Published by Molly Keane in 1981, Good Behaviour tells a story of Anglo-Irish society in the early twentieth century.
A cold mother, a philandering father, a gay brother and a similarly inclined love interest all unseen or excused by the society focused upon good behaviour.
[1] Living with her ailing mother and Rose, their faithful servant, Aroon St. Charles reflects on her childhood as a member of the Irish gentry.
She is dismissed after it becomes clear she is coddling their eldest son, Richard, who begins to take an interest in poetry.
Though she is awkward, tall and buxom her entry into society is eased by her younger brother Hubert who introduces her to a now adult Richard.
Circumstances become even more difficult when the family begins to suffer extreme financial instability and are denied food on credit.
To everyone's surprise however Aroon's father has manipulated her mother into giving her family estate, Temple Alice, over to him.
The BBC aired a three part miniseries in 1983. dramatised by Hugh Leonard and directed by Bill Hays, Joanna McCallum starred as Aroon with Hannah Gordon (as Mother), Daniel Massey (as Major), Judy Cornwell (as Mrs Brock), Patricia Quinn (as Rose), Timothy Sinclair (as Hubert), and Robert Burbage (as Richard) co-starring.