An English bon-vivant osteopath is enchanted with a young exotic dancer and invites her to live with him. He serves as friend and mentor, and through his contacts and parties she and her friend meet and date members of the Conservative Party. Eventually a scandal occurs when her affair with the Minister of War goes public, threatening their lifestyles and their freedom.
Acting
Joanne Whalley walks a razor's edge between victim and architect.
Production
Soho recreated so lush you can smell the gin and regret.
Costume
Every swimsuit and shift dress screams 'about to be national news.'
Director
Michael Caton-Jones
John Hurt
Stephen Ward
Joanne Whalley
Christine Keeler
Bridget Fonda
Mandy Rice-Davies
Ian McKellen
John Profumo
Leslie Phillips
Lord Astor
Britt Ekland
Mariella Novotny
Daniel Massey
Mervyn Griffith-Jones
Roland Gift
Johnnie Edgecombe
Alex Norton
Detective Inspector
Ronald Fraser
Justice Marshall
Paul Brooke
Detective Sergeant
Jeroen Krabbé
Eugene Ivanov
Keith Allen
Kevin
Ralph Brown
Paul Mann
Ken Campbell
Editor of Pictorial
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Christine Keeler herself called the film 'tasteful but wrong' — she disputed being portrayed as naive. The real Mandy Rice-Davies, however, loved Bridget Fonda's performance and attended the premiere.
The Profumo affair ended Macmillan's government and helped birth British satire; 'Private Eye' magazine was practically invented to mock this exact class of self-destructing toff.
GB
