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It's
1960, and a seventeen year-old girl is alone in London.
While working as a dancer in a club, she meets a jaded society
doctor who introduces her to rich and powerful men.
But
Christine Keeler is much more than just another empty-headed
beauty. Privy to
secrets that threaten the heart of government, she is hunted
down and forced to tell the truth as she sees it.
‘Wicked
Baby’ is a novella based on the events of the Profumo
Affair, a tale of innocence corrupted that dares to imagine
the complex desires and motives behind a very English scandal.
The Profumo Affair
'Wicked Baby' is a novella, based on events surrounding
the Profumo Affair. Here is a brief summary of who did
what, and to whom ...
In 1961, a nineteen year-old model,
Christine Keeler, met a society doctor, Stephen Ward. They forged
an unlikely friendship, and she took a room in his London
flat. Ward knew many rich and powerful men, and also worked as
a portrait artist (his subjects included Prince Philip).
That summer, he took Christine to a party at
Cliveden, ancestral home of the Astors. It was there that she
met John Profumo, then Minister For War. They had a
light-hearted affair. At the same time, Christine got to know
Eugene Ivanov, a visiting Russian diplomat. This happened at
the height of the Cold War, and the situation was potentially
explosive.
The affair soon ended, but Christine's life
was in turmoil. A former boyfriend, Lucky Gordon, was stalking
her. Another man, Johnny Edgecombe, stabbed Gordon in a
nightclub brawl. He too began pursuing Christine, firing shots
outside Stephen Ward's home when she refused to answer the
door. The incident made headline news.
Meanwhile, Ward was rubbing shoulders with
judges and politicians at high-class sex parties. By
early 1963, the rumour of Profumo's affair with Christine
had reached Fleet Street. Profumo denied it at first, but was
later forced to resign.
Ward was tried on charges of procuring
prostitutes, but it is widely believed that he was framed by
the establishment, who wanted him out of the picture.
That August, he took an overdose of pills and died. Christine was
found to have committed perjury in a separate trial and was jailed
for nine months.
Harold MacMillan's government was
irreparably damaged by the scandal, paving the way for a
Labour victory in 1964. Christine Keeler's autobiography was
published in 2001; in the book, she claims that Stephen Ward
was a spy. John Profumo retired from public life, and
devoted himself to charity work.
Also by Tara Hanks, coming shortly:
The Mmm Girl
'The Mmm Girl' is a forthcoming novel about
the life of Marilyn Monroe - as she might have told
it herself.
tarahanks.com
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