Ukridge Stories · Chapters
Chapters explained
Chapter companions for Ukridge Stories by P. G. Wodehouse.
Chapter 1
Dedication
The author dedicates the book to his friend Old Bill Townend, who first introduced him to Stanley Featherstonehaugh Ukridge.
Chapter 2
Ukridge Stories
A collection of stories centered around the irrepressible Stanley Featherstonehaugh Ukridge, a man of grand schemes and perpetual optimism, whose adventures in get-rich-quick ventures and social maneuvering are chronicled with humor and affection.
Chapter 3
Ukridge's Dog College
Ukridge proposes that the narrator write his biography for a fortune, then reveals his latest scheme: a dog-training college for performing dogs. He has moved to a cottage in Sheep's Cray, Kent, after being thrown out by his aunt, and is training six Pekingese dogs he took from her. The narrator reveals that George Tupper is trying to raise capital by telling Ukridge's aunt about the venture, which horrifies Ukridge because the dogs are stolen. The chapter ends with Aunt Julia's voice calling from inside the cottage.
Chapter 4
Ukridge's Accident Syndicate
Ukridge proposes an accident syndicate where members pay into a pool and the one who draws the lot must have an accident to claim the insurance money. Teddy Weeks draws the lot but proves reluctant to fulfill his duty, leading to frustration and comic tension as Ukridge tries to motivate him.
Chapter 5
The Début of Battling Billson
Ukridge reveals his latest scheme: Battling Billson will fight Tod Bingham for a cash prize. To motivate Billson, Ukridge orchestrates a fake letter from Billson's fiancée, Flossie, claiming she loves another man—Tod Bingham. The narrator attends a dinner with George Tupper, where Ukridge brings Flossie to soften her up for the scheme. The chapter ends with the narrator at the Shoreditch Empire, awaiting the fight.
Chapter 6
First Aid for Dora
The narrator encounters Ukridge helping a young woman named Dora Mason onto a bus, revealing Ukridge's uncharacteristic interest in the opposite sex. Ukridge explains that Dora is his aunt's secretary-companion and he feels sorry for her. Later, the narrator wins money on a horse race and decides to help Dora by visiting Ukridge's aunt, but Ukridge later informs him that Dora has her own savings and a partnership opportunity, making the visit unnecessary.
Chapter 7
The Return of Battling Billson
The narrator, James Corcoran, recounts a humiliating incident where he is thrown out of a pub in Ratcliff Highway after being pickpocketed and unable to pay for his drink. He then receives a letter from Ukridge asking him to entertain Flossie's mother and her son Cecil, a task that proves to be a trying ordeal. After seeing them off at Euston, he confronts Ukridge, who explains that Flossie is the barmaid engaged to Battling Billson, and that the favor was necessary to appease her.
Chapter 8
Ukridge Sees Her Through
The narrator attempts dictation with a stenographer, discovering it is Dora Mason, who reveals Ukridge guaranteed a hundred pounds for her partnership in a typewriting bureau. Ukridge later visits, boasting about the narrator's vision and defending his guarantee as a matter of honour after getting Dora dismissed by his aunt.
Chapter 9
No Wedding Bells for Him
Ukridge and the narrator encounter a creditor while riding in a borrowed car, leading Ukridge to move into the narrator's lodgings. Ukridge then devises a scheme inspired by a novelette plot to avoid marrying Mabel Price by pretending to have a fatal illness.
Chapter 10
The Long Arm of Looney Coote
The narrator encounters his old schoolmate Looney Coote at the races, whose superstitious betting habits and recent pickpocketing incident lead to a discussion about omens and misfortune. Later, at the Old Wrykinian dinner, Ukridge boasts of his newfound wealth from a sleeping partnership in a bookie's business, but the evening takes a turn when Looney Coote reveals that the car he borrowed from Ukridge was mistaken for stolen, leading to a police search. The misunderstanding is resolved when Ukridge finds an unsent explanatory letter in his pocket, and Looney magnanimously forgives him, revealing that the incident inspired a winning bet on a horse named Stolen Goods, which bankrupted the bookie Isaac O'Brien—Ukridge's own firm.
Chapter 11
The Exit of Battling Billson
Ukridge's plan for a boxing match with Battling Billson falls apart when Billson, after attending a revival meeting, declares fighting sinful and refuses to fight. Ukridge decides to substitute himself in the ring under Billson's name, with a fixed outcome arranged by Izzy Previn. Meanwhile, the narrator encounters Ukridge in Llunindnno, where Ukridge has been thrown out of a theatre after his seat was taken. The chapter ends with Ukridge pointing out a poster for the upcoming fight.
Chapter 12
Ukridge Rounds a Nasty Corner
The narrator, preparing for his first meeting with Lady Lakenheath to assist with her late husband's memoirs, receives a surprise delivery from Ukridge: a bottle of patent medicine called 'Peppo' and a hatbox containing a parrot. He later visits Lady Lakenheath, where he meets her niece Millie, who is engaged to Ukridge. Ukridge bursts in with alarming news that Lady Lakenheath plans to attend the Pen and Ink Club dinner, where she will meet Ukridge's aunt, potentially exposing his true character. However, the parrot's mysterious illness prevents Lady Lakenheath from attending, and Ukridge hints at his involvement.
Chapter 13
A Bit of Luck for Mabel
Ukridge keeps Corky up all night recounting a tale from his past about a woman named Mabel, whose father made a fortune in Singapore. He explains how a top hat—confiscated by his landlady Mrs. Beale over an unpaid debt—nearly derailed his plans to attend Ascot and compete for Mabel's affections against a wealthy baronet and Guards officer. The chapter ends with Ukridge spotting an elderly, prosperous-looking man approaching his lodging, hinting at a turn of luck.
Chapter 14
Buttercup Day
Ukridge meets Corky in Piccadilly and laments his lack of capital, hindered by his aunt Julia's refusal to give him money. They encounter flag-sellers, and later at a bazaar, a curate exposes a fraudulent 'Buttercup Day' collection run by a girl Ukridge is involved with. Corky tries to warn the girl but is intercepted by Miss Julia Ukridge, who returns home unexpectedly. Corky attempts to delay her, but she discovers Ukridge asleep in the study, leading to a tense confrontation.
Chapter 15
The Level Business Head
Ukridge recounts to Corky how he pawned his Aunt Julia's brooch to buy a half-share in a dog that was supposed to win the Waterloo Cup, only for the dog to die. He then cleverly sells the dead dog back to Joe the Lawyer and later recovers the brooch, leading to a surprising reconciliation with his aunt.
Chapter 16
Ukridge and the Old Stepper
Ukridge recounts to Corky his disastrous attempt to ingratiate himself with Sir Edward Bayliss, a jute magnate, at his aunt's cottage in Market Deeping. His scheme unravels when he is caught stealing roses, a sundial, and a summerhouse from the neighboring Colonel's garden, leading to a confrontation with the Colonel (the Vulture) and Sir Edward.
