Vale John Mortimer — and Horace Rumpole
John Mortimer, the creator of Horace Rumpole, has died.
Sir John Mortimer, QC, was a mighty legal figure who exercised an enormous, benign and enduring influence over British law.
As a successful and influential barrister, as a warm, funny, and percipient legal commentator, and as the distinguished creator of Rumpole of the Bailey, Mortimer gave more colour and understanding to the public’s perception of law than perhaps any other modern figure.
In the barrister Horace Rumpole, Mortimer created a character who occupies a treasured part of the national consciousness. Although fictional, Rumpole became an icon of English law. Enthusiastic about wine and Wordsworth, Mortimer’s creation works dedicatedly for his clients and is never worried about career advancement. His dicta, including “Never plead guilty!” and “A person who is tired of crime is tired of life”, became famous.
Geoffrey Robertson argues that “Rumpole helped the public — and the bar –– to understand that the need to protect the liberty of the subject is the main justification for the profession, and certainly for its independence.” If it wasn’t for Mortimer (and the late Leo McKern), I certainly wouldn’t be where I am right now.
When I was a boy, my parents would allow me to stay up past my bedtime to watch Rumpole of the Bailey. We would watch him do battle with Crown prosecutors, magistrates, Guthrie Featherstone, and of course his wife — She Who Must Be Obeyed. Later I began reading the short stories, and Rumpole and the Penge Bungalow Murders is next to my bed at the moment.