39,327
edits
Rumpole of the Bailey: Difference between revisions
m
Mass update links
prefix>Import Bot (Import from TV Tropes TVT:Main.RumpoleOfTheBailey 2012-07-01, editor history TVTH:Main.RumpoleOfTheBailey, CC-BY-SA 3.0 Unported license) |
m (Mass update links) |
||
Line 13:
The character is loosely based on the actual courtroom career of barrister John Mortimer, Rumpole's creator and author, who often took on controversial and "lost hope" causes (such as defending the [[Sex Pistols|Sex Pistols']] use of the word "Bollocks" on the cover of their one and only album -- he won by proving the word [[Older Than They Think|had been used in common and cherished literature as far back]] as [[Geoffrey Chaucer (Creator)|Chaucer]]).
John Mortimer adapted many of the show's episodes into book form, and after the show was cancelled continued to write and publish new Rumpole stories, which frequently featured plots [[Ripped
Compare and contrast ''[[Garrows Law]]'', which is much like ''Rumpole'', but [[Recycled in Space|IN GEORGIAN LONDON]]!!
Line 31:
* [[British Newspapers]]: Make an occasional appearance. Rumpole is partial to ''The Times'', especially its crossword. Hilda prefers the ''Evening Telegraph'' (and its crossword). Papers appear as important points in certain episodes: "Rumpole and the Tap End" features embarrassing reports on a decision of (Mr. Justice) Guthrie Featherstone's in ''The Evening Standard''; "Rumpole and the Bubble Reputation" features Rumpole and Claude Erskine-Brown's dealings with an [[Product Displacement|obvious replacement]] for ''The Sun'' (complete with [[Page Three Stunna]]!) called the ''Beacon''. Specifically, Rumpole has to defend the sleazy editor of ''Beacon'' on a libel charge (it's a "money brief", with an [[Undisclosed Funds|unspeakably large]] fee and a £500/day refresher), while Erskine-Brown is caught at a strip club (doing research on his case about a fight at the club some time earlier) by the ''Beacon'' photographers and has to deal with the consequences.
* [[Bulungi]]: Narenga, a Central African Commonwealth Realm with complex and often deadly tribal politics, in "Rumpole and the Golden Thread". One of Rumpole's old pupils, who has become Minister of the Interior, invites Rumpole to defend him in a case of capital murder; the absence of a jury--an institution abolished by the British during the colonial period--drives Rumpole mad.
* [[
* [[Butt Monkey]]: If somebody is getting the short end of the stick, you can bet good money that it's either Claude Erskine-Brown, Guthrie Featherstone, or Sam Ballard.
* [[Can't Hold His Liquor]]: Samuel "Soapy Sam" Ballard, QC, gets absolutely blotto--as in fall-on-the-floor, can't-remember-how-many-drinks-he's had, crazy ''drunk''--after a mere five glasses of sherry.
Line 75:
* [[Florence Nightingale Effect]]: How Marguerite ("Matey") gets Sam Ballard to marry her.
* [[Former Teen Rebel]]: Sam Ballard.
* [[For Your Own Good]]: In "Rumpole and the Reform of Joby Jonson," Sam Ballard, in an uncharacteristic [[Hurricane of Puns]], kindly explains to Claude Erskine-Brown that no, he couldn't possibly recommend Claude for promotion to QC. The result is an equally uncharacteristic [[What the Hell, Hero?]].
* [[Good Lawyers, Good Clients]]: Subverted. While it is true that almost all of Rumpole's clients that we see are in fact innocent of the crime they're on trial for, they are very frequently guilty of some other crime. This is particularly true of the Timsons, a clan of South London "[[Harmless Villain|minor villains]]" who make their living off of petty larceny and [[Fell Off the Back of A Truck|fencing]], and whose fees seem to pay a fair chunk of Rumpole's own bills.
** We also don't see most of Rumpole's cases (the series being very [[Irregular Series|irregular]]), of which he presumably loses a fair number. He also loses a few other cases that we do see.
** And finally, the one time Rumpole's client admits to him that she was guilty, he immediately says that he can't help her defense any longer and advises that she change her plea to guilty.
Line 95:
* [[Justified Criminal]]: Most pitiably, a music hall singer who murdered her violently abusive husband, only to find herself years later on the same cruise ship with the judge who presided over her trial.
* [[Large Ham]]: Rumpole's modus operandi for much of his dealings with other people, and particularly his advocacy. He's called out on it by some theatrical actors in ''Rumpole and the Show Folk''.
* [[Last
** This is actually accepted practice amongst many members of the Bar, first names generally only being used between barristers who are on a very informal footing.
* [[Lame Rhyme Dodge]]: Rumpole's habit of talking to himself frequently asserts itself at the wrong time, leading to some rapid backtracking.
Line 139:
* [[Rank Up]]: Phyllida Trant begins the series as a junior barrister and ends it as {{spoiler|a High Court judge}}.
* [[Real Life Relative]]: the second Liz Probert, Abigail McKern--a.k.a. the daughter of Rumpole himself, Leo McKern.
* [[Real Life Writes the Plot]]: A number of storylines are a [[Whole
* [[Running Gag]]: A few of those, yes.
** "Speaking as a man with daughters...."
Line 157:
* [[Taking the Heat]]: "Rumpole and the Sporting Life"
* [[Theme Naming]]: Claude and Phyllida's children are named [[Richard Wagner|Tristan and Isolde]].
* [[Screw the Money, I Have Rules]]: Rumpole's attitude towards prosecuting, taking silk, and becoming a judge. He is tempted, every now and then, but he always falls back to his old habits.
* [[Token Minority]]: Lampshaded and eventually subverted in ''Rumpole and the Fascist Beast''; Rumpole takes on Indian Latif Khan as a pupil, much to the surprise of everyone in chambers and to the disgust of his racist defendant (it's left unclear as to whether Rumpole deliberately took on an Indian to either annoy his client or make his client look better in court). However, it's clear that Khan has been [[Screw the Rules, I Have Connections|coerced up the ladder by his rich father]] and he's dismissive of Phyllida after she attempts to bond with him over their "oppressed minority" status... [[Double Standard|because she's a woman]].
* [[Two Lines, No Waiting]]: Pretty much ''every'' episode features an A plot--the case of the week--and a B plot revolving around some intrigue in chambers, or some intrigue in Rumpole's household.
* [[Twisting the Words]]: Inversion or Subversion, depending on your perspective: Rumpole often asks witnesses on the stand who heard someone say something or another if they were sure it had the emphasis they recalled.
* [[Unwitting Pawn]]: Sam Ballard has a habit of falling for the traps Rumpole lays for him.
* [[Very Loosely Based
* [[Video Inside Film Outside]]: Eventually dropped, in Season 4, when it went all-video.
* [[Worthy Opponent]]: Often stated by Rumpole whenever he's up against a good barrister.
| |||