Rumpole of the BaileyBy Erik Macki
Before there was Quincy and The Practice, there was Rumpole.
Rumpole of the Bailey is, quite simply, one of the finest
television series, and it has served as a model for all law dramas that
followed it. Edgy and satirical, Rumpole is based on John
Mortimer's books of the same name. Esteemed actor Leo McKern portrays the
antihero Rumpole, a determined and committed criminal defense barrister
whose clients have included three generations of the Timson family, among
others, at the Old Bailey (criminal court). As champion of the
downtrodden, the self-righteous Rumpole loves to get in trouble with his
wife, his peers, the head of chambers, and judges, to name but a few. A
connoisseur of Wordsworth, cigars, and cheap liquor, McKern's usually
disheveled Rumpole belies the character's dry sense of humor and astute
skill as a barrister. His wife, the upwardly mobile Hilda, is played by
Peggy Thorpe-Bates, known for her Miss Toliver in Alcatraz Island,
and Justice Sir Guthrie Fetherston is played by Peter Bowles, known for
his Richard DeVere in TV's To the Manor Born.
This four-disc
set includes all 12 episodes from the first two seasons in their
original sequence of stories, plus Rumpole's Return, the 1982
two-hour special that started off the third season. Typical of British
drama, production values are low, while the caliber of scriptwriting and
acting is unsurpassed. A rare example of a television serial that is as
appealing and engaging on its 10th viewing as it is on its first.
Partial Episode Guide
Volume 17: First, in "Rumpole and the Alternative
Society," Rumpole heads to the west of England to visit his old
friend Sam "Three Fingers" Dougherty from their days together in
the RAF and to defend Kathy Trelawney in court, charged with selling
marijuana to an undercover investigator. Second, in "Rumpole and the
Course of True Love," Rumpole must defend a melodramatically romantic
teacher charged with having an affair with a student, while Guthrie tries
to become a judge.
Volume 18: In "Rumpole and the Quacks," Rumpole
battles the formidable Phillida in court to defend his doctor, accused of
sexually molesting a patient. Next, in "Rumpole for the
Prosecution," Rumpole takes on a rare role as prosecutor to
investigate a policeman who may not have been properly charged for
murdering a girl.
Volume 19: In "Rumpole and the Children of the Devil,"
Rumpole again defends the Timsons as their daughter Tracy Timson is put
into the custody of a social worker when her parents are accused of
Satanism. Meanwhile, Rumpole's wife Hilda is stressed out about the Scales
of Justice Ball and having to dance on her birthday. Next, in
"Rumpole and the Miscarriage of Justice," Rumpole defends
Detective Gannon, who changed a teenager's confession for murdering a
policeman.
Volume 20: First, in "Rumpole and the Eternal
Triangle," Rumpole flirts with a beautiful violinist but is caught
off guard when she asks him to defend her jealous husband, charged with
murdering her accompanist. Meanwhile, Claude raises concerns that Henry
has sexually harassed their secretary. Next, in "Rumpole and the
Reform of Joby Johnson," the barrister must defend a teenager charged
with theft even after an important brief is burgled from Rumpole's house.
Volume 21: In "Rumpole and the Family Pride," Rumpole
and Hilda are invited out to a relative's castle for the weekend--but
Rumpole's concerns turn out justified as they find out the castle's owner
is charged with murdering a transient woman who has been living on the
estate. Then, in "Rumpole on Trial," Rumpole is defended in a
hearing for taking a stand against Justice Oliphant by Hilda's friend Sam
Ballard.
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