A Very British Sex Scandal

History

Station:
Channel 5 (GB)

Status:
Running

Start:
2024-04-24

Rating:
0/10 from 0 users

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List of episodes

S1E1 - The Earl & the Escort

An investigation into the murder of Lord Shaftesbury, Anthony Ashley-Cooper, looking at his disappearance and the discovery of his body in a ravine at the foothills of the Alps. For the first time Jamila M'Barek, the Earl's estranged wife, speaks about her involvement in the murder. Featuring contributions from Jamila's lawyers, detectives, and reporters that worked on the case.

Air Date: 24 Apr 2024 15:00 (CDT)

S1E2 - Cecil Parkinson

Edwina Currie, Matthew Parris and Ian Hislop lead politicians and journalists, who share personal memories of Cecil Parkinson and the scandal that ended his political ambitions. In 1983, the politician's 12-year affair with his secretary, Sara Keays, was revealed in a media storm that overshadowed the Conservative Party's Conference, forcing him to resign in disgrace.

Air Date: 01 May 2024 15:00 (CDT)

S1E3 - The Dirty Duchess

The shocking true story of an extraordinary royal sex scandal that rocked 1960s Britain.

The Duchess of Argyll, Margaret Campbell, a former society beauty found herself at the centre of a toxic divorce case in 1963 after it emerged that both she and her husband, the Duke, had had multiple extra-marital affairs. The trial which involved illicit Polaroid pictures created a storm of newspaper headlines that changed the way society viewed both the royals and the upper classes.

During the trial, when the Duke successfully filed for divorce, Margaret faced accusations of adultery on a monumental scale. At the heart of the trial were sexually explicit Polaroid photos of the Duchess and an unidentified man. The mystery of his identity captured the imagination of a nation, and was shortlisted to a Hollywood star, a senior politician at the heart of government and a prince.

The documentary with new archive, contributors who knew her, and with resurfaced interviews of Margaret Campbell herself, questions whether she deserved her maligned reputation or if she was, as her friends and family maintain, a victim of misogynistic attitudes of the time, simply because she was a sexually liberated woman. In-person commentary from journalists, historians, and a lawyer help put context and perspective on this incredible story.

This film delves deep into the story of Margaret's extraordinary life and how key moments and experiences led her to this shocking and yet, it's argued, inevitable trial. She was born into unimaginable wealth and privilege into the highest echelons of society but a society that ultimately rejected her when scandal hit.

This gripping documentary unravels one of the most extraordinary and brutal legal cases of the 20th century and raises serious and disturbing questions about privacy, respect and the role of women in society.

Air Date: 08 May 2024 15:00 (CDT)