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.
William Mainwaring Federation of Great Britain in 1924, but was narrowly defeated by A. J. Cook. Mainwaring polled 49,617 against Cook's 50,123 votes. Cook went on to win the post and vacated his previous post as miners' agent for the Rhondda district; Mainwaring was appointed to succeed him. He was one of two agents for the district, and with his fellow agent Alderman David Lewis, Mainwaring had to fight the attempts by members of the Communist Party of Great Britain to gain influence. In 1928, under Communist influence, the lodges of the Rhondda Miners' Federation called for a membership ballot to elect