the 1930 Shaftesbury Theatre production of '' Leave It to Psmith''; both productions were adapted by Wodehouse and

Ian Hay Major (Honorary Major General) John Hay Beith, Order of the British Empire, CBE Military Cross, MC (17 April 1876 – 22 September 1952), was a British schoolmaster and soldier, but is best remembered as a novelist, playwright, essayist, an ...

from novels written by Wodehouse.

Life and character

The son of a theatrical music writer and a New York actress named Elsie Cattermole, Claude Cattermole "Catsmeat" Potter-Pirbright is the brother of actress Cora "Corky" Pirbright, who is also known by her stage name, Cora Starr. Catsmeat is engaged to Gertrude Winkworth, the daughter of Dame Daphne Winkworth. Catsmeat and

went together to Malvern House Preparatory School, where Catsmeat was described in a report by the headmaster Aubrey Upjohn as "brilliant but unsound". He was also with Bertie at

secondary school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...

at Eton, and at the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

. Catsmeat's nickname is probably derived at least in part from the similarity of "Cattermole" to "cat's meat" (meaning meat prepared for cats). Inspired by the successful theatrical careers of his parents and sister, Catsmeat, seeking a profession that would provide him with an income and spare time to play

county cricket Inter-county cricket matches have been played since the early 18th century, involving teams that are representative of the historic counties of England and Wales. Two county championship competitions have existed since the late 19th century at ...

, chose to become an actor after his time at Oxford. He generally performs in comedies, playing the role of the hero's light-hearted friend carrying the second love interest. According to Bertie, Catsmeat is a very lively individual both on and off the stage. His sprightliness is a byword among his friends. Catsmeat is also known for being a fashionable dresser; in ''Uncle Fred in the Springtime'', he is described as a "modern Brummel". Catsmeat is first mentioned in '' Thank You, Jeeves'', when Bertie, impressed by the effect that Jeeves's eloquence often has on the language of others, recalls a time when Catsmeat came to stay at Bertie's flat for a week, "and the very second day he said something to me about gauging somebody's latent potentialities. And Catsmeat a fellow who had always thought you were kidding him when you assured him that there were words in the language that had more than one syllable." In ''

Right Ho, Jeeves ''Right Ho, Jeeves'' is a novel by P. G. Wodehouse, the second full-length novel featuring the popular characters Jeeves and Bertie Wooster, after '' Thank You, Jeeves''. It was first published in the United Kingdom on 5 October 1934 by Herbe ...

'', Bertie remembers an instance when Catsmeat made noise with a police rattle behind Bertie's chair at the Drones, though Bertie actually enjoyed the noise. In ''

The Code of the Woosters ''The Code of the Woosters'' is a novel by P. G. Wodehouse, first published on 7 October 1938, in the United Kingdom by Herbert Jenkins Ltd, Herbert Jenkins, London, and in the United States by Doubleday (publisher), Doubleday, Doran, New York. ...

'', it is mentioned that Catsmeat is among those who attend

Gussie Fink-Nottle Augustus "Gussie" Fink-Nottle is a recurring fictional character in the ''Jeeves'' novels of comic writer P. G. Wodehouse, being a lifelong friend of Jeeves's master Bertie Wooster and a country member of the Drones Club. He wears horn-rimmed s ...

's pre-wedding dinner at the Drones Club, where Bertie Wooster keeps Catsmeat from giving his imitation of

Beatrice Lillie Beatrice Gladys Lillie, Lady Peel (29 May 1894 – 20 January 1989) was a Canadian-born British actress, singer and comedy performer. She began to perform as a child with her mother and sister. She made her West End debut in 1914 and soon gain ...

. In '' Joy in the Morning'', Catsmeat is responsible for a mix-up involving a "

Borstal A borstal is a type of youth detention centre. Such a detention centre is more commonly known as a borstal school in India, where they remain in use today. Until the late 20th century, borstals were present in the United Kingdom, several mem ...

Rovers"

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

outfit he intended to wear to a costume party.Ring & Jaggard (1999), pp. 203–204. His most prominent role is in the Jeeves novel '' The Mating Season'', during which he gets Gussie Fink-Nottle to climb fully clothed into the Trafalgar Square fountain. In that novel, he pretends to be Bertie's valet, calling himself Meadowes, and inadvertently becomes temporarily engaged to Queenie Silversmith. He also appears in "

Jeeves and the Greasy Bird "Jeeves and the Greasy Bird" is a short story by English humorist P. G. Wodehouse, and features the young gentleman Bertie Wooster and his valet Jeeves. The story was published in ''Playboy'' magazine in the United States in December 1965, and i ...

", in which he and Bertie discuss the theatrical agent, Jas Waterbury. Catsmeat collaborates with Barmy Fotheringay-Phipps to write an article titled "Some Little-Known Cocktails" for ''Wee Tots'', a family publication edited by

Bingo Little Richard P. "Bingo" Little is a recurring fictional character in the comedic Jeeves and Drones Club stories of English writer P. G. Wodehouse, being a friend of Jeeves's master Bertie Wooster and a member of the Drones Club. In his early appeara ...

, and they present it to Bingo in " The Shadow Passes". Ultimately, Catsmeat plans to go to Hollywood.

Appearances

Catsmeat is featured in: *'' Lord Emsworth and Others'' (1937) ** " The Masked Troubadour" (1936) – Drone Freddie Widgeon *'' The Mating Season'' (1949) – Jeeves *'' Nothing Serious'' (1950) ** " The Shadow Passes" (1950) – Drone Bingo Little * '' Plum Pie'' (1966) ** " Stylish Stouts" (1965) – Drone Bingo Little ** "

" (1965) – Jeeves Catsmeat is mentioned in: * '' Thank You, Jeeves'' (1934) – Jeeves * ''

'' (1934) – Jeeves * '' The Luck of the Bodkins'' (1935) – Drone Monty Bodkin * ''

'' (1938) – Jeeves * '' Uncle Fred in the Springtime'' (1939) – Blandings * '' Joy in the Morning'' (1946) – Jeeves * ''

A Few Quick Ones ''A Few Quick Ones'' is a collection of ten short stories by P. G. Wodehouse. It was first published in the United States on 13 April 1959 by Simon & Schuster, New York, and in the United Kingdom on 26 June 1959 by Herbert Jenkins, London. The ...

'' (1959) **" Oofy, Freddie and the Beef Trust" (1949, first published as "Freddie, Oofy and the Beef Trust") – Drone Freddie Widgeon **"

The Fat of the Land ''The Fat of the Land'' is the third studio album by English electronic music group The Prodigy, released on 30 June 1997 through XL Recordings. The album received critical acclaim and topped the UK Albums Chart and the US ''Billboard'' 200. ...

" (1958) – Drone Freddie Widgeon * ''

Jeeves and the Feudal Spirit ''Jeeves and the Feudal Spirit'' is a comic novel by P. G. Wodehouse, first published in the United Kingdom on 15 October 1954 by Herbert Jenkins, London and in the United States on 23 February 1955 by Simon & Schuster, Inc., New York, under t ...

'' (1954) – Jeeves * '' Jeeves in the Offing'' (1960) – Jeeves * ''

Much Obliged, Jeeves ''Much Obliged, Jeeves'' is a comic novel by P. G. Wodehouse, published in the United Kingdom by Barrie & Jenkins, London, and in the United States by Simon & Schuster, Inc., New York under the name ''Jeeves and the Tie That Binds''. Both edit ...

'' (1971) – Jeeves * ''

Aunts Aren't Gentlemen ''Aunts Aren't Gentlemen'' is a comic novel by P. G. Wodehouse, first published in the United Kingdom in October 1974 by Barrie & Jenkins, London, and in the United States under the title ''The Cat-nappers'' on 14 April 1975 by Simon & Schu ...

'' (1974) – Jeeves (ch. 14)

Adaptations

; Television * John Elmes portrayed Catsmeat in the 1990–1993 television series ''

Jeeves and Wooster ''Jeeves and Wooster'' is a British comedy television series adapted by Clive Exton from P. G. Wodehouse's "Jeeves" stories. It aired on the ITV network from 22 April 1990 to 20 June 1993, with the last series nominated for a British Aca ...

'' in series 3, episode 4. ; Radio * Kenneth Fortescue voiced Catsmeat in an adaptation of ''The Mating Season'' in the 1973–1981 series, ''

What Ho! Jeeves ''What Ho! Jeeves'' (sometimes written ''What Ho, Jeeves!'') is a series of radio dramas based on some of the Jeeves short stories and novels written by P. G. Wodehouse, starring Michael Hordern as the titular Jeeves and Richard Briers as Berti ...

''.

References

;Notes ;Bibliography * * * * * * *

External links