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#1: Families: The Willoughbys Author: Róisín, Location: Ireland

Posted: Thu Jun 21, 2007 11:07 am
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There is a family tree here. The Willoughby's main book is Seven Scamps, although they go on to appear in the La Rochelle series after this book, and also in the Chalet School series during and after Exile. Piers Willoughby is the widowed father of seven children - in order of age these are Maidie, Rex, Marjory, Peter, David, Tim and Dina. In Seven Scamps, Mr. Willoughby remarries and his young bride is a widowed mother herself - bringing Britta with her. They go on to have 3 small sons - Frithiof, Axel and Rolf. Nigel Willougby is Mr. Willoughby's much younger brother.

How they marry into the clan that we know and love: Reg Willoughby marries Con Atherton. David Willoughby marries Nan Blakeney. Nigel Willoughby marries Rosamund Atherton (=> Blossom and Judy Willoughby). One of Beth Chester's possible beaus is Tim Willoughby.

What do you think of their relationships to each other as siblings (either the original Willoughby family or the second generation of Blossom, Judy and their siblings)? What is your opinion of the way that Mr Willoughby brought Sigrid home? Why are all their children after this given very Norwegian names? Nigel Willougbhy appears in the rescue of Jo, the trips and Miss Wilson from Guernsey - what do you think of his character in this episode? The Willoughbys are very rich - Maidie, for example, has studied in a private school in Paris and was presented at court. How does this compare with EBD's portrayal of large, poor families, such as the Trevennors? How do the Willoughbys compare with other rich, country families presented in GO - Antonia Forest's Marlows come to mind. What about the Willoughby's assimilation of Britta after the marraige?

There is lots to discuss! Please join in with anything else to do with the Willoughbys as a family. Not many people may have read Seven Scamps as it is quite rare, even in GGB format, and there isnn't yet a transcript. (If you'd like to volunteer to do one please bop along to Sales and Wants.) Very Happy

Edit: 1 July 07: this thread is now discussing the book Seven Scamps too. Please join in below Very Happy

Last edited by Róisín on Mon Jul 02, 2007 11:40 am; edited 1 time in total

#2: Author: suemac,

Posted: Tue Jun 26, 2007 3:15 pm
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I have just read Seven Scamps for the first time. I cannot say I was very impressed by the Willoughbys. Piers' decision for marrying for the second time I found quite frightening. The reason given for his travelling (because of the death of his first wife) was more likely to have been to get away from his horrendous offspring. His poor second wife had to take them on (he seemed to travel rather frequently on business!!) and as usual after a serious illness/dangerous occurrence all was serene. I am not sure it really gelled for me, imagine turning up and presenting a new wife and sister without prior introduction or warning - very EBD.

#3: Author: Jennie, Location: Cambridgeshire

Posted: Tue Jun 26, 2007 4:41 pm
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I haven't read it yet, though I'm hoping to find a copy at Peakirk Books.

If the Willoughbys are so rich, how is that David has nothing but his Naval salary in 'Janie Steps In?'

#4: Author: Róisín, Location: Ireland

Posted: Tue Jun 26, 2007 4:51 pm
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Is that what it says?! I didn't know that. Maybe they lost their fortune somehow in the war Confused

I'm not sure what Piers' business was (except that it made him travel a lot?) but I assumed that they got most of their income from renting farmland and the like.

#5: Author: JayB, Location: SE England

Posted: Tue Jun 26, 2007 5:38 pm
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Quote:

If the Willoughbys are so rich, how is that David has nothing but his Naval salary in 'Janie Steps In?'

EBDism?

The chronology of Janie Steps In is all messed up anyway. The book wasn't published until 1953 - and it would be fine as a retrospective, except that it has Second World War references. But Exile clearly sets the events of the book in 1938/39, as do the ages of Blossom, Barbara, et al as given in Steps In.

Maybe Sir Piers believed in letting his children make their own way? He had enough to provide for as children, without continuing to support them as adults. Or maybe most of his wealth was in land and it was all entailed on Rex?

I haven't read Seven Scamps, but I've always rather liked Nigel Willoughby from what I've seen of him in other books. Ditto Blossom, who clearly takes after him with her lighthearted, fun loving nature. And Judy is part of a very likeable group of girls as she goes up through the school.

#6: Author: Jennie, Location: Cambridgeshire

Posted: Sun Jul 01, 2007 1:50 pm
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Well, read 'Seven Scamps' last night.

First impressions: not as good as some others.

Sir Piers struck me as being essentially selfish, abdicating his responsibilities for his children to those who were incapable of controlling them. So, he had loved his wife when she was alive, so why didn't he have more care for the children she gave him?

I suppose this is one of her absent father plot lines, as we saw in 'Peggy', who comes home and turns everything upside down.

The young Willoughbys were fairly well written, and I could understand their resentment at being presented with a new step-mother, absolutely out of the blue. Sir Piers must have been very stupid indeed ( or extremely arrogant) to imagine that they would accept this without a murmur, especially when Britta the Brat comes as part of the package.

And by this time, (of my reading) I was getting a bit fed up of the 'urgent operation needed' and 'hovering on the doorstep of death' part of the story, plus the long convalescence, which, as we know now, meant that the poor child would have to do an awful lot work to walka gain, because her leg muscles would be atrophied. The Guernsey bits were fine, with the mingling of the Willoughbys, Athertons, Lucys, Temples and Ozannes and enjoying themselves together on the beaches and going for walks, etc.

I did enjoy the book, but can see that EBD was already being rather formulaic, and now I can see where she practised some of her later plot climaxes, falling down cliffs, and so on.

#7: Author: Róisín, Location: Ireland

Posted: Mon Jul 02, 2007 11:46 am
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This thread will now amalgamate the two discussions of the Willoughbys as a family, and the book of Seven Scamps, which is next on our read through list.

Seven Scamps was published in 1927. There is a synopsis here. Sir Piers Willoughby arrives home suddenly with a new wife, Sigrid (much like Mr Cochrane in the CS?). The book follows the slow acceptance of the Willoughby children of their new stepmother, and their new stepsister. The Willoughbys holiday on Guernsey, where they meet others of the La Rochelle series - the Temple sisters, the Ozanne and Chester families, and the Athertons. There are many strong links between this book and the Chalet School series.

Please contribute below with any thoughts you may have had regarding this book. If you want prompts for discussion, there are many above in the first post about the Willoughby family, and also in the posts made since then. Happy discussing! Very Happy

#8: Author: Cath V-P, Location: Newcastle NSW

Posted: Tue Jul 03, 2007 1:09 am
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I always have the sense that EBD was 'really' writing two books in one in Seven Scamps and couldn't quite make up her mind which she wanted. There's the really quite complicated Willoughby family story, which seems to me to resolve oddly quickly, especially given the animosity to Sigrid, and then there's the 'holiday' story set in Guernsey.

#9: Author: Mel, Location: UP NORTH

Posted: Tue Jul 03, 2007 1:34 pm
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I like the holiday stories, but I always feel that EBD struggled to find enough plot, hence the illnesses, accidents etc. In the CS she had an easy framework of term beginning, new prefects, pranks, half-term etc and on to a finale of Sale/Play/new girl reforms.

#10: Author: Nina, Location: Peterborough, UK

Posted: Tue Jul 10, 2007 5:02 pm
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I have just discovered a real person on Flickr called Marjolaine Ryley. I thought EBD had invented the name.

Of course, her mother could have been an EBD fan...

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