. More than that, all of his wives claimed he had mistreated them during their marriage. While we may never know who the 'headless' man was, A Very British Scandal aims to look at the story behind one of the biggest court cases in history, and the lives of the people involved. She was infamous among the high-society set before she even married the Duke of Argyllbut after their incredibly messy divorce, she became one of the most notorious women in England. Heated debate breaks out after woman claims wiping just with loo roll alone ISNT enough - so which side do you fall on? Want to tell us to write facts on a topic? While in the nursing home bathroom one day, Margaret had a severe fall that broke her neck. During one of her absences, the Duke broke into a locked cupboard and found her collection of pornographic photographs. Still, compared to the next part of Margarets life, these youthful indiscretions look like absolute childs play. Margaret Campbells young life more than set her up for her raucous adulthood. As the 1970s dawned and free love became a more accepted concept, youd think Margarets image would get re-habilitated. Margarets family was eminently respectable, and they couldnt have a single whiff of their daughters so-called disgrace getting out. Again, fair enough. In light of her husbands allegations and jaw-dropping evidence, Margaret couldnt just sit back and take it. The pictures were part of a legal case the duke drew up against the duchess as part of divorce proceedings, alongside a list of 88 men he accused her of having sex with behind his back. Around this time, Margarets behavior behind the scenes sent tongues wagging. This was his third marriage - after wedding Janet Gladys Aitken and Louise Hollingsworth Morris Vanneck. Claire Foy is transforming into a forgotten British icon in new BBC drama, A Very British Scandal. Fairbanks Jr and Margaret both denied he was the Headless Man, but he was identified through his handwriting. Yet the wedding was not to be, as she was soon swept off her feet by the wealthy American, Charles Sweeney, who instead became her first husband. A POLAROID picture was one of the key pieces of evidence in the scandalous divorce of the Duke and Duchess of Argyll. So when Wheatley eventually granted the divorce, he did it with biting cruelty, sneering that she was a completely promiscuous woman and wholly immoral in his final judgment. Please submit feedback to contribute@factinate.com. Although the identity of the 'headless man' may never be confirmed, a 2000 Channel 4 documentary revealed that two men are the most likely candidates. To say this was opening a Pandoras box would be an understatement. Our editors are instructed to fact check thoroughly, including finding at least three references for each fact. As Margaret later related, I apparently fell on to my knees and cracked the back of my head against the wall. Who was the Duchess of Argyll, Margaret Campbell? "Thats interesting in itself as these things that seem so serious at the time, on the front of the newspapers, and no one really remembers it at all," said Claire. Although the identity of the 'headless man' may never be confirmed, a 2000 Channel 4 documentary revealed that two men are the most likely candidates. To find evidence of infidelity, he broke into Margaret's personal cupboard in their London house, where he found the infamous Polaroids along with letters and other private documents. Margaret Campbell might have been thrust into the spotlight, but she wasnt about to drag anyone else there with her. The most extensive damage, however, was somewhere no one could yet see. Instead, she accused him of a heinous act. One of the explicit photographs presented in court was a Polaroid of the Duchess, wearing nothing but her signature triple-string of pearls, standing next to an unidentified man. Margaret had always had an innate sense of style, so when the public got wind of her upcoming wedding day, everyone was salivating to know what dress she would wear. One of the men accused of being one of Margaret's lovers, and named on a list that the Duke of Argyll produced in court, was the Hollywood actor Douglas Fairbank Jr. ", 2020 THE SUN, US, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED | TERMS OF USE | PRIVACY | YOUR AD CHOICES | SITEMAP, The Duke and Duchess of Argyll at their wedding in 1951. We use your sign-up to provide content in the ways you've consented to and improve our understanding of you. Speaking to the Daily Record, author Lyndsy Spence said that she had conducted extensive research into Margaret Campbell's life for her book The Grit in the Pearl: The Scandalous Life of Margaret, Duchess of Argyll, which included speaking to a relative of the businessman Joe Thomas. Whether or not Sandys was the headless man, he was certainly a lover of Margarets, and offered his resignation when the scandal broke. That, and three strands of pearls! In their efforts to guess at the man, they dug up even more dirt on the duchess. For the beautiful daughter of a millionaire, it spelled instant infamy and would likely damage her reputation forever if it got out to her peers. Were always looking for your input! The couple married in 1951, but their marriage soon turned sour after the Duke accused Margaret of being unfaithful. . Years ago, if youll remember, Margarets first husband Charles Sweeny claimed that her fall down an elevator shaft had fundamentally changed her personality and turned her into a nymphomaniac. With this, the flood gates openedbut Margaret had her own stunning revelation waiting in the wings. Later, when they met again, Ian had inherited the dukedom, but the eccentric 10th Duke, his late relation, had let things fall to wrack and ruin. In October 2021 Tatler shared news of 'The Crown' star Claire Foy playing the so-called 'Dirty Duchess' in a three-part series 'A Very British Scandal', produced by BBC Blueprint Pictures. Duchess of Argyll divorce: What was the headless man Polaroid picture? He had claimed then that shed had 88 lovers over the course of their marriage, with a judge in the divorce proceedings adding that the Duchess had a sex perversion. Im a baby naming pro and these are the top so far for this year - would you add them to your list? Margaret, the Duchess of Argyll on the June 1969 cover of Tatler. The German diplomat and brother of the Nazi scientist Werner von Braun, who invented the Nazis V-2 rocket, was another possible candidate for the 'headless man' in photo. She was known as the Dirty Duchess after her split from the 11th Duke of Argyll led to a bitter and scandalous divorce. While the documentary suggested that both Duncan Sandys and Douglas Fairbank Jr could both possibly be the 'headless man', other sources have also speculated over the man's identity. After all, some of the photographs depicted intensely intimate positions, with Margaret completely undressed. Soon after disentangling herself from these lovers, Margaret met the man who would ruin her life. There's a new period drama in theatres now, offering a w [imagesource:flickr] For Margarets secrets, it was the apocalypse. The divorce case gripped the nation and became major tabloid fodder, especially as the private photographs became admissible as court reporting. . Somehow, Margaret simply couldnt make her bank account match her extravagant tastes, and she eventually had to move out of her notorious home, swapping it first for the Grosvenor House Hotel and then, at the urging of her children and her first husband Charles Sweeny, a meager apartment building. To describe this series of Polaroids in any way decent enough to publish is a Herculean effort. With 88 possible lovers to choose from, the press had a field day hunting down who the man could be. Another, more salacious Polaroid released in 1963 proves quite the contrary. Because Margarets private stash of photos was now public evidence, newspapers of the day got a full view of the single most infamous snap in Margarets collection: One where she was kneeling down in front of a headless man. In another revelation, the Channel 4 documentary looked at the rumour that the man was former Minister of Defence Duncan Sandys, who would later go on to be Winston Churchill's Son in Law. A series of Polaroid photographs were used as evidence in the bitter and acrimonious divorce case between the Duke and Duchess . Yet far from empathy, this led her to acts of cruelty; a maid of hers once said she treated her dogs better than she did her staff. The Duchess, Margaret Campbell, was a British socialite known for her lavish lifestyle and a string of high-profile affairs. It is rumoured that she bedded some of the most powerful men in Britain, including the married Duke of Kent and the film star Cary Grant: During this time, Campbell was courted by American investment bankers and art dealers and memorably wrote that she learnt that it was key to go to bed early and often in a relationship. And when she did finally become pregnant for more than a handful of months, it somehow got worse. During the divorce process, the Duke produced a Polaroid photograph of the Duchess performing a sexual act on another unidentified man - nicknamed "the headless man" - that he had found . Catherine of Aragon was King Henry VIIIs first wife and longest-lasting Queen of England. She was going to take the child in and somehow pass him off as her own, therefore making him the true legitimate heir of the duke. Margaret Campbell was a British socialite who was embroiled in a sex scandal during the 1960s and became known as the "dirty duchess." . She died aged 80 in 1993. Dirty Duchess Who was Margaret Campbell, the Duchess of Argyll, and when is A Very British Scandal on TV? The Polaroid Affair. Shortly after her birth, the family moved to New York, where Margaret spent . The case left Margaret vilified by the press in a pre-sexual revolution Britain and branded the "Dirty Duchess," while her former husband, who was also accused of adultery, escaped similar . Rural population was 822858 (72.88%) and urban population was 306157 (27.12%). Instead, they humiliated her. Published: December 26, 2021 at 8:05 am. David Niven met Margaret while the two of them were on holiday on the Isle of Wight. Joe Thomas was a New York stockbroker who Margaret was reported to have fallen in love with after the breakdown of her first marriage to Charles Sweeney, and it is claimed that he might be the man in the famous Polaroid photo. Amazon has even produced a series in 2022, A Very British Scandal, based on her electrifying court battle with her husbandin it, Claire Foy plays Margaret, while Paul Bettany plays Ian Campbell, the Duke of Argyll. The deb of the season became "the dirty Duchess." This spectacular (and spectacularly sexist) fall from grace is the subject of A Very British Scandal, the upcoming BBC drama starring Claire . One Polaroid image, in particular, taken in 1957, cast Margaret as an infamous trollop in the pages of the tabloids. . First, you need to get your hands on a camera. The Peerage, Pearls, and Polaroids, Oh My! There is still much speculation about who exactly the headless man was, but some historians believe we can put the answer to bed. Dancy Mason is the Editor-in-Chief at Factinate. Campbell's ex-husband, the 11th Duke of Argyll, played in the film by Paul Bettany, asserted in their very public 1960's divorce proceedings that she had slept with 80 men during their . Even so, the court didnt thank Margaret for her classy silence. Another, racier Polaroid, showing the Duchess pleasuring a man, was also produced. On brand for a high-class woman, and Margaret even quipped she was there to, put the point of view of the horse. But scorching scandal hit her incredibly young. Thus, the controversial Polaroid was unearthed, alongside another one with her standing naked (bar the pearl necklace) next to a man: In the court proceedings, Duncan Sandys, then Secretary of State for the Colonies and Winston Churchills son-in-law, was named as the man receiving oral sex, while film star Douglas Fairbanks Jr was named as the other man. Lets just, Entrancing Facts About Madame de Pompadour, France's Most Powerful Mistress, Tragic Facts About Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIIIs First Wife, Scorned Facts About Farida, Egypts Rejected Queen, Infamous Facts About Edwina Mountbatten, The High-Society Rebel, No-Nonsense Facts About Sophia of Nassau, The Woman Behind The King. Ticket Price (15% VAT) secret recording, bribery and an explicit Polaroid . Thanks for your help! More than that, Margaret was having further difficulty giving him a child, which didnt help matters. She kept mum on identifying any of the men she was in the photographs withthough there might have been a scandalous reason for this. Although the former Duchess of Argyll was well into her 70s at this point, and might be excused for an early bedtime, it did point to an overall decline in her health. Actually, thats putting it kindly. View our online Press Pack. But in the months that followed, he truly exacted his pound of flesh. After all, the flyboy was already married and had a young toddler at home. Following the scandal, he offered to resign from the cabinet but his resignation was declined. I knew that she was going to take it badly, but I had no idea about the insane lengths she would go to just to get revenge and mess with my life. This means that we may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. . "The dates matched too as Margaret was in New York in 1947 and 1948 and Polaroid brought out their first camera in 1948.". One rumour suggests it was the former Minister of Defence, Duncan Sandys (who later became the son-in-law of Winston Churchill). But these boys were just practice for the man she was about to meet. The next years of Margarets life paved the way for the infamy she was about to achieve. Margaret agreed to marry him. Marrying Ian Campbell was like signing a deal with the Devil, and the Duke made sure Margaret knew it before the ink on their marriage contract was even dry. The star of The Crown plays one of Britain's most scandalous aristocrats - Margaret Campbell, the so-called "Dirty Duchess". The Duchess of Argyll at her Grosvenor House apartment, 1989 Credit: Shutterstock. Claire Foy is taking on the role of Margaret Campbell, and Paul Bettany is playing her vengeful husband in a show that will air on the BBC early next year. In short, Margaret should have run away. Still, Margaret dove in headfirst anyway, solidifying her reputation as something of a Helen of Troy. . She got supremely unlucky and, months later, discovered her pregnancy. A FORMER Tory minister has been implicated in the Duchess of Argyll's "headless man" sex scandal of the 1960s. Destiny Rogers 21 December 2021. . But as soon as they were over their shock, Margarets parents knew exactly what they had to do. By the time Margaret was 15 years old, she was an undeniable stunner. While granting the divorce, the judge said of Margaret that she 'was a completely promiscuous woman whose sexual appetite could only be satisfied with a number of men. Photo Credit: . Do you question the accuracy of a fact you just read? Then, looking at the cushion, And its not that sort of cushion. The creators of the documentary claimed Sandys' identity was "conclusively proved" by the duchess's claim that the only Polaroid camera in England at the time had been lent to the Ministry of Defence. He had Margarets car wiretapped so he could know where she was at all times. The Golden Globe-winning actress plays Margaret Campbell, the Duchess of Argyll, who went through a high-profile, damaging and distressing public divorce. Margaret, Duchess of Argyll, died aged 80 in a nursing home in Pimlico, London, just a few days before the Major government decided to keep all the testimonies given to Lord Denning under wraps . Well, karma comes for us all, and it was coming for Margaret. The Channel 4 documentary "proved" that Sandys is the 'headless man', based on a claim from Margaret that the only Polaroid camera in the country at the time had been lent to the Ministry of Defence. It wasnt meant to be; she had a stillborn little girl instead. In the photographs, the Duchess of Argyll was very much not alone. The mystery man in the explicit photo became known as the 'headless man' and his identity has been largely speculated. Born on 1 December 1912, Margaret Whigham was the only daughter of a Scottish businessman and millionaire, George Hay Whigham and his wife, Helen Mann Hannay. The photo, in which the man was only captured from the neck down, became knows as the 'headless man' Polaroid. Sadly, thats not what happened, and Margaret may have been her own worst enemy. On our left in the image atop, is the Duchess of Argyll, Margaret Campbell. and Polaroid snaps showing Her Grace, clad only in a string of pearls . Husbands hiding things from wives, mothers from children, and generation from generation. The movie star was named as Margarets lover, one of the 88 men on the list that the Duke produced in court. Her second husband - and the subject of the BBC's A Very British Scandal - was Ian Douglas Campbell, 11th Duke of Argyll. The best revenge might be living well, but that doesn't mean we can always turn the other cheek. The future Duchess of Argyll was born Ethel Margaret Whigham on December 1, 1912, in Scotland to a millionaire father. He had been flying through a dust storm when his entire plane broke apart beneath him, sending him to his end. Then, in 1943, everything changed once moreand not for the better. Despite the tragedy, Margaret tried againeventually having two more children with Sweeny by 1940but her difficulties left lasting psychological scars. The photos were part of a lawsuit filed by the Duke against the duchess as part of a divorce proceedings, and a list of 88 men accused of having sex with her in the backyard. Her Norman Hartnell wedding dress cemented her status as one of the most glamorous socialites of the era, with crowds reportedly gathering to catch a glimpse of it. The photos were part of a lawsuit filed by the Duke against the duchess as part of a divorce proceedings, and a list of 88 men accused of having sex with her in the backyard. As the lyrics go: Youre Mussolini / Youre Mrs Sweeny. When the dust cleared, luck prevailed. There's something about the family structure that encourages secrets. In the 1930s, the Duchess was one of the most photographed women in the world and a style icon for millions; by the 1960s she had gained notoriety and the moniker "the Dirty Duchess" through a series of high-profile marriages, divorces, infidelities, sexual escapades, and extravagant living habits. The Sun website is regulated by the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO), Our journalists strive for accuracy but on occasion we make mistakes. Margaret learned the hard way that money cant buy you happinessbut she sure did try. A POLAROID picture was one of the key pieces of evidence in the scandalous divorce of the Duke and Duchess of Argyll. Campbell even had a crumbling abode, Inveraray Castle, to match his moodiness. Instead of going for either Greville or Aiken, she dumped them both and went with another man entirely: The businessman and avid golfer Charles Sweeny. Reportedly, the duchess began taking aim at the dukes sons from his previous marriage, even going so far as to forge letters that claimed the boys were illegitimate. The Duchess and a very dirty divorce: The scandalous life of the Duchess of Argyle GRANTING the Duke of Argyll a divorce from his wife Margaret, the judge in the 1963 hearing painted a damning . As the most commanding mistress in the French court, she bettered the lives of many and became a beloved figure. She suffered neglect from her mother, as well as a teen pregnancy that could have ruined her long before she became an eligible debutante. The titillating tale is coming to a small screen near you, as the BBC is making it into a drama series titled A Very British Scandal, following on from A Very English Scandal, starring Hugh Grant and Ben Wishaw: The series focuses on the acrimonious divorce that rocked the aristocracy and delighted the tabloids with its salacious details. The first photos of the scandalous new BBC drama A Very British Scandal starring Claire Foy have been released and there is all ready a lot of glamour to ogle over. Written by Sarah Phelps (The Pale Horse; Dublin Murders), A Very British Scandal focuses on the divorce of the Duke (Paul Bettany) and Duchess of Argyll (Claire Foy), one of the most notorious . Except the way she did it was cringeworthy: Soon, Margaret was giving paid tours of her home at 48 Upper Grosvenor Street, AKA the home where her ex-husband had first found those infamous photographs. 1. In the late 80s, the Dirty Duchess found a new way to make some quick cash. You know, this despite the fact that Margaret had certainly been out among men for quite some time. 48 Upper Grosvenor Street was once dubbed by John Paul Getty as "Number One, London" and it was the Mayfair house where one of the most celebrated sex scandals of the Sixties took place. dirty celebrity royals You probably know all about the Duchess of Argyll, but I didn't. . The situation scandalised conservative British society, and the so-called Dirty Duchess never fully restored her reputation after being branded a nymphomaniac by the Duke. But dont take this to mean Margaret was settling down. Only, before she could do irreparable damage to the Kidston union, disaster came knocking. One can only assume that the Dirty Duchess would be loving the Hollywood treatment. Some peoples lives get strictly divided into before and afterbut nothing can hold a candle to what Margaret was about to experience. To find evidence of infidelity, he broke into Margaret's personal cupboard in their London house, where he found the infamous Polaroids along with letters and other private documents. "She was incredibly famous," Claire tells . As she once summed up, referencing both her love of animals and her signature pearls, Always a poodle, only a poodle! After all, the Duchess had one enormous skeleton in her closet. Phelps hopes her new screen version of the court battle between the 11th Duke of Argyll and his supposedly unstable, "Dirty Duchess" will do something to restore the reputation of his wife, played by Foy. Margaret Campbell, Duchess of Argyll, remains fascinating among a certain set. But, no. In late 1933, Margaret was eight months pregnant and readying herself to give birth to a healthy child at last. It was a (failed) ploy to safeguard her own powerbut if you think that Margaret stopped there, youre extremely wrong. A POLAROID picture was one of the key pieces of evidence in the scandalous divorce of the Duke and Duchess of Argyll. The Duchess, Margaret Campbell, was a British socialite known for her lavish lifestyle and a string of high-profile affairs. Well, guess what? She began appearing on television programs, making a cameo appearance on the talk show After Dark to discuss the Grand National horse race. And then he got cold, cruel revenge. Not that men didnt try: By the end of the season, the court named her their debutante of the year and Margaret had her pick of suitors, any of whom would eat out of the palm of her hand if shed asked. Allegedly, she once invited a 17-year-old boy into Inveraray Castle for a bath and a drink, and then took off her clothes and climbed in with him. But it was here that tragedy struck. Before joining the team, she worked as a course lecturer while completing her Ph.D. in English Literature. She is remembered as a nymphomaniac socialite who disgraced the Establishment when her diaries and sexually explicit Polaroids were . had ceased to be satisfied with normal relations and had started to indulge in disgusting sexual activities. Yet those were only his picturesque qualities. A photo of a 'headless' man was one of the key pieces of evidence used in the divorce case of the Duke and Duchess of Argyll, which is due to be dramatised in the new BBC mini series A Very British Scandal. The metaverse is dead. The Duke of Argyll had always been suspicious that his wife had a roaming eyespoiler: he wasnt wrongbut hed never quite been able to prove it. . October 25, 2021. He had much darker ones, too. Margaret Campbell Duchess of Argyll. miniseries . . With their parents and chaperones otherwise occupied with their own vacation, the teenagers managed to find ample time to, er, explore their personal landscapes. The Duchess Of Argyll's Life Changed Massively Post-Divorce. It was something much worse. As Margaret recalled, doctors thought she must have grabbed onto the elevator cablethis is what likely saved her lifebecause her fingernails were torn and bloody. And when it came to Kidston, she was particularly ruthless. Join thousands of others and start your morning with our Fact Of The Day newsletter. Clearly, her second marriage was in deep troublebut no one had any idea what was really around the corner. There was the duchess, wearing only a string of pearls, pleasuring a standing man while on her knees. In the documentary, the makers stated that Margaret said at the time that the only Polaroid camera in the country at the time had been lent to the Ministry of Defence - although the claims have never been confirmed.
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