Bertie Sidebottom is a young man down on his luck and forced to return to live with his mother in her London council flat. Soon after she is taken into hospital and sadly dies.

Bertie is not entitled to remain in the flat as a sole occupant and, without a job or income, he resorts to desperate measures to keep his home.

His mother had befriended an elderly Ukranian lady in hospital, so he invites her to live with him and impersonate his mother when the council inspector visits. A parrot looks set to give the game away, and distant relatives also appear staking their claim on the flat. But Bertie keeps up the pretence and with distractions of potential love interests and auditions for jobs on the stage, he hopes finally that luck will go his way. He has the looks, charm and talent of George Clooney, after all, if only he had had the same breaks...

This is a great read! Really silly but charming and I loved losing myself in it while on a trip away from home.