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 industry to the "Special areas" in South Wales suffering unemployment, pointing to statistics which showed they had been developed elsewhere. Outside his normal area, Mainwaring was named as a member of the Royal Commission on Rhodesia in 1938. He went on a long visit to the territories in August 1938 to gather evidence, and then went on to visit the Rand in South Africa. Mainwaring endorsed the report of the Royal Commission which called for a single Governor for the three territories of Northern Rhodesia, Southern Rhodesia and Nyasaland. During the wartime coalition, Mainwaring was not always prepared to go