Robert Michael RinderMBE (/ˈrɪndər/; born 31 May 1978), sometimes known as Judge Rinder, is a British criminal barrister and television personality.[1] In 2014, while still a practising barrister, he began hosting the realitycourtroom seriesJudge Rinder. In 2019, he also began hosting the Channel 4 series The Rob Rinder Verdict.
Rinder was born in London on 31 May 1978[3] into a Jewish family;[4][5] his mother is Angela Cohen, chair of the 45 Aid Society.[6] His maternal grandfather, Morris Malenicky, was a Holocaust survivor and one of the "Windermere children".[7]
While practising as a barrister Rinder wrote television scripts in his spare time. Upon attempting to sell one, he met producer Tom McLennan.[16] He approached ITV with a proposal for a remake of the 1970s programme Crown Court, but this was rejected in favour of a British version of Judge Judy, and McLennan offered Rinder the opportunity to front it.[17][16] From 2014 to 2020 he was the eponymous judge in the realitycourtroom seriesJudge Rinder, where he was referred to as a British Judge Judy.[17]
Shortly after the programme started he criticised Judith Sheindlin, the judge of Judge Judy, for making judgements based on her preconceptions while claiming that he applied the law seriously and made "real legal rulings".[18] Despite this, he insisted that it be clarified on the programme that he is a practising criminal law barrister and not a civil court judge.[19] As such, he wears his normal barrister's court dress but without the barrister's wig.[20] Rinder received praise for his cross-examination abilities and acerbic comments.[17] His courtroom includes a gavel and flag of the United Kingdom, neither of which is used in British courts but are on display in American courts and televised court programmes, and his show has been criticised as "The Jeremy Kyle Show set in a small-claims court".[19][21]
In 2015, Rinder released a book called Rinder Rules.[22] In 2016 he presented a new series, Judge Rinder's Crime Stories, with reconstructions of real crimes. He also hosted Raising the BaronBBC Radio 5 Live,[23] which he started with a discussion with former Lord Chief Justice, Lord Judge.[24] In December 2017 Rinder re-launched Crown Court on ITV, newly named Judge Rinder's Crown Court, with a two-part special after a 30-year hiatus.[25]
In 2016, Rinder competed in the fourteenth seriesofStrictly Come Dancing, stating that he was doing so to make his grandmother proud of him.[26] Rinder was partnered with Ukrainian-born professional dancer Oksana Platero.[27] Rinder was eliminated in week 11 after scoring 31 points dancing a Samba to "Oh, What a Night". He ended the competition in fifth place.
In an episode of Who Do You Think You Are? broadcast on 13 August 2018, Rinder traced his Jewish family's tragic history and made new discoveries about his grandfather, Morris Malenicky, a survivor of both Schlieben and Theresienstadt concentration camps.[19][28]
In December 2018, Rinder hosted Good Year Bad Year, a one-off special on Channel 4 where he discussed the topical highs and lows of 2018 along with a number of celebrity guests. In 2019, he began hosting the Channel 4 series The Rob Rinder Verdict.[29]
In November 2020, Rinder released My Family, the Holocaust and Me for BBC One, a documentary which helped Jewish families discover the full truth about what happened to their relatives during the Holocaust. The documentary received widespread acclaim, and "a vital history lesson".[31]
On 14 July 2022, Crime & Investigation UK commissioned the 10-part crime series Rob Rinder’s Interrogation Secrets; presented by Rinder, the series premiered on 4 September 2022.[32][33]
In March 2023, Rinder co-presented The Holy Land and Us: Our Untold Stories with Sarah Agha[35] for BBC Two; a two-part documentary exploring the personal stories of families of Jewish and Palestinian heritage.
Between July and August 2021, Rinder presented a six part series on Classic FM, titled Robert Rinder’s Classical Passions. In October 2021, Rinder became the new permanent host of Drivetime every Friday on talkRADIO and talkRADIO TV. Rinder presented the show until September 2022.[38]
In 2022, Rinder travelled to the Polish-Ukraine border to report on the crisis for talkRADIO.[39]
In 2014, Rinder started to write a legal-based discussion column in the newspaper The Sun, and in 2015, he released a book called Rinder Rules.[22] Rinder became a columnist for the London Evening Standard in 2017.[40]
In 2023 Rinder wrote his first novel "The Trial".
Rinder entered into a same-sex civil partnership with barrister Seth Cumming[42] at a ceremony on the island of Ibiza in 2013, conducted by Rinder's friend, actor Benedict Cumberbatch. Cumberbatch was legally entitled to conduct the ceremony because of his online Universal Life Church ministerial ordination[4] and Rinder was later one of three best men at Cumberbatch's wedding to Sophie Hunter in 2015.[43] Rinder and Cumming separated after four years of marriage and eleven years together.[44][45][7]
