Profumo secrets of Scots witness
Mystery surrounds the fate of dominatrix who defied cops
Christine Keeler. Stephen Ward. John Profumo.
Their names have become part of the mythology of British politics because of the sex scandal which brought down Harold MacMillan’s Tory government in the 60s and rocked the UK to its moral core.
And they are becoming relevant to a whole new audience thanks to BBC ratings hit The Trial of Christine Keeler, which concludes tonight.
Ronna Ricardo is a name unknown to most viewers – indeed, only real Profumo geeks understand its relevance.
But Scottish-born Ricardo – aka Ronna The Lash – had a crucial role to play in the unfolding farrago.
Last week ’ s episode revealed she had been coerced by the police into giving false evidence at the trial of Profumo scapegoat Dr Stephen Ward for living off immoral earnings.
Despite the brief air time she was given, Ricardo – a prostitute and dominatrix – played more than just a bit part in the notorious affair and knew all the protagonists personally.
The sex worker was friends with Keeler, whose simultaneous relationships with secretary of state for war John Profumo and Sov iet nava l at taché Captain Yevgeny Ivanov during the Cold War was seen as a threat to national security.
Some believe Ricardo was the only one of Ward’s girls to tell the truth at his trial, where he was found guilty, bringing him the blame for corrupting Profumo.
Nea r ly 6 0 yea rs on , her whereabouts is unknown but those who knew her, both during the trial and in the years that followed, agree she was a larger-than-life character with a moral compass.
Author Stephen Dorril interviewed Ricardo in 1987 for his book Honeytrap, which threw light on just how appallingly the women involved in the Profumo Affair were treated.
He said: “Ronna was a much more important character in the scandal and trial than most people realise. She was also very brave as she risked everything to retract the earlier evidence she gave at Stephen Ward’s trial.
“The police had forced her to bear false testimony against Ward by threatening to take her baby and younger sister into care but she went with her conscience and told the truth – and that took some guts.
“She also knew Ward really well. She wasn’t one of the girls he would take and mould into a suitable candidate for marriage to an aristocrat but he would ask her to come along to key events, including to Lord Astor’s house Cliveden, where Christine first met Profumo in 1961. It was also here that Ronna was introduced to Ivanov.”
Stephen, who co-wrote his book with Anthony Summers , added: “Ronna maintained Keeler never went to bed with the shy Russian and just lay about looking pretty in her underwear. She also said her own role was to be Ivanov’s minder and that the authorities wanted to get him into a position where they could blackmail him.
“Ronna was also adamant Christine Keeler was a prostitute at one stage, which was confirmed at the trial when one of her punters gave evidence, but this has not been addressed in the TV series.
“She also told us Chief Inspector Samuel Herbert – the policeman leading the investigation into Ward – was one of her clients and it was him who put the most pressure on her to lie and say she had been paid £25 by Stephen after sleeping with a man at his Wimpole Mews home.”
Stephen admits he is not a big fan of the
BBC series and wishes they had covered more of Ronna’s story and the fate of the other girls who gave evidence in the trial.
He said: “Two of the women – Frances Brown and Hannah Tailford – who gave evidence in court were murdered the following year by a serial killer who became known as Jack The Stripper. Another, Julie Gulliver, took an overdose
of sleeping pills in 1972.”
Tom Mangold – the Daily Express journalist who bought up both Ward and Ricardo during the trial – is also a fan of Ronna and speaks about her in his documentary Keeler, Profumo, Ward and Me, which airs tonight at 10pm on BBC2.
It was Tom, now 85, who convinced
Ronna risked it all to retract the earlier evidence that she gave at Ward’s trial
Ricardo to change her testimony. He said: “She was the only one who told the truth and Stephen really appreciated it. I was with him the night before he died and, in a suicide note to his agent, Pelham Pound, he left instructions for £500 to be given to Ronna. He had Ronna Ricardo’s honesty on his mind when he died.
“I really liked her. She had a great sense of humour and was very entertaining. She had ACAB tattooed on her knuckles, which she told me stood for All Coppers Are B******s.
“She was a good person and, after confessing to me that her first testimony in court was all lies, I convinced her to tell the truth. Even though she was afraid of getting done for perjury, she was as good as her word.
“It was sad the truth had no impact as the judge declared that she was to be treated as a hostile witness but she was happy to have squared her conscience. This was a girl who was a full- time prostitute but she had a moral compass.”
Both Stephen and Tom would love to know what happened to Ricardo, who specialised in flagellation and was said to carry a whip in her handbag.
Former university lecturer Stephen said: “I’ve made some enquiries about Ronna in the last 10 years but no one has heard anything. I assume she has died. The last time I spoke to her was in 1987. She was in her mid 40s and still on the game.
“In 1963, after Stephen Ward’s suicide, she had gone to the States with ‘ Silky’ Hawkins, an American airman with whom she had a child, but she didn’t stay long.
“She returned to London in 1964 after being hassled by the FBI and CIA because of her connections to the Profumo scandal and Ivanov. She told me she was advised her departure would be best for all involved.
“One thing about Ronna – she was an honest person and never denied she was a prostitute. She never spoke about her Scottish heritage but she had a rough Scottish accent.”