The Dog it was that Died

The Dog It Was That Died is a play by Tom Stoppard.

Characters

Giles Blair, Purvis's boss at Q6; sophisticated and worldly, he has none of Purvis's internal doubts and so has great difficulty grasping the crux of Purvis's dilemma. 'I never really got beyond us being British and them being atheists and communists. You can't argue with that so I think I rather switched off after that point... ...All you've got to do is remember what you believe.'

Related Topics:
Atheists - Communists

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Blair represents the quintessential upper-class English bureaucrat; there is nothing of the glamour of James Bond about him. Despite being perhaps the central character of the play - certainly he has the most lines - he remains a somewhat ineffectual figure, happy to allow events to follow their course. Blair collects clocks - his house is full of them - and is also constructing a folly in the grounds of his house.

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Rupert Purvis, a tortured soul. Purvis is highly principled, which makes it all the more upsetting for him when he can't recall exactly what those principles are.

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Hogbin, described by Blair as a 'policeman' but actually another spy, Hogbin is assigned to investigate the circumstances of Purvis's suicide attempt, and in particular a letter he posted to Blair before his first attempt. Hogbin is the polar opposite of Blair - doggedly determined, prone to panic and seeing conspiracies at every turn.

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Pamela Blair, wife of Giles. She runs a donkey sanctuary, occasionally appropriating her husband's study as an operating theatre for her injured charges. She is having an affair with Blair's boss; a fact about which both she and Blair are entirely open and unconcerned.

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