Roy Stuart was Law Fellow at Hertford College, Oxford, from 1969 until his retirement in 2003 and died in June 2005 aged 68. There is a column by David Pannick in the Times Online law section (registration free) – I haven’t found an obituary.
In one of the untidiest rooms in England, Roy would lead his tutorial pupils towards an understanding of the principles of criminal law, contract and jurisprudence with a mixture of wit, empathy and intellectual rigour, stirred with a measure of cynicism.
When he made an interesting point, or more rarely when one of his pupils made what he considered to be a valuable contribution, he would bounce up and down with excitement. And who could forget his tutorial on the legal problems posed by R v Bourne (the defendant who forced his wife to have sex with their dog), complete with Get down, Rover! actions? Roy Stuart told us that he argued only one case as an advocate in Canada and was frustrated that the judge did not understand the point he was making. So he decided that the academic life was more appropriate for him.
I was growing interested when I misread the title for Scots-roots crooner Rod Stewart.
Searching for any legal texts written by Roy Stuart, I grew more interested on Googling book titles with topless photos by an eponymous photographer.
Pity the late Roy didn’t share his enthusiasm for the law with the rest of us non-elitist and non-Oxford graduates.