Sir: I loved Frank Johnson's 'Paging Mr Widmerpool' though I
was a little dismayed to learn that so many of his acquaintances are putting themselves forward as counter- parts of Anthony Powell's creation. I do hope they are doing themselves an injus- tice. Certainly Michael Heseltine is out of the running because he is too flashy and too excitable, though he and some others you mention no doubt fall into a whole cat- egory of people, singled out by Powell, as seeking power over others by a variety of means: in Volume I alone of Dance these include such disparate characters as Sunny Farebrother, Buster and Miss Weedon.
If you are looking for a true Widmerpool however, he must be dogged, determined, reasonably intelligent, but lacking imagina- tion, a sense of humour or compassion. Hence he goes on until he is stopped, but is never stopped and, what is more, stops at nothing. Getting Ackerly sacked at school was just a prelude to disposing of Peter Templar later on and many other iniquities. He bullies his inferiors, creeps to his supe- riors and, as you say, makes sure he is on the winning side. However, those who have not read the novels may be surprised to see how he ends up.
Of course he is unattractive to women, but not because he is fat and plain: those disadvantages are in the eye of the male beholder and do not prevent a man being successful with the ladies — think of David Mellor. It is simply that women are unim- pressed by Widmerpool. I should think most of them would sense too what a ghast- ly lover he would make. I can't think of a girl I have ever known who could fall for him, though some might wed him for the money and social advantage. Pamela Flyt- ton, who does marry him, is in a special class of women who are hell-bent on humil- iating the whole male sex. I would wish even the man I would nominate as a mod- ern, real-life Widmerpool to be spared Pamela. As for who my candidate is, well, I rather think Simon Russell Beale is mod- elling himself on the man I have chosen, namely our Chancellor, Gordon Brown.
Netta M Goldsmith 1 Cumberland Gardens, Tunbridge Wells,
Kent
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