My haven, Robert Rinder: The criminal barrister and star of ITV’s Judge Rinder, 42, in the living room of his house in north London
- Robert Rinder, 42, shares items of significance in his home in north London
- Criminal barrister values golden gavel marking 1,000th case as Judge Rinder
- He also cherishes a Montblanc pen given to him by mentor Malcolm Bishop QC
Robert Rinder (pictured), 42, a criminal barrister and star of ITV’s Judge Rinder has shared items of significance in his home in north London
1. ART HOUSE
Art is my passion and before being on TV, I’d buy a piece of art at the end of each case I worked on. This explosion of colour and texture by incredible artist Robi Walters is made of cut out pieces of metal.
I was a legal aid lawyer when I bought it, so had to pay in instalments. I also have a drawing of a dove by Picasso on the other wall that I bought in Saint-Paul de Vence – I love that his pencil touched the rather bad paper it’s on.
2. HAND OF FRIENDSHIP
This picture was a gift from a great friend, the rabbi Laura Janner-Klausner. It’s PLO leader Yasser Arafat and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu meeting alongside King Hussein of Jordan in 1998, and is signed by all three.
There’s something very powerful about the capacity of enemies to shake hands. It’s an expression of peace, and of the potential for people with a profound history of hatred and violence to come together, even if it ultimately fails – and it did fail in this case.
3. MY MINI-ME
My French bulldog Rocco is very little but he’s incredibly judgmental. I don’t know where he gets that from! Someone once described him as lugubrious but I think that’s being kind.
His love for me may be unconditional, but he shows most other people his undivided indifference. He’s a bit like a weary aunt at a wedding, who’s seen it all before. He sleeps on my bed and snores so loudly I’ve had to buy an advanced form of ear plugs.
4. RUSSIAN REMINDER
I bought these dolls, each one of a famous writer, in a market before travelling on the Trans-Mongolian Railway from Moscow to Beijing in 2018. It was winter and was like setting off into a mystical Narnia.
I love Russian literature and took a pile of books with me. Pushkin, who wrote Eugene Onegin, is my favourite, and I know it’s hard to keep up with who’s who in War And Peace, but all human life is in that book.
Robert cherishes a golden gavel given to him to mark his 1,000th case as Judge Rinder
5. GOLDEN GAVEL
This gavel was given to me to mark my 1,000th case as Judge Rinder. I am very proud of the show. Yes, some cases have an element of pantomime, but most are very serious.
I resent people being snobbish – these are real people with real problems. At its heart is the law, and I care about that. We try to help, explain, highlight challenging issues and find resolution.
6. MENTOR’S MEMENTO
My mentor Malcolm Bishop QC gave me this Montblanc pen. He is the most brilliant and rude man in the world. After I qualified he was the first person I did serious cases with and he taught me more than I can ever explain.
He was also an out gay member of the Bar. Whatever circumstances I’m in, when I pick the pen up, I ask myself, ‘What would Malcolm do?’