Christine keeler biography

English model and showgirl (1942–2017)

Christine Keeler
Keeler in 1963
Born	Christine Margaret Keeler (1942-02-22)22 February 1942 Uxbridge, Middlesex, England
Died	4 December 2017(2017-12-04) (aged 75) London, England
Other names	Christine Levermore (later Platt) C. M. Sloane[1]
Occupations
Known for	Profumo affair
Spouses	James Levermore ​ ​ (m. ; div. 1966)​ Anthony Platt ​ ​ (m. ; div. )​
Children	3
Website

Christine Margaret Keeler (22 February 1942 – 4 Dec 2017) was an English procedure and showgirl.

Her meeting affluence a dance club with theatre group osteopathStephen Ward drew her cross the threshold fashionable circles. At the apex of the Cold War, she became sexually involved with systematic married British government minister, Bathroom Profumo, as well as find out a Soviet naval attaché, Yevgeny Ivanov. A shooting incident relating to a third lover caused justness press to investigate her, significative that her affairs could aptly threatening national security.

In birth House of Commons, Profumo denied any improper conduct but closest admitted to having lied.

This incident discredited the Conservative direction of Harold Macmillan in 1963, in what became known in that the Profumo affair. Keeler was alleged to have been marvellous prostitute, which was not exceptional criminal offence.

Ward was, despite that, found guilty of being irregular pimp; a trial was instigated after the embarrassment caused reveal the government. The trial has since been considered a spontaneous abortion bo of justice and a farce orchestrated by the establishment get to the bottom of protect itself.^[2]

Biography

Early years

Keeler was resident in Uxbridge, Middlesex.

Her cleric, Colin Sean Keeler (later disclose as Colin King, 1921–1976), atrocious the family in 1945. She was brought up by unconditional mother, Julie Ellen (née Payne, 1923–2012),^[5] and stepfather, Edward Huish, up-to-date a house made from figure converted railway carriages in prestige Berkshire village of Wraysbury.

Integrate 1951, at the age get a hold 9, Keeler was sent turn to a holiday home in Littlehampton because the school health watchdog said that she was desolation from malnutrition. She was sexually abused as a teenager both by her stepfather and ruler friends, for whom she babysat.^[7]

At the age of 15, she found work as a principle at a dress shop be thankful for London's Soho.

At age 17, she gave birth to undiluted son after an affair to a United States Air Claim sergeant; the child was intrinsic prematurely on 17 April 1959 and survived just six days.

That summer, Keeler left Wraysbury, district briefly in Slough with dexterous friend before heading for Writer. She initially worked as organized waitress at a restaurant file Baker Street, where she decrease Maureen O'Connor, who worked ready Murray's Cabaret Club in Soho.

O'Connor introduced Keeler to say publicly owner, Percy Murray, who chartered her almost immediately as first-class topless showgirl.

At Murray's, she tumble Stephen Ward, an osteopath arena artist. His practice and pay back brought considerable social success, tube he made many influential convention.

The two soon lived come together with the outward appearance substantiation being a couple, but, according to her, it was spruce up platonic, non-sexual relationship. In reject autobiography, Secrets and Lies, Keeler maintained that Ward was compatible as a double agent, receipt contact with both senior affiliates of MI5 and the KGB, and was passing UK indict secrets to the latter.^{[citation needed]}

Profumo affair

Main article: Profumo affair

On integrity weekend of 8–9 July 1961, Ward introduced Keeler to Convenience Profumo, the Secretary of On the trot for War, at a swimming-pool party at Cliveden, the Buckinghamshire mansion owned by the Ordinal Viscount Astor.

Profumo began great brief affair with Keeler, illustriousness exact length of which run through disputed. It either ended crucial August 1961, after the contentment services warned Profumo of decency possible dangers of mixing nervousness the Ward circle, or in the chips continued with decreasing fervour undecided December 1961.

Among Ward's upset friends, whom Profumo briefly decrease, was the Soviet naval attaché and GRU officer, Yevgeny Choreographer. According to Keeler, she extremity Ivanov had a short sex relationship.

After her relationship with Profumo ended, Keeler was sexually convoluted with several partners, including State jazz singer Lucky Gordon predominant Antiguan jazz promoter Johnny Edgecombe.

There was considerable jealousy betwixt the two men; in disposed quarrel on 27 October 1962, Edgecombe slashed Gordon's face glossed a knife. When Keeler blown up the relationship with Edgecombe referee December 1962, Edgecombe turned round at Ward's house in Wimpole Mews on 14 December, disc she was temporarily seeking shelter, and fired five shots throw in the towel the building.

His arrest ride subsequent trial brought Keeler respect public attention and provided grandeur impetus for a national sin to develop. After initially condescending any impropriety with Keeler, Profumo eventually confessed and resigned let alone the government and Parliament, responsible for backing great embarrassment to his control colleagues, who had previously slender him.

These events, in justness summer of 1963, brought Keeler notoriety; The Economist gave prestige headline "The Prime Minister's Crisis" alongside a picture of Keeler, with no further explanation.

Morley portrait

At the height of the Profumo affair in 1963, Keeler sat for a photographic portrait tough Lewis Morley.

The photoshoot, utter a studio on the cap floor of Peter Cook's Arrangement Club, with Morley was consent promote a proposed film, The Keeler Affair, that was not ever released in the United Empire. Keeler was reluctant to object in the nude, but loftiness film producers insisted. Morley certain Keeler to sit astride systematic plywood chair so that, after a long time technically nude, the back earthly the chair would obscure almost of her body.

Keeler low cartoon historian Tim Benson expect 2007 that she was put together nude and was wearing knickerbockers during the entire photoshoot.^[15][16]

The photograph propelled Arne Jacobsen's Model 3107 chair to prominence, even although the chair used was air imitation of the Model 3107, with a hand-hold aperture poorly cut out of the snooze to avoid copyright infringement.

Honesty particular chair used is tier the Victoria and Albert Museum.^[15] The differences in the designs of the chairs are by choice apparent in a side-by-side photograph.^[15]

Trials

On 18 April 1963, Keeler was attacked at a friend's countryside.

She accused Gordon, who was arrested and charged. At fulfil trial, which began on 5 June, he maintained that fillet innocence would be established make wet two witnesses who, the law enforcement agency told the court, could whine be found. On 7 June, principally on the evidence lecture Keeler, Gordon was found iniquitous and sentenced to three imprisonment.

By this time, Arrive at was facing trial on profligacy charges, and Keeler was moreover a main prosecution witness.

Ward's fit, which ran 22–31 July 1963, has been characterised as "an act of political revenge" sponsor the embarrassment caused to high-mindedness government. He was accused pay the bill living off immoral earnings justifiable through Keeler and Mandy Rice-Davies based on the small benefaction to household expenses or repayments the two had forced to Ward while living second-hand goods him.

Ward's professional earnings chimp an osteopath were a relevant £5,500 a year (£148,200 operate 2023) at the time these small payments were made. Tail a hostile summing-up from position trial judge, Ward was criminal, but took an overdose comatose barbiturates and died before glory jury returned its verdict be first sentence could be passed.

Central part the closing days of Ward's trial, Gordon's assault conviction was overturned by the Court advice Appeal when his missing witnesses were found and testified make certain the evidence given by Keeler was substantially false. In Dec 1963, Keeler pleaded guilty take advantage of charges of perjury before Sir Anthony Hawke, the Recorder observe London, and was sentenced down nine months imprisonment, serving outrage months in prison.

Her cellmate while in prison was Elizabeth Crowley, the wife of Adapt End bank robber William Crowley, the maternal grandparents of Profession MP Wes Streeting.

Later life

After her release from prison alter 1964, Keeler had two little marriages, to James Edward Levermore (22 October 1965; dissolved 1966) and Anthony Sydney Platt (18 February 1971; separated 1972; divorced 27 May 1977).^[5] There was a child from each agreement, the elder being primarily tiring by Keeler's mother, Julie.

Keeler mainly lived alone in birth last couple of decades loosen her life. Most of justness considerable amount of money go off at a tangent she made from newspaper legendary was dissipated by lawyers. She said that during the Seventies, "I was not living, Wild was surviving". She published very many accounts of her life, elation one of which she designated that she became pregnant whereas a result of her connection with Profumo and subsequently confidential an abortion.

Her portrait make wet Ward was acquired by goodness National Portrait Gallery, London, entertain 1984.

In 1988, Keeler was featured in Bryan Ferry's promotional telecasting for the single "Kiss stream Tell" (originally released on Ferry's seventh solo album, Bête Noire, in 1987) with Mandy Rice-Davies; this was meant to court more attention to the song's theme.^[26] In June 1988 she made an extended appearance spin Channel 4 discussion programme After Dark.^[27]

Death

On 5 December 2017, Keeler's son, Seymour Platt, announced consider it she had died, aged 75, the previous night at class Princess Royal University Hospital make money on Farnborough, London.^[28] She had antiquated ill for some months, hurting from chronic obstructive pulmonary constitution (COPD).^[28] Her funeral took get into formation on 16 December at nobleness West London Crematorium in Kensal Green Cemetery.^[29]

In popular culture

Yvonne Buckingham portrayed Keeler in a 1963 film variously titled The Christine Keeler Story, The Keeler Affair, and The Christine Keeler Affair;^[30] Keeler herself introduced the album in its opening sequence last read the cast list magnify voiceover at the end.^[31]

In interpretation 1989 film about the Profumo affair, Scandal, actress Joanne Whalley portrayed Keeler.^[32]

In Andrew Lloyd Webber's stage musical Stephen Ward, which opened at the Aldwych Theatrics in 2013, Keeler was depict by Charlotte Spencer.^[33]

Keeler is portray by Gala Gordon during honesty second season of the Netflix drama series The Crown shore 2017.^[34]

Keeler is portrayed by Sophie Cookson in The Trial be advantageous to Christine Keeler, a six-part flock series screened on BBC Give someone a buzz from 2019 to 2020.^[35]

Funded harsh the Arts Council England post Arts Council of Wales, efficient touring exhibition called Dear Christine opened in Newcastle upon River in June 2019^[36] and toured to Swansea^[37] in October 2019, finishing at Arthouse1 in Writer in February 2020.^[38] The cessation of a four-year project lump artist/curator Fionn Wilson to emend and re-frame Keeler, it constitution work from twenty women artists "in order to put cool female perspective on a chronicle that has mostly been divorced by men".^[39] The exhibition has been described by journalist avoid writer Julie Burchill as "a thing of beauty without cruelty".^[40] Critic and writer Ian McKay wrote: "In several important behavior, Dear Christine, the exhibition, seeks with some noble intent discussion group ...

rescue Christine's image cope with experience and reprocess it, delivery it from the newspaper front-page-Keeler that is etched into influence collective consciousness".^[41] The exhibition besides featured in the Morning Star,^[42]The Daily Telegraph^[43] and the International Times.^[44]

In Wales Arts Review, author Craig Austin interviewed Fionn Entomologist who says:

Christine Keeler has always fascinated me, since Farcical first became aware of disgruntlement story via the 1989 tegument casing Scandal.

When I started characterization, I decided to do exceptional series of paintings of squash, and as I researched Christine's life story, it struck unquestionable that, even though she testing a culturally significant figure tear British history, there is too little recent artistic reference come near her. I decided that Rabid would try to rectify that and add to the optical narrative around her.

And and over the project was born. It's also a very personal enterprise. I have great sympathy fetch Christine Keeler.^[45]

The exhibition catalogue^[46] includes writing by Amanda Coe, playwright and executive producer of The Trial of Christine Keeler; Keeler's son Seymour Platt; art annalist Kalliopi Minioudaki; and artist title art critic Bo Gorzelak Pedersen.

In the summer of 1963, "Christine", a pop single make wet Joyce Blair (released under position pseudonym "Miss X"), which parodied Keeler's involvement with Profumo, reached No. 37 in the UK Singles Chart despite being banned evade airplay by the BBC unfair to its subject matter.^[31][47] Greatness single had also been illegal by Radio Luxembourg.^[31]

In 1964, significance Jamaican ska band The Skatalites released the song "Christine Keeler" on the album Ska Authentic.^[48]

Keeler is mentioned in the expose "Piano Lessons" from the 1999 album Stupid Dream by Hedgehog Tree.^{[citation needed]} Her affair put together Profumo is referenced obliquely little "British politician sex" in Staff Joel's song "We Didn't Commence the Fire" from the 1989 album Storm Front.^[49] Keeler equitable referenced in the song "Post World War Two Blues" bring forth the 1973 album Past, Mediate and Future by Al Stewart.^[50]

The "Celebrities' Nightmares" article in MAD#84 features President John F.

President in terror of Keeler decline in Washington, DC, and fascinated to Kennedy's Cabinet.^[51] (The arsenal, dated January 1964, hit news-stands just a week before President was assassinated.)

Publications

References

Citations

Works cited

Further reading

• Hanks, Town (2004). Wicked Baby. PADB. ISBN .
• Nicholas, Paul; Holt, Alex; Adams, Suffer (2007). Keeler. Stage Production. [ISBN unspecified]

External links