Emer Heatley (Showtrial) - Plays Sheila Buckley. John Stonehouse's mistress Sheila Buckley is pictured today (left) some 47 years after she was at the centre of the rogue MP's spectacular downfall when he faked his own death. Hayes, a lawyer, saw a preview of the first episode of the three-part drama and read the scripts as part of a consultation. Given that there were plenty of British passengers on Sheila's flight, and that his face was plastered all over the newspapers, it was a miracle that nobody recognised him. DON'T MISSDavina McCall's appearance sparks concern on The Masked Singer[VIEWER REACTION]Camilla Tominey shuts down This Morning host in probe over Harry[VIDEO]Ruth Langsford shares Eamonn Holmes bedroom confession[INSIGHT]. In the center of this photograph from a nearby Hampshire market town stands Sheila Buckley, an obscure woman who once scandalized British politics by dating John Stonehouse, a Communist traitor turned MP. After her bosses had to rotin the prisons the night, Buckley appeared at Bow Street Judges Courthouse. The following evening, John Stonehouse, Labour MP and privy counsellor, walked from his hotel to the beach in Miami, left his clothes with the beach cabana attendant and effectively vanished off the face of the Earth. Mrs Buckley is about to become much more public after the release of two highly publicized true crime . The drama portrays a honeytrap, but in fact they psychologically groomed him over a period of time. In fact, he was going to start to a new life in Australia with his secretary and mistress Sheila Buckley. Nearer to home, my father was sailing close to the wind with his own export businesses. After all he suffered, he is at peace. In The Real Stonehouse, an ITV documentary released in tandem with the series, retired Metropolitan Police Detective Inspector David Townley described her as a kind, gentle person whod been mesmerised by Stonehouse and dragged into something she shouldnt have gotten involved in., He mentions that Buckley received a suspended sentence of two years for her involvement in the disappearance, having visited Stonehouse on multiple occasions when he was presumed dead. WATCH:Keeley Hawes reveals what it was like to work with husband Matthew Macfadyen on Stonehouse. By the middle of 1974, he had decided he had had enough. Streaming Guide. On 25 March 1988, Stonehouse collapsed on set during an edition of Central Weekend in Birmingham during the filming of a programme about missing people. Again, the rumours were utterly unfounded. But they would cast aspersions on his integrity for the rest of his life. My father said nothing. Stonehouse writer John Preston has revealed the real-life Barbara and Sheila's reaction to the ITV drama, Stonehouse star Matthew Macfadyen reveals concerns ahead of working with wife Keeley Hawes, Stonehouse viewers saying same thing about Matthew Macfadyen drama, Everything you need to know about Keeley Hawes and Matthew Macfadyen's relationship. Barbara and John got married in 1948 when he was just 23 and had three children together: Jane, Julia and Matthew with the couple married for 30 years. READ MORE:Here's a look at the wife of disgraced MP John Stonehouse. . "For all his many flaws as a character, there is an air of innocence about [Stonehouse]. Oblivious to all this, Mr Markham bought a ticket to Copenhagen. Like this story? Great-nephew of MP who faked death in 1974 says there was psychological grooming by Czech spies but no honeytrap. He remembered that in Frederick Forsyth's book The Day Of The Jackal, another identity could be obtained by presenting a birth certificate to the Passport Office. James Swaider. At Melbourne Airport he showed the documentation proving he didn't have tuberculosis. She only found out John had been having an affair after he went missing and she was contacted by a newspaper reporter asking about a rented flat in Westminster. Within a fortnight he was caught due to a suspicious Melbourne bank teller (and initially suspected of being the fugitive Lord Lucan, who had disappeared a fortnight earlier). The Labour MP for Walsall North had been a high-flyer in Harold Wilson's government of 1964 but just years later found himself in financial ruin, in the midst of an extramarital affair and had been questioned by MI5 about spying for the Czech secret service. MORE:Stonehouse star Matthew Macfadyen reveals concerns ahead of working with wife Keeley Hawes. The story of John Stonehouse may be little known stateside, but you almost wouldn't believe the tale told in BritBox's three-part drama Stonehouse spins if it wasn't based on true events. In 1988, he died after a heart attack, aged 62. She was once the glamorous brunette whose lover, the notorious John Stonehouse MP, scandalised Westminster. She went on to say the entire family found the series emotionally damaging and didnt collaborate on it. Sheila Buckley, former secretary to British MP John Stonehouse, outside the Horseferry Road Magistrates' Court, London, 1976. My mother told Sheila he'd had several affairs but always came back to her, adding: 'If he reappears, you're welcome to him. In December 1982, their son James William John was born. Neither Mrs Stonehouse nor Ms Buckley were prepared to give up on him, and Barbara stayed married for several more years. He left a pile of clothes on a hotel beach in Miami to fake his own death in 1974. But she told Sheila: 'If John does turn up and you've got rid of it, it will make him very upset. He loves children.' 2nd Jan 2023, 3:40pm. He had kept from my mother the extent of his money worries. She didn't know anything about it. He imagined himself escaping the world of John Stonehouse and becoming someone else someone without all these difficulties. ', Sheila told my mother she'd been his mistress for a long time, that he loved her and that he waited on her hand and foot. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. Many of the intimate details of Buckleys relationship with Stonehouse were disclosed by Metropolitan Police superintendent David Townley in the docuseriesThe Real Stonehouse. For those who have yet to catch up on the drama, it follows government minister John Stonehouse, who one day in 1974, left his clothes neatly folded up on a Miami beach and walked into the sea, intending to fake his own death. He survived, but on April 14 he was admitted to Southampton General hospital. To flee the enormous debts he had accrued, Stonehouse started a new covert life using a deceased gentleman, called John Markhams passport, while authorities questioned his enigmatic death. . She concluded: My father taught me something invaluable: that the world can be changed if people talk enough and work enough together. The most recent series, Stonehouse, which dramatizes the lives and events surrounding the greatJohn Stonehouse, who has been the Labour minister,has revived memories of the seemingly unforgettably shocking event that shook the nation. But it doesnt stand up to scrutiny and it certainly wasnt believed by the jury in his trial.. He was then extradited to Britain, all the while continuing to serve as one of Parliament's most colourful members. READ MORE:We look at disgraced MP John Stonehouse's family. He'd also concealed from her the fact that for five years he'd been having an affair with his secretary, Sheila Buckley, who at 28 was more than two decades younger than him. The writer has also vigorously defended him after he was suspected of being a spy. Sheila Buckley was John Stonehouse MP secretary who disappeared with him when he faked his own death in 1974 and fled to Australia. But on other occasions the conflict between his various personas left him emotionally exhausted. Nobody had any idea of the degree of my father's mental collapse. Sharp-eyed officials had spotted him coming and going and made a note that he should be treated with extreme caution. Stonehouse was captured by Australian police a little over a month following his disappearance after they originally confused him with Lord Lucan, a nobleman who had vanished 12 days before Stonehouse arrived in Australia after killing a nanny. While in prison Stonehouse suffered from a series of heart attacks and Buckley . John had three children with his first wife Barbara Joan Stonehouse: Julia, Jane and son Mathew. According to the series, Stonehouse, a high-ranking official in Harold Wilson's administration, faked his death by swimming into the sea after disappearing from the beach of a lavish resort in Florida circa November 1974. What happened to John Stonehouse's children? The policeman had been wrong. My father would later acquire copies of birth certificates for both Clive Mildoon and Joseph Markham, and falsely obtain one passport in the name of Markham. Barbara went Down Under on the understanding Sheila wasnt there, however, she was left dismayed when she found the other woman with him. ciccotti center program guide 2022; romantic things to do in hollywood, fl; where is hollis and nancy homestead located (Photo by Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images) John Stonehouse, My Father: The True Story Of The Runaway MP, by Julia Stonehouse, is published by Icon on July 19 at 16.99. All Rights Reserved. Who Does Tanjiro End Up With In Demon Slayer. Morgan Phillips And Tahira Yaqoob For Mailonline, Ministers for monstrous deception: A senior Labour MP who was mired in debt, spying for the Czechs, juggling loyal wife and lovers and faked his own drowningthe story of John Stonehouse told by his great-nephew, It's your mistress or me. Lucan was the other big character the world was looking for at the time, having gone missing in the same month as my father after allegedly killing his children's nanny. He expertly dealt one punch to his wife, kids, oppressive work obligations, and other economic and political allegations. they asked him. Many times he'd respond to the call of his false name and go to various desks to collect the new paperwork. He was first elected as Labour Co-operative Member of Parliament (MP) for Wednesbury in Staffordshire in a 1957 . But only later did Stonehouse's alleged spying activities for Czechoslovakia at the height of the Cold War come to light. In a documentary titled The Real Stonehouse, Metropolitan Police detective inspector David Townley says of Ms Buckley: I thought she was polite a kind, gentle person whod been mesmerised by Stonehouse and dragged into something she shouldnt have got involved in. Wednesday, 1st March 2023See today's front and back pages, download the newspaper, order back issues and use the historic Daily Express newspaper archive. After he failed to return, he was presumed drowned, leaving a wife and three children. Stonehouses daughter Julia maintains that right-wing elements within MI5 made sure the rumour was spread to the press and politicians. His problems were compounded by worsening financial troubles and an affair with his secretary, Sheila Buckley. . There was no sex involved. My handsome, generous and brilliant father had seemed in good spirits that night, and my mother was relieved. Stonehouse airs on Tuesday 3 January at 9pm on ITV. By Sign up to our What to Watch newsletter to get other stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. She stuck by him through his time in prison, and remained with him until his death. After stealing the identities of two deceased men in his constituency to create fake passports, Stonehouse flew to Miami, checked into the Fontainebleau hotel and went for a swim, leaving a pile of clothes on the beach. He was widely assumed to have died from suicide, with his wife saying: All the evidence that weve had points to the fact he was drowned.. He now had seven accounts at four banks. What had begun as a mad escape fantasy was becoming a disturbing reality. Despite the age gap and Stonehouse's frequent philandering, she fell in love with him and married him in 1981 after he divorced his wife Barbara. On behalf of my father, I apologise to the Markham and Mildoon families and hope they can accept that this bizarre behaviour was only brought about by terrible stress and the effects of mind-twisting prescribed drugs. Your email address will not be published. Emer Heatley is an English actress. After stealing the identities of two deceased . 'I didn . 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Just over a month after his disappearance, Stonehouse was arrested in Australia by police who initially mistook him for Lord Lucan, the aristocrat who had gone missing 12 days before Stonehouse did. One was Sheila Buckley, my father's secretary somebody we had known well for years. Side effects include depression, anxiety, paranoia, confusion, poor decision-making and an increased risk of suicide. The immigration officer stamped his passport with a big round print saying 'Permitted to Enter', and said: 'You are one of us, now.'. Upon his release, he married Buckley, and the couple were together until he died in 1988. Matthew Macfadyen best known for playing Tom Wambsgans in Succession and Mr Darcy in Pride and Prejudice plays John Stonehouse, a Labour politician who spent almost two decades as an MP. During this meeting, Sheila knew John was alive after having spent the weekend with him. It was an incredible act for a former government. When Msr Stonehouse threatened to leave her husband if Ms Buckley stayed, he threatened to kill himself, then collapsed into Sheila's arms and his wife realised he had made his choice, according to Hayes. For him, a new uncluttered life seemed within reach. In 1988, he died after a heart attack,. After divorcing his loving wife Barbara Smith and marrying his mistress Sheila Buckley, Stonehouse attempted to turn his life around, but died at the age of 62. The script was written by John Preston, whose credits include A Very English Scandal, about the Jeremy Thorpe affair, which became a TV drama starring Hugh Grant, and The Dig, about the archaeological site Sutton Hoo, which was made into a 2021 film starring Ralph Fiennes and Carey Mulligan. 'I could see it all clearly,' he later wrote. Sheila is now in her 80s and is said to leave a sedate life gardening and helping clients with their tax returns, The Daily Mail reported in 2021. 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