Usually a Rumpole episode consists of three twined plots, all loosely sharing a particular theme- A court case, a chambers story and a home story.
This week's plot pretty much encompasses the court action only - albeit a very good plotline-0 and the other two, though present, are marginal at best and make little good sense.
So let's get the two minor lines out of the way.
At home, Hilda is threatening Rumpole that unless he 'pulls his socks up' to build his career, she may consider leaving him. It's clearly preposterous to harangue a man in his mid-sixties on his career when it is clearly drawing to a close and said harangue ought to have taken place decades earlier. Nevertheless, Hilda applies to the Lord Chancellor's office for a QC for Rumpole. Rumpole is alarmed to get a call for a drink with 'old Keith of the Lord Chancellor's office' where he finds out about Hilda's application. Then is gently told that given his career and his line of practice (defending criminals, in effect) a QC is out of the question. Rumpole explains to Hilda that he was told that because her Daddy, ex head of Chambers CH Wystan didnt get a QC, neither will he. A white lie, but Hilda seems to accept it.
The Chambers' plot line is if anything, even sillier. Bollard is threatening to blackball Erskine-Brown for membership of a prestigious club, whilst he also suspects Chambers clerk Henry of stealing and banking a £50 cheque. Given that Henry gets 10% of all barristers' fees in the chambers for his efforts- clearly a substantial income- it seems pretty unlikely that he would resort to this ruinous action for £50 (not a massive sum of money, even in 1988).
Nevertheless, Bollard hold's a chambers' meeting and prepares to jettison Henry. Erskine Brown, sucking up to Bollard in hope of winning his support, supports his motion to sack Henry and gets it passed. Henry tells Rumpole of his dreams of emigrating to Australia with chambers' secretary Diane to become a comedian (unaware that his statement here is already pure comedy.).His main whinge (a term he would come to know in Australia) is that his wife is about to become a Mayor and as a result he will have to spend a term as Lady Mayoress. This 'humiliation' apparently justifies ditching his wife and eloping with the secretary. Amateur dramatics appears to have affected his reasoning.
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However, when Bollard offers Rumpole a drink after his unfortunate meeting with Keith of the Lord Chancellors Office - by chance at the prestigious watering hole which Erskine Brown hankers for- the missing cheque falls out of his wallet! Rumpole is now able to twist Bollard's arm and force him to ditch his proposed action against Henry - and to make him support Erskine Brown's application for watering hole membership! Pretty amazing, one might think.
We never hear whether Erskine Brown is grateful to Rumpole and he is probably never informed of his involvement. But Henry is not grateful. He accuses Rumpole of ruining his life! Apparently he hoped to be sacked- and then to head off to Oz, apparently unaware that the circs of his job termination might affect his application to get into that fair land. He also appeared unaware that he could have sorted matters out perfectly satisfactorily in the UK, which offers many other options, without the ignominy of dismissal for dishonesty and with some honest talk with his wife. Henry just came across as a buffoon here and Diane's constant running from the room in tears equally absurd.
The Court case, the A plot, was far better.
We at last meet a Timson who does an honest day's work and does it very well, too. Nigel Timson has become a stockbroker, a position usually reserved for members of the 'old boy net' and not only that, he has moved into a swanky new apartment on the Isle of Dogs with the boss's daughter, here played by the gorgeous Liz Hurley in one of her first roles.
Nigel seems to be living a utopia: until on his birthday, he is arrested for insider dealing, despite the presence of 'Chinese walls'! Naturally Rumpole is called in and he rapidly spots the odd circumstance of £20,000 having magically materialised in Timson's bank account, which Timson naively assumed was a thank-you present from a lady in Harrogate whom he had innocently given what turned out to be just the right advice. The Police don't see it the same way and Timson is removed to custody.
It all hinges on identifying the lady to whom the advice was given, over the telephone. Ron and Dennis Timson rally round but make no progress. In the middle of the case, Rumpole ascertains from Nigel Timson's girl that her ex-Nanny had moved up there.
Rumpole is soon able to demonstrate to the court that the money was injected into Timson's account by his would-be father in law, Sir Christopher Japhet, a wealthy 'toff' who had decided that he didn't want his beloved only daughter marrying a Timson. The lady from Harrogate is identified as the ex-nanny and Rumpole accuses Sir Christopher of the insider dealing and of trying to frame Nigel Timson.
Sir Christopher flees abroad overnight and the case against Nigel Timson collapses.
We never find out whether Nigel gets his old job back, or indeed whether Sir Christopher's firm survives without him, or indeed whether Nigel takes up his next job with the 'family firm' committing petty larceny.
However in a bittersweet ending, Nigel goes find out where his girlfriend's heart lies- and it's firmly with her Dad and not him. Contemptuously sneering at him as a 'barrow boy', she storms off - leaving Nigel to contemplate that his idyll on the Isle of Dogs has rapidly gone to the dogs.
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