"Profumo affair The Profumo affair was a British political scandal that originated with a brief sexual relationship in 1961 between John Profumo, the Secretary of State for War in Harold Macmillan's Conservative government, and Christine Keeler, a 19-year-old would-be model. In March 1963, Profumo's denial of any impropriety, in a personal statement to the House of Commons, was refuted a few weeks later with his admission of the truth. He resigned from the government and from Parliament. The repercussions of the affair severely damaged Macmillan's self-confidence, and he resigned as Prime Minister on health grounds in October 1963. His Conservative"
"the Profumo affair, a sexual scandal involving a defence minister in 1963, and at the time of Lord Home's appointment as Prime Minister seemed headed for heavy electoral defeat. Home's premiership was the second briefest of the twentieth century, lasting two days short of a year. Among the legislation passed under his government was the abolition of resale price maintenance, bringing costs down for the consumer against the interests of producers of food and other commodities. After narrow defeat in the general election of 1964, Douglas-Home resigned the leadership of his party in July 1965, having instituted a new and"
"due to the sensation that the Profumo Affair had created in the press and because the US State Department could not remove Rometsch without disclosing a specific reason to the West German authorities, it was decided that the information developed by the FBI would be transmitted via liaison to the State Department and then be made available discreetly to West German authorities. On August 14, 1963 Sgt. Rometsch was informed by his superiors of the allegations being made against his wife and that he was therefore being recalled back to West Germany in one week. The couple divorced on Sept."
"including the £4.1 million extension of the M1 into London, referred to as the ""Hendon Urban Motorway"" at the time. When Lord Denning made his 1963 investigation into the security aspects of the Profumo Affair and the rumoured affair between the Minister of Defence, Duncan Sandys, and the Duchess of Argyll, he confirmed to Macmillan that a rumour that Ernest Marples was in the habit of using prostitutes appeared to be true. The story was suppressed and did not appear in Denning's final report. Early in 1975 Marples suddenly fled to Monte Carlo. He left just before the end of"
"Profumo were among the large gathering from the worlds of politics and the arts which Astor was hosting in honour of Ayub Khan, the president of Pakistan. On the Saturday evening, Ward's and Astor's parties mingled at the Cliveden swimming pool, which Ward and his guests had permission to use. Keeler, who had been swimming naked, was introduced to Profumo while trying to cover herself with a skimpy towel. She was, Profumo informed his son many years later, ""a very pretty girl and very sweet"". Keeler did not know, initially, who Profumo was, but was impressed that he was the"
"party at Cliveden, home of Viscount Astor, John Profumo met Christine Keeler, a model with whom he began a sexual relationship. Profumo ended it after only a few weeks but rumours about the affair began to circulate. Since Keeler had also had sexual relations with Yevgeni Ivanov, the senior naval attaché at the Soviet Embassy, the matter took on a national security dimension. In December 1962, a shooting incident in London involving two other men who were involved with Keeler led the press to investigate Keeler, and reporters soon learned of her affairs with Profumo and Ivanov. But the British"
"confirmed that Rumpole was, in part, based on a chance meeting in court with James Burge: He died at age 83, on 6 September 1990 and was cremated in Xàbia, Spain. He had married Elizabeth, daughter of Commander Scott Williams, R.N., of Dorset, in 1938; they had two sons and a daughter. James Burge Charles George James Burge (8 October 1906 – 6 September 1990) was an English criminal law barrister, remembered for his defence of Stephen Ward in the Profumo Affair in 1963. He is also remembered as John Mortimer's original inspiration for the fictional barrister Horace Rumpole in"
"Valerie Mewes Valerie Mewes (2 August 1931 – 9 January 1955) was an English model and celebrity, better known by the name Vicki Martin. Stephen Ward, who was to become one of the central figures in the 1963 Profumo Affair, claims to have met Mewes in a doorway in Oxford Street during a thunderstorm at night. Ward produced many female protégés and it is said that Mewes was the prototype for these. Mewes was best friends with Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be executed in the United Kingdom. The pair had both worked at Murray's Club in Soho, where"
"Johnny Edgecombe John Arthur Alexander ""Johnny"" Edgecombe (22 October 1932 – 26 September 2010) was a British jazz promoter, whose involvement with Christine Keeler inadvertently alerted authorities to the Profumo Affair. Edgecombe was born on 22 October 1932 in St. John's, Antigua and Barbuda, the youngest of eight children. He often accompanied his father on his schooner running gasoline from Trinidad to Antigua. In 1942, his father took United States citizenship and disappeared. The young Edgecombe worked his passage aboard a British ship carrying sugar to Liverpool. From there he moved to Cardiff, where he stayed for some years, lodging"
"This incident discredited the Conservative government of Harold Macmillan in 1963 in what became known as the Profumo affair. Keeler was alleged to have been a prostitute and although this was not a criminal offence in itself, Ward was found guilty at trial of being her pimp – a trial only instigated after the embarrassment caused to the government. Keeler was born in Uxbridge, Middlesex. Her father, Colin Keeler (later known as Colin King), abandoned the family during World War II. She was brought up by her mother, Julie Ellen Payne, and stepfather, Edward Huish, in a house made from"
"Peter Howitt Peter Howitt (; born 5 May 1957) is an English actor and film director. Howitt was born on May 5, 1957, the son of Frank Howitt, a renowned Fleet Street journalist, who in 1963 broke the infamous Profumo Scandal by getting the exclusive story from call girl Christine Keeler on their illicit affair. Howitt grew up in Eltham, London and Bromley, Kent. He was educated at Wyborne Primary School in New Eltham and Colfe's Grammar School in Lee, South London. While in Eltham he was a member of the Priory Players amateur dramatics group. Howitt spent a brief"
"the latter film from the novel by Stuart Browne, as well as produced and directed it, and played the lead role. Howitt has two children, Luke (born 1990) and Amy (born 2008). He currently resides in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Peter Howitt Peter Howitt (; born 5 May 1957) is an English actor and film director. Howitt was born on May 5, 1957, the son of Frank Howitt, a renowned Fleet Street journalist, who in 1963 broke the infamous Profumo Scandal by getting the exclusive story from call girl Christine Keeler on their illicit affair. Howitt grew up in Eltham,"
"the Profumo affair. Denning's report, published on 26 September 1963, concluded that there had been no security leaks, and no evidence to link members of the government with associated scandals. He laid most of the blame for the affair on Ward, an ""utterly immoral"" man whose diplomatic activities were ""misconceived and misdirected"". The Profumo affair had damaged Harold Macmillan's government; Macmillan resigned as prime minister in October 1963, citing health reasons. His successor was Lord Home, who renounced his peerage and served as Sir Alec Douglas-Home. In the October 1964 general election the Conservative government was narrowly defeated by the"
"to become a director of the media chain the Thomson Organisation, and became its Assistant Managing Director in 1966. He was briefly active in Conservative politics, as an alderman on the Greater London Council from 1967. Bligh died at his home on 12 March 1969, after a long illness. As the prime minister's Principal Private secretary Bligh was peripherally involved in the Profumo affair of 1963, a scandal which brought about the resignation of John Profumo as Secretary of State for War and destabilised the government. Before the affair broke, Bligh had been advised of the possibility that Profumo had"
"""criminal set"" in Queen Elizabeth Building, Temple, London. He succeeded Seaton as Prosecuting Counsel to the Post Office at the Central Criminal Court in 1943. During the Second World War, Burge reached the rank of Squadron Leader in the R.A.F. In 1963, Burge defended Stephen Ward in the Profumo Affair, in the course of which Ward was prosecuted for living on earnings from prostitution. Burge, known as a mercurial Old Bailey junior, never quite recovered from the professional consequences of defending him in the scandal. Ward took an overdose of sleeping tablets near the end of the trial, he was"
"from obligations to society, which apply to him as much and perhaps more closely in that capacity as they apply to other subjects of The Crown."" Lewis had borne a deep grudge against society osteopath Stephen Ward (Christine Keeler's landlord), ever since Ward had introduced one of Lewis's girlfriends to a lesbian contact, who lured her away from him. On Christmas Eve 1962, Keeler was feeling angry about some small issue with Ward, and visited a Baker Street nightclub, just for someone to talk to. By the purest chance, she met Lewis, and poured out the whole story of Profumo"
"then gave details to the press, but no paper would print the story. He also wrote to Wilson, who showed the letter to Macmillan. Although privately disdainful of Wilson's motives, after discussions with Hollis the prime minister was sufficiently concerned about Ward's general activities to ask the Lord Chancellor, Lord Dilhorne, to inquire into possible security breaches. On 31 May, at the start of the parliamentary Whitsun recess, the Profumos flew to Venice for a short holiday. At their hotel they received a message asking him to return as soon as possible. Believing that his bluff had been called, Profumo"
"brought about by his father's affair with Christine Keeler. David Profumo David John Profumo, FRSL (born 20 October 1955), is an English novelist. Profumo was born in London, the son of former British government minister John Profumo and his wife, actress Valerie Hobson. The Profumo family is of Italian origin. David Profumo would have succeeded his father as 6th Baron Profumo in the nobility of the Kingdom of Sardinia, if the nobility of Italy had not been legally abolished after WW2. Like his father, he does not use this title. Profumo was educated at Eton College and Magdalen College, Oxford."
"Gillick and others. He published his version of events, ""Black Scandal"", in 2002. He died of lung cancer and kidney cancer in London, aged 77, on 26 September 2010. Johnny Edgecombe John Arthur Alexander ""Johnny"" Edgecombe (22 October 1932 – 26 September 2010) was a British jazz promoter, whose involvement with Christine Keeler inadvertently alerted authorities to the Profumo Affair. Edgecombe was born on 22 October 1932 in St. John's, Antigua and Barbuda, the youngest of eight children. He often accompanied his father on his schooner running gasoline from Trinidad to Antigua. In 1942, his father took United States citizenship"
"Stephen Ward Stephen Thomas Ward (19 October 1912 – 3 August 1963) was an English osteopath and artist who was one of the central figures in the 1963 Profumo affair, a British political scandal which brought about the resignation of John Profumo, the Secretary of State for War, and contributed to the defeat of the Conservative government a year later. In 1945 Ward began practising osteopathy in London, and rapidly became successful and fashionable, with many distinguished clients. In his spare time he also studied at the Slade School, and developed a talent for sketching portraits which provided a profitable"
"to try to convince him to shift his allegiance to the United Kingdom. Ivanov was at a pool party at the Cliveden estate when Christine Keeler met John Profumo, the British Secretary of State for War. Keeler's subsequent affair with Profumo went on at a time when she was also having sex with Ivanov. This was at a time when Cold War tensions were already heightened, just before the Cuban Missile Crisis. Ward and Ivanov are said to have asked Keeler to quiz Profumo as to when American nuclear missiles would be taken to then-West Germany. When the Profumo affair"
"backed up by evidence. The House of Lords eventually ruled in ""Junior Books v Veitchi"" [1982] 3 All ER 201 that pure economic loss was recoverable. Denning became best known as a result of his report into the Profumo Affair. John Profumo was the Secretary of State for War with the British government. At a party in 1961 Profumo was introduced to Christine Keeler, a showgirl, and began having an affair with her. At the same time she was in a relationship with Yevgeni Ivanov, a naval attaché at the embassy of the Soviet Union. On 26 January 1963 Keeler"
"publishing stories about Keeler, and it soon became apparent to Macmillan that Profumo's position was untenable. On 5 June 1963, Profumo was forced to admit that he had lied to the House, an unforgivable offence in British politics. He resigned from office, from the House, and from the Privy Council. Before making his public confession Profumo confessed the affair to his wife, who stood by him. It was never shown that his relationship with Keeler had led to any breach of national security. The scandal rocked the Conservative government, and was generally held to have been among the causes of"
"film ""Scandal"", an account of the Profumo Affair, a famous British political scandal in 1963 which severely undermined confidence in the ruling Conservative Party government. The song is heard over the end credits of the film. When film producer Stephen Woolley invited Pet Shop Boys to submit a song for the soundtrack, Neil Tennant remembered a song he had written some years earlier, before the formation of the duo. He and Chris Lowe wrote new music for the song, and with Woolley's approval asked Dusty Springfield to sing it. According to Tennant, Woolley liked the idea of having the song"
"Profumo was born in Kensington, London, the son of Albert, 4th Baron Profumo (Italy), a diplomat and barrister of Italian origin, who died in 1940. He attended Harrow School and Brasenose College, Oxford, where he read law and was a member of the Bullingdon Club. In the early 1930s, 'Jack' Profumo had a relationship with a German model, Gisela Winegard, who subsequently worked for German intelligence in Paris. Secret Service papers state Profumo also wrote to Winegard while he was an MP. On 1 July 1939 he was commissioned into the Royal Armoured Corps as a second lieutenant, service number"
"be too much to say that the Profumo scandal was the necessary prelude to the new Toryism, based on meritocracy, which would eventually emerge under Margaret Thatcher"". ""The Economist"" suggested that the Profumo affair had effected a fundamental and permanent change in relations between politicians and press. Davenport-Hines posits a longer-term consequence of the affair—the gradual ending of traditional notions of deference: ""Authority, however disinterested, well-qualified and experienced, was [after June 1963] increasingly greeted with suspicion rather than trust"". After expressing his ""deep remorse"" to the prime minister, to his constituents and to the Conservative Party, Profumo disappeared from public"
"Purdom makes some good money. He is initiated into the world of private parties where old blue movies of foreign origin are shown to middle-aged upper middle class men in the company of young, attractively made up women. At one of those parties, where he works as the projectionist, he meets a man who later turns out to be Stephen Ward, one of the key figures in what will later be referred to as the Profumo affair. Ward supplies Purdom with a good many ""models"" for his photographic sessions. Eventually Purdom buys an 8 mm amateur movie camera and starts"
"friend and mentor, and through his wide range of contacts and his parties she and her friend meet and date members of the Conservative Party. A scandal develops when her affair with the Minister of War comes to public attention. Australian screenwriter Michael Thomas and prospective producer Joe Boyd approached the BBC with the idea of a three-part mini-series on the Profumo affair. The BBC agreed to finance scripts for two of the 90-minute episodes, but support dried up when internal memos were found that forbade their production. Channel 4 turned them down on grounds of taste. Boyd and Thomas"
"him in an attempt to secure Ivanov's defection. The matter became complicated when, through Ward, Ivanov met Keeler, raising the possibility of a Profumo-Keeler-Ivanov triangle. Profumo ended the relationship with Keeler, which remained largely unsuspected until early in 1963, when the disintegration of Keeler's private life brought matters to public and press attention. Profumo denied any impropriety in a statement to the House of Commons, but a few weeks later admitted his affair. He resigned his ministerial office, parliamentary seat and membership of the Privy Council. Amid a range of rumours of widespread sex scandals in government and high society,"
"of the biggest political scandals in Britain in the 20th century (the Profumo Affair). In 1963, then senior partner Derek Clogg was instructed by John Profumo. The solicitor was referred to in the Hansard transcripts of the House of Commons as ""a solicitor of the highest reputation and widest experience"" who ""has had great experience in cases dealing with libel, with divorce and all those matters where human frailty and possible lying may come into account"". The firm was similarly described as being ""a very well known firm of London solicitors"". However, in the late 1950s and early 1960s, Theodore"
"encountered Lucky Gordon, who threatened to tip off the police about the drinking den. Edgecombe closed it down, and moved into the jazz scene, driving musicians to gigs, and dealing dope. In September 1962, he met a nightclub hostess, Christine Keeler, and moved into her flat in Sheffield Terrace. Keeler was involved with several men, and it was this web of relationships and jealousy that triggered the events that led to what became known as the Profumo affair. Keeler told Edgecombe that ""Lucky"" Gordon had assaulted her and held her captive after she ended their relationship. Edgecombe confronted Gordon with"
"in prostitution and he was prosecuted twice for brothel-keeping. Rachman did not achieve general notoriety until after his death, when the Profumo Affair of 1963 hit the headlines and it emerged that both Christine Keeler and Mandy Rice-Davies had been his mistresses, and that he had owned the mews house in Marylebone where Rice-Davies and Keeler had stayed. As full details of his activities were revealed, there was a call for new legislation to prevent such practices, led by Ben Parkin, MP for Paddington North, who coined the term ""Rachmanism"". The subsequent Rent Act 1965 gave security to tenants. Rachman"
"they married in 1952. They had three children and moved back to London in the late 1950s. Having largely retired from photography to raise her children, difficult personal circumstances forced Spooner to revive her career and she rejoined the Mirror in 1963 and remained there until her retirement in 1988. Spooner's first front page scoop came in the summer of 1963 when, in a shadowy London pub, she surreptitously snapped Christine Keeler and Mandy Rice-Davies, the two notorious showgirls at the heart of the Profumo Affair. In the 1960s and 70s, Spooner worked closely with Felicity Green, the Mirror's fashion"