Great Expectations
Mr. Wopsle
The church clerk turned actor
The village clerk with a grand voice who becomes a London actor and spots Compeyson.
Mr. Wopsle is a pompous parish clerk with a booming voice. He dines with the Gargerys at Christmas and tends to recite and give opinions. He is self-important but harmless.
He leaves the village for the stage, where he is billed with a theatrical name. His love of drama is comic, but it also makes him a useful witness. He is the kind of person who always has a speech ready and who believes in his own talent a little more than the audience does.
In the story
Contains spoilers.
Wopsle is at the Christmas dinner when soldiers arrive for the convict hunt. Later he goes to London and plays in a theater, where Pip watches. From the stage he notices a man sitting behind Pip: Compeyson.
He plays a small part in the plot, but without him Pip might not have learned that Compeyson was close. He is a figure of fun in the story, and also a reminder that even in London, the people from the marshes turn up again.
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