Sex, Lies and a Very British Scapegoat TV - The Trial of Christine Keeler TV - Keeler, Profumo, Ward & Me TV -
In the summer of 1963, the year of the The Beatles’ first LP, the biggest scandal of the post-war years burst on to the front pages of Britain’s newspapers. John Profumo, the Secretary of State for War, and a married man, resigned after admitting that he’d had an affair with a nineteen-year-old model called Christine Keeler. It was the height of the Cold War. Sex, Lies and a Very British Scapegoat, ITV 2013
Stephen Ward ... he was the pivotal figure. ibid.
I’m an ordinary sort of person. It may be hard to believe but I never longed for the spotlight. But somehow the spotlight found me. The Trial of Christine Keeler I, Christine, BBC 2019
Then I met John Profumo. I’m 19 years old. ibid.
I just wanna have a bit of fun, you know. ibid. Mandy to Christine
MI5 may have been watching Captain Ivanov but to me he was just another one of Stephen’s [Ward] friends. ibid.
You know I could introduce you to a lot more fun. ibid. Stephen to Christine
Chaos seems to follow you wherever you go. ibid.
I am not a bad person. I’m young. And I like to have fun. ibid. Christine
Terrible crimes have been committed. But not by me. ibid.
The most natural instinct there is – the love of a powerful middle-aged man for a penniless girl. Is that a crime? The Trial of Christine Keeler II, Christine’s commentary
Pleasure mixed with danger – I suppose that’s what Jack liked. ibid.
I was a naive little girl with more power that I ever could have dreamed of. But in the end it wasn’t enough to save any of us. There were far bigger powers at work you see. The powers that really make the world go round. And friendships you thought would last for ever just vanished into thin air. Stephen may have been the puppet-master but he wasn’t pulling the strings any more. Not mine anyway. And the people who were, they were set to destroy us all. ibid.
Trapped in a terrible place with no escape … I have no voice. The Trial of Christine Keeler III
And just like that I was someone else. Very Important Person indeed. ibid.
The camera steals your soul. The Trial of Christine Keeler IV, Stephen to Christine
I’d be more than happy to fill you in. ibid. Stephen to journalist, seen by Profumo
All these tarts Ward has buzzing around here. He’s some sort of ponce, isn’t he? Living on Immoral Earnings. ibid. rozzer
Soon we’ll be last week’s news, wrapping up fish and chips. ibid. Jack, pillow talk to trouble-n-strife
If no-one was ashamed, would you get as excited? ibid. Christine to Stephen
The Party’s in a sorry state without me. ibid. Jack to trouble-n-strife
… and then they decided about the crime. The Trial of Christine Keeler V, Christine
Sex makes the world go round: look where that’s got me. ibid. Christine to Stephen
I can tell you like to have fun – we have a future, you and I. The Trial of Christine Keeler VI, Stephen to Christine
Christine Margaret Keeler: I am arresting you on charges pertaining to perjury, conspiracy and attempting to obstruct the course of justice … ibid.
They want to get me, don’t they? They got Stephen, and I’m next. ibid. Christine to rozzer
Justice has nothing to do with the truth. It’s a game. With ridiculous rules. ibid. Brief to Christine
Keeler/Profumo/Ward is one of those ageless stories that I just cannot let go … Much of it is relevant today. Keeler, Profumo, Ward & Me, Tom Mangold, Daily Express, BBC 2020
With huge profits as the prize, Fleet Street reporters like me, who thought ethics was a county near London, were unleashed. ibid.
I saw for myself how that old order operated to make the innocent Stephen Ward a public scapegoat … ‘The worst case of wrongful conviction that I can remember in our history.’ ibid. Geoffrey Robertson QC
War Minister Shock. ibid. 15th March 1963
At the preliminary hearing, every prosecution smear against Stephen – abortionist, brothel-keeper, spy – crammed the front pages, finally trashing his reputation. ibid.