Product Description

In a cutthroat legal world where truth and justice fight a constant battle, Jack Roper (John Hannah) is used to relying on his wits to win cases. But when he turns down a lucrative job offer from his mentor to strike out on his own, he not only risks their friendship but also his career.

Set in two rival barristers' chambers in the heart of Manchester, New Street Law follows Jack and his newly established firm as they pull out all the stops to prove their clients' innocence.

DVD Extra:
Outtakes and Bloopers

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #63485 in DVD
• Brand: Koch International
• Released on: 2007-12-04
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.77:1
• Formats: Box set, Color, Dolby, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 3
• Dimensions: 1.00 pounds
• Running time: 466 minutes

Amazon.com
New Street Law, a crisp legal procedural series from the BBC, stars John Hannah (Four Weddings and a Funeral, The Mummy) as Jack Roper, a driven--perhaps even obsessive--defense lawyer with a small, struggling firm. The dense accents, particularly Hannah's Scots brogue, may take a brief getting used to, but the substance of the show will be familiar to fans of American lawyer series: A combination of compressed law cases, usually introduced and resolved within the hour, and the series-long arcs of the lawyers' messy personal lives. New Street Law starts on a fairly generic note, featuring a rivalry between defense lawyers and prosecutors, a standard motley crew within the firm (including a hotshot newbie, a slightly sleazy but charming guy, a staunch female lawyer who feels she has more to prove), and romantic tensions galore. But over the course of this eight-episode season the cast and writers of New Street Law find their stride, giving the characters more texture and increasingly complex relationships--and the prosecutors, including a senior lawyer played by Paul Freeman (Raiders of the Lost Ark), get just as much exploration as the defense team. After wrestling with cases of arson, shoplifting, mental instability, corporate malfeasance, and medical malpractice, the series culminates with a grisly child murder case that may lead Roper to compromise his ethics. Don't look for onsite investigations or courtroom histrionics--the show realistically keeps its cast in legal chambers and, though there are certainly dramatic moments, doesn't let the cross-examinations get absurdly flashy. Egos and juicy personal vendettas abound, but the show's greatest strength is a clear-eyed picture of the deals made in the halls and conference rooms. All in all, a solid if standard legal program, with the added appeal of giving American viewers a glimpse into the similarities and differences of the British legal system. --Bret Fetzer

Customer Reviews

Love John Hannah
I'm always looking for good BBC series and this is one of them. I usually prefer crime mysteries but gave this a try and found it well worth it. I admit to being a little bias when it come to Hannah and if you like his style, you'll find it here. I bought both series and enjoyed them both.

"New Street Law (2006) ... John Hannah ... Koch Vision"
Koch Vision and BBC presents "NEW STREET LAW" (2006) (466 mins/Color) (Dolby Digital) --- Koch Vision collects all eight one-hour episodes of the first season of "New Street Law" onto a three-disc box set. The discs are housed in a three-panel digipak that slips into a glossy cardboard cover. Discs One and Two contain three episodes each (there are no episode titles); Disc Three contains the final two episodes --- Follow John Hannah's New Street Law, set in Manchester's legal community, follows the exploits, competitiveness and legal cases of two rival law firms of barristers that both have very different attitudes to justice --- The cast is outstanding, the writing is sharp and the direction is excellent.

Under the production staff of:
Julian Holmes - Director
David Skynner - Director
Emma Bodger - Director
G.F. Newman - Producer
Matthew Bird - Producer
Matthew Hall - Co-Producer/Screenwriter

Story line and plot, New Street Law is a British television legal drama series produced by Red Production Company in association with One-Eyed Dog Ltd for BBC One --- The series was created by G. F. Newman and Matthew Hall, and stars an ensemble cast headed by John Hannah and Paul Freeman. Hannah and Freeman play Jack Roper and Laurence Scammel respectively, two barristers heading rival chambers in Manchester --- Roper's chamber works in defence, while Scammel--Roper's one-time mentor--works for prosecution --- A large supporting cast play members of Roper and Scammel's teams.

the cast includes
John Hannah ... Jack Roper
Paul Freeman ... Laurence Scammel QC
John Thomson ... Charlie Darling
Lisa Faulkner ... Laura Scammel
Chris Gascoyne ... Al Ware
Penny Downie ... Honor Scammel
Lara Cazalet ... Annie Quick
Jayne Ashbourne ... Sally Benn
Lee Williams ... Joe Stevens
Don Warrington ... Judge Ken Winyard

BIOS;
1. John Hannah
Date of Birth: 23 April 1962 - East Kilbride, Scotland, UK
Date of Death: Still Living

2. Paul Freeman
Date of Birth: 18 January 1943 - Barnet, Hertfordshire, England, UK
Date of Death: Still Living

3. John Thomson
Date of Birth: 1969 - Omagh, Co. Tyrone, Northern Ireland, UK
Date of Death: Still Living

4. Lisa Faulkner
Date of Birth: 1973 - England, UK
Date of Death: Still Living

The first series aired in May and June 2006 in a pre-watershed timeslot on BBC One --- The second series was moved to 9 p.m. Low ratings saw the last two episodes moved to a 10.40 p.m. timeslot --- In July 2007, the cancellation of the series was announced --- This left an unresolved cliffhanger from the second series, with the audience left unaware of whether Jack survived a car crash.

Great job by Koch Vision --- looking forward to more high quality titles from the BBC Collection film market --- order your copy now from Amazon or Koch Vision where there are plenty of copies available on DVD, stay tuned once again for top notch releases --- where they are experts in releasing long forgotten films and treasures to the collector.

Total Time: 466 mins on DVD ~ Koch Vision KOCV-6466 ~ (12/04/2007)

No subtitles? No closed captions? Too bad
No subtitles? No closed captions? Too bad. Once again the makers choose to ignore the 30 million Americans who are hearing impaired.