Why is the the New York State Supreme Court Building, where Weinstein is being tried, so familiar?
The reason why is that you've seen it a million times on TV and in the cinema. It's starred as a court building in The Godfather, 12 Angry Men, Cagney and Lacey, Kojak, Goodfellas, Wall Street...
I went there a lot when I was New York correspondent for the Telegraph, covering trials. Everything I grew up watching on American crime shows is there: burly NYPD cops; detectives in bulging suits, cradling styrofoam cups of cawfee; barking judges ordering attorneys to approach the bench.
It's a fantastic 1927 building, too, straight out of the movies, built in the style of a Roman temple, with a charming pediment and Corinthian colonnade.
It's very much worth a visit, too, for any tourists. It's based in a handy spot between Wall Street and Little Italy. The moment you go there, you'll feel like you've been there a hundred times before.
