Apr 2
“What obsesses a writer starting out on a lifetime's work is the panic-stricken search for a voice of his own.” — John Mortimer
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“What obsesses a writer starting out on a lifetime's work is the panic-stricken search for a voice of his own.” — John Mortimer
This week, your deadicated hosts cover the classic Gothic novel Henry James' THE TURN OF THE SCREW, and its film adaptation THE INNOCENTS (1961)! We discuss director Jack Clayton, the incredible cinematography from Freddie Francis, and how to turn a vague novel into a cohesive film. The film stars Deborah Kerr, Peter Wyngarde, Megs Jenkins, Michael Redgrave, Pamela Franklin and Martin Stephens.
It's a biggie of an episode! Will your hosts reveal themselves as apparitionists or non-apparitionists? The one thing we definitely agree on: Miss Giddens is not okay!
Context setting 00:00; Synopsis 1:10:12; Discussion 1:27:04; Ranking 2:12:50
Tim Curry as William Shakespeare
Will Shakespeare (1978)
written by John Mortimer
Books of John Mortimer in order
Sir John Mortimer was an English lawyer and author who was best known for his Rumpole series of books. As a young man he had hopes of being an actor and then a writer, but his father encouraged him to get into the law. During his law career he worked in defense of many high profile obscenity cases including defending Gay News editor on charges of blasphemous libel and Virgin Records over their use of the work “bollocks” for the famous Sex Pistols album.
Rumpole of the Bailey
Rumpole of the Bailey (1978) — Buy on Amazon!
Rumpole’s Return (1980) — Buy on Amazon!
The Trials of Rumpole (1981) — Buy on Amazon!
Regina V. Rumpole (1981) — Buy on Amazon!
Rumpole for the Defence (1982) — Buy on Amazon!
Rumpole and the Golden Thread (1983) — Buy on Amazon!
Rumpole for the Prosecution (1986) — Buy on Amazon!
Rumpole's Last Case (1988) — Buy on Amazon!
Rumpole and the Age of Miracles (1989) — Buy on Amazon!
Rumpole and the Age for Retirement (1989) — Buy on Amazon!
Rumpole a La Carte (1991) — Buy on Amazon!
Rumpole on Trial (1992) — Buy on Amazon!
The Best of Rumpole (1993) — Buy on Amazon!
Rumpole and the Younger Generation (1995) — Buy on Amazon!
Rumpole and the Angel of Death (1995) — Buy on Amazon!
Rumpole Rests His Case (2002) — Buy on Amazon!
Rumpole and the Primrose Path (2003) — Buy on Amazon!
Rumpole and the Penge Bungalow Murders (2004) — Buy on Amazon!
Rumpole and the Reign of Terror (2006) — Buy on Amazon!
The Anti-Social Behaviour of Horace Rumpole / Rumpole Misbehaves (2007) — Buy on Amazon!
Rumpole at Christmas / A Rumpole Christmas (2009) — Buy on Amazon!
Forever Rumpole (2011) — Buy on Amazon!
Rapstone Chronicles
Paradise Postponed (1985) — Buy on Amazon!
Titmuss Regained (1990) — Buy on Amazon!
The Sound of Trumpets (1998) — Buy on Amazon!
Standalone Novels
Charade (1947) — Buy on Amazon!
Like Men Betrayed (1953) — Buy on Amazon!
The Narrowing Stream (1954) — Buy on Amazon!
Summer's Lease (1985) — Buy on Amazon!
Dunster (1992) — Buy on Amazon!
Felix In The Underworld (1996) — Buy on Amazon!
Quite Honestly (2005) — Buy on Amazon!
Chapbooks
The Scales of Justice (2005) — Buy on Amazon!
Plays
A Voyage Round My Father. John Mortimer (1971) — Buy on Amazon!
Non-Fiction
The Fear Of Heaven (1978) — Buy on Amazon!
Clinging to the Wreckage (1982) — Buy on Amazon!
Character Parts (1986) — Buy on Amazon!
The Oxford Book of Villains (1992) — Buy on Amazon!
Murderers and Other Friends (1994) — Buy on Amazon!
The Summer of a Dormouse (2000) — Buy on Amazon!
Where There's a Will (2003) — Buy on Amazon!
Zerah Colburn - Spirit of Darkness (2005) — Buy on Amazon!
In Other Words (2008) — Buy on Amazon!
Anthologies
Great Law and Order Stories (1990) — Buy on Amazon!
Death Cruise: Crime Stories on the Open Seas (1999) — Buy on Amazon!
Fanfare: Fourteen Stories on a Musical Theme (1999) — Buy on Amazon!
Murder Most Merry (2002) — Buy on Amazon!
Midsummer Nights (2009) — Buy on Amazon!
A Christmas Anthology (2011) — Buy on Amazon!
Geraldine McEwan in John Mortimer's play 'Mill Hill', an episode of BBC's Thirty-Minute Theatre from 1972.
The play also stars Peter Cook and it's hilarious - it made my mother choke on her hot water and lemon. Someone uploaded it to YouTube so check it out.
The shelf life of the modern hardback writer is somewhere between the milk and the yogurt.
- John Mortimer, barrister and creator of the Rumpole series
The Tap End is a 1988 episode of Thames Television's Rumpole of the Bailey, written by John Mortimer, which tackles the issue of community and judicial attitudes to domestic violence against women.
Horace Rumpole (Leo McKern) is called in to defend a member of the Timson family of petty criminals, his regular clients, on a charge of attempted murder. Tony Timson (Phil Davis) has allegedly tried to drown his wife during their bath together, over ‘slurs on his virility’. He also explains that, at his wife’s behest, he always sits at the uncomfortable ‘tap end’ of the bath.
The matter is brought before Mr Justice Featherstone (Peter Bowles) who is anxious to avoid a trial and wrap up proceedings quickly so as not to interfere with an invitation to the Royal Garden Party. In a pre-trial meeting with counsel, the judge is keen to have the charges downgraded and the matter resolved by lunchtime. Assisting Rumpole is the feminist barrister, Liz Probert (in earlier series played by Samantha Bond but now by Leo McKern’s daughter, Abigail), and she can already see which way the wind is blowing.
The charges are duly downgraded from attempted murder to common assault, to Rumpole’s satisfaction and Liz Probert’s outrage. Timson is freed on a good behaviour bond, with Justice Featherstone summing up that being forced to sit at the uncomfortable tap end of the bath is at least a partial justification for the defendant’s actions.
Liz Probert is incandescent with rage, and mobilises her women’s action group against the judge, who is lambasted in the press, not at all popular with Marigold, Lady Featherstone, and besieged by protestors.
Mrs Rumpole (She who must be obeyed) is outraged to the point that she decides to study law to defend women’s rights, and in a subsequent hearing, Featherstone tries to have the court records 'corrected' to change the nuance of his comments, but actually makes things worse by accidentally reinforcing the fact that, in his judgement, sitting at the tap end is a justifiable defence against a charge of attempted murder in a domestic situation. He is hauled before the Lord Chancellor for a disciplinary hearing, and his career hangs in the balance.
When Timson is framed for an armed robbery, it becomes apparent that the initial allegations against him were false and motivated by a love triangle involving his wife and Peanuts Molloy, from a rival and infinitely more violent crime firm. Justice Featherstone publicly redeems himself by getting to the truth.
The generally dismissive attitude by some of the male protagonists over incidences of domestic violence is an interesting theme tackled by John Mortimer, who also manages to sustain the episode's comedic aspects with Featherstone's clumsy and increasingly desperate attempts at trying to demonstrate what a strong supporter and defender of women he really is, and how he had been the victim of a terrible misunderstanding.
Rumpole himself had some unhappy form on these kinds of cases. In a very early and much darker episode, John Mortimer had Rumpole angrily confronted by his daughter-in-law over his delight at being engaged for a rape trial in which the defendant was an MP, and for his brutal and relentless cross-examination of the increasingly distressed, confused and vulnerable victim.
- THE INNOCENTS (1961)