Rumpole of the Bailey public school) and studied law at either Keble College or the fictional "St Joseph's College", Oxford, coming away with "a dubious third". He would not be eligible to be called to the Bar in England today, as a lower second is the minimum requirement. He was called to the bar at the "Outer Temple" (a fictional Inn of Court, named on the analogy of the Inner Temple, where John Mortimer was called, and the Middle Temple). Apart from the legal drama in each story, Rumpole also has to deal with his relationships with family and friends. His wife Hilda was
Rumpole of the Bailey acclaimed ("Not to be missed. Leo McKern is superb as the wild and witty barrister Rumpole" – "The Times"; "I wouldn't say the BBC threw away a pearl richer than all its tribe but it has mislaid a tasty box of kippers" – Nancy Banks-Smith, "The Guardian") and Thames quickly commissioned a second season. However, upset to see that her pay had reduced while McKern and Mortimer had received increases for the second season, Shubik's relationship with Verity Lambert deteriorated and, in the end, she quit Thames after commissioning three of the six scripts for the second season. Shubik moved