Character guide

Lord Peter Wimsey

major

Also known as Othello Lord Peter Wimsey, Peter, Stapley, Wimsey, Peter Wimsey, Presently Lord Peter

Peter Death Bredon Wimsey has just returned from a Corsican holiday, all scented baths and vendettas, when the call of the blood summons him home to a family catastrophe: his brother stands accused of murdering his sister's fiancé. He is a man of contradictions — flippant, self-deprecating, and genuinely brilliant — whose amateur sleuthing is both a game and a duty. His peculiar position as a peer's brother investigating a peer's crime makes him the only person who can move between Scotland Yard and Bredon Hall.

Lady Mary Wimsey

major

Also known as Mary, Polly, poor old Mary, poor Lady Mary

Lady Mary arrives at Lord Peter's flat in a state of desperate agitation, her complexion strained and her eyes hollowed by recent illness, begging to see her brother before he does something dreadful. She is a young woman caught between an engagement she accepted out of weariness and a love she thought she had lost, and her frankness with Parker is as disarming as it is calculated. Her testimony — and her silences — sit at the center of the case against her brother, and her fragility is the human cost the investigation keeps threatening to expose.

Mr. Parker

major

Also known as Parker, Splendid old Parker, old Parker, Charles Parker, Mr. Charles Parker

Parker is the professional who does the unglamorous work — the cross-examinations, the interviews, the careful note-taking — while his aristocratic friend supplies the flashes of intuition. He is competent but not flashy, and his anxious, almost tender handling of Lady Mary when she collapses in the flat reveals a man more emotionally exposed than his job usually permits. His partnership with Peter is the story's central working relationship, and his scruples about the case's human wreckage give the mystery its conscience.

Captain Denis Cathcart

major

Also known as Denis Cathcart, Cathcart, Denis, Captain Cathcart, the late Captain Cathcart

Cathcart was a man of good family and no money, reduced by degrees to the final deep of dishonor — keeping a mistress in Paris while courting a duke's daughter for her fortune. He understood the transaction perfectly: he could pay for Simone Vonderaa's beauty and good humor only so long as he had money, and money he must have by hook or by crook. His engagement to Lady Mary was a business arrangement on both sides, and the question of who killed him is inseparable from the question of who he had wronged.

Bunter

supporting

Also known as Mr. Bunter

Bunter is the quiet engine of the Wimsey household — laying out bath-salts and flesh-brushes in Paris, producing a phial of ammonia for a hysterical Lady Mary, and later appearing with arms full of scarlet and ermine at the exact moment his master needs them. He is a valet who has turned his camera from fingerprints to craggy scenery and back again, and whose respectful impertinence is one of the book's great pleasures. His loyalty is absolute, his competence total, and his presence gives the amateur detective a professional's infrastructure.

Sir Impey Biggs

supporting

Also known as Sir Impey, Biggs

Sir Impey arrives still in wig and gown, apologizing for the tedium of the day's proceedings, and immediately establishes himself as the kind of counsel who is not to be taken liberties with. He is the Wimseys' hired champion, and his skill at cross-examination is the legal counterpart to Lord Peter's detective work. His presence in the case signals the gravity of the Duke's position and the machinery of English justice closing around a peer of the realm.

Gerald Wimsey

major

Also known as Mortimer Gerald Bredon Wimsey, Poor old Gerald, Gerald, old Gerald, old Jerry, Jerry, Presently Wimsey

Gerald Wimsey is Lord Peter's elder brother, a proud, punctilious aristocrat who treats his own murder trial as an affront to family dignity rather than a fight for his life. He clings to the principle that he need not prove his innocence, even as his silence and his undisclosed alibi tighten the noose around him. His stubborn refusal to confide in his brother is the wall Peter must break through before the real investigation can begin.

Duke of Denver

supporting

Also known as Duke of D., the Duke, The Duke

As the accused, the Duke of Denver sits alone within the Bar, the only bare head among a scarlet assembly, listening to the Attorney-General rehearse the quarrel, the shot at three, and the vanished letter. His unease at hints of a motive beyond the alleged quarrel suggests a secret he will not surrender even to save himself. His ordeal transforms the family scandal into a public spectacle, forcing Lord Peter to work against the clock and the Wimsey pride alike.

Mrs. Grimethorpe

supporting

Also known as Grimethorpe, this Grimethorpe, no Mrs. Grimethorpe, A Mrs. Grimethorpe

Mrs. Grimethorpe inhabits a bleak, hard-drinking farm on the moors, married to a brutish man whose bellowing fills the house and whose suspicions curdle the air. She offers the exhausted Wimsey and Bunter grudging warmth and a bed, yet her watchful reticence hints at knowledge she will not easily part with. Her testimony becomes one of the quiet hinges on which the Riddlesdale case turns, and her fear of her husband shadows every word she might or might not say.

Mr. Goyles

supporting

Also known as The Goyles, Goyles, poor Mr. Goyles, Donne Mr. Goyles, this Mr. Goyles

George Goyles, whom the Dowager cannot help reading as 'Gargoyles,' is Lady Mary's radical friend and the man she has been secretly meeting. When Peter approaches him at a Soviet Club, Goyles fires and flees, leaving Mary to lie to protect him and Peter to wonder whether her lover is a coward, a murderer, or both. His flight and Mary's perjury fracture the family's trust and give the prosecution its most damaging witness.

Mr. Murbles

supporting

Also known as Old Mr. Murbles, Murbles, old Murbles, Tell Murbles

Old Mr. Murbles is the family's legal anchor, a cautious, well-connected solicitor who has secured Sir Impey Biggs for the defense and who despairs of the Duke's refusal to disclose his alibi. He moves between the Wimseys' drawing room and the corridors of the House of Lords, gathering evidence and smoothing feathers. His long acquaintance with the family makes the Duke's evasions personally painful, and his steady competence is the quiet machinery behind Peter's more flamboyant sleuthing.

Sir Wigmore Wrinching

supporting

Also known as Whereupon Sir Wigmore Wrinching, Sir Wigmore, the discomfited Sir Wigmore Wrinching

Sir Wigmore Wrinching opens the case for the Crown with the familiar tale of the quarrel, the shot, and the missing letter, hinting darkly at motives the prisoner will not explain. He treats Lady Mary as a hostile witness when her testimony contradicts her deposition, and he is visibly discomfited when Lord Peter produces Cathcart's letter in open court. His confident prosecution is the foil against which the Wimseys' scattered, improvised defense finally coheres.

Mr. Grimethorpe

supporting

Also known as Grider, Mr. Grimethorpe of Grider's Hole, Mr. Grimethorpe of Grider

Grimethorpe rules his remote moorland farm with grudging force, grudgingly yielding his fireside to two frozen strangers only when warned they might die on him. His harsh voice and the eerie singing of his household follow Wimsey into feverish dreams, making Grider's Hole feel less like refuge than trap. His sour marriage and violent temper make him a figure the investigation cannot afford to overlook.

Ellen

minor

Also known as Miss Ellen

Maid at Riddlesdale Lodge.

Mademoiselle Simone Vonderaa

supporting

Also known as Mademoiselle Vonderaa, Simone, ma Simone, Simone Vonderaa

Simone Vonderaa enters Cathcart's Paris years as the exquisite continental mistress for whom he keeps a discreet banking account and a devotion he never questions aloud. She lies to him from their earliest acquaintance, and he knows it, yet the knowledge cannot loosen her hold. Her shadow falls across the case as the woman whose demands may have driven a ruined man toward desperate measures.

Freddy Arbuthnot

supporting

Also known as the Hon. Freddy, the Hon. Freddy Arbuthnot, Freddy, The Hon. Freddy, old Freddy, the Hon, Freddy Arbuthnot, Arbuthnot

Freddy Arbuthnot moves easily through the drawing rooms and clubs where Wimsey needs ears and introductions, his cheerfulness a useful counterweight to the grim business of a murder inquiry. He is the sort of friend who asks no uncomfortable questions and remembers everything he overhears. His social fluency makes him quietly indispensable as the case reaches into fashionable London.

Dowager Duchess of Denver

supporting

Also known as the Duchess, old Denver, poor old Denver, Denver, the Dowager Duchess of Denver, Duchess, The Dowager Duchess, the Dowager

The Dowager Duchess of Denver endures the solemnity of her son's trial with the same running commentary she might give a church service, finding it all quite picturesque and quite High Church. Beside her sits the daughter-in-law whose unhappiness makes her disagreeable—a small domestic misery set against the enormous public one. Her unshakable nerve and maternal loyalty give the grim proceedings their one note of defiant, aristocratic life.

Viscount St. George

minor

Also known as Duke of Denver, The Duke of Denver, Duke of Denver, Denver, the Duke of Denver

Title for the heir to the Duke of Denver.

Madame Leblanc

minor

Proprietress of a Parisian boarding house.

Mrs. Pettigrew-Robinson

minor

Also known as Mr. Pettigrew-Robinson, Mr. and Mrs. Pettigrew-Robinson, Mr. Pettigrew, Robinson, Pettigrew-Robinson

Guest at Riddlesdale Lodge, gossipy neighbor.

Miss Lydia Cathcart

minor

Also known as Miss Cathcart, Cathcart, the Cathcart

Sister of the murdered Captain Cathcart.

Miss Tarrant

minor

Lady Mary's friend and companion.

James Fleming

minor

Also known as Fleming, Jem

Groom at Riddlesdale Lodge.

Mr. Timothy Watchett

minor

Also known as Mr. Timothy Watchett of the Rose and Crown, In Mr. Watchett, Mr. Watchett, Crown, Tim Watchett, Timothy Watchett, the Crown

Innkeeper at the Rose and Crown.

Monsieur Cathcart

minor

Also known as Cathcart

Father of Captain Denis Cathcart.

George V

minor

Also known as George, George the Fifth

Reigning king, mentioned in legal context.

Mrs. Marchbanks

minor

Wife of Colonel Marchbanks, a guest at Riddlesdale.

Mademoiselle Adèle

minor

Also known as Mademoiselle, mademoiselle, Adèle

French maid to Simone Vonderaa.

Mr. Featherstone

minor

Local police constable involved in the case.

Colonel Marchbanks

minor

Also known as the Colonel, Colonel, Colonel Marchbanks, the Colonel wrestlin

Guest at Riddlesdale Lodge, a military man.

Helen

minor

Duchess of Denver, Gerald's wife.

Monsieur Briquet

minor

Also known as Briquet

French police officer assisting the investigation.

Tommy Freeborn

minor

Also known as old Tom Freeborn, Freeborn, Monsieur Thomas Freeborn

Friend of Cathcart from his Paris days.

Greg Smith

minor

Also known as Mr. Greg Smith, Mr. Smith

American tourist who saw something relevant.

Inspector Craikes

minor

Also known as Craikes

Police inspector from Scotland Yard.

John Hardraw

minor

Also known as Hardraw, John

Local farmer near Riddlesdale.

Mrs. Hardraw

minor

Also known as Hardraw

Wife of John Hardraw.

Wilkes

minor

Servant at the Duke of Denver's house.

Mr. Sugg

minor

Also known as the horrified Sugg, Sugg

Local police inspector, initially in charge.

Old Thorpe

minor

Also known as Thorpe

Local gamekeeper.

Sir Andrew Mackenzie

minor

Also known as Sir Andrew

Scottish landowner and friend of the family.

Dear old Dowson

minor

Elderly butler at the Duke's residence.

Lord High Steward

minor

Also known as The Lord High Steward

Presiding officer at the trial of a peer.

Gerald Christian Wimsey

minor

Also known as Gerald, Jerry, Wimsey

Full name of the Duke of Denver.

Dr. Thorpe

minor

Also known as Thorpe

Local doctor who examined the body.

Mrs. Watson

minor

Also known as Watson

Housekeeper at Riddlesdale Lodge.

Dr. Lubbock

minor

Also known as Lubbock, Presently old Dr. Thorpe

Medical expert called for the defense.

Lord Attenbury

minor

Also known as Attenbury

Friend of the Wimsey family.

Mrs. G.

minor

Also known as G. says

Abbreviation for Mrs. Grimethorpe in notes.

Sherlock Holmes

minor

Also known as Holmes

Fictional detective referenced in conversation.

Miss Elizabeth

minor

Also known as Bet

Maid at the Duke's London house.

Mary Jane

minor

Also known as Mary

Servant girl at Riddlesdale Lodge.

Mr. Glibbery

minor

Local tradesman who provides information.

Bagot

minor

Footman at the Duke's residence.

Mr. Foulis

minor

Lawyer involved in the case.

Biggy

minor

Nickname for Sir Impey Biggs.

Monsieur Bourgois

minor

Also known as Bourgois

French banker who knew Cathcart.