The Blind Goddess
Justice, the poets have it, is a blind goddess. Eric Portman stars as the lawyer defending a lord, Hugh Williams, accused by his secretary Michael Dennison of having diverted public funds for his own use.
Justice, the poets have it, is a blind goddess. Eric Portman stars as the lawyer defending a lord, Hugh Williams, accused by his secretary Michael Dennison of having diverted public funds for his own use.
Eric Portman was ideal for this part. His clipped phraseology and static style of acting suited his character - barrister "Sir John Dearing" down to a T. He is called up to prosecute "Waterhouse" (Michael Denison) who has been accused by "Lord Brasted" (Hugh Williams) of trying to blackmail him for the enormous sum of £20,000. Having reach the upper echelons of the British government, accusations of large scale bribery and embezzlement force a court case that grips the land. There are letters, accusations of infidelity, forgeries and a courtroom informality that I found quite enjoyable for just under ninety minutes. The ending has a sort of stiff-upper-lip convenience about it which rather disappoints, but the rest of this drama is well propped up by a solid cast - Anne Crawford and Nora Swinburne primary amongst them - and the courtroom intrigues have just enough complications to keep it interesting.