1 00:00:00,480 --> 00:00:02,400 Speaker 1: Well, this has been a crazy week. We've seen the 2 00:00:02,400 --> 00:00:05,560 Speaker 1: release of more of the files of the late millionaire 3 00:00:05,600 --> 00:00:09,920 Speaker 1: pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, putting the white hot spotlight on powerful 4 00:00:09,920 --> 00:00:13,480 Speaker 1: people in government and in Hollywood, and most notably, the 5 00:00:13,600 --> 00:00:17,240 Speaker 1: arrest of the former Prince Andrew, brother to King Charles, 6 00:00:17,440 --> 00:00:20,760 Speaker 1: for his involvement with Epstein and some very young women. 7 00:00:21,280 --> 00:00:23,279 Speaker 1: But it's not the first time the Brits have seen 8 00:00:23,280 --> 00:00:27,480 Speaker 1: their power broker stumble. I'm Patty Steele. A nineteen sixty 9 00:00:27,520 --> 00:00:30,360 Speaker 1: three incident with a nineteen year old girl and a 10 00:00:30,400 --> 00:00:35,080 Speaker 1: powerful politician almost brought down the British government. That's next 11 00:00:35,120 --> 00:00:41,879 Speaker 1: on the backstory. The backstory is back. Kind of a 12 00:00:41,920 --> 00:00:45,760 Speaker 1: shocking moment, though, I guess not unexpected when former Prince 13 00:00:45,800 --> 00:00:49,559 Speaker 1: Andrew was arrested this week on suspicion of misconduct in 14 00:00:49,640 --> 00:00:52,760 Speaker 1: public office. That's a nice way to put it. It 15 00:00:52,840 --> 00:00:55,080 Speaker 1: was the first time a member of the royal family 16 00:00:55,160 --> 00:00:59,600 Speaker 1: had been arrested since sixteen forty nine, when King Charles 17 00:00:59,760 --> 00:01:04,240 Speaker 1: was rested and executed for treason. So Andrew, as we know, 18 00:01:04,319 --> 00:01:07,440 Speaker 1: spent a lot of years paling around with the millionaire 19 00:01:07,520 --> 00:01:12,360 Speaker 1: pedophile Jeffrey Epstein. In addition to any illicit sexual activities. 20 00:01:12,720 --> 00:01:17,360 Speaker 1: Andrew's arrest has him being investigated for maybe sharing confidential 21 00:01:17,400 --> 00:01:21,720 Speaker 1: government info with Jeffrey. And it gets stickier because the 22 00:01:21,720 --> 00:01:26,160 Speaker 1: Epstein files indicate that Jeffrey was secretly working for Mossad, 23 00:01:26,400 --> 00:01:31,119 Speaker 1: the Israeli spy agency, so info that Andrews shared may 24 00:01:31,160 --> 00:01:35,200 Speaker 1: have been passed along to Israel. Wow. What amaze of intrigue. Right, 25 00:01:35,760 --> 00:01:39,040 Speaker 1: But like everything else that happens today, there's at least 26 00:01:39,080 --> 00:01:42,759 Speaker 1: one precedent. Let's go back to the early nineteen sixties, 27 00:01:43,200 --> 00:01:46,560 Speaker 1: just before what was arguably the biggest sex scandal in 28 00:01:46,680 --> 00:01:50,400 Speaker 1: modern British history came to light. It began as a 29 00:01:50,480 --> 00:01:54,200 Speaker 1: whole lot of political disasters do at a party. It's 30 00:01:54,280 --> 00:01:58,279 Speaker 1: July nineteen sixty one. The party is at Cliveden House, 31 00:01:58,320 --> 00:02:01,400 Speaker 1: an a state built in sixteen sixty six by a 32 00:02:01,520 --> 00:02:05,240 Speaker 1: duke for his mistress. By eighteen ninety three it had 33 00:02:05,280 --> 00:02:10,239 Speaker 1: been sold to the Astors, American aristocrats. It's quite a party, though, 34 00:02:10,280 --> 00:02:13,600 Speaker 1: with just a handful of guests. Lord Astor invites Britain 35 00:02:13,680 --> 00:02:17,880 Speaker 1: Secretary of State for War John Perfumo, and also doctor 36 00:02:17,919 --> 00:02:22,440 Speaker 1: Stephen Ward, a fashionable holistic doctor who also is a 37 00:02:22,840 --> 00:02:27,200 Speaker 1: sort of social fixer upper, comfortable in high society and 38 00:02:27,520 --> 00:02:31,440 Speaker 1: with London's nightlife crowd. Ward has a nineteen year old 39 00:02:31,480 --> 00:02:35,520 Speaker 1: model and showgirl with him named Christine Keeler. The story 40 00:02:35,560 --> 00:02:39,639 Speaker 1: goes that Profumo first saw Christine seductively emerging from a 41 00:02:39,680 --> 00:02:44,240 Speaker 1: swimming pool. Perfumo, married and almost thirty years older than Christine, 42 00:02:44,320 --> 00:02:48,360 Speaker 1: is smitten and the two began a brief affair. Okay, 43 00:02:48,480 --> 00:02:51,720 Speaker 1: stuff happens, right, problem is it was more than that, 44 00:02:52,120 --> 00:02:55,480 Speaker 1: and more than just a private embarrassment. Again, this is 45 00:02:55,560 --> 00:02:59,040 Speaker 1: nineteen sixty one and it's the Cold War. Here's the 46 00:02:59,080 --> 00:03:03,600 Speaker 1: explosive toys. At the same time Christine is seeing Profumo, 47 00:03:03,720 --> 00:03:08,079 Speaker 1: she's also involved with yevgany Ivanov, a Soviet naval attache 48 00:03:08,360 --> 00:03:12,920 Speaker 1: stationed in London. He's also a Russian spy. Suddenly, the 49 00:03:12,960 --> 00:03:18,160 Speaker 1: war secretary responsible for Britain's military secrets is sharing intimate 50 00:03:18,240 --> 00:03:21,960 Speaker 1: pillow talk with a woman who is simultaneously sleeping with 51 00:03:22,120 --> 00:03:26,399 Speaker 1: a suspected Soviet operative. It was a terrifying turn of events. 52 00:03:27,000 --> 00:03:30,160 Speaker 1: How far did the pillow talk go? Were secrets being 53 00:03:30,200 --> 00:03:34,639 Speaker 1: shared in national security being compromised? While whatever happened, the 54 00:03:34,639 --> 00:03:38,520 Speaker 1: optics were horrible. It took a while, but rumors began 55 00:03:38,560 --> 00:03:42,240 Speaker 1: to fly by late nineteen sixty two. By early nineteen 56 00:03:42,320 --> 00:03:46,440 Speaker 1: sixty three, the press was swarming. Britain's tabloids were just 57 00:03:46,560 --> 00:03:50,240 Speaker 1: coming into their own, becoming more aggressive, less protective of 58 00:03:50,360 --> 00:03:55,360 Speaker 1: powerful folks. On March twenty second, nineteen sixty three, Profumo 59 00:03:55,440 --> 00:03:59,760 Speaker 1: stood before the House of Commons. He admitted knowing Christine Keeler, 60 00:03:59,800 --> 00:04:05,200 Speaker 1: but denied anything improper had happened. He said, there absolutely, unequivocally, 61 00:04:05,360 --> 00:04:09,120 Speaker 1: was no affair. Okay. For a moment the government thought 62 00:04:09,120 --> 00:04:12,160 Speaker 1: they had contained the crisis, but Profumo had made a 63 00:04:12,160 --> 00:04:16,480 Speaker 1: fatal mistake. He had lied to Parliament. Just weeks later, 64 00:04:16,600 --> 00:04:20,920 Speaker 1: the whole thing unraveled. Evidence mounted, witnesses came forward, and 65 00:04:20,960 --> 00:04:25,360 Speaker 1: finally John Profumo confessed on June fifth, nineteen sixty three, 66 00:04:25,960 --> 00:04:29,560 Speaker 1: Yes there had been an affair. Yes he had misled parliament. 67 00:04:29,960 --> 00:04:34,600 Speaker 1: He resigned immediately. In British politics, you just don't lie 68 00:04:34,640 --> 00:04:38,560 Speaker 1: to parliament. In the aftermath, doctor stephen Ward, the guy 69 00:04:38,600 --> 00:04:42,560 Speaker 1: who introduced Christine to Profumo, was accused of being a pimp. 70 00:04:43,160 --> 00:04:45,880 Speaker 1: The trial was all over the press, and just before 71 00:04:45,880 --> 00:04:49,640 Speaker 1: the guilty verdict was handed down, or killed himself. A 72 00:04:49,680 --> 00:04:52,760 Speaker 1: lot of folks claimed he was a scapegoat sacrificed to 73 00:04:52,839 --> 00:04:56,640 Speaker 1: protect more powerful men, but months later the Prime Minister 74 00:04:56,720 --> 00:05:01,120 Speaker 1: of Great Britain now fatally tarnished himself because this resigned. 75 00:05:01,760 --> 00:05:05,480 Speaker 1: For decades, Britain's ruling class had been protected by the press. 76 00:05:06,040 --> 00:05:10,120 Speaker 1: Big shots did what they wanted without fear. After Profumo, 77 00:05:10,400 --> 00:05:15,680 Speaker 1: that world changed. Journalists were more aggressive, politicians watched, and 78 00:05:15,720 --> 00:05:18,960 Speaker 1: the public grew less willing to accept cover ups. As 79 00:05:19,000 --> 00:05:21,640 Speaker 1: for John Profumo, he spent the rest of his life 80 00:05:22,080 --> 00:05:26,799 Speaker 1: quietly dedicating himself to charitable work, and his reputation pretty 81 00:05:26,839 --> 00:05:30,599 Speaker 1: much recovered. Christine Keeler's life was a lot more turbulent. 82 00:05:30,800 --> 00:05:34,040 Speaker 1: She had two short marriages and two children with each 83 00:05:34,080 --> 00:05:37,919 Speaker 1: of those husbands, and she became both infamous and exploited, 84 00:05:38,279 --> 00:05:42,200 Speaker 1: forever linked to a moment that reshaped British politics. She 85 00:05:42,320 --> 00:05:45,800 Speaker 1: died in twenty seventeen at seventy five, with pretty much 86 00:05:45,839 --> 00:05:49,600 Speaker 1: no money to her name. This wasn't simply a sex scandal. 87 00:05:50,080 --> 00:05:53,200 Speaker 1: It marked a cultural turning point that even today his 88 00:05:53,360 --> 00:05:57,839 Speaker 1: impacted powerful people, including the royal family. It was the 89 00:05:57,880 --> 00:06:02,720 Speaker 1: moment Britain's establishment realized it could no longer rely on silence. 90 00:06:03,040 --> 00:06:05,560 Speaker 1: And the former Prince Andrew learned that the hard way. 91 00:06:05,640 --> 00:06:09,279 Speaker 1: This week, the old Order had cracked, and it all 92 00:06:09,320 --> 00:06:12,880 Speaker 1: started at a simple summer pool party. I hope you 93 00:06:13,040 --> 00:06:15,960 Speaker 1: like The Backstory with Patty Steele. Please leave a review. 94 00:06:16,320 --> 00:06:19,159 Speaker 1: I'd love it if you'd subscribe or follow for free 95 00:06:19,279 --> 00:06:22,520 Speaker 1: to get new episodes delivered automatically. Also feel free to 96 00:06:22,560 --> 00:06:24,120 Speaker 1: dm me if you have a story you'd like me 97 00:06:24,160 --> 00:06:27,960 Speaker 1: to cover. On Facebook, It's Patty Steele and on Instagram 98 00:06:28,080 --> 00:06:38,480 Speaker 1: Real Patty Steele. I'm Patty Steele. The Backstories a production 99 00:06:38,600 --> 00:06:42,640 Speaker 1: of iHeartMedia, Premiere Networks, the Elvis Durand Group, and Steel 100 00:06:42,680 --> 00:06:47,200 Speaker 1: Trap Productions. Our producer is Doug Fraser. Our writer Jake Kushner. 101 00:06:47,480 --> 00:06:50,960 Speaker 1: We have new episodes every Tuesday and Friday. Feel free 102 00:06:51,000 --> 00:06:53,320 Speaker 1: to reach out to me with comments and even story 103 00:06:53,360 --> 00:06:57,360 Speaker 1: suggestions on Instagram at Real Patty Steele and on Facebook 104 00:06:57,440 --> 00:07:00,320 Speaker 1: at Patty Steele. Thanks for listening to the back Story 105 00:07:00,360 --> 00:07:03,680 Speaker 1: with Patty Steele. The pieces of history you didn't know 106 00:07:03,880 --> 00:07:04,680 Speaker 1: you needed to know.