English oddities

If you've read any of the Blandings novels by P.G. Wodehouse, you recognize dotty nobility, in the person of Lord Emsworth, as a source of endless comedic possibilities. No matter how out of touch with reality he may be or how eccentric his behavior, his will must always be done because, after all, he is the lord of the manor. Other writers have taken advantage of the same kind of comic character.

Yet David Long's book English Eccentrics & Their Bizarre Behavior demonstrates that such fictional characters as Lord Emsworth are based on fact. Many of the lords and ladies, dukes and earls of British history have been a bit wacko. Common folk can engage in bizarre behavior too, and Long discusses plenty of them as well, but those of noble birth may simply get more attention when they act weirdly and their odd actions may be remembered longer, for they seem to dominate Long's book.

Take for instance William John Cavendish, Duke of Portland, who, among other oddities, had tunnels dug extending several miles so that he could go places without being seen, had an underground ballroom and three underground libraries each painted pink, always wore at least two overcoats and a two-foot tall top hat and gave each of his workers an umbrella and a donkey on the condition they never looked at him or spoke to him.

In the 18th century, Lord Monboddo insisted that orangutans were really men and men were really monkeys. He believed midwives conspired to cut the tails off newborns before their mothers could see them.

King George VI liked to watch movies backwards.

The 8th Earl of Bridgewater preferred eating with dogs rather than people, but he insisted they wear linen napkins and practice proper table manners.

The Countess of Lancaster kept an open coffin and climbed into it periodically to make sure it was still a good fit and would be comfortable enough for her.

And so on. Britain clearly has had more than its share of fruitcakes. Yet Long sometimes goes too far. Some of the eccentrics he mentions actually made valuable contributions to science with their extensive collections of butterflies, animals, etc. Behavior can be unorthodox without being bizarre.