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The Bloater: The brilliantly original rediscovered classic comedy of manners

The Bloater: The brilliantly original rediscovered classic comedy of manners

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  • Create Date：2022-05-01 00:51:57
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
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  • Author：Rosemary Tonks
  • ISBN：1784877808
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Summary

WITH A NEW INTRODUCTION BY STEWART LEE

'Should The Bloater be republished？ Oh God， absolutely， it's fantastic' Stewart Lee

Min works at the BBC as an audio engineer， where she is struggling to replicate the sound of a heartbeat。 At home， other matters of the heart are making a mockery of life as Min knows it。

Min has found herself the object of her lodger's affection。 An internationally renowned opera singer she's nicknamed 'The Bloater'， Min is disgusted and attracted to him in equal measure。 But with a husband so invisible that she accidentally turns the lights off on him even when he's still in the room， Min can't quite bring herself to silence The Bloater's overtures。

Vain， materialistic， yet surprisingly tender， The Bloater is a sparklingly ironic comedy of manners for all flirtatious gossips who love to hate and hate to love。

PRAISE FOR THE BLOATER

'A wonderfully unromantic romantic comedy' Daily Telegraph

'Uncommonly good' Guardian

'It is the perfect aperitif， makes you feel warm and careless and much， much happier' The Times

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Reviews

Margaret McCulloch-Keeble ，

Nope。 Tried， but couldn't make head nor tail of it。 Nope。 Tried， but couldn't make head nor tail of it。 。。。more

Stephen Dilley ，

Rosemary Tonks's 'The Bloater' is a wonderful social comedy about the sexual politics of the Swinging Sixties that is finally being republished。 The narrator， Min， a BBC sound engineer who is amicably married to George， spends most of her time fending off the advances of her lodger， a rotund opera singer whose nickname gives the novel its title。 She also finds herself developing feelings for her older divorced friend Billy， trading quips with her neighbour Claudio， swapping amorous anecdotes wit Rosemary Tonks's 'The Bloater' is a wonderful social comedy about the sexual politics of the Swinging Sixties that is finally being republished。 The narrator， Min， a BBC sound engineer who is amicably married to George， spends most of her time fending off the advances of her lodger， a rotund opera singer whose nickname gives the novel its title。 She also finds herself developing feelings for her older divorced friend Billy， trading quips with her neighbour Claudio， swapping amorous anecdotes with her colleague Jenny and envying her glamorous friend Racquel。 I found this is a thoroughly enjoyable read with some laugh-out-loud comic set pieces， such as when Min finds herself laid up in bed with， of all things， gout， or when an art dealer is sent by the Bloater to deliver the gift of a still-wet painting， which he ends up passing to Min through an upstairs bathroom window by climbing on to a dustbin。 （"No wonder people loathe the arts; wet paintings and humming baritones"） What truly makes this novel such a delight， however， is the candour， wit， self-deprecation and sheer exuberance of Min's narrative voice。 As Min observes， "Are we fully adult， responsible pillars of society？ Certainly; it's simply that we're allowed two or three safety valves nowadays， and rank silliness is one of them。" This 'rank silliness' is one of the dominant notes of the novel which， for all its focus on extra-marital affairs and the supposed permissiveness of the era it depicts， remains delightfully chaste and innocent。It was great to discover the many pleasures of Rosemary Tonks's writing and I hope to explore more of her work。 Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an ARC to review！ 。。。more

Lesley ，

My interest in this novel was piqued by the Backlisted episode， broadcast when the book was out of print， but it’s now being republished and I bagged an ARC*， hurrah。 Brief， frivolous and camp， what it lacks in plot it makes up for in wonderfully quotable lines that zing off every page。 Min， the petulant， perverse， catty narrator， is torn between succumbing to the persistent overtures of ‘the bloater’ - a large， malodorous opera singer - and the rather more suave Billy。 Two very different types My interest in this novel was piqued by the Backlisted episode， broadcast when the book was out of print， but it’s now being republished and I bagged an ARC*， hurrah。 Brief， frivolous and camp， what it lacks in plot it makes up for in wonderfully quotable lines that zing off every page。 Min， the petulant， perverse， catty narrator， is torn between succumbing to the persistent overtures of ‘the bloater’ - a large， malodorous opera singer - and the rather more suave Billy。 Two very different types of masculinity: which to choose （the husband is a non-starter）。 That’s the plot; it’s of no great importance。 It’s a slight novel （Tonks reportedly dashed it off in two weeks， needing to make a quick buck）， more of a snack than a meal， but a delicious one。 I’m fine without a story or moral edification; I was there for the dark social comedy， the highly idiosyncratic prose， the gossipy badinage between Min and her neighbour Claudio， the bewailing of men with her colleague Jenny， and the inner workings of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop。 Rosemary Tonks was part of the 1960s British experimental wave that included Brigid Brophy， Ann Quin， B S Johnson et al， all working in / reinventing multiple media: poetry， drama， fiction， non-fiction， journalism， criticism and more。 In later life Tonks became a recluse， converting to some kind of Christian extremism， renouncing her novels as the work of the devil， and borrowing as many copies as possible from libraries in order to burn them。 An intriguing figure in an intriguing moment in British social/literary history， when the avant-garde was embraced - and even popular （sigh）。 *thankyou Netgalley 。。。more

Sarah Hudson ，

In “The Bloater”， we meet Min – a married woman in the 1960s who is having various liaisons with men including an opera singer whom she nicknames the ‘Bloater’ after the fish。 What follows is Min’s interactions with her friends and these men。 What others have seen as witty and sparking， I’m afraid I read as rather dull。 I didn’t enjoy the exchanges between this group of rather self-indulgent people， and didn’t warm to a single character。 While I can see that the twist on the conformity of gender In “The Bloater”， we meet Min – a married woman in the 1960s who is having various liaisons with men including an opera singer whom she nicknames the ‘Bloater’ after the fish。 What follows is Min’s interactions with her friends and these men。 What others have seen as witty and sparking， I’m afraid I read as rather dull。 I didn’t enjoy the exchanges between this group of rather self-indulgent people， and didn’t warm to a single character。 While I can see that the twist on the conformity of gender politics at the time might be interesting， it wasn’t enough to save this one for me。My thanks to the author， NetGalley， and the publisher for the arc to review。 。。。more

Sharyn ，

I had never heard of Rosemary Tonks but liked the sound of this book。 I am afraid it didn't do much for me。 Min was self-centred and quite selfish in her dealings with other people。 In fact the only character that I felt any warmth towards was Claudi。 Not an author I would read again。 With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-ARC to read and review。 I had never heard of Rosemary Tonks but liked the sound of this book。 I am afraid it didn't do much for me。 Min was self-centred and quite selfish in her dealings with other people。 In fact the only character that I felt any warmth towards was Claudi。 Not an author I would read again。 With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-ARC to read and review。 。。。more

Annarella ，

I'm a huge fan of comedy of manners and witty stories。 This one stood the test of time and was fascinating and highly entertaining。Rosemary Tonks had a fascinating way of using the words and her characters are both silly and cerebral。Loved it。Highly recommended。Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC， all opinions are mine I'm a huge fan of comedy of manners and witty stories。 This one stood the test of time and was fascinating and highly entertaining。Rosemary Tonks had a fascinating way of using the words and her characters are both silly and cerebral。Loved it。Highly recommended。Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC， all opinions are mine 。。。more

Sid Nuncius ，

I didn’t get on well with The Bloater。 I’m usually very wary of “cult classics” but an enthusiastic endorsement from Stewart Lee persuaded me to try this one。 Not a good idea， as it turns out。The fact is， I didn’t get it。 It’s quite well written and the voice of Min， the narrator， is readable enough， but frankly， I couldn’t see the point。 First published in 1968， this seems to me to be a sort of late-60s Bridget Jones Diary。 Min， the narrator， has a successful career in the BBC Radiophonic Works I didn’t get on well with The Bloater。 I’m usually very wary of “cult classics” but an enthusiastic endorsement from Stewart Lee persuaded me to try this one。 Not a good idea， as it turns out。The fact is， I didn’t get it。 It’s quite well written and the voice of Min， the narrator， is readable enough， but frankly， I couldn’t see the point。 First published in 1968， this seems to me to be a sort of late-60s Bridget Jones Diary。 Min， the narrator， has a successful career in the BBC Radiophonic Workshop and is married。 However the Workshop gets just a couple of scenes， chiefly so Min can have awkward relationships with her two co-workers。 Her husband， who may or may not be having affairs， gets barely a mention。 Meanwhile， Min is being pursued by two suitors – the titular bloater and Billy， whom she seems to actually care for。 There’s some chat with female friends and a lot of confused angst。。。and I just didn’t find it funny or engaging。Plainly， people whose views I respect really liked The Bloater。 I’m afraid I didn’t and I can’t recommend it。（My thanks to Vintage Classics for an ARC via NetGalley。） 。。。more

Alwynne ，

A new edition of a cult British novel from the sixties by poet and novelist Rosemary Tonks。 Up until now copies of The Bloater have been rare， printed once in 1968 and only now reprinted， it was made even scarcer by the actions of its author。 Tonks became deeply religious in later life and， as part of her personal mission against the workings of the devil， visited libraries to obtain copies of her earlier work which she then burned。 The book itself was produced during the heyday of British exper A new edition of a cult British novel from the sixties by poet and novelist Rosemary Tonks。 Up until now copies of The Bloater have been rare， printed once in 1968 and only now reprinted， it was made even scarcer by the actions of its author。 Tonks became deeply religious in later life and， as part of her personal mission against the workings of the devil， visited libraries to obtain copies of her earlier work which she then burned。 The book itself was produced during the heyday of British experimentalism and was firmly placed in that category - it definitely reminded me of some of the other writers in that select grouping especially Brigid Brophy， although there are shades of Iris Murdoch here too。 There’s a slender plot which forms a kind of comedy of manners centred on Min who’s married to the inconsequential George but being pursued by two other men， one an opera singer she nicknames the bloater – like the fish he smells and is physically overblown。 Min’s struggle with the ways in which the bloater both attracts and repulses forms the core of the narrative。 Min’s an odd character， although Tonks doesn’t really do character in any developed sense， her thoughts overflow with scenes from literature， art and music， all linked to what was then firmly positioned as high culture。 But Min’s cultural predilections， rather than serve as a means of insight， allow her to maintain a kind of ironic distance from her surroundings。 It’s a life， or perhaps a society， in which lived experience is always inferior to life rendered in and through art。 Min’s attitudes of mocking cruelty and devastating disdain set the underlying tone for the story。 But this is tempered by moments of intense wit， some marvellous lines and phrases， and curious situations that resemble operatic farce， as the gout-ridden Min hesitates over her choice of suitors。 I found this an interesting book rather than an enjoyable one， and slightly mystifying at times， particularly in relation to the world it presents。 On the surface the portrayal of gender， particularly relations between heterosexual men and women’s deeply conventional， reflecting the mainstream culture of England in the late sixties， an era mired in the last throes of the so-called sexual revolution and anticipating the flowering of feminism in the seventies。 But Tonks’s sneakily-iconoclastic approach works to highlight the artificiality of gender， the way in which so much of what takes place here stems from the machinations of people whose sense of self， and self-expression， is rooted in performance。 And Min’s callous treatment of Carlos aka the bloater， man as fish， is a fascinating reversal of the ways in which women were all too often objectified， offered up to be consumed， and frequently compared to meat or flesh。 Alongside the main plotline， there are striking snippets of social and cultural history including a glimpse of the inner workings of the famed BBC Radiophonic Workshop during Delia Derbyshire’s time – Tonks had worked with Derbyshire on a creative project。 Thanks to Netgalley and publisher Vintage Classics for an ARC 。。。more

Shannon ，

The Bloater is brilliant， I absolutely loved it， it’s quite posh people in 60’s London gossiping and lusting after each other， hating themselves for it and not caring。 Min is married to George who， she says， is leading three other separate secret lives he’s bearly present in her life， and so when famous opera singer comes to stay she can’t decide if she is hugely attracted to his hugeness or hugely disgusted by it。 Min is a work of genius and her friend Claudi hits the nail on the head when he s The Bloater is brilliant， I absolutely loved it， it’s quite posh people in 60’s London gossiping and lusting after each other， hating themselves for it and not caring。 Min is married to George who， she says， is leading three other separate secret lives he’s bearly present in her life， and so when famous opera singer comes to stay she can’t decide if she is hugely attracted to his hugeness or hugely disgusted by it。 Min is a work of genius and her friend Claudi hits the nail on the head when he says he can’t decide if she is very emotionally deep or just a spoiled school girl toying with everyone。 I loved Min as much as I hated her。 I loved her awful behaviour and her extreme reactive feelings to the people around her。 Min wallows in her feelings and I loved her for it。 I loved her intermittent gout and her neediness。 As Claudie says she only gets away with it because she has pretty figure。 。。。more

Cath Walker ，

Min is shallow and self obsessed but she revels in it。 She spends her working life as a BBC sound engineer trying to create authentic sounds and her free time gossiping with friends and being entertained by the Bloater a renowned opera singer。 Min’s husband George sits firmly in the background while the Bloater pursues her。 I loved the caustic wit and bad behaviour from Min and would be first in line for a gossip with her。 The book brings the social whirl to life and draws you in。 Well worth a d Min is shallow and self obsessed but she revels in it。 She spends her working life as a BBC sound engineer trying to create authentic sounds and her free time gossiping with friends and being entertained by the Bloater a renowned opera singer。 Min’s husband George sits firmly in the background while the Bloater pursues her。 I loved the caustic wit and bad behaviour from Min and would be first in line for a gossip with her。 The book brings the social whirl to life and draws you in。 Well worth a dip into for the sparkling writing。 。。。more

Fran ，

Thanks to avid pursuers of this book through inter-library loans and， perhaps， the Backlisted podcast， this has become a Penguin vintage classic。 I found it as unsettling as Rosemary Tonks’ own life， but also funny， vibrant and compelling。 The characters are both domestic and somewhat gothic。 It seems as fresh today as when it was written， and I suspect it will never date， like real classics。 Well done Penguin。 And Backlisted。

Trin ，

The voice didn't work for me: I wasn't amused， and when I was dismayed， it was not in a fun or shocking way， but in a bored one。 A shallow exploration of shallowness。 The voice didn't work for me: I wasn't amused， and when I was dismayed， it was not in a fun or shocking way， but in a bored one。 A shallow exploration of shallowness。 。。。more

Emily ，

I have wanted to read this book for such a long time that it is hard to quantify or qualify with a star rating or review。 It is hard to separate a book from its author particularly when the author is so enigmatic and the book so autobiographic。 Add in the tantalising fact that there simply aren’t many copies of this book in circulation （I have read the copy in the British Library this morning） and I desperately wanted to read this book。 I didn’t care if it was good， well-written， enjoyable or co I have wanted to read this book for such a long time that it is hard to quantify or qualify with a star rating or review。 It is hard to separate a book from its author particularly when the author is so enigmatic and the book so autobiographic。 Add in the tantalising fact that there simply aren’t many copies of this book in circulation （I have read the copy in the British Library this morning） and I desperately wanted to read this book。 I didn’t care if it was good， well-written， enjoyable or contained fascinating characters; I simply wanted to read it。Min is a fizzing whirlwind of a character which is just as well because the book hinges on her first person narrative mostly pre-occupied with potential lovers and disdain for her wet umbrella of a husband。 Rosemary Tonks was a poet and her sentences contain the imagery and metaphorical efficiency and efficacy of a poet。 The Bloater contains plenty of the grotesque at which I think she is particularly skilled。 Not least the descriptions of the sight and smell of the Bloater himself。I think I do understand why she tried to destroy her prose （I don’t know how she felt about the poetry after she became reclusive but that would be harder to destroy anyway as it would have been printed in different formats anyway） but so far her prose has seemed less weighty than her poetry。 。。。more

Matt Ely ，

"'They know' he says， with the primitive vigour of a secret Bible-reader escaping from an age of psychoanalysis。"I arrived at this quote seven pages into the text and knew that I'd finish and enjoy this slim volume。 There are many rich observations and delightful turns of phrase throughout。 Sometimes it's an absolutely unique description like the one quote above。 Sometimes it's the sort of language games that force you to reread a sentence once for comprehension and again for delight （"He may ev "'They know' he says， with the primitive vigour of a secret Bible-reader escaping from an age of psychoanalysis。"I arrived at this quote seven pages into the text and knew that I'd finish and enjoy this slim volume。 There are many rich observations and delightful turns of phrase throughout。 Sometimes it's an absolutely unique description like the one quote above。 Sometimes it's the sort of language games that force you to reread a sentence once for comprehension and again for delight （"He may even love me， in addition to being in love with me。 In that case， it's serious， and I must behave seriously。"）But let's be honest with ourselves: you're not reading this strange， cynical， plotless dalliance because of its language。 You're reading it because you found it。 Somehow。 The text is inseparable from its author。 Tonks was an avant-garde novelist and poet in the 1960's who became a proper recluse and religious extremist。 Aside from a recent republication of selected poetry， her books were not reprinted。 In fact， during her life she sought to track down all the copies of her books that she could and destroy them， convinced that they were agents of evil。 But， dear reader， she didn't get the one you're holding。 And you're holding it mostly out of that sense of satisfaction。 You have the unburned book， the one that Rosemary couldn't track down。 And you do like the book。 But mostly you like having the option to like it。 I look at this sturdy， brown hardback， sent from the University of Iowa library by courier， and I wonder whether I'm holding the only copy in the state。 It's certainly the only one I could find。 The university doesn't use stamps to check out their books anymore， but the last time I can see for sure it was checked out was in 1970。 This being the second review written on Goodreads， it's not unlikely that the book sat on a shelf for fifty years。 A wildly rare， possibly valuable， and nearly forgotten artifact of an absurd life。 I'm going to go return it now。 Maybe in another fifty years， some Iowan will find it again and relish the fact that Rosemary Tonks left this particular volume unburned。 。。。more

Featherbooks ，

What a lark！ So glad to have snagged a copy of this book from Interlibrary Loan and listened to the Backlist Podcast。 Min is a classic female character in this delightful confection of the Sixties as she copes with her opera singer admirer called The Bloater （"this huge， tame， exotic man" "I personally can smell him from the kitchen。。。I do see that he is large and washing takes time"） lusts after a coworker named Billy， gossips with friends and an inciteful neighbor （"he has property， knows ever What a lark！ So glad to have snagged a copy of this book from Interlibrary Loan and listened to the Backlist Podcast。 Min is a classic female character in this delightful confection of the Sixties as she copes with her opera singer admirer called The Bloater （"this huge， tame， exotic man" "I personally can smell him from the kitchen。。。I do see that he is large and washing takes time"） lusts after a coworker named Billy， gossips with friends and an inciteful neighbor （"he has property， knows everything， and occasionally tells me near-truths about myself。"） She pretty much ignores her husband， George。 She suffers from gout and is absorbed by her clothing， her home décor and her cleaner， occasionally her job in electronic music， but mostly is concerned with her love life。 When her husband complains， "I am bewildered， and my ego falls down off her plinth。" Fun to read。 A closing salvo from Min: "I'm able to put up with the present only by attaching it to the future。" 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Bloater: The brilliantly original rediscovered classic comedy of manners

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Bloater: The brilliantly original rediscovered classic comedy of manners&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Bloater: The brilliantly original rediscovered classic comedy of manners&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0