The Profumo Affair by Vanessa Holburn

This is the best book that I have read on the Profumo affair so far, and I have read a few. I have also read Profumo’s son’s book, which I recommend. Vanessa Holburn forensically examines all the details of the case and its influence on society even today, without being salacious. Amazingly, it is still extremely complicated and there are many unanswered questions.

Was Stephen Ward a spy? Was  the Russian Ivanov a spy? Did Ward use Christine Keeler to find out secrets from the War Minister, Profumo? Was Ward a scapegoat? Why did Profumo even get involved with this young woman so carelessly? Did PM Macmillan know that Profumo was lying to parliament?

It was certainly an age of spy scandals and loosening morality, ripe for another huge scandal, one that brought down the government. Always a fascinating story, it’s nevertheless difficult to ‘get a grip’ on it because it is so complicated, but Holburn does an excellent job. I am probably a bit more sympathetic to Profumo, than she is, though. After all, he did do his ‘penance,’ working at Toynbee Hall for a long time.

I received this free ebook from NetGalley in return for an honest review.