Matthew Steeples slams the likely coverup of the latest Conservative Party sex scandal involving a still unnamed MP as a “French farce” and suggests that the Tories really shouldn’t sweep this matter under the carpet
One would have thought the Conservative Party would have come to its senses after the “French farce” debacle with the currently in the clink abuser ‘Naughty Tory’ ex-MP Charlie Elphicke and his tawdry replacement MP wife, Natalie.
Aside from both Theresa May and Boris Johnson having protected accused and, in some cases, convicted sex pest Members of Parliament in recent years, this morning the Mirror hinted at a coverup over the sidelining of an investigation into a “campaign of control and sexual abuse” of a woman by a “monster Tory MP” – a man said to be a former minister in his 50s.
In the report into this “French farce” of an investigation – which does not name any of the parties involved – the Mirror exclusively shared that the “top lawyer” Nigel Edwards QC has now taken on the woman’s case on a pro bono basis and reported allegations that:
The woman, a lady in her 20s, was supposedly subjected to sexual assaults in July 2019 and October 2019 by the Conservative MP.
The alleged victim claims to have been raped by the MP in January 2020.
The same man is said to have “told her what to wear and screamed if she wasn’t smiling” during a period in which she worked for him.
The woman’s mother told the paper that her daughter was “in shock and sobbing” after incidents and “has since been diagnosed with PTSD and is on medication.”
The same man is said to have threatened the woman on a night out, shouted at her in the street “with raised fists, screaming in her face, and swearing at her.” On that occasion, the then reportedly “tried to push her into a taxi.”
The MP subsequently “demanded” his victim then “come to his office and begged forgiveness” and that is “when one of the sexual assaults happened” allegedly.
The MP then allegedly “told her he’d come after her and destroy her life if she told anyone what happened. If she didn’t do as he said, he boasted that he’d wreck her career.”
14 people with supporting evidence were not questioned by the police.
Relevant documents from Women’s Aid, Rape Crisis and The Havens were not collected by the police.
Key evidence including text messages and phone records were ignored by the police.
Officers dismissed her claims because she was in a relationship with the MP and then “victim blamed” her.
Now, in spite of the police having decided not to proceed with any investigation into the allegations of rape, sexual assault and coercive control, Edwards told the paper:
“We are giving advice as to her options. There could be a civil claim for the damage done. A private prosecution could be considered if all other options have been exhausted.”
“All options will be explored and remain open so justice can be done and ensure any dereliction of duty or abuse of power is not unchallenged.”
Follow Matthew Steeples on Twitter at @M_Steeples.
A French Farce – This morning’s revelations in the ‘Mirror’ show that the Conservative Party have learnt nothing from the scandal of ‘Naughty Tory’ arse slapper Charlie Elphicke.A French Farce – In October 2017, the ‘Evening Standard’ revealed that a dossier of 36 Conservative MPs accused of “inappropriate behavior towards colleagues, including allegations of sexual misconduct” had been put together by the party. Ludicrously, little-to-nothing was subsequently done about these supposedly “highly inappropriately” behaved abusers and their twisted antics. Now, once again, that the party are sweeping allegations under the carpet is an outrage.A French Farce – There is nothing new about Tory MPs and sex scandals. In 1986, “kinky” Harvey Proctor MP – a man linked to Jeffrey Epstein’s mucky madam Ghislaine Maxwell via his then employer – was found guilty of gross indecency with teenagers.
A French Farce – The comedian Andrew Lawrence mocked the “French farce” that is theConservative Party’s attitudes to sexual misconduct to his 26,000 subscribers on YouTube in August 2020, but it must be remembered that the victims of creepy ‘sex pest’ MPs have been subjected to criminal sexual abuse. For that, such offenders should be brought to justice – whoever they may be.
Mucky madam Ghislaine Maxwell’s lawyers demand she gets access to a laptop seven days per week; one can assume she’ll expect a ritzy MacBook Pro
“What Ghislaine Maxwell wants, Ghislaine Maxwell gets” would be a fair summary of the past life of the now incarcerated and thankfully not bailed mucky madam.
Yesterday, having previously moaned about her not having a desk, writing surface or email access in August 2020, her lawyer, Christian R. Everdell of Cohen & Gresser LLP, wrote to The Honourable Alison J. Nathan to demand “the Bureau of Prisons give Ms. Maxwell access to the laptop computer [which has more than generously already been made available to her 5 days per week] provided by the government so that she can review discovery on weekends and holidays.”
In spite of her trial commencing in 178 days on 12th July, mucky madam Maxwell’s lawyers argue she is losing “several days of review time every weekend and every holiday because she does not have access to the laptop.”
Going further, they remarked that they have tried to “lift this restriction, but without success” previously and added:
“If Ms. Maxwell is to have any hope of reviewing the millions of documents produced in discovery so that she can properly prepare her defense by the July 12th, 2021 trial date, she must have access to the laptop every day, including weekends and holidays.”
“There is no principled justification for this restriction… The laptop is kept in a locker in the same room where the prison computer is located, so it would not require any change in Ms. Maxwell’s movements to give her the requested access.”
“… Given the millions of documents that Ms. Maxwell must review before trial in order to prepare her defense, it is critical that she be given as much time as possible with the laptop to review the discovery.”
Whatever next? Aside from Maxwell – who also repeatedly complained about her vegan eating habits not being properly catered for in the pokey – no doubt wanting an upgrade to a ritzy MacBook Pro, she’ll almost certainly be demanding Krug on tap next also. What else? Maybe even more inappropriately given what she grubbily used to arrange for the filthy fiend Jeffrey Epstein, a weekly visit from a masseuse as well and a Rolls-Royce to court also?
MacBook Maxwell – Ghislaine Maxwell, a woman used to having things her way is pictured here in her youth tapping away at an early computer, but that wouldn’t be good enough for her today. No doubt her devoted lapdog-like PR peddler Brian Basham will soon be claiming “it’s not fair” that she doesn’t have a MacBook Pro.MacBook Maxwell – On Tuesday, the ‘Guardian’ reported: “Ghislaine Maxwell is appealing against a judge’s order that she remain jailed in New York while awaiting trial on charges she recruited girls for Jeffrey Epstein to sexually abuse.” Prosecutors unsurprisingly opposed bail and countered: “Maxwell remained a threat to flee in part because she had access to considerable wealth and connections abroad.”MacBook Maxwell –Part of an old ‘HELLO!’ magazine interview with Ghislaine Maxwell from 1997 was shared on Reddit yesterday also. It features a picture of ‘Bouncing Bob’s’ bombastic daughter standing in a cluttered office space and includes quotes such as: “I will go wherever the business is” and remarks including: “I love children… I have always thought that one day I would get married and kids but it has never been a focus. It is not something I have set out to do. My focus is on business, but one day I would also like to get married and have kids.” Going further, the laptop lover added: “I do consulting work for different people in different areas in which I have expertise: publishing, communications, computers.” Get this wicked wench a MacBook Pro now, OR ELSE…
‘The Steeple Times’ chooses the 25 best and 25 worst people of the last year and the 25 who’ll be missed and the 25 who won’t
Happy New Year to all our readers. Our ‘Heroes & Villains’ list was well received in 2019 and as we move into 2021, we join all celebrating ‘good riddance’ to the monstrous mess that was 2020.
Whilst many bombed, most especially Dominic Cummings and Donald Trump in the sphere of politics, for example, the likes of the heroic footballer Marcus Rashford and his campaign for free school meals for poor children showed that even a footballer can make a difference in a pandemic.
HEROES OF 2020
Obvious heroes of the year: Jacinda Ardern for being a leader capable of acting with good sense, Captain Sir Thomas Moore for raising £32 million for the NHS, Lord Sumption for arguing for lockdown liberty and Joe Wicks for keeping the nation healthy and turning down a £2 million deal with a supermarket.
WINNER – Bob Grace
Eternally cheerful groom Bob Grace led out his first winner after 38 years of racing at Royal Ascot in June when his trusty steed Battaash romped home in the King’s Stand. He raised the spirits of the nation and of this humble hero, one Twitter user concluded: “Bob is wonderful, be like Bob.”
Emily Bolton
One of “Britain’s most powerful civil rights lawyers,” Emily Bolton boldly fought for the likely wrongly convicted ‘Freshwater Five’ fisherman in 2020. She is tenacious and dedicated and a force for genuine good.
Steve Cotton
Alongside his cat named Hitler as his barman, “Britain’s grumpiest landlord” proved the spirit of Victor Meldrew was well and truly still alive in 2020. Summing up his approach to business and life in general, Steve Cotten remarked:
“I just make it up as I go along. I might not know how to run a pub but I know what’s wrong with every pub I’ve ever been in. There’s no landlord anywhere, nobody talks to each other. I involve the whole community – everyone knows it’s not my pub, it’s everybody’s pub… We are a dark and cold and miserable boozer – and that’s what people like about it.”
“They all know you can do what you want here, use it for what you want, come here on your own at any time of the day or night and help yourself to a tea or coffee. Everybody will talk to everybody… You can discuss any topic under the sun here, nothing is taboo… Everyone has a go serving behind the bar, we all have a laugh and everyone joins in… No one else talks to them like crap like I do.”
Bilkis Dadi (real name: Bilkis Bano)
This 82-year-old crusader and anti-Modi protester became the “voice of the marginalised” in India in 2020 and was escorted away from the farmers’ protest by the police. This heroine was included in Time magazine’s 100 most influential people of the year and remarked: “We will not stand for this division.”
Alfie Diaper
Ten-year-old “little star” Alfie Diaper recovered from a ruptured spleen in 2019 and “came back fighting” with riding successes in 2020. One Scottish reader of The Steeple Times quite rightly termed this pint-sized hero a “talented, spirited wee soul.”
Julia Donaldson
The author of The Gruffalo went down in literary history as the biggest seller of the last decade in any genre in 2020 and now sells a book about every 11 seconds. JK Rowling did not even make the top five.
Hollie Doyle
Whilst she was ridiculously robbed of the BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2020 and came third, Hollie Doyle amazingly scored 151 wins in 2020. She also broke another record in becoming the first woman to win five races on a card at Windsor and our money is on her to become a hero of 2021 too.
Alain Ducasse
In January, Alain Ducasse spoke complete sense is echoing Iris Apfel’s “more is more and less is a bore” mantra. This culinary remarked: “I’ve noted [the Dry January] trend, but I don’t want to see or hear of it, I am opposed to it… “[I want to] rid consumers of their inhibitions [with regard to wine drinking].”
Lord Fowler
The Lord Speaker of the House of Lords quite rightly argued “there are too many Lords” in December. He added: “As we have just seen, its recommendations can be overridden by No 10. The result is that a prime minister has the power on his or her own to add peers to a house of parliament that can make and, within limits, unmake laws. Is this what the public expect in the third decade of the 21st century?”
Bryony Frost
Rising-star jockey Bryony Frost became the first woman ever to win the King George VI at Kempton on Boxing Day. This true heroine of the year is undoubtedly going to break many other glass ceilings in 2021.
Lady Glenconner
The former lady-in-waiting to the late Princess Margaret declared of coronavirus: ““I’ve been through the second world war and lived with someone with Aids at the beginning [of the Aids crisis]. I’m not scared of a little virus, you know.”
Agnes Gund (AKA ‘Aggie’)
A “put-your-money-where-your-mouth-is” philanthropist, Agnes Gund was described as “the last good rich person” by the New York Times in 2018 and in 2020 used money from the sale of one the most valuable artworks from her collection, a Roy Lichtenstein worth £120 million, to fund US prison reform. She has also given more than 900 significant works to the Museum of Modern Art in New York in the last 50 years.
Anders Holch Povlsen
Asos billionaire Anders Holch Povlsen led the way in rewilding in 2020. He also paid back the government £300,000 of furlough money during the year voluntarily and thus made a mockery of the likes of Sir Richard Branson and Sir Philip Green.
Patrick Hutchinson
Compassionate “fitness buff” Patrick Hutchinson carried an injured far-right racist protestor to his safety in spite of being himself black in June. Sensibly, he remarked: “Living with the image of a man being beaten to death isn’t something I could stomach. How do the police do that? They just seemed to be standing there watching it and filming with their selfie sticks. One of them said ‘well done’ to me, but I couldn’t really comprehend it.”
Jeremy King
The co-owner of The Wolseley rightly slammed Boris Johnson repeatedly during 2020. He rightly described lockdown Tier 2 coronavirus restrictions as “another knee jerk, ineffective, window-dressing, butt-covering initiative that hasn’t been thought through properly.”
Abdulkareem Musa Adam
This child refugee from a war zone in Darfur shone at Royal Ascot 2020. Accompanied by Shadn, this 22-year-old’s story was described by Clare Balding as “[showing] the incredible power of sport to bring people together and help them to heal, even after the most appalling suffering.”
Dolly Parton
In 2020, Dolly Parton gave £733,000 to fund a COVID-19 vaccine. The Guardian rightly said of her: “She understands that money is something you do, rather than something you have.”
Sister Norma Pimentel
Described as the “pope’s favourite nun,” Sister Norma Pimentel featured on Time magazine’s “100 most influential people of 2020” list. She has supported over 100,000 people seeking refuge at the border between Texas and Mexico and of her Julián Castro, former United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, remarked: “Sister Pimentel will keep changing the world, one act of kindness at a time.”
Dr. Ugur Sahin and Dr. Özlem Türeci
The “dream team” husband-and-wife team behind the leading vaccine to solve COVID-19 were amongst the ultimate healthcare heroes of 2020.
MacKenzie Scott
The ex-wife of Jeff Bezos gave £4.3 billion of her fortune to charity during 2020. In doing so, she became one of the biggest single donors to charity in a single year ever.
Santosh Shah
He didn’t win, but the unlikely star of MasterChef Professionals 2020 was this Nepali chef. He was eternally positive and widely lauded as the “people’s champion.”
Shirley Sherwood OBE
Britain’s leading botanist, after losing her tycoon husband at the age of 87, has become an unlikely star of Facebook with her videos sharing positivity and her passion for plants. She has rightly been described as the “driving force behind a revival of interest in botanical art.”
Micheline Stephen
A martini drinking 90-year-old and Dame Maggie Smith-lookalike, Micheline Stephen fought off a burglar and told him: “You’re a wee shite” in 2020.
‘Window Twerky’
Spotted on both the Fulham Road and Kings in Chelsea, this unknown woman amused many with her maniac moves during Lockdown 1.0. Her Fifty Shades of Crazy antics during that Strictly insane time were batshit bonkers but brilliant.
Tobias Weller (AKA ‘Captain Tobias’)
This heroic 9-year-old with cerebral palsy and autism raised over £150,000 for a children’s hospital during Lockdown 1.0 by completing marathons. He remarked: “It feels amazing to have completed both marathons. I feel fantastic. Thank you for clapping and cheering me every step of the way. You are all awesome. I love doing challenges so who knows what will be around the next corner?”
VILLAINS OF 2020
Previous list makers, but repeat offenders included Sir Philip Green, Sir Richard Branson, Tim Martin, Dominic Cummings, Boris Johnson, Darren Grimes, David Starkey, Sir Cliff Richard, Prince Andrew, Matt Hancock, Ghislaine Maxwell, Larysa Switlyk, Liz Hurley, Owen Jones, Richard Madeley, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Michael Barrymore, Vivienne Westwood, Rudy Giuliani, Donald Trump and Ferne McCann, but our winner just had to be:
WINNER – Priti Patel
When she wasn’t “minglin’” and “movin’” and misusing the English language, Priti Patel was angling for a return to the death penalty in the UK in 2020. Asked what kept her going in 2020, when even Emily Thornberry declared “gin,” the most awful Home Secretary in generations ridiculously responded: “Showing the perpetrators of crime that they have nowhere to hide and joining our police on early morning raids – reminding the criminals that we’re coming after them.”
James Abbott-Thompson
The son of calculator lacking Diane Abbott MP appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in January after “spitting at a police officer and biting his colleague.” He’d previously exposed himself on a hospital ward and had crystal meth delivered to his mother’s £1.2 million home.
Victoria Baker Harber and Inigo Philbrick
Though ‘Mini Madoff’ Inigo Philbrick was deservedly was dragged to the clink by the FBI in June and remains in custody, his latest ‘baby mama,’ Victoria Baker Harber, couldn’t keep her almightily large trap shut. Shortly afterwards, she turned on one of his many victims, Kenny Schacter, and crudely tweeted: “Are you crying about cash or cock?”
Brian Basham
Bombastic PR peddler Brian Basham didn’t manage to get the mucky madam Ghislaine Maxwell out of jail in 2020. In response he angrily ranted to his friends at the Daily Mail and called Finding Ghislaine podcast host John Sweeney a drunk and someone he “despises.”
Scott Borgerson (AKA ‘Scott Marshall’ and ‘Mr Ghislaine Maxwell’)
This tech company CEO was revealed to be Ghislaine Maxwell’s “secret husband” in December. He then tried and thankfully failed to use their millions to get her out on bail in time for Christmas.
Benjamin Clark
After attacking the Winston Churchill statue in Parliament Square in September, son of a pastor Benjamin Clark deservedly got fined. His solicitor’s attempts to try to defend him quite rightly fell on deaf ears.
Lizzie Cundy
Desperate-and-will-do-anything-for-attention Lizzie Cundy, 52, turned coronavirus into a photo opportunity in a bikini made out of face masks in October. For her, nothing isn’t worth using for self-publicity.
Ellen DeGeneres
The wheels fell off for goody two shoes Ellen DeGeneres when she was shown to be anything but nice. Her attempt at an apology for allowing workplace bullying was mocked as “underwhelming.”
Alan Dershowitz
Having defended multiple rapist Harvey Weinstein in 2018, Alan Dershowitz went one stage further in 2020 when he leapt to the defence of Ghislaine Maxwell and trashed the reputations of the victims of Jeffrey Epstein.
Tamara Ecclestone Rutland (AKA ‘Miss Piggy’)
Banshee-like billionairess Tamara Ecclestone Rutland appeared on ITV1’s This Morning in April. This daughter of a man whom once disgustingly described Hitler as someone who “was able to get things done” pestered people far poorer than her to donate to the NHS. Of this shameless attention seeker, a Twitter user remarked: “No offence but this feature on #ThisMorning is embarrassing. Trying to raise £1m but they have a family net worth of almost £4bn? Good publicity stunt though…”
Charlie Elphicke and Natalie Elphicke OBE MP
Ex-MP turned sexual predator and “Naughty Tory” Charlie Elphicke and his replacement MP wife Natalie got caught out after urging fellow parliamentarians to pester the judiciary after he got sent down. She was also very nasty about immigrants.
Laurence Fox
Actor Laurence Fox morphed from a housewives favourite and telly box treasure into a tedious twerp in 2020. His Reclaim Party became a laughing stock online and his decision to tattoo “freedom” and “space” on his hands was mocked unsurprisingly.
Mark Francois MP
This tedious Tory was pilloried online when he “disappeared” after an MP was accused of rape. He returned just-in-time to bang on and bore about the brilliance of Brexit in December. We can only hope he’ll “disappear” again in 2021.
Art fraudster Angela Gulbenkian attempted to flee to Portugal to escape going on trial in June. She was quite rightly extradited back to the UK and victims including Percy Bass of Walton Street should finally get justice against this blonde bimbo in 2021.
Julia Hartley-Brewer (AKA ‘Julia Heartless-Brouhaha’)
She’s awful every year without a doubt and will never be a hero to anyone, but in ignorantly defending a right-wing thug who’d relieved himself on a memorial to murdered constable Keith Palmer, this tedious twerp made a total prat of herself. In response, one Twitter user asked her: “Why do you as a woman think it is ok for a bloke to expose himself by getting his dick out and urinating in a public place?”
Michael Heaver
In blubbering like a baby after Nigel Farage failed to make the New Year’s Honours List, “milk bottle white” Westmonster co-owner Michael Heaver again showed himself as just one thing: “A remarkably unpleasant child.”
Lady Victoria Hervey (AKA ‘Toff Totty Vicky’)
Accurately described by the late Tara Palmer-Tomkinson as “unpleasant” and “a right snob,” dimwitted dope Lady Victoria Hervey defended Prince Andrew in 2019 and then stated: “Fuck BLM [Black Lives Matter]” in 2020 on her Instagram page. The world hope she remains silent in 2021.
Eamonn Holmes
Crackpot conspiracy theorist Eamonn Holmes morphed into the David Icke of 2020 when he declared that the “mainstream media’ was hiding a link between 5G technology and coronavirus. Him and his wife were unsurprisingly subsequently dropped from their weekly presenting roles on ITV1’s This Morning.
Dr. Walter Palmer (AKA ‘The Driller Killer’)
Having slayed ‘Cecil the Lion’ in 2015, deranged dentist Dr. Walter Palmer returned to his barbaric ways when he massacred an endangered ram in July 2020. Though he claims to be “looking forward” to his next “adventure,” one can only hope that this monster meets a sticky end in 2021.
Stephanie Pratt (AKA ‘Shady Steph’)
One-time crystal meth addict demanded shoplifters be shot in May 2020 on Twitter. Unfortunately for her, the public were on hand to remind her she’d been arrested for stealing a £1,000 of clothing from Neiman Marcus in May 2006.
Phillip Schofield
Aside from “claiming to have been murdered in a past life because of a debt” in October, Phillip Schofield attempted to rival Sir Cliff Richard and launched quite possibly the most loathed collection of boxed wines ever in September. What a plonker!
Carrie Symonds (AKA ‘Carrie Not On Regardless’ and ‘The Duchess of Downing Street’)
Boris Johnson’s wine chucking puppet mistress proved herself to be a total busybody in 2020. Despite not being elected herself, that the PM’s latest ‘baby mama’ got her own cronies into Downing Street during the year was a total disgrace.
Alexandra Tolstoy
Miserable moaning Minnie Alexandra Tolstoy bleated about not being able to live on £10,000 per week before getting £606,000 for a few of her possessions in a Christie’s auction in November. Loopy to her core, she remarked: “We’re just surviving.”
Dominic West
Aside from being caught kissing actress Lily James in October, actor Dominic West got caught breaching social distancing rules on a shoot in Wiltshire in December. He also claimed to have “jumped for joy” when he found out Donald Trump had coronavirus.
Heroes & Villains 2020 – Lizzie Cundy (left) and Inigo Philbrick and Victoria Baker Harber (right) – Examples of the worst people of 2020 without a doubt.
THOSE WHO’LL BE MISSED
Sadly, many great people were lost in 2020 and amongst those most widely mentioned were Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Honor Blackman, Chadwick Boseman, Kobe Bryant, Jack Charlton, Sir Sean Connery, Des O’Connor, Kirk Douglas, George Floyd, Dame Olivia de Havilland, Eddie Van Haylen, Irrfan Khan, Dame Vera Lynn, Diego Maradona, David Prowse, Gene Reynolds, Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sachs, Jackie Stallone, Larry Tesler and Bill Withers.
WINNER – John le Carré (born David Cornwell)
Having sensibly summed up Donald Trump’s election and the banality of Brexit, novelist John le Carré died from pneumonia aged 89 in December. Of his passing, his agent Johnny Geller remarked: “[He was] an undisputed giant of English literature. He defined the cold war era and fearlessly spoke truth to power in the decades that followed… We will not see his like again.”
Michael Angelis
Liverpudlian actor Michael Angelis brought happiness to many. He was the narrator of Thomas & Friends for 21 years and also appeared in Bergerac and Z-Cars. He died in May aged 76.
Lady Elizabeth Anson CVO (married named Lady Elizabeth Shakerley)
This first cousin-once-removed of Queen Elizabeth II was “discreet and professional.” She observed that “the very rich, the very idle, the very busy and the ones who simply haven’t a clue what to do” didn’t have the skills to organise events, so set up a party planning business. She died in November aged 79.
Sir Terence Conran
Multi-skilled and described as “the most passionate man in Britain when it comes to design,” Sir Terence Conran died in September aged 88. He once remarked: “It’s thrilling as a designer when you see something you’ve designed and built actually being used. Seeing a shop filled with people, or a restaurant with people smiling away happily, it’s like, gosh, all my dreams have come true.”
Alan Davidson
This legendary newspaper photographer captured stars at play from 1969 until his death in March aged 70. Of him, the Daily Mail’s Richard Kay remarked: “No event was off limits to Alan.”
Sir Harold Evans
Described in an obituary in the Guardian as “the most admired newspaper of his generation,” Sir Harold Evans died aged 92 in September. He will be best remembered for exposing Robert Maxwell as a fraudster and Kim Philby as a traitor. In doing so, he became the first editor to order a D-notice and summing him up, here was someone who’ll be remembered as someone “loved by his staff.”
Lynn Faulds Wood
The wife of fellow television presenter John Stapleton was best known for co-hosting the BBC’s Watchdog with him. She died after a stroke in April aged 72.
Derek Fowlds
Affable actor Derek Fowlds was best known for his roles in Yes Minister and The Basil Brush Show. He died as a result of complications from pneumonia in January aged 82.
Desmond Guinness
Brewing heir Desmond Guinness was an author and expert on Georgian architecture. He will be remembered as a “great dandy of his generation” and saved countless buildings from the wrecking balls of property developers. He died in August aged 88.
John Hays
Having doubled his workforce and saved thousands of jobs when him and his wife bought Thomas Cook in 2019, “high street hero” John Hays died suddenly at his offices in November aged 71. He considered his workers “family” and laughed off people comparing him to a “country bumpkin.”
Shere Hite (born Shirley Gregory)
Twice married sex educator and feminist Shere Hite renounced her US citizenship in 1995, was briefly stateless and then became German. She posed in the nude for Playboy whilst at university and died of corticobasal degeneration in September aged 77.
Thomas Hoare (AKA ‘Mad Mike Hoare’)
This fervently anti-communist British mercenary leader died in February having led campaigns in the Congo and a failed “package-holiday coup” in the Seychelles. Of him, his son remarked: “Mike Hoare lived by the philosophy that you get more out of life by living dangerously, so it is all the more remarkable that he lived more than 100 years.”
Tony Hooper
A founder member of the Strawbs, singer and guitarist Tony Hooper died in December aged 81. He left the band after argument over whether they should be more folk or rock in 1972 and became an educational author and book jacket designer in the 1990s.
Knut Kloster
With a name that sounded like a brand of breakfast cereal, “visionary” cruise line king Knut Kloster died in September aged 91. He was best known for co-founding the hugely successful Norweigan Caribbean Line in 1966, but his attempt to build a “world peace boat” eventually came to nothing.
Sir Stirling Moss OBE
“Who do you think you are? Stirling Moss?” will go down in history as a much-quoted punchline of policemen, but this racing driver will be remembered for two other quotes also: “If God had meant for us to walk, why did he give us feet that fit car pedals?” and “There are two things no man will admit he cannot do well: drive and make love.” He died in April aged 90 having survived falling down the lift shaft of his Mayfair home in 2010.
Geoffrey Palmer OBE
As Time Goes By star Geoffrey Palmer died in November aged 93. Of him, his co-star Dame Judi Dench concluded: “Geoffrey was master of comedy.”
Julia Peatling
This Stockwell based medical secretary loved a gin and tonic at PJ’s on Fulham Road and her Downton Abbey star dog, Poppy.
Margarita Pracatan (born Margarita Figueroa)
Cuban novelty singer Margarita Pracatan, who died in June in New York aged 89, was best-known for performing on Clive James’ television show Saturday Night Clive in the 1990s. Of her, he remarked: “She never lets the words or melody get in her way. She is us, without the fear of failure.”
Carl Reiner
Born in The Bronx, actor, author and comedian Carl Reiner joined Twitter at the ripe old age of 90 in 2012. Two days before he passed in June, he tweeted: “Nothing pleases me more than knowing that I have lived the best life possible by having met and marrying the gifted Estelle (Stella) Lebost – who partnered with me in bringing Rob, Annie & Lucas Reiner into to this needy & evolving world.”
Michael Russell
“Publisher, wit and author” Michael Russell was the creator of the spoof memoirs of J. R. Hartley, he of Yellow Pages fame. He also published Richard Spitzy’s How We Squandered the Reich – a book that described Hitler as being “like a cross between a head waiter and a chimney sweep.”
James Sherwood
Buccaneering American businessman James Sherwood revived the Orient Express, built up a chain of hotels and created the Sea Containers empire. He died in May aged 86 having once been stranded at 16,000 feet in the Andes with Princess Michael of Kent after his helicopter had to make an emergency landing.
Barbara Smoker
This “promoter of many causes now take for granted” died in April. Barbara Smoker will be best remembered for saying: “Don’t always be obedient. Obedience is overrated. You’ve got to work out your morality for yourself, not do everything you’re told. Obedience can be more of a vice than a virtue.”
Alexandra Sykes (born Alexandra Sotomayer)
The third wife of businessman Mark Sykes was vivacious and bubbly. “Wise and kind” Alexandra Sykes loved to keep fit and at a party, hers was always the liveliest voice in the room.
Helen Taylor-Thompson OBE
After having worked as a spy in occupied France in the Second World War as part of Churchill’s “secret army,” Helen Taylor-Thompson co-founded Europe’s first AIDS hospice. She died in September aged 96.
Alexander Thynn, 7th Marquess of Bath
Polygamous Lord Bath was as famed for his ‘wifelets’ as he was for his erotically styled paintings. He played an aristocrat in the 1987 video for the Pet Shop Boys song ‘Rent’ and died of COVID-19 in April aged 87.
The late Margarita Pracatan is exactly the kind of person we could do with now.
THOSE WHO WON’T BE MISSED
WINNER – Peter Sutcliffe (AKA ‘The Yorkshire Ripper’)
This evil HGV driver claimed he’d “heard voices that ordered him to kill prostitutes while working as a gravedigger” as an excuse for slaughtering at least 13 women and attempting to murder 7 more between 1975 and 1980. He died as a result of complications from COVID-19 in November.
Tariq Aziz
Saddam Hussein’s principal spokesman died in June aged 79. He had been found guilty of “deliberate murder and crimes against humanity” in October 2010.
Donato Bilancia (AKA ‘The Liguria Monster’ and ‘The Killer on the Trains’)
This Italian serial killer murdered 17 people between October 1997 and April 1998 on the Italian Riviera. A compulsive gambler with a passionate hatred for night watchmen and sex workers, Bilancia died of COVID-19 in Due Palazzi prison in Padua in December.
George Blake
This remorseless British MI6 officer turned double agent for Soviet Union believed he was not a traitor and once remarked: “To betray, you first have to belong. I never belonged.” He died on Boxing Day having caused the deaths of at least 40 British agents in Russia as a result of his treachery.
Alfred Bourgeois
This trucker molested and murdered his 2-year-old daughter and then joked about it. He was given a lethal injection of pentobarbital in December at a prison in Terre Haute, Indiana.
Anthony Casso (AKA ‘Gaspipe’)
An American mobster and serial killer considered a “homicidal maniac.” He confessed involvement in upto 36 murders and was imprisoned for 455 years in 1998. Casso died from complications related to COVID-19 in December.
Brian Daniels
A bus driver turned paedophile serial rapist, Daniels was approaching the end of an 18-year sentence for attacks on four young girls in May when it was discovered he had further victims. He died in prison in October having remarked: “I did something against kids and I was punished. I don’t deserve to live. My final punishment will be death.”
Roy Den Hollander
This American lawyer shot himself in July after being made a suspect in the murder of fellow lawyer Marc Angelucci in California and the son of Judge Salas in New Jersey earlier that month. He had been a member of the National Coalition for Men, but after being kicked out called them “wimps and whiners.”
Terry Dicks (AKA ‘Phil’)
Possibly the most bigoted ex-Conservative MP ever, Dicks termed Nelson Mandela a “black terrorist” and ridiculed a Somali refugee family buying water in a supermarket by saying “where they come from they’re happy to drink out of puddles.” He referenced himself as a “spastic” due to his cerebal palsy and said of an Observer journalist sentenced to death by his hero Saddam Hussein: “He deserved to be hanged.” He loathed gay people and was nicknamed ‘Phil’ – for “elevating Philistinism to an art form.”
Vikas Dubey
An Indian gangster and history-sheeter turned murderer, Dubey was “killed” in July after “the police vehicle carrying him met with an accident and overturned.” He snatched a pistol from a policeman trying to fix a flat tyre, tried to run away and was then shot by another officer.
Scott Erskine
This American serial killer and rapist was responsible for the death of at least 3 child victims. He died in July after contracting COVID-19 in July.
Lonnie Franklin (AKA ‘The Grim Sleeper’)
This LA born serial killer committed at least 10 murders between 1984 and 2007. The majority of his victims were black women.
Dustin Honken
This serial killer was responsible for the murders of 3 adults and 2 children in Iowa in 1993. Before being executed in July, his last words were: “Hail Mary, Mother of God, pray for me.”
William LeCroy
This former soldier murdered a woman he believed was a witch in Georgia in 2001. He never showed any remorse for his actions and his last words were to his “spiritual adviser.” He remarked: “Sister Battista is about to receive in the postal service my last statement.”
Daniel Lewis Lee
This American white supremacist murdered a gun dealer and his family in Arkansas in 1996. He claimed to be innocent until the end.
Samuel Little
An American serial killer responsible for the deaths of at least 60 women, Little claimed to have killed as many as 93 between 1971 and 1997. He died in a Los Angeles County area hospital in December.
John Lowe (AKA ‘Keepers Cottage Stud Murderer’)
This puppy farm owner fatally shot his partner and her daughter in February 2014. He claimed he wanted them “put down” and himself died in a hospice in August.
Ba Ag Moussa
A Malian militant and jihadist, Moussa was shot and killed by French Armed Forces in November.
Roy Norris (AKA ‘The Toolbox Killer’)
Along with Lawrence Bittaker, Norris kidnapped, raped, tortured 5 teenage girls in 1979 in Southern California with pliers, ice picks and sledgehammers. He died of natural causes in February.
Abel Ochoa
High on crack, Ochoa killed five members of his family and tried to justify it due to being “intoxicated and in a delirium.” His final words were: “I would like to thank God, my dad, my Lord Jesus savior for saving me and changing my life. I want to apologise to my in-laws for causing all this emotional pain. I love y’all and consider y’all my sisters I never had. I want to thank you for forgiving me.”
Gordon Pinkerton
An RAF serviceman turned child abuser, Pinkerton sexually abused 6 young girls between 1963 and 2011. He was jailed in 2013 and died of coronavirus in prison in April.
Wesley Ira Purkey (AKA ‘The Claw Hammer Killer’)
Executed by lethal injection in July, Purkey raped and killed a teenager in 1998 and beat an 80-year-old to death with a claw hammer later that year.
Omar Sadiq (AKA ‘Roger’)
This Glasgow gangster and racial hatred inciter was killed by two of his associates in September. A floral tribute at the location of his shooting read: “Absolutely devastated. There was a better plan for you.”
Cathy Smith
This Canadian backup singer injected Saturday Night Live’s John Belushi with a fatal dose of heroin and cocaine in 1982. She died in August and had received a further drugs conviction in 1991 after serving 15 months between December 1986 and March 1988 for involuntary manslaughter.
Howie Winter
This mobster and leader of the Winter Hill Gang was implicated in a number of slayings in the 1960s and 1970s, but never charged. Of his demise in November aged 91, Thomas Foley, a retired Massachusetts State Police colonel, remarked: “It’s the end of a legend, but not a good legend… He is a guy that actually got away with murder.”
Pictured top: Winning Villain of 2020 Priti Patel and winning Hero of 2020 Bob Grace.
As grotesque Ghislaine Maxwell is deservedly denied bail, PR peddler Brian Basham bizarrely drones on about China and “show trials” whilst author Don Winslow references the pressure now placed on Donald Trump
Illustrating ‘Bouncing Bob’s’ deviant daughter was actually subject to “conditions [that] set her apart from general population inmates, not to mention other inmates in protective custody,” the New York Times reported that federal prosecutors “contended Ms. Maxwell didn’t have it so bad.”
Rather than being left to face rats, as the grotesque grubber has groaned, they added: “She is released from her cell for 13 hours a day. She has her own shower, her own phone and exclusive use of two computers – even her own TV.”
In response, as per usual, the somewhat sympathetic DailyMail.com – an operation controlled by one-time Maxwell associate Geordie Greig – gave the mucky madam’s PR peddler and coordinator of ‘Operation Get Ghislaine Out’ Brian Basham space to drone on about the “injustice” of the decision. Predictably, he went into a diatribe on her behalf and ranted:
“It’s grotesque and against the laws of natural justice. It’s just wrong to deny somebody the chance to properly prepare for their defense.”
“She’s going to be locked up in prison for months now. The judge has given in to the lynch mob, that’s what this is.”
“Ghislaine will be devastated. Her birthday was on Christmas Day and she was hoping to be out by then to be with her family.”
“This seems like a show trial, it’s ridiculous. I hesitate to draw comparisons with China but that’s how it feels.”
Elsewhere on Twitter last night, award-winning crime and mystery novelist Don Winslow told his 557,500 followers:
“A judge rejected Ghislaine Maxwell’s $28.5 million bail package today.”
“This puts A LOT of pressure on Donald Trump as January 20th approaches.”
“Maxwell has receipts. Lots and lots of receipts.”
“Watch this case closely.”
Pictured top: Ghislaine Maxwell with her late mother, Betty, and a photograph of her decidedly deviant dead daddy, Robert.
‘Friend of Geordie’ (FOG) Ghislaine – ‘Daily Mail’ editor Geordie Greig with grotesque grubber Ghislaine Maxwell. The pair have been photographed together up-close-and-personal on a number of occasions, so any denial of a past friendship by Greig would be spurious.Grotesque Ghislaine Grubbily Groans – Novelist and screenwriter Don Winslow – creator of the series featuring fictional private detective Neal Carey – shared his take on Ghislaine Maxwell being denied bail on Twitter late Monday. He quite rightly remarked on the dilemma this places Donald Trump in given him and his potentially trafficked wife’s connections to both Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell also.
Avocados and a “lack of British chefs in the kitchens” get the goat of out-of-touch British peers just as Norman Fowler calls for their numbers to be cut
This morning, the Mirror revealed that “pampered peers” in the House of Lords have spent 2020 complaining about the quality of avocados just as, in a year when the country teeters on bankruptcy, the taxpayer has propped up their loss-making dining rooms and bars to the tune of nearly £2 million in subsidies.
“Boris Johnson stuffing the House of Lords with his dodgy mates is clearly having its effect.”
“Instead of playing at Downton Abbey, these peers should be looking beyond their own dinner plate and address the real problems people across the country are facing.
Shockingly paid £305 plus travel expenses for each and every day they attend, yet charged just £3.70 for a full English breakfast, peers also “griped” about the halting of the sale of alcohol of the Parliamentary Estate due to coronavirus restrictions. One even whinged that “there were not enough British chefs in the kitchens.”
Elsewhere, last week, Lord Fowler, the lord speaker of the House of Lords, quite rightly argued in the Guardian that “there are too many lords” and remarked on Boris Johnson adding another 52 peers during 2020.
He questioned the sense of the resulting total number of 830 – “despite a cross-party agreement three years ago that numbers should over time be reduced to 600” – and questioned the fact the Lords is almost 200 larger in number than the Commons “and far in excess of what needed to transact its business.”
“As we have just seen, its recommendations can be overridden by No 10. The result is that a prime minister has the power on his or her own to add peers to a house of parliament that can make and, within limits, unmake laws. Is this what the public expect in the third decade of the 21st century?”
“When making appointments it has become obvious that governments wish to avoid parliamentary scrutiny. Both of the initial announcements of new peerages in the last 12 months have been made when parliament has not been sitting. It simply adds to the impression that the choice of peers is the exclusive preserve of No 10 – and the less publicity the better. This may be fine for the government’s public relations team: whether it is fine for parliament is another matter.”
Pampered Peers Prattle About Avocados –In March 2015, ‘The Steeple Times’ reported that “peers had complained about being left ‘scarred’ after having had their dinner bookings cancelled and were angered by the size of the menus, ‘chaotic’ table layouts and ‘inferior cappuccinos.’”Pampered Peers Prattle About Avocados – Norman Fowler, Baron Fowler PC is quite right to call for reform of the House of Lords. A 2017 “analysis of voting, speaking and expenses records in the Lords, [showed a] ‘something for nothing culture among peers” by the Electoral Reform Society astonishingly revealed “115 Lords – one in seven of the total – failed to speak at all in the 2016/17 session, despite claiming an average of £11,091 each, while 18 peers failed to vote but still claimed £93,162” and that expenses claims had soared by 20% in just two years “at a time when public services have been under strain.”
Pampered Peers Prattle About Avocados – In January 2018, the ‘National Geographic Discovery Channel’ reported on a peer complaining about a pork chop that was “uneatable, tough and dry, and clearly cooked for hours before.” Of some “gone off” smoked salmon, another member added: “It really was disgrace.”
Well-known bully Priti Patel inspires a bingo game after her latest “egregious” telly box blunder over Christmas Covid-19 rules
This morning, finger wagging firebrand Priti Patel did what she does best during an appearance on the telly box: The Home Secretary made a total prat of herself by contradicting her never-sorry self.
Appearing variously on BBC Breakfast, Sky News and ITV1’s Good Morning Britain, Patel – a woman well known for irritatingly saying “movin’” rather than “moving” – showed her incompetence by moving the goalposts of what is and what is not allowed this Christmas.
Mocked resultingly on Twitter and summed up a “bit of [a] bully” in a mocked up Bullseye poster, Patel again proved herself a shameless snitch in remarking: “If I saw somebody flouting coronavirus regulations and the laws, of course I would look to inform the police about that.” 2020’s ultimate “neighbour from hell” then contradicted herself by adding: “[The police’s] role is only to enforce egregious breaches… We’re not here to criminalise people.”
Could someone in government now do us all a favour? Please put poisonous Priti Patel back in the dart box for Christmas.
A Bit of A Bully –The Twitter user to most accurately sum up the Home Secretary’s latest telly box appearance was one Mark Steel. He remarked: “At last something good has come of Covid. Priti Patel says she won’t be visiting her parents for Christmas. They must be fucking delighted.”A Bit of A Bully – Twitter user Matthew Payne rightly surmised the shameful contradictory nature of Priti Patel on coronavirus: She’d report her neighbours, but she was happy to let off Dominic Cummings.A Bit of A Bully – Amusingly, a gentleman named Mike Sweet tweeted: “Priti Patel has a weirdly irritating way of speaking which is difficult to categorise. She is incapable of pronouncing the end sound to lots of words, and yet simultaneously sounds as if she is aping a ‘posh’ accent. It’s all very Mrs Bucket.” A Bit of A Bully – Another Twitter user shared a new game called ‘Priti Patel Bingo’ complete with an accurate analysis of her misuse of words like “moving,” going,” “working” and “doing.”
1987 Volkswagen Golf cabriolet – nicknamed ‘Rodney’ – previously owned by ‘Only Fools and Horses’ actor Sir David Jason to be auctioned; sadly, of it, even Del Boy couldn’t claim: “Just one lady owner from new”
Del Boy’s Golf cabriolet – An alpine white 1987 Volkswagen Golf GTI Karmann convertible purchased for Sir David Jason’s late partner, Myfanwy Talog, is to be auctioned later this month, It was subsequently owned by his manager, Sidney Law, and then by his children’s godfather, John Williams.
Unlike the vehicle most associated with the character most famously played by Sir David, the custard yellow Reliant Regal van driven by Del Boy in Only Fools and Horses, the Golf cabriolet that will be hammered down is described as “in sparkling condition, patently cherished and almost certainly a best of breed.”
Sir David Jason and his late partner Myfanwy Talog (1944 – 1995).Del Boy was himself best known for driving a Reliant Regal three wheeler van in the series. There are many replicas, but the original vehicle used by the BBC was sold for £42,000 ($55,000, €47,000 or درهم203,000) in November 2017.Prior to becoming famous Sir David Jason used to joke: “One day, one day I’m going to have a Rolls-Royce.” In Only Fools and Horses, he eventually got one complete with the plate ‘1 DEL.’Boycie, played by John Challis in the series, bought a Jaguar E-Type in the second ever episode of Only Fools and Horses in 1981. Of this birthday gift for his “bit on the side,” he stated: “It’s only E-Type Jaguars and Adam Peaty that makes me proud to be British these days.” In May 2013, interviewed in ‘The Steeple Times,’ Challis stated his personal preference for Aston Martin DB4s.When sold in December 2017, the Golf cabriolet offered this month came with various documentation including a file that stated its nickname as ‘Rodney’ alongside a quote that read: “This car has a longstanding association with David Jason and his family – naturally we call him ‘Rodney.’”
Sold for £17,820 ($23,439, €19,739 or درهم86,080) in December 2017 by Classic Car Auctions Everyman Classics and by Cotswold Classic Car Restorations on another occasion, the car – which was one of just 138 examples produced as part of Volkswagen’s limited edition all-white series – has just under 22,000 miles on the clock.
Silverstone Auctions will offer the car with an estimate of £18,000 to £22,000 ($23,700 to $28,900, €19,900 to €24,400 or درهم86,900 to درهم106,300) at their NEC Classic Live online auction on Saturday 14th November 2020.
In ‘Only Fools and Horses,’ Del Boy was prepared to trade anything – dodgy cars included. “Only one previous owner, a vicar” and “only left his bible in the glove compartment” were amongst the lines in this classic clip.
Axminster gym owner Aneesa California is wrong to announce she and upto 200 others will defy the lockdown rules; the nation should instead get its walking shoes on during Lockdown 2
We all need exercise and we’re all going to need to ensure we keep fit during the impending lockup-lockdown, but as the late great legend that was Dr. Thomas Stuttaford rightly pointed out in The Times regularly, we should remember that “walking every day is the route to fitness.”
Gyms, on the other hand and contrary to a myth created to bamboozle the masses into parting with membership fees, are not ‘essential’ and news that upto 200 owners of such premises are going to defy the rules from tomorrow is actually not to be encouraged.
Going further of his theory in 2004, the ‘Good Doctor’ quite sensibly remarked: “The emphasis on gyms, sports stadiums and workouts is well intentioned but perhaps not the way to ensure a healthier Briton. The way to living longer and to be healthier and athletically fitter into old age is to take regular steady exercise every day. Twenty minutes to half an hour’s brisk walk a day — preferably all in one go — is enough.”
The Wonders of Walking – The late Dr. Thomas Stuttaford (1931 – 2018) was a well-known proponent of walking being the best form of exercise.The Wonder of Walking – Aneesa California (pictured with her husband Jesse) would do well to heed the comments of Professor Jonathan Ball rather than defy the rules. She could, instead, for now, encourage her clients to take up walking and could perhaps get them on the path to pavement pounding.
Whilst nobody rational is celebrating ‘Bosie The Clown’s’ decision to close anywhere that generates employment and again today we most vehemently raise our objections to the shuttering of socially distanced restaurant spaces, for example, gym owner Aneesa California should not be congratulated for her announcement that she will likely refuse to close her doors.
“Absolutely [we will stay open]… I’m in contact with around two hundred gym owners across the UK and we’re all having a discussion on [staying open] as we speak.”
“Obviously Parliament has to vote on this between now and Thursday, but we’re all pushing and applying pressure on our MPs to back us in classing us as essential.”
“‘I wouldn’t say it’s breaking the law, it’s guidance, everything they have said is guidance… We are going to take a financial impact, but this is not about money.”
“I’m in touch with legal aid and other people regarding fines, which I’m willing to pay, but, right now, we’re not breaking any law.”
Elsewhere yesterday, the BBC Radio 1 analysed the facts about “gyms and coronavirus.” In a report by Christian Hewgill and Eleanor Roper for Newsbeat, virologist Professor Jonathan Ball of the University of Nottingham was quoted. He quite sensibly stated:
“You do tend to exercise quite vigorously [in gyms], that means that you can breathe rapidly and quite deeply. Therefore, we’d expect that you could potentially produce droplets or aerosols that could go on to infect other people.”
“There’s always a risk that you might interact with someone who’s infected [without either of you knowing] and that allows the virus to transmit.”
Now readers, here’s a call to action for the coming month: Get your walking shoes on and pound those pavements.
As Phillip Schofield’s book is banned from sale in Wales, we ask: “Did the temperamental telly host ‘Schofe’ have another meltdown as a result?”
Whilst nobody was surprised when Bangladesh, Egypt, India, Iran, Kenya, Kuwait, Liberia, Malaysia, Pakistan, Senegal, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand amongst others banned The Satanic Verses in 1988 for supposed blasphemy against Islam, news that Phillip Schofield’s memoirs have been outlawed from sale in Wales might actually surprise.
Though no doubt an affront to literature in terms of the quality and relevance of its content, an image of Schofield’s recently released Life’s What You Make It in a taped off section of a Tesco store in Cardiff appeared yesterday in The Sun. Appropriately, however, given the shocking reviews the tome has deservedly received, a notice was pinned to the shelving stating: “We are unable to sell non-essential items at this time.”
We’re left wondering: Did ‘Schofe’ hit his “only fit for the bin” boxed wine as a result? If so, we can only pity those dealing with his hangover this morning.
Schofe Banned – With his memoirs banned from sale in supermarkets in Wales and his boxed wine rubbished as “no more palatable than fizzy Ribena,” ‘Schofe’ no doubt had another temper tantrum. Poor lamb.Schofe Banned – D. H. Lawrence’s ‘Lady Chatterley’s Lover’ was banned from sale in the United Kingdom for violation of obscenity laws. The ban was lifted in 1960 and one is now left wondering how long Phillip Schofield’s tome will remain on a list of banned books for.
Matthew Steeples selects some of the most telling and cringeworthy remarks from the newly unsealed 2016 Ghislaine Maxwell deposition
On Thursday, I ploughed through all 465 pages of the newly unsealed April 2016 deposition of Ghislaine Maxwell at the law offices of Boies Schiller & Flexner. After being promised lurid details of ‘Bouncing Bob’s’ daughter’s “wild sex life” and her lawyers claiming it’d “spread like wildfire across the Internet” (and thus prejudice her trial), overall it was just a bit of a damp squib.
Whilst the bombshells many were hoping for simply did not emerge and though most names redacted could easily be identified – Prince Andrew and Bill Clinton included – what the mainstream media avoided mentioning was that there were many telling remarks and many contradictory statements in the unsealed document.
Mucky Madam Maxwell Unsealed – Ghislaine Maxwell with her chum Prince Andrew and accuser Virginia Giuffre at her London home. During the deposition, Miss Maxwell referred to Ms. Giuffre as a “liar” hundreds of times.
Aside from the fact that ‘Grubby Ghislaine’ clearly illustrated she has her late conman father’s temper in an episode of table thumping, Miss Maxwell’s evasiveness in avoiding giving straightforward answers was transparent. She also showed her own true character and also illustrated the lengths she would go to protect the late Jeffrey Epstein.
With the public set to see this mucky madam on trial next year, we can now anticipate the approach this devious devil will take. It’ll be bombastic and bold, but she’ll unlikely be doing anything that puts her great mate, the non-sweating, Pizza Express loving royal, at risk – that’s for sure.
Here below, we select a few of the amusing and strange questions and quotes from what was unsealed:
Ghislaine Maxwell gets questioned about a John Bryan – Duchess of York-esque ‘toe sucking’ equivalent incident:
Q – “Did you ever ask [Virginia Giuffre] to rub Jeffrey’s feet?
A – “I believe that I have read that, but I don’t have any memory of it.”
Asked about “sexual acts,” Maxwell – a woman well-known for teaching other women how to give blowjobs at dinner tables – unconvincingly answered:
A – “I don’t know what you mean by sexual acts.”
A – “I’ve never had non-consensual sex with anybody… At any time with anybody.”
Curiously defining her citizenships:
Q – “Are you a citizen of the United States?”
A – “I am.”
Q – “Are you also a citizen of England?”
A – “I am.”
Q – “Are you a citizen of any other land?”
A – “TerraMar.”
Q – “That’s the name of your charity project that deals with oceans, is that correct?”
A – “Yeah. I’m French as well.”
Bizarrely asked to define her own sex, Maxwell was honest in one regard:
Q – “Are you a female, is that the sex that you are?
A – “I am female… I am a 54-year-old woman.”
On sex toys:
Q – “How would you describe sex toys?”
A – “I wouldn’t describe sex toys.”
A – “I need you to define a sex toy, I don’t have enough knowledge of sex toys.”
On her and Jeffrey Epstein’s star-studded address book:
A – “I believe this a copy of a stolen document. I would like to know how you guys got it… You have the stolen document.”
A – “Like everybody, I have an address book.”
Put in her place by the interviewer:
A – “Let’s move on.”
Q – “I’m in charge of the deposition. I say when we move on and when we don’t. You are here to respond to my questions. If you are refusing to answer, the court will bring you back for another deposition to answer these questions. Do you understand that?”
A – “You have got your questions mangled… You have mangled your entire questions… I have to object.”
Q – “You don’t get to object… She is turning into a lawyer already.”
A – “I would like to.”
A – “I apologise sincerely for my banging at the table earlier, I hope you accept my apology.”
Asked if she was responsible for Jeffrey Epstein’s activities and actions, Maxwell replied:
A – “I’m not responsible for what Jeffrey does and I don’t always pay attention to what happens in the house. I’m very busy.”
On whether she ‘recruited’ girls for her boss/lover:
A – “Stop right there. I never recruited girls, let’s stop there. Break down the question.”
Q – “Have you ever said to anybody that you recruit females?”
A – “I don’t recruit anybody.”
A – “I resent and despise the word recruit… I never had to do anything with underage people.”
On whether she ‘recruited’ girls to take the sexual activity pressure off herself:
Q – “Have you ever said to anybody that you recruit other females… to take the pressure you having to have sex with Jeffrey?”
A – “I totally resent it and find it disgusting that you should use the word recruit. I have already told you I don’t know what you are saying and your implication is repulsive.”
A – “I never trained a female under the age of 18 at Jeffrey’s house.”
On her thoughts on the deposition process:
A – “You don’t ask me questions like that. First of all, you are trying to trap me, I will not be trapped.”
A – “Any interest I have is in accuracy. I’m only looking for accuracy.”
A – “Apparently, even saying Virginia is a liar has hazards.”
A – “You are trying to trap me.”
Asked about her interaction with naked people in Epstein’s residences, Maxwell brushed such aside:
A – “Sometimes… I have seen people from time to time take their top off. I have seen people from time to time do that.”
On whether she photographed naked people:
A – “It is possible that I took pictures of people that were somehow semi [nude] or had some clothes on or no clothes on, but at no time were any of those pictures remotely inappropriate… I know where you are headed with this and it’s nowhere appropriate and it’s really unattractive.”
Asked about her interactions with Virginia Giuffre – with whom she flew on private plans on at least twenty occasions and with whom she was pictured in her London home with Prince Andrew – Maxwell clearly lied:
A – “I don’t recall meeting her.”
A – “I wouldn’t recollect meeting her at all but for the tissue stories about this situation.”
A – “I really have no recollection of her.”
A – “I barely recall Virginia, period.”
A – “I don’t recall smoking cigarettes with Virginia Roberts.”
A – “Virginia is a liar… An exaggerator, a fantasist and an absolutely true terrible person.”
A – “I said that there are some things [Virginia] may not have lied about.”
On whether she had sex with Jeffrey Epstein and Virginia Giuffre:
A – “I never ever, at any single time, at any point ever participated in anything with Virginia and Jeffrey. And for the record she is an absolute total liar and you all know she lied on multiple things and that is just one other disgusting thing she added.”
On whether she dined with Virginia Giuffre with Prince Andrew in London at Tramp:
Q – “Do you recall going to dinner with XXX, Jeffrey Epstein and Virginia Roberts in London at any time?”
A – “I do not.”
Q – “Do you recall going to a place called XXX, XXX, Jeffrey Epstein and yourself and Virginia Roberts?”
A – “I would just like to state for the record XXXXXXXX I do not have any recollection of it and I doubt it happened.”
On whether Prince Andrew and Virginia Giuffre had sex in a bath at her Kinnerton Street, Belgravia, London home:
“The tub is too small.”
On whether she and Jeffrey Epstein gave Prince Andrew a Spitting Image puppet of himself and whether they got Virginia Giuffre to “play with him” whilst sitting on his lap:
A – “There was a puppet… A caricature of XXX.”
On Jeffrey Epstein’s sexual activity preferences:
Q – “Does Jeffrey like to have his nipples pinched during sexual encounters?”
A – “I’m not talking about any adult sexual things when I was with him.”
Questioned about the number of occasions she’d flown on the ‘Lolita Express’ and other Epstein planes:
A – “I cannot tell you how many, a lot.”
Asked about a 13-year-old victim of Epstein whom came to one of his residences:
A – “I have no idea how old she was… I have no idea… I don’t hire girls like that.”
Turning to a 14-year old:
Q – “Was she a child?”
A – “I don’t know what you mean if she looked like a child… Leave it at that… You are making stories up again as usual, there would not be any reason why I would ask her how old she was.”
On a total of 30 underage minors allegedly being brought to Jeffrey Epstein’s Palm Beach house:
A – “I cannot testify to 30.”
On whether Jeffrey Epstein abused minors:
A – “I can’t testify what Jeffrey did or didn’t do.”
A – “I never observed Jeffrey having sex with a minor.”
Q – “I’m asking what you believe, from your own belief, do you believe that Jeffrey Epstein abused minors?”
A – “I can only go from what I know personally about what Virginia’s lies talked about. She is the only person I know that actually claimed that. And I can say with certitude that everything Virginia said was a lie.”
A – “I don’t believe [Jeffrey Epstein] was sentenced for [sexual abuse of a minor] actually.”
Asked if she’d ever seen Jeffrey Epstein – with whom she had an intimate relationship with herself – having sex:
A – “I have never seen anybody have sexual intercourse with Jeffrey, ever.”
On whether she was ever in a relationship with Jeffrey Epstein herself:
A – “That’s a tricky question. There were times when I would have liked to think of myself as his girlfriend.”
A – “I don’t think I said I was his girlfriend.”
A – “I don’t think I would ever have characterised myself as his girlfriend.”
A – “I’m sure I would [have] loved anybody to come out and say they were Jeffrey rather than me.”
On whether she was asked to ‘carry’ a baby for Jeffrey Epstein:
A – “I don’t recollect conversation about Jeffrey and babies in any form… I don’t recollect baby conversations with Jeffrey.”
Asked if she’d ‘organised’ for Virginia Giuffre to have sex with others:
A – “I have never instructed Virginia to have sex with anybody, ever.”
On allegedly dressing Viriginia Giuffre up as a school girl when giving massages:
A – “I have no idea what you are talking about… I have no idea what you are talking about… I clearly know what a school girl outfit is. I have no recollection of providing anybody with a school girl outfit.”
On President Clinton being on ‘Paedo Island’ with Virginia Giuffre and herself and whether Jeffrey Epstein dined with him:
“Virginia is absolutely, totally lying. This is a subject of defamation about Virginia and the lies she has told and one of [the] lies she told was that President Clinton was on the island where I was present. Absolutely 1,000 per cent that is a flat out total fabrication and lie.”
“Allegations that XXX had a meal on Jeffrey’s island is 100 per cent false… I’m sure he had a meal on Jeffrey’s plane.”
On why she kept in touch with Jeffrey Epstein after his conviction:
“I’m a very loyal person and Jeffrey was very good to me when my father passed away and I believe that you need to be a good friend in people’s hour of need and I felt that it was very thoughtful, nice thing for me to do.”
On how much she got paid and what benefits she received post Epstein’s conviction:
Q – “Were you paid over a million dollars?”
A – “It was under 500, it was an amount of money less than $500,000, less than a million dollars and I did it out of thoughtfulness and consideration for somebody who was in trouble.”
A – “I don’t recall the details of the cars [I was given].”
A – “I don’t recall any gifts really… I barely recall gifts, I barely recall a lot of this.”
On her legal ‘arrangement’ with Jeffrey Epstein:
Q – “Do you have a joint defence with Jeffrey Epstein?”
A – “I believe I do.”
On her legal ‘arrangement’ with (presumably) Prince Andrew:
Q – “Do you have a joint agreement with XXX?”
A – “I don’t believe I do.”
On what dirt Jeffrey Epstein might have on her:
Q – “What negative, unflattering, private or potentially embarrassing information does Jeffrey Epstein know about you?”
A – “I imagine none.”
A – “I can’t think of anything I have ever done that is illegal… I have a DUI in the UK a long time ago.”
On where Jeffrey Epstein got his wealth:
Q – “Do you know how Jeffrey Epstein made his money?”
A – “No… I have no idea.”
On where she was then living:
“I’m just couch surfing.”
For more fascinating revelations about this ever-developing case, listen to the brilliantly put together The Prince & the Pervert Podcast’ by clicking here.
Mucky Madam Maxwell Unsealed – Ghislaine Maxwell with Jeffrey Epstein at a memorial event for her late conman father Robert Maxwell on 24th November 1991 at the Plaza Hotel in New York.Mucky Madam Maxwell Unsealed – Ghislaine Maxwell is used to having things her way and here she is pictured in her youth tapping away at an early computer. In August 2020, she demanded the prison housing her give her another device and a desk also – her request was unsurprisingly denied.
