But for Bunter

But For Bunter is a farce by English writer David Hughes, the tenth of his eleven novels, first published by Heinemann in 1985. It was released in the US as The Joke Of The Century.
Outline
Patrick Weymouth, the protagonist, is a writer for a government minister. His ex-wife Lesley informs him of the existence of a certain Archibald Aitken who claims to have been the model for Frank Richards’ hero Billy Bunter in the Magnet magazine, popular amongst schoolboys in the 1930’s. With the help of his secretary and lover, Joanne, Weymouth tracks down Aitken and little by little begins to believe his anecdotes, most of which revolve around the important English actors of British political and cultural life whom he claims to be drawn from classmates of his. Thus we learn that Aitken was responsible for the Titanic disaster, the abdication of Edward VIII, and inspirations of T S Eliot’s and D H Lawrence’s, amongst a plethora of other sometimes deliberate but more often accidental incidents that defined and undefined the course of modern British history.
To a large extent a Bunter-esque prank of its own, But For Bunter is also a metaphor for the transformative power of love and affection, as Weymouth makes his hazardous journey from an off-handed and cynical public servant to a man of passion and commitment. And, as in others of his novels, Hughes makes no bones about his nostalgia for a
Quotes
“Bad taste is the last resort of the vanquished.” (p 76, 1986 Paladin edition)
“She cooked as she made love; lots of it, you could say, but too much effort chasing too little savour.” (p 206)
“…marriage sprang from an atavistic desire to hide away from life, while masquerading as a challenge… all it provided was a decent home for one’s aggressions.” (p 212)

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