The Trial of Christine Keeler.

Yes he did, but he wasn’t an innocent victim was he?

We had police and social workers turning their backs on abused children in the last decade, these were not privileged
people.

And your point is annie ?

suziewoozy that was my take on Stephen Ward too I felt it wasn’t so much about any punishment he may or may not have got but his loss of status which made him make the decision to not face things He had spent a lot of years ‘enjoying’ a very hedonistic lifestyle
chestnut he didn’t pay the ultimate price that would have been imprisonment or some kind of punishment but he opted to control his own end, he wasn’t mentally ill he had the choice in his own hands and chose to make his own ending to his story
If someone is mentally ill and takes their life in desperation it’s very very different to someone who just prefers to not be punished or face life without the perks they re used to
Dr Shipman, Fred West come to mind (I m not comparing him to them just saying it’s the same mindset in my opinion)

Yes, that was my take too.
He also introduced them to sex, albeit briefly, then to powerful men.

Is anyone else as impressed by James Norton’s portrayal of Ward as I am? Last night moved even my stony heart to sympathy for a man whose superficial values meant he had nothing left to live for. I thought Norton was amazing, and added yet another complicated man to his portfolio of villains and saints. A true star.

James Norton for James Bond, anyone?

I think he'd make a great Bond!

Much too good an actor for Bond but I expect it would be a career maker!

Rather than see James Norton as James Bond - although I am certain he would be excellent, I would much rather that he continued playing these amazing character parts - may not be quite so financially lucrative but so much more fulfilling for the fine actor that he undoubtedly is - we shall see

James Norton has been excellent as Stephen Ward, and has shown all the nuances of his character, I think. It's been a great part for him.

Amazing as he would be as James Bond I too would rather he played interesting characters so we can enjoy the quality of his acting. I watched him tonight and the final death scene was so moving.

The great and the good - so called - certainly do not come out of this sorry saga covered in glory. I felt sorry for Ward at the time and thought the portrayal by James Norton in this series has been masterly. Desperately sad end for him, whatever his pretensions in RL. His high and mighty 'friends' not only dumped him but conspired at his demise. Despicable. I believe this behaviour still prevails today, as in the case of PB.

Blinko. I believe it’s happening now with Andrew. I can imagine in 50 years time documentaries/ dramas about the Epstein set and all the cover ups involved.

James Norton has been wonderful in this, giving layers and complexity to Ward. It was so sad last night seeing the scales fall from his eyes as he realised he had never been an integral part of the upper crust social set he had built his life around. When the chips were down they closed ranks and abandoned him. His life must have seemed so meaningless and pathetic at that moment.

I'm not sure that the actress playing Christine has really captured her that well. She's coming across as quite hard and unpleasant and I've always imagined her as being a more vulnerable and naive person.

Yes Beswitched JN’s performance has been stunning - so nuanced. You’ve put your finger on my unease with the CK role - it doesn’t quite work for me .

She's coming across as quite hard and unpleasant and I've always imagined her as being a more vulnerable and naive person.

I thought she was coming across as a bit thick.

Suziewoosie, most men of that period, up to the 70s, and later, were more influential than women. Women were blamed more than men for promiscuity. Ward had the advantage of being a white male. He was not a pimp, just a sexually liberated man. Sexual liberation was less good for women than for men.
There was not a prudish but a sexist imbalance .

If there is a drama in 50 years time about Epstein, none of us will be watching and commenting methinks!

The last episode is on tomorrow night and after that at 10pm on BBC2 is 'Keeler, Profumo, Ward and Me' which looks interesting. It's by a young journalist who reported on the case at the time. There's also a big article about the series and the case in this week's Radio Times.

We loved it. Great to see the story from a different direction. Great acting.

Great dramatisation of Christine Keeler’s Story. I agree that James Norton was quite brilliant as Stephen Ward. Ward worked with Mi6 , so was abandoned by them as well as the establishment.
I thought the portrayal of Christine was good. A mixture of toughness and vulnerability. Damaged by her childhood experiences, seeking excitement and freedom using whatever she could to achieve it.
Her legal representative’s summing up was spot on. She’d been 16 -17 when she arrived in London, a child to be used and exploited. Evidently, she refused to be seen as a victim though towards the end of her life she accepted her lawyer was right

Was Mandy Rice Davies a victim ?

Annie, your views on Christine Keeler have been expressed often.
Yes imo both were victims - 16 year olds working as exotic dancers with no parental guidance. They’d both been subjected to abuse when younger. They were just the level of beauty, vulnerability, sassiness as vulnerable to sexual exploitation. They found their new lives exciting. Mandy Rice Davies was more resilient than Keeler. That’s life

Iam unlike you I don’t think all 17 year olds are / were victims, all 17 year olds who were/ are nightclub hostesses victims.

Exactly Annie, doesn’t matter how often we discuss it, we see this differently. I don’t see all 16 or 17 year olds as victims but I do believe this drama showed the complexity of the situation. Two girls out for some fun and freedom. They got some of that but at a price, especially for Christine.