# Cakes and Ale — Character guide

> Key figures in Cakes and Ale by W. Somerset Maugham.

- [The Narrator](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/unknown_narrator.md): The unnamed first-person narrator, a successful novelist reflecting on his past and literary circles.
- [Roy Kear](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/roy_kear.md): A pushy, ambitious novelist who pesters the narrator to write about the late Edward Driffield.
- [Rosie Driffield](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/rosie_driffield.md): Edward Driffield's first wife, a warm, free-spirited barmaid with a scandalous past.
- [Edward Driffield](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/edward_driffield.md): A once-famous novelist, now elderly and revered, whose early life and marriages are scrutinized.
- [Mrs. Barton Trafford](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/mrs_barton_trafford.md): A literary hostess who took the young Driffields under her wing, later dropping them.
- [Lord George Kemp](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/lord_george_kemp.md): A Blackstable businessman and later peer, involved with Rosie Driffield.
- [Mary-Ann](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/mary_ann.md): The narrator's aunt's maid at Blackstable, a childhood acquaintance.
- [Mrs. Hudson](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/mrs_hudson.md): The narrator's aunt's cook-housekeeper in Blackstable.
- [Old Mr. Driffield](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/old_driffield.md): Edward Driffield's father, a farmer in Blackstable.
- [The Driffields](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/the_driffields.md): The collective Driffield family, often referred to as a unit.
- [Harry Retford](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/harry_retford.md): A friend of the narrator's youth, a cheerful, improvident man.
- [Jack Kuyper](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/jack_kuyper.md): A Dutch sea captain and one of Rosie's lovers.
- [Jasper Gibbons](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/jasper_gibbons.md): A poet and acquaintance of the Driffields in their London days.
- [Quentin Forde](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/quentin_forde.md): A young man who was a friend of the Driffields in London.
- [Amelia Driffield](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/amelia_driffield.md): Edward Driffield's second wife, a former nurse, proper and respectable.
- [Mr. Galloway](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/mr_galloway.md): The vicar of Blackstable, a kind and scholarly man.
- [Lady Hodmarsh](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/lady_hodmarsh.md): A society hostess who champions the elderly Driffield.
- [Poor Edward](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/poor_edward.md): A reference to Edward Driffield in his later, diminished state.
- [Lionel Hillier](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/lionel_hillier.md): A literary critic and friend of the narrator.
- [Allgood Newton](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/allgood_newton.md): A fellow novelist and contemporary of the narrator.
- [The Doctor](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/the_doctor.md): The local doctor in Blackstable, a minor figure.
- [Poor Old Smith](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/poor_old_smith.md): A minor character mentioned in passing, likely a local.
- [Mrs. Encombe](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/mrs_encombe.md): A woman mentioned in connection with the narrator's past.
- [Miss Fellows](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/miss_fellows.md): A minor character, possibly a friend of the Driffields.
- [Hester](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/hester.md): A minor character, possibly a servant or acquaintance.
- [Mr. Brentford](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/mr_brentford.md): A minor character, possibly a local in Blackstable.
- [Mrs. Greencourt](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/mrs_greencourt.md): A minor character, possibly a neighbor or acquaintance.
- [Mrs. Hayforth](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/mrs_hayforth.md): A minor character, possibly a friend of the Driffields.
- [Mr. Barton Trafford](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/mr_barton_trafford.md): Husband of Mrs. Barton Trafford, a literary man.
- [Mr. Vanuzzi](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/mr_vanuzzi.md): A minor character, possibly a foreign acquaintance.
- [Katie](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/katie.md): A slatternly maid in the Driffield household.
- [Mrs. Brentford](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/mrs_brentford.md): Wife of Mr. Brentford, a minor character.
- [Master Willie](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/master_willie.md): A young boy, possibly the narrator as a child.
- [Armstrong](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/armstrong.md): A minor character, possibly a friend or acquaintance.
- [Lord Scallion](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/lord_scallion.md): A minor aristocrat mentioned in passing.
- [Miss Butcher](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/miss_butcher.md): A minor character, possibly a local resident.
- [Mr. Evelyn Waugh](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/mr_evelyn_waugh.md): A contemporary novelist mentioned in the narrative.
- [Willie Ashenden](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/willie_ashenden.md): A character who may be the narrator's younger self or a separate figure.
- [Smithson](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/smithson.md): A minor character, possibly a publisher or acquaintance.
- [Miss Broughton](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/miss_broughton.md): A minor character, possibly a friend of the Driffields.
- [Aldous](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/aldous.md): A minor character, possibly a friend or acquaintance.
- [Miss Cowley](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/miss_cowley.md): A minor character, possibly a friend or acquaintance.
- [Poor George](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/poor_george.md): A minor character, possibly a local or acquaintance.
- [Poor Henry](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters/poor_henry.md): A minor character, possibly a friend or acquaintance.

HTML index: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/cakes_and_ale_se/characters