Rumpole and the Primrose Path and wife duo Timothy West and Prunella Scales. The additional stories were: Rumpole and the Primrose Path Rumpole and the Primrose Path is a light hearted legal comedy, one of six short stories in an anthology by writer John Mortimer. It is the 12th in a series based in part on his own past experiences as a barrister but also notable for their use of themes topical at the time each was published. It begins with the eponymous hero marooned in a nursing home where he feels some shady business is going on. It was later the first episode in
Rumpole of the Bailey a confession!") – Rumpole feels equally honour-bound to enter a plea of "not guilty" and offer the best defence possible. His "never plead guilty" credo also prevents him from making deals that involve pleading guilty to lesser charges (again, with some exceptions; in "Rumpole and the Tap End" he persuades his client to plead guilty to assault in exchange for the dismissal of a charge of attempted murder). Rumpole also refuses to prosecute, feeling it more important to defend the accused than to work to imprison them. (There was one exception where Rumpole took on a private prosecution, working for