Eight thrilling tales from the writer of Brothers in Law, featuring courtroom cases, legal wranglings, conspiracy and blackmail

Barrister and county court judge, Henry Cecil took inspiration from his own life to write numerous comic stories set in the legal world, most famously Brothers in Law, which was adapted for radio, TV and the silver screen. Collected here are eight vintage dramas based on his works, beginning with an adaptation of his debut novel, The Painswick Line, a tale of a judge and his somewhat unconventional family starring Cecil Parker and Monica Grey.

The Disagreeable Man, starring Norman Shelley and David Spenser, finds a peaceful English village disrupted by the arrival of two newcomers, one of whom is most unpleasant. In Alibi for a Judge, an attractive young woman enlists the co-operation of the elderly judge who had convicted her husband of robbery to prove his innocence. Produced by John Tydeman, it stars Andrew Cruickshank and Lesley Burford.

Next are two very different family dramas. Daughters in Law, starring Cecil Parker and Naunton Wayne, is a lighthearted story about a lawyer-loathing squire who discovers his sons have fallen in love with a judge’s twin daughters, one a barrister and one a solicitor. Fathers in Law, meanwhile, deals with the thorny issue of adoption, as the rights of a childless couple wishing to adopt a baby boy are set against those of his natural father. Alan Barry, John Westbrook and Joan Matheson star in this heartrending drama leavened by touches of humour.

Inspired by a real-life case, A Matter of Speculation depicts the 1814 trial of aristocratic naval officer Admiral Lord Cochrane (Cecil Parker), on a charge of conspiracy to defraud the London Stock Exchange. No Fear or Favour, Henry Cecil’s last radio play, concerns an imprudent judge threatened by an unscrupulous blackmailer, and stars Paul Daneman, Sarah Badel and Peter Sallis. Finally, in The Buttercup Spell, the pollen of the humble yellow flower is found to have unusual and beneficial effects, causing everyone to love their fellow man. Peter Williams stars in this delightful 1975 fantasy, with a supporting cast including Gerald Cross, John Ruddock, Leslie Heritage and John Challis.

With thanks to Keith Wickham and the Radio Circle

NB: These are vintage radio productions and the audio quality reflects the age of the recording

Cast and credits
Written by Henry Cecil

The Painswick Line
Starring Kenneth Hyde, Cecil Parker, Monica Grey, Frederick Treves, Alan Haines, Gordon Faith, Ralph Truman, Timothy Harley, Denys Blakelock, Stephen Thorne, Michael Goldie, Beatrlce Kane, George Merritt, John Boxer, Hamlyn Benson.

Produced by H. B. Fortuin

First broadcast BBC Home Service, 26 Dec 1963

The Disagreeable Man
Starring Norman Shelley, David Spenser, Margaret Wolfit, James Thomason, Humphrey Morton, Ronald Herdman, Alan Dudley, Hilda Kriseman, Noel Hood, Anna North, Duncan McIntyre, Wilfred Babbage, Antony Viccars, Geoffrey Wincott.

Adapted by C.E. Webber from an episode in the book Ways and Means by Henry Cecil
Produced by Martyn C. Webster

First broadcast BBC Light Programme, 13 Sep 1967

Alibi for a Judge
Starring Andrew Cruickshank, Amanda Grinling, Aubrey Woods, Jonathan Scott, Trader Faulkner, Peter Howell, Michael Shannon, Clifford Norgate, Hector Ross, Carole Boyd, Michael Burlington, Anthony Smee.

Adapted by Henry Cecil and Felicity Douglas
Directed by John Tydeman

First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 24 May 1975

Daughters in Law
Starring Cecil Parker, Antony Viccars, John Pullen, Gudrun Ure, Diana Olsson, William Eedle, Will Leighton, Naunton Wayne, Peter Claughton, Malcolm Hayes, Rolf Lefebvre, Philip Leaver, Haydn Jones, Derek Birch.

Produced by H. B. Fortuin

First broadcast BBC Home Service, 2 Sep 1961

Fathers in Law
Starring Hector Ross, Alan Barry, John Westbrook, Joan Matheson, George Curzon, Gordon Faith, Patricia Leventon, Michael Gough, Allan McClelland, Nigel Graham, Philip Guard, Monica Grey, Michael McClain, Fraser Kerr, Molly Rankin, Betty Huntley-Wright, Denys Blakelock, Peter Marinker.

Produced by H. B. Fortuin

First broadcast BBC Home Service, 13 Sep 1965

A Matter of Speculation
Starring Cecil Parker, Noel Howlett, Garard Green, Basil Jones, John Boxer, William Fox, Alan Haines, Stephen Thorne, Hector Ross, Fraser Kerr, Nigel Graham, Eric Anderson, Mary Wimbush, Norman Shelley.

Produced by Archie Campbell

First broadcast BBC Home Service, 17 May 1965

No Fear or Favour
Starring Paul Daneman, Sarah Badel, Peter Sallis, Timothy Bateson, Hector Ross, Peter Williams, Manning Wilson, Michael Shannon, Peter Howell, Antony Higginson, Michael Burlington, Michael Cochrane.

Adapted by Henry Cecil
Produced by Harry Catlin

First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 5 Jul 1975

The Buttercup Spell
Starring Peter Williams, Gerald Cross, John Ruddock, Leslie Heritage, John Challis, John Samson, Malcolm Hayes, William Fox, Philip Leaver, Geoffrey Beevers, Edward Kelsey, Lewis Stringer, Peter Bartlett, Peter Marinker, Katherine Parr, Sheila Grant.

Produced by Archie Campbell

First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 1 Apr 1972

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