An Affair of State: The Profumo Case and the Framing of Stephen Ward
London: Jonathan Cape, 1987. 1st Edition. Hardcover. 8vo. Fine / Near Fine. Item #004533
Full black cloth boards. xviii, 268 pp. [32] pp. B&W photo plates. Dust jacket has some bumping and creasing to edges, and a few short tears repaired with tape to reverse. Else fine. Stephen Ward was a central figure in the political scandal which shook Britain in the 1960s. It was in Ward's flat that John Profumo, Secretary of State for War in the Macmillan Government, used to meet call girl Christine Keeler. It was Ward who introduced Christine to the dashing Soviet diplomat, Yevgeny Ivanov. It was Ward who told MI5 about Keeler and Profumo because he thought that their affair might pose a security risk. When Profumo lied to the House of Commons about his love life, and the resulting scandal threatened to bring down the Government, it was Ward who stood in the dock at the Old Bailey, scapegoat for the establishment. His trial turned out to be one of the most amazing in British legal history.
Price: $32.00