Who was Cecil Parkinson? All about the MP featured in C5’s A Very British Sex Scandal: The Love Child & The Secretary?
CECIL Parkinson’s successful career under Margaret Thatcher came crashing down due to his 12-year affair with his secretary.
Learn all about the former MP whose scandal is explored in a new Channel 5 documentary, A Very British Sex Scandal: The Love Child & The Secretary.
Who was Cecil Parkinson?
Cecil Parkinson was a British Conservative Party politician and cabinet minister.
He was born at 4 Edward Street, Carnforth, in Lancashire on September 1, 1931.
The former MP was educated at Lancaster Royal Grammar School before gaining a scholarship to Cambridge University.
He read English at Emmanuel College but later switched to read law.
After leaving university, he worked as a manager for the Metal Box Company, later becoming a consultant.
He then trained and qualified as a chartered accountant, and founded Parkinson-Hart Securities in 1961.
In 1970, he entered Parliament and was appointed a minister in Margaret Thatcher‘s first government in May 1979.
He successfully managed the Conservative Party’s 1983 election campaign and became Secretary of State for Trade and Industry.
Why did Cecil Parkinson resign?
Parkinson resigned over a lovechild scandal with his former secretary, Sara Keays in October 1983.
Keays published a statement in The Times newspaper at the time to “put the record straight” regarding the nature of their relationship.
She said: “I told him that while I accepted the fact he was not going to marry me, I could not deny my baby his right to know the identity of his father.
“My baby was conceived in a long-standing, loving relationship which I had allowed to continue because I believed in an eventual marriage.”
Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher had initially stood by his Parkinson’s side but accepted his offer of resignation at the Conservative party conference.
If he loved me, he would want to see me and be in my everyday life”
Flora Keays
Parkinson managed to save his existing marriage with his wife Ann Mary Jarvis after the 12-year affair.
The couple, who wed in 1957, had three daughters: Mary, Emma and Joanna.
Parkinson returned to government in 1987.
Who was Cecil Parkinson’s secretary, Sara Keays?
Sara Keays was the former mistress and personal secretary of Parkinson.
According to her, Parkinson twice proposed to her but each time changed his mind.
Their lovechild, Flora Keays, was born on New Year’s Eve in 1983.
I told him that while I accepted the fact he was not going to marry me, I could not deny my baby his right to know the identity of his father.
Sara Keays
After court orders to protect her privacy until 18, she appeared on Channel 4 in January 2002 saying she missed knowing her father.
She said: “If he loved me, he would want to see me and be in my everyday life. I think my father has behaved very badly towards me.”
Flora suffered epileptic fits as a small child and at the age of four had surgery to remove a brain tumour.
As a result of having her right frontal lobe removed, she was left with serious social and learning difficulties.
She also has Asperger’s syndrome.
Parkinson himself has never denied that Flora was his daughter but the two had never met.
Sara published her own book about the controversy, A Question of Judgement, in 1985.
What happened to Cecil Parkinson?
Parkinson died of cancer on January 22, 2016, at the age of 84.
He formally retired from the House of Lords in September 2015, as he battled his illness.
We also salute his extraordinary commitment to British public life as a member of parliament, cabinet minister and peer – together with a distinguished career in business.
A family spokesman
Announcing his passing, a family spokesman said: “Cecil passed away on 22 January after a long battle with cancer. We shall miss him enormously.
“As a family, we should like to pay tribute to him as a beloved husband to Ann and brother to Norma, and a supportive and loving father to Mary, Emma and Joanna and grandfather to their children.
“We also salute his extraordinary commitment to British public life as a member of parliament, cabinet minister and peer – together with a distinguished career in business.”
How to watch A Very British Sex Scandal: The Love Child and The Secretary
A Very British Sex Scandal: The Love Child and The Secretary will land on the box on May 1, 2024.
It will air from 9 pm on Channel 5.
Fear not if you miss the documentary as it will become available to watch on My5 after it has aired.
A look at who stars in the documentary.
Edwina Currie
Edwina Currie is a British writer, broadcaster and former politician.
She served as a Conservative Party Member of Parliament for South Derbyshire from 1983 until 1997.
She is best known for her Currie outspoken nature, with a reputation for being “highly opinionated”.
Matthew Parris
Matthew Francis Parris is a political writer and broadcaster.
He was the Conservative MP for the parliamentary constituency of West Derbyshire from 1979 to 1986.
He eventually left politics to pursue a career in journalism.
Ian Hislop
Ian David Hislop is a Welsh journalist, satirist, and television personality.
He has been the editor of the satirical magazine Private Eye since 1986.
He is best known for his appearance on every episode of the satirical current affairs quiz show, Have I Got News for You.