Rumpole of the Bailey (TV Series) Rumpole and the Genuine Article (1983) User Reviews

Egotism runs riot

[sjdrake2006 · 9/10 · 8 January 2022]

Rumpole's client here isn't particularly likeable but as ever, Rumpole goes that extra mile to find the evidence to acquit his client of forgery and a lengthy jail term.

But his client joins the growing list of those who don't appreciate his efforts.

The client had long been insanely jealous of the artist he affected to imitate, feeling his own talents had been unfairly overlooked. By getting convicted of forgery, he had wanted to see this as the ultimate proof that he was as good as his paradigm, taking the sentence on the chin to salve his wilting ego.

Only for Rumpole to thwart him.

Telling Stork from Butter

[ygwerin1 · 9/10 · 19 February 2020]

Rumpole gets an unwanted visit by a prospective client The Harold Brittling, an itinerant artist seeking to "tweak the noses of the artistic cognoscenti".

Guthrie Featherstone is eager to at last get his posterior onto the judicial bench, but he becomes somewhat paranoid. Over the prospect of a careless piece of gossip, possibly ruining his chances.

Featherstone needn't have worried himself unduly, his years of learning how to lose at golf to aged judges had served as an ideal apprenticeship.

After only just achieving judgeship, Guthrie Featherstone couldn't resist telling Rumpole how to handle himself in court.

As Horace has the misfortune of drawing Guthrie, as the legal adjudicator in his Art Fraud case.

As usual Hilda failed to trust Horace around any other woman, and prefers to see matters through her own myopic lenses.

Rumpole and the Genuine Article

[Prismark10 · 6/10 · 1 October 2019]

It is the start of the third series and I sense that Thames Television has thrown a bit of money at the show. It seems to have more extras and the actors are better turned out.

Guthrie Featherstone has given up on politics. He joined the SDP!

He has also become a judge. His first case is Rumpole defending an eccentric artist accused of forging what was thought to be a long lost nude painting by a famous British artist.

It was sold at an auction but the buyer was later informed that the painting might not be genuine.

Rumpole has his hands full in this case. Actually he is told to keep his hands out of his pocket by Featherstone.

The accused does not make the best defence witness and seems to be going out of his way to antagonise the jury.

Wily Rumpole gets directed to an elderly lady who might have posed for the painting and the pieces soon fall together.

Brenda Blethyn plays the younger girlfriend of the accused artist. There are some nice moments such as Featherstone getting embarrassed by not knowing as much about art as he makes out.