Septimus Brope, editor of 'The Cathedral Monthly', is perhaps not the most exciting guest to grace Mrs Riversedge's weekend house party. But Clovis is intrigued to learn from his aunt that a whiff of scandal may surround the respectable writer on church architecture. What is his guilty secret – and how does he really make his living? The story starts at 00:01:30

Narrated/performed by Simon Stanhope, aka Bitesized Audio. If you enjoy this content and would like to help me keep creating, there are a few ways you can support me (and get access to exclusive content):

* Occasional/one-off support via Buy Me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/bitesize...
* Monthly support on Patreon:   / bitesizedaudio  
* Visit my Bandcamp page to hear more of my performances of classic stories, and you can purchase and download high quality audio files to listen offline: https://bitesizedaudio.bandcamp.com/
* Become a Bitesized Audio Classics member on YouTube, from $1 / £1 / €1 per month:
   / bitesizedaudioclassics  

00:00:00 Introduction
00:01:30 The Secret Sin of Septimus Brope
00:21:48 Credits, thanks and further listening

Saki was the pen name of Hector Hugh Munro, one of the greatest masters of the short story form in English. He was born in 1870 in Burma, then part of British India, where his father was an Inspector General for the Imperial Police, but his life was affected by tragedy when he was just two years old: his mother Mary Munro was charged by a cow while visiting family back in England, and she died as a result of her injuries. Hector and his siblings were sent home to England, to live in Devon with his paternal grandmother and two maiden aunts. The aunts (Augusta and Charlotte) were apparently strict and austere and provided much material for future character studies in Saki's satires. After some 10 years or so, Hector eventually "escaped" to boarding school. In his early 20s he followed his father's footsteps and enrolled in the Indian Imperial Police, but was invalided home with fever after little over a year. Turning to writing to make his living, Munro began working as a journalist in the late 1890s. He wrote countless pieces for magazine and newspaper publication, and took up the pen name Saki around 1900. His always witty – and sometimes macabre – stories established his reputation as one of the greatest satirists of the Edwardian era.

Despite being officially over-age for military service, turning 44 at the end of 1914, he enlisted in World War I, turning down the offer of a commission and serving as an ordinary trooper in the 2nd King Edward’s Horse regiment. Tragically, he was killed by a sniper while sheltering in a shell hole during the Battle of the Ancre in November 1916. His last words were reported to be “Put that bloody cigarette out”. His resting place is unknown.

'The Secret Sin of Septimus Brope' first appeared as part of 'The Chronicles of Clovis' by Saki, published by John Lane in 1911.

The thumbnail image for this video incorporates a photograph of Blackpool, a popular seaside resort in north-west England, circa 1905.

Recording © Bitesized Audio 2024