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Rating: 
Summary: The story continues....
Review: In CLINGING TO THE WRECKAGE, John Mortimer covered his childhood and young adulthood, marriage to his first wife Penelope and the family of six children, and his entry into British Law as a Queen's Counsel (QC). He only tangentially wrote about his literary accomplishments including his books SUMMER'S LEASE, the RUMPOLE series, and the Titmuss Trilogy, and his work as a screen writer on various plays including BRIDESHEAD REVISITED. In MURDERERS AND OTHER FRIENDS Mortimer continues the saga of his life with tales from his days as a QC defending an assortment of clients from Sex Pistols to serial killers, tales of his work with the Labor Party, anectdotes about his marriage to wife Penny (#2), and an in-depth look behind the scenes at the creative process that led to his various artistic triumps including the creation of Rumpole of the Bailey. It doesn't take too much imagination to see that Mortimer is Rumpole (except for the kids, he acquires two more in this book bringing the total to eight). It seems those tales we've read in the Rumpole series are based on real stories. The problem Mortimer says, is that he has had to tone down the real tales to make them believable as fiction. For example, in one of the Rumpole tales, a man is accused of attacking his wife because she made him sit next to the taps when they took their bath together. In the real case, he did not merely attack her, he killed her. Mortimer also shares "behind the scenes" stories about his other creative efforts. He tells of his first encounter with Lawrence Olivier and how Olivier came to play the father in two of his productions, TRAVELS ROUND MY FATHER and BRIDESHEAD REVISITED. He tells of seeing the fabulous John Gielgud on stage as a child, then having him play an aging journalist in SUMMER'S LEASE. He tells of his friendships with David Niven and Rex Harrison and their rivalry. He shares anectdotes about other famous friends and their children. Some of those famous children include Emma Thompson and Natasha Richardson. As a playwright and author, Mortimer has mingled with the cream of the British artistic world, and but this is not an expose of his friends and acquaintences--unless they are conservative members of Parliament, murderers, or other degenerates. All of Mortimer's tales are told with humor, but occasionally, a sad note creeps in. It is impossible to reach the age of 83 and not have had at least a few sad moments. What Mortimer is able to do however, is find a way to keep the reader smiling at the foibles of human beings including himself. This is a very funny book and I recommend it to anyone who is fan of BBC/PBS productions.
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