Captain Mainwaring often a sympathetic subtext to his own personal neuroses; it is apparent several times that he devotes his energies to his Home Guard unit for a sense of comradeship and purpose lacking in other parts of his life, such as his career and marriage. On one occasion when his men spurned a parade to play darts against the ARP he expressed bewilderment, saying coming to the platoon is "the highlight of my day". It is frequently implied that he is trapped in a loveless and unhappy marriage to Elizabeth, his unseen wife, who is domineering, neurotic and withholding of affection.
Captain Mainwaring where he is referred to by Wilson as a magistrate, alderman and chairman of the Rotary Clubs for both Walmington and Eastgate. A series of Barclays Bank adverts featured George Mainwaring retiring from his position at the bank, to be succeeded by Pike, to whom Mainwaring nevertheless refers as 'stupid boy'. Mainwaring appears in one with his granddaughter on their way to her wedding, notwithstanding the fact that he and his wife were not shown to have any children in the series. Mainwaring's class pretensions stand in contrast to his Sergeant, who is genuinely upper middle class. Mainwaring is often