TV's Jeeves and Wooster actor Robert Daws shares his love of P.G. Wodehouse's work in play bound for Derbyshire

Robert, whose screen credits include Jeeves and Wooster, Poldark and The Royal, will tread the boards in Wodehouse in Wonderland at Derby Theatre from February 13 to 15, 2023.

Based on the life and writings of P.G. Wodehouse, the play takes place in Wodehouse’s home in New York State in the 1950s. Plum, as he is known to family and friends, is working away at the latest adventures of Bertie Wooster but is interrupted by a young would-be biographer, his adored wife, daughter Snorkles, and his two Pekingese. He shares stories about how Jeeves entered his life, how he became addicted to American soap operas and why he wrote books that were ‘like musical comedies without music’.

Robert is renowned for his role as Tuppy Glossop in television’s Jeeves and Wooster alongside Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie. He said: “We had a fabulous time making that series. I was bowled over by both the humility and talent of Stephen and Hugh.”

He said that Wodehouse in Wonderland was sparked by his own interest in the writer. “When I was at RADA I was given a copy of Right Ho, Jeeves by Tom Wilkinson, who was directing at the academy,” he tells interviewer Theo Bosanquet. “I read it and loved it, little knowing that a few years later I’d be starring in a wonderful TV adaptation. I have since become a bit of an aficianado, and a few years ago I went to see Perfect Nonsense, a Jeees and Wooster play in the West End starring Stephen Mangan and Matthew Macfadyen. Afterwards I was talking to some fellow Wodehouse enthusiasts and it made me realise just how big an interest there is in his work, but how little I knew about the man himself. So I read a few biographies and learned about his extraordinary life. I called my friend Bill Humble and said ‘do you think there might be a play about this?’, and he replied that he’d just finished working on a screenplay about his life, so I’d called at just the right time.”

Robert will entertain Derby audiences with Wodehouse’s much-loved characters Bertie Wooster, Jeeves, Lord Emsworth, Gussie Fink-Nottie and the squashily romantic Madeline Bassett.

He will also sing songs composed by Broadway legends with lyrics written by P.G. Wodehouse. Robert said: “As a young man, before he became known for creating Jeeves and Wooster, Plum worked as a lyricist on a series of shows which are now seen as the birth of the American musical. I’m really enjoying the chance to sing again. I used to do a lot of musicals when I was starting out, and even won a musical award at RADA, though I soon realised my dancing skills weren’t up to it!”

Robert said that he was looking forward to introducing the play to new audiences around the country in places he hadn’t explored before. “I’m also hoping to take Wodehouse in Wonderland to India and the States, so it will reach some of Plum’s international fans as well,” he added.

Tickets cost from £24 to see Wodehouse in Wonderland at Derby Theatre. Go to www.derbytheatre.co.uk or call 01332 59 39 39.