But his reasoning may fail to convince pupillage panels
The lure of the legal profession to celebrities is well-documented — with Radio 1 DJ Judge Jules and Blur drummer Dave Rowntree recently both quitting professional music careers to become solicitors. Even Hollywood A-listers like Katie Holmes have been reported to be flirting with the idea of going to law school.
So it should come as no surprise to hear that the rapper Professor Green has revealed his barrister ambitions. In an interview with the Financial Times magazine, Green (real name Stephen Manderson) admitted that his dream was to be a barrister.
Sounding not unlike a pupillage applicant who was about to not be invited back for a second round interview, he told the paper:
“I’ve always loved debate, a battle of words.”
Green has first-hand experience of the legal system: in March he was banned from the roads after pleading guilty to drink driving, while in 2011 he gave evidence at the trial of student who stabbed him with a broken bottle at a Shoreditch nightclub.
So you’d have hoped that his response to the ‘Why do you want to be a barrister?’ question would have been a bit more original.
Perhaps the problem here is that the Hackney-born rapper has, so far, restricted himself to criminal law. He may consider asking his wife, former Made in Chelsea star Millie Mackintosh, to put him in touch with the dad of her ex, Hugo Taylor (also of Made in Chelsea fame). Taylor senior is, of course, Tim Taylor QC, a solicitor-advocate and partner at global corporate behemoth King & Wood Mallesons SJ Berwin.
At the very least, Taylor QC — who last year generated headlines when a Benny Hill-style pool party video (screen-shotted below) he made with his colleagues was uploaded to YouTube — could provide Green with an insight into the spirit of teamwork that pervades civil litigation.
